[INTRO — WARM GROVE 6/8 ~86 BPM | DREADNOUGHT: 1–3–5–6 | brushed snare] [WOOD FLUTE: 1–2–4–5–♭7 | NO 3RD] [MALE — Jack, weathered baritone] Verse 1 — The Ridge We saw them from the southern ridge Where snow met living green. At first I thought the ground was moving. Horace handed me the glass. No banners. No formation. Nothing living moves that slow. Thousands walking shoulder-close Through twenty feet of snow. [RESONATOR enters: low ♭2→1] Brayden whispered, “More behind them.” I didn't ask how he knew. Verse 2 — Riders [6/8 DARKENS | scale: 1–♭2–♭3–4–♭5–5–6] Shapes moved round the outer edges, Mounted figures, pale and tall. Never spoke. Never hurried. Never seemed to move at all. One turned toward the timber. Stopped. Then started for the grove. Coley lowered field glasses. “That son of a bitch sees us.” Old woman: “No. Now he does.” Verse 3 — The Shot [ALL THIN | heartbeat kick] Nervous rifle cracked behind us. Bullet struck him center mass. Coat kicked once. He didn't stumble. Didn't slow. Just turned his head. [RESONATOR: ♭2—HOLD] Old woman said, “Stay inside.” Coley: “I can get a better shot.” Jack: “Coley—” But he stepped beyond the timber, Raised his rifle— [HARD STOP] Verse 4 — Coley [FREE TIME] One moment Coley stood there. Next— he didn't. Steel flashed pale beneath the moon. Coley folded in the snow. [LONG SILENCE] Jack raised his gun. Old woman: “Don't.” She walked past him. No hurry. Black glass knife already drawn. Verse 5 — Black Glass [WOOD FLUTE: 1–2–4] Pale Rider turned to meet her. Raised that long and colorless blade. She moved once. Her arm came forward. [ALL STOP] Black glass crossed the space between. [ONE SHARP IMPACT] [RESONATOR: ♭5→5] Crack ran white across his chest. Then another. Then a hundred. Pale face broke. Black coat broke. Horse and rider fractured— [PAUSE] Like a window in the cold. [GLASS-LIKE PERCUSSIVE FALL] Nothing left but pieces. Verse 6 — Coley [VERY SPARSE | DREADNOUGHT] Jack stepped toward his friend. Old woman blocked the way. “We bring him in.” “No.” “He's one of mine.” “Not anymore.” Jack stared at her. “What does that mean?” She looked toward the pieces. Then toward Coley. “Burn him.” [WOOD FLUTE: 1–2–4—] Jack understood. Didn't want to. But understood. Refrain [LOW 6/8 RETURNS] Black glass. Black glass. Led went through like rain. One blade found the thing beneath And broke it all the same. Thousands walking southward. Pale men riding slow. [RESONATOR: ♭2→1] Now we know what doesn't work. [WOOD FLUTE: 4→5] And one thing that does. Verse 7 — Jack Takes Command [6/8 FIRMER | DREADNOUGHT driving] Coley burned before the sunset. Nobody had much to say. Jack watched smoke climb through the branches, Then turned his face away. “How long before that army reaches settled ground?” Old woman: “Months.” Horace exhaled. Jack shook his head. “Then months is what we've got.” He looked around at all the Crows. “Pack everything. We ride tonight.” Nobody asked who gave the order. Verse 8 — Seven Going South Horace: “We're coming.” Jack: “No.” Elena: “Yes.” Jack looked toward Brayden. Boy was already wearing his coat. Jack: “Bray—” Brayden: “Sarah thinks I'm dead.” That ended that. [RESONATOR: warm 5→6] Seven Crows. Horace. Elena. Brayden. One empty saddle. They rode out from the grove. Bridge — A Weapon [4/4 begins underneath 6/8 — transitional pulse] [Male — Jack] “Rifles don't kill them.” Horace: “No.” “Black glass does.” “Yes.” Jack stared at the old woman's knife. Then at the shotgun on his saddle. A thought arrived. [TELECASTER: 1–♭3–4–5–6] “Then we need black glass we can throw farther.” Horace looked at him. “How much?” Jack glanced north. “Enough.” Verse 9 — The Quarry [SHIFT → HARD 4/4 ~92 BPM] Elena knew the old lava country. Horace knew the Seven well. “There are outcrops west of Granite.” “Small.” “Black Ridge?” “Picked clean.” Then one Crow said, “There's a quarry.” Jack: “Where?” Nobody answered. Jack looked around. “Where?” Horace finally said it. “Crown Junction.” [LOW TELECASTER: ♭5→5] Jack laughed once. Of course. Final Refrain [HARD FRONTIER 4/4] Black glass. Black glass. Find it, then ride south. Long Dark crawling down behind us. Warning in our mouths. Sarah needs to hear it. Every county needs to know. Thousands of the dead are walking— And something rides beside them. Outro [DRUMS DROP] Jack looks back once. Far beyond the trees, a black line moves across the snow. Slow. Patient. South. [Male — Jack] “Coley would've hated missing this.” Horace: “What?” Jack mounts. “Me being in charge.” [small pause] Horace: “He'd have complained.” Jack: “Constantly.” [WOOD FLUTE: 1–2–4–5] [RESONATOR: ♭2→1] Jack: “Let's go home.” [CUT]
