[Witty]

This is very hard to call.

Idk who symetrik is but he definitely didn't start doing this yesterday. Your choice of words was intriguing and often surprising, you are a genuinely talented writer. It felt like you got lost in your prose at the start and, as well written as it was, it was difficult to read in terms of 'flow'. This is a topical battle. There are criteria. Not only does it have to address the topic but it HAS TO flow, it HAS TO engage and it HAS TO entertain. Your first 6 lines did none of those, and I wasn't holding out much hope but you seriously picked it up and it got really really dope in the middle bit.

"but some folk chose to fight, for the flock of secular servants standing by sycamore pews
would listen with burdened hearts as the sermon starts with sickening news —
another two dead, heads cleft from necks and bodies wickedly hewed —
and the regular worship quickly drew to a close… leaving only those fervent-hearted and few.

and I’ll be honest, I was starting to lose interest ‘til the blind girl burst through the door.
— ”I am Sera”, said she, this thinly veiled harbinger of times worse than before.
— ”save my children; they’ve been taken below” … she fell and grovelled and cursed on the floor.
those un-heavenly gathered clamoured for weapons, from axes to swords, and thirsted for war."

That was seriously impressive. You are a very talented writer my friend. In regards to this being a topical verse, some elements were missing in some places but your writing blew me away. Thank you.

Mike Wrecka

Yeah this was dope. Everything a topical verse is supposed to be. You had some interesting and unexpected imagery which made this verse very entertaining. It was really good, the perfect example of what a topical verse should be. It just didn't grab hold of me. I think a verse like this needs a very strong final third and this just seemed to fade away without consequence. There wasn't really anything wrong here, I just felt like it needed an ending it never got.

I'm giving this to symetrik but it was very close. Symetrik got it in the end because his ability as a writer really blew me away.

Thank you both.