You might defend a position
Or occupy a plot of land
When the enemy strikes
Reply or you'll be damned
You must find it in your resources
To gather your forces and reply
Either retreat or attack
It is not an equation
Nor zero sum game
You must find some form of victory
Whatever is done,
You've still no choice
In the haste of glory or anger
Or perhaps with patience, guile
It takes moments to become undone
If you lose
Should the battle be won
Your life will be forever changed
Forever thereafter
You'll never forget
Innocence lost and death the cost
The recriminations will not end
So finish the act upon the field
Or be blamed forever after
By the critics of the nation
And enemies of the state
