Pope Innocent X
by Adam Moorad © 2009
The man is there again, sitting in the center of the room. A meat
locker. The hollow carcasses creak from the rafters as they rock back
and forth. Pig. Sheep. Bovine. Their brittle ribs exposed. The man
is wearing purple to show his authority. The fabric is soft and
shines in the sour light. He is a judge. Or a Royal. Or a priest.
His face is washed out with the rest of the room. The buff from the
metal floor begins to dissolve. The ribs swing from side to side.
They frame the man's head like a throne. The air is full of lime when
he opens his mouth. There is nothing inside but a black hole visible
through two rows of broken teeth. A golden cross hangs from his neck.
He smiles when he looks up at the empty torsos of meat as they groan
against the ceiling. To him, flesh looks humble when it hangs on a
spike. He reaches out his arms to touch the red tissue. His skin
crumbles away. They are now the limbs of a skeleton. The blood drips
from the ribs in black beads and falls onto the man's hand. He
cackles. It echoes of the wall as the room fills with his breath. He
taps his cane like a gavel. It thunders against the ground. As the
rumble recedes, he kisses his cross. Then the ribs begin to dance
like the keys of an organ, pitching up and down in boney waves. The
sound of animals seep from the cracks in the metal floor. With the
sound comes light. It grows brighter as the noise becomes louder and
harsher. It is coming from the floor below him. Claws and hooves
scratch the metal from beneath. The strikes clank with the voiceless
screams, void of rhythm. They threatens to tear through the floor.
The man smiles and his ears begin to wiggle, as if reaching for the
squeals. He lusts for their contact. The walls begins to shiver.
The man raises his cane amidst the wiggling ribs, claiming dominion.
A tongue appears from the black hole of his mouth. It's forked and
snakes around his shoulders in the yellow light. He spears the ground
and the noises die, at once disappearing into the black cavern. The
man chest balloons as he fades amongst the flesh. The hollow carcasses
rock quietly. Their scissored intestines drool rumen on the floor.
Again, the light begins to fade.