GA Writing Prompts - 13. # 0 Eschaton (Last Star of Morning)

Eschaton (Last Star of Morning)

Tanyl returned from the bathhouse and went to the room that had been assigned to him. It was still early and the council had not yet begun. But Tanyl did not want to stay in his room. He went to the grand hall instead. Only few elves had already gathered there. They greeted and welcomed him. Tanyl had just sat down at their table when a young elf entered the hall. He carried a lyre and smiled all over his face.

A sigh escaped the mouth of the elf who sat next to Tanyl. Another elf rolled his eyes. Tanyl looked between them in confusion.

"Young Lindir," the elf said. "Wants to be a bard. Thinks he is one. But…"

He was interrupted by the bard who had come to their table. The young elf greeted them cheerfully.

"This evening will be long and tedious. I thought I could raise your spirits a bit," he said with a broad smile.

The elves just looked at him.

"I thought I could sing to you. I wrote a new song," Lindir said.

One elf grimaced. The others smiled politely. Tanyl looked at the bard curiously. Lindir smiled enthusiastically.

"We can’t stop you, can we?" an elf asked in a resigned voice.

"Why?" Lindir asked in confusion. "It is a love song. You’ll enjoy it, I promise," he said.

The others nodded resignedly. Tanyl smiled.

Lindir took a chair and sat down. He adjusted the lyre and played a few tunes that sounded not too bad.

The elves looked at Lindir. Tanyl studied their faces. They seemed resigned to their fate.

Lindir started to sing. His voice was bright and clear. Tanyl felt confused. What was wrong about it? One elf had closed his eyes; another looked as if in pain. Tanyl listened more carefully. And then he understood the elves’ concern.

Lindir had just begun a new stanza:

"You are as beautiful as nature

You are as bright as the sun

Your voice is as clear as a bell

Your eyes are as clear as crystal

Your skin is as smooth as silk

Your smile is as sweet as honey

You are as delicate as a flower

You are the apple of my eye

You are the sun in my sky
You are the light in my life

I’m drowning in the sea of love

Oh, oh, love is a growing garland"

Tanyl almost winced.

Lindir stopped and looked at the elves in the hope of getting approval. The elves smiled politely.

"Sweet," one elf said. His voice sounded sour.

Lindir smiled gratefully. He rose to his feet, bowed to them, and then headed for the door. The elves looked after him until he had left the hall.

One elf took a deep breath.

"Talk, I mean singing, his singing is silver, but silence is golden," he said.

The others snickered. One elf turned to Tanyl.

"Have you ever written some lyrics?" he asked.

"I have," Tanyl said. "But poems rather, not a song."

"Don’t hesitate to share them with us," the elf with the sour voice said. "Lindir has put us in the right mood for it."

The others snickered.

"Well," Tanyl said. "It’s a serious poem, inspired by the recent tragic events."

The elves looked at him with interest. Tanyl cleared his throat.

"It is called Eschaton," he said. And then he recited:

"When the last eagle flies over the last crumbling mountain
And the last lion roars at the last dusty fountain
In the shadow of the forest though she may be old and worn
They will stare unbelieving at the last unicorn

When the first breath of winter through the flowers is icing
And you look to the north and a pale moon is rising
And it seems like all is dying and would leave the world to mourn
In the distance hear the laughter of the last unicorn

When the last moon is cast over the last star of morning
And the future has passed without even a last desperate warning
Then look into the sky where through the clouds a path is torn
Look and see her how she sparkles, it's the last unicorn"

Tanyl fell silent. The elves looked at him seriously.

"So true," one elf said. His voice was slightly trembling.

The others nodded and then they sat in silence.