The Travels Of Fedoso 3
From Atlantic Roleplay Wiki
Title: The Travels of Fedoso
Author: Verderis
The Travels of Fedoso
Part 4
Volume 43
I split the mamluk's
legacy
With the pirates, made my way
To Karmona's rangy ramparts,
Where I bought a sumptuous house.
City of flowers, gold and citrus!
Leather and jewelry and books...
Though these all were fair distractions,
I refused them for a vice.
In a public square I idled
Day to day upon a bench;
There I drained off countless tankards,
Carved a circle in each stoup.
Eight sat by my side one morning
As the ouds began to thrum;
Once reciter posed before me,
Winked and crudely chirped his lay:
"I have sung for many rulers,
(Their glory faded, as has mine...)
Princes just and great in power.
(Their glory faded, as has mine...)
"King tramples king, son after father,
(Their glory faded, as has mine...)
Each one hopes his crown will prosper.
(Their glory faded, as has mine...)
"Alexander was the proudest,
Ruler of the earth itself;
Of his kingdoms, all have crumbled,
Columns shattered in the dust.
"Etzel, nicknamed Scourge of Heaven,
Died of gluttony, poor beast!
Caesar steered the Latin armies,
'Til the Senate did him in.
"Hrethric of the Danes was murdered,
Hrothulf got his just reward;
One-legged Gunther fell and foundered
As the Hun-tribes flooded in.
"Aegeus drowned from simple error,
Og of Bashan, Moses slew;
Cleopatra called for venom,
Kshatra's cunning led to doom.
"Hear the sorrows of the Banings!
Witness scores the Hundings smote!
Fear the Franks and mourn the Myrings,
Flee the tumult of the Goths!
"I was with the Swedes and Saxons,
I was with the Greeks and Finns;
I was counted with the Persians,
I supped in the Angles' halls.
"Scots and Langobards and Hebrews,
Romans, Gefthas, Wends and Picts,
Jutes, Egyptians and Burgundians--
All have flourished, all have failed!"
Here the poet paused and gargled
With the dregs poured from my cup;
Then in tones that only I heard,
Thus the minstrel closed his speech:
"Water deep or water shallow
Cannot bury me for long.
Soon I'm dry and searching pastures
For the mouse that gnawed my cords.
"Here you loll in middling splendor
While great nations break and fray.
You're in need of one more lesson,
Then all debts shall be repaid."
In a flash of flavid lightning,
We were skimming over hills
Toward a blue and gray horizon
Where grand monuments decayed.