Thoughts of a Loner.

Descent of Thermopylae. (By Sapphirus)

He was a Spartan strong and true,
A genius among warriors and king in battle of wills,
His strength unparalleled,
In training grounds bathed with sweat and salt,
Fields of Thermopylae's ghost,
He stood by himself under the wrathful judgement,
A figure of finessé and iron resolve,
His muscles carved from stones of his foundation,
His spirit brave and unyielding to tests of fate,
As he rose,
Eclipsing all with his platinum prowess,
With sword in hand as he charged everytime,
Striving for victor,
As darkness ruins into fleeting light,
Light upon his Midas touch.

He was a Spartan strong and true,
As he wandered and conquered lands in ruthless precision,
A general whose utter name hauled fear and reverence,
Countless battles written in bold glory,
Each a breathing testament to his might,
From the hills of Athens to the plains of Marathon,
Strength soon galloped as a crimson tinted legend,
Whispering songs of pride in Sparta's halls,
As his foes fell beneath the mercy of his blade,
Lifeless and cold as earth,
The battlefield a living ocean of blood,
With waves of raging agony,
As each tide of corpse a silent witness to his mighty ascent.

He was a Spartan strong and true,
Each triumph his soul cascading the silk of darkness,
Superiority withering his roots,
Rotten and decaying as it spread like cancer,
In the traversed world by icy rivers,
He saw his mighty reflection,
But he saw not a man,
Oh he saw a God,
Grandiosity clouding his golden judgement,
As hubris became his guiding star,
A strode through ranks ravaging and growing,
Truly a King among men,
Unaware of the lurking shadows creeping within,
Ego became his lethal enemy as it festered his mind,
Whispering lies of invincibility.

He was a Spartan strong and true,
His eyes once sharp and clear,
Began to see only his own greatness,
Blinded to the truths that once anchored his mind,
In the chaos of battle and by the touch of dread,
His thoughts turned inward as they collapsed on him,
A fortress of pride stood impenetrable and cold,
The corpses piled into a mountain of raging warnings,
Flesh and bone of forgotten mortality,
Ignored in his pursuit of eternal glory and immortality,
As the battlefield lay strewn with those fallen,
He stood alone as the last titan of the fray,
His mind a dark ushering storm of arrogance and pride,
Untamed and incandescently wild,
Unseen as the enemy within reigned stronger,
He fought not just men but shadows of his making,
Each strike a testament to his inevitable descent,
The crimson sky mirroring his once mighty soul,
A canvas of hubris and impending doom.

He was a Spartan strong and true,
As in final moments clarity pierced his thickened veil,
Too late,
Too late,
He saw his gruesome downfall,
His once invincible body now weakened by corrupted pride,
As he fell,
Fell before an enemy he could never touch,
The ground soaked with his warm blood,
Embracing him as it whispered the tales of his foolery,
The whispers of ego fading into immersive silence,
As the dead bore witness to his cruel folly,
Their empty eyes reflecting his own demise,
A purpose lost and forgotten over the addiction,
Intoxication of pride unbeatable.

He was a Spartan strong and true,
As he lay among the corpses truly the King,
Golden King now dethroned,
His might and genius all for naught,
Superiority had led him to his sharpened dark edge,
Edge of the very sword he held so high,
Grandiosity his shroud,
Hubris his grave,
In death he finally embraced the humility life had denied,
A final memorandum in the stillness of defeat,
The battlefield a bloodied testament to his glorious rise,
Testament to his inevitable fall,
Echoed with the silence of the lost glory.

He was a Spartan strong and true,
But his enemy had always been within,
In his legendary quest for greatness he forgot,
Forgot his humble roots and the balance between strength and wisdom,
As his legacy marked a cautionary tale,
Tale of pride's peril,
Lingered in the bloodied earth of Plataea,
A stark reminder to his eternal soul,
Even the mighty must guard against the shadows,
Shadows of their own making.

~ Sapphirus