Chimera Poem by jonathan wilmington

Scuffling noises in the hall
I heard but did not think at all
That oh such noises (merely noises)
Could wake such phantoms of ghastly realm

The clock ticks slowly
The moon shines lowly
Upon my drifting drowsy form
Again I wake and hear the scuffling
Scuffling noises in the hall

The door I open to find the prints
Of a woodland creature (or some dark prince)
I clean the mud and shut the door
Ignoring the scuffling of steps in the hall
Ignoring the scratching that’s begun in the wall

I wake with a start to the shatter of glass
To my ears a sound comes harsh and crass
From the attic ushers forth a growl
The creak and groan of a terrible beast
Yet I dare not open the hallway door
The scuffling and scratching is nearly a roar
The scuffling of demons out in the hall
The scratching of vermin alive in the wall

I light a torch to ease my mind
Yet the window is open and the wind unkind
I seal the room and plug my ears
The howling is coming in dreadful tiers
And still the scuffling of steps in the hall
That awful scratch of death in the wall

I kick the bed and scream to the gods
“You stupid fools, you impotent frauds! ”
With knife in hand I open the door
And behold the scuffling in the hall
Has stopped as though never there at all
The scratches, once loud in the wall,
Are gone like winter to spring to fall

As I walk to my room I spy a glitter
An unnerving rumble a tremulous twitter
And peering into the closet’s depth
I notice a shadow that’s all too clear
Two devilish eyes and a demons sneer
Eight glinting claws of steely glaze
The beast stares back meeting my gaze

I approach the thing with shaky hand
And stab at it with iron band
Out of the closet it leaps and flees
My cat runs out with serpentine ease
I collapse and shake upon the floor
Get up and open the bedroom door

And there it sits upon my bed
With slithering tongue and lizard’s head
Its talons tear my quilted sheets
It opens its maw and loudly bleats