JOUSTING WINDMILLS [Verse 1] I keep a lance where the rifles go, A cracked old visor and a long way home, They say, “That ain’t a giant, boy, That’s gears and steel and background noise.” Maybe they're right — hell, usually are, But I've never been good at leaving scars On somebody else's map of where A sane man stops and quits right there. Got another red light on the console glow, Another bad idea saying, Here we go. Fuel runs low, but the drive still spins— I keep picking fights I don't have to win. [Pre-Chorus] Maybe I see monsters Where everybody else sees mills. But something's gotta turn against the wind When everything stands still. [Chorus] So I'm jousting with windmills At the edge of Stanton tonight, Tilting at shadows with six guns hot And a half-dead ship in flight. Every giant gets taller Every year that I survive, But I'd rather break my lance against one Than watch it pass me by. Call me crazy, call me stubborn, Say I'm chasing what ain't real— I've spent my whole damn life Jousting windmills. [Verse 2] Used to think the fight was out in black, Pirates ahead and the Ranch at my back, Something you could paint with a targeting lock, Burn through shields and watch it drop. Turns out giants don't always bleed, Some wear clocks, some answer to greed, Some look like promises made upstairs, Then handed down like nobody cares. Some are bills on a kitchen table, Some are being the one who's always able, Some are people saying, “You're strong, you'll manage,” While quietly adding another damn package. And I still saddle up. God knows why. [Pre-Chorus] Maybe Sancho had the better sense, Maybe Quixote had the better view— 'Cause sometimes knowing it's just a windmill Don't change what it's doing to you. [Chorus] So I'm jousting with windmills At the edge of Stanton tonight, Tilting at shadows with six guns hot And a half-dead ship in flight. Every giant gets taller Every year that I survive, But I'd rather break my lance against one Than watch it pass me by. Call me crazy, call me stubborn, Say I'm chasing what ain't real— I've spent my whole damn life Jousting windmills. [Bridge] Rocinante wasn't much to look at. Neither am I some days. Armor chipped, paint burned black, Still pointing the wrong damn way. Maybe courage ain't believing Every monster that you see. Maybe it's knowing it's a windmill And charging anyway. Because somebody said, Can't. Somebody said, Leave it. Somebody said, That's just how it is. Yeah. I've heard that one before. [Final Chorus] I'm still jousting with windmills, Put the crosshair on the sky, One more giant on the scanner, One more reason not to die. Let the whole damn 'Verse keep turning, Let them laugh until it hurts— I've been thrown from better horses, I've crawled out of darker dirt. And if someday they find the wreckage Where my last transmission ends, Tell 'em I knew they were windmills. I just fought 'em like giants instead. [Outro] Engines cooling. Morning coming. Another silhouette appears. ...Alright. Lower the lance.
