"At Issue," a _Forever Knight_ fan poem by Amy R.

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At Issue
June 2000
last modified July 25, 2000
by Amy R.
The scene explored occurs in the first-season Forever Knight episode "Dead Issue." Further disclaimers, citations and credits appear in the endnote of this Forever Knight fanfiction poem.
 
Tell us where he is, Mrs. Fiori.
        Tell us where your husband took the captain.
        Come on; I know you know where they are, Lynn.
And Stonetree's life hangs on that mystery.

I wish I could say, Mrs. Fiori,
        take your time; think it over; sleep on it.
        I wish I could be more compassionate
with your loyalty to his treachery.

I know that contradiction all too well,
        though I have to use my understanding
        to compel you to speak, countermanding
the silent prison in which we both dwell.

I can't share how I know your point of view --
        bound hand and heart to civilized evil,
        long losing hope of your soul's retrieval.
I can't say, I've worn those grim shackles, too.

You seduced Gubbins, Mrs. Fiori.
        You felt inferior, corrupt, worthless.
        You embraced the mantle of murderess
though guilty, instead, of adultery.

I cannot say aloud how well I know
        those same dark swamps of self-hatred and guilt
        where shame-haunted lusts mire hope like silt
choking the future in the long-ago.

Tonight, something changed, Mrs. Fiori.
        Something changed as you drove the Captain's car.
        You've broken your chains and lifted the bar;
you're here because of that discovery.

I can't reveal my epiphany --
        Sylvaine dead by his choice, but my own fault.
        Allowed love till my master called a halt,
I fully understood his tyranny.

Tell us where right now, Mrs. Fiori,
        or the captain's death will be on your head.
        Lynn, think about what you have defended.
Save yourself in saving Captain Stonetree.

And as you, in anguish, wield the pen
        to write the address where we have to go,
        I cannot tell you how time seems to slow,
watching that flaming stake strike home again.

        END
 
Endnote:

Disclaimers

James Parriot and Barney Cohen created the Forever Knight characters. The Sony Corporation owns them. They appear periodically on the SciFi Channel. I intend no infringement. Please support Sony and SciFi in all their Forever Knight endeavors!

All characters and situations depicted in this fantasy fan poem are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real people or experiences is purely coincidental.

Citations

Nick, in "Dead Issue," to Linda "Lynn" Fiori:
"C'mon. You know where your husband's taken Stonetree; I know you do. You felt inferior, corrupt. You seduced Gubbins. And you've done whatever's necessary to protect your husband. But tonight, something changed. While you were driving the captain's car, something changed. That's why you're here. Tell us right now, Mrs. Fiori, or you'll be responsible for the captain's death."

The poem directly invokes the episodes "Dead Issue," "Love You to Death" and "Dark Knight, The Second Chapter."

For the interest of those mechanically inclined: ten pentameter quatrains, rhymed In Memoriam style, compose the lyric.

Credits

My thanks go to Bonnie, for examining the first draft of this poem, and to Shelley, for analyzing the penultimate one.

Please do not archive, post or otherwise distribute this piece. You're welcome to link to it here on my site. I wrote "At Issue" in the early summer of 2000, posted it to fkfic-l on July 15, 2000 and coded it in HTML and placed it on this website July 25, 2000.

Thank you for reading. I always appreciate comments and constructive criticism and, though sometimes it takes a while, I also always answer them. Please email me or leave a comment on my LiveJournal or Dreamwidth.

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