Thaumaturge's Periplus.Sonnet 06

The Obsidian Obelisk 

A monolith of dark, vitreous stone,Erupts from plains of pulverized basalt;It stands in frozen majesty alone,A jagged challenge to the starry vault.Its flanks are etched with cuneiforms of ice,That bleed a cold, bioluminescent blue;The wizard pays the unvoiced, heavy price,To read the runes and find the hidden clue.It speaks of entropy and cosmic dust,Of empires swallowed by the shifting sand,Of iron crowns corroded by the rust,And scepters falling from a nerveless hand.He leans his brow against the freezing face,And feels the pulse of interstellar space.