Round 136

Seraphine’s sharp eyes track the arcane energy crackling around them as she completes her spell. The runes on the walls pulse brighter, their patterns shifting and twisting in time with her incantation. Jeane watches intently from nearby, her crimson gaze fixed on every gesture and word. The sorceress knows better than to interrupt a working spell mid-cast—one wrong syllable could collapse the entire structure or worse. She settles for pacing nearby, keeping her wings half-spread for quick reaction time should anything go awry.

With a final sharp gesture, Seraphine completes the binding circle. The arcane energy snaps into place with an audible crackle, forming a shimmering barrier between them and the spirit. She takes a deep breath, her injured shoulder twinging painfully. There. That should hold for now—at least until we figure out what to do next.

Jeane steps forward immediately, her voice dripping with false sympathy as she addresses the bound entity. "Bound for eternity? Poor thing." Her eyes gleam with cold calculation, betraying the act. Seraphine rolls her eyes internally at the performance—Jeane’s idea of diplomacy is usually more direct and less... theatrical.

As Jeane begins to negotiate with the spirit, Seraphine moves to examine the newly formed barrier. The arcane patterns hold steady for now, but she can feel the malevolent energy pushing against them from the other side. This isn’t going to last long—not without significantly more power and preparation than they have in this crumbling passage.

She glances back at Jeane, noting the way her wings are half-spread in a subtle display of power. There’s a recklessness to her methods—a willingness to push boundaries that Seraphine finds both exhilarating and terrifying. Her gaze drifts to Merrin again, still standing on the platform below, her expression one of pure exhaustion. Jeane is right—we need this creature's help if we're going to get Merrin out of here. But Jeane’s approach... it feels too...

Seraphine shakes her head slightly, refocusing on the immediate problem. "Jeane," she calls out, her voice carrying a note of warning. "That binding won’t hold indefinitely. We need to decide what we’re doing next—fast."