Kaeryn Emberforge — “The Road Leads Warm”

(FEMALE LEAD — warm, grounded, road-worn confidence) Verse 1 Cold wind biting through the pass Ash and snow beneath my tracks Hammer on my shoulder swings Fire still alive in me Old roads carved through pine and stone Long enough to call their own Every scar and every flame Still remembers where it came (LOW DWARVEN CHORUS — soft underneath) Ho… carry the fire Ho… carry it home Verse 2 Wagons groaning through the night Campfires pushing back the white Songs rise higher after pain Steel rings clearer in the rain Met a hunter missing hands Forged him iron where they’d been Met a widow dressed in black Sang her sorrow off her back (FEMALE LEAD — stronger) Some build walls and call them crowns Some burn whole damn kingdoms down But I was born beside the flame To build what still remains (CHORUS — FEMALE LEAD + DWARVEN CHORUS) The road leads warm Though winter bites Carry the ember through the night Hammer rings And voices rise Fire still living in our eyes The road leads warm Though miles divide No traveler walks the dark alone tonight If the wolves still guard the hall Then the fire still calls (FORGE HAMMER RHYTHM) Verse 3 Saw the banners through the snow Golden lights against the cold Laughter pouring from the doors Like I’d heard it all before Armor broken stacked outside Blades awaiting second life By the forge I found my place Smoke and song and scarred old faces (DWARVEN CHORUS — louder) Ho… feed the fire Ho… hold the line (FEMALE LEAD — emotional warmth) Nobody asked me what I’d been Nobody cared where I had been Just another chair pulled wide Another mug set by the fire (CHORUS — FULL) The road leads warm Though winter bites Carry the ember through the night Hammer rings And voices rise Fire still living in our eyes The road leads warm Though miles divide No traveler walks the dark alone tonight If the wolves still guard the hall Then the fire still calls (BRIDGE — softer, forge-harp and fire ambience) I have slept beneath dead stars Walked through more graves than taverns Still the smallest spark survives If somebody keeps it alive (FEMALE LEAD — quiet warmth) Maybe that is all we are Just wandering hands around the dark Keeping one more fire lit So the night won’t swallow it (FINAL CHORUS — huge tavern energy) The road leads warm So raise them high For every soul that survived the night Hammer rings And stories grow Like embers buried under snow The road leads warm And now I know Some fires are not meant to burn alone If the wolves still guard the hall Then I finally made it home