Poem: "The Scales of Justice"
This is the freebie for today's fishbowl, prompted by 
corvi. It also fills the "presumed dead" square in my 1-2-14 card for the
trope_bingo fest. Read about the curse of Fáfnir.
"The Scales of Justice"
They hoarded
most of the world's wealth
and still it was never enough
to assuage their greed.
They took what they wanted
and left the land to burn.
Sometimes, too,
they demanded virgin sacrifices
and got them.
They believed in nothing --
not religion, and not science either --
only themselves and their desires.
It should have come as no surprise,
but they had forgotten the legends of Fáfnir,
and in any case it had been a long time
since any human could amass enough
of the total treasure on Earth
to trigger the curse.
But it happened.
One morning the richest man in the world
found himself turned into a dragon,
encased in the scales of justice.
He was presumed dead
(eaten, actually)
and the Army was called in
to slay the dragon.
He was forced to flee
from the ruins of his mansion,
leaving behind his hoarded riches
and power and prestige,
finally taking refuge in a dank cave
in a squalid little country
whose name he couldn't even remember.
On a lovely tropical island,
another rich man went to sleep
dreaming dragonish dreams,
and woke to a nightmare.
corvi. It also fills the "presumed dead" square in my 1-2-14 card for the
trope_bingo fest. Read about the curse of Fáfnir.
"The Scales of Justice"
They hoarded
most of the world's wealth
and still it was never enough
to assuage their greed.
They took what they wanted
and left the land to burn.
Sometimes, too,
they demanded virgin sacrifices
and got them.
They believed in nothing --
not religion, and not science either --
only themselves and their desires.
It should have come as no surprise,
but they had forgotten the legends of Fáfnir,
and in any case it had been a long time
since any human could amass enough
of the total treasure on Earth
to trigger the curse.
But it happened.
One morning the richest man in the world
found himself turned into a dragon,
encased in the scales of justice.
He was presumed dead
(eaten, actually)
and the Army was called in
to slay the dragon.
He was forced to flee
from the ruins of his mansion,
leaving behind his hoarded riches
and power and prestige,
finally taking refuge in a dank cave
in a squalid little country
whose name he couldn't even remember.
On a lovely tropical island,
another rich man went to sleep
dreaming dragonish dreams,
and woke to a nightmare.