[Verse 1 – Morning] Oh bright is the market at morning’s call, the merchants are shouting above the wall. Gold on the scales and bread on the fire, the streets are alive with every desire. Children laugh, and the bells all sing, praises rise for the Light, the King. Yet shadows linger behind the cheer, whispers of bargains we’d rather not hear. [Chorus] O city of splendor, O city of sin, your gates are wide, yet none leave within. By dawn you are holy, by dusk you decay, yet still we smile and call it the way. [Verse 2 – Noon] The noonday sun on the temple shines, priests with their prayers, their holy lines. But under the steps, a hand is paid, a thief finds shelter, a deal is made. The wine flows heavy, the laughter loud, but eyes grow sharper among the crowd. The Light burns bright, but the embers glow, of Bairal’s servants, lurking below. [Chorus] O city of splendor, O city of sin, your gates are wide, yet none leave within. By dawn you are holy, by dusk you decay, yet still we smile and call it the way. [Verse 3 – Sunset] At sunset the walls are crimson-stained, the cries of the merchants grow tired, strained. A noble’s feast with a beggar’s hunger, a hymn for the Light, but the song sounds younger. For in every alley, the dice still fall, and in every prayer, there’s a hidden call. The twilight’s sweet, yet bitter it stays, as day gives way to darker ways. [Chorus] O city of splendor, O city of sin, your gates are wide, yet none leave within. By dawn you are holy, by dusk you decay, yet still we smile and call it the way. [Verse 4 – Midnight] Now midnight tolls with a crooked chime, the saints are sleeping, the devils climb. The torches flicker, the doors all close, and truth is bared where the dark wind blows. A prayer for salvation, a pact for might, the city is torn ‘twixt shadow and light. And I, just a minstrel, laugh as I say: We all play both sides, it’s the city’s way. [Final Chorus] O city of splendor, O city of sin, your gates are wide, yet none leave within. By dawn you are holy, by dusk you decay, yet still we smile and call it the way.
