[Intro — Narrator, dry mic, close] April twelve — the harbor lit — a cannonball rewrote the script [Verse 1] Before the smoke had cleared the bay they'd named the terms of war Confederate flags on Union soil — we'd seen this move before Major Anderson held the fort with fifty men and prayer The shore was ringed with rebel guns — fire in the morning air No declaration — no debate — just powder, fuse, and flame A nation split along a line that history had to name [Hook — Repeat ×3] Fort Sumter — first light, first shot, first cost Fort Sumter — the Union held but freedom wasn't lost [Verse 2] Four years of blood would follow that April morning's spark From Beauregard to Lincoln — the republic in the dark The enslaved looked northward — holding breath — what does this rupture mean The ballot hadn't saved them yet — the bullet set the scene [Bridge — forward link] Two centuries removed — we still count the cost of moments when democracy decides what can't be lost Every vote suppressed — every voice erased — echoes of that harbor — freedom still displaced [Outro — Baritone, measured, one breath] The first shot ain't the last shot — it's just the opening clause
