Huntress

A poem about a daughter's quest for vengeance.

The huntress slipped through the woods at night,

Searching for her prey,

The monster she was seeking,

Could not be found by day.

The night was dark beneath the trees,

But a full moon was bright in the sky,

Her weapons were sharp, her mind was clear,

Something evil was going to die.

It drifted silently across her path,

Was it beast or was it man?

Either way, it does not matter to her,

She will kill it if she can.

The creature had slain her family,

Torn them limb from limb,

Revenge was what was driving her,

To deliver his fate to him.

As the shape coalesced in light,

She nocked an arrow to her string,

Launched that arrow on its flight,

Heard it thud home in the Thing.

Gazing down upon the corpse,

She looked into its face,

But she did not see a monster there,

Just a man of another race.

He was evil, certainly,

He had killed everyone she loved,

But she felt sorrow for her deed,

As the ground soaked up his blood.

She knew that she had done,

What any good daughter would do,

But that her family could never come back,

Was something else she knew.

© 2017 The Iron Horseman

Author's Note

All input welcome.

Reviews

[A. Kim Spradling]

You were right! To quote myself yet again, I loved this piece. You have a gift for narrative poetry. This is not easy to do. I like the Huntress. She had good beliefs and thoughts. Thank you for telling me that I should read this. I am so glad that I did.

I am going now to read the others..... I am sure I will LOVE them too!!

[The Iron Horseman]

Thanks, Belle. I love this character; I'm sure she will be back!

[A. Kim Spradling]

She better be back... LOL

[Neville]

I Know a few monsters like that... Your heroine is one hell of a character... my kind woman in fact... You dont really need input my friend, do ya.. you do good under your own steam... A smashing tale told darn well.. I suspect this might well be your forte.. certainly got me hooked... Neville

[The Iron Horseman]

Thanks, Neville, I am really glad you are enjoying the Huntress. She is one of my favorite characters. She just pops into my head and runs around when she wants another adventure!

[Neville]

let her roam.. it does us all good... and yes, thoroughly enjoyed.. N

[Coyote Poetry]

I enjoyed this tale. Need to add her to my story.
"He was evil, certainly,
He had killed everyone she loved,
But she felt sorrow for her deed,
As the ground soaked up his blood."
I liked the above lines. You create interesting character and left reader with a open ending. Thank you for sharing the excellent poetry.
Coyote

[The Iron Horseman]

Thank you, Coyote. Vengeance is a complex subject. I believe that it is sometimes necessary, but also that it is harmful to the avenger in the long term. The Huntress is experiencing her first qualms!

[Coyote Poetry]

I enjoyed the beginning and hope to read more. You are welcome.

[Nipplegrinder]

This is well done. The closing stanza is quite effective, mostly defining the possibility that revenge is an often empty pursuit.

[The Iron Horseman]

Exactly! I'm pleased that you picked up on that. Thanks.

[APOORVA]

very well written.
lovely read

[The Iron Horseman]

Thank you, Apoorva.

[Paul Bell]

Strange thing revenge. The great driving force of mankind. But as your ending reveals. It may not bring the closure you want.

[The Iron Horseman]

No, but it has made Liam Neeson a lot of money! :)

[Paul Bell]

Always a plus sign.