he showed it his dear uncle, whose abuse
of innocence the nephew never guessed.
The night before he put it to the test,
you sabotaged the engine, whose gears jammed
over the Acropolis. Before he slammed
into the rocks below, Athena, who
values inventors, rescued him. He grew
feathers in freefall, and his intellect
migrated to his talons, and he pecked
the ground all day, afraid to nest in trees
or fly above them. The loyal indices
of your betrayal linger. She will hide
her eggs in hedges, always terrified
of heights and knowing what she can’t recall:
that your resentment made her forebear fall.