Valerian

But I weep for dead Valerian
For treachery and for lies
Now dust and less than dust and lost in time.
Could chains be forged of purple
And hung on flesh made half-divine
Today by senatorial decree

Perhaps Valerian and I
Could weep and shout together
Like drowning men that rise and fall between the waves.
Each the other's flotsam saviour
We would seek our land and cling
To buoyant scraps of dignity and rage.