The Tiger, a poemfic Options

[Allanon Loke]

With everyone doing songfics, and since I stink at songfics (see Day-o), I decided to do a poemfic. I liked the poem. The poem "The Tiger" is by William Blake.

The Tiger

Tiger! Tiger! burning bright,
In the forest of the night;
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

Le-Matoran Shasta scolded himself for deciding to walk home through the forest of Le-Metru instead of taking the chutes. Now he was running for his life from some unseen predator. At one point, he stopped running because he was out of breath. He strained to hear his pursuer above his heart beating and his panting. He could faintly head the soft padding of the Rahi as it followed him. The creature was walking, not running, to catch up to him. This brought more terror to Shasta.
It knows I can't escape-dodge it, he thought, searching in vain for the stalker. Shasta had first noticed his stalker when he saw its red eyes watching him from behind some foliage. Suddenly the Rahi came into view, and Shasta's eyes went wide with terror.

In what distant deeps or skies
Burned the ardor of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire
What the hand dare seize the fire?

It was larger than a Toa. Its metallic armor was brown with black stripes. The red eyes burned with the fire of a killer on its armored head. The muscles that were not protected by armor told of the immense strength of the creature. The limbs showed off its steady and disciplined strength as it strode towards Shasta. Each paw was decked with sets of four identical and dreadful claws. The tail and spine demonstrated flexibility seen in few Rahi. The maw was filled with white, sharp teeth and two larger fangs on the upper row. The two ears on its head swiveled around, catching the sounds around, few as they were. Then the brown armor turned to a bright, burning red. Shasta gasped, unable to take his eyes off the Rahi. There was something hypnotic about those two glowing red eyes, a hypnotic terror.

And what shoulder, and what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand forged thy dread feet?

Shasta broke off those hypnotic eyes and bolted. He didn't dare look back for fear of tripping. He could hear the Rahi gaining on him fast. The pace of the Rahi had changed. Now those powerful limbs were carrying the Rahi in long, quick leaps. Shasta grabbed a vine as he ran past one and climbed up as fast as his little arms could pull him up. His speedy ascent was fueled by adrenaline as the Rahi jumped, snapping at Shasta. Shasta was stunned at how high the beast could jump. The Rahi missed, though one of its claws skimmed the bottom of Shasta's foot. With one graceful movement, the tiger landed, turned, and leaped again. This time, the intelligent Rahi grabbed the vine as it descended, pulling the vine and the Matoran down too.

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil! what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

Shasta screamed as he fell, imagining the Rahi eating him alive. He landed on the Rahi's back, the vine still clasped in his hand. Even as the tiger turned to dislodge him, Shasta quickly made a lasso out of his end and threw it to a limb in the treetops. It looped around a high branch, and the Rahi flung Shasta from its back. The momentum made him swing with the vine in an arc even as the tiger lunged at him. Shasta swung around the tree and kicked the Rahi's snout, making it recoil with a roar.
Shasta scurried up the vine and didn't stop until he was sure that he was too high for the Rahi's leaps. Shasta looked down at the Rahi triumphantly. The Rahi growled, its lips curled up and its eyes burning with determination and hate. Then the Rahi jumped and stuck its claws into the trunk of the tree. It continued leaping up the side of the tree in this fashion without pausing. It looked very angry. Shasta ran carefully down the branch he was on and jumped to the next tree. The Rahi was on that branch now and leaped after him.

When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did He who made the lamb make thee?

Shasta grabbed hold of the tree and turned his head to see where the tiger was. The Rahi was almost on top of him. He stared into those burning eyes, frozen with terror. He could see down the Rahi's throat, it was so close.
Then a green form bowled into the Rahi faster than one could blink. The Rahi roared in anger as it plummeted to the ground. Toa Nuva Lewa snatched the Matoran off the tree and held him tightly. Shasta was shaking and panting from the fright, and he held onto Toa Lewa tightly as well. Shasta looked down and saw the Rahi leap to its feet and look straight at them. The Rahi roared again, its muscles braced for a spring. Suddenly, it was frozen. Toa Nuva Kopaka and Toa Nuva Onua stepped up beside the frozen beast.
"Are you all right-fine, littlebrother?" Toa Lewa asked as floated to the ground.
"Yes, great Toa, thank you," Shasta replied with a quiver in his voice. He was still badly shaken.
"Well, brother, I think that the archives will want its denizen back," Toa Onua's voice rumbled as he picked up the frozen statue. Even imprisoned, the beast's bearing was so terrible and majestic that it made Shasta shudder just looking at it.
Toa Lewa escorted Shasta home. By the time they reached Shasta's home, Lewa had Shasta laughing and at ease again. The next day, Shasta took all his friends to the archives to see the great Rahi and tell them all about the incident, with only a few slight exaggerations, of course.
The Rahi was still a monarch even in status. With an eternal snarl placed on its frozen face, eyes still burning, and the armor still a burning red, it stands with regal bearing at the entrance of its wing for all to see.

Tiger! Tiger! burning bright,
In the forest of the night;
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?


Constructive criticism is very welcome.

This post has been edited by Allanon Loke: Aug 10 2008, 09:20 PM