Rotten smell.
Stale water.
In this well –
a monster.

Twisted horns,
horrid maw –
a wild beast!
You would know...

You entrapped it in there,
but to leave, don't you dare.

It is stuck
in the dark –
cannot run
nor attack.

The beast calls
from the pit –
you can hear
it weep.

You entrapped it in there...
Its sad cries, you must bear.

Plagued by crippling doubt,
You trudge through life,
Hesitant, confused, aimless.
Peril lurks behind you.

You cling to what you know:
A sweet, numb idleness.
You seek a badge of courage,
But are waylaid by hedonism.

Sinking deeper into sorrow,
The many colored beast nearby,
Whispering, “you are alone,
Worthless, inadequate, a corpse."

Night’s jaws envelope you,
As the taint burns your soul.
The beast prowls unchallenged,
Leaving the heart torn and gory.

About to concede to the Destroyer,
You are interrupted in the act,
By a still small voice,
And love embraces you.

Regal,
vile—
the beast aims to ****
but I am frozen in place.
My blood's running still
in its frightening grace,
and I smile—
regal,
vile.

A carnivorous beast lies pitted deep inside.
It devours its prey, gorging till it subsides.
Living in the heart of man, this beast doth reside.
It stalks upon carnal thoughts yet to betide.

A reincarnate knight seeks a kingdom of glory.
To vanquish the beast: his reoccurring story.
Oft' has the beast left the field torn and gory.
Yet, the knight strives for resplendent victory.

Fanfare pierces the soul; the champion sheathes his sword.
Returning to his dais, the knight returns as lord.

They say I cannot
That is because I do not
Not because I have done not
Yeah!
They know not
Because they've seen not
They don't know...
It's a beast in chains
Chains of experience

Calm is the storm when you’re away
Dreaming I’m sure of what I’m thinking,
And what desires I crave.
There’s a creature lurking behind the treeline
Of the distant forest, and a part of me
Yearns to adventure there
To see what ways it’ll have me.

A cage unlocked by undone straps,
Button, zipper, and tied laces,
And torn clothes from impulsive thirst
For more skin to be shown,
I know you crave it.

The bark will make its mark
As torn skin likewise will against it,
Follow me to the treeline,
Where none but the feral dare go,
To have their way
As the domesticated
Run for suburbia.

There’s nothing to fear
If your beast fights as mine,
For where’s the fun in vanilla,
When red is such a pretty color,
You don’t need to be careful with me,
Show me what you’re made of.

Tonight, let’s be the new urban legend,
And dismiss the thoughts of making it out alive
Or letting the sunrise save us from our fate.

I whispered to the Beast:
Begone!
Drought stood at the ready —
We swam on sand to flee.
Roaming dogs could smell
Fear, or was it fight
That we had within us
As we fled into the night.

In darkness we sat,
Our numbers light.
Cold, Queen of Ice, with us.

She spoke:
"Should it find you,
Scream my name
And tell it this:
O Beast! O tortured soul!
You are free.
Go as you please
Unto the world
That bore you.
I say it
and it is so."