A Hero of the People

He run the gauntlet of every day life, on instant awareness,

Waiting, watching, aware that his enemy could be anywhere in all fairness,

He carries his bow and arrow upon his back, the string made from his ancestral silk,

And the arrow tip is harnessed with the venom of a rattlesnake’s milk.

**

He wanders the land by the side of a wolf harbouring the darkest of fur,

Just seeing this pair on the hillside causes an immensely guarded stir,

Knowing he’s searching the caves and crevices for the evil that hides,

A cretin that murders the innocent, resulting in a township that divides.

**

He stalks his prey using the eyes of an eagle to forewarn him when he’s near,

This eagle sees things from its lofty height that he can’t quite make clear,

He notches an arrow into the bow that was strung across his back,

Quietly pulling the bowstring tight and steadily taking up its slack.

**

As he rounds the crest of the hill he has swiftly been climbing, warily,

He listens deftly, while watching his wolf’s reaction, frozen momentarily,

A stone clackers on a downward spiral, rolling like a clap of thunder,

He jerks his head upwards, realising it was thrown from the tree he’s standing under.

**

He whips his bow and arrow in the direction of the tree’s highest limb,

Anxious that the wind blown leaves will make his pickings slim,

There staring him down is the nemesis in which he set out to hunt,

Smiling evilly as it raises a shotgun and aims it at his front.

**

He ducks behind a boulder, still armed with his bow and arrow notched,

Wondering how it is that his hunt has been so seriously botched,

He scampers backwards and to the side, using the low bushes as his cover,

Stalling for time so he has the momentum he needs to regroup and recover.

**

He circles the crest of the hill, at all times keeping out of sight,

And comes forward towards the back of the tree knowing this could be his final fight,

As he nears the shadows of the bowed limbs giving his enemy space to hide,

He quickly steps into the open, aims his arrow and shoots, disgusted it flew wide.

**

He steps back behind cover, quickly restrings another arrow, taking aim once more,

This shot is more successful going by the resulting screaming roar,

A crash of tree branches leads the fall from a lofty height,

And his prey cascades to the ground, the ultimate loser in this fight.

**

He moves closer and peers down on the evil being, one that’s totally disgraced,

Evil that’ll not bother the township or its people anymore, death has visited in his haste,

He leaves the remains as a prize for his wolf and eagle to enjoy their feast,

Knowing he’d rid the world of a monster, a hideously malicious beast.

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Originally published on Medium