The Lost Race

Of all the cities on 1,000 worlds, only debris and rubble remain The smashed metropolis of titan, the ruined canals of mars It isn't on any star charts Turn up the vision scale A bold spot in the vegetation A lost race Dynasty Emergency in the power room Main tube couplings blew Injector valves, needle gauge, wiring's shot We can't raise power to land Try the deceleration auxiliaries She's wrenching bad, S.O.S. Free fall sickness, swirling ship We fell 40 years in a day Horrified beneath a diamond horizon I observe but I can't comprehend Hooves shuffle in frenzy to the pipe and the drum Ceremonious trill, the steel is raised The crew petitions, their laments go unheard Four lie dead in their gore Grunting while chewing the meat from the bone Centaurus X-1, The Lost Race