I can feel myself fading away into that wasteland The one I promised myself I'd never Ever descend back into After all the years of heartache and regret And the struggle to release myself from the shackles of hopelessness I cannot allow myself to be dragged back down because to fall into that blackened void It would be so much deeper so much darker so much harder to find my way back out again I can't bear to relive a time where I felt so alone and so invisible to anyone to everyone to everything I cannot allow myself to be dragged back down because to fall into that blackened void It would be so much deeper so much darker so much harder to find my way back out again so much deeper so much darker so much harder to find my way back out again When i felt like my hand extended would be met with only dead air and vacant space When i felt like the clock would not miss a single second If I removed myself from view of its face When it seemed like my shattered and bleeding heart would be better off if it weren't asked to beat again Your outstretched hand has offered me the smallest glimpse of solace Though it may not have solved all the riddles or assembled all the pieces or unlocked all the mysteries It may have been just enough To keep my head from sinking below the murky waters From which I would never emerge You kept my head from sinking below the murky waters From which I would never ever emerge You may not be my savior But in that very moment you just might have been just might have been my personal messiah and deliverer You may never realize That your one small gesture of kindness May have helped me to escape the depths of permanent darkness And please hear me now Because truer words may never ring clearer: “Just know that without you I may not be here today."

I have nothing left in this world The life I once knew, exists no more Everything I'd owned destroyed and burned Everyone I'd known now ash and bones My only companion is the shivering cold I'm now lost in time, confused and alone I am a nomad, a wanderer Left to roam a barren wasteland which once was home I have nothing left in this world Exiled in my existence imprisoned in my flesh Each passing moment steals a piece of what was left I try to hold on to the crumbling memories past They're all that remains all that will last I am a nomad, a wanderer Left to roam a barren wasteland which once was home My homeland lost My kinsfolk departed Will history's pages remember or will that chapter be erased? I must carry on so my forefathers do not fade into the misty fog I must press forward and search for life anew I have something left for this world I’m the link of the present into the past The voice for those consumed by dust I must endure as that fateful day draws near when I can share their tales so they can live again! so they can live again! so they can live again!

The fragments of legend like sand through my hand slip just past my outstretched fingertips I yearn for the moment they're within my grasp and my name can be etched in their annals If I could see the future Through The Looking Glass Would my world be filled with accomplishments Or unfulfilled regrets Though oceans of knowledge Flow freely like rivers Their tributaries have all run dry Like a ship navigating through waterless deserts My struggles sometimes seem so futile My struggles sometimes seem so futile If I could see the future Through The Looking Glass Would my world be filled with accomplishments Or unfulfilled regrets If I could see the future Through The Looking Glass Would my world be filled with accomplishments Or unfulfilled regrets Staring at the crossroads of what was, what is, and what is to come Will I embrace the well traveled passage into obscurity Or forge a path where no footsteps reside A rubicon, has my high noon happened at midnight? Once convergent paths now must separate No need to delay, I must not hesitate so without fear I must step forth and cast the millstone away I cast that millstone away I cannot dwell in an existence Cloaked and invisible I cannot be burdened by limitations Or afflicted by external expectations If I endeavor to bottle the wind or capture the sun I must rejoice in the challenge laid before me and I must never reside in fear's clutches again

I know there's not a single word that will wash the hurt and emptiness away Nor does it seem theres a light that can shine and penetrate through on this darkened day I can't even begin to imagine The void that now exists within your heart I can't even attempt to understand The turmoil and grief that's tearing you, that's ripping you apart I'll never claim to know all the answers or have explanation for tragedies unspeakable Nor do I have any comprehension Of why so much burden would be placed upon a soul, so pure, yet so fragile I pray you'll have the courage to press forward since your beautiful life has so much meaning and reason and recognize that this pain that cripples from within will only be for a moment, an occasion, a season I can offer a shoulder to cry on an ear to listen, a hand to hold A word to encourage An empathetic tear An embrace to console I’ll never claim to know all the answers or have explanation for tragedies unspeakable Nor do I have any comprehension Upon bent knee head pointed towards the sky I beg, I plead, I pray simply that for you today will be better than yesterday and tomorrow will be better than today I know you'd do the same for me but even if you wouldn't that doesn't change a thing I'm just privileged to stand here beside you While you seek out those ever elusive answers My solemn wish is that somewhere, sometime, somehow this darkness that now envelopes you can be penetrated by even the smallest glimpse of light and help to lead you away from what surely seems like an endless winter and a neverending night

Convicted of a crime I did not commit I'd swear on any volume placed beneath my fingers That I indeed was innocent If only one single person would've come to my defense Maybe then the truth it would've been revealed And I'd not be locked up all alone in this hellish secluded existence Returned into society but turned into an outcast Chastised as if I was a leper Like a curse preventing anyone from drawing near Although I'm allegedly free Society, it still isolates Forever punishing me for a crime I swear I did not commit There's now a darkened cloud of bitterness That hangs over my head like a shroud Making me unwilling to advocate for the defenseless or show mercy on the pitiless or forgive the unrepentant even though that’s a position I know all too well when the microscope's condescending lens had fixed its gaze upon me I reminisce about my former self The one before my existence here crumbled Before I felt like ice water flowed through my veins I so hate what I've become I feel like even the face in the mirror Is a remnant of an unknown figure's past that now only responds with a stranger's condemning glare I can’t stand trying to reassemble these broken pieces Because they only comprise a shattered replica of a meek and hollower existence but If I could only get a second chance or rewind the clock and regain the years that were lost I swear I'd do things so much different I'd never take anything for granted I'd never allow the world to see me as it does I'd dedicate myself to a life of compassion and servitude ...And so goes the story ...And so writes the narrative ...And so etched are the images ...that craft my somber tale ...And so goes the story ...And so writes the narrative ...And so etched are the images ...that craft my somber tale

...how dark is the day of betrayal within their eyes lies the consequence of denial... Once tasked with the care of the king's betrothed he swore an oath of protection but he could not guard against his own heart’s weakness As he fell hopelessly for her affection One undisciplined act of passion destroying a lifetime of favor severing a lifelong allegiance though a gift to the crown her heart wandered far she was unable to resist the seduction so now she's betrayed the throne yes now she's betrayed the throne now she's betrayed the throne of her kingdom A hastily plotted path of abdication left his trail exposed So soon he was captured his freedom rescinded a prisoner he now had become Once at his majesty's right hand His loyal and trusted confedante Has severed a lifelong allegiance though pledged to the crown his heart wandered far He was unable to resist her seduction so now he's betrayed the throne yes now he's betrayed the throne now he's betrayed the throne of his kingdom Delivered in shackles to the feet of the king Who was seething from this betrayal A clenched fist was shaken in rage as he cast this treacherer’s sentence down With a fiery vengeance his lovelorn voice bellowed ordering the execution So with tears in her eyes she begged the kings mercy as this was not alone his transgression But he turned a deaf ear and he slapped her to the ground and off to the gallows proceeded as he struggled and pled her guilt overwhelmed So silently she conceded As the blade raised She rose from her chair and As the blade dropped She leapt in the air As the blade raised She rose from her chair and As the blade dropped She leapt in the air The King watched in horror at the events which transpired From the balcony she fell while his friend now a traitor expired Shamed and humiliated as their secrets were exposed She could not bear to live and watch him suffer alone The king lost his friend and his lover And lamented his anger and the destruction as they've all betrayed the throne yes they've all betrayed the throne now they've all betrayed the throne of the kingdom

As pavement passes beneath our soles and behind our heels We gaze over our shoulders and see an ever growing trail that stretches into the ever fading distance But now staring forward we're faced with an unexpected fork it’s a startling divergence As we each must now decide our future path And as much as we don't want to acknowledge the inevitable Its clear at this point and on this day and in this moment our common journey must come to an end no longer will our footsteps be in unison We wonder if the bonds we share can withstand We ponder if the ties that bind can elude decay We fear that which has carried us for oh so long Could break under the weight of separation's emptiness one final time we stare deep into each others souls and allow the silence to speak in our stead and all the words our voices weren't built to utter can now reverberate oh so clearly It's a startling divergence As we must embark on solitary paths And even though neither of us wish for it to be this way We know that fate has designed our paths to separate We can take solace in knowing that regardless of where we may stand along our path that we'll still gaze upon the same sky same moon same stars and we can hope that one day these long and cruel winding paths might wind and entwine us back together they might wind and entwine us back together It's a startling divergence As we continue down our lonely trails And even though neither of us wished for it to be this way We knew that fate had designed our paths to separate our common journey has come to an end will we ever be back face to face again? It's a startling divergence...

Self worth is it not determined Based on the life I lead Not by those of my ancestors Bloodline it does not control My character Why if I've done nothing To provoke your ill will Does your venom still spew forth? I feel the holes You sear through my flesh With your condemning Abhorrent stares as you sit in judgment Upon your pedestals imaginary Hurling your excrement Waging your war constructed upon a foundation of fallacy a foundation of fallacy If I saw you lying naked in a pool of your own vomit I'd be the one to lift you up and take you away from your embarrassment and indignity So who then is the bigger man? Who then deserves the accolades? The one who'd lend a helping hand Or the one who blindly hates Or the one who blindly hates Heritage a link unto those From which we descend That can be celebrated and kept alive Through culture and tradition But not to be corrupted and misused And turned into a dividing line Ordaining the superior and condemning the alleged inferior Ordaining the superior and condemning the alleged inferior

Not sure when this went from us standing hand in hand to me now only seeing the backside of yours My blackened eyes and ravaged self worth Are not the things I signed up for I know we said ‘til death do us part But I never thought that it might be self inflicted No one should have to stay and endure The terrible things that I've been through Sticks and stones may break my bones but so do your constant beatings The vicious words you spew Degrade devour destroy my will to exist Because of you I've lost everything and everyone else They've either turned from me or I've pushed them away They can't bare not knowing if I'm alive and well or after your rage consumes buried in a shallow grave Sticks and stones may break my bones but so do your constant beatings The vicious words you spew Degrade devour destroy my will to exist Degrade Devour Destroy This is more like a prison than anything else I've sacrificed my identity trying to please someone else Trying to be your perfect companion But unfortunately that's not good enough No matter what I do its never good enough There's only so much one person can endure and I feel like I'm reaching my limit In fact I think I've reached my limit I'm actually far too far past my limit So I'll put on a smiling face And say all those words you want to hear And do all those things you want me to do But inside I know I have to escape So the first chance I get I'm running away and never looking back Oh yes you better believe I'm running away and never looking back So now that I'm gone, you've changed your tune, You're begging for my return You manipulate and spin a pitiful tale About how maybe I should give you one more chance For a fleeting second I considered that under that demonic shell could be the person I once fell for but I can't be like the phoenix rising up from the ashes only to crash and burn again I've allowed myself to exist so miserable for far too long That now I just long for a place where I'm cared for and loved But make no mistake I know that's not with you Because being with you is like bringing hell's fire to earth and I can't stand your flames engulfing me any longer

Two once forbidden lovers Now able to explore our innermost feelings Signaled by a red rose She once left at my bedside Fulfillment of my dreams Embodiment of my fantasies After such a long journey She’s finally now mine to behold We made our way down to Lake Silver Our hearts aflutter anticipating A secluded midnight encounter Adorned only in the moonlight’s glow We entered into the water Silhouetted against the heaven's expanse Now uplifted unto a higher plain Is our once forbidden romance On a night so serene The earth stood perfectly still And gazed upon the two lovers Aglow in the mist their passion creates All that which seems real This moment transcends Now fixed eye to eye We pray that this moment will never end Then without warning It was as if the lake had declared That this romance would not see its climax It would be over before it began She was ripped from my arms Swept away by a sinister force Dragged under the murky surface Vanishing without a trace Frantically I search Frantically I scour I scream her name but in return not a sound I'm overwhelmed by a sickening sensation of a scenario all too familiar That I was once at the doorstep of consummation But now I'm left to lament our isolation! That I was once at the doorstep of consummation But now I'm left to lament our isolation! Curse the lake Curse the night Curse the hand that has taken her from me! Curse the lake Curse the night Curse the hand that has taken her from me! Oh cruel hand of fate Why must you torment me so? Again She's been taken from me Search by day search always I'll forsake all and dwell upon this shore In Spirit memory and flesh I'll await that fateful day When you emerge from the depths from the depths From the depths...