Moving On to the Calm Before the Storm (track 6 in my post-apocalyptic story)

[Verse 1] Dust on the windshield, cornfields gone gray 182 winters since the sky burned away Thornton grips the yoke, hands cracked and lean Trading black soil for a desert dream Ralph stares back east where the homestead lies small Sold it all, Jean whispers, "We sold it all..." [Chorus] Fly west, fly hard, on rotors and rage Trading roots for a promise on a war-torn stage From Illinois clay to Nevada's dead sand Fly west, fly hard, leave the heartland behind With a curse on his lips and a vengeance in mind [Verse 2] Nineteen years old with a rifle's cold weight John Sheely remembers the mercenaries' hate The farmhouse burning, the screams in the dark Now he charts courses where the coyotes bark Twenty years pass in a sun-bleached haze Building barracks under the Mojave's gaze Peace? Just a breather 'tween the gunfire cracks He sharpens his tongue on the enlisted men's backs [Bridge] Thornton watches from the barracks gate Sees the fury twisting, sees the boy's own fate That farm boy's ghost drowned in command Replaced by a storm with rank on his hand The desert don't care if you're righteous or right It just grinds your bones into the endless night [Chorus] Fly west, fly hard, on rotors and rage Trading roots for a promise on a war-torn stage From Illinois clay to Nevada's dead sand A Major's star rising on a merciless land Fly west, fly hard, leave the heartland behind With a curse on his lips and a vengeance in mind [Guitar Solo] [Verse 3] The flag snaps in the Southern California wind Another patrol where the ambushes begin Sheely's voice cracks like a whip down the line "Move your fuckin' asses or I'll leave you behind!" Thornton sips bad coffee, tastes the grit and the cost The farm's quiet rhythm forever lost In the Major's cold eyes, where the fury still dwells Lives the echo of mercenaries and prairie farewells [Outro] Fly west... fly hard... Rotors beat... like a scarred-up heart... Illinois ashes... on Nevada stone... The farm is gone... But the rage... It just... Grows..