Round 5

As Jeane's dark wings rustled softly, her crimson eyes narrowed, and she stepped closer to the gate, her gaze tracing the rune patterns with predatory focus. The sequence was a puzzle box, and she intended to solve it before her companions blundered through it. Her hands danced across the ancient carvings, her fingers sensitive to the subtle interplay of energies that might reveal the dormant ward's trigger.

Halie, kneeling beside Seraphine, pulled out her silver holy symbol, tracing its edges with thoughtful fingers. The metal on metal produced a quiet sound of contemplation amidst the oppressive silence. Her blue-grey eyes watched Jeane intently, a mixture of concern and frustration evident in her expression. Together, they sought to decipher the ward's trigger sequence, a three-step pattern of light, shadow, and silence, but its exact order remained shrouded in mystery.