Across the frozen tundra
And wide open plains
Two souls, forever entwined,
Roam their home and their grave
Unknown to all, there sits
A beast, a monster, a troll
Watching them through a glass darkly
Obsessive in its all-consuming love
The two lovers die, as lovers do
The year was 1999, on the edge
Of a bright new world
The on-coming century
Green grass grew over their heads
Hands clasped in their shallow pit
But lovers live in the stories authors tell
And they rise again in ink and paper
The troll could not let them be
It searched for each new story that told
Of the love between Airazor and Tigatron
But none could satisfy its desire
Angrily the troll took to pen
And scratched missive after missive
Berating each new author it found
For none could do the lovers justice
The troll's obsession grew, unchecked
Scrawling messages were left in place
Of the stories, rambling thoughts
Criticisms that contained no sense, or thought
The authors stared in bafflement
At what the troll had wrought
For none could understand
Just what the hell the troll was talking about
The notes piled high on each new chapter
Til the authors were forced to ban
The troll from their hallowed halls
But the troll would not be deterred
The troll donned new disguises, new names
It called itself 4-6-0-1-7-0-4
And httpen and 6700AD
And often, it became that gray-faced Guest
So desperate was the troll
For someone to hear it
But its screams were swallowed by the void
And the architects laughed
And, as is the way of things,
All went silent
The lovers were forgotten
The authors had new stories to tell
New characters, new worlds, new lovers
And so Tigatron and Airazor faded
For ghosts only linger
Among those who remember
Until one day, not long ago
Just a few days, really
An author and knight by the name of Sir
Received a letter on a most peculiar subject:
A story, written in the fresh flowering of youth
Forgotten and dusty and covered in cobwebs
That told a simple tale of those lovers
Airazor and Tigatron
The letter came from the troll,
Though this particular story had received
Dozens of such missives from this very same creature
Here now, six years later, was another
Just as acerbic and obsessive as all the others
As witless and strange
The young Sir collapsed in a chair
And said,
"My God! It has been six years!
Six years since this story was penned!
What has this troll been doing all this time
That it has felt the need to come back to this?
Has there been no sweetheart?
No family? No enterprising career?
Nothing to fill up this troll's days
Except the hate it leaves among an author's mail?"
At once Sir felt pity for the black-hearted creature
But not enough to entertain its madness
"Let the beast howl and rage," Sir said.
"At the lack of permeance it leaves behind."
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Author's Note: For my number one fan, 4-6-0-1-7-0-4/httpen/6700AD/Guest. I know how much you love my work, especially Night of the Hunter. XOXOXO