The portal yawned open wide as a gash torn in the fabric of the world.
Kael felt the pressure of reality distorting around him, its reluctance a burning tension at the nape of his eyes, as though invisible fingers on the edges of his mind. The glowing mist pulsed unsteadily, not like the rigid portals the Academy constructed, but raw—ancient. It seemed alive, breathing, exhaling whisps of an ancient tongue older than stars into the atmosphere.
Elira's grip on his hand constricted.
She spoke not a word, but he could feel her mind through the bond—a whirlwind of fear and wonder, slicing as shattered starlight. The threads of magic tightened between them, holding them fast against the emptiness.
"I am with you," she whispered, her voice almost lost in the throbbing hum of the gate.
He gazed down at her, once nodding. "And I with you."
Hand in hand, they took a step forward.
The moment they crossed over the threshold, the universe went inside out.
