Empire of Scrap

[Intro]
[angular clean guitar arpeggios, sparse whimsical cello]

[Verse 1]
Bin number seven had a crack in the seam
Labeled "defective," unfit for the team
Screws with stripped threads, a mismatched gauge
A buckled steel plate from an outdated stage
They swept us aside, we didn't fit the design
But copper and carbon still hold a straight line
I gathered the scrap on the hangar floor
Built a lock for the hatch and a heavy steel door

[Chorus]
[heavy syncopation, polyrhythmic full-band surge]
But look at this hull, a patchwork of scars
This beautiful wreck is bound for the stars!
The pristine and polished will burn in the blue
While we slip the gravity they welded us to
We're climbing, we're shifting, we're breaking the mold
An empire of scrap turning slowly to gold!

[Verse 2]
The thrusters are crooked, the radar is blind
But they track a horizon they left far behind
No blueprint could map how these fractures align
To navigate depths of a different design
My flaws are the welds, my errors the fuel
We don't need the grace of a draftsman's rule

[Chorus]
[heavy syncopation, polyrhythmic full-band surge]
But look at this hull, a patchwork of scars
This beautiful wreck is bound for the stars!
The pristine and polished will burn in the blue
While we slip the gravity they welded us to
We're climbing, we're shifting, we're breaking the mold
An empire of scrap turning slowly to gold!

[Outro]
[mournful cello countermelody, crashing cymbals fading to Rhodes piano]
Into the cold black...
The rejects are flying.
We're finally flying.
[End]