Broken Promises

Broken Promises

The tumbling clouds whisper “too late” -
sky serpents now are gone.
Vanquished by the hand of fate,
their stories still live on.

In ancient times, men learned to fear;
dragon demands grew great.
A time of war was drawing near,
neither would hesitate.

Dragons and kin, hoary with age,
stood steadfast and prepared.
The coming times, a hero’s gauge
where no one would be spared,
tested the very gods themselves.

The legends echo down time’s hall
of a consuming battle
where beasts, once chained, answered the call
to free themselves as chattel
amidst the cries of dwarfs and elves.

Sides were chosen, writ in blood
brother against brother.
Crimson rivers turned to flood;
no mercy for another.
Be kin or foe, it mattered not.

Dragons and theirs fell as prey
to what man had unleashed.
The sun itself turns black at day
as nature joined the feast
and ocean waters turned white hot.

The Earth could only cry in pain
as harshness ruled the land
and none had words left to explain
was this foreseen and planned?
Dragons and man wept in silence.

Those that remained could only flee
to hide in highest peaks.
The torn land sunk beneath the sea
to find the peace it seeks:
An end to untoward violence.

Through sacred mountains, winds yet blow
awaiting the release
from a promise made long ago:
that mankind would learn peace …

If mankind could learn peace.

An entry for "DreamTime Dragon's Poem Contest" 
Prompt: A poem with a dragon
Line Limit: None
Line Count: 43