Author's Note: This poem is from the POV of King Baldwin IV. It's completely fictional and a snapshot into his thoughts at the brief realization in the moment.
Blood and mud splatter everywhere.
I cannot lift my sword without slicing through flesh.
Cries and grunts fill the air as sure as any arrow.
The dead and surviving everywhere.
Something causes me to stop and turn,
and I look across the enemy line
straight into the calm eyes of an archer,
arrow drawn, set on its mark--
my heart.
For the first time in my life, I fear death.
But then I wonder, will I feel it?
YOU ARE READING
King Baldwin IV
Historical FictionYear 1174, a boy at age thirteen is suddenly thrust into power upon the death of his father, King Amalric. He inherits a kingdom at war--the Kingdom of Jerusalem. However, he possesses a secret. He is dying of leprosy. Knowing he could be cast out o...
