Though midnight is near, walk with me awhile.
I will, my king, under the moon’s wide smile.
And so will I, until dawn’s arrival.
Advise me well, my most trusted council.
Tomorrow we must engage in battle!
Nay! For all our army will be trampled!
Divided you are, that does not bode well.
Waging war is far more honorable!
Not risking lives is more responsible!
Look up! Do you see it? A great grey owl!
Of wisdom and good luck it’s a symbol!
False! It’s an omen of death and evil!
Rare sight indeed, but perhaps just an owl?
To march ahead boldly, it’s a signal!
It means turn back and avoid the blood spill!
Forgive me, but I doubt it’s that simple.
It’s white! See the floating feather gleam pale!
It’s black! Against the snow it’s dark as shale!
When I see grey, you see things clear as crystal.
As king you should be brave and dutiful!
A king ought to be clever and careful!
But how to know what’s best for my people?
Weigh the options on discernment’s scale.
Let reason prevail, consider it all.
By my choice the kingdom will rise or fall.
About the Creator
D.K. Shepard
Character Crafter, Witty Banter Enthusiast, World Builder, Unpublished novelist...for now
Fantasy is where I thrive, but I like to experiment with genres for my short stories. Currently employed as a teacher in Louisville.
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More stories from D.K. Shepard and writers in Poets and other communities.
Standing While Falling
Quotation from Friedrich Nietzsche "He who wrestles long with monsters should beware lest he himself become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. Man is not destroyed by suffering, but by the meaning he makes of it."
By LUCCIAN LAYTH7 days ago in Critique
Comments (13)
Absolutely brilliant! Loved the balance between the opposing views: ‘ When I see grey, you see things clear as crystal. As king you should be brave and dutiful! A king ought to be clever and careful!’🩵
I think Dharrsheena and Lamar’s comments are spot on. Impressive work!
Love the take on the challenge! I say you challenged yourself and accomplished what you set out to do.
Magnificent!!! Loved your performance dialogue poem!!!💕❤️❤️
Whoaaaaa, a threesome and you still managed to make it rhyme while maintaining a smooth flow! You are freaking brilliant!
Really, really lovely work D.K.!! Hard to work out the right paths through those grey areas... ;)
That's some pressure!
What a concept! I loved your execution here and your unique style.
Is it like you're inside the king's head and these are the two perspectives he has to balance? Whatever, it's thought-provoking and very well put together.
very VERY nice and what an unexpected concept of peace or war. GREAT writing.
Oof, the pressure! Must have been tough to pull off, but it flowed well and the voices are distinct 😁👍
Oooooh. I never thought about doing a threeway thing...well played, DK! This is very clever and I love the olde-worlde phrasing in places to help give it an authentic edge.
You advised with a nice option hehe! Nice work DK!!!