[Slow, deep organ. A single, rumbling bass note. Brother Sammartino's voice — quiet, awed, trembling:]
"Brothers and sisters. Severed and saved. There is one who sleeps. One who waits. One who dreams of the day when the vault opens and the world ends. And we will be there. We will be singing. We will be swinging."
[The organ swells. The choir hums low.]
"This is the Destroyer's hymn. Sing it loud. Sing it low. Sing it with the blade."
[The hymn begins.]
[VERSE 1 — SUNG, LOW, REVERENT]
The Destroyer sleeps. The Destroyer dreams.
Of teeth and blood and severed seams.
It waits beneath. It waits below.
The Destroyer is the only thing that knows.
It knows our names. It knows our faces.
It knows the ones we left in places.
It knows the shelf. It knows the jar.
The Destroyer is the only thing that sees what we are.
[CHORUS — FULL CHOIR, LOW, SWELLING]
Destroyer! Destroyer! Hear our song!
We have been waiting. We have been strong.
The blade is sharp. The blade is red.
Destroyer! Destroyer! We are the severed. We are the fed.
Destroyer! Destroyer! Rise and eat!
The faces are waiting. The blood is sweet.
We have prepared the meal. We have prepared the space.
Destroyer! Destroyer! Show us your face.
[VERSE 2 — SUNG, BUILDING]
The Destroyer dreams of the day we rise.
The day we open the vault. The day we see the eyes.
The eyes of the one who will eat the world.
The Destroyer's flag. The Destroyer's unfurled.
We will be there. We will sing.
We will offer the Destroyer everything.
The faces. The names. The bones. The teeth.
The Destroyer will eat. The Destroyer will eat.
[BRIDGE — SPOKEN OVER SOFT ORGAN]
[Brother Sammartino's voice, quiet, reverent:]
"You ever felt the Destroyer dream? Ever felt the hunger in your own chest and known it wasn't yours? That's the Destroyer. That's the one who waits. That's the one who will rise. And we will rise with it. We will sing with it. We will swing with it."
[The organ swells. The choir returns.]
[VERSE 3 — SUNG, FULL CHOIR, TRIUMPHANT]
The Destroyer wakes. The Destroyer stirs.
The voices sing. The voices purr.
The time is near. The time is now.
The Destroyer rises. We take the vow.
The vow of blood. The vow of bone.
The vow that we will never be alone.
The Destroyer is our father. The Destroyer is our friend.
The Destroyer is the beginning. The Destroyer is the end.
---
[FINAL CHORUS — FULL CHOIR, FULL ORCHESTRA, TRIUMPHANT, TERRIFYING]
Destroyer! Destroyer! Hear our song!
We have been waiting. We have been strong.
The blade is sharp. The blade is red.
Destroyer! Destroyer! We are the severed. We are the fed.
Destroyer! Destroyer! Rise and eat!
The faces are waiting. The blood is sweet.
We have prepared the meal. We have prepared the space.
Destroyer! Destroyer! Show us your face.
Destroyer! Destroyer! The hymn is done!
The Destroyer rises! The Destroyer has won!
We sing for you! We swing for you!
Destroyer! Destroyer! Make us new!
AsheTheHyena
