at the firestone girdle about the beast they killed
the embers of it glittering
like souls from some remote univervse
untinctured by time
and finally saw their destiny
the Holy Mountain
to a man they fell to their knees
some gave up soliliquies so silent they were deafening
one man passed believing he had touched the face of God
and among their number was a preacher
he anointed the body with Holy Water
and gave up incantations to the heavens
a verse from the Holy Qu’ran
a fragment of the Pentateuch
and the last page of the Gospel of Saint Mark
they burned his body and decorated the heavens with his bones
and sprinkled his ashes still glowing as embers
in a brilliancy of autumn hues
to compete with the sun
and his 13 jealous moons
they lit a small blue fire of Zoroaster
their reasoning for warmth
and huddled together under a blanket of stars
inchoate of time
Flynnpoetry 