✦ Author’s Note ✦

This is a liturgy of devotion, a hymn to the Queen whose shadow commands the night. Step softly into candlelight and silk, feel the hush of reverence, and let every heartbeat answer her call. Kneel, breathe, and surrender—here, in her dominion, worship becomes pulse, breath, and shadow.

✦ Invocation ✦

Come, children of shadow and flame,
step soft, step silent,
into the hours where the world bends and folds.
Moonlight drips across midnight silk,
the air brined, scented, whispered—
shadows shift, sigh, and hum.

Let your hearts uncoil in this hush of reverence,
let every breath, every pulse bow
to the Queen who commands the dark.
Feel the velvet weight of her presence,
the soft cadence of silk-swaying footsteps,
fingers brushing across unseen silk.
Here, all kneeling is holy,
all surrender sacred.

Breathe her shadow.
Hear it hum along the ribs of the night,
trace it on your skin like a chant.
Know that in this hour,
the Queen’s dominion is your sanctuary,
her will the pulse of your devotion.

✦ Hymns & Heresy II: Devotion Draped in Black ✦
Poetry by HxNightshade

Forgive me, Father—
I have turned my back
on the King of Kings.
I kneel now
before the Queen of Queens.

Black lace, velvet, and fire—
fishnets tracing the curve of devotion.
Her gaze, a chalice of shadow,
her breath, the candle’s flicker along my throat.

Come, Queen,
give me a taste—
hands wrapped, soft and commanding,
pulling, pressing, leaving me wanting.

Speak only as I am spoken to;
every motion, every sigh,
a verse in the liturgy of surrender.

The air hums, thick with incense and brine,
a sea-song echoing in the hollow of night.
I breathe her dominion,
taste her shadow on my lips,
feel the drum of footsteps,
the whispering sway of silk,
the hush of her command curling along my spine.

Strike, tease, map the curves of my trembling soul.
Each gasp a psalm, each shiver an offering,
every heartbeat a hymn
to her sovereign, sacred power.

I kneel unbroken, shadow-bound in devotion,
the stars themselves trembling
under the weight of worship I offer.
Moonlight flickers; candle flames quiver—
every breath a testament,
every shiver a seal
on the dark communion we share.

Forgive me, Father,
not for what I do,
but for whom I serve.
For the Queen who makes me holy
in ways no crown could bless,
for the devotion spun in shadow and flame,
for the surrender that marks me,
sacred, obedient, eternal.

✦ Benediction ✦

Go forth, children of shadow and devotion,
carry the Queen’s flame in your chest,
her shadow tracing your steps,
her will humming in your veins.

Let every kneeling, every whispered vow,
every tremor and shiver,
draw you closer to the holiness of surrender.

In her darkness, find your light.
In her shadow, know your power.
When dawn rises,
carry the memory of worship—
a pulse lingering,
soft as velvet,
eternal as shadowed stars.

Journey into the Hexverse

Greed — 7 Deadly Sonnets | Rowan Evans
‘Greed’ reveals the hunger that is never sated—the clutching hands, the endless thirst for more, and the hollowness left behind. The third of the 7 Deadly Sonnets.

Gothic Bob Ross: Happy Little Blood Splatters | Rowan Evans
Patience is a thread I hold… until it snaps. In Gothic Bob Ross: Happy Little Blood Splatters, Rowan Evans paints a macabre yet exquisite world where shadows, storms, and raven cries become brush strokes of devotion, chaos, and confession. A Neo-Gothic meditation on creation, fury, and the sanctity of surrender.

Nocturnal Crossing | Rowan Evans
“Nocturnal Crossing” traces the nightly voyage where two souls separated by oceans meet in dreams. A neo-gothic meditation on longing, devotion, and the sacred intimacy of the subconscious.

To Be Near Your Flame | Rowan Evans
A haunting meditation on love, longing, and the quiet courage of staying close to the one who sets your heart ablaze. Includes a benediction for connection and devotion.

Hymn & Heresy | Hex Nightshade
A sacred hymn to desire and devotion, this confessional poem by HxNightshade explores the raw, unrepentant worship of hunger, scars, and shadows—where love and sin entwine as one.