Echoes
Page 15
“What ghost?”
“Him! The Great Betrayer! The Leather Rebel! Rorzan Jetta Diavolo!”
Branna recoiled. “Impossible! Rorzan died three hundred years ago! My own ancestor carried out the execution himself!”
“Oh, he remembers,” Ansel said, his voice deadly serious. “And he gave me a message for you.” Ansel pulled himself up using Branna's clothes, yanking the Lord down to his level. “He told me to tell you that he's getting the band back together.”
Branna's mouth turned to ash. Pure terror gripped him. But he forced himself to remain calm. It would do him no favors if the others in the room started to see him panic. “Ansel, you've clearly met with some calamity and have lost your mind,” he said calmly, prying Ansel's fingers loose from his tunic and getting to his feet. “Guards!” he called. “Take this poor unfortunate soul to the infirmary and give him something to settle his mind.”
“My Lord, please!” Ansel howled as he was dragged away by the other guards towards the other wing of the palace. “Please! He's coming for us!”
Rorzan closed the doors to the room, keeping his composure as best he could. “Now, gentlemen, where were we?”
The mood in the room had changed dramatically, but they still managed to get through without further interruption. As soon as they adjourned, though, Branna hurried to his chambers in the center of the palace. There was nobody there at that time of the day. He secured his doors behind him, then walked over to the bookshelf. He selected a thick volume from it, and blew the thin layer of dust off it before he opened it.
The tome was an unabridged history of the Metal War, a book only for the eyes of Lords. It was studied by every man who ascended the mantle, containing the honest accounts of what had happened, rather than what the rest of the people knew. On his mount of execution, Rorzan had made a solemn vow that he would return one day, and that the Lords would pay when he “got the band back together.”
His hands shaking, Branna turned several pages back, to the section concerning the Battle of Anjath, where the forces of the Lords had underestimated their opponents and had been routed thoroughly. Printed on the page was an illustration of the vast horde that Rorzan had commanded. Orcs, trolls, centaurs, satyrs, harpies, a vast army of nonhuman creatures armed to the teeth with blades and instruments of their own.
But in front of them all stood a group of five, an aura of power radiating out from around them. The first was a satyr, seated at the command of a vast array of drums. The second was an orc, a six-stringed guitar over his shoulder. The third, a harpy, aloft in the air with a bass slung around her body. The fourth was Arielle, the artist's' rendition of her features sharp, caught in the midst of summoning her omnichord. And finally, in the center of them all holding his guitar aloft in a battle cry, was Rorzan, his eyes glaring out defiantly.
Below the image was a caption: “Rorzan and Bonecarver lead the rebel army into battle.”
Branna felt a primal terror that coil and settle in his gut. “First Gods preserve us.”
Bonecarver was coming back. And all the world would never be the same.
Author’s Note
Hello dear reader, and thanks for giving Bonecarver a chance! This book would not exist were it not for my obsession with heavy metal, and I hope that if you’ve made it this far, you’re in the know about the genre, or are at least curious about it. To that end, I’ve decided to include a playlist of sorts here at the end, to direct the curious to the music that inspired the story, with the selections loosely based on the events of the book. Happy listening, and I’ll see you after the next book!
Nathan Ravenwood
“Stargazer” - Rainbow
“Rock of Ages” - Def Leppard
“Running Free” - Iron Maiden
“Leather Rebel” - Judas Priest
“Restless And Wild” - Accept
“Black Star” - Yngwie Malmsteen
“Queen of the Masquerade” - Crimson Glory
“Stand Up and Shout” - Dio
“Burnin' For You” - Blue Oyster Cult
“Metal Heart” - Accept