A Song of Steel and Slaughter

The rising sun, the scorching heat, the sweat,
The horses neigh, and paw the ground, and fret.
Within the host, the soldier stands upright,
And steels his nerves and readies for the fight.
He hears the sound of steady, throbbing drums:
But it’s his blood, for in his ears it thrums;
And only barely does he keep suppressed
The fear that strives to rise within his breast.

He hears the horn, and gives a mighty shout,
And by his cry puts former fears to rout.
His pounding feet, they shake the earth like Jove
When he the Titans from Olympus drove.
He is become like God above in wrath,
And clears his foes by violence from his path.
Like swaths of grass, he leaves the dead behind,
To seek what good from Hades they can find.

But now he meets a giant on the field,
But neither will turn from his path or yield.
The ring of steel resounds when they collide;
Down comes the soldier’s sword, but his swing is wide.
They trade their strikes like gods until a blow
From the soldier’s sword lays the giant low.
He splits his skull, and blood spurts in a burst;
He falls, eyes dimming, by his foe accursed.

And now the enemy retreats in haste.
They’re hounded, as they’re by the victors chased.
The soldier runs until his lungs give out
To put the host as best he can to rout.
Who falls in flight is finished by a blade;
His gushing blood upon the earth is sprayed.
No quarter given, no use in appeal,
Each meets his end by savage blows with steel.

At last he stops and gasps for breath: he went
The length, and now all of his strength is spent.
His legs feel week, but still he stands and smiles
At all the dead heaped on the field in piles.
The fruits of all his labour are bestrewed
Across the field to be the vultures’ food.
Who wins receives from all the gods reward,
Undying fame won by his hand and sword.

-Apollodora

This was another standout entry to the Clash of Warrior Poets competition that recently ran. I really felt you had an idea of what combat was like in the ancient world in this poem. Apollodora is running https://songsofthegods.com/ an epic poetry project of poems to the Greek gods. We encourage all our readers to visit his website and bask in the mythological poetry there. You can also follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Apollodora1