[The Hollow Ascent] [ Intro ] The wind hums a low drone across the valley floor. The Seeker eyes the summit, reaching for something more. A distant vibration rattles stones beneath the boots. The Absent Echo pulls at deep and ancient roots. [ Verse 1 ] The Seeker climbs the limestone stairs toward the jagged peak. Above the ridge, a golden crown begins to glow and leak. Each step is heavy as the humming starts to grow, Leaving gravel paths and darkened vales below. [ Pre-Chorus 1 ] The air is thinning out and pulling at the skin, Gravity is fading as the melody begins. [ Chorus 1 ] The higher we go, the further we fall, The sound of the glory is no sound at all. We reach for the summit to conquer the night, But colors are traded for blinding white. [ Verse 2 ] The Seeker reaches out to touch the ringing in the sky, A velvet storm of frequencies begins to multiply. The Absent Echo pulses like a heartbeat in the heat, The mountain starts to tremble under weary, calloused feet. [ Pre-Chorus 2 ] The air is thinning out and pulling at the skin, Gravity is fading as the melody begins. [ Chorus 2 ] The higher we go, the further we fall, The sound of the glory is no sound at all. We reach for the summit to conquer the night, But colors are traded for blinding white. [Instrumental Break - Blazing Electric Guitar Solo] [ Bridge ] A wall of white distortion hits us like a tidal wave, A crushing roar of thunder from a deep and sunless cave. The wall of sound shatters into bone-dry air, Silence is a hammer and the Seeker’s stripped and bare. [ Verse 3 ] The sharp hiss of static fills the inner ear, The light has faded out into a gray and frozen fear. The Seeker stands alone inside a vast and hollow room, The Absent Echo withers in the shadow of the gloom. [ Pre-Chorus 3 ] The air is thinning out and pulling at the skin, Gravity is fading as the melody begins. [ Final Chorus ] The higher we go, the further we fall, The weight of the silence is greater than all. We climbed to the summit to find we’re alone, And turned every mountain to cold, jagged stone. [ Outro ] Nothing left but static in the hall. A cold expanse of silence after all. Waiting for the echo that never comes. Lost within the quiet that finally numbs.
