At the top of the trail he was met by two young women, one carrying a smoldering bundle of sage. She softly blew the smoke toward him, over his face and down to his chest, over both legs and around to his back. The other held up a circle of gold, set with a crystal.
Alaric bowed his head and she settled it on him, the crystal sitting on his forehead. He could already feel it opening him up, the power of the globe pulsing at him, the thoughts of those around him racing into him.
He took a deep breath and focused on the crystal, on the globe, carefully blocking out the others for the moment. Once he was in control, he lifted his head. Everything vibrated with color as he stepped away from the women.
The space had been cleared of snow, a circle marked out in black. Four guardians stood at
