A Just War
This war, it was not of my making.
I lived in my village content.
But then soldiers came, put a spear in my hands,
And then off to battle I went.
…
We camp on the borders of Grado,
We're told that we'll cross the next day.
Are we to invade Renais, I wonder,
Our brothers, our sisters to slay?
…
Around the fire, we gather in silence,
None of us know why we're here.
None of us utter a word, however,
All gripped by a simmering fear.
…
But come the morn, we're ordered to march,
Horns blow and our banners unfurl.
We're at the tip of the spear against Renais,
So into the fray we are hurled.
…
Days turn to weeks, and weeks turn to months,
As town after fort we assail.
Leaving a trail of ruin behind us,
Of bodies, blood and widows' wails.
…
Now Castle Renais, it lies before us,
It's inevitable that it will fall.
I can't help but wonder how many will die,
When the time comes to assault the walls.
…
I'm among those at the battering ram,
For hours on end we all toil.
Around me the screams of the dying they echo,
From above us comes arrows and oil.
…
But the gates they are breached, with a roar we charge in,
In the corridors, we fight and we die.
All here to conquer in the name of the empire,
Here to slaughter, and never ask why.
…
But by day's end, we have taken the castle,
Our banners now fly from its walls.
Most of us slumped in a stupor, so tired,
Our generals, only they do stand tall.
…
I dare to hope that at last it is over,
That soon I'll be headed for home.
Renais, it's a country in ruins,
Brigands and bandits, they roam.
…
Within our camp I hear screamed of the wounded,
Their moaning, it lasts through the night.
Clerics and healers, they save who they can,
While for others, they give final rites.
…
Then comes the news, we march now on Frelia,
The emperor continues his war.
More us fated to perish, to die,
And none of us knowing what for.