No emotion is too shallow,

no trick is too cheap,

but what shall we tell the gallows

when they don't like the company we keep?

"Bid adeu, madame," so says the piper.

"Scream betrayal," so says the drum.

"Seduce their minds with beauty," says the harp,

"and break their hears with a strum."

Hold the dreams of a people in your palm,

ones they don't know exist,

and ransom their grudging humanity

with a deal they can't resist.

No hero around the corner.

No hope behind the door.

When the creeping black of dawn

brings a death they can't ignore.