deepundergroundpoetry.com
Diablo
The men who rode toward the plains of the great herd were evil. Hunters
and trappers who carried death in their hearts. Their agenda was loathsome:
if it’s beautiful & free, destroy it. Misery & horror followed them like storm
clouds thru their days, & when they slept, their dreams were evil.
Swift as the wind, the magnificent herd galloped & reveled across the verdant
plains that stretched in the shadows of the mountain. And Diablo was their
leader, imperial black stallion, who blazed like dusky lightning upon the ground.
Mariah was his mate, golden palomino. She was his existence & his reason. She
was every beat of his heart.
As the marauders approached, the faded-blue skies darkened into a warning of
doom. Each man remembered his employer’s command: “if you can’t catch ‘em,
kill ‘em.” They rode hard into the surprised herd, yelling & firing their long rifles.
The horses scattered, as Diablo tried to lead them in retreat.
But he could not see Mariah. And then, sadly, he did. She lay there, very still,
peaceful, eyes closed, the flowing blood staining her golden coat.
Now Diablo reared up, insane with vengeance. Sparks jumped from his eyes, smoke
steamed from his nostrils. Bullets hurling toward him were pushed aside by some
phantom hand. He attacked with hammering hooves & biting jaw. The other horses
followed his lead. The killers had never encountered such resistance. In their final
moments, they had time for nothing but to weep like children. Shortly, their despoiled
flesh could not be distinguished from the red mud.
Diablo glanced once more at the fallen Mariah. For a moment, he hung his head low.
Then, like a black streak across the horizon, he thundered off toward the mountain,
alone…
…and he was never seen again.
Published 8th Nov 2015
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likes 16
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Anonymous
8th Nov 2015 8:32pm
John, the King of Noir. . .I enjoy when you step out of your niche to pen pieces worthy of an arch to an eyebrow. . .Mind you, I feel for the golden mare and for her longtime companion stallion, Diablo which could easily be construed for human behavior (if read between the lines) which makes this poem a piece of poetic beauty. . .Magnificent in both its telling and imagery. . .xo, Devlin.
8th Nov 2015 11:17pm
8th Nov 2015 11:38pm
9th Nov 2015 12:48pm
Love your stories. I was at the edge of my seat. It was beautiful and sad all at once.
9th Nov 2015 2:27pm
So very powerful, JF. Your poetry is always filled with such fine description that the mind is taken away to wherever you want to take us and we see the world through your eyes for just a moment. Powerful vengeance at the end brings out anger in me as well and I understand. Loved it. Fine work.
John
John
Anonymous
- Edited 25th Sep 2020 3:45am
9th Nov 2015 2:35pm
<< post removed >>
9th Nov 2015 3:57pm
John love this story of these evil men in old west times and Diablo the stallion with a heart and soul..
love Crim
love Crim
10th Nov 2015 1:44am
Majestic Diablo. A sadness has descended upon me, to think of the vile evils laying their rude hands on the wild and free beauties that roam the earth. Justice was served, but a painful feeling has left its mark. Love your stories! - blue angel
10th Nov 2015 8:47am
"She
was every beat of his heart. "
~see?!.. even your *stallions have romantic verse..
O pout- to the fates dealt out by man's huge fist.. w/greatly captured justice at end,
[which brought bk my calm] ;) the red soppy ground was an excellent visual..
Enjoyed.. sparked the connection of Us & them, we are just as the herd w/mates, minus tears..
curtsies SirJ..
~d
was every beat of his heart. "
~see?!.. even your *stallions have romantic verse..
O pout- to the fates dealt out by man's huge fist.. w/greatly captured justice at end,
[which brought bk my calm] ;) the red soppy ground was an excellent visual..
Enjoyed.. sparked the connection of Us & them, we are just as the herd w/mates, minus tears..
curtsies SirJ..
~d
5th Dec 2015 6:28am
triumph and tragedy all rolled up into one.....really enjoyed the vividness of your words...superb story telling skills indeed!!!
30th Jan 2016 1:05pm
Loved all amount of imagery in this poem. The way it flowed while you told the story and each stanza painted a very clear picture great job; especially how you described the emotion of the Diablo horse when he saw his striken lover.
Great write
Great write
