Firestorm
The crowd was our only shelter
The wind above us was alive with fire
We ran all together for the bridge
The ground beneath us was alive
with twisting torsos,
hands grabbed at my anklesWe reached the river in a mass
too large to crossThe water was alive with struggling
faces, hands reaching
from the fiery reflection of skyThere was not a sound anywhere
I gripped the hand of the woman beside me
and we pressed toward the centerI squeezed past the pylon of the bridge
but the crowd pinned her
to the concrete
I freed my hand just in timeThose of us in front made the bridge
just as another crowd burst
between the pylons at the far endTheir eyes were alive with the fire
behind usThey cried out in a strange language
but among them I recognized
each of my enemies