THE BALLAD OF FINITY’S END
Lyrics and music (c) 1984 by C.J. Cherryh

1. (Em) Finity’s End is a (Am) far-trav’lin’ ship
and wide (Em) space is the (D) deep that she (Em) knows.
Infinity’s black is the (Am) emblem she bears,
and (D) never a mark does it (Em) show.
CHO:
And (Em) no sun can hold us and (Am) keep us for long,
for in-(D)-finity’s ours, and infinity’s (Em) free.
No star can own her and (Am) no world’s her own,
for (Em) Finity’s (D) End is (Em) she.

2. The stuff of dead suns is her iron and her steel;
in the light of a new, she was made.
She set out to travel the day she was born
in the free-runnin’, longhaulin’ trade.

3. The Company thought then they’d make them a law,
and have all the ships for their own.
“You’re all Company ships and Company crews,
and you’ll pay us and serve us alone.”

4. James Robert the First was her captain that day,
and he sent out to crews like our own:
“Farewell to their ports and good luck to them all,
for what they can’t catch they can’t own.”

5. And wonder to tell, Mother Earth changed her mind,
and she called back her magistrate too,
for no ship would haul beyond Alpha or Pell,
and no mail and no cargo got through.

6. Then Unionside came with their ships and their guns
and they closed up the ports one and all.
“You’ll haul for us,” then the Union man said,
“And you’ll come and you’ll go where we call.”

7. Now Captain James Robert was vexed and annoyed,
and he sent out the word like before:
“We’re free ships and crews and we go where we please,
and we’ll haul you to hell and no more.”

8. Then Unionside haulers like Candice and Fay,
Merry Gold, Carina, and Fame,
From Unionside ports reached the wide deep of space,
and to Finity’s End they all came.

9. “Ah, well, now,” said Earth, “you must come to our side,
for there is no place now left you can be.
But Captain James Robert he sent out the word,
that all ships from now on must be free.

10. And no ship would come and no true ship would go,
but the traitor Shalleen and her kind.
Shalleen drifts in pieces around Shalleen Point,
and never a rest will she find.

11. The treaty was signed then and sealed and made sure,
for ports to be open to trade;
and borders there be none to check us or bind,
and no law on our decks but the law we have made.

CHO.