Along the trails and through the woods a man who looked too old

　　carried on a quest like an adventurer so bold

　　smiling as he picked some fruit to eat from some old trees

　　laughing as he slayed a herd of monstrous enemies

　　Without a destination in his mind or any goal

　　chasing after nothing, free to cultivate his soul

　　just to be a witness to the world made him content

　　abandoning the notion of desire or intent

　　Though he had a fraction of the power of his prime

　　he felt his strength returning to him slowly over time

　　just enough that any monster he would chance to meet

　　offered little challenge as it fell beneath his feet

　　He may have travelled north or east, or maybe south then west

　　he wandered every day, and every night he stopped to rest

　　one day while he walked, however, something seemed to change

　　the forest all around him started feeling warm and strange

　　He noticed that the shadow which had watched him for so long

　　was chased away in moments by an otherworldly song

　　at first he thought he might be sick, or maybe he was cursed

　　but after such a happy life, he didn`t fear the worst

　　The sun became impossible to see above the trees

　　but he could still observe the forest scenery with ease

　　little dancing lights that felt nostalgic yet unknown

　　lit the way to somewhere never seen and seldom shown

　　"Are you back already, please don`t tell me you got lost.

　　did we waste the magic that we gave you free of cost.

　　but wait a moment, did you change the colour of your hair

　　anyways, it`s time to go, the exit`s over there"

　　A little fairy and its friends all flew around in playThe narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

　　the old man thought he might be dreaming, like he had that day

　　he looked around and felt a magic resonate within

　　several fairies giggled when they saw his silly grin

　　The old man sat upon a log recalling bygone days

　　driven by desire that set his heart and soul ablaze

　　"I always wondered if I hadn`t dreamed you up that day

　　when graciously you blessed me and then sent me on my way"

　　The fairies laughed and gathered round the human on the log

　　talking to themselves with more appearing from the fog

　　"humans rarely find this place, not even in their dreams

　　now you`ve been here twice, and once while still asleep it seems"

　　The old man laughed at being called a boy but understood

　　to weigh his age against the ageless wouldn`t do much good

　　"if I had to guess I`d say I`m luckier than most

　　though luck is not a quality I often care to boast"

　　"Isn`t he that bloody soldier, challenging his fate"

　　"he twisted fate`s attention, for his longing was so great"

　　with childish curiosity they mused about their guest

　　too curious himself to bother making a request

　　"For what it`s worth I`m thankful, but alas, you all were right

　　I`ll never be a hero for as long as I may fight

　　luckily for all the harm I`ve done, the world goes on

　　I`m sure at least a thousand fools like me have come and gone"

　　Suddenly the fairies started laughing all around

　　the old man was surprised and almost deafened by the sound

　　"he speaks like one who`s opened up his eyes and understood

　　another hundred lifetimes wouldn`t do him any good"

　　A fairy came up closer and then laughed right in his face

　　"this boy remembers nothing of what he brought to this place"

　　another fairy sighed and looked with pity at the man

　　"she doesn`t understand your fate, forgive her if you can"

　　The fairy who apologised look deeply in his eyes

　　the old man found his growing impatience hard to disguise

　　"the shadow that has followed him has backed away for now

　　but you have earned a destiny that fate should not allow"

　　"Shouldn`t I be happy that I`ve found some peace at last

　　there`s no room for more regret in this old hero`s past"

　　the man stood up to ask the fairy laughing in his face

　　a little bit embarrassed to be caught up in their pace

　　"You talk of things you cannot understand so please don`t try

　　you know less of destiny than fish know of the sky

　　if you think your fate is simply walking without aim

　　you`ll die a fool with nothing but your sorry self to blame"

　　The man was shaken by the words he heard the fairy say

　　he`d come to know that chasing fate would lead a man astray

　　"you`re telling me that even after all I`ve done so wrong

　　that there could be a destiny to which I still belong"

　　"I`ve grown tired of entertaining such a stupid man

　　here`s some extra magic power, use it if you can

　　hopefully the last advice I`ll have to give to you

　　is not to think that answers found alone are always true"

　　And with those final words the fairy waved its little hand

　　the old man looked around and didn`t recognize the land

　　the fairies and their magic disappeared without a sound

　　but still the man felt magic overflowing all around

　　~