The Ancient City of Lon

We went down in the submersible

Just Andy Malone and me,

The project wasn’t reversible

Beneath the Andaman sea,

The funding for it a one-time off

So we needed to get it done,

To investigate the sunken state

Of the ancient city of Lon.

We knew it was there from a sonic probe

That had mapped the sunken bed,

Five centuries it had been down there

From the documents we’d read,

There were buildings, markets, standing still

And a huge cathedral dome,

We needed to take some photographs

To show to the folks back home.

It was over a thousand fathoms deep

So the pressure was intense,

With systems go, the descent was slow

And it kept us in suspense,

We wondered how it had got down there

How the land had slipped away,

To carry a city so deep with what

Had once comprised a bay.

The beam of the single searchlight pierced

Its way through the deepening murk,

The further that we descended meant

We were peering into the dark,

But then at a thousand fathoms we

Caught sight of the massive dome,

It was almost like the cathedrals that 

Had once been built back home.

With cameras flashing furiously

We continued our descent,

Noting the gaps where windows once

Had peered on out at Lent,

But we didn’t think it was christian

For the Hindu figures swarmed

Over the outer surfaces 

Where once, the sun had warmed.

The beam had picked out an archway then

With the entrance from a porch,

Some of the pillars had fallen in

And the doors were gone from the arch,

We headed into the darkened space

Our light picked out in the gloom,

And chills were rippling up my spine

As we entered that darkened room.

We floated in and along the aisle

Where the pews were made of stone,

It had the eeriest feeling like

We weren’t in there alone,

And at the end was an altar stood

As it had, five hundred years,

And by its side was a figure crouched

Or the bones of a figure, cursed.

The searchlight gave it an eery glow

As we turned and travelled back,

There was something strange about that thing

For all the bones were black,

And lying flat on the altar stone

Was a weird and evil gleam,

A blade rose up from a corpse on that

But the bones were white and clean.

‘They must have been making a sacrifice

At the moment disaster struck,’

Said Andy, as we peered on out,

And he turned to take a look,

The crouching figure began to rise

In the current our craft had spawned,

And in the beam we could see the gleam

Of a perfect pair of horns.

It seemed that it reached on out to us

With its bony fingers raised,

It appeared to point to Andy who

Screamed out, like someone crazed,

I heard a thump and I turned to him

Just as my partner fell,

All burned and black as his flesh had peeled

In a vision straight from hell.

I headed the craft toward the arch

In a panic, I confess,

My friend lay dead and I lost my head

And I think you’d not do less,

I left that place in a burning haste

With its devil crouched once more,

Back and beside that altar stone,

It will stay forevermore.

They said it must be a power short

That had burned and killed my mate,

But I said, ‘Look at the pictures, you

Will see the face of hate,’

Of one thing I can be certain now

That the funding all has gone,

There’s no-one keen to explore once more

The ancient city of Lon.

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Valentine]

Loved this one from beginning to the end. Makes one think of all of the things that are in the bottom of the sea or underground from earthquakes etc. More wealth below than on earth I would imagine. But because of your 'devil', I never want to find out. Good story Mate. Valentine

[R Smith]

great story David, a tale of adventure and horror, who knows what's really down there under the sea, certainly I might give Lon a miss, highly entertaining work my friend :)

[Jordan]

Chills. I loved it.

It began as a deep sea adventure and became a supernatural horror. Fluid transition between the two, very natural. Very good imagery, structurally sound, overall great poem.

[A Soap Mess Stories]

Another great tale David.

[Lady Lola]

What a rivetting read! The image you created here was so vivid, I was literally at the edge of my seat with anticipation. Wonderfully crafted!

[andrew mitchell]

A great yarn under the sea lol

[marcus]

Excellent! Thoroughly enjoyable, thanks!!

[Roxie M]

An engaging yarn. You have a classic. Reads aloud nicely.

[Marie]

Sometimes what's buried needs to stay buried.Lon was cursed, and it's a good thing no one will explore it again. Suppose something down there should rise to the surface...?

[Confuser]

David: Just watched another documentary about submersibles; one crew in the gulf another in Australia studying maco sharks...there I was thinking I would never do that, so you got me right away, pulling me down, awaiting the city. Think everybody's read about Atlantis, and you stunned me again. I had to know it was coming, but my mind was in thought of the beautiful coral, etc. What a well penned story. And the title: The Ancient City of Lon...wonderful title; hey, you never know what's down there. Your imagination is phenomenal, and the visual of YOU speeding to the top was a slam dunk. Thanks as always. Dale