The chamber filled with a bone-chilling silence as Valen and his allies stared at the dark tendril slipping through the breach in the portal. It twisted slowly, almost deliberately, as though savoring the moment, exuding a dark energy that drained the warmth from the room and sapped their strength.
"Stay focused!" Valen shouted, his voice steady despite the mounting dread in his chest. "We have to contain it—whatever it takes."
The tendril suddenly lashed out, striking at them with a force that cracked the stone floor. Valen threw up a shield of Void Essence just in time, deflecting the attack. He felt the raw power of the entity in that single strike; this was no ordinary manifestation. The entity's power was ancient, layered with a malevolent intelligence that sent chills through him.
"Seraphine!" Valen called, barely holding the shield as the tendril pressed against it, the dark energy spreading like ink in water. "Can you seal it?"