The Invisible Knight Collection
Raymond Daley
Copyright 25/12/11 by Raymond Daley
Smashwords Edition
Introduction By The Author.
Most of the poems you are about to read were written during my time in the Royal Air Force.
I didn't have a great deal of freedom due to the dictates of the job and the military mentality so poetry was one of my very few outlets where I could do whatever the heck I wanted.
On a piece of paper, armed only with a pen (and after a few years then investing in an electronic typewriter) I was the master of my destiny. No-one was able to control what I wrote or how I thought. At least not whilst the muse was upon me.
The character of The Invisible Knight came about for various reasons, 99% of which I'd rather not discuss. Suffice to say he was necessary at the time and fulfilled certain things I had to do.
He's that anti-hero, not quite Batman but never superhero enough to be anyone much better. He was envisioned as living in the times of Knighthood and chivalry - a time when men were men and women were rescued.
In my head he was a twist on the Tin Man, an empty suit of armour carrying a 6 foot long double edged broad sword. Oh yes, I'd actually put that amount of thought in what kind of weapon he carried.
Over time and three or four poems the character developed to the point where I felt I wanted to write a book about him. I did start it, I did write bits of it and somewhere in my room there are numerous notepads of stuff and ideas which I hope one day will turn up so I can carry on working on them.
In the book he has a white horse called Benson, he was a human called Shawn (I think I decided his surname was Falcon?) and his ethereal state was due to a mixture of magic and technology.
Right, a few details about poem #1. I'll admit, I'd forgotten I even wrote it! It turned up when I filtered through my poetry folder. As far as poetic chronological content its the first poem that mentions The Invisible Knight by name.
It's not fair to say he was born here, his name was thought up but beyond that he wasn't any definite idea, nor did he have any kind of background.
All that came much later.
#1
Causes Of Kaos. By R.P.Daley.(C) 25/9/90.
Kaos reigns supreme once more.
As the dreaded Beast without a flaw.
Takes to the night on a killing spree,
He could be you, He could be me.
Invisible Knight, He stalks the night,
A fearsome creature hidden from sight.
Driven by anger, Hate or lies.
Death, A creature with unholy eyes.
Beware the Knight, My noble friend.
For he brings nothing but your end.
The End.
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Short and sweet and straight to the point, eh?
I used Kaos with a K for a reason. Nope, I can't remember it either, if when reading it occurs to you why then email me and let me know?
After this most Invisible Knight poems would be long epic type poems.
Poem #2 I DO remember ;-)
It started with a flyer for a poetry competition, I think my Mum got it at a library. The memory is fuzzy, over a decade has passed as has a lot of alcohol. It's highly possible it was an advert in a newspaper. One of those two things is definitely how it started.
I can say 100% for certain that the poem was written in small fragments whilst on duty in my war role. I can't remember where or how I got this typed up, I think I gave it to a female friend who typed it for me.
Most likely the wonderful Toni who was extremely kind to me in my early RAF career when every was big, new and incredibly scary.
Anyway, I had to cut the original poem massively as the competition limit was 22 lines. What you are about to read is the original uncut version. The cut version won and was printed in a anthology called Poetry Works.
A copy of which exists in the Bodlean Library in Oxford I discovered in 1996.
#2
The Tale Of The Invisible Knight. (C) 1991 Monday Oct 21
The Knight was a beast who knew only hate,
But something occurred which had changed him of late.
"What's happening here?" the Knight did say,
"What causes my form to be seen in the day?".
The answer was easy; As well he knew,
Would never dare even be guessed by so few.
The love for a woman who he never could see,
For much though he loved her it never would be.
The risk at his capture had torn him apart,
For he knew this young lady had taken his heart.
To offer his love or surrender his passion,
To deliver his heart unto her was his mission.
While the darkness of hell was the home of his thoughts,
The light from her heart was the heaven he sought.
His every waking moment both in the dark or light,
To seek her love; A quest for her, through either day or night.
But could such a Beast ever hope to be tamed,
By the beautiful rose that the dark man had named.
The Knight's only flaw was his inhuman side,
Could it ever be buried?; as it never would hide.
As her class was so high he felt she was above him,
Could love cross such boundaries; Would she ever love him?
Might her love entrap him and bind him in chains,
Thus destroying the Beast,leaving human remains.
So this image of her which was stuck in his head,
Of her pale skin so smooth and her full lips so red.
The way she sat still as he pictured her there,
With those deep sea blue eyes and that flowing brown hair.
His undying love like the flames that keep burning,
But afraid she's gone now with no hope of returning.
The End.
Written By R.P.Daley Between 5 May 91 and 29 Sep 91.
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I love that last line. I actually went to the trouble of noting down how long the damn thing took to write!
Poem #3, there's no real story behind it. I was putting out anything up to 4 or 5 poems a day at this point.
#3
The Man Behind The Mask. By R.P.Daley. Mon 29th Jan 92 - 11:37pm
My audience have told me, It's time to show my face,
The punters want to see the real person take his place.
It's time to lose the grand disguise, It's time to lose the mask,
It's time to become visible, That's what the crowd all ask.
A Phoenix finally burned away, An Invisible Knight appeared,
The seven veils have fallen off and it's just what I've feared.
I must deny this last request, I must step to one side,
But the man the whole world wants to see, Just simply want to hide.
He's spent too long being someone else, can't remember his own name,
He wants to be the unknown man, but he still wants the fame.
Forgotten who he is now, Don't care who he's been,
He's the real no-where man, who wants to stay unseen.
No-one tries to chase him, 'Cause he simply can't be found,
Is it just him being paranoid, Or does no-one ever want him around?
A thousand people wish him dead, they only exist inside his head,
He lives his life in fear and dread, when he's hanging by a single thread.
What dwells inside that restless mind, hidden by a smile,
The foulest beast, a thing of black, a something dark and vile.
But he knows there is light within, this beast who's only name is sin,
There is another man inside, the one who's just in for the ride.
He's seen life from many angles, he's been there before,
He's the one that knows no better, his life's just a chore.
Does he dare to come out now, Dare to show his face,
Shock the world, take off the mask, reveal an empty space.
The End.
[there can be nothing for there is nothing inside anymore-blank] (Holst The Planets, Mars-The bringer of war)
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Ok, you are probably curious about the stuff after The End?
I'd gotten into a habit of not only noting when I wrote and what time, I also developed a nasty habit of noting how I felt at the time.
Clearly here was a low time. I also noted what I was listening to as well. This'll be my "classical period" then.
In that last piece I referenced a poem I'd written when I was at secondary school.
Ok, Poem #4.
Technically its not an actual Invisible Knight poem, he's not referenced or inferred but its in the general style and comes from the Invisible Knight mindset and mentality.
I get to say what classes as an Invisible Knight poem because I invented him.
On the whole I see him as a very dark character or personality, and the essence of "The Beast" is exactly that.
#4
The Beast.(C) 15/6/92. By R.P.Daley.
The beast hides within,
Way below my skin.
The way he hides inside my mind,
By day that's where he'll be.
But when the darkness shrouds the land,
You can be sure he's close at hand.
So if he's trapped or roaming free,
It doesn't matter, 'Cause that beast is me.
Just don't forget if you can't see,
The beast inside is the beast that is me.
The End.
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Another one that's not an epic, I probably just had to express a few things when I wrote it. Writing this kind of thing was therapeutic, a good way to get stuff out of my system.
Poem #5 is another of the epic length poems, it almost certainly started life where most of the rest of them did.
In M1.
M1 means nothing to you, it was the mens toilets on the middle floor of the location where I was on war duty. Lots of ideas started in that toilet, it was quiet, it was cool (temperature wise) and it was a seriously brilliant place to hide from the stress of work of which there was a lot.
Cue Poem #6, another of the long ones. Sometimes when I wrote, ideas just fell out of me, it was a struggle to keep up with them. It's terrible to have a brain that's faster than your ability to write.
#5
The Realm Of Silence. By R.P.Daley.(C) Sun 28th June '92.
Near the Labyrinth of Loneliness, In a shadowed veil of mist,
Is a darker place than the worst in space that the Sun has never kissed.
In the Caverns of Confusion, Is a place that's far from sight,
Which is home to the dream who's never seen, The unique Invisible Knight.
The darkness is his homeland, Where he spends all his time,
And he hides his face from the human race, Though he's guilty of no crime.
He's shapeless like a specter, Moving like a passing thought,
Just an insubstantial phantom, That the light has never caught.
He guards a hidden secret, Underneath his blackened cloak,
Just the slightest trace of a human face, And a name that's never spoke.
You'll always know he's coming, When you feel the iced winds blow,
He seeks no reward with his silver sword, Than a better place to go.
He's quite the man of mystery, Full of facts he can't disclose,
With a darker side where a love can hide, And a heart that never shows.
The Knight had been a mortal once, What made him now like this?,
Was a love so pure it must endure and a single woman's kiss.
It's the gir1 who's in the sunshine who has set his heart alight,
But he knows their love is doomed to fail, For this life can not be right.
For she had found his hidden heart, Entombed by walls of stone,
In a dungeon deep where his love could sleep, In a place far from his home.
He gave this beauty all his love, He'd made her all his own,
He'd sent all the love he had and all the things he'd known.
No settling for second best, Her love is what he needs,
To satisfy his one desire, Who knows where her love leads?
He can't tell her the future, And she'll never know his past,
So he'll use his might to see her right, And to hope their love will last.
The greatest love is hard to get, In a place that can't be reached,
In a tomb so strong it'd take too long for it's stone walls to be breached.
Can't bear to be apart from her or even feel her touch,
He don't think she can take enough then thinks she needs too much.
He'll never look her in the eye, Since her beauty makes him blind,
But her love went right through him, And then crowded out his mind.
Like the solitary villain. He's returning to the crime,
And he's running back to her again, Just to work things out this time.
Time went fast and he watched her age, She could not retain her youth,
As she asked of her impending death, He would not tell her the truth.
But he knows she's gone forever, That she had to die one day,
Did he have to be Immortal?, What had cursed him in this way?
And the only things he has now. Are his dreams and a lonely grave.
Sleepless nights he slept; As watch he kept with the girl he couldn't save.
Now he'll hold back a thousand tears, But they'll fall inside his soul,
He's so empty in her absence, And he can't fill up that hole.
There are many grey illusions, Which will chase you through the night,
You'll find they're all outside your mind, Just barely out of sight.
There's a single lonely figure, Who you won't find in the light,
Running wild alone in his silent home, The immortal Invisible Knight.
The End.
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Have you noticed a lot of references to running? They're all me, I was training all the time for the London Marathon.
Lots of references to darkness too, mostly because the streets around the base had no lights.
#6
The Edge Of Darkness. By R.P.Daley (C) 21st July 1992.
Under silent shadowed sunsets, Which have fallen full on fire,
Hides a deadly darkened creature, Who is empty of desire.
He is not part of creation, Not of fantasy or fact,
Just a dream unseen with a soul unclean and a past that can't be tracked.
In his shadowed glade of darkness, Where he watches night time fall,
He prepares himself for action, When he hears the blackness call.
You'll never see his shapeless form unless you can stop the clocks,
Because he'll be roaming in the rain, Near the sunset on the rocks.
He's a victim of his lifestyle, Which was caused by lack of love,
So he ended up just going to ground, To avoid the push and shove.
He's been searching for his princess, With his promises to keep,
And once that he has found her, There'll be just rewards to reap.
To pursue her love was futile, As was his lonely cause,
Most noble in his isolation, Never would he pause.
Her face haunting his dreaming, Her voice heard in his sleep,
A sound of the past that wanted to last, Made even our noble Knight weep.
He has a mind of darkness, Which he hides by force of will,
And a lighter part with a trace of heart, Which is hidden deeper still.
There's a man that's deep inside, Only she has ever seen,
Not the darkened shape in the shadowed cape where the man once must have been.
He will always come back to her, Since she knows he can't resist,
But he'll curse himself for leaving, When he sees what he has missed.
He wished that he could love her, This was asking for too much,
For all she would allow him, Was to look but not to touch.
Each day she cam. to ask him, What lay beneath his hood,
He knew that he must tell her, But was not sure he could.
He drew back his shadowed cowl, Just displaying simply space,
And showed her nothing lived inside, No sign of any face.
So scared by what he showed her, She went off far away,
And left him searching for her, Each long day after day.
His life was like a barren desert, He was all alone,
She was in his life no more, He was on his own.
His life was like a closing door, slamming in his face,
And he searched for her forever, But there never was a trace.
She's the only one who loved him, With her love so pure and true,
He had told her "There's a man inside, Who's only seen by you".
He will count his million memories, Which he keeps inside his head,
Of his love long lost at the dearest cost, He will not believe she's dead.
It's like he's mixing up his life, Like everything's in one,
So what's real and what's make-believe, Where has the boundary gone?
On the very edge of darkness, Where the shadows meet the light,
Dwells the legend lone who is only known, As the one Invisible Knight.
The End.
For Nell and her persuasive smile.
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Nell was a very good friend and confidante. I missed her terribly when she got posted. Friends like that are few and far between. She's not the first girl I've written something for and she definitely won't be the last either. And before you ask, no, she's not the subject of The Knights affections. She was a seriously excellent person and I hope her life is brilliant.
Poem #7 isn't actually the seventh in the series/ saga/ whatever. There is an unfinished poem that I rediscovered whilst making this compilation. It's either called The Islands Of Illusion or To See A Twilight Secret. Heck it might even end up being two poems.
In "The Visitation" I wanted to work on an idea that was basically the origins of The Invisible Knight. By this point I was definitely writing the story, a lot of the ideas in this were either lifted from that or originated here and were notated into the story.
I was tired of him just being this thing that seemed to come from nowhere, him having an origin was suddenly important.
Every long poem is a little story in itself, this one even more so.
#7
The Visitation. By R.P.Daley (C) 30/11/92.
Silence reaches out it's arms, Takes him to it's heart,
It lets him listen to the beat, And told him where to start.
It took him running in the night, And showed him all of life,
And then unlocked him from his chains, To free him of his strife.
The darkness came into his mind, To show another way,
A path he said he'd never tread, Unless it was by day.
It shows the things he never saw, The things that he had missed,
The deepest corners of his soul that the light had never kissed.
Then Time came calling after them, To show what happens next,
The future written out so clear, Just like a Shakespeare text.
Next the Past came to him, To show him what he'd been,
To ask so many things of him, What did his life all mean?
To let him see his life again, To show him his mistakes,
He could have had a better life, He could have had the breaks.
Fear was next to come in line, To show him what he'd lost,
To prove that he had given up, To reckon up the cost.
To show what he was lacking, To emphasize the space,
That he had missed out on so much, To show a loss of face.
Next loneliness came walking in, To break his empty heart,
To show he'd never known true love, Of life he'd had no part.
It showed him what he thought he'd had, The girl he thought he'd known,
The one Love said that he could have had, But was never made his own.
Death came in to see him last, To give him his last rites,
To speak his fallen angels prayer, To show him his last sights.
To grant him only one request, To make a final choice,
Like a final plea for mercy, To be spoken by his voice.
To choose to be a dark one, Be taken from the light,
To take up sword and mantle, Become The Invisible Knight.
The End.
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Ah, "Legion". Another one thats not strictly an actual Invisible Knight poem per se but is in the same style.
Again this is me as the creator making the judgement call that this belongs to the series.
I've probably stolen a ton of ideas from classical poets when I knocked this up but because I have no idea where I "borrowed" them from I'm calling it my own.
#8
Legion. (C) 17/7/93. By R.P.Daley.
I am all but I am none,
I am everywhere but I am no-where.
I am black and I am white,
I am day and I am night.
I am everything and I am nothing,
I am near and I am far.
I am Alpha and I am Omega,
I am here and also there.
I am positive and I am negative,
I am Life and I am Death.
I am Legion; Call me Many,
My numbers are infinite,
But I do not exist.
The End.
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Poem # 9 is another origins poem, I was so happy with how the last one worked I wanted to extend its parameters a bit.
It fleshes the character out a lot more.
#9
The Riddle Of Remembrance. (C) 16/12/93. By R.P.Daley.
If you cross the rainbow river, To a glade of darkened light,
You may meet a darkened creature, Who's unseen by mortal light.
There are few that truly know his name, And less have seen his face,
And he leaves no sign of footprints, Of his form there is no trace.
He is swifter than a passing thought, He can move without a sound,
Yet untouched by any element, There is no-where he is found.
He is shapeless like a vapour, Like an empty cloud of mist,
Bringing chaos and confusion, Well, How can this beast exist?
He keeps himself from mortal eyes, Within his den of gloom,
And he runs beneath the clouded skies, To guard his empty tomb.
His home; An unsolved riddle, Which never will be guessed,
And to grant him his own freedom, Is his last single request.
There is room within his empty soul, For his true self to reside,
And a larger space inside his mind, Where his black intentions hide.
He has no heart left inside him, But a gaping void instead,
And the sights that pass inside his mind, Are not seen inside his head.
With no heart there to be broken, His can not be repaired,
And his own words still unspoken, Mean his life will not be shared.
With his absence of emotion, In his non-existent heart,
Only loneliness can linger, Which will tear his world apart.
He can not escape the darkness, It has taken his whole life,
Must he stay within this blackened lair, Grant him freedom from this strife.
He will gaze upon his kingdom, From the greyness to the bright,
And remain; The lonely Phantom, The last Invisible Knight.
The End.
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Poem #10, Its an anti-Knight poem written from the other side, this time the female is the lead instead of the male.
#10
Aqua Liberator. By R.P.Daley. (C) 4/3/94.
As you danced across the water, Like the slivers of the light,
I stood silently still waiting, For the coming of the night.
Your eyes which shone like diamonds, Your hair as red as fire,
Your skin as pale as moonlight, Were the source of my desire.
I stood and watched you dancing, Across the silent lake,
And saw the water motionless, No sounds did your feet make.
I heard your sweet voice singing, Just like a sirens song,
To weave your wild enchantment, The magic felt so strong.
I heard the sound inside my mind, It pulsed beneath my skin,
Sensations surged throughout my self, A power felt deep within.
I spoke the phrase of freedom, Which would allow release,
And watched you walk towards the shore, And to your final peace.
I slowly walked to meet you, To help you onto land,
And felt my heart beat faster, As you gently held my hand.
I moved to bring you closer, And held you in my arms,
So glad that I had freed you, From the evil waters charm.
I heard you call me darling, I gently kissed your face,
I knew the pieces of my life, Had fallen into place.
We left the lake together, Its surface washed with light,
Both walking slowly hand in hand, Away into the night.
So now the spell is broken, And we are now a pair;
Two hearts forever linked by love, With our full lives to share.
We shall build our world together, Our whole lives it may take,
But I will give her all my love, My lady of the lake.
The End.
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Poem #11 I learnt the word Zagadka when I read the book 2010, The Year We Make Contact. It's Russian, it means Enigma. Its what the Soviets call the monolith orbiting Jupiter. So now you know.
#11
Zagadka (C) R.P.Daley 1/11/03
Bring forth Leviathan
The strong and The Mighty,
Prostrate now before him
Controller of Fate.
Hurry now to Leviathan
And herald his coming,
But send forth a warning
For he will not wait.
Look now on Leviathan
The one and the many,
Know this one truth
He will destroy what he can not create.
Bow down to Leviathan
So swift and so silent,
Surrender to him
It's already too late.
The End.
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Despite finding the unfinished poem I have decided not to include it in this release of the collection. It's possible at some point in the future I will be able to sit down and finally complete that lost poem and then do a revision of this and include it then.
We'll see.