HOLD THE LINE

NEWS REPORTER (V.O.)

“Evacuations continue across Los Angeles as paranormal activity spreads…”

(faint proton pack hum)

WINSTON (quietly)

“…Not again.”

⸻

I’ve seen this city shaking

Seen the skyline burn before

Watched good people lose themselves

Trying to stop another war

Every generation thinks

They’ll be the last ones standing tall

Until the sirens start screaming

And the darkness starts to call

And these kids look to me now

Like I’m supposed to know the way

But leadership feels different

When the world could end today

⸻

Still I carry every burden

Every promise that we made

Even heroes get exhausted

Trying to hold back the grave

⸻

So I hold the line

Even when the fear gets louder

Hold the line

When the storm consumes the sky

And if this city falls tonight

Then we fall standing side by side

Because Ghostbusters don’t run

We survive

⸻

Phoebe hides behind the science

But I can see it in her eyes

Every sleepless night she carries

Every guilt she keeps inside

And I remember Egon clearly

The same fire. Same stubborn pride.

Trying to save the world alone

While slowly breaking deep inside

Sometimes strength means fighting monsters

Sometimes strength means asking why

Sometimes strength means telling people

You’re not okay tonight

⸻

(drums slowly rising)

And I’m tired

God, I’m tired

Of watching good people blame themselves

For surviving

But tomorrow still needs somebody

To stand up when the darkness comes

⸻

So I hold the line

Through the sirens and the fire

Hold the line

When the whole world says goodbye

And if this is our final night

Then we face it in the light

Because Ghostbusters don’t break

We endure

Whoa-oh

Even when the sky is falling

Whoa-oh

We keep answering the call

⸻

(music drops to piano and soft choir)

I still remember New York

The fear

The noise

The impossible nights

And somehow…

we survived every one of them

Maybe that’s what being a Ghostbuster means

Not being fearless

Just showing up anyway

⸻

So we hold the line

For the lost and for the broken

Hold the line

For the ones who still believe

And when the darkness comes again

We’ll stand together till the end

Because Ghostbusters never die

We carry on

⸻

(soft piano fading into proton pack shutdown sound)

WINSTON (softly)

“…Alright team. Let’s get to work.”

(ECTO engine starts)

FADE OUT.