Terracotta Warrior

by Komencanto Eterna

March 27, 2021

When I was a boy they gave me a test
"He's covered in steel" they said
"He'll make a great strong warrior one day"

Throughout my life, they tried to mold me
They heated me up, bent me, dowsed me in water, and repeated
A sledgehammer to my shell

In my insides, the test found clay
To make me more malleable, they scraped it away
They tried to rid the clay
It was scooped away from by torso and brain
Until null but a hollow boy remained

As I aged I began to rust
Others saw this as terrifying, and for a time I did too, but eventually I realized it was me inside
My steel disintegrated
It was only a shell to protect my clay

To bad it was already scraped away

Only terracotta remains

I am left a shell of my former self
I lack the insights my misidentified shell was trying to protect
And I lack the iron armor people (including I) saw me by

I am left a terracotta warrior
Shaped to fight, but hollow inside
A ghost of my past self

But though my head and torso may be empty my footing is solid
My hands are solid and I won’t let them stop
My fingers are solid and they’ll stain these keys

I may not be strong
But I'm ready to fight
For my insides that I can't know
And the dust of my brothers

Send me a line here

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