Never

The dogs barked
In the distance,
And one by one
Their yips and yaps
Were decreasing
'Til there was none
And the deafening
Silence.

A coldness wrapped
Itself about me
And I knew
He was here.

Let me in,
Little one.

His voice rumbled
Setting little knick
Knacks to scatter about
The small cottage
I called home.

Let me in,
So that we may talk.

He lies so easily.
As easily as taking
A sip of water
From the well that never
Emptied.

I held my tongue
And hid in the
Secret compartment
Built for this exact
Occasion.

An occasion
They said would
Never come, but
I knew better.
I knew the time
Would come when
He would return
To these parts.

Let me in,
Little one.
It makes no sense
To delay the inevitable.

I braced myself
For what was to come,
I braced myself
For the madness
He was about to unfurl
About me.

It started with
Winds that howled
Like Banshees,
Then the earth shook
As though the giants
Had returned to the land.

From the cracks
In my compartment
Hidden in the floor,
I saw the blue
Sky claw through
The thatched roof
'Til nothing remained
But the never ending
Blue.

Then I saw him,
He had not changed
From the bearded man
With pitch black eyes
Who killed my father
And my father's father.

Kneeling down,
He peered at me
As I peered back
At him.

Little one,
Come out,
Come,
We have so much
Matters to speak on.

He smiled,
His teeth bloodied
From the carnage
That he had inflicted.

Come closer.

It was but a whisper,
Words so easily
Stolen by a passing
Breeze.

Come closer,
I said much louder.

Leaning forward,
He was now on
All fours, his face
But inches away
From mine.

What is it,
Little one?
What is it
You want to say
Before you die?

And like that,
He disposed of
His mild deception.

Through a crack,
A dart flew, finding
It's mark in an eye
Of midnight.

A growl of disgust
Escaped snarled lips
As his head pitched
Back.

What childish game
You play, little one?
He snarled as he
Pulled the needle-
Thin wood from his eye.

If torture and death
Be childish game,
Then they are the games
I play.

I peered at him,
Watching as his eye
Discoloured, then liquified,
Dripping out of its
Socket.

Do you feel pain?
I asked with somber
Tones.

Never, he growled.

Do you accept
Mortality?

Never.

Are you afraid
Of dying?

Never.

The toxin spread
Quickly 'til the one
Word he spoke
Was uttered by a
Skull with one eye.

Do you accept
That you are now
Dead?

Not one answer
Did I receive from
The skeleton above me,
Stripped of flesh,
Muscle, cartilage,
Organs, etc.

I killed him
As he had killed
My father and
My father's father.
And still, I prayed
His journey to the
Unknown was a safe one.

One from which
He would never
Return.

If only
He were
The last
Of them.