Jagged Carvings

I’ve seen it, by the dim lamp’s glow, I’ve seen it
Totem speaks truths no man seen writ
I bow to whispers, spectral and vast
My limbs grow cold; this trance shall last
The walls dissolve—oh, what madness reveals!  
The mind unfurls, its ancient seals
The red sigils glow, their meaning I glean
Too late, I know—no man should have seen
I believe I shall perish, by knowledge undone
Yet in this dream, I am the one

I saw the carvings, etched by hands long decayed
Marks of old dreamers, their warnings betrayed
Symbols crawl and shift as I dare to stare
Their essence hums, alive in the air
I am adrift in the nightmare’s stream
The colors whisper—this is no dream
"Drink deep," they say, "of oceans unbound,"  
The tone distorts; the void resounds
The crimson markings writhe with deceit
The shaman grins—his truth incomplete

I believe I am finished, my mind now unmade
Yet in this dream, my own soul is flayed
The carvings remain, like sins in stone
Left by dreamers long dethroned
Their voices call, in endless refrain
"Come forth, and know the pain we’ve gained."  
I walk their path through an eldritch mire
My reason consumed by whispers dire

The jungle looms, alive with dread
The moonlight shines on what’s long been dead
The drums, they pound, ghosts twist and writhe
Drink deep, they say, to bring death to life
The dead are returning, their tread grows near
I saw horrors roaming—oh, gods, the fear!  
The shaman's chest, a locker of doom
Holds secrets born of the jungle’s womb

I saw them carve my name in stone
Their shapes unholy, their presence unknown
The totems writhe, alive in flame
They chant my soul, they speak my name
The dream devours all that I am
I am but a pawn in the ancient plan
The carvings call, the dreamers wait
This is no escape; this is my fate