The third stone pulsed in my hand, warm and oddly silent, like it knew what it was and where it needed to go. No words were needed; it was almost as if it had its own sense of purpose, its own knowledge that transcended anything I could understand.
I could feel the weight of it, heavier than any stone had the right to be, but at the same time, lighter than air. A strange duality that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
We had made it this far, and yet, every step felt like it led us deeper into a game I didn't understand. But now... the stone seemed to pull us toward the end. Or maybe it was only me. Maybe it was just my mind, trying to make sense of it all. The chaos. The endless puzzles. But the third stone... Noctite... felt different.
I placed it down on the pedestal, almost reverentially, and stepped back, waiting.
The moment it touched the stone platform, everything changed.
The air shifted — a hum of magic running through the ground beneath us. The stone began to glow, but not in the way the others had. It was as if the darkness itself was drawn into the stone. Then, without warning, a swirl of energy erupted in front of us, coalescing into a glowing circular door. The edges flickered with light, bright as a star, but at its core was a swirling, pulsing void.
None of us spoke. None of us had to.
Without another word, we stepped through.
When we emerged, everything was still. The world around us had changed. Gone was the oppressive darkness of the Shadow Valley, the distorted sky, and the heavy fog. Instead, we found ourselves standing on familiar ground.
California.
We had made it back.
The sky above was blue — no eerie twilight purple or darkened clouds. It was just… real. It felt like we had never left. The hum in the air, the discomfort in my chest, faded away, replaced by the clean, open feeling of the outside world.
Home. But not home. Not anymore.
I turned to face my friends, a strange mixture of relief and unease in my chest. Arisa stood there, blinking as if she couldn't quite believe it. James was already scanning the street like he was ready to sprint for the nearest fast food joint.
"Burgers. Fries. Ten milkshakes," he muttered to himself, a grin spreading across his face. He didn't need to say more. We all felt it. Real food. Food that didn't taste like dust or stale air.
Arisa let out a half-laugh, half-sob. "I missed real food so much."
I looked over at Alice. She was already nodding, her gaze fixed on the street ahead. "Let's go get groceries. You three get comfortable."
I didn't argue. Honestly, I needed the walk. My legs were stiff from the long journey, but there was something more than just physical discomfort. Something nagging in my mind that refused to settle.
As we walked to the nearest store, I couldn't help but look around. The streets. The cars. The familiar sights. But everything felt… distant. Unreal. Like I was seeing it through a veil.
We walked into the store, and Alice immediately took charge, loading a cart with random items: chips, sandwich stuff, even a frozen pizza that she swore she could cook perfectly. I didn't question her. The woman had her secrets, and I wasn't about to start digging.
By the time we got back to the house, the place was alive with the energy of normalcy. Arisa and Alice took over the kitchen, chopping vegetables, mixing ingredients, while James flopped onto the couch, passing out before dinner was even ready. I cleaned up, not quite focusing, my mind too preoccupied with the stones in my backpack. With Oruun's voice echoing in my head. With the crown. The pieces. The path that was still ahead.
When the meal was ready, we ate in relative silence, the comfort of food grounding us for the time being. Afterward, we split into rooms. I took the familiar one I had always slept in, and James claimed the other twin bed across the room. Arisa and Alice settled into the guest room down the hall.
But as the evening settled into its usual quiet rhythm, I couldn't shake the sense that something was still off.
I stared at the ceiling, my mind spinning, my heart too restless for sleep. The stones were still in my backpack. Tomorrow, we'd be flying across the world. To Egypt. To the next part of this twisted journey.
The weight of it all pressed down on me as I reached for my laptop. I hesitated. Then I booked our flights to Cairo. No turning back now.