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

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