Totems
Two gaudy effigies, carved in wood, stand in forested clearings; both potent totems; understood to rule their tribe, as no man could. They tower above the undergrowth.
Whilst at their bases, maidens fair, do offer tribute; and they claim the pretty amulets they wear, and tattoos scattered here and there, prevent them looking much the same.
Explorers died here where they lay, their tortured bodies turning black. They surely came to rue the day they ventured the less travelled way and stayed - because there's no way back.
These totems force my deepest sigh. My God! Why did I venture hence? A futile, foolish traveller; I chose that detour, tempted by my untamed lust for difference.
All line should end with the given words - in the given order and form. wood, both, stood, could, undergrowth / fair, claim, wear, there, same / lay, black, day, way, back / sigh, hence, I, by, difference.
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