by Nick Gisburne
Act I – The Curse
The peaceful days relieved her stricken soul
But rest was all too fleeting, hard to find
Her troubled spirit faded, far from whole
The scattered pieces captive in her mind
The changes could be subtle, slow at first
A word, confused, misspoken, out of place
But in my heart I always feared the worst
And so it came, with devastating pace
I cried the day she asked me for my name
She wondered where the man she loved could be
Through bitter tears I shouldered all the blame
And searched to find a way to set her free
Her eyes saw only strangers, only fear
I swore this curse would somehow disappear
Act II – The Cure
His treatments were unorthodox, unknown
He claimed to have the antidote, the cure
What choice was there but this and this alone?
How long without her mind could she endure?
Her memories were trapped, he said, not lost
Each precious moment locked and sealed within
The chance to see her smile eclipsed the cost
I paid the price and begged him to begin
The medicine would break these secret locks
Until her mind remembered what she knew
Each stolen thought, released from every box
Would surface as her recollections grew
I longed for her, for life to be the same
To feel her take my hand and say my name
Act III – The Cured
A marvel, nay, a miracle, took place
My dreams, my wildest wishes, came to pass
She looked and smiled and recognised my face
As if a lamp light glimmered through its glass
In seven days her mind had been restored
We sang, we danced, we seized the joys of life
Her smile a priceless gift, my true reward
The one true love returned to me, my wife
We laughed as she recalled what I forgot
The healing more effective than we knew
My thoughts were sometimes hazy; hers were not
Her store of once-forgotten treasures grew
The locks fell from all corners of her mind
A cure so strong no thought was left behind
Act IV – The Cancer
The bonds were broken, more and more each day
But now there crawled a cancer with the cure
Some thoughts and dreams are better locked away
The pain of them too awful to endure
She soon remembered all she’d ever said
Old agonies, long buried, put to rest
Her darkest demons, screaming, filled her head
By each unwanted thought she was possessed
The chains of all she was and all she knew
Became a burden far too fierce to bear
No love or laughter now could filter through
Her mind was black and burned beyond repair
The cure became the source of all her pain
Her thoughts, unfettered, drove her soul insane
Act V – The Cost
I pound the loathsome medicines to dust
Yet know the hurt, the torment, will not fade
I look upon my efforts with disgust
A selfish fool, a loving trust betrayed
She lies sedated, locked inside her cell
The tight restraints, the padding on the walls
My vanity condemned her mind to Hell
Yet somewhere, in my heart, a duty calls
I hold the key to this, her prison door
A final lock now keeps me from her side
Till death: the vows we took, the oaths we swore
A bond which only madness could divide
We share the poison, share a final breath
The cure, the only true release, is death
