wraith

toxic dreams spilled out of
your mouth and
whitewashed the night-
they rose and curled into
thin phantoms.

you watched their silhouettes
dance behind clouds-
the mask you'd fashioned with
their shadows faded to
reveal your ashen face.

the ghosts pivoted on
perilous heels and
we watched them collide
with menacing foes
but they waltzed into
transparent oblivion.

your spirit rode pernicious breaths of
the expiring dancers you'd freed;
i watched as your features blurred
with the night.

soft electric spirals enraptured you
and roaring currents recounted
your ruin.

your future shorted out
in your swelling desperation.

birthday wishes

i wish you were here.
i wish i'd see you this morning and
hug the fluffies right outta you.
i wish i could give you your presents today.
[insert bad "presence" pun]

happy birthday to you.
happy birthday to you.
happy birthday, love,
happy birthday to you.

*cake*

freeway requiem

autopilot has led me astray.

i cannot be sure where i took the
wrong turn.

is there a shortcut to the right road?

hydroplaning on uncertainty.

i pass by wide blinking eyes
pleading for traffic to stop and take notice.

spiked roadblocks tell of the wrong lanes i've entered.
they have lanced my tires and forced me to
just breathe.

turn left?
turn right?
continue straight?

autopilot has led me astray.

waiting room

i wait on a threadbare cushion
that creaks with every nervous shift

i wait for the good news
and the bad news

i wait for monotone explanations
of the dull pitch echoing in my mind

i wait for the void walls
to soothe me with quiet comfort

i wait for life
to call me in for the results

i wait for the wait
to end.

muscle memory

clutching yellowed escape plans
as you remain on this familiar course.
exhausting strides over chasms
strain your tendons and you limp.

snarling riptides seize your pride
and you blindly swipe at the thief.
reflexive defense imprisons you
and you are alone in your emptiness.

rusty gears creak in mundane rituals that
steer your mind through dizzying rotations.
vapid connections break in the slightest storm
and you are swept away, unattached.

you no longer feel the weights gripping your feet
and you tread along with nobody at your side.
muscle memory fuels your expiring flame
and you soundlessly dim to a mere
recollection.

catacomb

writhing larvae nestle
in fetid coves of
dangling flesh.

gnarled roots rupture
spoiled organs and
inhale bile.

staccato raindrops puncture
capsized soil and
flood deflated lungs.

fleeting

strands of dusk
gush from craters and
enrich the soil.

as they graze my cheek,
i wish to catch a beam
to drift through the sky
to settle in your arms.

longing to ride moonbeams
to sail on rocking seas
to

concrete fog
conceals my dreams and
sorrow finds refuge in my core.

drown

immersed in thoughts of you.

do you see the sunset and
hope your lasso will
capture the moon and
pull you from your raging sea?

your lasso is
soiled by faded moon
from previous attempts
to fly.
the fibers unravel
and slip from your grasp--
burning failure stings your skin.

you once pulled the moon close,
but the tide of
your ocean
overthrew you
and you sank.

sinister

filmy shadows frolic
with new darkness.
feeble strands of
dying sun
sift through branches
and dusk settles
onto my skin.

dashes of cloud
slice the moon and
flecks of atmosphere
shape a neon sky.

ribbons of light are
snipped from a spool
to tease the dry ground
with whispers of
relief.

a halo of filth
spirals around the moon and
casts its glare onto
the earth.

your dark

but i cannot let you
plummet to the bottom
of your dark.
your spine will shatter
and bone shrapnel
will illuminate your
face in red.

but i cannot let go
to save myself from
your dark.
your bright
outshines my silver linings
and your darkest
is still you.

their

noise erodes the walls of
our decaying Eden.

we covered our ears
and searched for the soothing tide
of our secret oceans

but the clamor of
their rusty swords drummed against
our corrupted hearts.

we bound our barricades
with shackles forged by
our sinning hands

but the fire in their throats
spouted from their mouths
and melted our shields.

we searched for shelter and
found the tree rooted
between our laced fingers

but the branches were charred
and emaciated corpses,
lifeless in our palms.

shouting flames cackle
at our demise, and we
fade to ashes.

fragment

stars explode
behind growling masses.
sheds of desperation
form a harsh exterior.

bloodshot eyes search
the west horizon
frantically
for traces of an
unfamiliar sunset.

warped planks creak
beneath your weighted feet.
rocking on
unstable waves.

the moon melts in your palm.
silvery tears escape from
between your fingers and
pale your skin.

tinted monsters scrape
the side of your vessel.
threatening murmurs
collide against you,
enrapture you
with tantalizing whispers
of relief.

salty winds tangle
your hair.
gravity clings to the corners of
your mouth.

tragic facade drips down your cheeks
in tributaries of black.
tapering
staining.

metallic screams escape and
diffuse
above your swallowed body.
rupture at the surface.
silence.

ship splinters
burrow into your skin.
infecting.