flocks penetrated his barrier
to inspect his rot
when it sank down
beneath the salt
lowly
in the slowing dark,

>° °<

called him back with sirens
and suggestion,
danced in vibrant twisters
to entice him
before he could drown,

>° °<

fled from each cavern
in shock,
begged for his spreading mane
to weave in,

>° °<

fed on the youth
spinning around him,
spat jets at his limbs,

>° °<

held hope out just for him,
but there was nothing to be saved

° °

from the abyssal plain.