Wise Dragon - The Other Side

Wise Dragon - copyright

What light remains when soul is torn?
What self is left when mask is worn?
What name survives the darkest tide…
When man must face the self he hides?

I faced the beast with burning eyes,
Its breath was flame, its voice — the skies.
It spake in gold, in pride, in dread,
A crown of ash upon its head.
It bore my form, it wore my name,
It played my guilt, it fed my shame.
It showed me all I could not see —
The chains I forged unknowingly.

I struck it once, it did not bleed.
It laughed and said, "I am thy need."
Each wound I dealt, it gave me back,
Until my soul began to crack.
It showed me lies I held as truth,
The fading fire of my youth.
My hands grew weak, my breath grew cold —
I felt the grave take silent hold.

“No crown shall rest upon thy brow,
Till thou dost slay thy self — and now.”

Crownless I stand — no sword, no creed,
But soul laid bare and heart that bleeds.
The mirror shattered at my cry —
A thousand truths I could not deny.

I fell beneath the weight of lies,
No gods to hear, no stars, no skies.
The beast within began to weep —
And I, with it, sank dark and deep.
But in the void, a spark remained,
A name unspoiled, though long disdained.
A whisper broke the tomb I made:
“Thou art not lost, but unafraid.”

O fire of stars, O blood of clay,
I burn the night, I forge the day.
I break the chains, I curse the past,
And rise where none shall hold me fast.
Not beast, nor pawn, nor man, nor ghost,
I rise beyond what gods fear most.

Crownless I stand — yet more than whole,
Reborn through fire, through blood, through soul.
No throne remains, no temple wall —
For I have risen past them all.

Crownless I stand…
Yet never shall I fall…