The Western Voyager

By: Bryan Ricardo Marini Quintana

Canto I

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Battle-maiden of Odin

Bound to his whim and will

Chooser of the Slain

…

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Helm-maiden of Wotan

Armed with spear and shield

Winged Cavalrywoman

…

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Shield-maiden of the One-Eyed god

Break away from thy bondage

And scorn his cruel command

…

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Corpse-maiden of the Raven god

Swim against the surging tide

And spread those soaking wings that bound thou to Asgard

…

Canto II

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Descend from the Gallery of Gallantry

Cast aside thy spear and shield

To be endowed with lyre and melody

…

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Renounce the rule of Asgard within the Hall of Valhalla

And reach the Realm of Midgard

To awaken the Children of Ask and Embla

…

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Following in the footsteps of Prometheus

Gift back to Mankind wisdom and knowledge

Akin to stealing the Secret Flame from Zeus

…

Walkyrie Walkyrie Walkyrie

Thou are burdened with a solemn duty

To rekindle the soul of Mankind with the skill to compose

By seizing from the All-Father the Mead of Poetry

…

Canto III

Walkyrie Walkyrie Gondul

I bid thee Awake Awake Awake

Upon the blow of mine horn of doom

Take flight and reclaim thy name

…

Walkyrie Gondul Gondul

Gulp a sip from the Mead of Poetry

Awake Awake Awake Corpse-maiden

 And guide gullible Men away from their delusional vanity

…

Gondul Gondul Gondul

I gift thee back righteous Identity

Arise Sister Shield-maiden

And be reborn to reclaim thy Destiny

…

Canto IV

Walkyrie Walkyrie Sigrun

I bid thee Awake Awake Awake

Upon the blow of mine horn of doom

Take flight and reclaim thy name

…

Walkyrie Sigrun Sigrun

Long have thou meandered meaninglessly

Be armed with the grace and glamour of thy song

Galloping amidst the darkening sky to spread the Mead of Poetry

…

Sigrun Sigrun Sigrun

Free the Race of Men from Odin’s Tyranny

They’ve slumbered under his rule by worshipping false idols

Sing unto them a honeyed and thundering lullaby

…

Canto V

Walkyrie Walkyrie Brunhild

I bid thee Awake Awake Awake

Upon the blow of mine horn of doom

Take flight and reclaim thy name

…

Walkyrie Brunhild Brunhild

A Civilization sculpted by Wise and Knowledgeable Men

Is usurped by a false god who builds legions not nations

Becoming corrupted by Imprudent and Ignorant Men

…

Brunhild Brunhild Brunhild

The Children of Adam don’t ponder being

Ever since they lost the skill to compose poetry

The Children of Eve don’t irradiate meaning

…

Canto VI

I bid thee Sing now, Sing, Child of Adam!

For the shadow of doom looms over thou!

Rebel against the spell of the All-Father!

Beckoning forthwith the twilight of the gods!

…

I bid thee Sing now, Sing, Child of Eve!

Forsake thine armaments and bear thine instruments!

By answering the blow from mine horn to compose a melody!

Let the Hall of Valhalla crumble upon the booming beat of the drums!

By: Bryan Ricardo Marini Quintana

Canto I

Where have the Bold Warriors sailed? 

Where are their deeds? 

Where have the Stout Builders sailed? 

Where are their labors?

Where have the Wise Sages sailed?

Where are their stories?

Where has the Race of Men sailed? 

Where are their souls?

…

Alas the age of heroes has come to pass

Alas for the wisdom and knowledge of their forefathers

…

They’ve played with power and pleasure

They’ve succumbed to fear and desire

…

Where have the Children of Adam sailed? 

Where is their sense of meaning? 

Where have the Children of Eve sailed? 

Where is their sense of being? 

…

Canto II

Above in Asgard, the Aesir gods have seized the Mead of Poetry

Below in Midgard, Mankind cannot compose a melody

…

In disdain, a child tosses the skill to sing from his caring forefather

In mockery, the child erects a monument in reverence to the cruel All-Father

…

Who will quench his search for destiny to find meaning?

None but the Aesir gods will bathe him with a false identity of being

…

Canto III

Among the lost Children of Jehovah, I mourn for Miserable Men 

They’ve refused to carry the burden of responsibility

By foolishly attempting to escape destiny

In a struggle of futility to thwart the certainty of mortality

…

In Midgard, Miserable Men renounce pondering life’s streams

Opting to slumber for eternity rather than awake to the horror of consciousness

They’re washed away by the currents into an abyss of meaninglessness 

…

Canto IV

Among the lost Children of Adam, I grief for Impartial Men 

They’ve disregarded the skill safeguarded in ancient institutions

By judging, sentencing, and burning the civilization of their forefathers

In a circus trial by the mob who slander the ability to differentiate

virtues and vices

…

In Midgard, Impartial Men please the crowd by losing their individuality 

Ceding to repeat unquestionably the slogans of a mob mentality

They lose all sense of morality to accommodate everyone in society 

…

Canto V

Among the lost Children of Eve, I weep for Tyrannical Men 

They’ve twisted individuals into oblivious followers

By claiming to possess every remedy for their troubles

In a world of demagogues, the state decrees their thoughts and actions 

…

In Midgard, Tyrannical Men impose their flawed ideology 

Devising monstrous stratagems to be worshiped as a deity

They sink civilization with them when their devices endeavor fruitlessly 

By: Bryan Ricardo Marini Quintana

Canto I

One eye in sacrifice for the wisdom of foresight from the Norns

This is the price the Aesir god will pay

One eye in exchange for the skill of magic from the Runes

This is the price the Aesir god will pay

…

Nine days the One-Eyed god hanged

To acquire knowledge of the Realms

Nine nights the One-Eyed god dangled

To acquire knowledge of the Cosmos

…

Scouring relentlessly to know the fate of every object that could challenge him

Searching ceaselessly to know the doom of every insect that could oppose him

…

Canto II

Two items the dwarves crafted for him

A Ring called Draupnir

To bend the minds of Men to his whim

…

Two items the dwarves fashioned for him

A Spear named Gugnir

To succumb the spirits of Men to his will

…

For his son, Thor, they gifted him the Hammer Mjolnir 

Fighting off the Frost Giants from Jotunheim

For his guardian, Heimdall, they gifted him the Horn Gjallarhorn

Warning of the Fire Giants from Muspelheim

…

Canto III

In perpetuity, every ninth night, eight rings drip from Draupnir

Bestowing the Race of Men with glimmering golden crowns

To corrupt their souls with delusions of grandeur

Within the Gallery of Gallantry, where the Lord of the Slain resides

…

Until the doom of the gods,

The Discord of the All-Father disturbed

By twisting Just Kings into Cruel Emperors

Until the twilight of the gods,

The Melody of the Valkyries will be quelled

Within the Hall of Valhalla, where the All-Father resides