The Fall of Phaethon

Cursed descendant of Helios Bound by a sacred oath Heeding no admonition Denies his mortal condition The daring youth Demands to ride his father's chariot Ignoring his mortality And lack of judgment Grasping the reins of the fiery steeds Unaware of the tragic fate to descend upon him Not even Zeus, Olympian ruler Showed such audacity For only one, the solar deity The great car could control The daring youth Attempts to ride his father's chariot For the first and last time Phaethon is to ascend And fall And fall In an impetuous rush Scorched the earth beneath And the celestial abode above Aware of his mortality And lack of judgment Charred by the ride with the fiery steeds In horror he beholds the receding Earth Through heights and chasms the chariot errs A path of destruction – its end is now near For the first and last time Phaeton now takes his plunge Fulminated by lightning As the sky turns black