Drowned Beneath Fang and Scale

From the seas, a cavernous, dagger-lined maw. Dragged to the depths, in the grip of obsidian jaws. Still seas are parting! Wolf-headed serpents arise. Our fleet encircled; floating coffins, immobilized. Have we slighted the Gods? Zeus, what is your grievance? Why are we at odds? Were we not pious, is this a test of our creed? Should we beg? Should we should worship? Will you answer our pleas? Are we forsaken? Has Poseidon gone deaf? Are they they tired of our prayers? Sympathy, bereft. Are these our new Gods? This fanged annulus of death; fleshbound offerings, consumed at their behest? Condemned to a watery grave. These lives suspended, lost to the waves. Adrift! Stranded south of the veil; the ebb of life drowned beneath a torrent of fangs and scale Condemned to a watery grave. These lives suspended, lost to the waves. Adrift! Stranded south of the veil; the ebb of life drowned beneath a torrent of fangs and scale What lay beneath us finally stirs. This ocean’s keeper of the scale-blighted curse. Her towering visage transfixed us in awe. The tidings of damnation dripped from her maw: “These seas are not yours to sail, Why should you prevail? Cast adrift into my domain, Now sink under the waves of disdain” Vessels splintered, voracious whirlpools of gore. They stood, enraptured, for their lives they implored. Carnivorous ungula, in tandem they reap Detaching heads from their bodies, carrion gifts to the Deep. These seas stained crimson, but even sharks dare not approach. Blinded by bloodlust, a visceral death to all who encroach. When the carnal bloodletting came to an end, Our fractured bodies were sinking, but our souls won’t descend. Condemned to a watery grave. These lives suspended, lost to the waves. Adrift! Stranded south of the veil; the ebb of life drowned beneath a torrent of fangs and scale Claimed by the Ocean Mother, We rejoin the waves!

Submitted by johnmansley — Apr 26, 2025