The air exploded in waves of raw energy.
The forest was no longer a forest—it was a field of echoes. The ground vibrated like a living drum, and the purple seal beneath Kael's feet pulsed with a rhythm that did not belong to this world.
Umbra floated nearby, her form oscillating between matter and shadow, almost undone by the weight of the energy emanating from the rift.
Ahri, who had appeared among the trees—the previous portal had brought her there—watched the distortion with sparkling eyes, the air around her trembling with heat and fear.
Kael, still kneeling, raised his face, feeling the wind carry leaves and fragments of mana.
The pulsation of the seal accelerated, like a heart about to tear the seams of reality.
"Umbra," he murmured, his voice hoarse but full of command, "is this a portal?"
Umbra looked at the pulsating circle and then at him. "I'm not sure. It's something... between planes. It could be a point of passage—or a devouring abyss."
