Upon the marble foundation
stood kings of light and dark.
Each towered above their noble men,
each watched from their royal mark.

The queens faced off where they stood,
while the knights mounted their horses.
The bitter players sat on each side
considering their forces.

The bishops were positioned beside the rooks,
the pawns in a line up front.
Up there they would take the attacks,
up there they would take the brunt.

The pieces were arranged in perfect order
the match was about to begin.
The players shook hands, one stone faced
the other with a stretching grin.

The pawns of ivory made their move
while the ebony ones looked on.
And so it went, one piece at a time
until most of them were gone.

There the queens were protecting their kings
before one made a fatal mistake.
With a slash from a knight, the queen was brought down
and it left the king to quiver and quake.

The pieces that were left quickly moved in
and the king was pushed to his knees
His crown fell off and rolled away
to the sounds of his dying pleas.