No more needed to be said. They both nodded without question. We approached the teleportation circle and, in sync, extended our hands toward its edges. We channeled a small amount of mana into the activation lines. The circle reacted immediately: the runes lit up with a bluish-white glow and the air around us began to vibrate.
A low hum filled the room, like the beating of an anxious heart, the ground beneath our feet slowly faded into a haze of light, and reality seemed to fold in on itself.
***
