Decimation
By Maleficium · Death Metal
For a Roman soldier, there was a punishment more terrifying than facing the enemy.
It was called decimatio—decimation.
If an entire unit failed its duty, the law demanded that one man in every ten pay the price.
In Rome, the greatest fear was not always the enemy across the battlefield—it was hearing your own name called when the lots were drawn.
"DECIMATION"
[Chorus]
DECIMATION!
ONE IN TEN MUST DIE!
DECIMATION!
THE PRICE OF COWARDICE!
[Verse 1]
The Eagle stands in silent judgment
Iron discipline forged in blood
The few who falter condemn us all
Innocent lives drown in crimson flood
The entire unit has failed its duty
The mathematics of death unfolds
One is chosen from every ten
Beaten to death by the nine who remain
[Pre-Chorus]
The lots are drawn, the fate is sealed
In the silence, the punishment revealed
The General watches with eyes of ice
The law demands the failure's price!
[Chorus]
DECIMATION!
ONE IN TEN MUST DIE!
DECIMATION!
THE PRICE OF COWARDICE!
[Verse 2]
I see my brother's hand begin to shake
The stick I drew — the fate I didn't choose
I look to the left, I look to the right
My comrades' faces turn pale with fright
We shared the march, we shared the pain
We fought through the same campaign
They were my shield, they were my kin
Now they are ordered to butcher me!
They surround me as I kneel down
No foreign blade, no enemy cry
The hands that held the shield beside me
Are the hands that will deliver my death!
[Chorus]
DECIMATION!
ONE IN TEN MUST DIE!
DECIMATION!
THE PRICE OF COWARDICE!
[Bridge]
One in ten.
One in ten must die.
The ratio is written.
The sentence is carried out.
[Silence.]
CRUSHED BY THE CLUBS!
SHATTERED BY THE STONE!
MY RIBS CAVES IN!
MY VISION FADES!
Stone against temple
Club against spine
We shared the bread
We shared the wine
My brothers become my executioners
My brothers become my executioners!
[Breakdown]
The punishment ends
The order is restored
By terror
The surviving nine
Stripped of honor
Stripped of rank
Stripped of privilege
Cast from the fortified camp
Condemned to disgrace
Reduced to the rations of beasts
Barley for cattle
Instead of wheat
No glory
No triumph
No songs of praise
Only shame
Only hunger
Only exile
[Final Chorus]
DECIMATION!
ONE IN TEN MUST DIE!
DECIMATION!
THE PRICE OF COWARDICE!
ONE IN TEN!
ONE IN TEN!
ONE IN TEN MUST DIE!
[Outro]
One in ten...
One in ten...
One in ten...
Remember the price of cowardice
About Death Metal
Brutally heavy metal featuring guttural vocals, complex technical riffs, and themes of death and darkness, known for its uncompromising intensity and musicianship. Bands include: Death, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel
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