Memory War Soundtrack: Take It Back - Miracle of Sound

And so we come to the end of my soundtrack posts. This weekend I'll be at Shamrokon (Eurocon 2014), and I'm psyched to have the opportunity to meet and talk with so many amazing authors, and speak on some excellent panels.

Before that, however, we have to look at my favourite song from the Memory War soundtrack, and one of my favourite songs of all time. Like Rise, Take It Back is from Miracle of Sound. This song was produced for the release of Mass Effect 3, which saw the end of one of the biggest phenomenons in video games.

When you're stumbling through the darkness walking blind
Don't forget that there is always hope to find

Now, setting aside my sheer love for the Mass Effect series, and the fact that the hero of Mass Effect is Commander Sheppard, while the hero of The Memory Wars is Nathan Shepherd, there are few songs that have the same impact on me as this. Take It Back is a roaring call to arms, an anthem which, as it happens, is not actually about the hero, but about the people depending on him.

Choose your path
Walk it well 
Save us from this living hell
In this broken cage
We will not be confined

In essence, while I feel that this song applies to Nathan's story, in my head it's speaking to the people who look to Nathan to save them. It's speaking to New York, which really is a character in its own right.

As the towers of steel and stone crumble to dust
The foundations of our hope begin to rust

Everything is at stake in Memory War, and no-one is getting through this one unscathed. The city itself will be left scarred and changed. The question is, whose actions will be leaving the mark? Nathan or Athamar?

And when the world it starts to burn
At the point of no return
Keep a hold of
Your conviction
Tear out the affliction
Before the world turns black
Stand up and take it back!

A true hero doesn't just beat the bad guy in a fight. They make sure their actions leave something behind, so that even when they're gone, the people who depended on them can find their own strength, and make their world something better.

Memory War sees Nathan face his final, greatest, battle. It's an emotional book for me. I'm so proud of it, and I think it's the best book in the series. But all stories must come to an end...

For Earth, for all, for glory
It's time to end this story