At Khamenlok

At Khamenlok, when the enemy came,
A thousand strong, hungry for fame.
They marched in a long, black tide
Each village met, they set alight;
At Khamenlok where the houses blazed.

The villagers heard them from afar.
They fled their homes for it was war.
As they lay in wait they could see
Arrogance had made the enemies unwary;
At Khamenlok where the enemy stayed.

The villagers crept up to the enemy camp
Set up at night with blazing lamps.
There, they scouting, saw wanton men
Feasting in the church, drunken;
At Khamenlok when darkness laid.

With righteous vim they fired upon
The drunken men with their weapons.
Much life was reaped that bloody night.
The broken men gave up all fight;
At Khamenlok where the enemies played.

And ere when, in the morning came
Fresh fighters to earn their name,
They were met with the sightless eyes
Of those they thought had seized the prize;
At Khamenlok where death had stayed.

And so the silent march began
Back to the valley whence they came.
And though no church bells would toll
They suffered a loss untold;
At Khamenlok where the fires blazed.

Based on true events that took place on June 13 & 14, 2023 in the Khamenlok area of war-torn Manipur.
The ongoing situation remains unresolved even after 7 months at the time of posting this. The loss of lives on both sides has been significant and yet no practical move has been made on the part of both the state and central governments to quell the violence. Nor is there any coverage of the situation aside from a massive propaganda war fought out across social media.