distorted shadows
dance around the bonfire
the moon
cratered and dully
gleaming
in a haze of
pregnant disdain

plasma courses
a scintillating
oscillation
in molten surges
as the electric stench of ozone
in pungent distress
carves furrows in forever

i casually
drape myself across
the sacrificial altar
an eager offering
to an indifferent god
as obsidian blades
gleam in the firelight

a slave to these
ritualistic catastrophes
slicing into the
delicate sinew of
halfhearted disbeliefs
a lamb led willingly
to your ivory teeth

if you press
your lovely ear against
my still beating heart
you can hear
an ocean of desire
crying out your name
in convulsive devotions