Rat Tax

(A)

"Alpha, Alpha, answ— argh!"
A man rang,
a man pants,
a last gasp,

vast calm

"Anna!" 
A man calls,
drags,
grabs sand
and slabs 

"Allah!"
A man chants,
falls flat,
ants awash

And 
man-scraps
calm
rat's pangs,
and
gash gnaw
as
man pass.

War hawks at masts,
flags flap tall,
Mars wants all

Brass calls!
War-ward!

Man has bad hands 
at cards,
man calls
man falls,
hard facts!
Radars call!

Atlas char hand palms,
rats rah-rah-rah
at Marx class wars!

Past clash rats lap
at ash parks' tank tracks,
all Mars claps at!

Pallas smart!
Stab, smash,
ram, BASH!
Thanks and call back!

Back at AA,
back at spam cans,
at flag scams
and back-pats

Watch Brass at yachts, 
and shamans at plazas!

CRACK.

Patch man,
cast arms,
saw hands,
Pat, Pat!
Thanks and fall back!

Add a man batch, 
drag back man carts,
bad cards!
Pallas smart!

Gnats and wasps,
can't talk,
can't walk,
can't drag

All a trap

Rats want,
a bang bang,
a blast,
and at last  
fat and warm 
balaclavas,
a mad waltz
at salt lands!

Mass swarms
rat-tax 
man pawns
flat at blast lands
as Mars stars 

FLASH!

BAM! 
and Abracadabra!
All man 
flat and blank,
land stars
small and raw

BAM! 
and Abracadabra!
All awash,
ash garbs
farm land,
calm and warm

Jaws that spat
call mama,
Jaws that sang
call papa,
and rats'
mad waltz
blast land

Tanks! Tanks!
crash, crash,
past arms and
park lawns

"Thanks! Thanks!"
Rats jaws
clamp and hack
at man slabs

Rat banks cash! 
"Rah! rah! rah!"
Rats chant at all clans,
rats yank tags,
rats gnaw tags,
and scratch tax marks!

"Damn that dark!
Damn that war!
Warn that man!"
—"Gas that man!"

Ra, Abraxas, 
Pallas?!
Ask Mars
what's art? 
Ask rats!
Gangs and fangs,
all bands,
all clans,
all ranks,
sank,
Rats chant
"War hath art!"
"War hath art!"
"War hath art!"
"War hath art!"
War hawks 
pass flag masts
as far as Mars wants
as far as all rats want