the doom slinger 5

Satan 
stirred 
hearing sirens 
through the fog
singing 
the 
pungent odor 
of rotting life 
assaulted 
his nose 
cursed flies 
mated 
on his face
he 
brushed them away 
with a 
imaginary arm
he hoisted  
his eyelids  
forcefully 
light 
flooded in
kaleidoscope
images beamed
into his 
yawning mind 
which 
screamed 
"cupids"

Satan
sat bolt upright

the cupids
who 
surrounded him 
stepped back 
the stench 
followed 
Satan 
stared 
into their
sour pulp 
fish hook 
torn faces 
infested 
with maggots 
Satan 
cracked 
a smile  
his lips refused 
to produce
lips numbly 
staring 
he 
mumbled 
his gaze
from 
cupids to cupids
who all stood 
naked 
except for a
siren 
skin loincloth
covering their 
pulpy mass
nether 
ether
regions 

each cupid 
held a crossbow  
or 
wooden handled club 
with idolatry
carved stone heads
in the
holders image 
their
snow white 
blood dusted
mite infested 
vulture wings
were folded 
allowing 
Satan to see 
chained and collared 
battered and bruised
behind them 
sat the 
lamenting sirens 
who had 
woken him
with their 
mournful singing 

Satan tried
to gain his feet
before a
pulpy congealing
muscled chested 
maggot infested 
cupid 
stepped forward 
shoving his 
poxed
stone head 
against 
Satan's chest 
pushing 
him back
into the 
pearly 
pebbles  

rage 
flooded Satan 
filling 
his being 
with
birthing strength 
standing 
him up 
to face 
his 
roe foe 
as the cupid
raised 
his 
stone face
yet again  
Satan 
stepped forward 
growled 
"poor stupid cupid" 
(for the 
alley oracle
 foretold
" they 
knew not what 
they did ")
as he 
grasped 
the cupids wrist 
in an 
iron age grip
the 
two beings  
stood 
eye to eye
then 
with the power 
vested within
Satan 
shoved 
the cupid back 
who
stumbled 
a few steps 
as
Satan 
reached
for his 
fancy pistol
the cupid
shot forward
his 
stoned face 
raised
as Satan
let the 
hammer fall
releasing lead 
that 
parted 
the thick ether
of
tension 
between the 
emaciated 
washed up 
Satan 
and the 
pulpy 
roe chested 
cupid 
whose 
cold stone face 
kissed 
Satan 
on the 
forward head 
and 
shattered 
into a 
constellation 
meanwhile 
Satan's 
lead crossed
 bullet 
cast the 
cupids heart 
out onto 
the stones 
to season 
while the 
cupids body 
staggered backwards 
vertically challenged 
then as if
melting 
dissolved 
into the 
voids bucket 
without 
a splash 

still 
surrounded 
by 
cupids 
Satan reached 
behind his back
for his 
other 
fancy pistol 
then 
gave each 
a turn 
at the 
storm of cupids 
closing in
he did not 
watch 
the cupids 
falling 
as like 
 in his 
visions 
his 
grim faced 
lead bullets 
burst  
their targets
like 
clown balloons
twisted 
stretched 
into 
whoman form 
with his
lead pins 

Satan 
realizing 
that the 
close proximity 
almost flat 
pebbled beach 
offered 
him 
no cover 
from the 
slings and arrows 
of his 
enemies
and 
tiring 
from dodging 
the lethal 
projectiles
inserted 
into the 
ether 
at him
he 
created 
a bloody 
doorway 
using 
his 
lead crossed tipped
chisels
to carve 
the gap
he
 flew through 
toward 
the cliff face 
where
 boulders grew 
like 
a beard 
he 
dropped 
behind a large 
rock 
hailing arrows 
followed 
striking
the rock 
musically 
showering  
sparks  
and 
fossilized bone
all over him 
as he 
continued
to blast 
his 
fancy pistols  
while
Satan's 
emotionless face 
bore
the fresh burden 
of the 
truth  
tearing
scarring
his 
leather burnt 
on bone 
corpse 
gaunt features 

Satan 
swiftly reloaded 
his pistols  
and resumed 
blasting 
at the 
silent 
multiplying cupids 
whose 
arrows 
chipped away 
the rock 
Satan
had chosen 
freely
to take 
his 
stand behind
he'd 
gunned down 
more than
a dozen 
baker's dozen
of the 
enslaving cupids 
but more 
were 
popping out  
where from 
Satan 
would of 
answered

"the clouds"  

yet the 
ether 
was clear 

an arrow 
bounced 
of his 
left horn
but 
he did not 
flinch 
as his 
boney fingers 
held  
the reaper
triggers 
meaninglessly 
as his 
opposing thumbs 
fanned 
the 
flaming hammers
of his 
fancy pistols 
while watching
the futility 
of his 
unerring bullets 
knocking 
the cupids 
from the 
sky 
was only 
betrayed 
by his
tears 
acid 
etching 
new scars 
down his 
emotionless 
corpse
masked face

for this 
was his 
lot 
ordained 
forever 
and 
ever 
war 
without end 
trapped 
cycling
within wars 
punishing
aeons
seasons 
behind his 
emotionless 
mask
blasting 
his foes 
with 
fancy pistols

fancy pistols
which again  
needed 
reloading  
Satan's 
bony fingers 
fished 
deep 
into his 
boiled 
leather jacket 
pockets
for more 
damming 
ammunition
hooking a handful
he refilled 
his guns 
full 
of the void 
soaked 
lead bullets 

Suddenly 
an arrow 
hit Satan 
in the neck 
a spurt 
of 
steaming vapor  
stinking 
of brimstone 
whistled
into the 
ether 
Satan 
grimaced 
cocked his hammers
pushed 
his 
fossil
emaciated frame 
up 
as close 
to the 
rock 
as he 
metaphysically 
could

as the 
cupids 
were circling
above   
blood dried 
rusty dust
and 
imp mites 
fell 
from their 
feathers  
mixing 
with 
the brimstone 
and the
 acrid 
damming 
fumes 
of the 
fancy pistols 
smoke 
rising 
colliding 
to form  
humid clouds
over the beaches 
where the cupids 
could hide
their 
attacking
formations  

far of 
on their rocks 
by the 
voids edge
the 
captive sirens 
had crawled  
back to 
while
their abusers 
attentions 
were 
elsewhere 
began 
anew 
an old 
song 
as their
wounds 
were  cleansed 
by the 
voids baptismal 
splashes 

the 
cupid vultures 
continued
to fire 
their bone 
crossbows 
but 
they were 
shooting 
blindly 
through the 
thick 
cloud cover 
Satan 
ignored 
the volleys
of 
arrows 
shot at him
from above  
stepped around 
his rock 
his hooves 
trodding 
into 
puddles 
of the 
fly bloated 
fallen 
winged fetus 
carcasses 
bleeding and rotting 
on the 
pearl pebbled 
beach 
where he'd 
washed up 

Satan 
blasted
both 
his pistols
into
the ether
paused and listened 
for the sounds 
of 
cupids raining 
from above  
he 
didn't need 
keen eyesight 
to notice the 
dead 
and 
wounded 
plunging 
to their 
punctuated 
death beds 

arrows whistled 
happily 
through the 
smoke and dust 
from the 
cupids
crossbows above 
suddenly 
the cupids
broke cover 
to begin 
dive bombing 
Satan  
who snarled 

"this ain't right "

cocked
the hammers 
of his 
fancy pistols 
once more
as he 
fired up 
into the 
attacking
carrion   

leftovers
barrel rolling
and
tumbling  
down 
from the 
heavens 
said  
his lead 
found their 
targets

dropping 
to rest 
on one knee
partly blinded 
Satan 
laid his guns
down 
to rest 
while he 
wiped his 
dust caked 
opaque eyes 
as a
cupid 
successfully 
dived bombed 
him
the eerie sound 
of the 
cupid's 
stone face 
whispering 
a
lullaby
 in his ear   
pitched 
Satan 
rolling 
into the 
bloody 
pea soup gravel 

shaking 
himself awake 
Satan 
saw his guns 
gleaming 
out of reach 
as a cupid 
swooped 
towards him 
Satan rolled 
into an 
aerial
with 
drunken agility
as he
unsheathed 
his
fork tongue blade 
from 
behind his back 
his 
acrobatic hooves
placing him 
right under
the 
screaming cupid 
he 
reached up  
snatching 
the 
dive bombing 
cupid 
by the 
braided umbilical
like hair 
pulling down 
the cupid 
the long 
lethal 
unseeable edged 
forked blade 
was 
thrust 
into the 
cupid's chest
as he was
plucked 
out of the 
ether

epilogue 

the 
cupids last kiss 
was the 
bloody 
unconsecrated grounds 
pearly pebbles
he bled 
for

Satan 
turned
to see above 
a half-dozen 
cupids   
through the thick dust
caking his 
eyes 
could see 
the stunned 
stunted 
expressions
etched
into their 
stoned carved faces
he flew 
straight 
at them
he forced
the
forked tongue 
unseeable edged 
blade
amongst
through 
their butter 
flanks 
melted blood 
flew 
off the
fork tongues 
gleaming 
blade 
in artistic 
swishes 
as cupids fell 
all around 
when
he had carved 
his way 
into the clear 
Satan 
retrieved the 
fallen 
fancy pistols 
to give 
a few 
fleeing 
cupids
a
parting shot 
before turning 
wings beat 
to climb 
the 
rocky cliff face
up out
of the 
slaughter house
his hooves 
driving 
into its 
broken 
face's flesh
yet 
no matter 
how fast 
he climbed 
Satan 
couldn't escape 
the pain 
he had
inflicted 
upon himself 
as he 
pushed himself
pulled himself 
over 
the cliffs edge 
to stand  
on the 
edge 
of a 
plateau

 ©bg 2021

the doom slinger 4

Satan spiraled 
through the 
woke turbulence
vortexes   
his 
bullet clipped 
and holed 
emaciated 
wings spread 
like they were  
pinned 
by an
invisible 
god's  
entomologists
finger pads 
as he 
slipped 
through the 
killing jars  
ether

Satan 
was
desperately
trying 
to slow 
his decent 
as he 
tried to read 
the ethers 
jet streams 
when he 
slammed 
into a 
hibernating
shadow tree 
growing out 
from the 
pear shaped 
chasms 
stagnant
weeping walls 
which  
knocked the wind 
from
beneath his wings 
he then 
desperately 
tried 
to cling 
like a hatched 
partridge fetus 
to the 
tree for life  
as gravity 
suckered him
into
slipping 
like a snake
along a branch 
then
hanging 
like a fruit 
until 
inevitably 
rotting 
dropping 
back
into the fall
 
Satan's 
holy wings folded  
like in a prayer 
didn't 
have a hope
of slowing 
his 
steep descent 
as he 
plunged 
head first 
into the 
watery cold 
black void 
his
momentum  
dragging 
him under 
the voids 
dark foaming
surface 
where 
all was 
absorbed 

corpse arms 
failing 
he rose 
to the 
voids 
foaming surface 
gasping 
just as the 
uprooted 
shadow tree
slammed 
into his chest 
knocking 
the proverbial wind 
from him 
yet again

he rose 
again 
to the 
voids surface
gasping 
for 
essence
the voids 
emptiness 
flooded in 
burning his lungs 
and throat
knowing 
he was in 
quite the pickle 
he grabbed hold 
of one of the
trees 
proffered 
outstretched limbs  
grateful 
for something 
to hold to 
in the 
meaningless 
dark foaming 
voids brine 

waves of fear 
rolled and crashed 
over him 
as Satan 
fought
his way 
through the 
foaming void 
and 
tangled limbs 
to the 
middle 
of the 
shadow tree's 
trunk 
where being 
more stable
he pulled 
himself up 
onto his  
dead looking 
tree of life raft
before 
collapsing 
like an 
emaciated 
split crow 
carved
on a totem 
in an 
exhausted relief 

a wave 
slapped him 
awake 
as he 
wiped the
stinging void 
from his 
eyes
until 
he thought 
he saw 
the blurry outline 
of an ark 
pitching 
and 
rolling 
on his 
horizon 

Satan
paddled 
towards 
where he 
thought hoped 
he had 
envisioned 
the ark 
but the 
wind 
and 
lashing waves 
of the void 
tossed 
his life raft 
back
into the 
dispiriting void 
as 
lightning split 
the heavens 
followed 
by the thunder
of the 
emperor's
fallible god's
judgement 

the flash 
revealed nothing 
but the 
freezing emptiness
of the 
heaving 
and 
lashing 
void 
his tree of life 
was 
tossed through 
while
upside-downly 
downly-upside
Satan 
hung on
ever so 
grimly 
as
through time 
the
waves nine tails 
kept on 
stripping the tree 
to its 
heartwood 
while
lashing the fallen 
to the bone 
the brine 
cauterizing the sap
and 
scorching his
lungs and throat
when 
swallowed 
causing
a reaction 
Satan 
shivered
while
retching 
to expel the void's 
icy emptiness 
of doubt 
as he stared  
wild opaque eyed 
into the 
howling blackness 
that stared 
mirror like 
back at him 
as he
waited  
for 
forty benighted aeons
and 
forty enlightenment aeons 
for the ark
to reappear 
while the 
battered
shadow tree 
appeared 
to 
dip and dive
toss and turn 
trying 
to loosen 
his grip 
on life 

in 
another 
bursts 
of lightning 
Satan 
saw with 
foreboding 
other 
messiahs 
floating dead 
bobbing 
flesh corrupted 
eroding away 
on the 
void's dark 
foaming surface 
fastened 
to their trees 
their 
stomachs intestines 
exposed 
knotted 
in a 
figure eight  
bizarrely 
tethering them 
to 
anchors
caught 
on the  
voids icebergs  
desperately 
Satan 
looked through 
the debris 
as lightning 
again
illuminated 
the voids  
ship graveyard 

spotting 
no survivors 
among the 
wreckage 
Satan
gave up
and
paddled on 
battled on 
fueled by 
an age 
of rage 
his 
wind milling arms 
churned the void

Finally
after time 
had abated
Satan rested 
the raging void
calmed  
light from the
heavens above 
became constant 
no longer
flickering 
injecting 
him with 
tormenting 
horrifying 
images of 
death and hope 
into 
the depths 
of his 
opaque eyes  
and the
infallible god's
thunder 
no longer
clapped
rhythmically 
in his ears 
his 
throat 
stripped raw 
from the brine's 
cattales
swallowed 
and his 
mad bellowing 
echoing 
into the
faceless storms  
pointless
bombardments 
had 
fallen silent 
for
Satan 
exhausted 
had
hung his head 
ominously
in 
contemplative resolve 
to 
continue down
the
path of revenge 
upon those 
that had  
traduced him 
and
those of his ilk
he loved  

lifting his head 
from his reprieve 
his eyes revealed
a  lands 
mountainous 
white cloud 
cliffs 

Satan 
wondered  
where in the void 
he had 
drifted 
as the 
distant 
lands greying
harshness 
began to swamp 
his eyes
with 
survival tears

Satan 
had no idea
how far offshore 
he lay adrift 
but as his 
corpse thin arms 
began windmilling  
upon his 
tree of life 
breaking 
the voids 
frigid surface 
he fixed his will  
on the beckoning distance 
that fed him intravenously 
a little more persistence 
 
thinking 
he was closing 
in with the land  
he began 
to make out 
the features 
of the distant 
rocky shore line 
his corpse arms 
exhausted 
wind milled limply 
on 
fill of aching knotts
and 
will breaking pain
Satan 
ignored 
his grinding bones
continued circling 
willing himself on 
through 
the blissless 
will sapping 
milling void 

cranking up
his 
heavy head
for his 
opaque eyes 
to measure 
the distance 
left to beach 
upon that
pebbled pearly 
shore 
his 
opaque eyes 
cried out 
from the 
crows nest 

"we be 
nay the closer
cap'n"

where upon 
Satan's
vessel 
lost 
it's bottled 
elixir 

an odd specimen 
drained of adrenaline 
it's flesh gone  
skin baked on 
to crumpling bone
left alone to atone  
on a fruit tree devoid 
on a bloodless void 

© by bg 2021

the doom slinger 3

enter
the courthouse
a realm
consisting
of a
deep deep deep
unfathomable
cave system
a
labyrinth
of
alternate realities
inhospitable
to its
notional
inhabitants

on entry
Satan observed
above
luminous
gravity defying
headless hunchback
seraphim
their
grey smoke entrails
spilling out
like
wisps of
egg whites
dropped in
boiling water
they
floated poached
haunting
the
polished
marbled walled
corridors
each carrying
ignoring
bundles
of
wailing
decomposing skin
parchedments

as
they past over
Satan
the sound of wind
sighing
or was it
moaning
could be heard
over the
wailing
yet
Satan
felt no breeze
only smelt
rotten
eggs

sand
flowed across
the
cave floors
corridors
erasing
Satans
hoof prints
as he
tried to find
his way
forward
into the
labyrinths
dark
alleyways

following
the
streams of sand
was as
deceptive as fruit
as they
merged
diverged
doubled back
on
themselves
covering
the flames
trail
or was it
erasing
sweeping away
one's own
tracks
towards
potters field

the deeper
into the
cave system
lit only
by the
smoldering
end
of a
carcinogenic
rolled
cigarette
polished marbled
walls
gave way
to rough
sketched nameless
rocky faces
which were
covered
in moss beards
from their
cracked crumbling
chalk skin
bleeding images
pearls of wisdom
spilled
eroding
incomprehensibly
into
the sand
rivers
to be
reformed

finally
admitting
to himself
he was
lost
in the
infernal
cave system
of the
courthouse
archives
Satan
suffered
a seismic
depressive
shift
of mood
when the
flowing ground
seemed
to list

"all is doomed"
Satan thought

a red tape
snake
that could
be found
naturally lurking
anchored
within the
systems cracks
beneath
the surface
of the
sand rivers
flowing
throughout
the
courthouse
cave system
had
looped
noosed
itself
around
Satans
left hoof
tripping
him up

as he
prepared
to hit
rock bottom
with a
doomsdays
meteorite
splash
Satan reached
round
to his back
unsheathing
an
unseeable edged
fork tongue blade
once given
unto him
by a friend
by a foe
once drawn
Satan
slashed
with his
knife
at the
snake
that would've
dragged him
into
the cracks
to
devour and excrete
him
into
particles
of the
caves pictorial
suspeculated
evidence

Satan's
forked blade
sliced surgically
parting
seperating
the snakes
erroneously
scaled body
from his own
entity

standing
free
for a moments
breath
but still stuck
in the
behemoths belly
Satan lit
one of his
previously
rolled
half smoked
cigarettes
with a spark
from his
flint nails
he stared
into the
thundering
howling blinded
heard of minotaurs
surrounded
in a
cloud of dust
picture frame
stampeding
bearing
down upon
him
corroding
sand grains
thrown up
by the
frightened
minotaurs
rained down
landing
pockmarking
his
burnt
leather on bone
tear scared face
ahead of time

through
the
oncoming
avalanche's dust
stinging his
opaque eyes
Satan
could see
a guilty flicker
of a flame
driving
the creatures
from
behind
towards him

"oh Justice
you flaming
son of a
tumbleweed"

Satan spat
at his
quarry
as he drew
his
fancy pistols
before
realising the absurdity
of his actions
he holsted
his
fancy pistols
preparing
to be
trampled
into
civilisations bedrock
instead
as he came
to peace
with futility
his
survival instincts
came to life
animated
Satan turned
finding a gap
in the
continuity
of the
cave systems walls
he ran
towards the crevice
without hesitation
forgetting
to look
into
the trojan horses
mouth
Satan
took a
leap of faith
an unforeseen error
beginning his fall
down
into a
chasm

© by bg 2021



the doom slinger 2

Selene
carried Satan 
floating 
across the waste 
for 
forty aeons 
and 
forty epochs 
in her cradle 
of 
tranquility 

bustling noise
blistering heat
awoken 
Satan 
outside 
a broken
 away 
sectioned 
piece of waste town 
moored 
floating 
in the rising void 
that
lapped 
at the 
crumbling cliffs 
feeding 
scouring  
away the waste 

Selene
hung back 
on the 
event horizon 
watching Satan 
cross
the gangplank 
out of sight
into 
Purgatory 

Satan 
walked amongst 
Purgatory's 
whitewashed 
buildings 
its citizens 
parting 
in an 
angry red sea
their 
indoctrinated 
fear 
holding back 
their 
lynch mob instincts 
but 
unbeknownst
to   
Satan 
he was safe 
for he was 
no savior 
so they allowed  
their
stoop shouldered
emaciated
bat wings drooping 
wizened up 
escape goat 
plenty of space 
to waltz 
within their
atmosphere
of 
entitled hope
and 
narcissistic dreams 

along the edges 
of 
purgatory
anchored 
bloated
air balloons
weighted 
full 
of hot air 
ladders up
to 
evacuate 
the  
lands citizens 
to the
heavens above
never 
ever
gated
land 

curious people 
peered 
out of
windows 
doorways
pretending 
their 
perceived beast 
was 
a threat 
of forming 
or becoming 
their
craven image  
as the beast 
they awed 
walked 
as 
Pinocchio once did   
amongst them
in the 
bright furnace light 
that 
in their 
heavens pilots 
shriveled raisin eyes 
should be 
buried 
under
sea chanties
 of
 brimstone 

Satan 
wiped an
itty bitty tear 
away 
that was 
drawing another scar  
down
his
worn 
leather baked 
skinned skull

Satan stopped  

staring up
into the 
darkness 
of Purgatory's  
seven storied 
house 
of ill repute 
windows 
rearing up 
monster like
before him 
at the 
point 
of the towns 
pentagram

as 
Satan 
entered 
the house's saloon 
on the 
ground floor 
a hundred 
crammed 
foul smelling soles 
assaulted  
his 
ossified nostrils

ignoring 
the 
circus captivity scene 
stink 
Satan 
strode wearily  
up to the bar 
that was 
blocked from view 
by thirsty soles 
stomping 
for the
bartender's healing
via a
liquid elixir  
blessing 
to cleanse 
their 
pilgrim soles 
since the 
paved floor 
of good 
intentions 
they trod 
excessively 
to 
enlightenment 
was 
covered
urine soaked straw
and other
questionable 
dark matter

Satan  
pushed open 
his batwings 
to reveal 
the
jutting pearl grip
of his
fancy pistol 
clearing 
away 
the 
clambering 
self indulgent 
crowd 
at Purgatory's
nirvana saloon's  
last chance bar
or
so the 
mirror
on the wall  
proclaimed it 

Satan's
fingers danced 
over
 the pearl butt 
of his 
fancy pistol
as his 
boney arms
hung stiffly 
at his  
corpse side
only his hooves 
made a rough sound
as he
took one 
more 
scraping
waltz step 
across
the 
barnyard  
floor
closing the gap
between 

the
bushy 
flame faced 
bartender 
glared 
at his 
moth 
he pulled 
a long thin cigar
from his 
sweet sweat 
soaked stained
robe pocket 
he
bit off its tip
then 
spat it out
he placed the 
wet cigar 
between 
his 
yellow cracked 
sun glazed teeth 
then 
he ignited it 
with the bars 
eternal candle 
then
huffed and puffed 
until 
smoke billowed 
from his 
ears and mouth

Satan felt 
a numb judas hand  
grab
at his 
skin and bone 
arm 
turning his 
leather burnt cheeks
to face
his 
attacker 
Satan
head-butted
the fools mug 
in a 
classic 
purgatory kiss 
move 

blood splattered 
from the 
bravado fill mugs 
nose 
as the 
used up
diversion 
fell to 
wiggle 
maggot style 
on the
saloons dance floor
as
Satan's 
burning bush 
disappeared in smoke 

without pausing 
Satan 
leapt the bar 
crashing 
through the mirror 
landing 
out in a 
light 
drenched alley

Satan
looked at the ground 
saw the 
bartender's 
boots glass remarks
in the sand
fleeing 
fleet of foot
along
the alley 
his boots 
disappearing 
over 
a 
competition
pissed stained 
dividing
wall 

leaping
the wall 
bat wings open 
he saw 
his flame 
escape
the bars alley 
into 
Purgatory's
main street

Satan 
dragged 
his fancy pistol 
from 
his hunters belt 
ready for action
as
gold nuggets 
smashed 
into the
alley's 
fire brick walls 
chips and dust 
showered 
Satan 
as 
another volley 
of 
golden nuggets
passed 
within inches
of the 
horned beasts 
head 

Satan 
returned fire 
as 
more choir shots
sang out  
from the
direction 
of 
purgatory's 
court house 
rearing up 
a behemoth 
before him 
at the 
point 
of the towns 
pentagram

at least 
a dozen
 appointed 
witnesses 
guns 
blazing 
covered 
Satan's flame 
high tailing it 
up the 
mountainous stairs 
of 
ideologies 
to 
escape 
justice 

Satan 
emaciated frame
stood 
still as a target 
while 
all around him
the
unconsecrated ground 
was 
churned up 
by the 
deadly sermons
golden nuggets 
which were sent
to gouge 
Satan's 
deep opaque 
tear-filled
eyes out 

returning 
fire 
Satan watched 
his first 
witness  
bounce lifelessly 
down the 
courthouse 
rocky stairs  

shots 
echoed around 
purgatory 
as the 
flame 
slipped 
through the cracks 
of the 
courthouse's
stone tablet
unhinged doors 

below 
another 
witness  
twisted on his
scorpion 
boot heels
falling under 
Satan's 
tearful gaze 
as his 
fancy pistol's 
lead bullets
chewed out 
his witnesses
blackened 
jerky
heart  

Satan's 
blurry 
tear filled eyes 
focused
on 
three witnesses 
rushing 
at him 
their guns cocked 
their soles 
already 
lost 
on their way 
to meet 
their judge
fired
at the 
emaciated figure
who 
with all his strength
dragged
back the hammer 
then 
squeezed
his 
fancy pistol's 
scythe trigger

the 
action like denials 
repeated
two more times 
until 
the witnesses 
had paid
for their 
perjury

ideology 
continued 
attempted 
to rain down 
from
the courthouse
Satan  
felt more tears 
trickling 
down 
from the 
depths 
of his 
opaque eyes 
as a few 
golden nuggets 
crossed 
his scars 
while 
other nuggets
tore holes 
through 
his 
weathered 
tattered 
bloodstained 
batwings 
that flapped violently 
in the 
bullets breeze 

seven 
deadly witnesses   
left 
Satan rolled 
his 
dice 
knowing 
he was hurting 
yet 
knowing 
the proceedings  
must go on
and on...   

the witnesses    
were 
swaying 
and 
shooting 
from 
behind a 
heat haze dock
as each 
witnesses gun 
spoke
Satan retorted 

He saw 
the paid witnesses 
dancing
and  
falling
for their
overlord   
as his 
lead bullets  
nailed their 
expanding cross tip
examinations  
into their 
blessed tanned hides 
blasting them 
soullessly
into
kingdom come

By the time 
the 
emaciated being 
reached 
the colossus foot
of the
courthouse stairs 
blood 
that had 
cascaded down 
from the 
fallen 
was 
pooling 
into a 
small fiery lake 
at the 
bottom 
of the rocky steps 

Satan's eyes narrowed 
staring up
at the 
burnt 
unhinged doors
of the 
courthouse 
that the 
fleeing 
flame bearded bartender 
had fled  
through 
to  
escape  

Satan  
tucked his 
fancy pistol 
into his 
hunters belt 
clicked his 
forked tongue 
and
began his ascent  
to
pursue 
his 
false flame 
through the 
stone tablet 
unhinged doors 
of the 
courthouse's  
facade 

© by bg 2021