awaking in freezing cold
on a grey cellar ground
contorted memories
vague as a mirage
seized with panic
and gasping for breath
I break through the door
heading into the dark
a feeling of nausea
the lines begin to blur
my mind drowning
in impervious gloom
the scenery has changed
as I regain my sight
a staircase spirals downward
shrouded in faint light
the passage behind me
vanished in the walls
and from the lower floors
resound eerie calls
despite the menace
these noises draw me downstairs
further into the depths
of this otherworldly place
fissures run along the stone
pulsing like foul veins
spiraling from the deep
stretching in every direction
a sense of unease grows inside me
and every floor I pass
in this wretched panopticon
brings me to the verge of despair
no exit to be found
no way out of this delusion
and as I venture down
this mortal coil consumes me
spectral bodies accompany the way
molten lights pierce through my phantom eyes
whispering to me with voices of decay
shattered fragments, memories in disguise
empty shells once known are now fading away
and in this time of need
the visions become clear
this mirror world loses its dread
caged in this reverie,
but now I reawake
from this neverending daze
relieved from this burden
yet I have to travel on
until this journey ends
I continue my way down
the infinite staircase
until I vanish completely