My Cardboard Balcony

My kingdom crumbled under the growing heat of a swelling sun. All the gold in the castle's bricks melted in glorious streams, like honeycomb dripping from a toxic hive. I watched from a distance, as safe as I could be beneath the shade of a dying tree. I knew, however, that I would not survive much longer. Bit by bit, my body was shutting down. All royal stature had, by now, shriveled into nothingness.