The Emerald Planet

Well hidden from Hubble's prying eyes
inside the Eagle Nebula's beak,
a world glows milky lime
among the towering gaseous pillars.

Beneath her atmosphere
of noxious chlorine gas,
copper mountains rust in the haze,
each jagged summit a dollop
of aquamarine cream
melting beneath that broiler 
of a Sun,

green, like her child,
with a harsh stare burning
through fog to illumine emerald
lakes and verdant fields 
of lilly pads rocking on the waves...

Atop one pad poses a long-forgotten
Queen, her jade-spiked hair 
sharp enough to ward off any suitor.
Her skin is unripe olive,
shining with oils the shade of Irish moss.
She counts her pterodactyl admirers, 
circling overhead with their peridot eyes
and whistling malachite wings.
If only they would come closer...

Then she sighs deeply
and rolls onto her side, hoping to entice
with those strong, gloss-smooth thighs
and crystalline crown.
Despite its razored edges,
each spike scintillates 
with key-lime arcs 
of lightning during love...

Beyond her single-leafed throne
stand the Patina Cliffs,
then a canyon yawning wide 
with polished turquoise teeth.
Deep inside the chasm,
a chlorophyll river carves 
further through the rock.

Atop the tallest cliff
a forest thrives, lush 
with ferns, mosses,
and beetles with polished
spearmint helmets
scuttling about, snipping free 
juicy bits of leaf and frond.
Each soldier holds high his prize,
tensed like a sail against the wind
for the glorious march home
in triumph...

Scott Speck
01/09/2003