I. It is said that when Krim first came to the Valley, he took the shape of a Crow. From tree-top perches the Crow traversed the grand tributary-system of Mures, taking in its sights and souls; the dread Bear, the nymph & the dryads, the thieving dwarf-folk, Altars to gods long abandoned, and all sorts of creatures and creations that scamper or sit still along the banks. The Mures people, gifted in algorithmics, saw that the black-winged Crow traveled with Divine, linear speed, and sang new hymns in its name. This pleased Krim, who had in those days an ear for melodies both merry & somber.
II. On the high seas, sailors dream in verse. This was dreamt in an inland sea:
Ayem, Om
To our Doom
To our Doom
We journeyRed and golden, high above
A staircase-ceiling,
A ladder-window,
And a chandelier of blinding crystal
Beyond all riches
Rises Krim
Wanes the moonAyem, Om
To our Doom
III.
- “In my final days I have come, at last, to understand the meaning of the Philistine Fables, and also of cow’s milk and the warmth of spring.”
- “Take care that you do not fall into the well, Ioanis. It is full of life!”
- “If you climb that hill, you can look back and see the city burning.”
Ian Whitehouse, Ostsee – Gurskaya – Altaij – The Outermost Lindees – Abandoned in Total, Terrifying Terra Incognita, July 2022