Antimony

Lurking beneath a charming facade Virulent silver tongue The venom he once spewed forth Now courses Floods his soon to be corpse … retribution On the backs of friend and foe alike He built an empire of opulence With ne’er a thought that his victims would seek vengeance Banished are his thoughts… Said for the searing pain swelling, Beckoning him to the grave Simmering slowly, a subtle burning within Perhaps this side-effect was caused by his ambition? Analgesics; just a touch on the gums To sooth the acrid taste that invades his tongue Shaping the life of the renowned is rarely achieved By those the lesser, the gentle, or the meek… for their deeds go unseen Fever racks his body Delerium grasps his mind Acidic tremors pulse, plaguing intestine Cowering in his castle, shatter the charming facade Violently spewing curses upon man and god… Shaping the life of the renowned is rarely achieved By those the lesser, the gentle, or the meek… for their deeds go unseen On the backs of friend and foe alike He built an empire of opulence With ne’er a thought that his victims would seek vengeance Banished are his thoughts… Said for the searing pain swelling, Beckoning him to the grave Though she summoned a physician, could this treachery be her deed? Are they scheming to reap what I have sown? Before my eyes… here in my home… Did my assailant slither away, only to read my obituary? Like a true coward you have stricken and run Forsaking the ghastly sight of your victim Withering in the sheets, encumbered by mortality Struggling, he succumbs to the throes of agony For there is no antidote, this fate has no cure Only the searing pain and darkness forevermore Shaping the life of the renowned is rarely achieved By those the lesser, the gentle, or the meek for their deeds go unseen. A fair dose of fear and antimony will lay thee to sleep With so many scorned—so many enemies—none will find me… On the backs of friend and foe alike He built an empire of opulence With ne’er a thought that his victims would seek vengeance Banished are his thoughts… Said for the searing pain swelling, Beckoning him to the grave

A once warm embrace, Now icy shackles upon my flesh Extravagant walls merely bars Caged once more… Her opulence and beauty paired well with his ambition A union forged with only superficial cravings But bliss was oh so fleeting, their lust consumed by hate His demons so long hidden surfaced remorselessly Her upper hand was lost But she will not be victimized Too strong to be a willing sacrifice The scars are worn with pride Her will cannot be broken His Hell cannot destroy her paradise With only brief cessation, his tendencies will prevail Unceasing, unrelenting… violence beyond the pale But still appearances must be met. Status outweighs comfort; to be judged is to be forsaken A public show of failure is not worth the repercussions This delusion must appear unnatural Tattered flesh and soul Deprived of that which makes her whole The time for action is now Lest she be forever bound If she is to prevail She cannot be seen as the cause The orchestration must be delicate A perfect alibi… Someone she can manipulate A ruse of lust will bend him to her will A target so easily found Replete with wealth and stature, but lacking in companionship To offer a promise of courtship with one caveat… That he must sever the one who ties her down

I’ve always been a shadow A faint reflection While godlike he’s somehow become Attained through pure deception Though I, at first, had feigned respect, Revulsion overtakes my well-honed ruse No longer have I the strength for flattery Nary a tongue remains for me to bite My tolerance has shattered; It brings a clarity My role in this performance… Will end in tragedy The motive: to discredit Destroy devotion My adversary must become a nemesis to them all Plagued by reservation Can I withstand the shift from shadow to pariah? If he becomes a martyr, then I am the enemy Prepared to prove that their God Is no more than illusion The path was laid by his deceit My sacrifice will free them This gift to all, I’m granting His tarnished legacy will be my greatest victory I dwell on vile outcomes Each crueler than the last Now finding sick enjoyment Where once I was appalled I care not for my own life Or those of his disciples It seems my only passion Is to remove him from this plane…. With every breath I curse his name But words alone will not deliver his collapse Too long awash with cries of praise The sycophants will see the end of their devotion The motive: to discredit Destroy devotion My adversary must become a nemesis to them all Plagued by reservation Can I withstand the shift from shadow to pariah? If he becomes a martyr then I am the enemy

Portraying himself as a healer A savior born of flesh But when the sun takes leave of the sky, His passions come alive Every grinning face a potential victim; an experiment Only brought to life when others are brought to death… Until a chance encounter stole his breath Oddly familiar, but this desire’s entirely new A unique treatment needed to repair her broken soul He knowingly takes advantage of her lack of self-control Passions flourishing Each encounter demands another Despite the prying eyes of a thousand brainwashed plebeians Caring for not but for that which they were taught to believe The ties severed; broken quickly but never clean One loose end remains betwixt he and lust Though now he breathes, he soon shall sleep Affixed on the target, demon in human skin A plot to take control Fortune favors the bold A man of prominence, soon to be his patient Unaware of this scheme Pried from his tower of ivory Into the tower he creeps with glee On his way to slay his adversary Oh, the suffering you’ll endure Retribution for those you’ve scorned Hidden in plain sight, the means to an end Administered by your own hand Soon shuffled loose of this mortal coil Lowered into the soil A man of prominence, soon to be his patient Unaware of this scheme Pried from his tower of ivory By trade a physician Murderer by passion Death dealer unforeseen Your demise brings forth my gain I lay in wait… Summoned forth by my prize to ensure your demise Now bedside, watching, waiting as he withers… Passion flourishing Each encounter demands another Despite he who would threaten that which he covets To the morgue with that bastard Malpractice mastered To the morgue To hell with that bastard Malpractice mastered

A life of servitude But never subservient To one, the confidante Heartset on the patriarch Her efforts soon rewarded His carnal needs fulfilled Nocturnal passions sated Diurnal accusations evaded She lies within his arms And sees her destiny He lies without remorse He lies and feeds his gluttony Devotion now divided She sees his demons strike But blind infatuation Decides her loyalty As witness to his wicked assaults She feels no sympathy for her ally This is the moment she’s been lusting for An opening through which to bore The moment’s come His heart will bleed For only she who now remains The time has come To gain control No other soul can claim this place While in the thralls of passion Their bodies merged as one Emboldened and euphoric She shares her true desire Her words evoke a smile A laugh, so deep and pure Her dreams so brutally shattered Slicing away her sanity

My life to you I’ve given… And to your every need I tend Though I try to stay unseen, By your side I’ve always been I do this for praise nor glory To serve is all that I require As I am you must be Loyal to your flock True devotion unyielding My living savior But somehow questioning if your love is returned The vicious acts I’ve witnessed Could never shake my faith I do not offer judgment; your actions I would never condemn Were I requested to bear witness, I would gladly make it false Dark deeds never without warrant Gods do not make mistakes. The cruelest of abuses served without remorse Once again my eyes avert My business this is not I have visions of the deposition and the words I’ll speak Provoked! Self-defense The force was just Your recognition of my presence reveals an unholy truth You fear I’d be your Judas… Your recognition of my presence reveals an unholy truth But it’s you who proves to be the deceiver No devotion Conditional An earthbound sinner Nevermore Questioning You have betrayed… This dismissal burns me more than all the fires of Hell How little I must have meant, to be dismissed so cruelly I’ll never forget the shame you have unleashed Betrayed Cast aside The words of which lie beyond my lips Could bring your world crumbling down

Admiration propelled me through the years of toil Hoping to one day be led by his hand In my eyes he was a god among men Champion to the weak and struggling Vengeance on those who abuse Few rise above the others without bodies falling in their wake A dark path to ascendency This is a lesson hard-learned by someone restrained by morals I curse my naivety It is always a risk to consort with heroes To do so is to see their faults and lift the veneer of perfection Mortified by the savage behind the noble God revealed to be a man; a title hardly fitting He is, in truth, a step below the foulest form of vermin My shame can find no bounds viscous realization Did he see me as one in kind? Or as weak… to be corrupted? Heaving as I digest this vile revelation As if gate was opened, setting free a flood of agony But I will not allow myself to drown in this self-hatred Loathing set in now… ‘tis sin I’m contemplating I can’t unsee the misery The demon beneath the flesh If I am to protect the weak then I must lay thee to rest But who am I to start a war against a vengeful god? Shielded I’ve been within his enveloping shadow But like a thorn, I’ll find a way to cripple the lion Become the hero that my ignorance made him out to be Never again will I put trust in something so abhorrent My cynicism taking hold But I will be redeemed for misguided adoration My hostile hand will take control

Though lifeless, this corpse tells a tale from beyond the grave A hideous expression wrought with betrayal Envied by many but praised in high society Whose wrath have you provoked? No doubt they were close Intimate proximity was needed to administer the antimony Animus nocendi Homicidium donari Six suspects I have identified Each possesses the motive to end his life It seems this man wore many a mask and lived a life of deceit And each of those in question spew the tales of his misdeeds And yet there is no confession, evidence, or an admission of guilt As did their victim, an alibi is bound to wilt Animus nocendi Venenum mortem Motives aligned with cardinal sin Lest for those that death delivered freedom After all I’ve heard and seen I wonder if this was justified… With so many scorned, so many enemies It's too murky to pinpoint the source of treachery The bitter rival surpassed and full of jealousy, seeking his destiny? The master of malpractice sought your trophy for his own… Would she willingly vacate your throne? Signs of abuse and malcontent, yearning for Hell’s descent The secret sealed behind closed doors Broken heart bleeding forever Apprentice… usurper who sought to take your place Or discarded disciple disgraced? Animus nocendi Insolutam dimittit Just as the mind of the corpse involved It seems this case too has gone cold