Verse 1 (Aggressive, rhythmic vocals – half-spoken, half-yelled, Phil Anselmo / Joey Belladonna energy) Born from spirit Bound to this cage Innocence fading As the years engage Scars of the soul Gather on the flesh In these iron cells We waste what is left Playing the hands The heavens have dealt Some rise, some fall No second chances felt (Chains rattle hard under the last lines as the riff opens up)Chorus (Big, shouty, anthemic — gang vocals on the second half possible) Soul forge burning, iron in my veins Born in the fire, forged in the chains This flesh is my prison, these bones are the bars Mortal coil got me trapped behind scars Verse 2 (Even tighter and more aggressive than Verse 1) We hunger in spirit We thirst for the light Coveting freedom Beyond the long night Some of us sleeping Lost in the dream Others still waking Fighting the seams Either way the chains Rattle and shake Too heavy, too ancient For one soul to break Chorus (Same as first, but bigger — add a second vocal layer or gang shout on the last two lines)Bridge (Drop into a half-time groove — heavy and menacing, then build) Spirit inside me Beating the walls Crying for release From these iron halls Every breath a prayer Every heartbeat a plea This body the cage That will not set me free Until the forge calls And the iron grows cold The soul rises upward Leaving the cage behind (Explode back into the final chorus with a classic Pantera-style run or Anthrax thrash pickup)Final Chorus + Outro Full force, then the riff breaks down into a stomping groove while the chains keep rattling until everything cuts dead.This version keeps every lyric the same but moves the energy into that swaggering, aggressive Pantera groove or Anthrax thrash pocket. The chains still give it a unique identity.
