To My Beloved Brother From Hela
by Lydia Helasdottir
Brother, I must wake you once more from your fitful peace,
To feed and torment you lest the world fall still.
I gaze upon your terrible form and I feel my heart breaking,
I hear your rasping breath and I see my blade rushing,
For I must do this to you again and again,
Washing the world in the blood of our sins.
You rise up towering in fear and rage,
Always the chain and the sword and the foam -
Your sister is here, it's me -
I cannot release you, nor let you be.
You drink deeply from my eyes and from my veins,
And I must feast upon you too;
Must have your pain and your tears and your howls
Lest we both starve...
And the world come to a sullen and dusty end.
Artwork by Tommie Ljung.