The Unlit Stage

The hero in the spotlight is a distraction. The real story is the man in the dark pulling the strings. He's the part of me that would rather shape things from behind the curtain than ever be seen, and he tends to be overly dramatic for no reason at all.

The world's a stage, a cheap design
They read their mediocre lines
They think the spotlight is the sun
And that the hero's always won
They play the part that they've been sold
A story that's already old
But the greatest tales, you'll never see
Are written in the dark, by me

'Cause the man in the front is just a distraction
A simple and a plain and a dull reaction
The real me is the one who's pulling every string...

And I am not the hero in the light
I am the shadow in the fading of the night
I am the whisper in the corner of the room
The secret, final author of your doom
You think you see me, but you only see a part
A single, polished facet of a dark and diamond heart
So I will play the fool and let you think you know
The secret of the one who runs the show

They think that truth is just a word
The loudest story that they've heard
They think a mask is just a lie
A simple trick to fool the eye
But a mask can tell a deeper tale
A truth that's hidden in the veil
A way to show the world a face
That it can finally embrace

'Cause the man in the light is just the narrator
A humble and a lowly commentator
The real me is the one who's writing every page...

So let them have their simple stage
And turn the page, and turn the page
Let them believe the lie is real
Let them forget the pain they feel
The greatest kindness, you will find
Is a brilliant and a well-told lie

The secret of the shadow...
The story that I know...
Is that the mask...
...is just for show
The real me... is letting go

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