The callout turned out not to be what they thought it was, instead it was a trigger. Before the Paragons could bridge the distance or the King could fully seize his prize, a blinding, incandescent radiance erupted from the Queen's clenched fist. The red key, fueled by every drop of mana Amina could pour into it, transformed from a tool into a gateway.
A shimmering, ethereal door manifested in the center of the brilliance. It pulsed with a localized, violent gravitational force, a Singular Pull that ignored the furniture, the stones of the palace, and even the other Paragons. Its hunger was reserved for the Queen alone.
The Queen's body was yanked toward the threshold with terrifying velocity. Nwadiebube, acting on pure, desperate instinct, lunged. He caught her by the foot just as she lifted off the bed, his muscles bulging as he drove his sword deep into the reinforced stone floor to anchor them both against the vacuum of the portal.
