The battle raged, defenders having left
their walls to meet their foe upon the field.
Exchanging blow for blow and spear for spear,
unwavering as corpses strewed the plain
with wake of death behind each hero’s sword,
they pushed their enemy back to the shore,
but the attacking tide did not recede
into the sea. Consolidating ranks
with Neptune at their back, attackers heaped
into a single mass and surged across
the beach, an iron wave with crest that broke
upon the front of the defender’s shields,
exposing cracks within their battle line…

nnnnggg… stale taste sipwater cliclick…

Extended and fatigued, defenders fled
Behind their wall and tried to shut the gate,
But high tide kept on rising, salty brine
Began eroding old foundation stones,
And heavy storm clouds gathered overhead.
The archers on the ramparts couldn’t miss,
As arrows rained on the encroaching horde,
But every fallen soldier was replaced
as if they were immortal. At the gate
a line of shields and spears held the choke point
with hope that dusk would bring relief from war,
but lightning bolts descended from the clouds
and thunder roared, which shook the brittle wall
and caused a part of it to crumble where
attackers breached the barrier and rushed
inside the city. Chaos was unleashed,
attackers raped and plundered, setting fire
to houses, schools, and temples, all was lost.

ngng…nnnngggg clicliclick…

A few survivors managed to escape
With family and friends, they fled down coast
Until the burning city was a glint
Behind them in the distance, like a star
that perished but continues to emit
its light in the night sky. With salvaged bronze
and lumber from their homes they built a ship
to brave uncertain seas, and weaved a quilt
of linen, wool, and other fabric scraps,
to raise on mast and catch the wind. Unfurled,
it filled with the first gust, and they sailed west
in search of a new land to call their home…
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