Sentinel

Atop the tall cliff
Watching intently
A sentinel stands guard
Motionless, silently

A barrier to those who
Would seek to harm
Be they in the city
Or the outlying farm

The sentinel is not bored
It feels no pain or strife
It seeks to protect all
Who fear their loss of life

A shot from the dark streaks past
A battlecry is heard
The newest opponents come to view
The sentinel says no word

One attacker swings his blade
The sentinel dodges right
With blinding speed, he slams his foe
Sentinel brings the fight

Three more charge in the fray
With unrelenting zeal
More vicious strikes to each of them
Leaves them with pain to feel

A seemingly endless horde emerged
The sentinel raised its fist
A bolt of lightning struck its arm
New powers on its list

It waved its arm in an arc
And every bandit fell
A smoldering pile of bodies lay
Their souls are now in Hell

A thunderous crash is heard then
As trees fall in the wake
A monstrous vision to behold
Has caused the ground to shake

This bandit lord was mountainous
He stood round sixty feet
In his arms a great mace of steel
He took up the entire street

The sentinel closed its eyes there
In a meditative state
It had to muster all its strength
Before it was too late

The sentinel pleaded with the gods
To imbue its soul with strength
The bandit lord raised the giant mace
It was an enormous length

The sentinel was engulfed in violet flame
The gods had seen its heart
They gave it all the power they had
To stop this lord, before the start

Before all reactions
The bandit’s head was cleaved
The sentinel had cut him lightning quick
Its sword already sheathed

It raised its hands above its head
The violet flames grew hot
Immolated all the foes
And now there was not

The sentinel landed softly
Its work was now complete
It walked back to the silent post
To guard this lonely street