Warrior Out of Time

Rained on and through squelching mud,
the warrior ran, his sword askew,
his horse dead under the Saracen’s blade
thunder and lightning drummed the sky
My failure…God is angry, he thought

A lightning flashed, and thunder rolled
he felt the spear of light enter his heart
he felt his heart stop and his body
jerked in dying throes, the mud met him
‘I am killed by the God I fought for’

He woke on soft beds, scented strangely
of fingers touching in soft caress
billowing white sheets on unknown realm
women in short frocks attending to him
an alien land, he learned, of his own

More than one thousand years, forward
in a flick of an eye, in a sleep of a night
he went forward in time, silent fear
and awe, he feigned loss of memories
he hid his fear of the strangeness around

thus he lived, immortal never dying
never aging and never ill
was it punishment of God for him
for losing the war, for his cowardice
by running from the marauding enemies

he would never linger in a life with women
for more than three decades
for they aged and he did not
he would never watch his children
grow old, as they would grow older than he

always on the move, he was
changing his names as he travelled
he has been  a friar, a peddler
he has been a teacher and a banker
but always he would run again

when the thunder rolled and lightning flashed
he would be back with his warrior garb
for the power of them that know
would transport him through portals
and fight ancient battles he could not understand

he smiled as he read the book, a tale of yore
a mysterious black knight appearing to tilt
the battle towards the King of that lore
if only they knew who the knight was
he drank his coffee, and stood up to go

he felt warm and happy
so seldom did he feel that way
it was a clear and sunny day,
No battling in ancient wars
it was his birthday today.