Volley and Steel

[Verse 1]
We marched in scarlet through the dust
Where the eastern wheat once grew
The villages were ash and bone
The sky a sullen blue
They told us of the Gnar that came
Like locusts in the night
But the King’s own line fears little
When the drums call us to fight

[Verse 2]
Three ranks deep we hold the field
Boot to boot we stand
First line fires, the second steps
With powder close at hand
Then smoke rolls out like thunderclouds
The third line brings the flame
Volley after volley cracks
And the beasts forget our name

[Chorus]
Volley and steel, volley and steel
Hold the line and never yield
When the smoke clears and the muskets fall
It’s bayonets that rule the field
Stand your ground till relief comes near
Hear the captains’ voices roar
We’ll hold the line till kingdom come
Like the Redcoats did before

[Verse 3]
Sometimes they reach the scarlet line
Claws tearing through the smoke
Then cold bright steel meets fang and horn
And every rifle’s stroke
We fight them back a bloody yard
Till the reserves arrive
And thank the Lord when drums roll in
And the battered line survives

[Verse 4]
But rations thin with every mile
Our powder runs less sure
The wagons lag on broken roads
No army marches pure
The farther west we push this war
The longer grow the chains
That tie us to the distant ports
Across the eastern plains

[Chorus]
Volley and steel, volley and steel
Hold the line and never yield
When the smoke clears and the muskets fall
It’s bayonets that rule the field
Stand your ground till relief comes near
Hear the captains’ voices roar
We’ll hold the line till kingdom come
Like the Redcoats did before

[Bridge]
But three great shadows cross the sun
And lift the soldiers’ eyes
The airships guard our weary ranks
High watchmen in the skies
They drive the flying Gnar away
With thunder from above
And every man below them swears
They’re angels sent by God

[Verse 5]
Still every hill we take in blood
Another waits beyond
The Gnar keep rising from the dark
Like waves upon a pond
We win each fight, we hold each field
But still the question stands—
How many devils fill this world
And when will end their bands?

[Final Chorus]
Volley and steel, volley and steel
Hold the line and never yield
Till the last black beast lies broken
On the red and smoking field
Raise the flag and pass the word
Let the weary soldiers know—
The Redcoat line still marches west
Wherever Gnar may go.

Epic folk military ballad, gritty male chorus, marching snare, fiddle, acoustic guitar, cinematic war atmosphere, heroic