The exercise:
A little something different for your writing prompt this Monday: dragon riding.
I think I've been spending too much time at work staring out the window at birds.
Mine:
The beat of red and gold wings,
Thunder storms drawing near;
The rush of breathless winds,
Are all I hear up here.
Dropping into a dive
This weightlessness I feel
Makes me feel so alive,
Makes it all seem so real.
Knowing this ride’s a dream
Makes it no less thrilling,
Since it makes real life seem
Not quite so bone chilling.
Dragon riding? Now that would be a sport worth seeing in the Olympics! Will you be going to see the "How to train your dragon (3D)" movie then?
ReplyDeleteI've got no criticism of your poem today! It all works, the rhymes are good, it's a nice tight length and the third verse ties everything together nicely. The last line of the first verse would annoy me if I'd written it because of the repetition of the "hear" sound, but it's not a flaw in the poem at all -- it's just me being picky :)
Dragon riding
The knights lined up, morose and sombre,
Kitted out in bright and shiny armour.
The dragons had eaten all the horses,
Each one a snack between dragon-courses,
So the King had decreed, with considerable pride,
That henceforth a knight must learn to ride
A dragon.
The dragons, regal creatures of flame,
Were most amused by this new game,
Until they tired and also ate the knights,
Commenting that canned food was "quite
A pleasant change."
The villagers watched in fear as the huge shape circled over their village. No one had seen it until it had started circling. By then it was far too late to run for cover -- no sense attracting its attention. So they stood frozen wherever they had been on its arrival.
ReplyDeleteAfter what seemed an eternity to the terrified villagers, the dragon landed in the village square. Its tail caught the edge of the village fountain and stone tumbled to the ground. The noise was explosive in the silent village.
The dragon leaned its head down to the nearest villager and boomed, "Where is your chief?"
The trembling villager pointed across the square to the largest house, where the chief stood. The dragon turned ponderously and announced, "I require a person."
The gasp echoed through the village. It was one thing to be eaten, quite another to be asked for first.
The dragon blinked and seemed to realize the misunderstanding. "Oh, not to eat. I don't eat humans. You taste nasty. No. I require a human to return with me to my land and break the curse on my family."
"No," said the chief.
"No? No? What do you mean, no? I am a dragon. I could char you and your village to ashes in seconds!"
"I mean no. Kill us all if you must, but I will not ask one of my people to serve the object of their fears."
The dragon stared, uncertain what to do. She had threatened flames, but she needed a live human, and this was the first village where the inhabitants hadn't run screaming at the first sight of her. She had been flying for days, and she was tired and worried about her family. She didn't really feel like finding another village.
A soft voice spoke into the silence. "I'll do it."
The chief's reaction was instantaneous. "No! I forbid it."
"But Father, if I volunteer, we don't get charred, and you don't have to force someone to face their fears."
"But, but ... Clarinda, I can't let you go!"
"I'm sorry, Daddy. I love you and Mother, but I must go. Goodbye."
And the chief's eldest daughter walked calmly up to the dragon and swung herself up. The dragon leaped into the sky and flew away to the west, whence it had come.
Approvingly your article helped me altogether much in my college assignment. Hats high to you post, will look progressive in the direction of more related articles in a jiffy as its anecdote of my pet question to read.
ReplyDeleteGreg - I'd only recently heard of it but now that I have I'll be sure to try :)
ReplyDeleteHa, glad you liked mine even with the 'hear'ing issue. I like the dragons in your poem very muchly :D
Morganna - I... really really want to see that continued :) Please let me know if you take it further!
Anon - alrighty then.
Marc: There is more to it, but I don't quite know what it is yet :) I will let you know when I find out.
ReplyDelete