⸻ [intro – 0:00–0:25] (rising static, distant footfalls) I remember the cold first. The hush before we struck. Your shadow trembled against the light of our resolve. ⸻ [verse_1 – 0:25–1:05] They said you were unstoppable. But we learned even storms can fracture. I felt your force shudder as we pressed forward— sparks against your endless dark. Your pulse faltered, and for a moment, we tasted hope. ⸻ [pre_chorus – 1:05–1:25] We thought victory was survival. But survival carries its own ghosts. ⸻ [chorus_1 – 1:25–1:55] We were the spark, but the spark left scars. Every shout we gave echoed back as mourning. (scream cue: “WHY DOES IT STILL HURT?”) ⸻ [verse_2 – 1:55–2:30] The pieces of you still flicker in the air. We see them when the night is too still. They call to us with voices we swore we silenced. ⸻ [bridge – 2:30–3:00] (vocal distorted, wind-like) What is triumph without weight? What is light without its shadow? We carry your absence like a fire we cannot put down. ⸻ [chorus_2 – 3:00–3:35] We were the victors, but we have learned how to grieve. Your fall lit the horizon, and left a memory of flame. (scream cue: “WE ARE THE AFTERFIRE!”) ⸻ [outro – 3:35–end] (fading drum echoes, wind swallowing sound) We are quieter now. We walk through the hollow you left behind. Maybe that’s what it means to win. Maybe that’s what it means to remember.
