The cry of a young soldier echoes across time: “Alas, my master! How shall we do?” Surrounded, outnumbered, and trembling before battle, his heart pounds with dread. The title of this work is drawn from the account in 2 Kings 6:15–17, where the servant of the prophet Elisha awakens to find their city surrounded by a hostile army:

“When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, ‘Alas, my master! How shall we do?’ He said, ‘Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ Then Elisha prayed and said, ‘O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.’ So the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

This composition captures the servant’s perspective in the tense moments before Elisha’s reassurance. Dark harmonies and shadowed timbres evoke the fear of being outnumbered, while nervous rhythmic figures suggest the trembling uncertainty of a young soldier facing overwhelming odds. Just before the most desperate moment lies a pounding heartbeat motif, building toward a distressed cry—an audible rendering of the servant’s plea: “How shall we do?” The music lingers in this moment of human vulnerability. The servant’s anguish becomes a testament to the fragile line between despair and revelation, between human weakness and divine assurance.