Once upon perdition :re-edited:

The apostate looked out his window, and started to believe As genuflecting pylons sent ramifications through the trees Chaos questioned reason, hoping for a guilty plea but the world was too far gone, so began the killing spree The Crier rang his leper bell: “Our town’s a godless apparition” Filling hearts with envy of a once-dreaded condition Now the King prayed for calm, in a pagan act of contrition After his son died at birth, he had proscribed all religion Atheists came from all around, excommunication filled the air Roots faced horizontal, trying to feed off despair Anxious to leave town, fallen gargoyles block civic square Steeplejacks grow disoriented, from looking up at disrepair “That hole’s not deep enough,” winked the jester to the knave He could never resist a shortcut, even digging his own grave As the madness continued, hermits set fire each other’s caves Shedding light on the void, by burning alive its willing slaves With the apocalypse gathering pace, populations slowly died Some genius came forward a real madman in disguise Said, “We need a scapegoat— a martyr, an ultimate sacrifice” He was crucified for being too clever; they much preferred no advice And whilst writing this story, that apparently makes no sense the queen was in her chambers, hanging herself from suspense Children butcher themselves gaily, having learned how to fence As for putting fear of God in us, the wicked come crawling to repent At last when heaven reopened, an eclipse tried darken that day Never to see man overcast again, Sun went nova, boiling all life away… By David Kavanagh