Two Kings

He sat on the tusker high above everyone
Gazing at all below him
He had heard of the challenger
The conqueror of the world they called him

He too sat above others
On a throne withered by time
The days of glory fading away
At the mercy of the invader white

The tusker paused beside the river
The rider surveyed the field
Across he saw the tents with pennants
Soldiers sharpening their swords

They rushed to him, seeking his lead
The gap they made had to be widened
He was frail, he was weak
Why did you rebel, was all he said

They made contact at the break of dawn
Macedonians thrust from the left flank
They stiffened seeing Tuskers for the first time
The Indian element of surprise

He lost the war before he began
For in his mind he had already lost
A poet at heart he loved pathos
Not the crown that he was forced to wear

The tides turned, the tuskers fled
Soon all was lost, as soldiers bled
The king was caught, shackled and tied
Stood proudly as all his nobles cried

His sons slaughtered, his kingdom lost
He was banished to a land he had only heard of
They took him on a cart on a painful journey
One from which he would never return

The conquerer looked long at the monarch
Taken aback at his steadfast gaze
His words rang clear in his mind
I am a king so treat me as one

He sat down hunched over by age
Wrote those lines which are remembered even now
Oh my misfortune that
Even two yards I was denied in my land

Two kings both mighty
One looked at the bright the other at the dark
One lost and really lost
One lost but actually won