Ink & Shadows: The Words of Osiris j Reapor

They call it strength, to never bend.
But little do they know
They hatched a monster, a Parasite
That Resides In the Depths of Ego.

It whispered, “You deserve it all.
Why ever apologize?”
So every bridge he ever built
Went dark before his eyes.

It fed upon the quiet truth.
Turned wrong to sacred gold.
A mirror lost its honest face,
While every lie grew bold.

It sharpened every wounded word.
Made mercy feel too small.
He crowned himself above the rest,
Then watched the kingdom fall.

It hates the phrase, “I could be wrong.”
That sentence makes it bleed.
It plants a throne inside your chest,
Then calls that hunger need.

Take pride in every work you leave.
Each promise that you keep.
In every hand you choose to lift,
In every vow you speak.

Take pride each time your name is signed.
Each craft your hands employ.
But never let your name become
The thing that you enjoy.

For pride that serves is forged by sweat.
It bows before what’s right.
But Pride that serves itself alone
Will steal both day and night.

It doesn’t care whose heart it breaks.
Whose children watch you fall.
It only wants another bite.
Another inch. That’s all.

It strips away your family first.
Then honor from your name.
Then purpose from your living breath.
Until you’re just the same.

A shell that speaks of former days.
A crown no one admires.
A lonely king on ash and stone.
Still feeding old desires.

So guard your craft with steady hands.
Let truth become your guide.
For once you feed that thing within,
It never leaves your side.

For every inch you choose to give,
It multiplies its size.
That parasite will ask for more
And feast until it dies.