Chương 185: 175. The rite

"Why do you have to do shit like that?" Q'Shar asked, giving Sam the stink eye.

"Don't know. It's like a compulsion."

"Hmm." The cat groaned and looked back at the creature sitting next to Sam.

"I assume it's a familiar. So how did you get that thing? Please don't tell me you're getting comfortable with your gods?"

"Well…" Sam paused, looking for the right words.

"It's a long story. My gods are involved, but don't worry, she shouldn't eat you alive. I think…" The rest looked back at the creature with even more caution. It was hard to describe the abomination: four eyes, six legs, four horns, and its tentacles now somehow retracted into its body.

"So what's its name?" Luna asked.

"Sally, and it's a she."

"Sally?" Luna looked Sam in the eye.

"You named your abomination Sally?"

"Well, it's her original name, and she likes it. Right, Sally?" Sam asked, and the creature began to vibrate, the movement accompanied by a deep rumble from inside its belly, something akin to a slowed-down goat scream.

"Don't do that," Q'Shar hissed, taking a step back.

"Aww, look at her go," Sam said happily.

"I tried meditating on some other name, but Sally is actually correct. It does translate to something in Eldritch, like Sahall'ov or Shiv'all. The rough meaning would be either 'crawling sky' or 'the hound of many eyes.' But Sally rolls off the tongue better."

"Do you think it's really... fitting?" Ophelia suggested, still watching the vibrating creature.

"I'm not taking naming advice from someone with a familiar named 'snake.'""I'm trying to get it right," Ophelia groaned, looking to one side.

"Mhm. And what would be the alternative to 'dog' or 'dog-familiar-creature'?" Ophelia was staring at Sam with an increasingly annoyed gaze.

"Sooomething more descriptive?" Myhur cut in to help his student.

"Yeah, like 'fucked-up creature thing,'" Q'Shar proposed, still looking at the familiar with a wary gaze.

"Oh," Sam piped up in fake shock.

"Don't listen to them," he said, placing his hands on the sides of his familiar's head as if covering the goat-dog's ears behind the horns. Everyone looked on in confusion.

"Aside from that," Luna said, looking on with raised eyebrows.

"How are your FBI troubles?" she asked. Sam looked at Q'Shar with a questioning look.

"Handled for now," the cat said.

"The guy in charge of the investigation went behind his superior's back to keep the case for himself. So we had one of our men snitch to his higher-ups." Sam nodded firmly, then looked at Luna.

"Handled for now. We had someone snitch," he said in a confident voice, as if it was his idea all along. Q'Shar sighed.

"But that genius plan will just slow them. Bureaucracy won't keep it stalled forever."

"If there's one thing I'd trust bureaucracy to do, it's stall things," Sam said with a smile. This comment even drew chuckles from Q'Shar, causing a break in the conversation. Ophelia used it to finally ask what was bothering her the whole time.

"You were supposed to explain to me what I am to do."

"Oh, right. You never participated in a ritual, right?"

"Don't worry," Luna cut in.

"Sam's an outlier. Most mages haven't, either. At least half of the people here will participate in a summoning of this size for the first time." Ophelia nodded in appreciation to the vampire.

"The ritual is easy. Summoning really has two parts. One is setting the spatial coordinates or the true name of a creature you want to summon. I already did that with the sigil. The next part is actually contacting it, so we use our magic to transport the thing. And we pay for its trouble, so we'll use my stored souls to bargain and living sacrifices to call the demon." Ophelia nodded along.

"Do you need me to cast something?"

"No, not really. But the demon is too big to go through a vein, so you'll have to help with tearing one open." Ophelia's eyes widened, to which Sam smiled.

"Yep, like in Norway. What we will summon today will most likely want to appear in its entirety, so the amount of magic needed will be high."

"And we aren't exactly sure about the state of the veil," Luna added, earning a nod of confirmation from Sam.

"The border around our world, right?" Ophelia asked, after remembering a passage from one of the books she studied.

"Yes. It's supposed to be flexible, as it was nourished by mana, but over the years, without it, the veil became rigid and tough to bend. Hopefully, it's easier to work with now."

"Iiiit should be doable with the number of mages we have," Myhur chimed in.

"Yeah. So, the ritual will go like this. The technical stuff is handled by the master of ceremonies. That means the circle, the concepts needed for the spell, and so on. But to rip the veil by yourself, you would need to be at least twice ascended. What we do instead is, while I do the complicated magic, the rest will work on bending the veil by brute force. The sirens and I will lead a chant for you to synchronize your magic with all the rest.

You will push and pull, using that obelisk as a point to concentrate all of your magic, until you cause a tear. And when the demon comes, the rest is up to the demonologist to get it to sign the contract."

"Okay." Ophelia took a while to take in all the knowledge.

"And won't the creature try to kill us?"

"Well, that's why you cannot enter the circle. Any good summoning spell has protections against that."

"And what do I do?"

"You will walk with a lamp in front of the living sacrifices, that's all, and then join the trance." Ophelia nodded. Once everything had been explained to her and the other participants in the ritual, the last preparations were completed. Sam, with the help of a few people, carried in ten large, unconscious men. Their entire bodies were covered in runes carved into their skin. Aside from that, Ophelia also felt their auras were strange, hollow in a way.

They were placed around the obelisk in a circle over runic nodes. Once evenly spaced, they were put in leather bindings, even though none of them seemed to be regaining consciousness anytime soon. Ophelia came closer, observing the runes carved into them with a deep frown. It was a mixture of soul and death magic, but also something more. A few of the runes had strange lines forming shapes that did not make sense, a telltale sign of space concepts. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen.

Report the violation.

"Yoooou've really changed," she heard Myhur say from behind her.

"What do you mean?" she asked, looking at him. The mushroom tilted his head to the side, where a few younger members stood, clearly in shock. Ophelia realized why. The sight was shocking—unconscious, mutilated men bound around the obelisk. Even though she was aware of what kind of things someone had to do to deserve that kind of treatment, it should still be a horrific sight.

"Gooood for you," Myhur said with a smile.

"Those with iron minds plant the forest. Those with weak minds end up nourishing it," he said. She was left with her mouth open, about to explain herself, but after his words, she realized it wasn't an accusation.

"Thank you," she said, bowing lightly. The remaining hour was spent in growing tension. Even the more experienced members were watching the sun slowly sinking lower in the sky. The shadows lengthened, and the light changed from yellow to orange, then to red, until finally the last ray hid behind the horizon.

"It's time to start," Sam announced. Everyone took long black robes out of the prepared boxes, along with white masks depicting various animals. Ophelia got the snake mask, while Luna got a bat mask. They then took their positions around the ritual circle as the mermaids carried in their instruments: four large drums, a bass, and a violin, all etched with runes. The elves went out to patrol, leaving only those participating in the ritual chamber.

Sam took his spot behind the podium and, schooling his expression back into the mask of seriousness, commanded, "Bring in the sacrifices." Ophelia did as she was asked and went out with Myhur and three others. They then dragged in three men and one woman, all trying to fight against them, but to no avail. Ophelia walked slowly before the procession with a large red lamp. When she came back into the room, everyone was already looking in their direction.

The sight of over forty people in masks and long flowing black robes made her hold her breath. To her right, she could see Sam had also ditched his usual mask of branches and now wore a detailed white mask depicting a goat with curved horns, with his image by the podium made even more impressive by the abomination sitting by his side, watching them with yellow eyes, unnerving and unmoving.

"Oh, oh God. Oh, what the fuck?" one of the sacrifices screamed.

"Let me go. Do you know who I am? I'll fucking kill you." The first one kept shouting and screaming. The remaining three were trying to struggle, but had no chance against trained mages. They were all brought to the obelisk and chained to it. They tried to bargain and plead, some offering money, others swearing up and down they wouldn't do it again, apologizing for their crimes. All the sins mentioned made Ophelia almost look forward to the moment their souls would leave this plane.

Then Sam began casting spells, some silently, others aloud, as Ophelia could see different parts of the carved circle come alive, lighting up with arcane light. The spellcasting must have been complicated, as Sam was clearly tired by the end, but after about fifteen minutes, the entire spell was active. Taking an audible breath, he nodded at the mermaids standing at the side, and the first beat of the drum broke the silence, announcing the start of the rite. Then Sam's voice sounded in the room.

"I give my bow to the east, to give thanks to the beast," he said, or rather sang. Ophelia was taken out of the ritualistic atmosphere as she looked at him in shock. Of all the skills she attributed to her teacher, singing wasn't on the list. Sam continued the chant, as Ophelia shook off her surprise and looked at the center. All the instructions she received were to focus her magic on the obelisk in the middle. Extending her senses toward it, she immediately realized why no more explanations were needed.

There, in and around the obelisk, a massive concentration of mana was already present. She joined her magic to the mass as the rhythm started to flow through her. The drums were relatively simple, with the bass and violin accentuating their sound, giving it a background against which they could shine. Then there was Sam's voice, half chanting, half singing. The entire atmosphere and the many symbols of death made proper attunement a breeze.

Ophelia slowly fell into the rhythm, feeling it with all her being, deep in her chest and beyond. It was as if she could feel the beat inside every person there, keenly aware that they could feel the beat in her. Push on one breath, pull on another, push, pull, push, pull, working against something around the obelisk. They were holding onto something imperceptible as they tried to bend it. Push, pull, push, pull, to the beat of the drums.

She didn't know at what point she began to sway back and forth with everyone else. From left to right, her hands were gripped by those on either side of her as they swayed. She could feel the trance coming over her senses as she became part of something greater, a bigger whole. Push, pull, push, pull. It was all rhythm, pressure, and gripping at something that did not want to move. She could then hear a bit of commotion, as Sam went out of rhythm for a split second, but he rejoined them in the next breath.

She could then feel him coming closer to the circle. She knew he had the blade in his hand, even without opening her eyes, as he, too, was a part of the bigger whole. And as he came closer to the obelisk, the thing in the middle finally tore ever so slightly, and a biting smell of sulfur entered her nose. The demon was coming. Lan was terrified by the sight before her eyes. Barely a month ago, she joined the FBI squad to chase after the mysterious killer.

In that short time, she was introduced to a rather strange world of mystery, as the group had used something akin to divination to solve their case. She was getting more and more excited, seeing a possible article in the making—'FBI solves the biggest murder case of the century with the help of a mind reader.' And the rights to the story were hers. That ended two weeks ago, when the FBI shut down their case. She didn't know what it was, but apparently, the chief got into some sort of trouble.

They had been cut off from FBI resources, with their clearances put on hold. So right now she was basically jobless. Going back and risking meeting her boss was out of the question, so she ended up calling her contacts in New York to get any work. And all she managed to get was an article about crazy Halloween parties and the dangers of alcohol consumption among the young. An article like the millions already out there, but she needed even the small pay to cover her stay in Los Angeles.

So, with a heavy heart, she took the job, hoping she might catch sight of some famous person at said parties. Paparazzi work disgusted her to her core, but beggars couldn't be choosers. She called everyone she could, but sadly, all her contacts were at best in local patrols, people responsible for the small towns and big stretches of nowhere outside the city, rather than inside it. Yet a break came, and she was almost excited when her contact called her about a gathering of expensive-looking cars.

Not only did someone pay off local police, but that someone also rented a burned-down factory. That sounded like money and drugs, and that could be a good story. Maybe even some celebrities. But she never suspected anything like that. She managed to use old boxes and an ancient car to climb up to a window of a burned-down building, but instead of music and drugs, what she saw inside was otherworldly.

Around forty people in a circle, chanting as four others were chained to a massive black obelisk, all of them wearing long black robes and white animal masks. Horror gripped her heart at the sight, but the reporter in her begged her to start taking photos. She went for the camera and, making sure the flash was off, began photographing as the people sang. Then a man with a goat mask came into the circle and took out a long, sharp dagger as he approached the chained people.

She wanted to scream at him to stop, but it was no use. She would get killed instead, so she decided to document it. But that hope was crushed as the man approached the chained people and slit the throat of the first one, moving to the side as blood shot toward the floor. She looked to the side, away from the horrific spectacle, only to meet the four red eyes of a terrible creature looking right at her.

She opened her mouth, an involuntary scream almost coming from her throat, but then a hand covered her mouth from behind. She didn't even have time to think, as the last thing she heard was a cold voice.

"That might disturb the rite," someone said, and darkness overtook her. She woke up lying in the field. The moment consciousness came back, Lan shot up, ready to defend herself. But nothing happened. She identified the sound that woke her as her phone ringing, with Filip's number showing on the screen. She looked around, confused. She was in the middle of a field, whole and alive, her camera on the ground near her.

"What the..." she asked herself, as the events of the previous night flashed in her mind. She then picked up the phone while opening the camera's gallery to make sure what she saw was real.

"Hello," Filip started.

"You have to come here," Lan cut in.

"There was, like, a ritual and..." She began explaining in a shaky voice as she fiddled with the camera.

"And—" Lan stopped mid-sentence when her eyes landed on the photos. They were corrupted. All she could see was a pixelated field of red and grey.

"What the?" she asked under her breath, then checked the next photo and the next. All were the same. Only distortions could be seen.

"You all right?" Filip asked on the phone.

"Y-yeah," she said, uncertain of the answer, her eyes on the photos. Filip stayed silent for a few seconds before he finally chose not to continue with the questioning and went on to inform her of the good news.

"Well then, unless you found our killer, you should come back to Los Angeles. We got the green light. We're back in business," he said excitedly.