At The Mausoleum Of Obsidian

[or, The Overdue Burial ]

 

Unto the tomb, we brought Obsidian:
bound with his very own ropes---every limb;
bound by our meted justice, not mere whim;
bound both for cruelty and arrogance,
the true traits (so he said) of dominance
still unrepentant of what he had done.

 

Inside the tomb, we placed Obsidian:
and in his eyes we saw a mounting fear
(same as his slave girls must have felt); in here,
slow death would lead to quickened pits of hell
where worms that gnaw die not, and flames scorch well;
with no escape and nowhere left to run.

 

Outside the tomb, we sealed Obsidian
in---screaming at us, with his last, long glut
of cursing, as the wrought-iron doors swung shut
and then were locked. His voice would soon grow still
beside the girls interred there, by his will
dead---those whom he preyed on like carrion.

 

Leaving the tomb, we left Obsidian.
How many years ago?---oh, twenty-one.

Author's Notes/Comments: 

The first line was inspired by Wallace Stevens' poem, 'The Worms At Heaven's Gate,' beginning 'Out of the tomb, we bring Badroulbadour.' Obsidian's name, hopefully, suggests an echo of the word 'obscene,' an accurate description of that 'lifestyle choice.'

The title and the setting of the poem were inspired by Edgar Allen Poe's poem, 'Ulalume'; and the subtitle by Poe's story, 'The Premature Burial.'

The eleventh line is an allusion to the Gospel of Mark 9:44.

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