Antique Lyrics of Arda

[Walküre]

ELDER MIGHT

The Mountain shall her pass conceal,
To stun the traveller on wheel,
Or freeze the feet of prouder guest
About the baleful crimson crest.

A dormant Forest harbours wrath
And trees she herds on sylvan path,
Awaiting some to loud acclaim
The fall of axes, made to maim.

Another power fain resides
Near the root of peaceful tides,
Deep within a vale of mirth:
Abode of nature's beaming birth.

Horrors lurk underneath,
Where have mourners placed a wreath
For the honouring of mines,
Inside the cave; below the pines.

'Tis one sort of elder might,
Born afore the starry night;
Ere evilness befell.
Ere Angels crafted bell.

**********

LAY OF SUNLESS TIMES

Flawless Elda, now bespeak:
What were shadows then to wreak?
Which the semblance of thy scare,
Haunting dream and mirthless mare?

By the Lake the First awoke,
Blooming goodness of a folk;
Astir they Wonders thus beheld,
When Varda's radiance cloud had felled.

Yet peril lay, in ore enshrined.
Round frigid heights, by foulness mined.
Thence came a Ghoul, a gruesome Wight,
Ordained to mar the starlit night.

The darksome Fiend of our tale
Crept unseen, at end of dale;
He took the unwary unto cave
For evil work of art so grave.

Wherefore Children turned to beast,
Doomed on flesh to wildly feast.
Monstrous ogres rose from pit,
Serving demon's malice-writ.

Ere the Knight vastness rode,
Seeking Fairies, right in mode,
Ye encountered Him of old:
Wicked Rider, black and bold.

Cunning captor, willed to chain
Thine eternity with pain,
Deeming very better deed
The vile unmaking of one's creed.

Manwë's Lightning struck his fort,
Smiting devilry and dirt.
Heavens thundered; reddened skies;
Shires relished, shorn of lies.

'Twas the Lay of sunless time,
Sung in verse, entailing rhyme.
Epic story, fine to treasure,
Shall in sureness win thy pleasure.

O my dweller, hither come!
Hark the trumpet! Hail the drum!
March in Valimar the Great,
Ever-Mistress of thy fate!

[Walküre]

AN AGELESS FAY

Inside the Green
An ageless Fay
Is known as being
Of olden day.

Revere the Dame!
Obey the Lord!
So grand a fame
Surpasses word.

No trace of toil
Upon her face;
No barren soil
For Elven-grace.

It ill behoves
Men abroad
To hail as coves
Queens to laud.

Tall and white,
She will divine
Encroaching fright
Or omen-sign.

**********

LAST OF ROYAL BLOOD

Last of ancient royal blood!
A lonesome wandering in reed;
Accustomed well to mire-weed;
The untidy pilgrim, sunk in mud.

A shack he finds aright
To shelter eyes and feet,
Relying on the night
To cool diurnal heat.

Some sacred lore inhabits
The sentinel of limits.
It brings us back to you,
O sea-lord ruling blue!

[Walküre]

I QUESTION STARS

I question stars to tell me all.
What happens, pray, behind that wall?
Which foul device assume of ill
His feral monsters, bred to kill?

I covet ken and keener gaze;
I wish I knew such land of blaze.
They spoke of glaring flame therein;
Fell it grew. We may not win.

I long for craft to wisely show
The fiery wave. The molten flow.
The Seeing Stones, I here confide,
Will plain reveal the opposing side.

I have observed perennial dullness;
It fed a malice: woeful vileness.
I fear the Tower, his dreary seat;
The ash is ruin to corn and wheat.

I lie distressed, rent and torn.
The Steward governs, yet forlorn.
Anguish shall corrode my trust,
Akin to rocks, then ground to dust.

**********

BE IT FEST TO EVER HAIL

The glass we raise to cheer
A wiseman, brave and dear,
In hour apt for fun,
When hazard we fain shun.

May beer abound!
Fill the jugs around!
Hobbits yearn remembrance,
Glad in mode and semblance.

Be it fest to ever hail
As event befalling vale,
Where we cherish quiet life,
Faraway and void of strife.

Ah, the joys of queer story,
Firelit and fraught with glory!
Troll and drake us await,
Once provisioned, till we're sate.

Many tales endearing ears,
Meant to stir the common's fears,
Albeit willing to disclose
Foreign tidings, full of woes.

[Walküre]

GONE, DECAYED

Gone, decayed. 'Twas the fate of Light.
A sudden coldness fell, inviting sombre night.
Two Trees had risen, the miracle of Powers,
Enshrined herein secure, behind mighty towers.

The Enemy knew well, to deal the fatal strike,
Assisted by a Beast, kindred fiend alike.
They ventured unto fields, pure and blessing-laden,
Intent to poison Green, defying Lord and Maiden.

Swathing chill occurred, gripping Havens faint.
Grieving sailors wept, for the scourge of taint.
Noon had soon eclipsed, as a waning dream,
Leaving Elves adrift, by the ocean's stream.

"Stay thy bursting ire, Noldo of the West!
Thou mayest not prevail, nor higher kinds contest!"
Saith thus the Ancient King, sovereign ever-just;
He shall reign supreme, evermore to last.

**********

PAPER WISELY STOWED

Paper wisely stowed,
In the ancient mode,
Findeth proper use
Past the River's blues.

Mesmerising hue;
Gleaming summer-dew.
An anointed Ravine
Much inspireth craving.

Might another kingdom
Treasure equal saintdom?
Might a fairer shrine
Offer food and wine?

Not on dying Shore,
Deeply scarred afore,
Shall we have a place
Vying so by grace.

Books conserve the lay,
Sung in olden Day,
At the time of might
And relentless plight.

[Walküre]

THE FORAY FOR THE FLOWER

'The Foray for the Flower'
In the gravest hour,
Thitherto presented
By the fate resented.

Happed in truth a deed
Off the Isle of Greed,
Strangled by the sin
Festering therein.

So we call the tale!
Him we shall bewail!
Afore the Ruling Ring
We need his merit sing.

Under sham disguise,
Passing guard and lies,
Climbed the Prince a tower:
Seat of cruel power.

Ere the fiendish Priest
Swung his deadly fist,
Took the Heir with him
Seed decayed dim.

It was a feeble piece,
Reminiscent of the Bliss,
Brought of old aboard
From the Land of Lord.

Then a Sapling grew
In the World of Rue,
There to well remind
Of a grander kind.

**********

'TIS TIME: RELEASE THE BRAID!

I pray to staunch confide
In fiercest knightly ride;
I pray and skies beseech
To silence raven-screech.

'Tis time: release the braid!
The rider chains unmade.
I wave and spur the reins
Towards my ruthless banes.

Horsemen, forth ye charge!
Wearisome and large
Hath the raider's fury
Wanted us to bury.

It doth me regal honour
To anew display the colour.
It did me tenfold gladder
To set aflame the ladder.

The Deep we shan't forsake.
Ruin the Sun! Wake the drake!
I were to blemish all,
If ogres broke the wall.

[Walküre]

GLORIOUS SMITHS WERE PROUD

Winding through the fen,
Passing lair and den,
Slumber there some fells:
Lonely holly-dells.

Harpers used to find
Great delight of mind
By recounting fain
Elder wright-domain.

Glorious smiths were proud
To labour all around;
Beryls came to be,
East beyond the sea.

Roads united Elf
To mighty Dwarrowdelf,
For every tale to laud,
From home to far abroad.

The entrance to the mine
Shall open via sign:
"Await the moonlit ray
To grave a door in clay."

**********

A GATE TO GLOOM

It darkened so uncouth.
From yeoman's eager mouth
Was uttered cheerless ode
To ruined mount-abode.

They delved alone in rock;
They later fled amok.
A fire burst and roared;
Too deep the Dwarf had bored.

Shut the ancient way,
Routes we fare astray
Without a ruling one
To comfort Durin's son.

Putrid ponds belie
Horrendous cavern-cry;
Rotting waters mask
The void inside the dusk.

Holly spread around,
Over failing ground,
While disgraces loom
By the gate to doom.

[Walküre]

WHO MAY TRAVERSE THE DARK?

Who may traverse the Dark?
Who may revive the bark
Of weeping sallow trees
That shiver during breeze?

Some creature there resides
Beneath the dirty tides,
Down a sombre pool
Luring but the fool.

A crawling sea of snakes,
As perilous as drakes;
Its eyes lurk and crave
The intruder wading wave.

Crossing Moria's wall
Unto dreary hall
Shall perhaps awaken
Nightmares, long forsaken.

One ought not to travel
Paths divining evil;
One had better stay
Out of sullen way.

**********

'TIS NOT SERFDOM

'Tis not thy serfdom or despair.
'Tis not the bondage of the Fair.
'Tis not a golden gaol herein.
'Tis not a contest ye may win.

Thou might'st not withstand the quest.
Thou dost mischief to sow unrest.
Thou needest now and true atone.
Thou shalt repent and fight alone.

We are to Shore and Isle conceal.
We seek a punishment to deal.
We thus decree the Regent's word.
We but a King revere as lord.

They fell while guarding Ship and Haven.
They pearls and ports with blood had graven.
They ever sang and danced of old.
They greatly yearned the mortal world.

I warn you all by malediction.
I send my speech and not inscription.
I rule the greyness of demise.
I may assume the phantom-guise.

[Walküre]

I THUS FORGAVE

I thus the Smith forgave,
If Valar willed to save
The continent in plight
From dull perpetual night.

My vessels will depart
Whence mourned of grief the heart,
Yet solemnly I swear
To never join the flare.

No foot we are to set
Upon the hither-shore;
No mariner we let
That ghoulish fief explore.

Remembrance burneth still
Of tragedy occurred;
It then descended chill,
By avarice bestirred.

**********

GIVE ME RAIN! GIVE ME TEAR!

Give me rain! Give me tear!
Wash away deceitful smear!
Send thy raging howling storm
Agin the breaker of the norm!

Unsullied ruler, I beseech:
Whither Eagles farthest reach,
Order fowls my kin to avail,
Carrying messengers by gale.

Grant us pardon, beg I thee,
O sheerest lord beyond the sea;
I dread the rumbling of thunder.
Mirthless clouds me ever render.

Devout I shall in faith remain,
For pity nought hath done in vain,
And even destinies will bend
To fateful Mariner's amend.

[Walküre]

MY PEREGRINE OLD FRIEND

My peregrine old friend,
I met thee long ago.
Thy visits well portend
To ameliorate the woe.

The pain I come to suffer
Into wearied heart,
When season groweth stiffer
At eerie sundown-start.

Of deeds I oft bethink:
Of voyages afar;
The much impervious brink
We trod beneath the Star.

We passed the cave for good,
Inhabited by Orc.
We battled evil brood
Through brave united work.

My lauded fearless mage,
I shall await thy coming,
And wherefore will the sage
Appear in radiant morning.

**********

GRACIOUS HARPER IN THE NIGHT

Gracious Harper in the night,
But a Wraith commanding fright
Hath appeared out of gloom
In the like of speaking doom.

What shall verily occur?
Is the world but scare and blur?
I think not, beaming sire,
Lest of lie resound the lyre.

Thy melody awoke
My feral mongrel-folk.
The Late covet joy
Which never climes alloy.

Lead us thither, thee we pray!
Take the sourness away!
We swear to hinder darkling being,
Who much on perfidy is keen.

[Walküre]

IN SACRED DEITY

In sacred deity, I vow to trust;
Be I to fade, reduced to dust.
Elder Crown of western plain,
To thee no rival might be bane.

I would ye were the Prince to avail,
Your mourning servant under flail,
By force of thundering decree
And so ferocious roar of Sea.

Yonder liest thou, sacrosanct and bright!
Ever fowls repose, into virgin light!
Redeem the fault upon the marred;
Be trumpets tale of Elven-bard.

Move the currents! Shake the abyss!
Rout thine Enemy amiss!
Whirl the wave and crack profound
Sinful continents around!

Which disgrace will hence destroy
Evil's foul demonic ploy?
Which intrigue thou art to cease
Amid the sadly swathing pleas?

**********

MAN I LOVE AND CHERISH

Man I love and cherish,
Wishing fain to stay
Out of ill or blemish
In the vile affray.

Father, give him time.
He shall travel north.
Valour shall be rhyme
Glorifying his worth.

[Walküre]

REIGN IN BANE

Conflict shall betide,
Ignominious and snide,
Over wasting land
Foundered into sand.

Tribesmen proudly reign
In the midst of bane,
Taming beast for use
Through deceptive ruse.

**********

STRIP HIM BARE!

Feel! His filthy magic fadeth.
Lo! Shepherd rivers wadeth.
On the burnt I swore to bring
Wrath and havoc to the Ring.

The Ring of walls embracing vale,
Whose Tower drew tempestuous gale,
Shall live and bear the grief of ruin
Upon the Sorcerer's undoing.

I freed the water from its cage,
Allowing currents round to rage
For grave defeat and whole demise
Befalling quick a former Wise.

Trees besieged, the keep to seize,
And ended so the fetid breeze
That once emerged from under-pit:
A work of treachery, not wit!

The Forest spoke; woods rebelled.
We crushed the stone; Orcs we felled.
I bellowed stern, as potent flare:
"O boundless tide, strip him bare!"

[Walküre]

YE LET ME FREE!

How shall I contest thy Might?
The Green hath spoken, not aright.
The vanquished asketh, nonetheless,
That victors be not merciless.

Roots aggrieved, hark me clear:
I am renowned as great a seer.
I glimpsed a future far away
That grave obscurity will lay.

Ye let me free! Ye let me out!
I need not seed concern or doubt.
Thou wonst my dwelling, I concede;
What wantest thou, o Folk of Reed?

But the least foolish mage,
Locked inside my lonely cage,
I became and now demand:
May the Wizard flee this land!

Greener shires lie across,
Spring of dew upon the moss,
Wherein the people suffer nought
That rendered other fiefs distraught.

[Walküre]

THE ABHORRED

Fly ahead and shape assume,
Over mountain, frost, and fume!
You obey and quell the Fair,
Ere the Princes conquer dare.

'Abhorred', such is your fearsome name,
Befitting well so cursed a fame,
Whose terror runs and rapid spreads
Amid the Noldo's growing dreads.

Aberrant fortresses you guard;
They hail you lord, the foulest bard.
In bondage captives waive their soul,
Ignoring how to fight your thrall.

Be ghoulish howl or sombre wing,
Which Elven-lyres grimly sing,
Your fabled evilness is tale
Among the squire in the vale.

No even challenger would pose
The threat of equal mighty foes,
Unless he be immune to fright,
Resisting chieftains of the night.

[Walküre]

THEN QUOTH THE ANCIENT KING

Then quoth the Ancient King:
"Before the Archangel's Ring
Have Powers all convened
To punish rogue and fiend.

Sedition goeth vast;
It struck the High aghast.
We saw not them arrive!
To bliss restore we strive!

Our Noon abandoned thee
And scattered waves at sea
Shall carry Elven-folk
Where equilibrium broke.

Thy quest will augur ill
Beyond the grinding Chill,
For greedy crafters seek
To claim the mortal creek.

Thereto wilt thou fare,
Hunting pit and lair,
Viler yet might do
Those denying their rue."

[Walküre]

THUS RESPONDED REBELS

Thus responded Rebels:
"Woe to outer evils!
Hence we part in faith,
So our Monarch saith.

Chiselling and graving
Never smothered craving,
As we since partook
Round untainted brook.

Joined have we the Light,
Sound from foreign fright,
Finding great relief
In the Wondrous Fief.

Yet a gaol is gaol,
Albeit sung in tale;
Albeit wrought of gold,
Serfdom shall unfold.

Bane thy Country smote!
Vessels rest afloat,
Moored in vain to port
At the Sailor's fort."