Nitthum's Lament

Nitthum’s Lament







Nitthum sat lonely,

His countenance sad,

A Knight of the King,

Alone at the feast,



Fenric the King,

Had many a knight,

Brave Elven horsemen,

Nitthum was one,



He had no status,

His shield lacked a crest,

But bravery and skill,

Had earned him his place,



Yet Nitthum sat lonely,

The court filled with cheer,

As knights and their ladies,

Feasted and danced,



Then into the feast,

Illyania strode in,

A vision in emerald,

The fairest of all,



Her hair, how it shimmered,

Like the sun through the leaves,

Her eyes, how they sparkled,

Blue stars in the night,



When Nitthum beheld her,

His heart filled with joy,

Instantly he loved her,

Though foolish the thought,



Illyania the fairest,

Daughter of the King,

Was pledged to be married,

To Prince Cellon soon,



But Cellon was absent,

At home far away,

And Nitthum sat staring,

As Illyania dined,



He had not the courage,

To speak to her then,

For fearful his heart,

Would betray how he felt,



So Nitthum sat dreaming,

That Illyania was his,

That she would return,

The love that he felt,



Then Fenric the King,

Spoke up at the feast,

And held up his cup,

To give up this toast,



‘Behold fair Illyania,

The light of my eyes,

Fairest of fair,

In all of the land,



She goes to be married,

To Cellon the Prince,

She’ll leave in the morning,

So this toast I now give’,



Then Fenric the King,

Bade Nitthum to come,

Approaching his table,

The young knight did bow,



‘Nitthum the gallant’,

Said Fenric the King,

‘You shall escort her,

To Elyon to wed.’



Nitthum was speechless,

How could he refuse

the command of his lord,

for such a great task,



Then Fenric the King,

Took Illyania’s hand,

And placed in her grasp,

Two silver rings,



‘These rings are enchanted,

By magic quite great,

I’ve had them created,

A gift that will bind,



For each will entwine,

The thoughts and the mind,

The body and soul,

To the other of kind,



And when you are near,

Your love it will heal,

The wounds and the pains,

Of both of the pair,



I give them to you,

Give one to your love,

Then slip on the other,

And both will be safe,



As long as you never,

Leave the other afar,

For the greater the distance,

The lesser the charge,



So wear them forever,

And fear not all harm,

Your love shall restore you,

And keep both of you well,’



Then Fenric the King,

Kissed Illyania’s brow,

He blessed then his daughter,

And bid her to go,



And charging Nitthum,

To protect her life,

Commanded the King,

To lead her to wed,



Nitthum the gallant,

Took Illyania’s hand,

Escorting the princess,

Into her fine coach,



Then Nitthum he mounted,

His steed right away,

And rode beside her,

to fulfill his charge,



Quite long was the journey,

The company moved slow,

Illyania and her ladies,

Sat gaily and talked,



While Nitthum the gallant,

Rode beside them, yet mute,

Escorting the princess,

And those of her court,



The ladies they noticed,

The silent young knight,

And whispered and giggled,

About the young man,



Yet Nitthum heard nothing,

His heart how it bled,

When thinking of the princess,

And giving her up,



And every evening,

When the company made camp,

Nitthum would withdrawal,

A short distance away,



Alone he would sit,

His lute sadly play,

The words he would sing,

Betraying his pain,



All who would hear,

The song of his heart,

Wondered who wounded,

His soul in this way,



The ladies in waiting,

All wondered the name,

Of the beautiful maiden,

Whose song filled his soul,



They’d listen for hours,

To Nitthum’s, sad song,

The lonely young knight,

Each evening would craft,



But he took not a council,

Of any of them,

So greater the mystery,

Grew for them each day,



Then Baella the gentle,

Handmaiden and friend,

Of Princess Illyania,

Could stand it no more,



She begged of her lady,

To ask of the knight,

The name of the maiden,

Who troubled him so,



So fairest Illyania,

The following day,

Leaned out the coach window,

Bid Nitthum to come,



“Sir Knight” said the princess,

“I ask you to tell,

The name of the lady,

You sing of each eve”,



Nitthum smiled sadly,

Red covering his face,

And said, “It is someone,

Another man’s bride”,



He said nothing further,

But fell back behind,

The coach and the princess,

Left wondering inside,



For weeks they did travel,

Across many lands,

But Nitthum kept silent,

Except for his song,



Each night all the ladies,

Would quietly sit,

And weep as they listened,

To Nitthum’s lament,



Every journey has a beginning,

And also an end,

And after a long time,

Elyon drew near,



The maidens all noticed,

Nitthum’s song growing dark,

Consumed with more sadness,

And sounding like grief,



Bealla was troubled,

afraid for the knight,

So bleak was his singing,

She feared his life over,



Three times she conspired,

To lighten his heart,

With flirtatious banter,

But to no avail,



She beseeched Illyania,

To brighten his mood,

By offering Nitthum,

A smile or a word,



But Princess Illyania,

Was haughty and proud,

And smirked with amusement,

At Nitthum’s plight,



She knew it was her,

That troubled him so,

But she was a Princess,

And he a mere knight,



They neared Elyon valley,

And only a day,

Would separate Illyania,

From Prince Cellon,



But unknown to all,

The Great Dragon Forrg,

Had taken up residence,

And watched their approach,



And with a great roar,

The flapping of wings,

The great dragon Forrg,

Swooped down on the coach,



A swipe of his claws,

A sweep of his tail,

caused the Elven carriage,

To tumble and roll,



But Nitthum the gallant,

Charged forth on his steed,

Thrusting his lance,

Into the foul beast,



Forrg was mighty,

An elder of drakes,

He turned and breathed fire,

At Nitthum’s brave form,



His armor it bubbled,

Like soup in the pot,

Still Nitthum kept fighting,

Though consumed in the flames,



Forrg’s breath was relentless,

Each fiery blast,

Burned all it encountered,

To cinders and ash,



But Nitthum struck savagely,

To Forrg’s great head,

Then twice more again,

And the dragon fell dead,



The knight fell atop him,

His flesh burned away,

As life slipped away quickly,

He turned toward the coach,



Illyania and her maidens,

Had crawled their way out,

Beholding the battle,

And Forrg’s defeat,



The knight they found dying,

But yet still awake,

And kneeling beside him,

Their tears dropped like rain,



“Your champion is fading”,

Baella said to the bride,

“But you have some magic,

To restore him to life.”



She spoke of the rings,

That Fenric had gave,

To Illyania the Princess,

For her and her love,



Yet Illyania the fairest,

Shook her head ‘no’,

Knelt smiling sadly,

And spoke to the knight,



“I cannot help you,

The ring is my own,

To give to my lover,

And nobody else,



While you are most gallant,

And worthy of praise,

I am a royal princess,

And you a mere knight,



Your death has preserved me,

Take comfort in that,

My life will be joyous,

Your duty is done”,



Then turning to Baella,

Her hand to her nose,

“He smells of burnt mutton,

I must get away”,



So walked away Illyania,

And looked not around,

As Nitthum lay gasping,

The end of his life,



But Baella the handmaid,

Felt furry arise,

Rage at the injustice,

To see Nitthum die,



A large stone she picked up,

Took firm in her hand,

And threw at the Princess,

Who was walking away,



The stone found its mark,

The back of her head,

And Princess Illyania,

Fell flat to the ground,



Baella the maiden,

Raced forward to take,

The rings from Illyania,

Then back to the knight,



While the others looked on,

All stunned at her act,

She slipped the ring,

On Nitthum’s burnt hand,



Its magic depended,

On her willingness,

To slip on the other,

To bind them complete,



Baella did not wait,

But slipped the ring on,

Then knelt by Nitthum,

And prayed he’d survive,



The magic was steadfast,

And soon he was whole,

She bid him to wake up,

So they could escape,



For Illyania’s maidens,

Saw Baella’s assault,

And soon they would bring,

Cellon’s justice to her,



But Nitthum he rose up,

With Baella’s great help,

Took a horse from the coach team,

And galloped away,



Though Cellon of Elyon,

And Illyania his bride,

Searched angrily for them,

The two got away,



Baella and Nitthum,

Now bound for all time,

Rode far to the east,

To live happily,



A kingdom they built,

Within a deep woods,

And there to this day,

This Kingdom remains.