Here at the edge Above the chasm stretching beyond I stare across Off to the realm I once called Home Here lies the bridge That which my father before me had built Long since decayed Down to its skeletal remains As a child Watched him crawl Into the gorge Consumed by the fog One last time Down in the depths Anchored the rope around his chest Braving the faces of death So that we might have a chance Days they came and went Carrying the rope he spanned Through the great expanse Sworn to conquer the ledge When that morning arrived Discovered the rope inclined Reaching above our eyes A promise of paradise And how we did rejoice Until it dawned upon us Among our daunted souls We lacked the strength to follow So the time would pass Lagged in cowardice Searching for a hero within To rise and finish this bridge For years we stood in shame Waiting for an answer Without his word to guide us We were lost Like children in a storm We lost all hope I peered over the edge To try and see his face again But it was gone Buried beneath the fog I refused to let him go To be forgotten As shadows of a memory Cast by the veil of time A father now myself I looked upon the world surrounding Wrought with decay I understood his choice in leaving To find a better place So I set my sights To breach the vast divide And take upon this line He cast with his own life I tied my arms around the twine Dragging onward with my pride Hanging on this rope About to fall I looked into the void And saw a face It wakes me up Broken and battered I held on for life Searching for balance I turned to the skies No! I would not let go And leave this world behind Not when so much more Rested on my triumph Notwithstanding all Of the pain and loss Not when I'm so close To making it across I saw the ledge on which the post Stood where he set to tie the rope So as I pulled forward I hoped The splitting threads behind would hold But alas my luck would turn Too many years had weatherworn And when it tore it swung me forth Sending me into the rock Hanging on for life again And still the voice inside commands Climb or die I pulled myself over the edge Before collapsing On the verge of death And so I closed my eyes and dreamt Perhaps reflecting Upon the past I saw a father and his son Share a bond Through toil and blood And when I turned to face the scion I had to smile I was not the child I woke to find myself reborn The pain was numb The wounds were gone And for a moment then I thought That all was lost This was all for naught But then I rose and saw below me A word exposed upon the stone To spell a story Our birthsign left behind by scoured hands The crimson stains overlain For me to comprehend Three drops of blood Bridge over water A scar pointing across This was our name This was our fate The weight upon which we have borne Here at the edge Facing the realm called Home Standing at the apex Scanning through the fog Anchored by the coil Answer to the call Tempted by the chasm Two fates intertwined Carrying the rite of passage Step into the void Fear could not deter my senses now Entangled by the valors since endowed In turn to bear the burden of this vow My destiny interred between these walls Twisting and turning suspended in throes Tied to the rope, wrested in tow Wrists split and burning my flesh rendered torn Writhing in scorn, withering I fall Sliding downward To the base Of this ever famished gorge Cast asunder Lain to waste Relapsed I must endure Venture forward through this divide Severed from my recourse divine Chosen to conquer the course defined Heaven abandoned reward defied My soul defiled Spiraling outward Lost in trance Mental prowess Swollen up in abscess Thoughts obsessed with An all consuming fact Swallowed by a madness The knowledge that We are all Slaves to the valley To walk the line Chained down to carry Our faults behind Escape an invalid Thought to entice A slave to the valley Enter the light Eternally Here at the end Followed the rope to its final extent I stare ahead Off at a cairn left embedded There lies his corpse The glory for which I set forth to reclaim Long since decayed Down to his skeletal remains And in this moment I finally collapse Overwhelmed at last by the weight of despair For all the pain and suffering I could withstand But the sight of his remnants was overbearing If the man whose will I so revered could fall To the trials of this austere mission Then I had no choice but to ask myself What chance did I possibly have? Now facing the harsh reality There is one task left for me to complete Summoning every fiber of my being I take these hands And spread the earth to cover his windswept bones Likewise I lay my head against the mound to rest This time succumbing to wear of despondence Just as the darkness takes a hold of my weary soul I wonder how long before my son comes searching Visions form to collect my final thoughts A shadowy figure appears at the end of a vestibule His visage so dejected and forlorn No more than a vestige manifest to forewarn I reach out keen to join his lonesome spirit But he points away to illustrate the road undone Vested I gather my strength and rise again Reminded of my destiny to be the one Turned from the grave Senses regained stumbling awake Far from the place we’d lain to rest Held in my hand The braid fallen and frayed Resolving to save And follow true to our name Near to the end Against the barrier stretching up high I stare upon This bastion standing before To answer the call With honor bound about these red scaled arms I set to conquer this wall Here at the edge Above the chasm vanquished below I drag my limbs Over the land that I call Home Here I shall rest But not before leaving this last word behind I paint the earth A message to send for my child Three drops of blood Bridge over water Crossed by these scars This is our name This is our fate The path we walk