Clenched between steel jaws, a large cogwheel turned - clicking and ratcheting with mechanical precision. The sound filled the clockmaker's workshop, mixing with the tinkling of tiny bells and the ticking of dozens of timepieces.
Caleb watched as the clockmaker fitted tiny gears into place, assembling a marvel of brass and silver. As the last piece clicked into place, the figure of a dragon sprang to life.
The clockwork dragon slowly stretched its limbs, spread its wings, and let out a chime-like laughter. It strode around the workshop on clicking feet, snapping up squeaking mice made of springs and wire.
The clockmaker smiled."I create wonders to remind us that magic still lingers in the world, if we only have eyes to see."
Caleb admired the precision and grace of the dragon's movements."But does not its very perfection diminish the wonder?"he asked."Thereis nospark of wildness,no hint of danger."
The clockmaker considered this."Perhaps you are right. True magic comes only from that which defies understanding."He carefully opened the dragon's chest plate and removed several gears.
The clockwork dragon stumbled, its wings beat unevenly,and its chimes were now offkey. Yet to Caleb's eyes,it seemed more alive than before.
The clockmaker nodded."Now it has a life of its own."
The wheels turn, gears mesh, and lock
In rhythm strict and sure,
The dance of clockwork perfection.
Yet where's the wildness
Is the spark unbridled?
The cogs drip-precision,
Each minute piece fits just so
In well-oiled grace.
But is this really wonder?
The product of masterful design
Or something more?
When the gears are pulled loose
And piecesfall askew,
There birth of magic.
For it's in imperfect mystery
The spirit takes flight,
The technology of soul.
The clockwork dragon stumbles now
Its chimes bear no tune
Yet each movement owns so.
For it walks the fine line
Between order and chaos,
The place where wonders are born.
Magic exists not in perfection
But in that which defies.
The incomplete,half-glimpsed,
Thewildnessof soul
That can not be bridled
Or boxed within wheels.
The dragon limps
On uneven feet
But flies higher now
For containing less than before
It contains more:
The spark that sets souls aglow.