clever mechanisms glisten against the sun
a monolith breaks the jagged landscape
its austere features shift one by one
and slowly it unfolds taking curious shape
as an ancient world gazes with uncomprehending eyes
distracted only for a moment from petty quarrels
it casts its shadow underneath impassive skies
it covers rock and soil and squabbling mortals
and it speaks in silence a language unknown
of warning and wonder, an arcane riddle told
to the fretful minds of the inhabitants below
a message to be heeded of what the future may hold
but as snow melts in spring leaving winter behind
the mystery had soon faded, just a novelty, no more
the significance was lost on the sharpest of minds
scurrying through each day just like before
it stared down upon them, unblinking, unflinching
observing every movement and each utterance
every face traced and the thoughts they were thinking
while the seasons unwound in familiar cadence
the hour drew closer as each century passed
motionless it sat poised for the pivotal moment
each day that arrived could well be the last
without eagerness, or malice, or wicked intent...
then the tiniest gear clicked into place
and the air all around charged with electrical static
causing colors to fade and food to lose its taste
though the changes were simple, the effects were dramatic
the clouds ripped in two, the threads began to fray
an entirely new spectrum of color could be seen
and order unraveled, the roots gave away
it all hung in the grip of a calculating machine
earth fractured into sky as they fell toward the sound
of thousands of years slowly coming undone
every tether and border and law that was bound
shattered with a flash leaving only a reason
then all chaos below fell from their feet
as each drifted upward and slowly diminished
drawn upward towards the blinding heat
until silence at last fell and the journey was finished
