L.O.C.

In the darkness of the moonless sky, he moved quietly...slowly...alert. With his back arched like a little black feline, he seemed to blend into the darkness. Silent, like a predator on his hunt...he approached the fence that separated him from his goal. Through the mask he wore, his eyes scanned the length of the barbed wire fence, searching for any signs of his enemy. Slowly, he removed the clippers from his waist belt, cautious not to disturb the rings of the grenades. He reached forward, with steady hands he placed the wire between the clippers and...SNAP!

"OUCH!! What the hell was that?" came a little screech! Astonished and frightened he fell backwards and reached for his gun...the adrenaline flooding his veins...he searched left to right for his enemy. "Why did you do that? Do you have any idea how much that hurts? It's gonna take weeks for me to heal." The "me" in the words surprised him. Finding no one around...he slowly whispered "Who are you? Show yourself!" The voice replied, "You just cut me and now you're asking who I am? Are you blind?" The voice was full of mischief. His eyes widened in disbelief as he commanded, "Who are you? Come out now!!"

With the compassion of a mother and the peacefulness of a saint, the voice replied:
"Sit my child and I will tell you a tale.
Of brothers by blood, who laughed and played."

A chill went down his spine...the voice seemed to touch him somewhere...somewhere deep. Entranced by the tranquillity that had flooded his senses...he sat crossed legged on the cold, wet grass...listening patiently.

"One was strong and the other was wild
Both were young and full of life
But a child's' mind is a funny thing
You can never know the thoughts it thinks
Over some dirt began a quarrel
Soon blood was shed and so were morals
When rage had enough of its pitiful share of fun
A crack in the mirror had slowly begun
So on a map they drew a line
That side is yours...This side is mine."

He could now feel his heart melting...as the words began to sink into his mind. His breath was calm...cool...slow. The voice was pleasant...soothing old forgotten wounds...taming the animal in his mind. He asked in the mellow tone of a child, "Who...who are you?"

"I am this fence, before you now
I am the mother, the children created somehow
Like a guardian I stand for nights and days
Through rain or snow...dust or haze
Keeping apart, two brother from moral wounds
I am the L.O.C. which stands before you.
Cute me not...for only you will bleed
I am blind...but the chaos I see
Return my child to the home you've left behind
And let me stand here...till the end of time."

The voice died away, as if returning to its peaceful slumber. He sat there on the grass...his eyes closed...his head slumped...his mind in a far off place. For the first time in many years, he sat there...in peace...under a moonless sky.