EPTThe flames engulf the land - each higher, hotter, full of life!
Reflections darting, waltzing, in their revelry persistent.
But Fate and Time had mounted on their steeds, intent on strife,
And galloped off in metal hail,
Ensconcing in a chilling gale
All countries, close and distant.
The wicked bullets sped and vehemently scattered,
We raced upon our steeds, they followed in our wake.
The horses lost their nails, and heated horseshoes flew and clattered
To lie in dust to bring good luck for any man to take.
The reins, like slimy eels, were always slipping,
And hair and thoughts were tangled as we sped through rough terrain.
The wind untangled curls as it was whipping,
And straightened convolutions in the brain.
No fear of death, pursuit, nor flames shall bar the riders' way,
And Time approached, and Fortune, smiling, with his saber greeted;
Their sabres crossed with sunbeams in a luminous array,
Two poets, locked in fatal bout!
The flames died down and flickered out -
But battle grew more heated.
The world had never seen a gallop so frenetic,
The hoofbeats set a rhythm as yet unheard before.
The bullets, blind and stupid, grew with bloodlust energetic,
Matured and wisened up and aimed and hit their targets more.
And who will falter? Who will make a blunder?
And who is faster? Victory will surely grace the bold.
The wind our very flesh from bones would sunder,
And gratified the skeletons with cold.
What promise does the future hold? The sick shall not be cured.
Tomorrow offers nothing but its bitterness and shadow;
Time gallops straight ahead, as though its victory's assured.
So let us ride and meet the foe,
And friends, should fortune thus bestow.
Fate flies across the meadow!
That gullible old Death we easily outwitted,
It hesitated some and swung its scythe no more.
For once, the bullets lagged behind and in the distance flitted...
Perhaps we'll have a chance to wash with dew instead of gore?
The breeze sang sadly, quieter in passion.
Time's riddled through with bullet-holes, and Fate is racked with pain,
And winds and horses carried in procession
The bodies and the spirits of the slain.
The original song starts at 1:25 in the video below.
