The Tome

RED DRAGON SWALLOWS THE SUN

for William

My right hand holds Truth
Life pours fourth in a golden river
Pure as the illumination of the soul

My left hand holds Temptation
Death pours fourth like a poison river
Defiled by the rotting flesh of endless slaughter

I'm torn between immortal lives
The darkness and the light
The divergence of day and night

Rising above warm rays so bright
The serpent uncoils its scorched length
A disjointed orifice opens wide

This fetid abyss--the depths of hell
Where black basalt burns with crimson flame
Reposes the maiden enshrouded by light.