A Quarter Till Midnight

  A maker of clocks shares a secretThat only a few can knowFor he alone decides your fateWith a clock that steals your soul This village of twenty thousandGets smaller everydayFor when the clock strikes midnightAnother will pass away A deal was made with the devil himselfFor a clock that was made of goldAnd all who dared to live thereWould simply never grow old The clock maker was the oldestThat the village had ever knownThe people would pay for the clock maker's sinsWith their souls they must atone The devil had promised a soul for a soulSo the clock maker is two hundred and eightBut the rest of the village don't live to see fortyFor the clock maker decides their fate A quarter til midnight a name is drawnFrom a box that's shrouded in blackThe angel of death leads them awayNever to bring them back The next time you see the clock makerBe sure to ask him  his ageBut if he smiles as the clock strikes twelvePrepare to pay him his wage