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Call of Chaos #13
A Song for the Lost
In the Basilica of Himaeus the Justicar, nursing his latest beating from Bishop Eziah, young Ulix waits for Sister D’Fey to come and sing to him the only song that can ease his pain. He knows not why the other boys in the dorm hate her presence – nor does he care. When she sings the Song for the Lost, all his fears are soothed. As her voice lulls him to sleep, he cannot know that in his desire to escape the hardships of his life, he walks a path to an even darker future.
Read it because
It's a tale of mystery and intrigue in the heart of an Imperial temple that turns into something quite different – and very dangerous. Dark and twisted, to say anything else would give it away completely.
- Genres40kScience Fiction
19 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 13, 2015
2 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
About the author
Robbie MacNiven
122 books114 followersRobbie MacNiven is a Scottish author and historian. His published fiction includes over a dozen novels, many fantasy or sci-fi works for IPs such as Warhammer 40,000 and Marvel's X-Men. He has also written two novellas, numerous short stories and audio dramas, has worked on narrative and character dialogue for multiple digital games (SMITE: Blitz and Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground), has written the colour text for multiple RPG rulebooks and has penned the scripts for two graphic novels and three comics, for Osprey Publishing and Commando Comics respectively. In 2022 his X-Men novel "First Team" won a Scribe Award.
On the non-fiction front, Robbie specialises in Early Modern military history, particularly focussing on the 18th century. He has a PhD in American Revolutionary War massacres from the University of Edinburgh - where he won the Compton Prize for American History - and an MLitt in War Studies from the University of Glasgow. Along with numerous articles for military history magazines he has written six books on different aspects of the American Revolutionary War, five for Osprey Publishing and one for Helion Books. He has also written the scripts for ten episodes of the hit YouTube educational channel Extra Credits.
Outside of work and writing, his passions include re-enacting, gaming, and football.
On the non-fiction front, Robbie specialises in Early Modern military history, particularly focussing on the 18th century. He has a PhD in American Revolutionary War massacres from the University of Edinburgh - where he won the Compton Prize for American History - and an MLitt in War Studies from the University of Glasgow. Along with numerous articles for military history magazines he has written six books on different aspects of the American Revolutionary War, five for Osprey Publishing and one for Helion Books. He has also written the scripts for ten episodes of the hit YouTube educational channel Extra Credits.
Outside of work and writing, his passions include re-enacting, gaming, and football.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
November 30, 2017
Sometimes Space Marines fall to Chaos' lures and turn worshipping the Dark Gods.
Sometimes their corruption starts long time before becoming Astartes.
An excellent and grimdark short tale about Angels of Ecstacy Slaanesh Noise Marines warband (former Sons of Ulthanas chapter), their Eldar preys and the history of their leader becoming a slave to darkness.
A must read if you are a fan of the Prince of Pleasure and its minions.
December 16, 2015
A Song for the Lost is a chilling Noise Marine story.
As such, I am surprised that its cover shows a generic star of Chaos Undivided rather than the Slaaneshi iconography similar to In Wolves' Clothing before it. An oversight, maybe. But I'm not going to judge this by its cover, I'm only highlighting my confusion with the choice made.
The story itself is split into two time periods, removed by over 300 years, in M41.
I actually prefered the way the book opened: With a choir boy being punished for hesitating on his recital of hymns in the Emperor's praise. It was easy to feel sympathy for the boy and connect with his plight - and as a result, rationalize his attempts to seek comfort elsewhere.
This was really well-delivered in my eyes, and it became clear quickly that things would not end well.
The second half, or middle part, of the story is set the aforementioned 300 odd years later, highlighting a Chaos Lord in the service of Slaanesh, and his Chapter-turned-renegade. They are hunting Eldar with their noise weapons, and were well-represented as servants of the Dark Prince. The twist in the battle part of the story was also quite creative, though in hindsight obvious - obvious but effective. But really, the battle was just a means to a darker reveal, which I appreciated a lot.
The whole thing wrapped up nicely in my eyes, and I wouldn't mind seeing MacNiven return to the Angels of Ecstasy and their lord in the future.
As such, I am surprised that its cover shows a generic star of Chaos Undivided rather than the Slaaneshi iconography similar to In Wolves' Clothing before it. An oversight, maybe. But I'm not going to judge this by its cover, I'm only highlighting my confusion with the choice made.
The story itself is split into two time periods, removed by over 300 years, in M41.
I actually prefered the way the book opened: With a choir boy being punished for hesitating on his recital of hymns in the Emperor's praise. It was easy to feel sympathy for the boy and connect with his plight - and as a result, rationalize his attempts to seek comfort elsewhere.
This was really well-delivered in my eyes, and it became clear quickly that things would not end well.
The second half, or middle part, of the story is set the aforementioned 300 odd years later, highlighting a Chaos Lord in the service of Slaanesh, and his Chapter-turned-renegade. They are hunting Eldar with their noise weapons, and were well-represented as servants of the Dark Prince. The twist in the battle part of the story was also quite creative, though in hindsight obvious - obvious but effective. But really, the battle was just a means to a darker reveal, which I appreciated a lot.
The whole thing wrapped up nicely in my eyes, and I wouldn't mind seeing MacNiven return to the Angels of Ecstasy and their lord in the future.
January 6, 2016
"I was really psyched to see a story focusing on Noise Marines. Sometimes, depending on who you ask, they are considered either among the coolest or most ridiculous unit types in the WH40K universe. I place them squarely in the former. But, you have to admit, one does wonder how to properly render these sound assassins properly on paper. How do you convey the auditory assaults of these twisted servants of Slaanesh in pen and paper format?
Succinctly put, MacNiven does it masterfully. A Song for the Lost is a phenomenally good story. It is the tale of Ulix, who we first meet as a young novitiate receiving a brutal beating from the zealos Bishop Eziah for not being able to properly recite an Imperial catechism. Ulix's sole solace from Eziah's cruelties comes from the seductive song of young Sister D'Fey; who visits the boys who leave a candle lit for her. Her song salves his wounds; teaching him to channel the pain into something else...
Fast forward three hundred years, and we meet Ulix again; now a Chaos Lord fully in the thrall of Slaanesh, leading an insane band of Noise Marines. This cavorting gang of murderous minstrels finds themselves tearing through a jungle world on a personal geas for Ulix; a hunt for a special material needed to consummate a now necessary desire.
There are a few factors which make A Song for the Lost such a fantastic read. The first is the "allure" of Choas. For me, the strongest Chaos tales are the ones where you are shown what the Imperium has to offer versus what the voices from the Warp dangle before your eyes. Compared to the cruel, dogmatic dictatorship of the servants of the Corpse Emperor, the siren song of Slaanesh sounds more melodious by the moment.
Second, the character descriptions are wonderful. The physical description of Ulix as a noise marine is one of the best and most horrifying that I have read. Careful attention is also lavished upon the special weaponry of the noise marines. These help set the stage for the imagination for fill in the blanks where the written word cannot describe the audio terror.
The action here is quite excellent as well. In addition to the havoc caused by Ulix and his band, MacNiven gives us a thrilling view of the Eldar in action. He is obviously quite savvy with the workings and mechanics of the weaponry in the established lore; combining colorful prose with a love for the aesthetics of the canon."
You can read my full review of this excellent short here.
http://hachisnaxreads.blogspot.com/20...
Succinctly put, MacNiven does it masterfully. A Song for the Lost is a phenomenally good story. It is the tale of Ulix, who we first meet as a young novitiate receiving a brutal beating from the zealos Bishop Eziah for not being able to properly recite an Imperial catechism. Ulix's sole solace from Eziah's cruelties comes from the seductive song of young Sister D'Fey; who visits the boys who leave a candle lit for her. Her song salves his wounds; teaching him to channel the pain into something else...
Fast forward three hundred years, and we meet Ulix again; now a Chaos Lord fully in the thrall of Slaanesh, leading an insane band of Noise Marines. This cavorting gang of murderous minstrels finds themselves tearing through a jungle world on a personal geas for Ulix; a hunt for a special material needed to consummate a now necessary desire.
There are a few factors which make A Song for the Lost such a fantastic read. The first is the "allure" of Choas. For me, the strongest Chaos tales are the ones where you are shown what the Imperium has to offer versus what the voices from the Warp dangle before your eyes. Compared to the cruel, dogmatic dictatorship of the servants of the Corpse Emperor, the siren song of Slaanesh sounds more melodious by the moment.
Second, the character descriptions are wonderful. The physical description of Ulix as a noise marine is one of the best and most horrifying that I have read. Careful attention is also lavished upon the special weaponry of the noise marines. These help set the stage for the imagination for fill in the blanks where the written word cannot describe the audio terror.
The action here is quite excellent as well. In addition to the havoc caused by Ulix and his band, MacNiven gives us a thrilling view of the Eldar in action. He is obviously quite savvy with the workings and mechanics of the weaponry in the established lore; combining colorful prose with a love for the aesthetics of the canon."
You can read my full review of this excellent short here.
http://hachisnaxreads.blogspot.com/20...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 25, 2016
Holly hell. I really don't know what to say. Mr. MacNiven, when I meet you at a future warhammer event, you will be getting a drink for sure! A Song for the Lost was phenomenal, the action was intense and wonderfully fresh(I can't think of the last time I read about Noise Marines or Emperor's Children in 40k before the Chaos Advent this year), but I think I liked most getting to really see from the beginning, Ulix's fall to Chaos. I mean, sure, we don't get to see like 300 years of it, but what we learn in the story is enough to really make me interested in the Angels of Ecstasy. I don't think it was meant to be the conventional "twist" for the story, but the end was just awesome. The Daemonette's were extremely well done. I definitely like what Mr. MacNiven has done with Chaos this time around!
December 18, 2015
It’s halfway to Christmas and time for the thirteenth story in the 2015 Black Library Advent Calendar – A Song for the Lost by Robbie MacNiven. Ulix, a young Ecclesiarchy novitiate, suffers under the harsh regime of his zealous bishop, taking refuge in the comfort provided by the mysterious Sister D’Fey. While his fellow novitiates shy away in fear he seeks out her company in the darkness, unwittingly ingratiating himself with something far beyond what he realises. The innocent actions of a young boy prove to have far reaching consequences, for Ulix and the Imperium at large.
Read the rest of the review at https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/20...
Read the rest of the review at https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/20...
November 25, 2021
An exceptional sci-fi horror short.
October 29, 2025
A masterful story of the Angels of Ecstasy and I would love to see Robbie return to this Warband
June 12, 2020
“Mistress of pain, Master of pleasure, hear your child’s cry…”
It’s often argued that to write a good short story can prove much harder than a full-length novel – and that, despite their brevity, the best ones do actually compete with the larger literary forms in many ways. In my opinion, the same is also true for certain Black Library publications.
A Song for the Lost was one of Robbie MacNiven’s first Warhammer40K tales – and of all his short stories, it remains my absolute favourite. (Which has nothing to do with my preference for Slaanesh above all others in the Chaos pantheon, I swear…) The story will definitely be of special interest to the aspiring heretics and Chaos aficionados out there, but even though my sympathies lay firmly with the good, loyal, warp-fearing Imperials at the time of the first reading, I could well understand the motives behind the protagonist’s actions and even root for him... well, kind of.
Ulix’s tale begins when he is but a little boy in the schoolmasterly care of the Emperor’s holy servants (no, not quite…), and continues centuries later as we learn that he had actually become a Space Marine, risen to the rank of Chapter Master while still comparatively young – and then with the warriors under his command suddenly denounced his old loyalties to the Imperium, becoming the leader of a pretty luxuriant, rumbustious and picturesque Renegade Astartes warband whose fealty is now to the God(dess) of Excess. And all the while his existence is accompanied – or rather, wholly defined – by the flow and rhythm of an otherworldly song that had ever since his childhood always brought him a strange, warped sort of comfort – yet, as it turns out, not so much elevating as enslaving his tainted soul…
Actually, this gorgeous eShort is one of those few works that had shaped my own perception of Warhammer 40,000 much more strongly than did some well-established novels. At the very start, Robbie presents a sensible and grimly honest idea of what the daily life in the uncaring, retrograde, belligerent, galaxy-spanning empire must be like for a lone orphaned boy not destined to ever come to know the privileged opulence of Imperial elites – which demonstrates that it isn’t just the perverted and the self-indulgent who may go on to become worshippers of the Youngest God. Ironically, it is oftentimes the slowly decaying Imperium itself – or rather, its legions of fanatical officials obsessed with upholding its ancient authority over the countless billions of downtrodden subjects and rooting out heresy at all costs – whose very deeds of piety force the despairing and the repressed to crave (out of ignorance, frequently) the whimsical favours of dark powers.
The composition of particular episodes (from the 'past' – to the 'present' – to the 'past' again) allows us to learn more than enough about Ulix to appreciate all the twists and turns of his by no means ordinary life, whilst also presenting a nice little surprise in the end. A question remains, however, as to the presumably rigorous Adeptus Astartes selection procedures – which may actually be not as taint-proof as they’re supposed to – but I guess it must be grossly heretical to dare cast doubt on these holy warriors' purity... Oh, and one other great feature of the story is Robbie’s clever choice of Imperial dates – they must be no random ones at all!
It’s often argued that to write a good short story can prove much harder than a full-length novel – and that, despite their brevity, the best ones do actually compete with the larger literary forms in many ways. In my opinion, the same is also true for certain Black Library publications.
A Song for the Lost was one of Robbie MacNiven’s first Warhammer40K tales – and of all his short stories, it remains my absolute favourite. (Which has nothing to do with my preference for Slaanesh above all others in the Chaos pantheon, I swear…) The story will definitely be of special interest to the aspiring heretics and Chaos aficionados out there, but even though my sympathies lay firmly with the good, loyal, warp-fearing Imperials at the time of the first reading, I could well understand the motives behind the protagonist’s actions and even root for him... well, kind of.
Ulix’s tale begins when he is but a little boy in the schoolmasterly care of the Emperor’s holy servants (no, not quite…), and continues centuries later as we learn that he had actually become a Space Marine, risen to the rank of Chapter Master while still comparatively young – and then with the warriors under his command suddenly denounced his old loyalties to the Imperium, becoming the leader of a pretty luxuriant, rumbustious and picturesque Renegade Astartes warband whose fealty is now to the God(dess) of Excess. And all the while his existence is accompanied – or rather, wholly defined – by the flow and rhythm of an otherworldly song that had ever since his childhood always brought him a strange, warped sort of comfort – yet, as it turns out, not so much elevating as enslaving his tainted soul…
Actually, this gorgeous eShort is one of those few works that had shaped my own perception of Warhammer 40,000 much more strongly than did some well-established novels. At the very start, Robbie presents a sensible and grimly honest idea of what the daily life in the uncaring, retrograde, belligerent, galaxy-spanning empire must be like for a lone orphaned boy not destined to ever come to know the privileged opulence of Imperial elites – which demonstrates that it isn’t just the perverted and the self-indulgent who may go on to become worshippers of the Youngest God. Ironically, it is oftentimes the slowly decaying Imperium itself – or rather, its legions of fanatical officials obsessed with upholding its ancient authority over the countless billions of downtrodden subjects and rooting out heresy at all costs – whose very deeds of piety force the despairing and the repressed to crave (out of ignorance, frequently) the whimsical favours of dark powers.
The composition of particular episodes (from the 'past' – to the 'present' – to the 'past' again) allows us to learn more than enough about Ulix to appreciate all the twists and turns of his by no means ordinary life, whilst also presenting a nice little surprise in the end. A question remains, however, as to the presumably rigorous Adeptus Astartes selection procedures – which may actually be not as taint-proof as they’re supposed to – but I guess it must be grossly heretical to dare cast doubt on these holy warriors' purity... Oh, and one other great feature of the story is Robbie’s clever choice of Imperial dates – they must be no random ones at all!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews