The Cove

I sailed the yacht right into the cove

And away from the breaking storm,

I hadn’t intended staying there,

It was dark before the dawn,

The rain came down in a blinding sheet

And obscured the further shore,

I’d have turned around and sailed away

If I’d known what it held in store.

 

The sun came up on a greying sky

Though the rain had passed ahead,

Around the cove there were mountains,

I reefed in, and sounded the lead,

We sat in a bare three fathoms so

I gave the anchor the slip,

Then saw that over the further shore

Was an ancient sailing ship.

 

Its sails were hanging, tattered and torn

And the yards, they hung in shreds,

There wasn’t a movement there aboard

For the crew must all be dead,

It looked so desolate, by the shore

Like a ship that had died in pain,

But still afloat, as it must have once

Sailed proud on the Spanish Main.

 

Then further over beyond the ship

And spreading along the shore,

A line of dwellings in weathered oak

Like nothing I’d seen before,

And in the midst was a tavern with

A sign that swung in the breeze,

I thought I could see a painted skull

Half-hidden between the trees.

 

I dropped the dinghy and rowed to shore

And dragged it up on the beach,

Tied it up to an ancient log

Not even the tide could reach,

Then walked around to the settlement,

So still, with no-one about,

And hoped the Tavern was burning wood

For my clothes, to dry them out.

 

A girl appeared at the Tavern door

In a sort of fancy dress,

She wore a bonnet and apron too

But her face looked quite distressed,

‘Good sire,’ she muttered, ‘Please turn about

Go back the way that you came,

You don’t belong in a land of wrong

In a time of eternal shame.’

 

‘I’m wet,’ I said, ‘and I need to dry

So I beg an hour of your time,

A plate of vittals, a jug of beer

Some warmth, that isn’t a crime!’

‘You know not what you encounter here

If you’re wise, you’d better not know,

Three hundred years is a terrible time

To be fettered in chains, please go!’

 

I pushed right past and I walked right in

To the dingy, dim-lit bar,

Some sailors sat at the tables there

And stared, as if from afar,

Their clothes were tattered, their beards were grey

And their eyes were glassy and white,

While cobwebs covered their pewter mugs

That their hands had gripped so tight.

 

Their mouths, though moving, the only sound

Was the rasping croak of despair,

I couldn’t fathom a single word

That fell on that tainted air,

They came toward me as in a dream

And one fell down on his knees,

The maid said, ‘See what you’ve done to them,

I’ll ask you again, please leave!’

 

A chill ran suddenly down my back

And I turned and made for the door,

Ran right out to the narrow beach

I shouldn’t have left before,

I heard the sound of a cannon shot

The whiff of smoke from the ship,

And watched my yacht as it reared and sank

To its grave, three fathoms deep.

 

I turned in horror and saw the maid

As she shrivelled and aged in time,

‘I warned you sire, now you’ll never leave,

You’re caught in an ancient rime,

The crew took over our tiny town

In seventeen sixty three,

But you’d be free of the spell that bound

If you’d only listened to me.’

 

I sit depressed at a writing desk

And sign my name with a quill,

Ten years have passed since that fateful day

An eternity left to fill.

The Captain thinks he can sail away

To roam on the Spanish Main,

But the ship, it rots more, day by day

And I’ll never get home again!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Tate Morgan]

This is absolutely fantastic. The rhythm and rhyme flows like a waterfall. The story told with a cadence akin to the ticking clock that it embodies. Makes you wonder bout the souls that have come and gone over the centuries.How many ended on the bottom? Surly their fate not much better than a stint in the southern ocean on St Georges island.Men have always gone to sea.Many to never be seen again.I would like to think they ended their days on a deserted island rather than with Poseidon.

[Barbara Walker]

Another amazing fable told in exquisite rhyme. Imagery is so good, I felt as if I were standing there, watching it all. Great write!

[JenniferMarie]

So cool! Sometimes I write and I'm there in another time. Your poem took me to another time. Thank you. ALso, you are a storyteller. I really enjoyed that aspect of your well written poem. Thanks!

[Ravyne Hawke]

Another wonderful tale written in perfect rhyme and cadence. You continue to amaze me with your poetry, David. The narrative never sounded so good!

[Girl Friday (Sarah W.)]

This is one heck of a poem...I'm extremely impressed. I love the lyrical nature of the flow, and the way that you have exposed such a stark and metaphorical story. So very much above us and so very much below...it all comes together beautifully here. A true pleasure to read.

[redflutterby]

As always your lines flow one into another perfectly. This was a chilling take and you know I love the macabre. Poor man should have listened. Its the number rule of horror. When someone says get out run like hell! Lol...

[Rita L. Sev]

Excellent, chilling tale told in superb rhyme. A reminder to listen to those who know... We never do.

[Angi]

Tate sent me a Read Request for this and I am so happy he did! I loved the flow of this tale. You had me from the first stanza.

[SyberRose]

I don't know how you do it David...another amazing little tale...enjoyed...Rose

[Marie]

I agree with Dhaye. He was given every chance to leave. I knew he was in trouble when he first sailed into that cove.