i tried to make this an epic but things went awry- the same faults- the metre, the forced rhymes, O well, hope you like the story. if there are any names you dont get look at Wikipedia.
---------
In the evening of all Time,
When the old men rhyme,
When the evil men place their bets,
When the grandfather speaks of regrets,
Pride sits haughtily, and smiles.
In his ignorance, He stamps two cockroaches,
In the twilight, a madman approaches,
“Are you happy?” the madman says.
“I am,” He replies, “but you couldn’t be less.”
“Pray tell me, O madman, why are you here?
To tell me of your accomplishments? Come a little near.”
“I’ll keep my distance,” the madman said,
“I know you are the He, who the wise ones dread.”
In his anger, He squashes a fly,
“Do you mean to say, you wish to defy?
I recognise you now, madman, tell me all your dreams,
Those who stand in your way will seem like pasteurized creams.”
“Listen to you talk, when all you do is put,
A fly under fist, and a roach under foot.”
Pride roared in laughter, like the pealing of a thousand bells,
“You think so, madman? Now listen to something else.”
“Have you heard of Lucifer, madman, he was called the Morningstar,
But when I gave him a whisper, his ambition knew no bar.
You should have heard him at Paradise,
You would have changed your mind in a trice.”
“That night I laughed forever, when he fell from starry heaven,
He made himself a hell, to madness was he driven,
You should have heard him when heaven rebelled, madman,
For now you call him Satan, and others call him Shaitan.”
“Have you heard of Duryodhan, madman,
Who ruled the Kaurava clan?
He fought at Kurukshetra for me alone,
I took his mind and left him to moan.”
“He could not think, on the senseless brink,
With me he held an age old link,
Through my kin and me, he saw the world,
And with this in his eyes, into death was he hurled.”
“Have you heard of Babel, that humans built up so high,
That it drew God’s wrath and made the angels cry?
It was built through me, a trick I like to play,
So that when man came down he had such a lot to say.”
“Old Rome stagnated, when I drank from its pools,
Babylon was wrecked, they were bickering fools.
Emperors come to me, every time I call,
Only to see their empires, burn and fall.”
“Agreed, they were flies, roaches if you would,
Mere insects I can say, no fear of being rude.
But what more are you, you should have wobbly knees,”
And His laughs would have drowned out the roaring seas.
He grew in stature, multiplied in size,
Befouling the air, with millions of lies,
Of Beelzebub and Achilles,
Of Goliath, even Hercules.
He spoke of Mordred, of Arthur he said,
Of how he died with a pride-muddled head,
Of Saturn’s fear that he hid with his arrogance,
Of how he was defeated, and wrecked were his Titans.
Pride towered to the clouds, inflated like a balloon,
And spoke of heroes, and why they died so soon,
“I took immortality from you, O foolish madman,
Now say what you want, I’ll listen if I can.”
Pure arrogance flashed on Pride’s huge face,
He felt as if he had just run a winning race.
He exalted in his own crafty foul power,
His joy made the air taste suddenly sour.
“So you are the world’s very own insecticide
But against the great, you’re powerless, Pride.
You might fell the kings, but can you tempt the sages?
Bind them up in your crafty cages?”
“Have you heard of Jesus, old man, he was called the Christ,
He could not hear you could he, or all your words thus spiced,
You should have come to starlit Nazareth,
You would have wished for a quick death.”
“That night the angels smiled forever, when Christ stepped down from heaven,
He made for man a paradise, to madness were you driven.
You should have heard him crucified, nailed to a cross alive,”
The madman’s voice to Pride now seemed, as if it came from five.
“Have you heard of Yudhishtir, old man,
Who ruled the Pandava clan?
He said no lie, he fought for justice,
He would not recognise your deadly kiss.”
“His was a story of a battle for his right,
For greed and power he refused to fight,
He climbed to heaven at the end of the tale,
There is an instance where your power did fail.”
“Have you heard of Gandhi, Pride?
Could you keep with his distant stride?
The heart of a man that believes it can,
You could not see his simple plan.”
“He threw the weight of a proud tyranny,
He fought a war at the side of people many,
No weapon did he hold but cancelled violence,
Today the world lives in his remembrance.”
“Sages and priests are deaf to your call,
Dethrone who you like, but you will never get us all,
Palaces crumble but ideals stand,
Your shadow cannot embrace all the land.”
“Each place you turn to, the other heals back,
Hope is the thing that you will always lack,
And as long as we have it within our hearts,
We will live, we will die and play our parts.”
The madman rejoiced, he spoke of truths old,
And Pride sat trembling as he heard of what was told.
The madman spoke of Buddha, of Mahavira he said,
At every word Pride did wish that he was already dead.
The Mothers name was taken, Teresa was her name,
There and then Pride felt that he had been put to shame,
“Take the heroes, take the kings, to satisfy your avarice,
Nature always finds a way to reach eternal bliss.”
“And Nature it is that you do not understand,
You cannot conquer the sea and the land,
They will not fall as long as Hope stands,
You too are made of the Creator’s own hands.”
As the words came out Pride felt a chill,
Every moment the words came still,
Pride felt defeated he fell in from his height,
‘Pride comes before a fall’- do not take that light.
“I pity you, fool of Sins, you have nowhere to belong,
I’d love to sit and tell you more, but I must say ‘So Long’”
In the end you are defeated, ours is the prize.”
And when the words ceased to come, Pride was a hundredth of his size.
