by Nick Gisburne
To pay, to play, insert the Devil’s coin,
And let your eager fingers take control.
Reboot the black machine. Restart. Rejoin,
Remembering you gamble with your soul.
You never lost your life on level one.
The tally of your talents earns respect.
But none of what you saw will save you. None.
Be careful. Shield the shadow you protect.
A deeper level, damned with danger, two,
Is more than any mortal may endure,
But, in these mists of mayhem, maybe you
Can touch the other side, untainted, pure.
Your passage through the gate, to level three,
Rewards you with its darkest demon: me.
