Ygern's Secret - Something I Wrote . . .

I was intending to publish a paper doll post today, but as some of the visitors to my blog are writers I decided to share something I wrote myself a good while ago (circa 1980) that I came across again recently.  I quite enjoyed reading it again. I hope you do too  ......

Ygern's Secret

Long ago the world was young, but Ygern was old.  She sat quietly in the sunlight, hands folded in her lap, dreaming about the past.

Once she too had been young and Arthur travelled North to claim her as his bride.  He stood over six feet tall.  His hair was as black as night, his eyes were two blue stars.  She had ridden through streets strewn with flowers to welcome her as the new queen.

Together they had built a hilltop fortress in the centre of the land, and together they had planned the administration of the country and the protection of the realm.

'I wonder if men will ever be able to live in peace,' Ygern had mused.

But Arthur only smiled.

For many years he fought against the invaders who threatened their existence.  The battles were swift and fierce.  Arthur always led his men into combat and could slay as many as twelve of the enemy force with one blow.  Soon the bodies of their foes lay piled upon the shore and funeral pyres served as a warning to those who felt the temptation to invade again.

For one bright and shining moment tranquility lay over the land. 

'You see!' Ygern had said triumphantly.  'Mankind can live in peace.'

But Arthur only smiled.

The harmony did not last.  Men long trained for war grew restless and bored.  They looked with envy at their neighbour's wealth and position.  Honed weapons hung motionless and waiting on their manor walls.  The country's natural enemy was gone and so they turned upon themselves in a conflict that split the land in two.

Arthur did not know how to confront this new threat.  His centre of balance was destroyed and he was swept under the raging torrent and broken as easily as a river reed.  The news of his defeat carried swiftly abroad and the invaders returned, finding a land leaderless and confused.

Ygern sat idly, watching the sun as it danced on the grass and whitewashed walls of the abbey guest house.  Outside the world was chaos, but she had withdrawn inside herself and was at peace.   She smiled gently at the young novice who approached her carrying a basket of ripened fruit.

'Do you think this fighting will ever end?' the girl tentatively asked.

But Ygern only smiled.

 Sharon Munro   

Mithrae Invicto

To Him Unconquered