A vertical matrix the color of brushed platinum,
rows and columns motionless but for fanning fins
.
interrupted by convulsive choreography –
sudden jerks that regroup flat silvery bodies
.
into a new array of communal fin fanning –
a syncopated tango that dances on until its rhythm is
.
s-h-a-t-t-e-r-e-d,
sabotaged by a blue torpedo hurtling forward
.
at one hundred kilometers an hour
frenetically stabbing the school
.
with its spear-like bill. Mayan Riviera waters roil
in a marine ecosystem of life and death conflict
.
imperceptible at the sun-drenched teal surface
where trophy-seeking predators higher up the food chain
.
await their prey with bated breath and baited hooks
vying for a marlin to mount over their mantels.