The Dark Horse~by Karen King

 

 

The Dark Horse

I stopped when I saw him.
I had strong sense of déjà vu.
My winter walk was disturbed as
Memories came flooding back.

Memories of the castle with its stone arches,
Cobwebs clinging to my face
While I took stumbling steps in
The devouring darkness, whilst serenaded by demons.
Thoughts of an old, lost, knight
With tarnished armour travelled around my mind
In maddening circles.
High castle walls, flickering flames on the walls,
The piercing cries of vengeful ghosts.
The chorus of crows gathering around me,
as if waiting for my death.

How did I enter
This cold, callous castle,
Which was surrounded by the
Foreboding, forbidding,
Malevolent moat?
Then, I remembered.
It was as if I had been
Visited by a magnificent story teller,
For the previous night
Had been full of terror and excitement.
It looked like the dream weaver was
Hard at work that night!

A dark stallion had
Flown to me across the Heavens and
Arrived in my room the night before.
I wondered how it has reached me
As it didn’t have wings.
The horse had snorted, derisively,
And told me it didn’t need wings
To astral travel. Any more than I did!

My horse said he was my animal guide
And he would guide me through
My waking hours and at night.
This was why I kept hearing talk of
And seeing black horses,
My animal guide had been trying to
Communicate with me.

When my horse arrived, I had looked,
expectantly, around for my knight.
But he was nowhere to be seen.
The horse whinnied,
Flapped its ears, swished its tail
And kicked its hooves, impatiently.
It was trying to tell me something.
“Your knight is waiting for you
In his castle. You don’t need him
To travel at night. I am your animal guide
I will help you travel through the
Different dimensions.”
I was amazed, I had just heard the horse
Talk to me, yet this was not some
Ventriloquist act, for his mouth hadn’t moved.
The words had popped into my head
As thoughts, yet they were also
Outside myself at the same time.
I knew in my heart that these words
Came from this strong stallion.

I had been taken aback, however,
And the horse scratched the floor
With its hoof and made a snorting sound
With its nostrils in an impatient manner,
While I stood, dumbstruck.
It told me to get onto its back
And we would travel to my Knight’s castle.
My flying guide took me on an amazing adventure
To a dark, dangerous place,
Full of wandering bodies with no heads,
Searching, endlessly, along the cold corridors,
As if looking for the part of them that was missing.
Rats ran riotously around and squealed at our arrival.
Owls hooted hauntingly and furiously flew past my face,
Brushing me with their feathers.
The smell of despair and neglect reached my nostrils and
both scared and depressed me.
Finally, I reached my Knight.

My Knight was sitting at his wooden table
In The Great Hall, his armour precariously displayed
All around him on the walls.
Suits of armour still sparkled from his
Days of former glory.
He appeared to be drinking something
Which smelt strongly of mead.
His head was in his hands.

He looked up, slowly, when he heard our arrival
And gave me a sad smile.
He exclaimed, “I am sorry, dear, I don’t know
What has happened to me. I cannot feel anything
For you anymore. I think I have lost my heart.
I feel like it has fallen into an abyss and will never recover.
I am so sorry”.
I sat down, shocked and upset, a tear rolling down my cheek
And said, angrily, “Perhaps you didn’t have one in the first place!”
He looked crestfallen. My animal guide looked on,
Surprisingly quiet, with its head cocked on one side.

“Take his armour off and discover the man inside,”
My horse, defiantly, said inside my head.
I collapsed onto the bench, defeated.
My strong, supportive, guide
Stood next to me, breathing heavily and,
Whinnying in frustration.
I gazed at my handsome horse and felt love
For this spiritual, special, animal.
“Go on, take off his amour” my animal guide urged.

Despondently, I walked over to my Knight
And gently touched his armour,
Carefully removing it.
Resignedly, he let me continue,
But he seemed beyond help.
My handsome horse stood by me,
Sending me love and urging me to continue.
I removed all his armour and his gauntlets
And placed them on the table.

My Knight turned towards me,
Pushed his mead away and smiled,
Gratefully. He said he felt much better.
He felt loved and at peace.
“Perhaps I have a heart after all?” he mused.

He took my hand and smiled, gratefully.
He told me he needed time alone.
He told me to find my way alone.
I hesitated, then turned away, feeling dejected.

My horse came to me,
I climbed onto his back
And we took to the skies once more.
I looked down at my Knight’s castle
And saw it was transformed.
No longer was it dark and forbidding.
The moat appeared magical
As it sparkled white in the moonlight.
The castle was bathed in golden light,
As if touched by the sun
And angelic beings.

We swiftly returned to my room.
I was told, “I am here for you.
Whenever you need help
Or have a question,
Come and find me.
I will help you.”

“Where can I find you?” I asked.
“You will know when you see me”,
Was my beloved friend’s reply.
With that, he flew through the wall and
Into the darkness of the night.

I was left, wondering, how I would cope.
My Knight was following his own path
And I had to follow mine,
But where would I find my trusted companion?

That afternoon, my question was answered,
For there he was in the field,
As if he had been waiting
For me and my wishes all along.

“Erotic Writes, Passionate Knights”
Venetia Venus Copyright 2015