One fan has written lyrics to and sang over Metallica's legendary instrumental song "The Call of Ktulu."

The Ride the Lightning album closer is regarded as one of metal's all-time great instrumentals and showcased Metallica's progression toward more the more complex and nuanced songwriting that would later be expressed on Master of Puppets and even more so in its successor, ...And Justice for All.

It's an imposing song for any seasoned band to even cover, much less write original lyrics for the track inspired by horror fantasy/science fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft's famous short story, Call of Cthulu, which was published in early 1928.

YouTuber Less, who alerted Loudwire of his daring undertaking, really put in a ton of effort, and wrote a bit of a short story of his own for the lyrics (nearly 350 words), which stretch across the nearly 10-minute song, including spoken words parts that enhance its epic scale. Vocally, there's shades of James Hetfield obviously in play, but Less doesn't try to be a clone singer and instead walks the line between clean singing and a gruff, more thrash-typical approach which works well.

Listen to this slice of musical fan-fiction, so to speak, at the bottom of the page and read the lyrics below. To subscribe to Less' YouTube channel, head here.

There are remnants of Monster stuck in a world of human race It brought us destruction from the eons long gone in the time

And I saw, I made the shape Believe me, that Thing is going to wake

We live in ignorance on the seas of infinity We cannot run away from this dark age deadly light You should know that’s the force was before humanity

That Gods, they freeze my blood and I’m mad, when I dream of them I saw the manuscript and I couldn’t fall asleep again And I tried every night But sickly was imagination mine

I read a story strange of societies and secret cults Dark voices from the past and titanic walls of slimy stones And that sound, mysterious like a flap of monstrous wings

One man was crying at night to be saved from a hellish Being And then another one jumped out of the window’s heights There was fear, there was a scream haunted groans of tormented lives

Go throughout the waves where Cthulhu slipped under the water rough, so go

There was a bang just like the stench of thousands open graves, then go

Time never waits, the Force is awake Only to lead us for a war Ready to crush, destroy the land with only a single punch

Its trace erases memories with the death Blackness was spilled, mankind is gone pushing in killing darkness

No, we’ll not survive, all stuck in fear in face of dripping Babylon But what if that Thing is only a lie?

The hideous stone city of R'lyeh, the monolithic fortress, hides the great Cthulhu and his horde in muddy tombs. People's words cannot describe that Thing and an abyss of screams and insanity. Soon the Monster will grope its way through the black gates. And when I think about the size of all down there - I want to cease to exist.

We live in a temporary place There’s no courage till that Thing’s still here Our empty fates shall be left Forever undone