My two weary legs did walk across the leveled sands that stretch far away, hoping to find a place to lay. To find a place to rest my forsaken soul which was led astray since birth. Leading to the disgrace of fearfully fleeing from what lurks beneath the sand. Thus, leading me to travel to a new place to stay. 

That was when my eyes did lay, lay upon an ancient rock. A massive rock whose size dwarfed ten men, but it was shaped like a familiar face. I walked closer to the rock but soon stopped in place. There was a man who stood at the rock’s base. The man’s eyes were the only thing that I could see, he definitely knew something about me. I was weary due to his strange attire; white wrappings covered everything except his eyes.

I couldn’t help but ask the mummified man, “Whose head is that?”

His slightly gravelly voice soon replied, “A head of a king who had the power to destroy continents!”

I took another curious glance at the rock and to my shock. It was me.

“A tyrannical king who cared of nothing but his own vanity,” the deepening voice of the man rang throughout my mind as a single blink whisked away everything.

I had other questions to say, yet I woke up so suddenly. Everything had to be a dream, after all, that mummified man was there. The man’s eyes held a certain light, a light that the poet Percy Bysshe Shelly had. He had put up a perilous fight. A fight utilizing his poetry skills to change my ways through art, so he created Ozymandias. 

I, however, took it as a form of mockery. Making sure to burn him alive in front of my people. I still remember his final cry, “Is this truly what you want to be remembered by?”

A sorrowful sigh escaped my sand-caked lips. Percy must be laughing in his grave, everything went according to his script. I looked once again at the land. This time it wasn’t leveled sand. Small dunes swam across and underneath, these dunes hid worms the size of two men scrounging for what was above the land.

A land covered with dead bodies baking in the sun near broken buildings, with people who looked like skeletons running frantically about. All complemented by the shrieking song that all those people sang.

Then there was me, a being who sat atop the roof of a magnificent palace. I looked down mockingly and couldn’t help but ask a question to the land, “Was this all happening by your command?”

To my dismay, the land responded with a roar. A mountainous bulge darted across the horizon. Its size almost covered the sun and in turn, the small bulges became more frantic with their feast. With gritted teeth, I gave a boisterous laugh of contempt while I watched the feast. The top of the palace began cracking, creating a crater from where I stood. 

I took one step and I was soon high up above reaching the clouds, right over the worm which now looked so small. The palace that I used for my step shattered and scattered from the shockwave of my movement. The shrapnel from the palace always seemed to avoid the people and strike the worms that hid inside their small sand dunes. But the people did not cry out in joy, they simply just cried.

My eyes then once again focused on the rapidly growing bulge. I wound up my leg just as the bulge burst. A worm who could easily fit giants in its mouth had thrust itself at me. In return, my foot plunged down to meet the worm. Just the slight touch of my toe smashed its whole mouth in. Blood spurted and rained across the land from the worm as its bottomless teeth which whirred like a saw caught its own face.

It was then that the tail of the giant beast whipped towards me. Striking my arm, blowing me away. I rammed against sand until my arm dug into the loose sand and stopped all my momentum. I could only use one arm to stop myself as the other went limp from the worm’s blow.

The ring in my ears slowly faded as I once again heard cries. I tried ignoring the stare of hatred from my people as I focused on the worm which seemed bigger from below. The worm was still quite far away; however, it would still take only seconds to reach here. By then it could swallow the whole city in one go. 

As I was about to sprint towards the worm before it tunneled any closer, I saw the small surviving remnant of the tiny worms start feasting on my people. I couldn’t help but think that I should stop and help them, after all, I am great enough to achieve both tasks in time. 

This small pause in thought allowed the colossal worm to move right below my city. It looks like I still looked down on the power of this worm too much. The next thing I knew, the sand beneath my feet started falling and I too fell with it. The worm bellowed, “Arrogant,” and that word echoed throughout its body; reminding me of my failure. 

I was about to climb out until I heard a child’s cry. This was when I knew I could save someone this time. I have changed and will prove it. My hand reached out to the child, yet when the child saw my face he slapped it away. I was too shocked to react quick enough as he fell into the rotating saws made of teeth. 

That was the only life I could save from the mouth of this monster and I failed once again. I could never run away from my title of a tyrant. The saw soon reached me and tore countless gashes across my body. Luckily or unluckily, the saw couldn’t kill me in time for my anger to burst. I shrieked like a feral animal and tore everything I could get my hands on.

I tore, and tore, and ripped, and cried. Blood mixed with my tears as I finally clawed away all the flesh, but sand filled in the void. Looks like the worm burrowed back underground after it ate my kingdom. My hands moved once again as I carelessly clawed my way up from the sand. I don’t know how long it was till I was able to see the top of the land again.

All I know is that the landscape looked exactly like my dream. The only difference was the sand; dyed red with blood. Along with no sight of my head almost buried by the sand. How I wish my own head was there replacing the rock in my dream.

If I knew that this would happen. I would have replied to Percy’s question before I killed him. I don’t know why but that response soon slipped from my lips, “I would rather die as a tyrant than as a nobody.” 

I should’ve killed that damn worm then let my people kill me. That was the way I, Ozymandias Enoch the Third, truly wanted to die.