The metal cogs spewed mist
In all directions; passersby
Stopped running
To where they were going
For the first time in their lives
And looked up in awe…
The beast unhinged its mouth,
Lowered its head
…An awe that turned to fear.
One destructive foot
Followed by the other.
One massive palm,
balancing the beast
Against the buildings
That caged it in,
Followed by another.
Everyone ran.
The crowd parted like the red sea;
This monster was their Moses.
But they did not know it…
From its unhinged, cold lips
Spewed money,
And the crowd that ran for their lives
Seconds before
Now turned and questioned their decision.
Those that had sanity left in them
After hundreds of years
Of rendering it useless,
Turned again and fled.
But those that had been wiped clean
And told what success was,
Those that ate the lies of the people
That claimed to know it all,
As though it were a sweet nectar,
Faltered only for a moment
Before diving at the foot of the beast,
Grabbing at the green they saw.
And in a matter of seconds
The green stained red.
The escape
Became survival.
And the brainwashed
Became victims.
“What are you?”
Asked the man
Who owned nothing at all.
The beast reared its head and said
“I am everything you want,
And nothing you need.
And I am here to take
Your humanity.”