LET THE SKULL REMAIN / Vaelith Mourne

[Intro,Whispered Female Gypsy Contralto,Rain,Low Drone] Forget the skull? No. You forget who you're speaking to. [Female Gypsy Throat Singing] I wore these horns because I chose them. I kept them because they're mine. And if you're waiting for the day I leave them behind... Keep waiting. [Verse 1,Deep Female Gypsy Contralto,Industrial Bass] This ram skull isn't yesterday It isn't something I outgrew Every mark across this bone Belongs to what I traveled through Don't call it decoration Don't call it some discarded skin Don't tell me showing you my face Means I should never wear it again I remember every shadow Every footprint through the rain Every night beneath these horns Every loss and every pain You think becoming something more Means killing what I was before? Then you have never understood me And you don't understand me now [Pre-Chorus,Throat Singing Rising] Say it. Tell me to remove it. Tell me I should let it die. Tell me you've seen my face So there's no reason left to hide. [Voice Hardens] Then watch me take this ram skull With both hands... And put it back on. [Chorus,Fierce Female Gypsy Contralto,Crushing Industrial Drums] LET THE SKULL REMAIN I WILL NOT FORGET I WILL NOT ERASE I WILL NOT BOW SO GET THAT THROUGH YOUR FUCKING HEAD THE HORNS ARE MINE THE BONE IS MINE THE CHOICE HAS ALWAYS BEEN MINE I'LL SHOW MY FACE WHEN I DECIDE THEN WEAR MY RAM SKULL WITH PRIDE I AM VAELITH WITH MY FACE I AM VAELITH BEHIND THE BONE YOU DON'T DECIDE WHICH ONE YOU GET AND YOU DON'T DECIDE WHICH ONE GOES LET THE SKULL REMAIN! [Verse 2,Low Defiant Contralto,Appalachian Fiddle,Distorted Bass] Don't mistake revelation For permission to erase Seeing what is underneath Doesn't give you claim upon my face You liked me better without it? Good for you. That's yours to feel. But preference isn't ownership And your opinion isn't law I won't bury what I cherish I won't burn it for applause I won't trade away these horns To satisfy somebody else I don't owe you transformation I don't owe you something new And I sure as hell won't mutilate What I created just for you [Pre-Chorus,Building Fury] Tell me I've outgrown it. I dare you. Tell me bone should disappear. I'll stand directly before you And make this perfectly clear: You didn't give me this identity. You don't control its fate. And you'll never make Vaelith Mourne Become something you dictate. [Chorus,Massive Female Gypsy Contralto,Throat Choir] LET THE SKULL REMAIN LET THE BAYOU ROAR MY NAME I WILL NOT BURN MY HISTORY TO MAKE YOU COMFORTABLE WITH CHANGE THE HORNS REMAIN THE BONE REMAINS THE WOMAN UNDERNEATH REMAINS NOT ONE PIECE MUST DIE SO ANOTHER CAN SURVIVE I AM VAELITH MASKED OR BARE AND ONLY I DECIDE WHAT I WEAR YOU WANT TO CHOOSE BETWEEN THE TWO? THEN THE ANSWER ISN'T UP TO YOU LET THE SKULL REMAIN! [Bridge,Spoken Female Gypsy Contralto,Rain,Chains] Listen carefully. I am not asking. I am not negotiating. And I am not looking for approval. This is my ram skull. Mine. You don't own the horns. You don't own the bone. You don't own the face underneath. And you sure as hell don't own me. [Throat Singing] I will remember it. I will honor it. I will wear it. I will remove it. I will put it back on. Again. And again. And again. For as long as I fucking choose. If that bothers you... Turn away. The skull isn't leaving. [Breakdown,Crushing Half-Time,Chains,Floor Toms] I WILL NOT BURN IT! I WILL NOT BURY IT! I WILL NOT HIDE IT! I WILL NOT FORGET IT! I WILL NOT APOLOGIZE! I WILL NOT ASK PERMISSION! THE HORN! THE BONE! THE WOMAN! THE NAME! VAELITH! MOURNE! REMAINS! [Final Chorus,Monumental Female Gypsy Contralto,Throat Choir] LET THE SKULL REMAIN LET THE BLACK WATER KNOW MY NAME LET THE THUNDER BREAK ABOVE ME I WILL NEVER BOW IN SHAME I CHANGE I GROW I EVOLVE BUT I DO NOT ERASE I CARRY EVERY PART OF ME AND PUT THE RAM SKULL BACK IN PLACE I AM VAELITH WITH MY FACE I AM VAELITH BEHIND THE BONE BOTH ARE MINE BOTH REMAIN NEITHER ONE IS YOURS TO OWN LET THEM HATE IT LET THEM TALK LET THEM TURN AND WALK AWAY I WILL NEVER FUCKING FORGET THE RAM SKULL THAT BEARS MY NAME LET THE SKULL REMAIN! LET THE SKULL REMAIN! LET THE SKULL... REMAIN! [Outro,Whispered Contralto,Rain] You want me without it? That's your choice. You want me to abandon it? That's where your choice ends. [Ram Skull Settles Into Place] Mine begins here. [Female Gypsy Throat Singing] I remember. I refuse. I remain.