Apollo Vanquished Poem by Allesandra Patti

Fleet-footed as the faun fleeing with Apollo,
the hungry huntress stalks her prey,
pressing fallen leaves to her bare breasts,
her taut, lithe movements sparing
the slightest tremor, lest he
elude her... beloved deity.

Panting, her godlike passion exudes,
diffusing into candalabric light
from her lunar aureole -
Silver-footed Diana, breed of
Demeter and Eve, sisters of the hunt.
What can save him now?

With ears to hear, hairy hooves
to hie and hee, the faun quivers
in his fear and pauses, his pounding pulse
the rhythm of an ancient dance.
She strikes! Apollo kneels.

And the dethroned god subdued, disarmed,
is slave once more to Diana,
Queen of the Hunt and Goddess Supreme.