Words beneath a dappled sky

Even as he sought to hold it,
His fate was surely sealed.
He reached for his life, but only Death took his hand,
In a grip that he had not the strength to break.

Gollum makes his final move and is cursed by the very thing he desires.

The word "doom" is one of those odd things in the English language that has such a dark and fateful meaning but sounds a bit silly. I immediately think of cartoonish The End is Nigh type monks waving wooden signs and chanting "Dooom! Doooooooom!" which makes it difficult to use in serious poetry. I finally chose to use it here because Tolkien chose it specifically and used it specifically and nothing else really quite works. Was it fate or a bane? No, not quite...it really was doom.

Touch of Doom
( Yes, he knew it all too well and deep )
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