On Alternia did Doctor Scratch
A brutal, warlike world devise;
His marks, the hapless trolls, were conned,
From vicious snares could not abscond,
    Entrapped by truthful lies.
So seeded he the trolls’ unrest:
By blood and caste they were oppressed;
And there were trials tortuous and cruel
That slaughtered many a soul that might arise;
And here were tyrants, ruthless in their rule,
With depthless oceans in their violet eyes.

    But oh! that dark enchanted planet which wandered
    ‘Round the mute sun, that blazing voyeur!
    A savage place! as easy to be squandered
    As e’er beneath a double moon was plundered
    By demon dreaming forth his foul employer!
    And from this planet, with endless warfare rending,
    As if a restless specter was ascending,
    A troubled dozen callously was snatched,
    Whose minds had of all memories been scratched;
    By custom forged like cruel and vicious blades,
    Or heartless clubs, or slickly sharpened spades:
    And ‘mid these children, still he pulled them closer;
    Brought to him callously the hapless trolls were.
    Within his grasp they fell, their hope but fleeting;
    Through tricks and tugs the hapless trolls were conned,
    And still from vicious snares could not abscond,
    ‘Til all was tainted by his honest cheating:
    And ‘mid this web the Doctor did attend
    His master’s voice, which prophesied the end!
 
    The shadow of the world so savage
    Echoed low, with lilting tune;
    Sung by those whom he had ravaged:
    By the dozen, by the moon.
It was a beautiful and ghastly scene:
A lovely warlike world with moon of green!
    A maiden on a meteor
    In a nightmare once I dreamed;
    It was the Handmaid of that man,
    And from her meteor she ran,
    Whispering of his coming.
    Could I recall internal
    Her murmurings and hums,
    ‘Twould drive me to such lengths infernal
That with shouts and maddened drums,
I would build that world in fright.
That warlike world! that moon of green!
And all who played should see my might,
And all should cry, Take flight! Take flight!
His heart so black, his head so white!
Type your prompt into the screen;
Retrieve your arms with sacred fear,
For he has gazed into the sphere,
And all of this he has foreseen.