A take on fate part deux...........

even flow - question mark

From base camp the top of the mountain seemed to reach heaven
He knew he needed a sherpa to aide him on his ascent
For the sherpas knew of the passages
They knew of the crevasses
Sherpas had reached the apex
Never making the headlines
Many had come before him to conquer
Never planting the flag of completion atop
Oxygen canisters were still a thing of the future
Guts and guile were what was required
Reaching the second camp
Was like a walk in the park
The sun smiled on the two of them
The paths were well worn
Nary a shortness of breath
With the tent set up
Smiles were shared as they watched the sun set
Getting to camp three was a tad tougher
Rotted ladders were used to cross the crevasses
Which gave a very good sense of how high up they really were
As he gazed down into the snowy abyss
The spiked boots which were great for traction in the snow
Proved a slippier grip on the iced ladders
Previous grips and clamps used by climbers
Had to be rechecked to make sure they still held body weight
He sucked air most of the day
His sherpa plodded along with the gear
A daunting day passed by
At camp three the smiles had grown wearier
Now they were within reach of the summit
Before sun up tomorrow
They'd be on their way to the top
They trekked and the sun rose
Some blowing snow swirled around
But this was expected at the altitude they were at
Precariously they hiked and hiked
There it was
The pinnacle
He took the pack off of the sherpas back
Searched for the flag
With a smile on his face he embraced the sherpa
Then pused him off the side of the mountain
He took in the amazing view
Thanked god for helping him achieve this feat
And planted the flag
Too much time could not be spent on the celebration
He had to reach camp three before the sun went down
The wind picked up as he got back to camp
Upon waking up the next morning
He looked around at all the fresh snow that had fallen
Panicking how all the trails had now blended into one colour of white
With compass in hand he set out to make it to camp two
The approach to the crevasse had ground him down
The ladder seemed to have disappeared with all the snow that had fallen
Precious time was passing as he trudged around
Desperately seeking the only passage to safety
Finally it appeared
Precariously he stepped put one foot on it
He felt confident as it was no more slick
Then on the ascent
As he placed his second foot on
The ladder shattered into a million pieces
One glove stuck to the ice
The remnant of a last grasp of life
The sherpas never let one of their own go up the mountain
Without a kind of spy to follow
Making sure all would be well
When the guide went of the side of the mountain
The newly made ladder was a lookalike made of icicles


Oooops, meant to edit and copied instead.

even flow - question mark

Meant to edit not copy.