Inventor's Revenge

<poem> I tinker and solder and tighten and twist, T'ward a project of ultimate plan, With scraped elbows and knees, and an ache in my wrist, This is where my Goliath began.

I'd awoken one night with broken thoughts, As I raced to the basement below, I repaired my thoughts, I connected the dots, From here, my idea did grow.

I'd create an automaton with the best of my skill, I thought, my ideas growing wide, Other engineers would envy, I thought with a thrill, It'd be a work truly of pride.

I spent many a-month on the gargantuan bot, The sky-scraping, towering machine, Not a hum nor a rattle had my perfect creation got, To the experts, I would gloat and preen.

As I turned on its power, I could barely stand, With much excitement, and with a nervous twitch, I corrected my footing, extended my arm, opened my hand, I flipped on Goliath's switch.

Immediately he rose, power traveling asunder, Through his automaton body like waves, His step forward let out an uproarious thunder, It was a power even Gods did crave.

I brought him to the public, and with much delight, We were accepted, and my genius was praised, Everyone wanted to see us, day and night, The attention was tiresome, I was constantly dazed.

Goliath couldn't handle the attention and fame, Camera flashes and crowds, While I sat on the shoulder of his gargantuan frame, Goliath ran, through the masses he plowed.

Around his neck, I clung for dear life, Tried my best to sooth his bot nerves, After all of the suffering, torment, and strife, Was reassurance not the least he deserved?

He suffered unreasonably at the public's hands, Their treatment had become wrong and rough, We constantly tried to meet their exhibition demands, I decided that we've had enough.

We stopped at night far away, and I gazed above, At my Leviathan's stoic frown, He didn't understand the world which pushed and shoved, In the morning, we'd leave for the town.

In the early morning, with a start, I awoke, My emotions were angry, my eyes embers of fire, I activated Goliath, and my mental state broke, As we rode to the cruel empire.

Soon we arrived to the still-sleeping town, As I scanned the rooftops, pale and faded, Above a dreaming city I felt like a king with no crown, Goliath and I stood and waited.

We waited 'til the town was bustling and busy, 'Til around maybe Noon or so, Despite the busy city's movement making me dizzy, I focused, and commanded Goliath to go.

We had crushed a lamp-post when the townspeople saw, A boy craving vengeance atop his bot, Their eyes begged for mercy, bodies frozen in awe, Mercy we gave them not.

We crushed the buildings and slaughtered all the men, Their blood filling new cement cracks in, We stranded the women far away, and then, With us, we took all the children.

We walked from the city engulfed in flame, Leading 200,000 frightened kids, We coaxed and calmed them until they were tame, And then we promised them this:

We'd raise them ourselves in a proper way, To be thoughtful and kind, and not bad, We promised this in the hopes that, one day, Things wouldn't turn out as they had.