GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Floating weeds in the sand
Gentle waves, water glass
Monkey put hand to oar
Then pushed off from the shore
Time had strayed far up stream
In this place made of dreams
He felt Goat far away
On the banks of yesterday

MONKEY:
And when the storms came, like thorns was the rain
I pushed through the wind of pain—
Your king was unafraid
Open a whirlpool as wide as the sky
No God could sink me—I’m too smart to die
Then a great wave splintered my boat
Chilling water filled my lungs
Darkened skiеs as far as I could see
The only light was lightning strikes
An angry bolt struck my body
Blacked out and swallowеd by the sea
When I came to I found myself
At the lowest realms of the deep
From within the murky clouds of darkness came a
Demon squid
A giant beak, so full of teeth
Tried to make her meal of me
I took her tentacles one by one and tied a knot
From a clam, I stole a bubble, full of air, and up I shot

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Good Goat, perched on a cliff
She kept watch all through the night
Monkey convulsed through his dream
Gripped by fear—and Good Goat wept
Monkey’s children, and their children
Come to witness, come to hear him
Courtesans had filled the chamber
Oxen, hares and stately tigers
Monkey’s chair a throne of silver
In his age he softly whispered:
‘Gather round and let me tell you
How I slayed the God of Thunder’
As he came up to the surface
Lightning rained electric curses
Covered was he in the squids ink
Too dark for the strikes to find him
The sky filled with iron antlers
Monkey climbed these bolts like ladders
Up until he reached the Cloud King
Pounding thunder down with his mallets
He took a spine from his bottom
Stuck there by a cursed urchin
And drove it through the King’s drum
The source of the spiteful thunder
The beaten god fled back to heaven
Monkey fell as the clouds parted
A hundred miles down through the sky
Just to land here, in paradise

MONKEY:
Greater Gods have come before me, all have failed to lay their harness
Now I sit here in my palace made from iridescent oysters
I found the end of the road I had followed
I find the world that you live in hollow
I took my thoughts and I made them real
Tell me the truth or I’ll make you disappear

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Patient Ox slowly came forward
A heavy yoke set on her shoulders
Without it she’d ascend to space
A bond to keep the meek in place

SAGE OX:
Humble Monkey, in his cloisters, worshipped by these living marbles
Some have purpose, others loiter, in the harmony of mortals
We all are kings in our own minds—go deeper to find the truth

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
And then a Tiger from the back of the room
Brought up her wares to pay tribute

TEA TOUT TIGER:
Please take this fine tea, my Dragon-Well
It shows the way into the sky
Beautiful beast, so full of fear
You are King, a dream of Tiger Spring

MONKEY:
Grandmother, lend me your stripes
Something to comfort me, through the long nights

TIGER:
Oh blinded King, enclosed by fear
Sat on his throne, afraid and alone
Won’t you take my mirror, and see what’s real?
See how the flesh clings to your bones

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Monkey looked through the tiger’s glass and saw the body he’d left in the tree
He had grown frail, he had grown weak, his fear dripped like blood from the tiger’s teeth

TIGER:
How you imagine yourself to be
Is not the Monkey that others see
The only heaven is humility

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Monkey looked around
All his guests were gone
He had no clothes on
An old tree stump for a throne
All that remained of his once proud kingdom-
One cup of tea, of the finest composition
He looked deep into the cup and no face stared back
Just a few dark green leaves at the bottom
He took a great big sip, worthy of a sage
He felt the world around him begin to fade
His mind rushed off then to a different place
He remembered that in life, there is only change

THOUSAND YEAR OLD MONKEY:
I’ve been waiting for you for a thousand years
I let my body waste away to feed the tears
Two pieces of driftwood that washed up on the same shore
Let’s watch the sunset, there’s no more time left
Come sit down next to me under the banyan tree
My friend
Tell me the tale again of how we came to be
So happy

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Monkey came to in a forest
Tea Tout Tiger sat there waiting
Dragon Mountain rose before them
Like a temple made from darkness
Dark smoke from the summit rose up to meet the clouds
The well in Tiger Spring, built atop the gateway to the sky
Tiger led the way down a path laid through the trees
Eyes watched them in silence, lit like stars on all sides
They beat through the bush for a time that felt like days
Monkey had grown green stripes on his skin as camouflage
The ancient god that lived inside the mountain saw them clear
The eyes came closer
The forest grew hotter
An army of terrible lizards

MONKEY:
What did I take?
What was in that tea?
Has my mind gone
Or is all of this real

TIGER:
It’s as real as your mind allows it to be
The lizards can smell a head full of fear

MONKEY:
What good’s a face
If you can’t save your soul
I feel a snake
Run through my bowls

TIGER:
I said I’d take you to the gate
The peak of the mountain is the only way

MONKEY:
I’m running as fast
As my paws can bear
A lizard has bit me!
I can’t escape

TIGER:
Get on my back, even old tigers are fast
I’ll carry your grace the rest of the way

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Good Goat, under the tree
Which cradled Monkey tight to his dream
Fought off wolves and coyotes
She stomped her hooves and bared her teeth
Vultures could smell her blood in the air
Violence came, Good Goat stayed

GOOD GOAT:
Monkey please, find what you need
Wake up soon so we can leave

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
The lizards came closer still
Snapping out at the Tiger’s tail
One drew blood from the Sage
The forest awoke in a cloud of rage
From the earth came the Dragons sentries
A growing horde of bipedal snakes
Who kept the Lord Wyvern safe
From those who would disturb her rest
Monkey found a tiny shell
In the space behind his ear
The only piece that hadn’t perished
Of his cherished House of Mirrors
From the folds of the nautilus
Spilled the sound of his own voices
Other Monkeys from the past
Wisps of memory came spilling out
Behind them, just a blur of teeth
The Ancient Tiger could barely breathe
Monkey urged Grandmother
Not to falter while he conjured
Monkeys tremors shook the tree
From the pressures of his dream
Packs of dogs, hungry for blood
Drawn by death, his final breath
Monkey’s nightmare spilled from his mouth
A dreadful spirit made of sound
All the beasts who had come to feast
Heard the cry and ran for their lives
Tiger could run no more
She slumped to the ground, lizards all around
Monkey tore off all his tails
And into each a phantom bore
Now his ghosts had solid form
How they ran at the lizard swarm
Into the trees, the lizards chased
The imposter phantoms, while the trickster escaped
Monkey raced up the mountains
Leaving Tiger to her rest
The apparitions formed a ring
Around the Sage, so she could heal
All was quiet at the summit
A plume of smoke came from the well

MONKEY:
This must be where the world ends
And where I begin, this Holy Mountain
Den of the Dragon, my escort to Heaven
No creature on this earth has gone as high as I’ve been
These wisps of cloud overhead
Must be the hem of Paradise
Bad memories that brought me here
Float away like twigs on the river, to nowhere
In this holy place, Gods, reveal my face
Who did you create in the image of a monkey?
Down the Dragon Well, to my destiny
In the mirror world—see me as I truly am
I have come so far
I have climbed so high
I have conquered my mind
I deserve the sky

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
In the dawn of a cold morning
Mist rose from the Tiger Spring
Monkey climbed into the ancient well
He bid his old life farewell

MONKEY:
And down I go into the world of the unknown
Who I will find when I arrive, I cannot know
I remember in the village
Our lives were so calm and tranquil
Chasing Good Goat
Through green fields and rivers
The dangers of the world
Obscured by our innocence
Now I must wander this cursed realm
The dwelling of demons, monsters and spells
Life was so simple, the world was so kind
I threw that away, for the depths of a well
On I go, there is no choice

GOOD GOAT:
Monkey, can you hear me?
Tell me if I should leave
I miss our life back home
I miss our family

FALLEN DRAGON:
Good child, are you the one
Who’s come to find the gate of gods?
Beneath my crown of dust
A geyser churns—your heaven will burn
Do not be amazed
When you behold the true Dragon
They make heroes out of those who can pass
The way that we go is up to your soul
From this place there is no turning back
You have entered the threshold but not crossed through
The door
Do you know what you hope to find?
Have you made peace in your mind
We all find ourselves, at the gate
But do you know what you really are?
Who comes out when you see yourself in the face of
The mirror
When the snake feeds on itself
Will the juice be worth the squeeze?

MONKEY:
I have rode upon the Tiger’s back
I have crossed the dreaded night alone
I have left my body for the crows
The only piece that remains is my soul
I have turned my back to all I know
I will ride your scales up through the clouds
I will gaze upon Harmony’s glass
And I will see my own face staring back

DRAGON:
Can you call the river to flow back to her spring?
Pity, young trickster, you don’t know a thing

GOLDEN FISHERMAN:
Monkey ran at the dragon, that great slumbering beast
He tried to jump upon her back, to make the god his seat
The dragon rose from beneath her dust
As Monkey flew through the air
Then Monkey did pass through a gate
But the gate was made of teeth

DRAGON:
You’ve already made the choice
You’re already in the belly of the beast
Your time flows like a snake
It constricts, there is no escape

GOLDEN FISHERMAN - CHRIS COLOHAN, JONAH FALCO, MIKE HALIECHUK
MONKEY - DAMIAN ABRAHAM
GOOD GOAT - TUKA MOHAMMED
COILED KING RAT - DAN BEJAR
SAGE OX - CARSON MCHONE (RECORDED BY DANIEL ROMANO)
TEA TOUT TIGER - ANNIE-CLAUDE DESCHÊNES
THOUSAND YEAR OLD MONKEY - KEITH MORRIS (RECORDED BY PAUL ROESSLER)
FALLEN DRAGON - SALLY MORREADORA