The Ballroom at the Center of the Dark

[INTRO — solo cello, then piccolo enters; no voice] [VERSE 1] [male] The chandeliers were lit before my grandfather was born The waitstaff at the entrance bowed and said there was no storm I heard the waltz before I saw the hall — a minor-key refrain A piccolo like laughter And beneath it, something strange [PRE-CHORUS] [male] A woman in white satin took my hand without a word She said the dancing is required — I thought it quite absurd But I saw their faces — not a single dancer rests And the floor beneath our feet It breathes [CHORUS] [male] Welcome to the ballroom at the center of the dark We have been dancing since before the universe grew a heart You may grow weary, you may wonder at the cost But the music must not stop The music must not stop [VERSE 2] [male] I asked the oldest dancer — he had powdered hair and rings He said: I danced for emperors, I danced for vanished kings I watched the constellations wheel, I watched the galaxies go dim He smiled and kept on dancing — never missed a step, not him [PRE-CHORUS] [male] But why, I asked — what happens if the orchestra falls quiet? He didn't break his rhythm, didn't pause to try it He simply pointed downward at the floor beneath our feet And I felt it — one long breath — in, out, complete [CHORUS] [male] Welcome to the ballroom at the center of the dark We have been dancing since before the universe grew a heart You may grow weary, you may wonder at the cost But the music must not stop The music must not stop [BRIDGE — dubstep wobble rises; cello drops low; piccolo falls silent] [male] Below the parquet, below the stone Below the dark between the stars Something older waits alone It does not dream of us It does not know our names But the rhythm of our footsteps Is the rhythm of its chains We are not prisoners here We are the lock and we are the key The last line of everything Between the universe and what it must not be [CHORUS] [male] Welcome to the ballroom at the center of the dark We have been dancing since the first collision struck a spark You think you've found a trap — you think there is mistake But if we ever stop — Azathoth awakes [OUTRO — male voice fades; female voice closes; cello last] [male] The woman in white satin smiled and took my other hand She said: you waltz quite beautifully for someone who just understands I asked her — how long have you been here? She said — [female] Since before the light The music never stops, my love Not tonight Not tonight ...not tonight