with sore body and thumping headache,
she manages to get to her feet,
dizzy and unstable, with racing heartbeat.
Scobberlotcher begins to walk backwards,
wings expanded, arms rising upwards,
its mist has gathered to its full might,
then nears Alice and Minty, helpless and unable to
fight,
the mist encircles them, tauntingly slow,
Scobberlotcher just laughs loudly, at Alice’s woe.
‘You will never best me or leave this place,
your soul is mine, for our eternal fiery embrace.’
The demon mocks as it twirls around,
in moments, Alice and Minty will be taken
underground.
Suddenly, a beast hits Scobberlotcher like a spear,
’tis Kira! Kira is here!
The great white Lycanthrope,
may yet bring hope,
she charges in from outside,
attacking the demon on its blindside.
All around the hall they fight,
two beasts of savagery and might,
fang, fist and claw,
with a snarl, a growl and defiant roar,
skin tears, blood seeps,
’tis a fight for life, only one is for keeps.
Scobberlotcher is close to defeat,
remaining still, head bowed towards its feet,
Kira attacks without mercy,
unleashing all of her brutality,
she slashes and bites, time and time again,
her white fur, soaked in bloodstain,
but the demon cackles and raises its head,
but how? By now it should be dead.
It says, ‘You cannot hurt me, no pain to bestow.’
Then, the demon starts to grow,
height and muscle, it gains rapidly,
Kira is shocked by this abnormality.
Kira attacks once more,
but Scobberlotcher strikes her to the floor,
then throws her to the far side of the hall,
incredibly fast, hard into a wall,
Kira lands with a sickening thud,
but she is far from defeated.
She stands quickly to face her enemy,
then speaks with great audacity,
‘I cannot die, I am cursed,
I shall heal, your blood I will thirst.’
Then, time stands still,
motion and sound freeze until,
the old lady from the rocking chair,
stands at the top of the stair,
she wears a long gown of turquoise blue,
ethereal looking, almost see through.
She makes her way down the stair,
of this event, only Kira is aware,
she stands before the white Lycanthrope,
to speak of Kira’s only hope,
‘You cannot defeat this monstrosity,
it cannot be slain with violence and savagery,
if you wish to save your friend,
and incur the demon’s end,
you must use its weaknesses,
sacrifice and selflessness.’
Kira says, ‘But I cannot die,
this demon is mine to defy,
I am bound never to rest,
spellbound by a pharaoh’s behest.’
‘No, you do not understand,
the power this demon can command,
it will beat you down, then take your soul,
it shall break the spell, to take control,
only the child, Alice,
can slay the monster of malice.
It must be weakened for advantage to gain,
and so destroy the fiery chain,
you know of what you must do,
remember the pharaoh’s words cursed upon you.’
Moments pass, Kira nods her head,
she recalls clearly the pharaoh’s words said,
the lady then vanishes,
Kira’s destiny finally materializes.
Sounds and motion return,
Kira walks towards Scobberlotcher, without concern,
the demon attacks, mercilessly so,
claw and fang, blow after blow,
Kira does not fight back,
standing still, absorbing the demon’s attack,
eventually, she can take no more,
and is struck viciously to the floor.
Scobberlotcher then twirls around,
its fallen foe, laying on the ground,
but Kira stands up, once again,
then laughs, despite the pain.
She says, ‘You are weak and slow,
the girl child has more courage and bravado,
you are inferior to her in every way,
your cowardice, you cannot underplay,
you are a nothing, of the girl terrified,
a pathetic demon, meekness personified.’
Kira laughs once again,
Scobberlotcher’s rage now impossible to contain,
it strikes Kira fast and hard,
Kira just smiles, without trying to guard,
her heart is crushed within her chest,
now, proof of action will attest,
she slumps lifeless to the ground,
free, no longer spellbound.
A fatal blow has been struck,
Scobberlotcher’s invincibility becomes unstuck,
the demon staggers backwards, then falls to its knees,
in front of Alice, then decrees,
‘NO! What is happening? How can this be?
nothing has power over me,
you, Alice; you are the one with no power,
your light taken, imprisoned in the tower,
without the shawl, I have control,
this, this cannot be, I command all.’
The demon squeals, wails and clasps its head,
It now faces its very own dread,
the castle starts to shake and rumble,
ancient stonework begins to split and crumble.
Deep under the castle, so very deep,
guarded by devilry, a divine power will no longer weep,
the chain of fire that strangles the tower,
splinters and breaks, it is now without power,
falling away into the black, fiery sea,
the house’s door opens, releasing its detainee.
Alice now speaks to the demon,
while Minty watches on, in nervous apprehension,
‘I have more power than you will ever know,
it is on its way, my angel to show,
we shall soon reunite,
your death, I will invite,
your weakness has been exposed,
sacrifice for another, a death unopposed.’
Alice now encircles the monster,
with intent to put asunder,
she sings her song, finally complete,
and so begins, the Scobberlotcher’s defeat.
‘Shush-a-bye monster, hear my song,
set us free, we do not belong.
Shush-a-bye monster, release my light,
give it back, let us reunite.
Shush-a-bye monster, calm your soul,
let me in, to take control.
Shush-a-bye monster, let us embrace,
I shall give you holy grace.
Shush-a-bye monster, demon of brutalities,
I forgive all of your atrocities.
Shush-a-bye monster, evil incarnate,
surrender all of your hate.
Shush-a-bye monste
r, lay your head down,
within my hands, a glorious heavenly crown.’
As Scobberlotcher lay helpless on the ground,
the hall illuminates with a sight to astound,
an angelic figure, within a hazy veil of white,
walks towards Alice, to finally reunite,
Alice and her light, again become one,
the monster’s fate, cannot now be undone.
Scobberlotcher grows increasingly upset,
Its anger pointless now, as it is no longer a threat,
although it manages to get to its knees,
the demon is without power and wails its agonies.
Alice takes hold of the demon’s head,
then lay it down gently, before her next words said,
the monster protests, and tries to resist,
but it is so weak, easily dismissed.
Alice kneels down, by her whimpering foe,
her hair comes to life, and seems to grow,
wrapping itself around the monster’s head and chest,
it grips firmly, tightly compressed,
Alice caresses Scobberlotcher gently,
then speaks words to destroy her enemy,
‘As I lay thee down to sleep,
now your soul is mine to keep,
you will die and never wake,
no more innocent souls to take,
I pray the angels will guide my soul,
away from here and the death bell toll.
As I lay thee down to die,
ancient demon, slain by lullaby,
blessed are the children, soon to be free,
thy spell is broken, their redemption from thee.’
Once Alice’s words are complete,
her hair releases itself, then starts to retreat,
Scobberlotcher now turns to glass, from feet to head,
agonizingly painful, as it continues to spread,
only when the glass covers the head,
is it certain the demon monster is dead,
then the glass cracks and splinters,
falling into a million pieces.
Meanwhile, Setka has appeared,
alongside Kira, who is not dead as feared,
she is very weak, breathing slow and shallow,
but is aware of the son of a pharaoh.
Setka says, ‘So, the great white werewolf yet lives!
We meet again, in this castle of captives,
do you remember our battle four thousand years ago?
look at me, beast! And my scars to show,
your soul is still looking for redemption,
to break the curse, and find absolution.’
‘Yes, I remember; the boy warrior, fighting without
fear,
you are Setka, but why are you here?’
Setka replies, ‘We are both cursed, you and I,
I cannot crossover and you cannot die,
a demon of the castle entrapped my soul,
’tis impossible to leave, while it has control.
But today, your bravery and sacrifice to weaken the
demon,
has cleansed your soul, and freed me from abduction,
now you can die, be at peace,
the curse is broken, you have release.’
Minty rushes over to sit with her friend,
Kira asks, ‘Will you stay with me until the end?
I am dying, my body struggles for breath,
at last, I am close to death,
Minty, my friend; come closer, here,
let me whisper in your ear.’
As Minty wipes away a tear,
she embraces her friend, and offers her ear.
Kira says, ‘This gift I gladly bestow,
to aid you, whichever path you must follow,
I give you the last of my power,
strength and courage, it will greatly empower,
do not worry, you cannot fully transform,
into Lycanthrope, your body and soul to deform.’
Kira then clasps Minty’s head,
into her cheek a claw is embed,
the claw then raked across the face,
then Kira gives Minty a final embrace,
Kira whispers her last words of this life,
before passing into the afterlife,
‘Please, do not be sad,
for me, you must be glad,
at last my soul is free,
go quickly, return to the valley of Juhee.’
Minty hears Kira’s heart weaken,
the end is near, for her brave companion,
Kira’s heart slows until it is diminished,
her breathing stops, Kira’s life is finally finished.
Minty hugs her friend, as strong as can be,
shedding tears, but knows she must flee,
Minty kisses Kira on the cheek,
then stands, ready for Juhee to seek.
The castle is now falling apart,
thunderous rumblings emit from the mountain’s heart,
the hall starts to collapse and vibrate,
stonework falls, as it continues to disintegrate,
Minty returns to collect Juhee’s wheel,
then runs to the exit, to end her ordeal,
Alice and Setka stand close by,
they wish Minty godspeed, and a grateful goodbye.
As Minty stands outside, well away from the castle,
countless white orbs rise, slow and beautiful,
water droplets fall from every one,
’tis a shower of tears, twinkling in the morning sun,
tears of joy, from souls released,
no longer prisoners of the Scobberlotcher beast.
They go together, towards the hole in the sky,
Minty smiles broadly and waves them goodbye,
soon all the orbs have vanished,
and the age of the Scobberlotcher is forever vanquished,
soon, the sky is once again complete,
song birds sing joyfully, at the demon’s defeat.
The castle now starts to implode,
falling apart, into the mountain it is swallowed,
the mountain itself starts to shake,
Minty staggers at the powerful quake,
the mountain begins to implode and splinter,
growling loudly, as though in anger,
Minty staggers and sways once more,
as ground beneath, is stable no more.
The mountain begins to crumble,
into the earth it falls, with a mighty rumble,
land around Minty falls away,
leaving her on a pillar of rock, standing in dismay,
she stands trapped, holding the wheel of Juhee,
this last part of the mountain, has one last detainee.
Far below, at the base of the pillar,
rock weakens and starts to splinter,
countless splinters work their way up,
soon the pillar will start to break up,
the ground below Minty, starts to crack,
she has nowhere to go, there is no going back,
the pillar starts to sway,
a mighty crack, the base slowly crumbles away.
But then, something approaches in the sky,
something Minty can identify,
the dragon, Daventh is on his way,
perhaps he can save the day,
the pillar is now unstable,
and starts to fall, before Daventh’s arrival,
but somehow the pillar holds fast,
Minty can only hope it remains steadfast.
Just as Daventh nears,
the pillar falters, and slowly disappears,
but Minty takes a leap of courage,
leaping off the pillar, before its breakage,
she leaps with Juhee’s wheel, above her head,
then hooks one of the dragon’s claws, nicely spread.
And so, Daventh takes Minty away,
dangling beneath dragon, a dragon that saved the day,
he flies Minty over lakes and wooded land,
back to Juhee, having fulfilled her command.
To be continued.
The Lambshank Redemption Page 13