Beast Within

There was a gnawing

A growling and clawing

Buried deep within

A cavernous depth

But a dread felt throughout-

Claw marks on ribs

Plunging into lungs,

A beast fed well

Upon fear

And the thoughts of the host

The doubts springing

From a spring hidden within,

Ever flowing with self directed poison,

Where fractions of memories swirl,

Reminders of events

Better left forgotten,

Tossed away or buried deep-

The beast functions well

On limited rest,

Stealing hours from the host

And replacing with scattered memories

Fragments of days passed -

The beast functions well

On malnourished frames

Turning tall strong creatures

Into withering ghosts of

The vibrant souls they once were,

Creating a dissociation with the face

Staring out of mirror,

Morphing into something-

The shadow of the beast,

The embodiment of a disaster walking-

A creature given wide berth-

Followed only by

The fire left in its trail,

The destruction of peace-

Only halted by

The changing of the tides

And a warm hand grasping

Cool fingers close to death,

Yanking back to the present

The soul lost in the abyss.

Katrina Thornley is a nature poet. novelist, and freelance journalist that resides in Rhode Island. She has two poetry collections currently published, a novel, as well as a short story anthology. Her poetry collections "Arcadians: Lullaby in Nature" and "Arcadians: Wooden Mystics" were inspired by a local park and life in her small rural town. You can find them on Amazon now!

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