1. |
The Empty Throne
03:20
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Floating through
a stone-arched window,
landing softly on my feet,
I feel gravity
take hold of me.
Golden circles embed
decorate the floor,
and an empty elaborate throne
is at their core.
I ascend steps
adorned in violet silk
and brush away the dust
upon the throne's seat.
Libra's insignia,
gold and crisp,
reveals itself
and glows teal at my touch...
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2. |
Wandering Forth
04:23
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The circles flip
one by one,
trading gold for onyx,
lined with symbols
so ancient,
their colour identical
to the throne's sign
and my crystal heart.
Bathed in light,
then I'm covered in garments
medieval and elegant.
A doorway appears,
outlined in stone,
and flashes once,
showing a sunlit hall beyond.
Following the silken path,
I step out onto a spiraling stair,
going ever downwards.
Pushing open a wooden door,
and caught by the sight
of High Society
milling about.
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3. |
A Grand Promenade
03:34
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Long flags and rooves
reaching toward a blue sky,
grand dresses and flowing capes,
robes embroidered with silver
and jewels.
And all are gazing at me,
bows and curtsies surrounding.
A choir of horns rings out,
as a severely royal-dressed man,
with an angular crown of gold,
walks into the square.
Greeted with a lively and kind hand
adorned in rings,
and a smile,
I'm led toward the main castle,
polished and grand.
He's been waiting for me,
prepared a room for me
and a throne for me.
But what of the Guardian,
the Scales of Balance?
No trace of them yet,
and I decide not to ask
this convenient king.
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4. |
Faint Hauntings
03:51
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Served with a feast
of a table stacked high,
an arched ceiling and mosaic windows
touching the sky,
I enjoy morsels
big and small,
though I'm inwardly suspicious
through it all.
A hint of a whisp
from a second-floor balcony...
Guided through with the king
and his subjects
to the grand armoury,
metal glinting and reflecting
chandelier light,
and a labyrinthine library,
books and tomes covering
every inch of wall,
until we finally all sit
in a stone theatre,
in the dimly-lit glow.
Another faint whisp,
a soft hum, too,
from the doors behind me,
noticed by none of the crew...
And after a short dessert,
I'm led to my room,
draped with violet velvet
and a candle-lit gloom.
I toss and turn in a sleep
that escapes me,
then a soft voice and a glowing mist beckons...
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5. |
Sleepless Steps
04:10
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Into the maze of ink, paper, and cloth
once more,
on a different path than
that smiling façade-led tour.
Then the ghostly glow
covers the spine
of an unassuming tome,
which I lift to find
Libra's signature.
The truth of his absence,
and the origins of the castle,
of how the king's rule
had become a hassle,
sending those deemed unworthy
below the surface.
Now none of the enslaved
could remember their worth,
for memories were lost,
captured by the usurper
and his cruel curse.
The book-covered wall
slides back to reveal
a stair spiraling down,
and I follow its steps
without a sound
to a door large and ancient,
of wood and stone.
At my touch,
it gives way
and swings forth to show
a dark, lamp-lit, and cold
stone corridor.
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6. |
The Buried Ones
05:45
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Stillness pervades
as my trepidating feet
wander ever forth,
curious about what I'd find.
Into a cavernous centre
I stumble,
gears and machineries,
giant and minuscule,
covering all I see,
sit still and lifeless,
caked in rust.
I reach out to touch one
when a cautionary voice
calls out.
A man in tattered clothes,
eyes near-black from dilated pupils,
evidence of living in the darkness
for so long.
He seems suspicious,
about to scold,
but he sees my glowing heart
and smiles, his face no longer cold.
He's been waiting for one foretold
since times old,
that would come and restore
the Guardian to the fold.
Yet sadness casts itself
upon his face,
for he and his people
still feel a disgrace.
I assure him to hold on
to hope and his worth,
and ask where the others
are hiding in this forgotten berth.
They come from behind
the gears and the walls
and surround me, all.
Then the man hands over a book,
much like the one in the castle,
and I'm shown the rest
of the truth
and an ancient test,
from before rich and poor.
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7. |
What Must Be United
03:17
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At the start,
there was a wide plain,
no castle
or royal title
to rule the rest,
just the Scale of Balance
and golden promise.
So then the people
grew and grew,
sought after the truth,
and built homes
made of marble and stone.
Two were chosen
to keep the balance
and symmetry.
One is the king of the castle
who became unfair and a hassle,
and the other is the the man underneath,
who lost his people's worth and memory.
I must unite them now,
and show both sides how
to be one again,
to be kind again.
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8. |
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A presence awakens
far above the ceiling,
at the very top of the palace.
I feel it calling out to me,
so I promise my return
and run through the cold hall,
up the stairwell.
Gone is the stillness
of before,
now the marching of metal feet
echoes at each door.
The king must've felt
that awakening, too,
longing to silence it,
to further bury the truth.
So I creep behind statues
and long curtains,
making my way near the attic steps.
A guard, mighty and tall,
stands stock-still near,
moving not at all.
Then I suddenly feel led
to his side,
called by a force
beyond all the lies.
He demands my intentions,
and instead of a lie,
I tell him the truth I've discovered
throughout this night.
He mentions his brother,
who he lot long ago
to the king's wick law
and sinister ego,
then tells me to hurry,
to rush up the stairs
and rescue the denizens' memory.
So I wander ever upwards,
towards the growing sunlight...
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9. |
Reclaiming the Light
03:44
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A sparkling pool,
gold like the Sun's rays,
sits still and ripples inside
with long-lost memories.
I unclothe my body
and wade in...
And I'm shown joys and pains
with love sustained,
an ancient world
full of peace and symmetry.
The loss of family and trust
had crippled all.
Reaching inside
of my glowing heart,
where my love and light reside,
I free the memories
and restore unity.
A bright flash,
and the golden water evaporates
into tiny sparks of white.
Now, deep below the castle,
and throughout its halls and rooms,
the light of recollection
and the dawn
are shown through the gloom.
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10. |
Arisen Unrest
06:05
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Steady stepping
down the stairs,
not a guard in sight,
only still air
and soft voices of joy.
In the library proper,
all are gathered,
in embraces long and sheltered.
They look to me and I deftly speak
of retribution they must seek.
Marching to the throne room,
full of just indignance,
we confront the king
to renounce his governance
and surrender the crown.
He just laughs madly,
and calls us fools,
that we thought we could end
his glorious rule,
for the Guardian's been gone
and absent from us,
and left him in charge
until time becomes dust.
I motion to my allies,
reunited kith and kin,
and as my teal heart
flares up within,
they bow their heads
and lay hands on me,
filling me up with pure energy.
As if from nowhere,
or some cosmic void,
sparks coalesce
into a golden structure,
the Scales of Balance
returned at last.
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11. |
Healing Hands
05:55
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A gust of wind
from each gold plate
lift both the king
filled with hate
and the man from beneath,
weighing their purity.
The unjust ruler,
shock upon his face,
sinks down to the floor,
of pride there is no trace,
while the man who was banished,
and his memory taken,
rises to the ceiling.
Then the crown rises high,
suffused in a golden glow,
and evaporates into nothing,
the former king's plate rising from the low.
Now the Balance is reborn,
as are all the people,
as clothing and jewels vanish,
replaced with gratefulness.
I feel the Guardian speak to me,
images within
to restore the demesne
to a new configuration.
The denizens of the realm
once again encircle me,
glowing white
as my heart is refilled with their energy.
Taking the remorse-ridden one,
that once ruled this land,
tears in his eyes,
his face in my hands,
the forgiveness of all
flows out of me
and into him.
Then we all embrace...
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12. |
The Virgin's Key
06:49
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A loud cranking rings out
from below the castle,
and we rush out
to the main square.
Gears turning in circles,
buildings and structures rearranging
into a new plain,
relentlessly changing.
I recognize the throne
from the beginning of this journey
that was long forgotten,
sublime and dusty,
joining the one from the castle,
becoming a unity.
New homes sit empty
as the gears complete their mission,
waiting for inhabitants
and their admission.
And from behind the central throne
of gold and stone,
the Guardian shimmers
into a new form.
Dressed in celestial winds
of stars and glowing veridian leaves,
this man takes his throne humbly,
and calls to me.
Talking of pride in what I've accomplished,
he hands me a key
of flora and wood,
ingrained with a carving
unfamiliar to me.
But, I sense serenity and beauty
from the strange glyph,
and know it's of the Virgin,
and head to the end of a cliff.
Beyond is the space I know so well,
and I float up and on,
wishing all farewell.
At the top of the glass dome
surrounding this place
is a door of stardust,
flowers and bamboo
leading to a new space,
one I never knew.
I turn the key
and step into light...
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Aureus Nova Solis Buffalo, New York
I have been recording music since July 2009 across various projects:
The Silent
Boy
thesilentboy.bandcamp.com
(2009-)
Stars & Constellations
stars-constellations.bandcamp.com
(2010-)
AQVARIVS
aqvarivs.bandcamp.com
(2013-2014)
Kaleidanoyse
kaleidanoyse.bandcamp.com
(2012, 2016-)
... more
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