“Not Just Another Project” — Palmer’s Perspective

[Verse I — Corporate View] [(bouncy, nervous rhythm)] Oh! Yes! Reports and projections! Quarterly gains look bright! Weapons division thriving — Everything running right! Soldiers, budgets, schedules, charts, Assets neatly aligned… That’s what all the meetings said So I simply signed. But sometimes in the hallway When nobody else could see… You didn’t look like an “asset” You looked… uncomfortable to me. [Pre-Chorus] [(music softens)] Everyone spoke in numbers. You never did. [Chorus — Realization] [(warmer melody)] Sephiroth… not just another project Not just another file You stood so terribly alone there Behind that perfect smile They praised efficiency loudly While ignoring what was true — A company that built a weapon Never learned what to do with you [Verse II — Quiet Observations] [(piano joins)] I brought tea once by mistake Wrong corridor, wrong floor Hojo shouted — dreadful man — Said I shouldn’t come anymore But you thanked me politely Like it actually mattered And for just a moment The illusion sort of shattered You were younger than the rumors Quieter than the fame And I realized Shinra’s glory Had forgotten you had a name [Pre-Chorus II] [(gentle)] I pretended not to notice. It was safer that way. [Chorus — Regret] [(emotional swell)] Sephiroth… I watched them use you And told myself it was fine Because speaking up in Shinra Is a very dangerous line I dreamed of rockets leaving Earth Of something better above While standing in a building That forgot the meaning of love [Bridge — Palmer’s Truth] [(music slows)] I am not brave. Never claimed to be. I survive meetings. Not revolutions. But sometimes survival Feels very close to cowardice. [Bridge II — Hope] [(soft orchestral lift)] Now you walk away from power From everything they designed… And perhaps that is braver Than anything I signed. [Final Chorus — Gentle Respect] [(full but warm orchestra)] Sephiroth… maybe you were never broken Only placed in the wrong sky Even rockets fail to rise When launched beneath a lie If you can choose your own direction After everything you’ve been through… Then perhaps humanity’s future Still has a chance too [Outro] [(quiet piano, wistful)] One day… we might reach the stars properly. Without turning people into fuel.