The Queen of the Wood

Serve her at your peril.

In her forest no man dare leave
for eternal obeisance is the price
And one can't serve if one dares flee
Their soul ripped out, their heart excised.

 

 

 

Within the arbors it's ever spring
rejecting tempests beyond its shields
Always fair and mild, no winter sting
Eden, Fólkvangr, Jannah, Elysian fields.

 

 

 

To step within takes courage
To beg admittance from the queen
One must go on pilgrimage.
One must return from quests to be seen.

 

 

 

And then, one day, you are allowed

to pass beyond the shadowed wood
and walk within that ground, hallowed
Look down, penitent, as you should.

 

 

 

For she detests very little more
than your bluster, bravado, and pride
Entitlement will get you shown the door
locked forever more from the inside

 

 

 

What she demands you'll loathe to give
But once given can be done without
Unburdened then, in her service you'll live
Free of freedom, choices, and doubt.

 

 

 

Within the paradise of her trees
loved by your queen, eternal and pure
You'll live a simple life of ease
Unending servitude to savor.

 

 

 

Her guardians, slaves, attendants all
maintain and keep the eternal wood
Her magic and her power stall
the end of things, saving the good.

 

 

 

"Your queen is just a fairy tale,"
say the nobles in their keep
"What is she but an animal?"
What are they but craven sheep?

 

 

 

Indeed she runs upon cloven hooves
and bears a horn of pearl
Quieter than the wind she moves
to the laps of maiden girls

 

 

 

Or so the story goes, but that is not the truth
It is what sheep in castles want to see.
Time would not dare to rob her of her youth
Eons have never dulled her majesty.

 

 

 

She will persist to the end of time
When mountains have ground down to dust
And the ocean boils down to slime
In her wood she will remain, sheltering the just

 

 

 

For those who serve are the best of all
Ever young and good inside the green
Eternity awaits those kept in thrall
Of our beautiful, magnificent queen.