Hotel Arcadia

Inspired by a legendary song that once opened the door
to a different emotional landscape.

Every song eventually begins to live more than one life.

One version follows the structure of memory - carefully rebuilt,
still connected to the familiar shape of the original dream.

The other steps somewhere further into the unknown.
Not a remix.
Not another arrangement.
But an alternate emotional reality.

Two versions.
Two different journeys through the same musical soul.

One remembers where the road began.
The other asks: what the song might become
if it were allowed to dream on its own.

     *   *   *

On a dusty black highway,
A cool breeze swept my face.
Sweet scent of desert blossoms
Filling up the space.

Way out, I saw a glimmer,
A strange and distant gleam.
My head felt heavy, vision hazy,
Lost within a dream.

There she stood, a welcome figure.
I heard a distant chime,
And a thought rose in my spirit:
"Is this paradise, or a wicked crime?"

Then she lit a single lantern
And showed me my own way.
Heard low voices from the shadows,
Wishing I would stay.

"Welcome to The Hotel Arcadia,
Such a charming hold,
A story to be told.
So much room at The Hotel Arcadia,
Any time you call,
You can give your all."

Her mind, a gilded labyrinth.
She's got the fancy cars, yeah.
She's got a crew of stunning fellows;
She calls them her shining stars.

See them sway within the courtyard,
Sweet summer's warm caress.
Some recall a faded memory,
Some seek to just forget.

So I sought out the overseer:
"Please, my drink, a noble wine."
He replied, "That kind of vintage
We haven't poured since sixty-nine."

And still those voices whisper
From across the quiet land,
Waking you in darkest slumber
Just to take your hand.

"Welcome to The Hotel Arcadia,
Such a charming hold,
A story to be told.
They are thriving at The Hotel Arcadia,
What a pleasant scene,
Lost in what has been."

Reflections on the ceiling,
A chilled wine, clear and bright, and she said:
"We are all just guests here,
Held by our own guiding light."

And in the honored chambers,
Gathered for a grand affair,
They strike with shining daggers,
But the beast is always there.

The last thing I recall,
I was desperate for the exit's door.
Had to find the pathway back
To where I had been before.

"Relax," the keeper murmured,
"We're built to entertain.
You can leave your reservation,
But you're bound to still remain."

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version #1:
https://disk.yandex.ru/d/XGZRum6lreTD_Q

version #2:
https://disk.yandex.ru/d/isEuPBBeUYUSjA