Blood Lords

Blood Lords

Arrayed with sword and shield and bow,
Strike at dawn, defeat the foe,
Courage, thou brave and valiant knight!
Outnumbered ye be, but for freedom ye fight!

From a world in the future without worry or care,
your lifestyle now stolen by those who would dare
to put their own needs o'er the welfare of men
and place them in danger because of their sin.

You once enjoyed leisure, but, alas, no more
Now you must search to your very core
to see what you're made of, to struggle to live,
to know your own worth, and what you can give.

Made from strong men who had never been taught
about war and the horror of ev'ry onslaught.
Gathered ye are to stand up for the right,
warriors chosen for valor and might.

Undaunted by evil and stronger than fear,
relentlessly driven, sharp as a spear,
sworn to fight evil, no matter the cost.
If even one stands, the fight is not lost!

Pat Nelson, first four verses
Joy Campbell, last verse



Entry for Challenge Seven in "Invalid Item" 
This was a lot of fun to write. The challenge was to write a mirrored poem with another writer. The last verse (by ~A.J. Lyle~ ) was to mirror the first verse as if it were written by one writer.

This poem is in honor of the Blood Lords depicted in There Will Be Dragons by John Ringo.
I added the middle three verses after the contest was over to help the reader grasp some sense of the book's plot.