Crimson Ii Lyrics - Edge Of Sanity

[I - The forbidden words] 

[II - Incantation] 

[III - Passage of time] 

[IV - The silent threat] 

[V - Archilles heel] 

[VI - Covenant of souls] 

[VII - Face to face] 

[VIII - Disintegration] 

[IX - Aftermath] 

Let no man breach the gate to this most blasphemous of halls 

Lest bitterness and chaos be the harvest they wouldst reap 

He must n'er become a slave to this Child's beck and call 

For she must never waken from her Crimson Sleep.. 

The monastery stood towering above the ruined city 

It shadowed all the new emerging settlements and homes 

To look down on the ruins was to sympathize and pity 

All the suffering and heartache, all the graves and broken bones 

For buried there a testament to the evil of a queen 

A misery that spread across a weak and stricken land 

The crimson birth that swamped the earth in dark and deadly dreams 

And all mankind did bow beneath the power of her hand 

And in the monastery garden sat a woman with a book 

A manuscript that lay within her frail and trembling arms 

She looked around her nervously as guilt rose in her heart 

But the sway of curiosity had drawn her out too far 

She wavered on the threshold of a dangerous decision 

For this dark tome was no for human eyes to ever read 

The pages dripped with legions of persuasive words and visions 

So the volume had been hidden well, but now it had been freed 

For no apparent reason had the woman been drawn in 

Perhaps it was a twist of fate, an absence of real thought 

She wandered to a room that before she'd never been 

And all at once the interest of her senses had been caught 

For no apparent reason had the women been drawn in 

Where rows of dusty books lay in an ominous display 

But one ancient leather binding had the grain of human skin 

And seized with curiosity she stole this book away 

And now she sat alone in the concealment of the night 

She was hungry now to liberate the writings from their cage 

The glimmer of a feeble moon provided her with light 

As she opened up the cover and began to read the page 

Fly, soul, the body's guest, 

Upon your impish arrant 

Let none be guiled by false confession 

Truth shall be your warrant 

Fly soul for your body must die 

But for those who seek eternity 

For those who yearn prosperity 

From this single act of sanity 

Will raise you far above humanity 

Oh willing host who doth not know 

The full desire of this prisoner 

You walk where angels fear to go 

Thou shalt soon embrace the reckoner 

Thy halo of glory, hope's true gage 

May prove to be an evil pilgrimage 

Something had happened beyond her control 

A moment of madness unfettered a soul 

That would relish a freedom denied once before 

By a desperate nation with it's back to the wall 

Within a split second of reading this text 

The spirit was free and had fled from its nest 

It was eager to grow from this sudden reprieve 

And thus in the woman a life was conceived 

From the beginning the world was misled 

As a baby was born in a monastery bed 

The miracle happening here on this Earth 

Was perceived as a glorious new Virgin Birth 

From the moment in time that baby was born 

The sun did now rise on a new Crimson dawn 

And the creature just bided its time undiscovered 

So safe in the cradling arms of the mother 

[Lead: Dan] 

But for those who seek eternity 

For those who yearn prosperity 

From this single act of sanity 

Will raise you far above humanity 

Secure from the world, the child remained hidden 

A serpent disguised in the Garden of Eden 

And all who looked down on this newly born babe 

Were ignorant now of the path this would take 

The people were blind to the subtle control 

That was exercised daily upon every soul 

With no room to question this delicate life 

All fears would be drowned and all doubts would be stifled 

But one single mind did stand out from the crowd 

Though quiet at first - with hardly a sound 

The Mother Superior harbored suspicion 

Brought to her heart by three simple vision 

[The Visions:] 

The first was a planet engulfed by the sea 

No dry land in sight, not a mountain or tree 

No rock jutted out from the endless horizon 

Or flowers to mark out the changing of seasons 

No animals dwelt in the forests or fields 

All life was extinct; its fate had been sealed 

By the curse of a violent unstoppable flood 

Mankind had been drowned in an ocean of blood 

The next revelation was vivid and cruel 

It depicted two swordsmen engrossed in a duel 

The one held a sword that was silver and pure 

The other a sword that was red to the core 

They fought as the sun rose high in the sky 

Their fight would not end until one of them died 

No room did they have for an error to make 

For the future of life was the trophy at stake 

But one of the warriors flouted the rules 

And with cunning and guile had the other one fooled 

As he held up his hands in a gesture of peace 

The silver opponent allowed this retreat 

Then the man with the red sword attacked from behind 

Left the silver sword fighter defeated and blind 

Then carnage ensued that no man could condone 

As the bloody red blade sliced through sinew and bone 

All day did the swordsman attack without halt 

Though the other lay dead from the frenzied assault 

Until by the twilight and all that remained 

Were the echoes of death and a fresh crimson stain 

And so came the third of these unyielding visions 

A picture of war and ferocious divisions 

An army of saviors marching as one 

Aware that the end had already begun 

They arrived in a field, which was wide and expansive 

They waited in silence both ready and pensive 

The grassland was strewn with small crimson petals 

Their fragrance was sweet with the stench of the devil 

And slowly but surely they fell into sleep 

Their consciousness gone as they slumped in defeat 

And there they still lie bereft of their willpower 

Brought to their knees by the strength of a flower 

The three visions, the Mother Superior bore 

A bitter forewarning of what was in store 

This infant so frail must not grow to be strong 

The world was at risk if she waited too long 

So veiled by the blackness of night she did creep 

And enter where mother and child were both asleep 

And onwards she moved to where the crib lay 

She leant over the baby and started to pray 

She prayed for forgiveness for what she would do 

She prayed that the knife in her hand would aim true 

But all of a sudden she was now paralyzed 

The baby daughter had opened her eyes 

[Lead: Mike] 

And into those eyes, the woman gazed 

The look in her face was both haunted and crazed 

She was smothered and swamped in confusion and sadness 

The first to be gripped by this foul crimson madness 

This brutal psychosis could not be explained 

No one single cause was suggested or blamed 

But no one could think that a child was involved 

And the mystery illness remained unresolved 

So all seemed as normal for seven short years 

A veil of deception dissolved any fears 

But there was one lapse in the child's disguise 

And that could be seen in the depths of her eyes 

The message could clearly be discovered there 

In the glimpse of the universe found in her stare 

Her gaze hypnotic, unbearably strong 

Suspicions were growing, it wouldn't be long 

Oh willing host who doth not know 

The full desire of this prisoner 

You walk where angels fear to go 

Thou shalt soon embrace the reckoner 

Now and then a question would be raised 

Strong misgivings threatened to be voiced 

But these were judgments wiser not to say 

To doubt the child could prove to be a rash and deadly choice 

By now the Crimson reign had proved too much 

The monastery was shadowed under dread 

But fear decreed that hostile thoughts be crushed 

For the creature had the power to crawl inside your head 

The mother in her darkest moment knew 

The time had come for action to be taken 

A journey must be made to hidden truths 

She must return and read again the book she had forsaken 

This tome presented many further views 

Essential rules of power were revealed 

And thus the pages offered up one clue 

The child bore one significant Archilles Heel 

Should the Crimson Queen be blinded, then powerless she'll be 

Bereft of piercing vision, her victims will be free 

Salvation lies in banishing this creature to the dark 

Let not your hand be hesitant or death will be your mark 

Lest regained sight should speed her flight away from burning hell 

A steady heart must seal her back within her crimson cell 

And thou who didst release this most vindictive enemy 

Must serve to be her warder there for all eternity 

One quiet night the lady traveled out beyond the monastery 

Her quest was one of urgency and human preservation 

She traveled with companions to reach the ruined city 

Where lay the means to save her kind, a path to their salvation 

When there they searched for evidence of where the Queen once slept 

And came upon a gateway, which was tightly closed and barred 

A stark inscription warned them of the risk of their next step 

But choices were no more; they had already come too far 

Let no man breach the gate to this most blasphemous of halls 

Lest bitterness and chaos be the harvest they wouldst reap 

He must n'er become a slave to this Child's beck and call 

For she must never waken from her Crimson Sleep: 

[Lead: Mike] 

With fresh resolve the women carried on towards their goal 

And found themselves a cell where crimson shade were scattered 

A sight so dreadful it chilled their very souls 

The cell had long been drained and all around the glass lay shattered 

A movement in the shadows 

A flash of blazing light 

The child stood before them 

With murder in her eyes 

The women ran towards her 

To try to stem the tide 

Of purse and crimson anger 

There was nowhere left to hide 

Too slow was their reaction 

They were thrown back off their feet 

Their throats were filled with panic 

As they stared as harsh defeat 

Too weak was their protection 

They couldn't staunch the trail 

Of vitriol and vengeance 

Meted out for this betrayal 

So the mother's brave compatriots 

Consumed with damning pain 

Died writhing in the dirt 

They were bleeding and insane 

They'd looked into the child's eyes 

And crumbled in despair 

From images too hideous 

For human minds to bear 

Salvation lies in banishing 

This creature to the dark 

Let not your hand be hesitant 

Or death will be your mark" 

But there was still one single hope 

No room for fear or doubt 

The mother knew there was no choice 

She had to end this now 

She crawled across the bloodstained ground 

Her eyes averted from the steely glare 

But secretly she knew she'd found 

A way beyond this nightmare 

[Lead: Simon/Mike] 

A few more seconds spanned the path 

Between success or damnation 

Mankind would face the aftermath speed 

Of this deadly confrontation 

Got to strike for the eyes 

Leave the monster running blind 

Go to cross the line 

Got to strike for those unforgiving eyes 

She veiled herself with trivial thought 

A mask of insignificance 

Her daughter failed to see beyond 

The fabric of irrelevance 

For a moment they were face to face 

No sign of what was soon to be 

But still her mind refused to break 

Those thoughts must not be seen 

Got to strike for the eyes 

Leave the monster running blind 

Go to cross the line 

Got to strike for those unforgiving eyes 

[Lead: Simon] 

Striking hard, striking fast in desperation 

The world around is filled with shades of red 

Forced to stand in weak anticipation 

As rivulets of blood run down the Child's head 

The chamber fills with screams of violent rage 

Of petulance and impotent frustration 

Consumed with frenzied tidal waves of hate 

The princess falls to earth in dark sedation 

Her blindness stunts the growth of nascent power 

That grows within her like some poisonous flower 

The blade of darkness strikes her to the hilt 

And so the flower inside begins to wilt 

But time is short for action to be taken 

No chance to dwell on pity or mistakes 

No chance for dark excuses to be found 

The moment of Salvation must be now! 

Cast me to the crimson flames 

Thou hast the power should I be blind 

To overthrow my wicked reign 

And throw me to the pit of time 

Cast me to the crimson flames 

Thou shalt bar the doors of hell 

Incant these words of sacred rule 

Seal me in my crimson cell 

[Lead: Dan] 

And thus was read the incantation 

Voices echoed round and round 

The woman smiled in weak elation 

Mesmerized inside the sounds 

[Lead: Dan] 

And with these chants of higher lore 

So mortal flesh began to fade 

Soon child and mother were no more 

Their earthly bodies now decayed 

Cast me to the crimson flames 

Thou shalt bar the doors of hell 

Incant these words of sacred rule 

Seal me in my crimson cell 

[Lead: Mike] 

And still inside the chamber stands 

A single cell with crimson hue 

Resealed by spoken word of Man 

Imbued with power from spiritual Truth 

Two souls imprisoned for eternity 

Light and dark forever bound 

Two souls that never can be freed 

A pathway back will not be found 

For trapped beyond some foolish reach 

And far away from prying eyes 

No channel now to lead or preach 

No chance to influence or guide 

The final sacrifice she took 

Ensured the hope of the human race 

And thus she holds the sacred book 

A captive in her crimson space 

Lest bitterness and chaos be the harvest they wouldst reap 

For she must never waken from this Crimson Sleep 

[Lead: Dan]