The Soul Reaper

I’ve come for you, mortal, as harbinger of all, The inevitability many seek to avoid, or stall, When ultimately what is fate can be fathomed As destined, beckoned by more than human blood, Which cannot be used for payment of what the cards call.

So crawl to me. For the card you picked is of the pale rider, Legendary strider, a fighter against the light, but fear not — Darkness will save you. For you will no longer see the pain Of raped daughters, savaged mothers, animals tethered By hateful chains tainted with the stone of Hell’s never-ending hall.

You will never see the chasms split beneath you, Revealing hope’s tattered and frayed fabric Splitting more and more, ripping gently with distaste To show just how weak the flesh can be — How much the world shows itself as a waste.

Fear not. The light is your enemy. Blinding beasts, never chaste In tantalizing you with the visions of perseverance When hidden behind sleeps a lance by chance To pierce your eyes and burst your capillaries with the truth — That when the light lives so harshly as in a desert, There’s nowhere to hide in shade, so speak of haste….

Don’t hesitate. Take my hand. And I shall give you rest. So says the shadows of your labor, indeed. I, the reaper of souls, have professed.