The preparation took longer than the ritual itself.
Lucien cleared a wide expanse of his inner realm until nothing remained but smooth, reinforced ground saturated with evenly distributed divine energy. He shaped the space into a shallow concavity, broad enough to contain convergence without forcing compression.
At its center, Lucien carved the basin.
Into its structure, he etched magic circle formations drawn directly from the Records of Stillness.
The Funeral Concord Array came first. It's a stabilizing matrix designed to prevent premature dissolution during post-mortem transitions. Its lines did not restrain. They acknowledged finality and made space for it.
Above it, he layered the Quietus Weave. It's a formation meant to dampen violent soul recoil. Interlocking magic circles spread outward from the basin like overlapping ripples on water, ensuring that nothing within would be torn apart by its own resistance.
