November Challenge - Best-Laid Plans
Title: Best-Laid Plans
Author: Ginger Bits
Genre: Terza Rima
Meter: Iambic Pentameter
Rating: K
Character: Sesshomaru
Summary: He resents.
Resenting every decade this had cost,
Sesshomaru considered with a frown
The jagged stretch of rocks that must be crossed
To reach his goal. Distracted by the crown
Of wheeling birds with empty eyes, he reached
Into his memories. How could renown,
Once unsurpassed, be brought so low? These bleached
Remains that towered over all had borne
The brunt of accusation; words had breached
That armor; wearied eyes had met his scorn
Without retaliation and allowed
This son to speak his mind. Though he’d been torn,
He turned his back and chose the woman. Proud
To claim her whelp, insisting that he must
Protect his own, refusing to be cowed
By sentiment within the court, he thrust
Them all aside and died. Usurpers built
Support as factions schemed to woo the trust
Of Taisho’s heir. Unworthy blood was spilt
To prove the new lord’s right to seize and hold
The reigns of power and Tessaiga’s hilt.
His father’s final wishes left him cold,
A posthumous indignity that left
Ambition thwarted. Loyalty made bold
The fools who took and hid the fang; its theft
Defended ardently because they’d made
A solemn pledge that cheated him. Bereft,
The stubborn taiyoukai sought out the blade,
Pursuing baseless rumors until now-
So close! The lost bequest had always preyed
Upon his mind; this heirloom would endow
His peerless strength with added might. The gaunt
Remainder, armored still, could disallow
His claim no longer. Take the fang and taunt
The pestilential murmurers whose snide
Remarks and wagging tongues would henceforth want
For fresher fodder. Soon the blade would slide
In place beside Tenseiga, lending weight
As he outstripped his father’s legend. Pried
From this ignoble setting, its innate
Potential, awe-inspiring once revealed,
Would gild formidability, create
A force before which any foe must yield.