The stench of burning flesh was harsh inside the antiseptic steel of the vault. Seven hooded figures, robes splattered with blood from the first sacrifice, gathered in a semi-circle, next to the round door and watched with a certain amount of awe, as man and money burned together.

Cultists came in all shapes and colors now, among them a bank consultant, a security expert, and a hacker. No longer were their numbers regulated to the pitiful inbred rubbish that had long populated the earth. There were better ways to keep secrets now. Some deep, dark corners of the world were still as isolated as they were a thousand years ago, but in most places, the advances in communication allowed information to flow freely. Being secluded was not enough to stay hidden.

“Won’t the police undo everything?” Sam wasn’t stupid, but he didn’t have the capability to see past money as a goal. Money that twisted as it burned, black and charred in front of him.

“You don’t get it!” I snarled. “We’re weakening the walls of reality!”