'Of Whom The Wish To Destroy, They First Make Mad'

• Bruin Taylor, Grade 9, Victoria Point State High School
• Poetry
• 2010

Finalist in the 'Word Express 2010' competition

The dark, desolate night with the intermittent crash of the distant thunder and pouring rain create an eerie atmosphere. But, it also creates the perfect night for the shadow mare, a horse with the deepest, shimmering black coat, and its hellish rider, a beast spawned as a Mercenary in the Legions of Hades, known only as ‘Black Sunshine’, to strike, leaving his wake of demise and destruction, taking the lives of the innocent, a creeping death, like a harvester of despair and sorrow. Doing the bidding of the Gods of Olympus, a slave to their growing rage and blood thirst.

One night, however, while riding, searching, stalking for his next victim, he stumbled across something that would change his cruel, twisted life, forever...

The bodies of innocent children, savage burn marks and horrid wounds upon their bodies; a most dreadful sight. Seeing this, Black Sunshine had realized that, what he had done all these years, and for what? Glory? Power? He had achieved neither of these in his murderous onslaught, only blood that stained his hands and heart. He now knew he had only been a puppet in the God’s brutal, deceitful methods of power and greed. Black Sunshine’s heart filled with hatred; a fuel that would make him seek revenge for the trickery and deceit of the God’s of Olympus, and soon, if he could make them bleed, he would prove that they were no different from mortals. Their cruel acts would soon come to a halt; all by the hand of the one they had been unjustly controlling with words and riddles...Black Sunshine.

He called upon his Griffin, a majestic creature, with iridescent feathers, the head of an eagle and the harsh, coarse body of an aged lion, powerful to each beat of his wings, every pound of its heart and every stride to its gallop. Landing with a thud, Black Sunshine mounted upon its back, and with that, the griffin took of, flying like a black arrow in the night sky, towards the mighty Olympus.

He landed at the foot of the great mountain, where the golden, glistening gates of the mighty mountain lay. The Griffin perched upon stony column, waiting for its master to return. Then, Black Sunshine walked swiftly through the gates, on the soft, wispy clouds that surrounded Mount Olympus’ peak. He finally reached Zeus’ throne room. Zeus, did not know Black Sunshine’s intentions, and greeted him with love and warmth, like he was his own son. Black Sunshine knelt, showing false allegiance and loyalty… He rose, and, with a cunning blade cleverly placed in his boot, he drew it and penetrated Zeus godly armor. Zeus dropped like the evening sun behind hills, and slowly bled to death. Zeus messenger, Hermes, walked in with no intentions of discovering his father, the Ruler of the God’s, dead upon the floor. He knew this was the work of Black Sunshine, and this event marked the War that would alter the course of the Universe for eternity!