Music Monday (3)

Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Ramblings of a Daydreamer where we get to share our favorite music: singers, bands, videos, concerts, or anything else that catches our attention.

Sealer's Promise Edition #3: Zakariah, Lord of Judgement

Artwork by Kattling.

Who is Zakariah?

Think Santa Claus with consequences. (Kidding!) Zakariah is the Lord of Judgement in the Underworld. While his father, Lucian, presides over the whole of the place, it is Zakariah who is responsible for deciding who has been, who has been bad and how the naughty people are going to be punished.

Not surprising that he's far from the last popular guy in New Haven. After 10,000 years of people being terrified of him / hating his guts, Zakariah has resigned himself to solitude in his palace, the Hall of Judgement. He's got an opinion on everything and he's pretty adament in his belief that those opinions are the right opinions. But he is also desperately lonely.

Zakariah is the major villain of Sealer's Promise. He's actually not the most "bad" character, but he is the antagonist who is driving the plot. That said, I have some very "interesting" plans for Mr. Fear Me, Citizens of the Underworld! You're going to get a bit of a peek at them here, actually. ;) So glad that romance is always about the how and the why, rather then the who. :D (Who is important, but it tends to be up front.) 

Song #1: Man of Constant Sorrow (O Brother Where Art Thou)

Would you believe I didn't make a connection between this and Zakariah until I went into edits? I certainly can't, because it really fits him. O Brother Where Art Thou, as a whole, is about things not being what they seem. (It's a retelling of Homer's The Odyssey but it's set in the 30s? 40s? and focuses on escaping criminals and country / bluegrass / "old-timey" music.) Much like this movie, Zakariah is (hopes! prays!) a character with layers

Basically, I felt like I wanted to hear this song one day, looked it up on youtube, hear this:

I am the man of constant sorrow
I've seen trouble all my days.

and went, "Wait a minute!". Despite his powers, his position and all of that, Zakariah has not had an easy life and the person he is has been bent, shaped and warped by this fact. I also found this rather ironic and fitting:

But there is one promise that is given,
I'll meet you on God's golden shore.

I'm sure it's meant to be comforting in the song, but when I consider (current) Zakariah thinking this, it kinda gives me a chill. *laughs* It's true, though. If only more people knew, huh? ;) 

Song #2: Once In Love With Amy by Frank Sinatra 

I've been a fan of jazz and easy listening for close to fifteen years now. My aunt got me into it during the summer prior to 11th grade when I signed up for a vocal jazz class and had no clue what jazz was. This song has so many layers of reference to my books. It suits the Zakariah and Amy situation, and the sound suits the atmosphere of my underworld, which is a mix between Greek myth, a fairy realm, the 1960s and modern Los Vegas. 

You might be quite the fickle hearted rover,
So carefree and bold,
Who loves a girl and later thinks it over,
And just quits cold. 

This puts me in mind of what Zakariah thinks of Sarena's older brother, Jayden. It amuses me every time I hear it.

Ever and ever sweetly you'll romance her
Trouble is the answer will be
That Amy'd rather stay in love with me. 

This part puts me in mind of how confident and certain that Zakariah is about *everything*. Despite his past and everything he's been through, he is extremely confident and once he thinks something it's going to take a LOT to change his mind. Is Amy in love with him? You'll have to wait a while--they don't meet until Sealer's Quest, but their plot is one of the aspects of that book (and the series) that I have well worked out and I love, love, love these two. 

Song #3: Behind Blue Eyes by The Who

My last song for this week is Behind Blue Eyes by The Who. My aunt got me into their music years ago and I've seen this song used to represent lots of anime villains, especially Nakago from Fushigi Yugi. I think that it especially fits Zakariah for many reasons. People's fear of him has actually warped the truth about the Underworld to the point where people from both Earth and Zynedia have no real idea how death works. People also do not see Zakariah as a person, but rather only as a representation of their misfortune for having committed crimes during life. 

Zakariah has an outward air of confidence, but everyone has those moments when they wake up at 3 a.m. and question everything in life, whether they are 20 years old or 10,000. Is his too harsh? Does he need to change? What would that change involve? Can he change? It's this thinking that has lead him to believe he needs to experience life, and it's that conclusion from him which leads to the major conflict of my book.

No one knows what it's like
To be the bad man
To be the sad man
Behind blue eyes.

No one knows what it's like
To be hated
To be faded
To telling only lies. 

One of the things I'm pretty proud of with my outline for this series is that Zakariah actually evolves somewhat like the protagonist of this song, his thinking alters and shifts and changes. 

So, what music is on your mind this week? Link me up and I'll drop by and have a look. Thanks for visiting. :)