[Verse 1]
He wore the crown of broken teeth
And counted spoils beneath his feet
Every bargain left a scar
Every victory made him hard
He never asked who paid the cost
He called it strength when mercy was lost
Then the eastern towers burned
And every road behind him turned
[Pre-Chorus]
The ones he crushed were at his door
With frightened hands and nothing more
He saw their faces, one by one
And knew the war had just begun
[Chorus]
Run, you monster, run into the fire
Carry every name that you betrayed
If there’s a heart beneath the wire
Let it beat for someone else today
When the whole world calls you guilty
Stand where all the fallen are
You can’t undo the blood behind you
But you can become the shield they are
[Verse 2]
He broke the gates he once had sealed
Put stolen bread in every field
Took the blade from a child’s hand
And faced the armies of his land
No prayer rose from his old throne
No gold could buy him back his bones
He walked the line with open eyes
While every friend he made survived
[Pre-Chorus]
The people watched him take the blame
And speak each victim’s hidden name
The man they feared, the man they knew
Became the wall they marched behind him through
[Chorus]
Run, you monster, run into the fire
Carry every name that you betrayed
If there’s a heart beneath the wire
Let it beat for someone else today
When the whole world calls you guilty
Stand where all the fallen are
You can’t undo the blood behind you
But you can become the shield they are
[Bridge]
At the final gate, the heavens opened
No trumpet, no judgment, no throne
Just a thousand voices in the darkness
Saying, “You don’t have to die alone”
He answered, “I have lived alone enough
Let this be the last debt that I owe”
Then he turned toward the rising weapons
And gave the only life he had to give away
[Final Chorus]
Run, you monster, run into the fire
Now the frightened stand behind your name
Every soul you saved is lifting higher
Not to praise the man who came
But to honor what you chose there
When the world had turned its face
And the God you thought would cast you from Him
Met you at the edge of grace
[Outro]
They carved no crown above his resting place
Just one line beneath the stone:
“He was cruel, then he was needed—
And he did not die alone.”