Tethered to an illusion
He'd rather sink than swim
Abandon all six senses
Rather than feel desolation again

Tis' no crime to trace one's edges
But falling off is a different matter
Shame is a seaworthy vessel
Sailing on oceans of greed and clatter

He rappels from throne on high
Storms heed no man's command
An avalanche of fears behind him
Ahead, a bleak and lifeless wasteland

But seams don't tear unless they fray
Utopia costs more than infinite gold
Ambition built this city of avaritia
But he watches it crumble beneath the soul he sold

If I repaid you in kind
It wouldn't be so kind
For I am astray and unable to find
The grace for which I need to forgive and forget

If I repaid you in kind
It wouldn't be so kind
Silent misery drenched and undefined
Vengeance fills my lungs faster than oxygen

If I repaid you in kind
It wouldn't be so kind
For I am simply the blind following the blind
Tripping over skeletons and shackles in this pitch black

If I repaid you in kind
It wouldn't be so kind
Drop another coin in the wishing well
Always a devil at the bottom waiting for his due

Motionless and stationary
Yesterday haunts the steps of my boots
Over you, or just halfway under you?
Watching daybreak with one eye open
Nearing the point where splinters break

Weather is calm, but I'm a soul of storms
Out of the frying pan, out of reasons why
Rational?  No, but I never claimed to be
Seven hours in this abyss of apathy
Traitor!  Keep your distance and your sympathy

Each their own, but I've disowned myself
Nursing bitterness to spark another war
Everyday is just a spectre of deceit
My reflection stares right back at me
You, my friend, have become my own worst enemy

It's obvious when she jumps, she misses
Leaving behind a footprint that tries too hard
To tell a happy story

She loses her confidence, and in turn, loses me
Because running is so much simpler
Than running in place

She scrawls all her feelings with invisible ink
And stores all the dreams she's saved
In a false bottom box

Beyond the layers and beyond the mask
There's a shimmer of something more
Something, I once adored

In the corner of her mind, I drift
Floating like detritus along the open sea
And waiting for an outstretched hand

Sandpaper sharpens the arrow
My mind grows duller with each new moon
I feel vindicated
But is that meant to change my destiny?

I hum carefully crafted melodies
While dodging the traffic of unending static
I love unconditionally
But does that mean I am loved the same?

Lavender wine enthralls scavengers
They forage for another bridge to burn
I watch it blacken and dissipate
But does apathy mean I no longer care?

My arrow is now sharper
Voices whisper, "weakling, loose the final blow"
A single tear slips from my eye
But is one arrow supposed to end this hell?