Round 4

As Jeane's dark energy danced across the runes, the air around her shimmered with anticipation. Halie knelt beside the gate, her gentle hands tracing the earthy scent of the forest floor as she whispered a prayer seeking guidance from the spirits within the stones. Merrin watched warily, her lockpicks at the ready, while Seraphine's keen gaze remained fixed on the intricate runes covering the gate. The binding magic responded to Jeane's deliberate touch, its ancient secrets slowly unraveling before her inquiring eyes.

The runes pulsed with an otherworldly power that made Merrin's halfling senses reel, and Halie's voice was barely audible as she urged caution. "Enough talk," she said firmly, her heavy mace held loosely in one hand. Seraphine nodded slowly, a silent acknowledgment of the unease they shared, but her gaze remained fixed on the gate. The symbols seemed to pulse with a life of their own, a trapped power waiting to be unleashed.