When Kael's eyes fluttered open, he wasn't sure if he was dead, dreaming, or just dealing with the worst headache of his life.
The first thing he noticed was that he was lying flat on his back, staring at an upside-down ceiling. The second thing he noticed was the very real possibility that his brain had turned into mashed potatoes.
"Ugh…" Kael groaned, sitting up, his head spinning like a windmill in a storm. He blinked rapidly, trying to focus, only to find himself staring at a group of very familiar faces.
"Well, look who's finally awake," Finn said with a smirk, sitting cross-legged nearby, his hands behind his head like he was waiting for Kael to finish his nap.
Kael squinted at him. "What… happened?"
"We had a little 'light show' courtesy of your artifact," Nyx said, tossing him a flask. "Here. Drink this. Might clear up that mess in your brain."
Kael took a cautious swig, immediately regretting it as the liquid burned its way down his throat. "What is this?" he choked out, staring at Nyx in disbelief.
"Whatever works," she shrugged. "I've never had a 'Heartstone hangover' before, but I'm sure it's a thing."
Soren, who was sitting cross-legged nearby, appeared a bit more composed. "The Heartstone shattering didn't just affect the artifact—it unleashed a massive amount of energy. We barely made it out of there alive."
"Well, that was fun," Finn said with exaggerated enthusiasm. "Like a really bad amusement park ride. 'The Shadow King's Spooky Fortress,' now with 200% more evil laughter and power-draining shadows!" He flailed his arms dramatically. "Whoo! This is the life, huh?"
Kael gave him an incredulous look. "You're insane."
Finn grinned. "You have no idea." He adjusted his scarf like he was some kind of fashion icon. "But seriously, you okay, Kael? You look like you've seen the inside of a blender."
"I feel like I am the inside of a blender," Kael muttered, rubbing his temples. "That artifact—what happened to it?"
Soren held up the shattered pieces of the Heartstone, now only shards of glowing rock. "It's... gone," he said with a grim expression. "The energy has been scattered. But, we've barely scratched the surface of what we need to do."
"Great," Kael sighed, collapsing back onto the ground. "So, what now? Do we go back to Ravenwood and pretend like none of this ever happened?"
"Actually…" Finn's voice took on a serious tone for once. "We need to track down the Shadow King. And I have a sneaky feeling he's not going to just let us off the hook with a 'Good job, kids!' and a trophy."
"Wait, are you telling me we're actually going after him?" Kael blinked at Finn, as if this was some elaborate joke he hadn't been let in on.
"Of course we are," Finn said, now standing up with a flourish. "What else do we do? Sit around, have a tea party, and talk about the weather? We've got shadows to fight, magical stones to collect, and epic battles to win. Let's make this the greatest adventure ever!"
Tessa raised an eyebrow. "Epic battles? You mean 'get ourselves killed trying to play hero'?"
"Exactly!" Finn said with a grin. "It's a whole vibe, Tessa. If we die, at least we'll die in style." He threw his arms wide, as if offering himself up as a martyr. "Think of the stories we'll tell."
"You're ridiculous," Kael muttered, rubbing his sore head.
"And you're probably going to be the one leading us all to doom," Finn shot back, his voice filled with mock seriousness. "So, you know, no pressure."
Kael let out an exasperated sigh. "Why am I the one who always gets blamed for everything?"
"Because you have the glowing rock," Nyx said with a shrug. "Everything's your fault now."
"Great. I'm the walking disaster, and you're all just along for the ride," Kael groaned, leaning back and staring up at the sky. "How did I get here again?"
"Let me think..." Finn tapped his chin. "Oh yeah. You decided to pick up a weird glowing rock. The rest, as they say, is history."
"Thanks for that, Finn. Really, I needed the reminder," Kael said, rolling his eyes.
Soren cleared his throat. "Alright, enough joking around. We need to find a way to repair the Heartstone. It's not going to be easy."
"Yeah," Kael said, still rubbing his head. "And if I may ask—how exactly are we going to do that?"
Finn stood up with a serious look on his face. "Simple. We head to the one place nobody in their right mind would go—"
"Don't say it…" Kael warned.
Finn grinned like a maniac. "The Forbidden Cavern of Elders!"
The rest of the group groaned in unison.
"Every time we try to have a calm, sensible conversation," Nyx muttered, "you ruin it with your ridiculous ideas."
"Ridiculous?" Finn raised an eyebrow. "That's called adventure, my friend!"
Kael shook his head in disbelief. "You all are insane."
"Insanity is just another word for 'excitement,'" Finn said, winking at him. "Let's go make some memories."