Regaining sense, amidst the dense web of limbs Dazed, bitten by the cold I wander onwards
Will there ever be reprise for me? The sinning man can never rest He fears what haunts this place
What foolishness, what sickness of the mind Caused me to venture so far into the sea of trees
Far beyond the caves of ice and wind Yet now, pining for the taste of life A taste not found in these bone yards, I plead with the spirits Release me from this forest hell, O sea of trees, allow me peace
The forest whispers, the fallen wood snaps underfoot Through the thickening fog they reach for my arms And are kissed with my blood O, life’s irony that it should be spilled As I attempt to escape a place in which I sought only death
And so I plead with the unseen to allow me passage Surely I do not belong amongst the dead – or at least Less so than those I left behind I see faces framed, flickering in the darkness As thick clouds bear down upon me across the evening sky A breath of air, evaporates A glimmer of light, a flicker of hope
Quickening my pace past the whispering stream Climb towards the clearing The sky is still on fire, it is bleeding into the sea I stumble as I reach the hilltop, and fall so weary to my knees
I now know what madness brought me to venture within this sea of trees, The very same sickness that grips all men
For all come to know this place, spreading into the horizon's grey Under the burning sky, as my eyes concentrate I see the legions of spirits, black lake Nidstang There is no escape, no mercy
There is only pain and an end.
“I found freedom. Losing all hope was freedom. So, goodnight”