DESCENT

By Robin Corak

The darkness is calling me again

Mysteries creating a hazy veil

I dive into an ebony sea

And am plunged into midnight waves

I gasp for breath

And desperately struggle to ascend back to the safety of the surface

Slowly, subtly, my fears turn to fins

And I am swimming through the darkness like an undine

Singing to my demons

Calling them to attention and then soothing them to sleep

Sifting through the shipwrecks of my past

Excavating the wounds of my soul

Salty tears merge with the saline sea

The water gets darker and darker and yet

My iridescent scales flash like lightning, offering brief moments of illumination

I go down and down

Knowing that the further the descent, the greater the bounty

Having sought my prize

I emerge from the icy waters

And bask in the light on the shore

Confident that next time

I will be able to swim even further

Go even deeper

For I am a siren of the shadows

Self-sovereignty is my treasure