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Descent of the Conqueror

Upon the shore, Conquistador

From foreign lands he came

From bitter strife of bloody knife

In lands where Spain lay claim

 

In jungles deep, that never sleep

With heavy heart he’d tread

The horseman’s glare had chilled the air

Where now his friends lay dead

 

His armor heavy, in sultry air

The filth and sweat spilled forth

His stomach ached, his body baked

As he marched ever farther north

 

His dreams were filled once of memories

Of countrymen by his side

But now they drew a different hue

Of skeletons of the men who died

 

Alone and dismayed, he knelt and prayed

As tears fell down his face

For God and Queen his life unseen

Was now a finished race

 

Our man fell back, the Sun went black

The scent of sea dahlia sweet

As pendulous waves prepared the grave

His life was soon complete

 

Time had stopped, no gull was heard

Life’s functions ceased to be

In darkened silence he was no more

A lightning flash, a thundering clap bounded from the crashing sea!

 

He hurdled forward, his mind in shock

In water he did lay

A storm had come and passed away

As quickly as it came

 

He cupped his hands and drank the rain

No more tempted by toxic brine

Neptune could keep the beryl deep

If God willed, he may survive

 

And then in the distance it came,

As God’s own voice, the striking of a bell

Had his country sailed in search for him?

Or was this a demon come from hell?

 

He climbed the cape, to highest point

Was this Castile’s grand naval force?

Where were the mighty cannoned ships

Following Her Majesty’s sacred course?

 

With trepid heart, he swept the bay

No vessel could he see

For fog had fallen upon the beach

He must now pursue lest the ships retreat.

 

The mist rolled down the hills of green

At edge the ocean sprayed

On winged feet the man did fly

To live, his burning flesh obeyed

 

The sands fell quick through the hour glass

On the horizon the sunset red

Night had come, he had arrived

But no vessel anchored in this cove’s stead

 

He was too late, the ships had sailed

The moonlight shimmered upon the tranquil sea

The world was silent save the whispers of the palm

Death became his destiny

Suddenly, the air moved fast

Something dangerous in his presence wait

Had the heathen Aztec gods come for flesh?

Would his blood the horrors of Tenochtitlan negate?

 

He pulled his sword, Toledo’s pride

A sign of Christian Knighthood

But in the shadow of moonbeam candescence

Mortal eyes met those of otherworldly nature

 

The creature still as stone, was silent as the dead

Its form was mortal with watery skin

There was no soul in this wretched beast

On its face, a carved and vicious grin

 

Oh soldier bold, with riches told

I am your cuttlefish

I shall be what thou will see

I will become your heart’s true wish

 

In a burst of light which flood the night

Seduction drew him forward

The woman’s eyes would mesmerize

Lust’s spell would drive him toward her

 

Drop your sword and drop your guard

They’re no more needed here

If you seek love and guard your life

Let sorrow and pain disappear

 

The woman stepped close and embraced his hand

Poor man, what terror have you seen?

What troubles your mind and breaks your heart

And makes your soul unclean?

 

I’ve done my duty and served my Queen

As best as I was able

But for the blood I’ve shed and hate I’ve spread

I shall not sup upon God’s table.

 

Hapless soul, lament no more

For I’ve a treasure to console you

This mystic power will reverse the hour

To your youth, when still an innocent heart beat true

 

What devilry, what trickery!

Will this blasphemy chain my hands?

My body’s purged cinders, and glowing red embers

Will burn before the inquisitor’s stand

 

She placed her hands upon his chest

and with a soft kiss she did gently thrill

With protests resigned and conscience blind

The demon moved in slowly for the kill

 

Three things will I require

To make the mystic prize

Gold for the moon, a heart for the tide, and a soul for fathom’s deep life to abide

 These things would he freely give, once more a boy to rise

 

Around his waist, he carried a purse

Within, the auric accolade of murdered domain

Four earrings he gave, four earrings he cursed

Having profited from the dead where they lay

 

 Under the brilliant moonlight the gold shimmered

In her smooth and malleable hold

Her eyes like shadowy heavens now burned with astral splendor

His heart she now controlled

 

The ocean breeze now caressed their face

And waves washed deep upon the shore

The surf surged around his feeble legs

Her celestial eyes more alluring than before

 

Entranced he looked into her eyes

She placed her palm above his heart

His chest glowed red, with unholy dread

She plucked an ample ruby  apart

 

She held the jewel within her hand

And drew a slow deep breath

She blew upon the gem of red, it glowed and beat then bled

Into the sea it melted, a sign of untimely death

 

She laughed at him as he fell back

Fighting the sea for air

He battled the current to climb back to land

But the rip tide did not care

 

Upon the sand, his eyes did see

The woman’s passive gait

He knew now there was no hope

To reverse life’s terrible fate

 

The woman knelt down, he’d nearly drown

Her eyes he looked in well

She held him down, and cupped his crown

And in blue light, tore ‘way a scallop shell

 

She placed the shell up to her ear

To listen for his voice

“I thought you loved me and for me you cared”

And she, at his soul’s despair, rejoiced

 

I am the deep and boundless ocean

No beauty as complete

How foolish to think a mortal heart

Could for my love compete!

 

And just then, a pelican

From dark, silent heavens it shot

It stole the shell and dropped it well

In its beak, his life and soul it brought

 

The conquistador stood and drew his blade

Her eyes blazed red with anger

The sand smoked, the sea boiled and foamed

His life was now in danger

 

The creature screamed and the earth did shake

As the woman melted into the sea

The water smashed and grabbed his leg

And dragged him to the deep

 

You fool! Your body have I consumed

Your doomed soul belongs to me

No chariot of fire, no angel’s wings

Can save you from the Sea

 

His body rolled down the black abyss

Below where it was calm

No roaring wave or whitecap drop

Could break this somber psalm

 

The soldier swam toward bright moonlight

As pressure crushed stifled lung

And then it came, his hand it caught

The fisherman’s net, to life he clung

 

Above the surface he gasped for air

The men pulled him aboard the boat

The waves impelled them toward the rocks

Terra firma at last, upon the coast

 

The lamiae screamed as the soldier ran

You may go, but know your fault

I’ve cursed your dreams and damned your thoughts

As your heart settles within the fathomless vaults

 

The soldier stopped and turned his head

An angel on the red horizon appeared

Like an arrow, the Sun’s first ray shot

The dark fog and heavy mist had cleared

 

And lo, on the blue skyline a mighty flag unfurled

The gold and red pennant of Spain

The lifeboat embarked from the great ship

The lost captain would be reclaimed

 

The years flew bye, the soldier turned grey

His home upon Andalucía’s plain

 The wind whispered secrets of long ago

Through olive tree leaves and tall, green grain

 

A storm had come and pacified the heat

The land was firm and in a still, tranquil slumber

His weary soul still cursed by the sea

Heard the tide in the wind and the waves in thunder

 

For ne’er a day would pass his way

When he thought not of the ocean’s treachery and cried

His lost love rebuked him still

As the thunder rolled, he laid his heavy head back and died