Battle-Born, Blood-Tied

[Verse 1]
(Male)
You take the first swing
Like you always do
Lip curled
Eyes blazing
“You know I’m stronger than you”
(Female)
You talk like a soldier
Reading lines off a page
You don’t even know me
Just the name and the cage
(Male)
They drew us like blueprints
Marked “enemy” in red
(Female)
Tattooed us with orders
Stamped on our heads
[Pre-Chorus]
(Female)
But when your fist stopped
Shaking in the air
(Male)
And I saw my own fear
Living in your stare
(Both)
Something cracked
Right down that line they drew
[Chorus]
(Both)
We were battle-born
Blood-tied
Raised to stand on different sides
Armor on
Same eyes
Didn’t know you were my life line
Every bruise
Every scar on our skin
Was a map leading me back to your grin
We were trained to break each other
Now I’m holding my sister
My brother
[Verse 2]
(Female)
Remember that mission
Rain eating our boots
You slipped on the hillside
Dragged me down with you
(Male)
We lay there just laughing
Mud in our teeth
For the first time in years
We could finally breathe
(Female)
You shared your last rations
Said “don’t tell command” (hey)
(Male)
You stitched up my shoulder
With your trembling hands
[Pre-Chorus]
(Male)
They tried to make us hate what we reflect
(Female)
But I see my own heart in your regret
(Both)
Slowly
Carefully
We learned a different truth
[Chorus]
(Both)
We were battle-born
Blood-tied
Raised to stand on different sides
Armor on
Same eyes
Didn’t know you were my life line
Every bruise
Every scar on our skin
Was a map leading me back to your grin
We were trained to break each other
Now I’m holding my sister
My brother
[Bridge]
[Soft piano
Vocals almost whispered]
(Female)
They gave us targets
Never gave us names
(Male)
But I won’t let them write us
Into their games
(Female)
If the world says “choose”
I choose your hand
(Male)
We’ll redraw the borders
In the dust
In the sand
(Both)
Let the old war end in our silence
Let the new world start in our arms
[Chorus]
(Both)
We were battle-born
Blood-tied
Raised to stand on different sides
Dropped our shields
This time
Walked across that firing line
Every bruise
Every scar on our skin
Turned to stories that we laugh about now and then
We were trained to break each other
Now it’s you and me against the thunder
[Outro]
(Female)
Older brother
Stand with me (oh)
(Male)
Little sister
Finally free
(Both)
From the scripts
From the screaming in our heads
We were bred for war
And we chose peace instead

Dramatic alt-pop duet with male and female vocals trading sharp, rhythmic lines over tense plucks and deep bass. Verse 1 leans percussive and staccato, almost spoken; pre-chorus swells with airy pads and rising toms. Chorus blooms into big stacked harmonies and wide drums, then a stripped-down bridge with soft piano and close-mic whispers. Final chorus lifts into a bright, triumphant feel with intertwined counter-melodies and a soaring gang-vocal outro., male vocals