[Intro – Instrumental] (Driving low strings, dry drums, muted brass pulses) [Verse 1 – Monkey:] I climbed past names I never knew, Past broken vows I stepped right through, Up here the air is thin but clean, No small mistakes, no past between, They shout below, they point, they blame, But height rewrites the rules of shame. [Verse 2 – Monkey:] You call it theft, I call it gain, You call it hurt, I call it chain, Every rung was earned in sweat, I won’t apologize for debt, If someone fell along my way, That’s how the ladder learns to stay. [Pre-Chorus – Choir:] The higher climbs forget the ground Until the ground comes back around [Chorus:] [Monkey:] I stand above, I stand alone The view is mine, the crown my own [Verse 3 – Monkey:] They talk of “right,” they talk of “fair,” As if the world was built with care, No—strength decides who gets the sky, The rest just watch the strong go by, I didn’t force their hands to fail, I just refused to drag their tail. [Bridge – Warnings:] [Bee:] Turn back now [Mortar:] You stand on weight [Chestnut:] The heat draws near [Monkey:] You’re all too late [Breakdown – Monkey:] I hear the noise, I hear the doubt, But up here silence drowns it out, If guilt exists, it can’t climb this far, It breaks below the rising star. [Final Section:] [Choir:] Steps align, the circle closes [Crab:] I do not come with threat or claw I come with memory and law [Outro:] [Choir:] The height holds still The breath runs thin The fall begins Before it’s seen
