Regina mortis

[Intro – distant whispers + vinyl crackle] (reversed voices, barely audible) “Hel… Hel… dóttir… neðan…” [Verse I] I walk the rib-road, frost in my lungs Nine worlds dim where her silence is sung A crown of stillness, a gaze that unthreads The pulse from the living, the warmth from the dead Her breath is a blizzard that never forgets Her touch is a ledger of unpayable debts Half of her beauty still beckons the flame Half of her kingdom remembers your name [Pre-Chorus – whispers + rising violin] She waits where the marrow forgets how to burn She smiles when the lost finally learn [Chorus – layered harmonies + pitch modulation] Hel, O queen beneath the bone Half of ash and half of throne Call my spirit, split me whole Claim the silence in my soul Hel, where all the endings dwell Fold me in your frozen veil No release and no return Only stillness left to earn [Verse II] Feast without hunger, sleep without dream Eyes open wide in a lifeless gleam The gate stands silent, the hound does not bark Time is a wound that decays in the dark She weaves no mercy, she promises none Not cruel, not kind, just the end being done Your name is a stone in her infinite hall And every last echo is swallowed in all [Ritual Chant Section – call & response] (deep male/female layered choir, cavernous reverb) Call: “Hel regina mortis, voca nos infra” Response: “Sub terra manemus, aeternum, aeternum” Call: “Dóttir Loka, tak oss niður” Response: “Í myrkri dvölum, til enda tíð” [Breakdown – percussion only, breath + chants] (no melody, just drums, stomps, rattles, breath) Blood to earth Breath to frost Name erased Memory lost (whispered, layered, chaotic) “Hel… Hel… Hel…” Bone to dust Flesh undone All returns All is one (chant rises, polyrhythmic overlap) “Infra! Infra! Regina! Hel!” [Final Chorus – full fusion: chants + harsh vocals] Hel, O queen beneath the bone Half of grave and half of throne Tear the fire from my veins Crown me in your endless reign Hel, where all the lost are sealed Truth no living tongue revealed Take the breath I cannot keep Lay me in your deathless sleep (choir underneath, repeating) “Aeternum… aeternum… Hel…” [Outro – violin + fading whispers] (soft, almost tender) Half of her mourns… Half never cared…