Participating in the ancient sacred ritual was spellbinding as the coven members performed the precise and bizarre order of the gestures. Our leader unexpectedly seems to freeze time, halting all the sounds and movement around us. Yet, she fluidly continues chanting to the sky, her body facing the North, locking us all up on this surreal journey. We could feel the ground beneath us fill with an indescribable power, one ready to release; each member gets hits of anxiety from the unfolding events. Suddenly, our leader is gone. Frantically, we search for her under the translucent lightning and rumbling thunder.