Beyond Thought and Time

[Violent descending polyrhythms, rushing air, collapsing stone] Long I fell, And he fell with me, Fire turning through the deep, Blade against shadow, Whip against lightning, No ground beneath my feet. Then black water struck us, Cold beneath the world, His flame died in the flood, But still he rose, A thing of darkness, Claw and fury, slime and blood. [Verse 1] He fled through tunnels without names, I followed where he led, Through roots no living dwarf had crossed, Through kingdoms of the dead. No stars above, No road behind, No witness to the fight, Only the task, My foe to find, Staying just out of sight. [Chorus] Beyond thought and time, Through water and flame, I followed the shadow That carried no name. From the roots of the world To the crown of the sky, One task before me: One of us dies. [The Endless Stair] [Ascending bass figure, shifting meters, relentless drums] The Endless Stair rose through the stone, A spiral without end, Step after step through breath and pain, I would not let him turn. Up through the dark, Up through the cold, Up where the storm winds cried, We broke through Durin’s Tower On the mountain’s frozen side. [Verse 2] On Zirakzigil we fought, From night through burning day, Lightning split the clouded height, And thunder rolled away. His darkness kindled back to fire, My strength was nearly gone, But still I stood, And still I struck, Until the final dawn. [Chorus] Beyond thought and time, Through water and flame, I followed the shadow That carried no name. From the roots of the world To the crown of the sky, One task before me: One of us dies. [Battle of the Peak] [Rapid double-kick, jagged ascending riff, orchestral strikes] [Harsh Vocals] You crawled from an age The world had buried deep, You fed upon terror, You murdered their sleep. No bridge remains, No passage denied, Only the mountain, And one of us dies. [Final Combat] [Music accelerates into a violent climax] I gathered the storm at the edge of my blade, The last of my strength in the judgment I made, I shattered his darkness, I broke through his flame, [Full-force scream] I THREW DOWN MY ENEMY! [Massive impact] And smote his ruin upon the mountain. [Death] [All percussion stops; wind, distant choir, one clean guitar note] The mountainside broke where his body fell, Stone rolled into the vale, My task was ended, My strength was spent, My breath began to fail. Naked I lay beneath the snow, No sound, no sight, no sign, The world passed out beyond my reach, Beyond thought and time. [A faint altered motif appears, cleaner and higher] Then thought returned. Then breath returned. Cold stone beneath my hand, The sky above, The sun restored, A voice beyond command. I had passed beyond all roads, Yet I was not released, Sent back until the work was done, Returned with strength increased. No grey remained, No weight of fear, No shadow held its right, I opened my eyes upon the peak And rose again in white. [Final Chorus] Beyond thought and time, Beyond death and flame, I followed the shadow And conquered its name. From the roots of the world To the crown of the sky, The Grey fell silent. The White arose.