Ashbreather - Shake Hands With a Knife Lyrics

I'd rather go and shake hands with a knife
Than have a blade be plunged in my chest
And feel the hot blood run down my arms
Than pour my life out a hole in my breast
I'd rather go and shake hands with a knife
Than have a sword be thrust in my heart
Firm grip, remain do I in martyred silence
This is not the end, but that would be a good start

I've found myself standing in a pool of blood
Watching as the floor around me grows dark red
Pull your hands away the damage has been done
Hang me up, just to see me dried and bled

Cleaving the skin and sliding the blade beneath the surface
Tugging at tendons, ripping the sinews bleeding worsens
Tightening grip, a twist and a slip of flesh and dagger
Pain like a fire, agony dire, as blood spatters
Seizing the edge, and pushing against the hilt in desperation
To live, by grabbing your shiv return to sender
Look in the eye, a flicker of light, reflects from your steel
Swivelling down, to come up around, this wound will not heal

They always said I had a death grip on life
Now I'm clinging for survival on the edge of a blade
And you should never shake hands with a knife
But it's not my fault the way the cards were played
Consider this a professional courtesy
A gamble's not a gamble with an ace up your sleeve
I won't be falling on a sword tonight
And I won't rest until it's you that bleeds

Do you feel it cut
Do you feel it slash
Do you feel it cleave the skin to form a gash
Do you feel it rip
Do you feel it tear
Do you feel it pierce your heart to disrepair

Don't be so eager if you're first to play
You're that much closer to the first mistake
A reckless man lives a life with no regrets
If safety's what you're willing to forsake

Be still now
There's nothing left to see

A stranger's life reflected from his fingertips
With but the time for a shriek of panicked breath
A swift assault that paints the night in crimson red
You were the one who came to me in search of death

Be still now
For soon you shall be free

This is not my time
To shed this coil
When this injustice
Makes my blood boil
I have been tempered
By this bloodletting
Blessed by this moment
Not worth forgetting

Lying in anguish
This crimson river
Drowning in lifeblood
Watching you wither
Consequence fatal
You reap what you sow
You hold the dagger
But it's your funeral

Into remission
Pupils releasing
Heart losing spirit
This life is ceasing
This will to resist
May have saved my life
But you still should not
Shake hands with a knife