tranquility in time
to which pulses
that throb inside me
swords lain at the altar
where rest my swollen wounds
blood seeping down steps
foundation soaked of your
eviscerated temple
sanctuary of listless prayer
chords echo
in abandoned chambers
scarring fingertips in silent torment
where fire scorched viscera
and entrails embody embers
in the valiant fight for vitality
from the matrix we emerge
in anguish we retreat
embraced by defeat