crescendoed into a deafening roar, stopping Nathaniel in his tracks. His hands grasped the doorframe, but an invisible force seemed to anchor him in place. The darkness around him was alive, pulsating, growing closer as if it had been waiting for this moment for centuries. He gasped for breath, his lungs straining against the suffocating pressure.
“The blood must call. The blood must seal.” The voices overlapped now, merging into a terrible, unified chant.
Nathaniel twisted, his heart thundering, as he found himself once again staring at the altar. The symbols etched into the stone glowed with a sinister light, the pulsation matching his heartbeat. The objects scattered around the altar began to tremble and shift, as though responding to an unseen energy.
“No!” Nathaniel yelled, the sou
