Abandoned
Composer: Ada Palmer- Format: Duet
This song will appear on our upcoming Norse themed album, Sundown.
Abandoned is a duet for Baldur and Hella. It is a partner piece for My Brother, My Enemy, and, like it, takes place after Baldur’s murder and Loki’s imprisonment. Here Baldur and Hella are both in the underworld, and describe their reflections on the catastrophe which they can do nothing to change. Baldur describes the shock of discovering so many dark sides to a universe of which, before his death, he had only enjoyed the best and brightest. Hella, in turn, describes her childhood banishment, and the experience of growing up as Queen of the Dead and watching the many humans who come to her. The two are cousins, but have always been forced by circumstances to live as enemies, yet now their fates are eerily parallel.
Composer’s Comment: Here I tapped one of the more questionable sidelines of Norse mythos, the common folk belief (not confirmed in the Eddas) that trolls, and by extension Jotuns, don’t have eternal souls, but that humans, made by Odin, do. This appears in numerous folktales, and also fits well with the idea of Odin as a creator of life breath, which is the soul. It also explains why Hel seems to be a land for dead humans, but we don’t hear of the ghosts of Jotuns there.
Lyrics:
| BALDUR | HELLA |
| After strife, I bring smiles of The family that strives beside. After war, I bring children To grow strong. After frost I bring colors of The summertime to come again. After dark I bring patience For the dawn. |
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| While I grew, I felt summers growing Stronger with the mounting years. When I played I felt nature Playing too. While I lived I thought nothing was too Frozen for my warmpth to heal. When I died, then, Lady, I met you. |
Fields fade and warm days age and Summer suns grow weak. Shades sleep and shadows creeping come. Dim dreams as fear grows near and Doom knows what it seeks And dark and dank to thank When death has you. |
| Grieving world. Souls too many to Tell. Even memories of Summer sun grow Harsh and black as |
On Valhalla’s steps the laws of death Are easy to forget When the power rests with those who cheat so well. The gods above and those they love Share Asgard’s golden rest, While the greater part of life is cast to, |
| Hel . I . See now what grown men Fear and every Child but me has always Known, I’d never Seen true dark before And now your father has me Join you in the land of the |
. To me, who . can see With mother’s eyes beyond the dark below A witch’s vision of The world above that I have never Tasted, I am wasted by your Father’s fear of what I could have been And what he made me be In the land of the |
| Abandoned men, abandoned place, Abandoned world, abandoned race, Abandoned you, abandoned me, Abandoned all to the Hel of the Abandoned… abandoned… abandoned… abandoned… |
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| Blackest World. Cold and distant and Strange. Even thinking freezes Year by year, but Still can’t Fade away. |
When ice-born Jotuns meet or end We fade to senseless dust, Unless darker spells compel the will to stay. But Odin fashioned humans with Eternal souls in trust, That don’t even have the choice To fade away. |
| Yes I knew, while Valhalla Held the chosen in my father’s care, There were limits to whom Valkyries could catch. There were many hopeful voices That fell silent with a final prayer, But I never saw the Consequences |
When ice-born Jotuns meet our end We fade to senseless dust, Unless spells keep spirits bound as Witches choose. But Odin fashioned humans with Eternal souls in trust, That must wait and hate and Rot their long night |
| . Like you do. . Like I do now . Only one end Patient ’till when Ragnarok comes and ends it. |
Through . True Like I do now Waiting for the cock that never crows. Only one end Patient ’till when Ragnarok comes |
| Father always planning for Tomorrow, not today. Father, I trust you did The best the Norns allow. He granted you dominion over Those who fall away, never Thinking I would Follow them down |
Your father, always planning for Tomorrow, not today, And pretending it’s The best the Norns allow. He granted me dominion over Those he casts away, never Thinking such a Gift would matter |
| . To you who . I knew as Nothing but a Stranger’s distant name, A curse, an enemy, A memory. The souls up there had Nothing but hate for you, So glad to escape you, and Ready to face you down When the darkness comes, But those down here Who were so near And tried so hard And fell so far Down into the dark Where even I fall blind without my Light, but learn to see inside your Shadow and your sorrow and your night. Father would say There was no other way But now I understand how |
Now . Who I knew as Nothing but a Stranger’s distant name, A curse, an enemy, A memory That others cling to. Nothing but Promises and Prophecies, the Souls down here are Eager to stay with you, and Desperate to pray to you, and Quick to embrace you now That the sun has come To the dark, without your Warmth, without your Hope, without your Light, who were so Far and tried so Hard, but fell to Me. They continue to pray to you Beg to be saved by you But what can you offer them now? |
| Children, mothers, Elders, lovers, Peaceful folk could Hate us so that They would rise at Ragnarok and Join our foe. ‘Cause we |
Men love you, Beasts love you, Stones love you, Seas love you. They loved you Once but you Stay our foe. |
| Abandoned men, abandoned place, Abandoned them, abandoned race, Abandoned you, abandoned me, Abandoned all to the Hel of the Abandoned… abandoned… abandoned… abandoned… |
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| And I knew There were races that were Older than the worlds we made. There were Reasons why my Uncle sat Alone. There were Monsters in the Darkness that my Brothers had helped seal Away, but we Never called you ‘Cousin’, only |
You knew There were races that were Older than the worlds you made. There were Reasons why my Father sat Alone. There were Monsters in the Darkness that your Brothers sealed Away, but you Never called me ‘Cousin’, only |
| ‘Crone’, ‘Enemy’. How could I see Beyond the labels and the War? Which must Come, so Certain since our Fathers made it so, Fathers made us go |
. ‘Enemy’ How could I see Beyond the labels and the War? Which must Come, so Certain since our Fathers made it so, made us go |
| Here . Near Dangers that Breed so Close in the Promises and Prophecies and Lies |
. Down here, where I can hear with Mother’s ears a Father’s curses, Shreeking in his Shackles, not too Close but not too Far to feel his |
| Heat, his leaking Rage, its lava Creep that always Churns and never Sleeps. Your father Waits for him to Weep but he waits Only for the war. |
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| I could hear as my Father’s envoy begged you and you Dictated the Terms of my release, you asked Everything alive and dead to Weep as one for me. You were Testing them, weren’t you? Asking consent from the Dead in your Hel, and the Living who may Yet fall Down into the dark Where so many will come. |
Heat, his leaking rage, its lava Creep, that always churns and never Sleeps. Your father waits for him to Weep but he waits only for the war. Soon it’s coming, say it’s coming Soon our battle and our End. Soon it’s coming, say it’s Coming soon our battle, our Revenge. Soon it’s coming soon. We’re here waiting for the Cock that never crows. Soon it’s coming, keep it coming Soon our battle. |
| For if I rejoin the living world Forgiving and forget, And the stones and seas and Odin too Renounce their grim revenge And Forgiveness heals Yggdrasil And peace reigns strong Then to warm the fleeting living we Condemn the frozen dead To wait on. And give up Ragnarok For me. |
For if you rejoin the living world Forgiving and forget, And the stones and seas and Odin too Renounce their grim revenge And Forgiveness heals Yggdrasil And peace reigns strong Then we wait and wait and Wait and Wait, Just to warm the fleeting living You condemn the frozen dead To wait on. |
| . There they wept, every ghost . Every soul in your great lost host. Just so I can warm the living They consent, the patient dead, Every child, every man, Every root, every tree, Every bird, every beast, Every ghost, every god except one. |
And they would’ve waited too. . Anything for you. . Just so you can warm the living They consent, the patient dead, To wait on. They love you, they love you, Every bird, every beast, Every ghost, every god except one. |
| Father I still Trust you but Don’t under- stand why You no Longer Try to stop the war, Which must come, So certain since our Fathers made it so, Certain since our Fathers won’t let go. |
His leaking Rage, its lava Creep that always Churns and never Sleeps. Your father Waits for him to Weep but he waits Only for the War, which must come, So certain since our Fathers made it so, Certain since our Fathers won’t let go. |
| I think on our fathers, the choices they made, And I almost believe there was no other way, But we wait, and we learn, and the anger, it fades, But there is no hope of rescue until both our fathers change. And they |
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| Abandoned us, abandoned place, Abandoned them, abandoned race, Abandoned you, abandoned me, Abandoned all to the Hel when we Accepted death, accepted war, No longer try to change its course. Abandoned life, abandoned hope, Abandoned all to the Hel of the Abandoned… abandoned… abandoned… abandoned… |
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