The smell of an army of boots

The reassuring weight of the gear

Helmet resting upon my head

I can see for miles, the morning's clean and clear

And all the friends around me

Engaged in this common fight

Are joined by the presence of our lost and fallen

Transparent in this new sunlight

We left the locker empty

In case he wanders by

Just a simple declaration of remembrance

So he knows he will never really die

An empty locker standing guard

Now a memorial shrine

A vacant seat on that rig

Sometimes right next to mine

At the end of the day

When all is said and done

When that siren screams to life

To that rig, we all will run

And I remember a day, a day not unlike this

Under the promise of the bluest morning sky

We watched the city burn and fall

Right before our eyes

Never knowing the chaos and terror

That soon would invade our world

Never knowing a single call on a radio

Might be the last time some were heard

Those of us who were lucky

Those of who made it out alive

Still reside in the purgatory of those towers

And there is nowhere we can hide

Too many unanswered questions

No solutions that I can find

Just a trail of broken promises

And too many brothers left behind

The comforting smells of the fire station

The certainty that you all are near

Helmet resting beneath my arm now

I breath in a morning clean and crystal clear

And I remember that day, a day not unlike this

Under the deceptive promise of the bluest morning sky

A morning we watched our city burn and fall

In front of disbelieving eyes

How could we know that chaos and terror

Had assaulted and invaded our world

And I could never imagine that a single call on a radio

Would be the last time you were ever heard

I am left to ask forgiveness, though that is not a cure

Perhaps some peace will be mine to hold, if you will only hear my words