The morning sun had flooded the city with light by the time the officers and volunteers had finished recording the bodies. Some residents were in tears, refusing to let the officers move the bodies to the growing pile of corpses as they mourned the discovered corpse of a friend or loved one. Some officers were trying to convince them of the need to cremate the bodies. Others were consoling them as they mourned.
Val was patiently waiting, still sitting on the roof of a car. One of the Chief's officers handed him a bottle of rubbing alcohol and some sanitizing wipes so he could clean his hands of the black blood. Having finished washing his hands, he was trying to remove blood and bits of gristle from his clothes, only succeeding in restoring his jacket to a passable state.
Some residents had returned to the warehouse earlier, coming back after a time, pushing carts laden with light food and hot beverages like coffee or hot chocolate. Few were in the mood to eat, but many had accepted a hot drink to stave off the chilly morning breeze. Val himself took an offered cup of coffee, realizing he had not had the chance to enjoy a proper cup of coffee since the apocalypse.
"So, what's the next plan?" Huginn quietly asked.
"I think I'm going to hang out here for a bit. I agreed to help the Chief with some missions to clear and retake key locations in the city. I can also get some information about what happened that day, and where the evacuation orders were directing people. I'm not in any particular rush right now. My skill with the sword improved significantly during that trial with Valor, but I still lack finer control over magic. I suppose I need practice in all areas, to be honest. You said my eyes glow when I use magic because of mana leaking out, right?" Val recounted his plan to Huginn as he sipped on his coffee.
"It is the cause, yes, but it is not so simple to prevent it. Neither does it cause any real detriment. In fact, my lord's glow with a pale blue light when he exercises his magic. It is normal, to an extent, but, indeed, you are still wasteful with your magic. Much of it bleeds out when you invoke your runes, that is to be expected. You have far more mana than the average practitioner your age due to the mark. It will fuel you with more than you can use right now, regardless. In time you will need to gain proper mastery over it, but for now, I would forgive you for relying on it." Huginn explained, surprising Val at the lack of disdain in his words.
"Why does my magic take an orange appearance then? Didn't Karl give me the brand?"
"Ask him yourself, that is not for me to explain."
"Figures, well, regardless, I'll be busy here for a bit if you feel like reporting our progress to Karl, you can let him know we arrived at least."
"Hmm, I will probably do just that, after you take care of these bodies."
Nearby, Richard and Jim were observing the progress, sipping some bitter coffee.
"How're the folks doing?" Richard asked.
"It's a mixed bag, honestly. There are still a couple dozen bodies to be moved to the pile. It seems like at least twenty of the ghouls were close with some residents. A few were family. Do you believe this stuff about the souls?" Jim asked.
"He believes it, and he's been doing the unbelievable since he showed up. That's good enough for me. Even if these aren't the souls of our community, they were still people. We couldn't keep them safe, so the least we can do is make sure they get peace."
Jim just nodded, then pointed to a woman crying while clutching a middle-aged corpse's head despite the blood. He added. "That one there, it's her husband, apparently owned the liquor store over on Fourth and Main."
"Fuck… Is this what the coming days are going to be? Reuniting folk with the bloody mess of their loved ones?" Richard lamented.
"Probably, but there's a lot more of them out there, and somebody has to put them to bed if we're going to fix this place."
"Yeah. I know we still need medicine, but I'm changing the priority on some of these missions. We're taking HQ first."
"More guns? There should be a lot still in the armory there, but they're not too effective on the ghouls."
"No, the guns will be good to have, but it's the riot gear we need. Guns aren't the answer to the ghouls. We both saw that man fight. We need to confront the dead up close and put them down ourselves. We can't be relying on him for everything. We don't even know how long he'll stay. Flashbangs and armor, everything else we take from the hardware stores."
Val also noticed the grieving woman. His heart ached with her as he chastised himself for his reckless zeal. Val told himself he would change the way he fought the ghouls. He would try to leave them intact, so he would not have to witness another person grieving with only the head of their beloved.
"She will not blame you. Even if you had only left a finger and a wedding ring, it is enough that she has something of him with which to grieve. You have given all of them that comfort, asking nothing in return." Muninn comforted him softly, following his gaze.
"I can only imagine, were I in her place, how terrible it must be to not know where your beloved is, only to be reunited with his head. Still, thank you." Val replied, still watching the mourning residents in deep thought.
Huginn held a stoic gaze. Val knew he did not care too much for humans, but he liked to think he was not so indifferent as to feel nothing for them.
After another hour, the officers and other volunteers gathered all the bodies in an enormous pile. They tried to at least stack them neatly as to show some respect, as opposed to merely dumping them on top of each other. Richard and his subordinates formed a perimeter, urging the residents to maintain a distance.
"Val, thank you for giving us time, we're ready for you." Richard called out.
Val nodded to him, only to whisper a question awkwardly to Huginn.
"Say, I don't suppose you know how I might easily cast a flame large enough for this?" He asked.
Huginn gave him an annoyed look. "You did not even think this far?"
"I kind of thought I'd figure something out by the time I got this far." Val smiled wryly.
"Hmph. A runeword would do, but you have not studied enough, nor have you acquired the fine control needed to use one."
Huginn thought for a moment as Val motioned to Richard that he would be right there.
"For someone with brutish strength and limited finesse, a simple rune formation should be easy enough." Huginn said.
Val raised an eyebrow. "What, like a magic circle?"
"In simple terms, yes. Carve 'Radh' into the ground, encircle it with a simple magic carving, then carve a circle connecting to it around the entire pyre. You can channel Feoh into the rune, and it will propagate your desired effects across the formation. They can be very costly to use, depending on their size and complexity, but one of this scale should be of little concern for you." The raven explained.
"Hmm, okay, I think I've got it." Val had studied Radh before in the book, but it did not have a simple explanation for what to use it for.
Val hopped off the car to set about his task. Standing before the pile of bodies, he kneeled down and carved Radh into the asphalt. A smoldering, sharp 'R' symbol with no curves appeared. Next, he carved a circle around the rune, proceeding to continue carving from the ring, moving around the pile, connecting to the other side of the encircled symbol.
The residents who had not seen Val in action looked on in disbelief and awe as a smoldering circle formation appeared before them.
Kneeling before the rune, Val placed his hand above it, carving Feoh. The encircled rune glowed brighter, as heat waves rose from the formation. Radh began to fade, as the upside-down, crooked looking 'F' shape that was Feoh took its place in the formation. The air itself seemed to spontaneously ignite as Val's magic wreathed the bodies in a scorching, powerful fire. Val's eyes glowed, matching the flames. As the runes on his chest lit up, he poured more and more of his mana into the rune, causing the fire to grow and burn hotter in proportion. Flames reached out in nearly successful attempts to lick his face, but despite the heat, Val resolutely continued to channel his power into the rune.
The residents all looked on as the bodies burned, beginning to turn to ash almost immediately after charring, and were carried away in the rising flames. Fire reflected in the eyes of a myriad of expressions. Some wore tears, others wore fear, relief, anger, or any other of an assortment of emotions, but in all the eyes reflecting with fire, hope burned beneath. The blazing pyre kindled hope in their hearts, returning color to weary, tear-stained cheeks. A few young teenagers felt their blood pumping as they watched the funerary procession following the city's first victory against their recently dwindling circumstances.
Some folks joined hands, organizing prayers for the dead, wishing them a reprieve from their tortured time in their world. Even those not subscribed to any faith or creed joined hands in solidarity, praying for rest to come soon to those whose souls still wandered among the living.
As Val continued to stoke the pyre with his magic, he doubted his eyes. In his fiery gaze, he swore he could see soft, faint green lights rising and scattering with the ashes. Were it not for the reality of the circumstances, he would have described the mixing colors as a beautiful scene.
After nearly a half-hour of channeling his magic, he was finished. The last of the bodies turned to ash and floated along with the current. All that remained of the pyre was a column of white smoke. The ashes were carried high into the sky. A symbol of closure and rest to some who sent off their friends and family. It was also a signal of hope and hard days ahead as the survivors stood resolutely with newfound purpose.
Val finally released his invocation and withdrew his power from the formation, the runes dimming till all that was left was scorched asphalt covered in ashes and a charred outline. Falling back into a sitting position, he rested as his eyes and chest dimmed; he felt fatigued by the cost of such a long spell. Behind him, a crowd of almost eighty pairs of eyes stared at the back of the young man with gratitude, some of them praying for his good fortune and great health.
A man in uniform walked over and offered a large bottle of water to Val.
"Thanks." Val said, almost out of breath, accepting the water from Jim.
Val downed half of the water, before reaching into his jacket for a cigarette. He offered one to Jim as he lit his own.
"Nah, thanks. I'm still savoring the taste of the last one I had." Jim declined this time, but there was a wry smile on his face.
"You find any of your friends in the bodies?" Val asked, puffing on his cigarette.
"Not friends, but I recognized a handful of people, gave one of them a speeding ticket not too long ago if I remember correctly. It seemed like it was only yesterday when I saw his face."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be, laws were different then. It was just a speeding violation. I'm glad at least his body won't be attacking anyone else anymore."
The two watched the sun rising into the morning sky, one in deep thought and the other enjoying a break after a long, bloody night.
The man deep in thought chuckled, breaking the silence. "You're becoming something of a hero around here, you know." Jim said.
Exhaling smoke, sitting in the street full of ashes, Val chuckled too.
"Ha. Not just yet."