Funeral Pyre

Haunting spirit, hear these words that I proclaim I will guide your journey And you will have your due of flames Accept my humble sacrifice of the chosen few Slain and flayed before the pyre I'll make your wish come true The beautiful dead that surround me now Burnt black by the fires of death The beautiful dead that surround me now The transition through flames into the night As the fumes rise from the funeral pyre Oh, immortals hear my call, I've shorn my hair and lit the pyre The stars shine and the fires cast light on the mournful choir Winds, I summon you, from the north and from the west Gather to feed flames, come forth to greet your guest Blood is shed The wine is spilled Bellowing smoke from the tripods No words unsaid The deed fulfilled An offering to the gods Gathered now the burnt remains A stark reminder of the pains On the road to immortality Where lesser men would die The rites are ended on the morrow The bones interred beneath the barrow Enshrined in gold forever more Pray Elysium awaits, and the names go on The beautiful dead that surround me now Burnt black by the fires of death The beautiful dead that surround me now The transition through flames into the night As the fumes rise from the funeral pyre