PostPoems Be Artistic. Be Creative. Be Inspired!

A king stood atop a hill
His crown rested on a calloused brow
There was a fierce battle here
Many of his men had spent their lives
To defend his right to rule
Those who would now rule themselves
He fell to his knees and wept
  "What pale demons have voice for me now?"
  "What devils can slay my will"
  "When I can kneel in my brother's blood"
  "And know that they died this day"
  "So that I could rule this rock"
  "Would that I had bled with them"
  "I could sleep within this blessed earth"
  "I could grasp the clay I rule"
  "And know that I am at last a king"
  "But my blade is warmed in sheath"
  "And not in my devil's corpse"

A being of ancient hate
Heard the king's lament from realms below
He cupped his hands to his mouth
And voiced his concern to the surface
  "Oh ruler of bone and flesh!"
  "Oh thou insect lamenter!"
  "Wouldst that I could turn back time"
  "So thou couldst view thy sheep dying well"
  "Whilst thou bravely watched from throne"
  "Knowing that thy blood could not be spilt!"
  "Oh Duke of sweet Cowardice!"
  "Oh thou gift-giver of souls!"
  "Do not send more I beg thee!"
  "My brethren and I have fed too much!"
  "Our bellies bulge with thy sons!"
  "They will take much time for us to pass."
  "Yet, do not fret soul-giver"
  "Thou hast many yet to give!"

A sorrow brimmed the king's heart
For though the demon's words stoked his rage
Their icy truth broke his will
And he knew that he was not a king
  "Do not rend my soul further!"
  "I accept my chains of fate!"
  "I drown myself in my fear!"
  "I need not your council for my shame!"
  "I need not a demon ear!"
  "You are a jewel on my dagger hilt"
  "My own strength will thrust it true"
  "You are ornamentation"
  "My shame has no room for you"
  "Go digest the souls of those I sent"
  "I have no means to send more"
  "Do relish them while you can, devil--"
  "For the sons of my realm die"
  "Under my rule nevermore"

The demon's laugh echoed far
It shook the ground beneath the king's feet
So strong was the devil's laugh
A fissure appeared that stank of Hell
  "Oh king who would not be king!"
  "Oh renouncer of the crown!"
  "I would beseech thee at least"
  "To run thyself upon thy cold steel"
  "Before thy crown leaves thy brow"
  "So we may drink the blood of a king"
  "Not the blood of a peasant"
  "Who gave up his throne of lies"
  "In pointless retribution"
  "For I have seen the roots of evil"
  "And they dwell in every man"
  "And in some they flourish, as in thee."
  "Why dons't thou join us brother?"
  "Show us the true ways of man!"

The king's eyes burned with fury
  "Do not judge me imp!  I have slain you!"
  "Every time my blade bit true,"
  "It cut away your infernal words!"
  "Every time I struck down lies,"
  "I butchered your soulless kind!"
  "Do not sow the seeds of shame"
  "In one who's reaped that crop all his days!"
At that the fissure spread wide
A gust of death and putrid decay
Engulfed and blinded the king
And when it cleared he looked up
The infernal one strode out
He was the incarnate of hatred
The embodiment of death
And he spread his arms wide for embrace
  "Oh cruel one with bitter words!"
  "Oh brave one with bloodless sword!"
  
  "I beg of thee to draw back"
  "These thorns of painful disavowment"
  "For I fear thou knows of naught"
  "But evil's sweet and christening touch"
The hell fiend ventured forward
To take his kin in his arms
The king, scowling, crossed his arms
  "Don't think me so easily broken"
  "You believe that I am done"
  "You see me as fruit ripe for the plucking"
His smile was slow, his gaze dark
  "Perhaps one day I will be"
His hand flew to hilt of sword
  "But by God it will not be today!"
His blade leapt from its scabbard
And with a roar rivaling Hell's depths
He moved to engage the imp
He'd not fail twice this day!

The imp shook his head in loss
Raising his claws he smote the king prone
Looking at the man, he smirked
  "I would hope thee more virile than this"
  "I'd think that a king of men"
  "Would be a strong sturdy type"
  "Yet here thou lies in the mud"
  "And here thou wallows in your son's blood"
  "I feel no need for battle"
  "With one so feebly endowed and frail"
He leered at the king and grinned
Knowing jibes hurt more than blows
Rising slowly to his feet
The king wiped the blood and mud from him
He raised his blade overhead
The evil one laughed in disbelief
  "Are thou unpossessed of wits?"
  "Does't thou yearn so for death?"

The demon moved from Hell's gates
And stood resting his fists on his hips
  "What will greet thee in the morn"
  "If I should fall by thy blade this eve?"
The king seethed, feeling hate
The imp smiled, being hate
  "It matters not if I live"
Replied the king swinging his blade high
  "As long as I die nobly"
He split the air with vicious circles
His heart pounding with fury
His mind racing with regret
He would win back what he'd lost
The prize would not lay with who would win
But in the attempt itself
  "If you die, at last I earn my crown."
  "If I die, it's with honor"
  "So meet me, reeking devil"
  
  "Your last blow found me wanting"
  "Your next, I vow, will be met tenfold"
  "By strength that once was weakness"
  "By a heart that was too much like yours"
  "But still my own to direct"
  "And my own it will remain!"
The imp at last seemed bothered
This was not a view that he condoned
He did not approve at all
  "Spare me thy holy drippings, weakling"
  "Release me from thy sermon"
Another great laugh issued forth
Throwing its head back in mirth
The king at last saw weakness emerge
He rushed forth, his blade a blur
To cleave the demon where head met neck
He could not know the outcome
No man had slain a demon

But his sword, it did bite true
And the devil's face, locked in surprise
Tilted on its foul moorings
Yet as the thing's lifeblood fully fled
It razored the king's chest open
Splitting his heart quite in two
The king's wound would see him fall
But not before the imp's head rolled off
And desecrated the ground
The shocked look still painted in rictus
The king leaned over and said
In a quieting whisper
  "Oh thou harlot of Satan"
  "Oh thou headless terror of the dirt"
  "The time has come to part ways"
  "I do not know if thine dead eyes saw"
  "But it seems thou met ground first"
  "Though I surely will follow"
  
  "A small part of me thanks you"
  "You relit a flame I'd long thought lost"
  "That flame dims as I now do"
  "But its glow was unmistakable"
  "Fare well, soulless slug of Hell"
  "I go now where no man rules"
As the king's life slipped away
He felt the earth open around him
The weight of his crown had gone
The blade, gripped tightly in old, strong hands
Faded from touch and was lost
But no loss was felt by he
No longer was he removed
No longer was he above his sons
No longer did he suffer
As brave men who fought with loyalty
Died without seeing their king
For now he was one of them

Many strong hands lifted him
And embraced him warmly and soundly
He knew not one of them, true
But they all knew and welcomed their own
One who had found his true path
And had lived and died... a king