Chapter 1Carl had worked for months to make tonight a reality.
Research. Planning. Transcribing. Translating. Preparing.
He’d rented this storage unit and paid extra for twenty-four hour access, then slowly and carefully turned it into a ritual space.
Soundproofing foam glued to the walls. Using a laser level to get precise measurements before laying silver tape in a mathematically perfect square on the concrete floor. Ensuring the only airflow would come from the ceiling vents and then taping heavy paper filters over them.
No smells to escape and reveal what he was doing, no odors that could enter and potentially break his concentration.
Weeks of work on top of the painstakingly slow research on how to craft the circles and ensure he understood each spell component.
Tonight, though,
