Asleep Under a Starry Sky

Asleep under a starry sky,

A sea salt breeze stinging my eyes,

I lay quietly within my bed,

When I hear a voice, “All hands on deck!”

 

Waves crash into the wooden bow,

My compass falls onto the ground,

The map tears and the windows break;

The sea erupts a violent quake

 

I throw open the cabin door,

And in the sky, a dragon soars;

The body of a giant snake,

But with slimy wings, and gruesome fangs.

 

The captain stands with his crew of ten,

“The cannon, boys!” he orders them

They struggle to their trembling feet,

As the monster taunts the little fleet

 

“Humans!” the terrible beast roars,

in a vicious declaration of war.

It raises both claws to the sky,

And slams the hull with tremendous force.

 

The crew falls to their feet again,

Each draconic breath, a violent wind

Sails rip from their wooden masts,

As flames spew in colossal blasts.

 

“Smitty!” an injured captain roars,

“Get over here and fetch my sword!”

“Sir, please don’t worry,” I reassure,

“I’ve done this kind of thing before!”

 

My right hand tightly grips the blade,

Reptilian eyes study my gaze,

The sinking hull sways low and high,

I’m pretty sure I’m going to die.

 

Eyes shut, I blindly throw the blade

“I’ve failed!” I cry to my dismay,

But then the deck bursts into cheer!

“Smitty boy, you’ve cut off its ear!”

 

Around and about its head does thrash,

Then hits the water with a splash

The creature gargles an awful sound,

As deck hands pass mugs of beer around.

 

“That Smitty kid! He saved us all!”

“Captain Smitty!” another sailor calls.

The crowd erupts in gleeful cheer,

And deck hands fill more mugs of beer

 

But soon, a sight catches my eye,

“The dragon! He’s returned!” I cry.

And the crew, too drunk to even see,

Pays absolutely no attention to me.

 

Then, just as I’m about to scream,

I realize that it was just a dream!

The sounds and the scene all fade to black,

But tomorrow night, I will be back.

© 2013 Brianna Carlson

Author's Note

If anyone has anything to add, feel free!

Reviews

[Frieda P]

Very entertaining read within your poetry here, I have the feeling there's more to that slimy creature than meets the eye! Good one hyottoko.

[wynn]

I'm glad you enjoyed it! :)

[Frieda P]

Who wouldn't enjoy a story about a heroine? ;-)

[wynn]

Well, Smitty's actually a guy. But hey!

[Frieda P]

Only in your dreams hon, only in your dreams :-)

[wynn]

-_-

[Frieda P]

;-)

[SyberRose]

You did a great job here...alot of effort put into this poem...Rose

[wynn]

Thanks Syber! :) I'm debating whether I should add another line or two towards the bottom. Maybe I'm a perfectionist, but I feel as if it ends too abruptly.

[SyberRose]

I think it is fine the way it is...I enjoyed very much...i like reading tales but not much on writing them ha.

[wynn]

Alright :) Thanks again Syber!

[Rita L. Sev]

Very vivid, a wonderful adventure in verse! It's fun to be a hero, if only in our dreams. Great write, H!

[wynn]

Thanks Rita :) I often dream of such things hehe

[Sami Khalil]

A very good read and write...:)

[wynn]

Thanks Sami! :)

[Sami Khalil]

My pleasure...:)

[Jack...]

Wow, this was great. It felt so real that I almost got seasick reading it. :)>

You painted a wonderful masterpiece here...good job.

[wynn]

Thanks for the awesome review again Jack!

[Rogue]

This was great! Wonderful story telling like poets of old. Good build on the plot line all the way to the surprising, but very satisfying ending. :)

[wynn]

Thanks much for the review, Rogue :)

[Rogue]

You're welcome. I enjoyed it. :)

[Angi]

Bravo! I loved this. I was sitting on the edge of my seat, and to see that it was dream in the end was a really cool way to end it...until tomorrow... Nice!

[wynn]

Thanks for the kind review as always Angi :)

[Angi]

Always my pleasure. Send me read requests any time!