Necromancy In D Minor ✔️

Consonance and Sorrow

Octavia's lips curled in disgust as she gazed at the pyre. She stood with Quintus at the edge of the barrier, in the cool, blue haze that came before the dawn. Wood stood piled knee high in a neat geometrical stack interspersed with dried leaves and strips of old cloth.

Atop it all, laid Eli, his body wrapped in linen strips soaked in a pungent elixir that made her eyes water, and throat burn. Judging by the spots of blood seeping through the fabric, Quintus had been thorough with him, but no punishment would ever be enough for what he did.

"Here you are my dear." Quintus reached into a box of goodies by his feet and handed her a thick match ripe with the scent of sulphur.

Octavia struck it against the wood and tossed on the tinder, watching the fire run and expand. It roared and crackled until it engulfed the pyre, consuming everything in its path, but seeing Eli's body go up in flames didn't fill her with the satisfaction she wanted.

His spirit was in eternity, while Arietta and her mother were trapped in rotting bodies, doomed to suffer an eternity of darkness. It filled Octavia with a bitterness that soured her stomach. She wanted grab his burning body and throttle him one more time.

Quintus dipped his hand into the box again and produced two rods with cured meat attached to one end, holding them close to the flame. They popped and fizzled filling the air with the scent of spices. "The Priests didn't find anything in Eli's house. According to Beatrix, he sent out letters regularly, so we may be dealing with a larger scale issue."

She figured as much. Eli couldn't be the catalyst of humanity's destruction on his own. "I'll draft a letter to the archives. They're more inclined to listen to me."

"Indeed, they are." He flipped the meat over. "I'll make arrangements to have the girl and her mother transported to the crypt. I was hoping we could find this bastard's research. A way to stave off the rot would help immensely."

Octavia held her hands out to the fire to warm them. "Perhaps there is a way to track it down. Does the post in Avaly keep record of the letters that come through?"

"I believe so, and if that's the case we may have a trail to follow." He offered her a sizzling skewer. "Cured meat, cooked over the burning corpse of thine enemy. This is how you celebrate a victory, my friend."

Octavia tried to put on a smile for him, but it fell flat. Was it really a victory?

"You did well Octavia. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"Then why do I feel so utterly incompetent?"

"I suppose everyone feels that way when the things they learned aren't enough to get them by. I know old Morrigan drilled it into your head, but sin and symphony isn't all a necromancer needs." He tapped his skewer against hers before taking a bite. They ate in comfortable silence and watched the fire die down to glowing coals and embers. The rising sun slanted through the trees, casting warm, yellow light over the snow.

Quintus stuck his skewer in Eli's remains. "Meet me in the bell tower within the hour. We can deal with the daywalkers later but I want these damn netherborne gone."

She nodded and headed into the cathedral. The halls were empty and quiet for the most part, save for the kitchen where Marin was already up and at work. She meandered her way to the foyer and took the steps to the third floor. Instead of putting her in the back with the other priest, she was tucked into the southeast corner of the building, in a cozy, spacious room that overlooked the pond.

A whiff of poppy seed and citrus tickled her nose as she went inside, a far cry from the musky scent of age and neglect she'd found on her first day in this room. She grabbed her flute case from the trunk at the foot of the bed.