Looking up
He saw the man staring down at him
The resemblance was uncanny
His mood changed at once
From confusion to fright
From dimness to darkest night
Lost in the moment
Frozen in this sight

He stilled his breath
He gulped for life
An instant's choice
The fate of life

Looking down
He saw the man staring up at him
He laughed in that particularly evil way
The reaper had taught him so long ago
The paralyzed man was seeking
Was struggling for the comfort of a breath
Denying the impossible truth
That he was so near death

He laughed again
In spite of the view
That held him caught
In perspective new

Looking up
He begged for another chance
Why is the messenger upon me?
Is this the final dance?

The reaper bared his sickle
Time could wait no more
He readied for the final cut
Prepared for this next chore

An instant of indecision
Stopped his hand in flight
Remembering the moment
Caught in a flicker of light

He handed the blade to the other
And the other wasted no time
Sliced into the messenger
And leapt into sublime

Forever destiny held
The reaper's son lives on
First kill was his maker
Ascension of the spawn