The Descent

Down the thousand steps,

Into a place darker than night,

Littered with refuse,

That many ages left behind,

The cold of this dark place,

Is so deep it chills the soul,

The smells are of wetness,

Something rotten, dark, and old,

If you should shine a light here,

You’ll wish you’d never seen,

Even if you could escape here,

You would never truly leave,

Those who venture through the blackness,

Bear a mark upon their soul,

And once the chill sinks in,

It will never let you go,

If you chance to leave here,

You will never be the same,

The shadows shall haunt,

And you’ll hear them call your name,

Furthermore, all light will blind you,

After the all-encompassing black,

Which is why most things that find here,

Never venture back,

You can hear them in the blackness,

The souls who’ve come before,

They lie just beyond your senses,

Whispering of the horror that’s in store,

They’ve become something else now,

They are one with the night,

And because there is no light here,

They’ve no need for human sight,

You’ve no idea the blackness,

This suffocating dark,

You have no idea the feeling,

A fear that stops the heart,

These shades will try to trick you,

And make you step away,

For if you leave the stairs,

You never again see the light of day,

They want your soul to linger,

They need you to fall prey,

For souls do not often come here,

And too soon they are the same,

The ones that find their way down,

And don’t return from their descent,

Soon enough join the dark ones,

To whisper their sad lament,

Once you’ve stepped off,

You shall stumble,

And, too soon,

You’re forced to crawl,

Your soul has taken,

It’s last tumble,

Into the dark,

You now fall,

Your eyes are open,

Wide and straining,

But there’s nothing here,

To see,

You sense creatures,

And they’re gaining,

As you struggle, now,

To flee,

But, you fool, you fled the wrong way,

You are lost, here in the dark,

And in your heart you now recognize,

That your outlook is quite stark,

In your mind, you can see,

That you’re mired in this hell,

And, at last, you come to realize,

How deeply you just fell,

Your mind fights against it,

But there’s madness setting in,

You hear the laughter of the dark ones,

As their fun will now begin,

You tear at your eyes now,

Their uses, here, are none,

And though you search your mind,

You have no memory of the sun,

A scream tears from your throat,

The shades are closing in,

And as catharsis strikes you,

You realize they are sin,

You feel their fingers caress you,

Once human, but now decayed,

They have forced you to your knees,

And if you could, you would have prayed,

But, too late, now,

For redemption,

Your soul is theirs,

To take,

Plead all you like,

For exemption,

But only their lust,

Does it slake,

Your mind is overwhelmed,

With a pain you cannot bear,

And your screams echo loudly,

But there’s no one here to care,

Your heart beats wildly,

In your ears and in your chest,

And with each breath, the fingers of the cold,

Sink deeper and deeper into your breast,

All your hope is gone, child,

Tis such a fickle thing,

And your mind can not remember,

What joy a dream can bring,

With one last effort,

You surge to your feet,

But to no avail, frail thing,

Your downfall is complete,

It’s too much,

This desperation,

Too much for your mind,

To take,

Under the weight,

Of desolation,

Your mind and soul, at last,

Do break,

Away, with pieces of your soul, the dark ones hasten,

Leaving you alone within your shell,

And in your mind’s eye, unseen hands, these words do emblazon,

“Your downfall is your own, and we welcome you to Hell.”