BROTHERHOOD

The rain fell silently on the hill as the trees swayed in the wind. A single form stood on the hill next to the twin trees. The trees were twenty years old and had been planted by the figure and his twin brother at the age of six. What a long time ago that was for him, a lifetime almost. Then the war came. The war began ten years ago when a king was arguing with another over who had better quality food from the cook. A stupid thing only two drunken kings would fight about. The difference from the drunkenness of kings and the drunkenness of peasants is that kings have armies to fight for them in a war when the peasants just had fists and start a barroom brawl. In war thousands die pointlessly.

The war started in a forest the kings considered neutral ground. Those who fought asked no questions and assumed the war was over the forest little did they know that it was over something as trivial as food. They fought gallantly for their kings, all dieing brave warriors. And the fact they died, honorable though it may have been, was a sad and upsetting thing as it could have been avoided. Yes, the whole war could have been avoided had just one of the kings not been drunk. Then they would have said ‘that’s enough’ and the war never would have started. No one would have died pointlessly.

The figure began burying bodies. This took three days. Three long and hot days that demanded he stop but his training said otherwise. The first thing you learned was to honor and respect those who die in battle on both sides, even if they killed themselves the ultimate weakness and punishable by life imprisonment if you survived. But the figure lived and worked until every body was buried. Then he spent the night under the trees praying for the families of those who died. The storm that night was fierce but he stayed under the tree until a single bolt of lightning hit the tree splitting and killing half the tree. This was going to be a long life for the man, the king who started the whole war.

One alone will stand

On a hill above the sand

The first to fight

The last to die

Will burry the bodies

Where they lie

A simple dispute

Of right or wrong

Two drunken kings

Together too long

Began a war

A battle of blood

Marring a forest red