The Drunicorn
A short story of science fiction & fantasy composed in ten poems
by Joseph John Racano
The Chapters:
1. The Drunicorn
2. The Further Adventures of the Drunicorn
3. Drunicorn III, The Anticorn
4. IV, Dressa & the Underworld
5. Drunicorn V, a Tale of Two Sisters
6. VI, Faebrighter
7. Farewell to the Drunicorn
8. A Tower in Time
9. Drunicorn IX, Shades of Kong
10. Into the Mist
Starring:
The Drunicorn...................................as mixed offspring
The Great Anticorn................as the giant black dragon
Faebrighter.......................as the beautiful dragon rider
Dressa.................................................as the evil sister
Featuring:
The Nameless One
The Happyland Royals
Polaris aka The North Star
Many Animals and Archers
Jousting Rabbits (in white cammo)
The Many X-tras:
Jet Pilots
News Media
The Witch
Dinosaurs
Wild Boars
A short story of science fiction & fantasy composed in ten poems
by Joseph John Racano
The Chapters:
1. The Drunicorn
2. The Further Adventures of the Drunicorn
3. Drunicorn III, The Anticorn
4. IV, Dressa & the Underworld
5. Drunicorn V, a Tale of Two Sisters
6. VI, Faebrighter
7. Farewell to the Drunicorn
8. A Tower in Time
9. Drunicorn IX, Shades of Kong
10. Into the Mist
Starring:
The Drunicorn...................................as mixed offspring
The Great Anticorn................as the giant black dragon
Faebrighter.......................as the beautiful dragon rider
Dressa.................................................as the evil sister
Featuring:
The Nameless One
The Happyland Royals
Polaris aka The North Star
Many Animals and Archers
Jousting Rabbits (in white cammo)
The Many X-tras:
Jet Pilots
News Media
The Witch
Dinosaurs
Wild Boars
Faebrighter and the Drunicorn
The Drunicorn
People fear a dragon so I called it but a horse
‘And is your horse a Unicorn?’ My answer, ‘but of course’
But not a kind of ordinary Unicorn he be
Before you is a Drunicorn- the only one you’ll see!
His mother was a dragon, his father was a horse
Both saw past their differences and fell in love due course
The father had them move away for worry of the mother
Dragon wore such beauty that for him there was no other
Lady dragon took his hand, they settled in a magic land
Hot romantic evenings later happy was the horse to date her
Not long after HE was born- the first and only Drunicorn
Now all in a fire-circle, our faces flickered campsite purple
Silence won out soon enow, made the crickets seem quite loud
We passed around a cider flagon asking more about her dragon
Scowling with a heap of scorn, she said ‘this is a Drunicorn’
Then she showed what he could do -there and back to Tim-buck-too
Even had the sense of mind to prove it with the Tim-buck-Times
Not that I would ever read it, simply thought that we might need it
Then somebody asked the lass, what if dad had been an ass?
That was when she’d had enough, they both vanished with a puff!
So the story has been told, passed down from the days of old
Listen for the conch shell horn and you may see the Drunicorn
Joseph John Racano
Art by: Celebril
https://www.facebook.com/reptilianscal
People fear a dragon so I called it but a horse
‘And is your horse a Unicorn?’ My answer, ‘but of course’
But not a kind of ordinary Unicorn he be
Before you is a Drunicorn- the only one you’ll see!
His mother was a dragon, his father was a horse
Both saw past their differences and fell in love due course
The father had them move away for worry of the mother
Dragon wore such beauty that for him there was no other
Lady dragon took his hand, they settled in a magic land
Hot romantic evenings later happy was the horse to date her
Not long after HE was born- the first and only Drunicorn
Now all in a fire-circle, our faces flickered campsite purple
Silence won out soon enow, made the crickets seem quite loud
We passed around a cider flagon asking more about her dragon
Scowling with a heap of scorn, she said ‘this is a Drunicorn’
Then she showed what he could do -there and back to Tim-buck-too
Even had the sense of mind to prove it with the Tim-buck-Times
Not that I would ever read it, simply thought that we might need it
Then somebody asked the lass, what if dad had been an ass?
That was when she’d had enough, they both vanished with a puff!
So the story has been told, passed down from the days of old
Listen for the conch shell horn and you may see the Drunicorn
Joseph John Racano
Art by: Celebril
https://www.facebook.com/reptilianscal
Further Adventures of the Drunicorn
Vanished in the mists of time
Leaving Earthly cares behind
Of former lives they glimpsed a portion
Spinning like a wheel of fortune
Lady and the Drunicorn
Landed before they were born
Narrowly they missed a ghetto
Set down in a thriving meadow
Soft green moss was on the ground
Swallowtails flew all around
Incandescent Hummers chattered
Harmony was all that mattered
Through a conch she blew the horn
All come see the Drunicorn
Then she lit the incense bowl
Blew some toward a mare and foal
From the hillsides they came down
Nature’s children gathered ‘round
Round the Fae who blew the horn
Especially the Drunicorn
‘From the future we have came
A time when things won’t be the same
That is why we’ve come to you
You I trust, know what to do’
Circled by the great and feeble
Alligators bugs and beetles
Hawks and horses, stinging bees
All to channel energies
All the creatures of the range
Helped the Drunicorn to change
Using their collective power
Drunicorn began to tower
‘Thank you creatures of the field
For the energies you wield
We shall return by the by
Now the Drunicorn must fly'
The Drunicorn lept in the air
The lovely Fae tossed auburn hair
Around them time began to spin
Whirling with a mighty din
Once again they saw the sights
Neon freon colored lights
Off they were to save the day
Leaving those who wished they’d stay
Planets comets asteroids
Suns and moons and planetoids
Numbers symbols non-descript
Cosmic blueprint manuscript
Now they landed soft in sand
Strangers in a foreign land
Where exact they did not know
Fae said, ‘Drunicorn, let’s go!’
epilogue
Slowly Fae began to gather
Dragons always caused a lather
Then she blew the conch shell horn
Arrival of the Drunicorn
Joseph John Racano
Art: OXANTA
Vanished in the mists of time
Leaving Earthly cares behind
Of former lives they glimpsed a portion
Spinning like a wheel of fortune
Lady and the Drunicorn
Landed before they were born
Narrowly they missed a ghetto
Set down in a thriving meadow
Soft green moss was on the ground
Swallowtails flew all around
Incandescent Hummers chattered
Harmony was all that mattered
Through a conch she blew the horn
All come see the Drunicorn
Then she lit the incense bowl
Blew some toward a mare and foal
From the hillsides they came down
Nature’s children gathered ‘round
Round the Fae who blew the horn
Especially the Drunicorn
‘From the future we have came
A time when things won’t be the same
That is why we’ve come to you
You I trust, know what to do’
Circled by the great and feeble
Alligators bugs and beetles
Hawks and horses, stinging bees
All to channel energies
All the creatures of the range
Helped the Drunicorn to change
Using their collective power
Drunicorn began to tower
‘Thank you creatures of the field
For the energies you wield
We shall return by the by
Now the Drunicorn must fly'
The Drunicorn lept in the air
The lovely Fae tossed auburn hair
Around them time began to spin
Whirling with a mighty din
Once again they saw the sights
Neon freon colored lights
Off they were to save the day
Leaving those who wished they’d stay
Planets comets asteroids
Suns and moons and planetoids
Numbers symbols non-descript
Cosmic blueprint manuscript
Now they landed soft in sand
Strangers in a foreign land
Where exact they did not know
Fae said, ‘Drunicorn, let’s go!’
epilogue
Slowly Fae began to gather
Dragons always caused a lather
Then she blew the conch shell horn
Arrival of the Drunicorn
Joseph John Racano
Art: OXANTA
Dressa and the Anticorn
Drunicorn III, The Anticorn
Back at the campsite the fire roared
The campers were tired and some of them bored
The campfire suddenly increased intensity
Waking the neighborhood all through the tent city
Out of the fire flew an apparition
Giant of wingspan on some kind of mission
Narrated by a strange faraway horn
Announcing arrival of the Anticorn!
Large as three elephants, gun metal gray
Dorsal spikes, eyes like ice, saw-tooth array
Scales like to silver, the tongue like to gold
Hardened steel talons its breath stank of mold
And up on its back sat a sight for the ages
Exquisitely beautiful heartbreak of sages
She of the darkness a burn set to blister
Dressa, the consummate evil Fae sister!
Out in the shadows folk cowered in fear
Merciless Crom, what was she doing here?
Dressa the wicked and Dressa the beautiful
Men fell to their knees became weeping and dutiful
Anticorn opened his wing like a sliding pond
Pointing it downward for Dressa to slide upon
She landed quite nimbly catlike on her feet
Knocking men worshipers into the street
Then Dressa spoke in a voice like a Goddess
‘I seek an auburn-haired Fae in a bodice
One thousand zakrahs for more information
May Anticorn fire be your inspiration’
Acetylene torches two nostrils his breath
The Anticorn snorted his plasma of death
Soon enough fear had them lying and sinning
“She disappeared here on her Drunicorn spinning!’
Dressa the dark Fae began spinning too
All that remained was an Anticorn shoe
A bag of gold zakrahs lay strewn on the floor
Thankfully they would see Dressa no more
Joseph John Racano
Art: Margo Atir
Back at the campsite the fire roared
The campers were tired and some of them bored
The campfire suddenly increased intensity
Waking the neighborhood all through the tent city
Out of the fire flew an apparition
Giant of wingspan on some kind of mission
Narrated by a strange faraway horn
Announcing arrival of the Anticorn!
Large as three elephants, gun metal gray
Dorsal spikes, eyes like ice, saw-tooth array
Scales like to silver, the tongue like to gold
Hardened steel talons its breath stank of mold
And up on its back sat a sight for the ages
Exquisitely beautiful heartbreak of sages
She of the darkness a burn set to blister
Dressa, the consummate evil Fae sister!
Out in the shadows folk cowered in fear
Merciless Crom, what was she doing here?
Dressa the wicked and Dressa the beautiful
Men fell to their knees became weeping and dutiful
Anticorn opened his wing like a sliding pond
Pointing it downward for Dressa to slide upon
She landed quite nimbly catlike on her feet
Knocking men worshipers into the street
Then Dressa spoke in a voice like a Goddess
‘I seek an auburn-haired Fae in a bodice
One thousand zakrahs for more information
May Anticorn fire be your inspiration’
Acetylene torches two nostrils his breath
The Anticorn snorted his plasma of death
Soon enough fear had them lying and sinning
“She disappeared here on her Drunicorn spinning!’
Dressa the dark Fae began spinning too
All that remained was an Anticorn shoe
A bag of gold zakrahs lay strewn on the floor
Thankfully they would see Dressa no more
Joseph John Racano
Art: Margo Atir
Legend of the Drunicorn IV
‘Dressa and the Underworld’
Dressa took her leave of camp
Settled into somewhere damp
Bound her Anticorn in chains
Waited for the monsoon rains
Often she would visit Hades
Not a place for other ladies
This was home, where she was born
Dressa and the Anticorn
From the misty shadows came
A one we shall not speak his name
He then before Dressa knelt
Even he was in her spell
'Gorgeous Dressa you are home
Even with your friendly gnome'
Anticore bared rotten fangs
Ill at ease for hunger pangs
He the nameless gave an order
‘Pull a few souls from the water!’
Minion ghoulies dragged them screaming
Anticore char-broiled them steaming
Swallowed them in one large gulp
Chewed the remnants into pulp
Dressa asked the one to stand
'Twas ecstasy to touch her hand
Drawn to ten feet his full height
Stood before Anticore’s might
‘What would Dressa have me do?’
Dressa shushed him, ‘I’ll show you’
In her palms she held a crystal
Not unlike a guided missile
Inside showed her sister Fae
‘I’m off to find her, one- which way?’
Nameless one unfurled his finger
All fell still, the mist to linger
‘Not so long ago she stood
In that land where all are good’
Dressa spat, she knew such places
Texture, colors, happy faces
‘Now I shall return your favor-
One night may my lips you savor.’
Joseph John Racano
Faebrighter
Drunicorn V, A Tale of Two Sisters
One sister born in the netherworld dark
Her Mother the Dragon burst forth with a spark
Determined to hold back her second of twins
Until she arrived in the sunshine and winds
And so in the sunlight and brightness of day
Into the world came the beautiful Fae
She of the tresses seemed spun out of gold
Warm loving heart and a spirit true bold
Dressa her sister ‘mongst darkness to thrive
Jealous forever and sting of the hive
Like two charged metals repulsed one the other
Much aggravations it caused for their mother
Grew ever worse as they grew ever stronger
Which of the two would prevail to live longer?
Beautiful Fae had a love for her kin
Always forgiving despite all the sin
Dressa of darkness returned no such thing
Hate all-consuming chose Winter to Spring
Always horrendous the clash when they met
Dragon-on-Dragon flesh rending of pet
Soon once again would the two sisters meet
One would not rest ‘till Fae lay at her feet
Beautiful sister the Fae knew it well
But always kept hoping she’d wake from the spell
Now she did land in the realm of her birth
Here where the trees of the fields laughed in mirth
Once again blowing the conch shell as horn
Announcing the presence of her Drunicorn
Soon there was singing and dancing ballet
Talented ladybugs danced for the Fae
Colorful ribbon worms swung from the trees
Monkeys crashed Cymbals they strapped to their knees
Everywhere nature diversity spirit
How deaf could anyone be not to hear it?
Beautiful Fae of the kind loving heart
Cried secret tears for a world kept apart
Joseph John Racano
Drunicorn VI, ‘Faebrighter’
Now it came to pass; the time of alliance
From throughout time and space they came to join in defiance
Appearing as of bubbles in the space time fabric
A dragon, a warrior, an archer, a maverick
As the bubbles burst about a foot off the ground
Members took up arms and made a warrior sound
Rabbits with their jousting poles in cammo white
Dinosaurs and wild boars stood ready to fight
Their Champion, Faebrighter backed by green-skinned gargoyles
Blew the conch-shell horn announcing Happyland royals
Sitting on tall horses painted white by Americans
Signaling the rear to send a squadron of pelicans
All along the river valley Faebright forces stood
Side by side and row by row protectors of the good
Out in front the lovely Fae was marshaling the forces
High upon her Drunicorn and careful of the horses
‘Thank you for your willingness to ride with us to victory-
Why my sister’s heart is cold has always been a mystery’
At this the Drunicorn reared up and started snorting fire
‘But we must strike her down though it was never my desire’
Far below the cheering throngs the ground began to rumble
Down from quaking hillsides many rolling boulders tumbled
There along the ridgelines hidden forces did appear
‘Shields align, we’re out of time!’ and, ‘She’s already here!’
Now two armies closed in haste that one the other might lay waste
Leading each a covenant breached, two sisters boiling points been reached
One in gold the other gray their mounted dragon-steeds same way
Dark Dressa swinging sword with scorn, was trying to slay the Drunicorn!
All around the battle joined with conch shell horns a-blowing
Broadswords cleaved, fresh widows grieved and heaven started snowing
High above there was no love 'tween siblings locked in war
Lethal combat, spinning dragons plunging toward the floor
Far beneath the crowds made way for good and evil coming
Miniature atomic cloud that got the people running
Fighting raged into the night and snow it kept on falling
Morning brought a blood-red rain with no more conch shells calling
Joseph John Racano
https://www.facebook.com/reptilianscales
Art: Kimir-Ra
Farewell to the Drunicorn
Sixteen feet beneath blood-red snow
Two sisters awoke where brave warriors go
Broadswords lay broken, their golden blades shattered
Now at the end only sisterhood mattered
Fingers entwined as the life-forces ebbed
Nearby the dying, their scaly feet webbed
Deep underneath fields of carnage and snow
Faebrighter found herself bathed in a glow
Standing upright in a field of her youth
A curious girl and a Drunicorn tooth
Raising a hand to her friend in the sky
Dragon and rider in solemn goodbye
Up on the surface the forces of good
Started a bonfire salvaging wood
Digging in snow and retrieving the fighters-
Drunicorn, Anticorn, Dressa, Faebrighters
Someone saw movement, a flip of the head
Anticorn’s evil was not yet dead
Swords to dispatch him to dark promised lands
Were stopped by a voice that cried out, ‘stay your hands!’
‘Archers of Acheron!’ said the king to his wife
Lovely Faebrighter was clinging to life
He ordered an airlift by bees to the corn
Laying her there next to the Anticorn
Craters be made when the big dragons fall
But she they pulled out wasn’t Dressa at all!
‘Mother of Mitra!’ the king sounded sick
‘That witch is not Dressa, who plays us this trick?’
Anticorn woke and now free from her spell
Turned to Faebrighter, "I've story to tell
Long ago Dressa was locked in a tower
The witch had ensnared her with opium flower"
Commanding the Anticorn’s fealty and more
She threatened to cast Dressa from the top floor
"There all these years she meant no harm to you
Locked in the tower what else could she do?'
The king and his subjects were rightly surprised
He knighted them all and then bade them to rise
‘You have made all of us happy and proud-
that includes Drunicorn, now in the cloud’
Faebrighter asked to be helped to her feet
High atop Anticorn she took a seat
"Anticorn off with us, let's to the tower!'
Newly reborn he took off with great power
They sped away toward the cloud in the sky
Raising her broadsword in golden goodbye
Drunicorn followed and flew at their heels
And afterward left for Elysian Fields
©@JosephJohnRacano/07/07/2020
Joseph John Racano
Art: Hayao Miyazak
The Mighty Anticorn
Drunicorn VIII, a Tower in Time
The journey fraught with fog and storm
A Fae, two dragons, none the norm
Chilling cold and dizzying heights
Only stars to use for lights
One such star a friend to Fae
Helped to guide them on their way
Dragon black and dragon white
North star be your guide tonight
Soon came mountains far below
Waters that they didn’t know
Then Polaris pointed down
‘Ye shall find her in that towne’
Two large falcons stooped to China
Both their backs to Ursa Minor
When the sky turned black to blue
Tower Tall came into view
Anticorn the black drew near it
Backed by Drunicorn the spirit
All was as her steed recounted
Faebrighter the bold dismounted
Talons dug into the wall
Anticorn gave out his call
Answered quickly from inside
First they laughed and then they cried
Drunicorn flew ‘round the spire
Anticorn was breathing fire
Soldiers gathered on the ground
Arrows started raining down
Faebrighter said, ‘Something’s wrong!
Breaking in shouldn’t take this long’
Drunicorn said ‘It’s a spell-
Something made in witches hell’
Muffled cries came from inside
Dressa said, ‘That witch has died-
When you fought her in the battle
Get back up into your saddle!’
‘I’m trapped in a different time
Different tower you must climb’
Drunicorn began to spin
Gateway opened, drew them in
High above the stars went ‘round
Far below there was no ground
Then Polaris, now much older
Placed his hand upon her shoulder
Once again he pointed down
‘There’s the tower, there’s the towne!’
But this was nothing that Fae knew
‘I’ve never seen a tower of glass- have you?’
Joseph John Racano
The Anticorn
Drunicorn IX, Shades of Kong
Anticorn landed and the building shook
Every single claw a longshoreman’s hook
The gathering media couldn’t ask for more
A sixty-tonne dragon on the ninety-ninth floor
High above the clouds the Drunicorn stayed hidden
He was now a spirit and he couldn’t be ridden
They said there were no monsters now the press had proof
Motion picture footage and a damaged roof
Anticorn was working very carefully
Gentle as a fire breathing dragon could be
Popping open windows with his long curved claws
Peeling back the roof with his can-opener jaws
Buzzing ‘round the Faebrighter were giant bees
Each one had a rider shouting, ‘Interview please!’
Drunicorn got angry and he spirit-hissed
Slowing down the helicopters with his mist
Anticorn the meanwhile was searching rooms
Interrupting bridal suites, annoying grooms
Just when they decided there were none worth saving
Faebrighter saw Dressa on the rooftop waving
Then they heard the wailing of the air raid sirens
Time for their departure from these wretched environs
In a scene as close to Hollywood as it gets
Airmen were arriving in their strafing jets
High atop the building it was shades of Kong
The mighty Anticorn was using jets for pong
Parachutes and dragonfire filled the air
Jets no longer circled, not a one would dare
Together riding high atop the Anticorn
Faebrighter and Dressa blew the conch-shell horn
Drunicorn created them a pathway door
And opened up the skyway where the dragons soar
Joseph John Racano
https://www.facebook.com/reptilianscales
Art: Roman
Drunicorn X
'Into the Mist'
Two sisters united flew over the highlands
A dead witch’s purse and a fortune in diamonds
Faebrighter held to the reins of the Anticorn
Dressa behind blew occasional conch shell horn
Fleeting white Drunicorn flew like a rocket
Dragon egg snug in a dragon egg pocket
Leaving the unbridled chaos behind them
Still wearing arrows and wounds to remind them
Over blue waters the foursome did fly
Gargantuan wings and a dragon’s keen eye
Faebrighter holding reptilian reins
Dressa was free but still nursing her pains
Up ahead Drunicorn tilted to starboard
Maneuver perfected at dragon-school Harvard
No time to waste, dragon egg to deposit
Quantum-speed bullseye, through a time closet
Once in the tunnel all wings were extended
End over end light was bent and then mended
Spinning like dolphins, by the way, who were cousins
Acrobatics-in-vacuum were done by the dozens
Then up ahead Drunicorn saw an exit
Used his genetics to pierce and T-Rex it
And weren’t the tourists at Yellowstone wiser
Watching two dragons shoot up from a geyser!
Flying now easier out in the sun
They set Dressa down who was longing to run
When they met up with the Happyland royals
Faebrighter handed them back all their spoils
Soon there was singing and much jubilation
Once again joy reigned in Happyland Nation
Drunicorn shot to the sky and was gone
Faebrighter, Dressa and dragon stayed on
Drunicorn, epilogue
After his rider Faebrighter was kissed
Drunicorn melted away to a mist
Some of which still lingers soft on the moon
Singing Valhalla a Drunicorn tune
Joseph John Racano
The End
*another installment in the ‘Poetry of Dragons’ collection,
and the final chapter of the Stories of the Drunicorn
Author's note: Due to new inspiration, there may be more Drunicorn in the future. Here is what I'm calling a 'prequel' poem, documenting the sky battle of sisters Dressa and Faebrighter, and of course, their mounts...
The Battle of Shrelle
In the age of mist when the world was born
It was ruled by a princess and her Drunicorn
Faebrighter loved her people and in turn they loved her back
Until came such a time as evil sister did attack
Born of a sorceress and fathered by a mage
Both of them were beautiful, but one was filled with rage
That be evil Dressa, from dark lord she estranged
While Faebrighter spread happiness everywhere she ranged
They finally met in battle high above the city Shrelle
The Drunicorn from up on high, the Anticorn from hell
Their necks entwined in broken scales, their talons rending flesh
Riding up atop the beasts two sisters did enmesh
But when the smoke and fire cleared and all the fighting done
The world could see that Faebrighter and Drunicorn had won
And yet she cried a sister's tears, and rained them down below
Where Dressa and her Anticorn where banished for to go
epilogue
Came the age of mist an end, and upward rose the light
Dressa deep in catacombs of darkness and affright
And o’er the kingdom ruled a princess justly and with care
The rider of the Drunicorn with sunshine in her hair
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/12/5/2021
Featuring the characters created by Joseph Racano in ‘The Drunicorn’
www.josephjohnracano.com
Artwork by Cerebril at Deviant Art
The Battle of Shrelle
In the age of mist when the world was born
It was ruled by a princess and her Drunicorn
Faebrighter loved her people and in turn they loved her back
Until came such a time as evil sister did attack
Born of a sorceress and fathered by a mage
Both of them were beautiful, but one was filled with rage
That be evil Dressa, from dark lord she estranged
While Faebrighter spread happiness everywhere she ranged
They finally met in battle high above the city Shrelle
The Drunicorn from up on high, the Anticorn from hell
Their necks entwined in broken scales, their talons rending flesh
Riding up atop the beasts two sisters did enmesh
But when the smoke and fire cleared and all the fighting done
The world could see that Faebrighter and Drunicorn had won
And yet she cried a sister's tears, and rained them down below
Where Dressa and her Anticorn where banished for to go
epilogue
Came the age of mist an end, and upward rose the light
Dressa deep in catacombs of darkness and affright
And o’er the kingdom ruled a princess justly and with care
The rider of the Drunicorn with sunshine in her hair
Joseph John Racano
©@JosephJohnRacano/12/5/2021
Featuring the characters created by Joseph Racano in ‘The Drunicorn’
www.josephjohnracano.com
Artwork by Cerebril at Deviant Art
The Author