Bells to the End

The fading sound of a bell,

Is the only sound heard

In this tattered land that they dwell.

Surviving each bombardment and shell,

Their voices fall mute and slurred.

The fading sound of a bell.

A repulsive, sordid smell.

A ring for the third.

In this tattered land that they dwell.

A life of hell,

Their spoils rotten and curd.

The fading sound of a bell.

With so many souls to sell,

Coffins for the stiff and the stirred

In this tattered land that they dwell.

“Sound off the knell,”

Silence, before ringing off to the herd.

The fading sound of a bell

In this tattered land that they dwell.