“Let’s just wait,” I said.

“Good deal,” Marie said. “Who knows what these looney tunes are.”

So, from behind our tree, we watched their assembly around the glowing chasm. After a few moments, I was finally able to make out what they were chanting.

“Findest blocket. Findest linet. Findest wordet. Findest letteret.”

They chanted that over and over again until, slowly, each of them took off their robes.

They looked, without their coverings, like aliens. Sinewy arms, big bulbous heads, their bodies completely smooth with no cracks or orifices besides black, marble-round eyes and thin mouths stretched across their faces. They were also each a solid color. One for each shade of the rainbow.

Once they had all disrobed, the chanting stopped. The violet figure yelled out.

“Givest thou hole ourst sacrificeth!”

“I sacrificeth,” the red figure yelped, and then ran towards the pit, jumped and disappeared down into the light.

“I sacrificeth,” the orange figure yelled, and then jumped into hole like the other.

And, in this way, all six of them went, disappearing into the glowing chasm until it was just Marie and I standing behind our tree.

“Holy shit,” I muttered and started walking into the clearing. The hole in the ground was still there and still glowing with light.

“It’s moving again,” Marie had grabbed my arm again and was shaking it. “Time is moving!”

I checked my phone. It was, somehow 11:52. The date was still December 31st, 2020.

“We should go back,” I said. “Check on the others.”

We started running back towards the house.