War Games
Sirens blare
Spotlights go awry
The cell drops
Slowly
Emphatically
Minutes feel like hours
Then finally
The solid steel
Caged Fury
Touches ground
For a moment
Calm takes over
A sense of peace
Tranquility even
THEN
The first army
Makes their way
To the battleground
Poised for a fight
Team #2
Similar to a coliseum
Walk out
And feel the stare
All eyes on them
As they are ready to pounce
Ready to fight
Ready for combat
It is time
LET
THE
WAR
GAMES
BEGIN!!!
One member of each crew
Enters first
The door closes
And the games start
Back and forth
The fists fly
The feet kick
The bodies soar
And then
One makes physical contact
With the grater like fence
Violently
Viciously
Unforgiving
Whatever plans
Were created
Go right out the window
A human demolition derby
Four minutes and fifty seconds go by
And a countdown from 10
Starts
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
A buzzer sounds
And one member of the army
Enters the fray
Into a 2-on-1 advantage
How you ask?
Before the fight
A coin toss determined
Who got the 1st upper hand
For 5 minutes
Until a soldier from
The second army
Evens the odds
Every five minutes
This back-and-forth
Transpires
Until everyone is in the
Hell on Earth within Prison walls
Only then
Does the war officially begin
And victory can be attained
The door closes shut
A padlock clings together
Now War Games truly takes shape
Blood is shed
Bruises and welts form
Beatdowns aplenty
The only War Games
Can truly end
Is by raising the white flag
Surrendering
Submitting
Quitting
Men literally allowing pure destruction
To their minds
To their bodies
Instead of losing this fight
However
Even in the heat of battle
The hate of one another
Something’s gotta give
And the two words
No man or woman
Loves to state
Rolling off their tongue
Out of their mouth
And into the stratosphere
“I QUIT”
It’s all over
The war is over
One team stands tall
Raising their arms
Victorious
Winners
The others take the L
The ultimate indignity
Surrendering
Failing at the goal
No bragging rights
No celebration
Just delusions of grandeur
Of what could’ve been
Superficial injuries are temporary
Mental anguish is forever
The PTSD of War Games
Changes a man more ways than one
A lot have entered
A select few leave
On their own volition
Others
Never the same
Everyone leaves changed
It isn’t just a fight
A war
A battle of epic proportions
It is truly
A MATCH
BEYOND
Jon Harder
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