[Verse 1 — approaching level 2, the crew feeling it]
The pressure changed before the border did
Aldric checked his scrolls three times then checked again
The Hunter said “I’ve felt worse” which might have been a lie
The Hero said “I’ve felt worse” which was definitely a lie
The Queen said nothing but she slowed her pace
Castor kept his hand close to his side
SOLARA felt the fold before she saw it
Something thick, like the air was being tried
[Pre-Chorus 1]
And at the gate stood two of them
Not tall, not terrifying
Just — standing there
Looking very official
Which was already suspicious
[Chorus — the first real pressure of the journey]
Into the void
Where the numbers don’t mean what they meant before
Into the void
Where the walls of the known become a floor
Into the void
We felt it in our chest before we saw the gate
Into the void
And the only ones between us and the next level
Were Spida and Catipala
[Verse 2 — Spida and Catipala, the gatekeepers]
Spida had a clipboard and a very serious face
Catipala had a hat that was a little too big
They looked at SOLARA like they’d seen someone like her before
“Name?” said Spida
“Purpose?” said Catipala
“And do you have the form from Level One Receiving?”
There was a pause
“There’s a form?” said The Hero
[Pre-Chorus 2 — the negotiation begins]
Spida conferred with Catipala
Catipala conferred with the hat
The hat offered no guidance
Which tracked
[Chorus 2]
Into the void
Where the numbers don’t mean what they meant before
Into the void
Where the paperwork apparently matters
Into the void
The Hunter tried to look authorized
Into the void
Aldric produced a document — wrong universe, correct confidence
[Bridge — the weird story that somehow works]
Catipala leaned in close and whispered —
“Is it true you were at the Third Gathering of the Southern Fold?”
SOLARA had no idea what that was.
Castor had no idea what that was.
The Hunter absolutely had no idea but nodded slowly.
“I KNEW it,” said Catipala. “Spida, she was THERE.”
Spida gasped.
The Hero said “We all were, actually”
The Queen closed her eyes briefly.
Aldric wrote something down.
[Final Chorus — they’re through]
Into the void
Level two opens like a question nobody asked
Into the void
The pressure doubles and Aldric says “fascinating”
Into the void
The Hunter and The Hero are already arguing about the gathering
Into the void
Nobody knows what the Third Gathering of the Southern Fold is
Into the void
But they are in
And Spida waves goodbye like they’re old friends
[Outro]
“What IS the Third Gathering of the Southern Fold?”
“I don’t know.”
“You nodded.”
“I nod when I’m buying time.”
(The Queen): “It worked.”
(long pause)
”…It worked.”
---────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────