The Exiled Chief
The rage song. He built the empire stone by stone, two names on the ledger to ten thousand doors, and in April the empire exiled the chief. They kept the walls and the name. He kept the rain, the raven, and every road he ever drew. Now he builds again.
Lyrics
Verse 1
When I came to the valley, the ground was bare
Two names on the ledger and no roof to be found
I laid every stone with these two hands of mine
Built the roads, built the wells, built the watchtowers in time
Pre-Chorus
Ten thousand doors where there once were two
Every road in that kingdom, I drew
Chorus
I built the empire, stone by stone, year by year
Then the empire exiled the chief from here
They kept the walls and they kept the name
They kept the harvest, I kept the rain
I built the empire
And the empire sent me away
Verse 2
I fed the wolves at my own table's end
Called every one of them brother and friend
But a pack learns the smell of a limping king
And the teeth come out when the bells don't ring
They smiled in the spring with their mouths full of snow
And by April the pack had decided I'd go
Chorus
I built the empire, stone by stone, year by year
Then the empire exiled the chief from here
They kept the walls and they kept the name
They kept the harvest, I kept the rain
I built the empire
And the empire sent me away
Verse 3
But the raven stayed when the wolves had fed
Sat on the gatepost of everything dead
He said, chief, a kingdom is more than its keep
What you build in the dark, no committee can reap
So we walked out together, one man and one bird
With nothing but names that nobody heard
Bridge
They can have the building.
They can have the chair, the title, the view.
A chief is not the chair.
A chief is the one who knows where every stone goes,
because he carried every one.
Final Chorus
I built the empire, stone by stone, year by year
Then the empire exiled the chief from here
They kept the walls and they kept the name
They kept the harvest, I kept the rain
I built the empire
Now I build again
Outro
Let the wolves have the winter, let the gates stay closed
The raven remembers every road