1. THE NIGHTINGALE

(Instrumental)


2. ON THE PROMISES OF ANGELS

In a time before nations and capital
There was only Judgement and Salvation
And the glory of mighty Kings sent by God
Which by Grace turned their kingdoms into vast empires
That illuminated the minds of the barbarians

In Europe piousness and domination competed (as higher values)
So the Pope thought: "what if they are combined?"
A theology of war created, roman duty and Saint Augustine
Carolingian warriors cannot stay idle for long

Kings, nobles and villagers from the west answered the call
And Christians united to point the sword at Others
March to the Holy Land! God will guide us through!

Some decided to start the Crusade at home
Bands of roving murderers slaughtered Jews at many cities
Christ's mouth tasted first blood, that of his own people

Victorious they marched in Nicea, Dorylaeum and Armenia
Yet in Antioch the Christian horde was stranded
Eight months of waiting agitated them enough
To slay every Muslim in the city

In the city's ground, the Holy Lance that pierced Christ
Was found and it pointed to the throat of Jerusalem

Ganoese engines struck the gates and walls
With ferociousness the Fatimid defended the first waves
Godfrey, Tancred, Robert and Raymond attacked all five gates
Until Ludorf finally stood victorious atop the wall

Then the teachings of mercy, love and piety
Αgain fled from the Christian hearts

Such is the Glory of the Kingdom of God
The blood of the unfaithful
Flooded the temple of Solomon up into the knees
Pyramids of bodies, no women or children spared

And the slaves of old cried for the masters of tomorrow
For their names were uttered in vain
And their stories carved on the edge of the sword
Spoke on ears which only listened to the promises of Angels


3. AH YA ZEIN

(Instrumental)


4. THE FALL OF THE KINGDOM OF JERUSALEM

Europe's children have descended into Jerusalem
Through fire and blood they've opened the gates of Heaven
Yet a glory based on atrocity cannot put away the doubts of salvation
Is God not listening to the screams of the innocent?

What better way for conquerors to wash away their sins then
By assuming the role of the Defender
To speak as if they arrived to the sound of trumpets
To protect from the wrath of wretched infidels

Thus noble knights came together throughout the Outremer
To form brotherhoods in servitude to the Kingdom
To care for the poor and sick and to protect the pilgrims, they said
And swear eternal vows to Christendom's dominion

Gold from Europe flooded the banks of monasteries
Of hospitals and of castles high and mighty
For it seems that paradise also lies within earthly grasp

The years passed and generations changed
And the memories faded away

Immerse us in a basin of cold water
Crop our hair as that of holy men
Let my feet touch this hallowed ground
Until they're bloodied up and the dirt solidifies

For Saladin is coming

Thus the two great armies assembled
All that could bear arms in the Kingdom and the Counties
Templars, Hospitalers, soldiers and mercenaries
On the opposite side, the man that united the Muslims

By appealing to their pride he took the westerners
Out of their fortresses into the open fields of Hattin
And there would they see their enemies face to face
To witness their own arrogance translated into total utter ruin

A defeat so loud and thundering
That mere words about it killed the Pope
The dream of the Holy Lands, now destined to fall

And the memories of 1099 began to return
The hushed tones and the guilty frowns of the elders
Of how Jerusalem was taken

Immerse us in a basin of cold water
Crop our hair as that of holy men
Let my feet touch this hallowed ground
Until they're bloodied up and the dirt solidifies

Yet, this time
Can there be a greater irony and insult that
After the clanging of swords and firing of catapults
Those we thought for decades as barbaric creatures
From the hands of whose we needed to wrest the holy lands

Have let us walk away alive
From the walls of Jerusalem


5. CHERAGHEH ZOLMEZALEM (OPPOSITION'S FIRE)

چراغ ظلم ظالم تا دم محشر نمی‌ سوزد
اگر سوزد شبی سوزد شبی دیگر نمی‌ سوزد

Oppression's fire won't burn 'till judgement day
It may burn a night
They it'll burn away


6. TO THE BUILDERS!

Among the sturdy gates of Baghdad, the ruins of Notre Dame
The arches of Alhambra, the mosaics of Hagia Sophia
A breath arises through the cold stone, like a ghost
The stories of all who built them up into the sky

Some vain enough to be driven by quests of glory
Fueled by the deceit of tribalism
And the great narrations of the men of power
That argue why the common man must always succumb

Some strong enough to resist
The darkness of caste and the allure of the empire
Those that saw beyond the lies, the hate and the fanaticism
To carry incredible feats of bravery and self-sacrifice

Hordes of hapless ones, submissive to the tyrant's whip
Forced to avert their eyes from cruelty for the price of survival
Next to those who willingly threw themselves at the mouths of lions
To become the sword of justice and live true freedom for a brief moment

Conmen, heroes, cowards, saints and all that lie inbetween
All of them are heard through these walls
Built with the blood of their slave labor
Their hopes and sorrows echo through the chambers
Their brightest moments, their worst sins, their inspired divine art

To no nation or religion do these stones belong
To no leader or tyrant do these stories belong
Even if by gold and whip they directed their hands
They are forever owned by everyone that's toiled and sweat

And now that our turn has come
Think about what will our story be and what we'll leave behind
Is it just words and shattered dreams, or is it towers high and mighty
If we'll build ours with our choice, plan and desire
Or with gold and whip the masters again will guide our toil


7. WIE SCHÄNDLICH ES IST

Wie schändlich es ist, den Nachbarn
Unterschlupf und Schutz zu geben
In den dunkelsten Zeiten
Sie wie Diebe meiden und behandeln
Wie ein dunkel gerüsteter Eroberer

Wie schändlich es ist, deinen Gast
Der zu einem Fliehenden wurde
Auszupressen und auszunützen
Und als Sklaven zur Arbeit zu zwingen
So soll Unehrlichkeit dich zeichnen

An der Donau sammeln wir uns
Um den Imperator zu erinnern
Willst du uns weiter so behandeln
So werden in den Feuern der Rebellion
Wir unsere Schwerter darin baden

Und in hundert Jahren
Wenn die Mauern von Rom gefallen
So wird zum ersten und letzten Mal
Der letzte Imperator sich erinnern
Wie du die Geflüchteten jenseits der Donau behandeltest

What a shame it is, your neighbours
To take them under your refuge
In the most dire of times
And treat them like a thief
Like an shadow clad invader

What a shame it is, your guest
Who has turned into a refugee
To take advantage of them
To make them work like slaves
And let dishonesty define you

Across the Danube we gather
So to remind the Emperor
That if you treat us like this
To the fire of rebellion
Then we shall bathe our swords

And in a hundred years
When the walls of Rome will fall
For the first and final time
The last emperor shall remember
How you've treated the refugees across the Danube.

Music based on the german medieval folk song Ach meiden du vil sende pein. Οriginal lyrics based on the battle of Adrianople in 378 between the Roman Empire and an army of Gothic rebels that had settled in Thrace after being displaced by the Huns. The Empire suffered a catastrophic defeat and emperor Valens was killed, the first important event in a series that eventually led to its dissolution a hundred years later.


8. THE FAVOR OF THE SAINTS

Ten centuries after the coming of Christ
The ruins of Rome are still hanging upon europe
For the Greeks of Byzantium uphold its legacy
Which was built upon their subservience

And although Jove has given his throne to Christ
Roman emperors be still how they always were
And so Isaac II demanded gold for his marriage
From the proud people of the Haemus Mountains

Peter and Asen therefore went to the emperor in Thrace
They asked for land and service to earn the gold that he desired
Yet they were ridiculed as if the mountains and the lakes
And the rivers sprang not water but metallic streams

If Jove himself kneeled to the almighty God, how cοuld
The spirits of the forest make a mighty stand
So the people wondered and fell into despair
Upon hearing Peter and Asen's rebellious calls

Hágios Dēmḗtrios!
You who have endured the countless spears of tyrants
You who saved Thessaloniki with your wondrous miracles
We claim you as our own, for you are the true protector

Hágios Dēmḗtrios!
We raise this mighty church as a memorial
For justice cannot ever be bound to a city or a king
And truth pierces the body of empires like that of a dragon

Thus Peter and Asen built the saint's church in Tarnevo
And stole his favor away from Thessaloniki
The axe of war was raised and Parision was stormed
And Isaac's anger would be crushed upon the fortress of Lovech

So let it be known then to tyrants
That should you lay your hopes to inequity
Your own Gods and Saints will abandon you

And the great empire of Rome, whomever it might worship
Will crumble for the final time soon upon its feet


9. IN THE COMPANY OF HERETICS

To those that put their hope on the mercy of the conqueror
Who believe that light is conveyed with might
To those that think that civilization should trample the cultures
That for every union to be made, a vassal is required

I assure you, we won't accept your peace
We are the anguish of Alexander's feverish nightmares
The knife in Caesar's bloody corpse
The tear that falls on Constantine's cheek

Empires will break into nations
Nations into tribes
Tribes into Communities
We will be there

Until all notions and borders created by men
To divide between themselves
Until the excuses of all that desire to rule
Over other men
All rendered useless