By M.Brent
Because I needed to. ;)
Apologies to Edgar Allen Poe.
v1.1

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Once upon a midnight dreary, while I coded, weak and weary,
Coded many a quaint and curious routine of algorithmic core -
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As my hard disk began trapping, trapping input from distant shore.
'Tis some visiter', I muttered, 'logging in to my file store -
Only this and nothing more.'

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December;
And each class with many member wrought its printout on the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow
From the net's archive of sorrow - Open Source - the lost Lenore -
For the rare and perfect code which I had once named Lenore -
Software lost for evermore.

And the steady and uncertain ticking of the hard disk data picking
Thrilled me - filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
'Tis some lamer begging access to my data store -
Some poor leecher begging access to my data store; -
This it is and nothing more.'

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
'Twit,' said I, 'I'm sorry, though you threaten and implore;
But the fact is you are sapping, and so rudely you come rapping,
And no uploads you are zapping, zapping to my data store,
That I can not grant you access' - here I opened up the file store;
No connects but one thing more.

Deep into that window peering, long I sat there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no hacker ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the partial ZIP, 'LENORE'.
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word 'Lenore!'
Merely this and nothing more.

Back into the software churning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before.
'Surely,' said I, 'surely that is some fan in my system banging;
Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore -
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore; -
'Tis a fan and nothing more!'

Open here I flung the Acer, when, with the ending of my tracer,
Onscreen blipped an obscene gesture of a Virus not seen before.
Not the least obeisance made it; not a minute stopped or stayed it;
But, with deviant code running, began to run my hard drive store -
Data whirring as it ran, reading from my hard drive store -
Reading it, or something more?

A glance it took, and in a fraction, I was frightened into action,
By the grave and stern decorum of backup not yet used before,
'Though thy logo be some lame raster, thine code it seems is of a master,
Ghastly grim and evil Virus wandering from the network shore -
Tell me what thy darkly name is on this Night's Plutonian shore!'
Quoth the Virus 'Nevermore.'

Much I marvelled this ungainly software hears discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning - little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was cursed with seeing gestures on his data store -
Dark Virus with speech and recognition in his data store,
With such name as 'Nevermore.'

But the Virus, scanning softs, where on my system, I did scoff
That it could, by any means, bypass protection of my store.
Nothing farther then it uttered - as I watched it nary fluttered -
Till I scarcely more than muttered 'It can not harm my data store -
I will watch and it will fail, as other codes have failed before.'
Then the worm said 'Nevermore.'

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
'Doubtless,' said I, 'what it utters is its only stock and store
Caught from some pathetic loser, wasted from an all-night boozer
Coded fast and followed faster till his darkness he did store -
Till his destructive needs came out in this lame Viral core
With sampled 'Nevermore.'

But the Virus was still scanning and its access was not banning,
Straight I went to load my code to view the virus and it's core;
Then, into the O/S linking, I betook myself to thinking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous viral core -
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, lame, and ominous viral core
Meant in speaking 'Nevermore.'

This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the Worm whose persistent code did burn into my file store;
This and more I sat divining, banging keys and not reclining
On the desk with printout lining, tiny lamp light gloated o'er,
But whose desk her code's now lining with the lamp light gloating o'er,
My lost soft, ah, nevermore!

Then, methought, the disk ran faster, writing from unwanted blaster
The power switch went forgotten as a means to stop its core.
'Wretch,' I cried, 'thine Make lent thee - by some angel he hath sent thee
Respite - respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore;
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe and forget this lost Lenore!'
Quoth the Virus 'Nevermore.'

'Prophet!' said I, 'thing of evil! Prophet still, if worm or devil! -
Whether Tempter sent, or whether network tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this software hub enchanted -
In this room by firmware haunted - tell me truly, I implore -
Is there backup on my archives? - tell me - tell me, I implore!'
Quoth the Virus 'Nevermore.'

'Prophet!' said I, 'thing of evil! - prophet still, if worm or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us - by that code we both adore
Tell this soul with broken tape drive if, within some ancient archive,
There is stored a perfect source code referred to by the name LENORE -
Stored a rare and perfect code referred to by the name LENORE.'
Quoth the Virus 'Nevermore.'

'Be that word our sign of parting, worm or fiend!' I shrieked, upstarting -
'Get thee back into the network and the Night's Plutonian shore!
Leave no black code as a token of that lie thy core hath spoken!
Leave my system os unbroken! - I shall power down the core!
Take thy hooks from out my code, and then remove thy very core!'
Quote the Virus 'Nevermore.'

And the Virus, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
With every boot of my system it reinfects my O/S core;
And the logo always seeming to be a mocker of my dreaming,
And the data from it streaming sends my source to distant shore;
And my soul from out the printouts that lie floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore!

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