Raven's Lore

Darksome night and darksome lore
the tale is told in the shade of the Tor
of how a young man's soul shall bear the mark
of a King Stag's horn and a Raven's heart

The old Horned One saith deep and slow
give to me the life you owe
and the brave young man who flees so fast
delivers his heart to the Kina at last

The challenge you fear is only death
and the secret that waits in your dying breath
so yield to the Raven, have no fear
she is the Dark Maid, she is the seer

And he cries ... "O where is the maiden so white and so fair
with the feathers of death in her shadowy hair
O where O where is the maiden dark
whose gift to me is her beating heart"

She said "come beloved and lie with me
upon the earth by the blackthorn tree
and high above and over the Tor
let the new horned moon keep Raven's lore"'

"When the moon's full dark so shall you run
through the woods in the guise of the old Horned one
and I as the Raven so fair and white
shall circle the Tor through the darksome night"

"And every time the moon wanes dark
and you and I share the sacred heart
then shall the womb of the land in the Tor
sound the rune of the Raven's lore"

And he cries ... "O where is the maiden so white and so fair
with the feathers of death in her shadowy hair
O where O where is the maiden dark
whose gift to me is her beating heart"

Darksome night and darksome lore
the tale is told in the shade of the Tor