Contest Poetry Duel Summer 2023, Vote for your Favorite

We only have two poems and you only get one vote, so read these carefully before voting.

They are fairly short so I recommend multiple readings. For me personally, I think it helps to read them quietly to yourself and then read them out loud.

Spoiler: Poem One: "A Blessing Too Far"

A blessing too far

The sun does broil upon the scorched trees
Glimmering shafts of bright light seethes
Even shade offers little respite from heat
Stones of the temple scorching Skink feet
A lonely cloud drifts above and on by
We hoped for rain but it remained dry
We venerate your blessings, we do so a lot
But Chotec?... Why did you make it so hot?

Spoiler: Poem Two "Lycanthrope Blues"

LYCANTHROPE BLUES

When the chaos moon shines in the dark
Deep inside me, it ignites a spark
I can feel as it stirs, right under my skin
something awakened by that malignant green

I remember the day, when fate rolled a dice
bitten by Moulder’s mutated, twisted mice
the packmaster cried “a new curse you will bear!”
of the truth of these words, I was not yet aware

I feel the fur, growing between my scales
I feel the blood, pumping through my veins
and I wonder if I am a sort of a new breed
but the thought is now gone, as I just need to feed

…
the scent, the stealth, the chase
a cry, a shield, a mace
the blood, the flesh, the taste
so good, again, with haste
…

When I’m again myself, the night has bygone
but from dusk to dawn, what have i done?
my scales and my claws are covered by gore
a child of the Old Ones, I know I’m no more

As always I think “if I could erase the past…”
but I laugh at myself, I know the truth at last
cause I’m addicted to this dream, I’m lucidly insane
as I now only crave, for the moon to rise again

 

Two poems, and one of them is mine.
Well, at least it kinda simplifies my pick.

 

A worthy duel!

 

This was a tough choice. Both were good in different ways.

"A Blessing Too Far" had a more natural rhythm for me when I read it out loud. It had a nice comedic punch and was efficiently written.

"Lycanthrope Blues" had more evocative imagery and told a very good story.

 

Well, it had to be a duel and (indeed) it's giving us a lot of entertainment.
It's very close , with such a minimal difference a single vote can still be decisive.

 

...the poll is closed, so i believe @Y'ttar Scaletail won this amazing duel.

@Scalenex, make this official!

 

I cannot deny I've tried to give a certain blues' feeling to my poem.
But your final punchline knocked me down!

 

...but in the end, i had my comeback in the short story contest.