Author's note: While reading comparing Kali's poems to the Merchant's. In their styles, what do the poems tell of the personalities of each? Who do you think studied more? Which style do you favor?

Sorry for the barrage of questions but I really want to know what you (the reader) would think of Kali's poems.

And thank you, the 3 reviewers before: babygxpress, Chaotic Drive and wow. Truthfully speaking, I never expected the poem to get any reviews because that time hardly anyone was reviewing my stuff. Thanks!

JUSTICE!

At night I wonder

Why, you have done nothing wrong

Still the sohee cries

Soul of Another

Crowd spills the streets with deafening din

Everyone seems to ignore every other thing

Useless babble, careless talk

Is what I hear when I walk

They stare at my measured stride

That is until they look into my eyes

Some are shocked, others quite scared

To see such a haunting stare

Piercing pools of misery, fierce eyes of pain

Enduring hours of burning, hours and hours of rain

Created not by Nature, no, that would have been fine

But by one's own brother, one of mankind

Some look, ask with concern:

"What misery is lurking,

What happened, Lady Knight!"

I hung my head and in return:

"You are mistaken,

This is not my plight."

What they don't realize

It's not me they look

It's the soul of another

One which they took

Their guilt is what reflects in my eyes

It's their own fears that haunt them

They can't overlook like they did before

So when I ask, they tell me of events that have taken

The knight looks to the window, the sun has gone down and the night looms. An unbearable sense of grief comes over her. So she finally knew what had taken place. But so many pieces are still missing. Unable to cry properly, she attempts to relieve her feelings another way. Taking a quill and parchment, she slips to streets and into night. There commotion is still ongoing (cities never really sleep) but all is quiet as she steps on a dark corner and begin to narrate her works.

I do

(or Kali's Response)

The day has parted, the night has ruled

In the corner where you last stood

here I am before you

Where once a merchant was selling

is now a silence compelling

Overwhelmed with the inhabitants' rue

All you wanted is to share

The works of your hand

Instead, now, you are gone.

I present you the faces

Of a dozens of jobs and races

Do they deny the deed done?

Faces of scorn, indifference and neglect

Faces of ignorance, remorse and intellect

Somehow lay the blame on thee

Still all the blame they shan't claim

A part of it is yours the same

I see both sides, my dear Merchie.

You stood it all but not for yourself

You spoke out but not for help

Merchie, you did it for your goods...

But those who run away

Will live to see another day

You should have run when you could

You would've found comfort in fellow knights, mages and thieves

Instead of starvation in the streets

And stronger you would have become

Any obstacles able to overcome

How did your suffering transfer to my eyes?

How was I able to sort out the lies?

Because of love you gave and blood you had shed

The sohee doll which I love

Became a living of memory of your blood

Each drop falling on her head

And now she cries for Justice

And wishes for her master peace

But nothing more could she tell

No one but I, who wanted to buy

Could hear her mournful cry

So unto me the task fell

(To grant someone's wish, to have your heart at ease)

You are a Merchant

Selling your wares

You asked who knows

And who cares

I am Kali the Knight

With a story to share

Now everybody knows

And somebody cares

Kali looked up from the parchment she had been reading. The night crowd who was almost as noisy as the day crowd was silent. Crickets chirped, making the silence more prominent. Then somebody began to clap, followed by more until everyone was clapping and cheering. There were murmurs of approval and delight.

"She shouldn't be a Knight, she should be a Bard!"

"Idiot! There is no such thing as a female bard!"

"True. But she tells a good story. Almost had me there."

"You think what she was telling was true?" asked a feminine voice.

"Of course not! What kind of person would treat another like that! Though that was a lovely piece of rhymin'."

"Miss Kali!" somebody shouted. "I own a printing press and I was hoping you'd let me buy the rights to print your poems!"

But Kali already left her stand. She rolled up the parchment and stuffed it in her pouch. As she made her way through the crowd, she took out the sohee doll and smiled at it apologetically. No matter how hard one tries, sometimes, words are wasted.

In case you want to know, the first poem is a haiku. It would make more sense if you say the title at the end of the poem. The second is like a ballad but rhymes like a couplet. The last poem (and the real poem of Kali) is my first attempt at tercets—a poem composed of three lines per stanza and a certain rhyming pattern. Aab—aab. Kali's poems are more literal unlike the merchant's which I intentionally wrote to work on two levels. Still while working on this I came to notice that it, too, could be interpreted figuratively.

Readers, have you ever wondered what really happened to the merchant? I mean, we all know one morning he was gone, but did someone kill him? Did he kill himself? Or did he ran away and become a successful blacksmith/alchemist? (Yeah, the last option doesn't make any sense but I like to keep you guys guessing:)

L.C. Techno