STAR OF ICE
(from Spaceman Sazartinus’ Diary)
Cosmopoetic Fantasy by Andrei Dorian Gheorghe
(composed in 1987 January 21)
Images and Design by Gabriel Ivanescu
1
“From now on,
you are in the Empire of the Star of Ice.”,
said to me a hermit on a small planet
like a dead pip on the periphery of
a forest of cold.
“The breath of our Absolute Emperor is so strong,
that becomes irresistible storms,
which smoothen all the planets
and make the void be lubricous.
If you meet them,
you are forced to collide hard solid bodies,
and this way a lot of nations lost
their heads, their members, their spinal columns...”
“But you,” I asked him,
“why have you a distant look?”
“I have seen so many tragic things in this solar system,
that my eyes have slid,
my personality has fallen,
and I have sprained my consciousness.”
2
I joined to the attempt of three Knights
from the Order of Galactic Saviors,
who intended to install games of justice
in that zone of cold terrorism.
But soon after our group received a grave hit:
a solar wind with shapes of hangman
crashed the first Knight,
dispersing him into puzzled flakes.
3
Alerted, we protected ourselves
with anti-cold and anti-shock costumes,
but on the first snow planet,
a precipice opened under the second Knight
like a famished month.
“The problem can be solved,”
he shouted while the white criminal swallowed him,
“the ice is a substance
which can be melted!”
4
Our remained team continued to advance
like two meteoroids among terrific radiations,
arriving into the middle of the Star,
becoming trees in the forest of the Imperial Court
(advantageous disguises!)
and remarking an incredible luxury:
sculptures of vortexes,
furniture of snowfalls,
chandeliers of icebergs.
5
We couldn’t see the Emperor’s face,
it was masked by ice.
He usually blessed his subjects
by hitting them with his scepter
(in fact, a skeleton of ice)
and always said:
“If I want, I can freeze
even the laws of universal attraction!”
6
His favorite entertainment
was to hunt rational values
able to put on fire many souls:
he set on them lassos of frost,
pierced them with lances of storm,
forced them to skate by naked soles
on the ice,
and finally imprisoned them
in satellites of fog.
7
“I am the coldest being in this galaxy,”
he proudly used to say,
“so I must promote the sharpest cold.
Otherwise, my illustrious heart
would cease to launch
exciting prominences of ice.”
8
All the time
his mercenaries patrolled in that solar system
in order to distribute the Emperor’s breath
and to arrest sources of incandescence
and their hopes.
More frightening than a fleet of comets -
soldiers of blizzard.
9
As there were too few prisons for rebels,
the normal population had to build new ones.
“The eternal winter production
will be quite remarkable!”,
said the Emperor,
gladly biting the meteorites
lost like icicles.
10
“Let’s celebrate
happiness through cold!”
sometimes the Emperor ordered,
launching white birds
which stiffened in the void
as false space stations, condemned
to freeze in the light.
11
“Go away!”,
the third Knight said to me.
“I have a bomb with warm and joy.”
Then he rushed at the Emperor,
calling out like a thunder:
“Impostor!
Your blood
is not blue!”
12
Later on I don’t know what happened.
I just saw behind
the Star becoming hot and the snow melting,
and I heard
rains of enthusiastic voices,
as in a liberated spring.
13
“Now I am O.K.”,
said to me the hermit on the small planet
on the magnetic field periphery of
the former Star of Ice.
“But you?
Why have you a distant look?”
ROMANIAN ORIGINAL VERSION
1
“De aici inainte se intinde
Imperiul Stelei de Gheata.” -
ne-a spus pustnicul de pe o planeta minuscula,
sambure mort la marginea
unei paduri de frig.
“Rasuflarea Imparatului nostru absolut este atat de puternica,
incat se preface in furtuni irezistibile,
ce netezesc toate planetele
si fac vidul alunecos.
De nimeresti in calea lor,
impins vei fi sa te ciocnesti de cate un corp tare
si, vai, popoare intregi si-au ratacit astfel
capete, membre, coloane vertebrale…”
“Dar tu,” - l-am intrebat,
“de ce privesti intr-o parte?”
“De cate am vazut in interiorul acestui sistem solar,
ochii mi-au alunecat,
personalitatea mi-a cazut
si mi-am scrantit constiinta.
2
Ma legasem de tentativa a trei Cavaleri
din Ordinul Salvatorii Galaxiei,
dornici sa instaleze jocurile dreptatii
in zona terorismului rece.
Lungimile parcurse la-nceput ne-au sabotat insa intregul:
un vant solar cu forme de calau
l-a spulberat pe-ntaiul Cavaler,
divizandu-l in fulgi nedumeriti.
3
Alertati, ne-am asternut pe trupuri
costume anti-soc si anti-frig.
Dar abia am poposit pe o planeta de zapada,
ca o prapastie s-a deschis, hamesita gura,
sub cel de al doilea Cavaler.
“Problema nu e de nerezolvat!” -
ne-a strigat el, inghitit fiind de criminalul alb.
“Gheata este o substanta
ce poate fi topita!”
4
Ramasi doar doi, ne-am strecurat,
meteoroizi printre radiatii cumplite,
pana in creierul Stelei,
devenind arbori in padurea Suitei Imperiale.
(Avantaj vestimentar!)
Acolo ne-a uimit un fast vrajitoresc:
sculpturi de vartejuri,
mobilier de ninsori,
candelabre de iceberguri.
5
Imparatului nu i-am putut zari chipul,
era mascat de gheata.
Isi binecuvanta de obicei supusii
lovindu-i cu-al sau sceptru
(de fapt, un schelet de gheata)
si mereu spunea:
“Daca vreau, pot ingheta
chiar si legile atractiei universale!”
6
Distractia-i preferata era
sa vaneze valorile ratiunii
ce ar fi putut incendia prea multe suflete:
asmutea asupra lor lasso-uri de ger,
le strapungea cu sulite de furtuna,
le punea sa patineze pe gheata cu talpile goale
in figuri impuse,
apoi le intemnita
in sateliti de ceata.
7
“Sunt cea mai rece fiinta din aceasta galaxie,”
obisnuia el sa spuna cu mandrie,
“asa ca datoria-mi este sa promovez frigul cel mai aspru.
Altfel, preailustra mea inima
n-ar mai putea lansa emotionante
protuberante de gheata!”
8
Tot timpul
mercenarii sai patrulau in acel sistem solar
sa distribuie respiratia Imparatului
si sa aresteze sursele de incandescenta
si sperantele acestora.
Mai inspaimantatori ca o flota de comete -
mercenarii viscolului.
9
Cum existau prea putine inchisori pentru rebeli,
populatia normala trebuia sa faca altele noi.
“Productia iernii eterne
va fi de-a dreptul remarcabila!” -
spunea Imparatul,
muscand cu bucurie din cate un meteorit
ratacit ca un turture.
10
“Haideti sa sarbatorim
fericirea prin frig!” -
poruncea uneori Imparatul
lansand pasari albe
ce intepeneau in vid
ca niste false statii spatiale, condamnate
sa inghete in lumina.
11
“Fugi repede!” -
mi-a soptit al treilea Cavaler.
“Port in mine o bomba cu bucurie si caldura.”
Apoi s-a repezit spre Imparat,
strigandu-i ca un tunet:
“Impostorule!
Sangele tau
nu este albastru!”
12
Nu stiu ce s-a intamplat mai tarziu.
Doar ca in urma mea
Steaua a inceput sa luceasca fierbinte,
zapada sa se topeasca
si ploua cu strigate vesele,
ca intr-o primavara evadata.
13
“Eu m-am vindecat intre timp.” -
mi-a spus pustnicul de pe planetuta
de la marginea campului magnetic
al fostei Stele de Gheata.
“Dar tu?
De ce privesti intr-o parte?”
© 2008 SARM
(Romanian Society for Meteors and Astronomy)