Prisoner of the Mind

There are no bars here.
Funny, isn't it?
I checked the windows — they are wide open.
I checked the door — the lock rotted away long ago.
Yet, here I stand.
In the center of a perfect circle drawn in chalk...


I remember the day I laid the first stone.
It was a principle. The iron principle of "being right".
I built a wall out of pride — excellent material,
Lets in neither light, nor warmth, nor scandal.
My coffee went cold three winters ago.
I look in the mirror — a stranger's gaze stares back.
The man in the glass screams without sound,
And I adjust my tie. What a torture.


No chains on my hands, no irons on my feet.
Just a voice inside, crumbling into dust and deceit.
It whispers formulas, codes, sets of rules...
Who left me here with these tools?
(Pause, sharp whisper)
I left myself here.

Припев
Prisoner of the mind!
I am my own judge and my own executioner.
I hear my childhood cry, faint and obscure.
But logic is my god, and he is cruel.
I swallowed the only key like a fool...
And it’s stuck across my throat!
I am king of a kingdom the size of a skull!
Where every corner is a dead end!


Analysis. Synthesis. Forecast. Error.
A plaster smile glued on in terror.
Step to the left — an abyss of emotion.
Step to the right — a chaos of devotion.
Stand still! Wait for no news!
Control. Control. Total control.
What damn role am I playing, what role?!



What if... I just cross the line?
Wash away this chalk? Betray this design?
Out there, the wind tears roofs apart.
It hurts there. It’s scary. There, hearts start.
My cell is cozy, it is dry and quiet.
But why do I want to... incite a riot?




Prisoner of the mind!
Smash this damn concrete!
Let my personal throne fall in defeat!
I cough up this key...
Look!
It is rusty, but it is real!
I am leaving...
I... am leaving...


The door was open.
Always.