Two Hearts now pulsed within Kael Ashford's chest, and he could feel how they changed him with each passing day.
He stood on a balcony in the Seventh Realm's newly rebuilt capital, watching the twilight sky that was slowly learning to become day and night again. Lyra stood beside him, her hand intertwined with his, and for a moment, everything felt almost peaceful.
"Five more Hearts to find," she said quietly. "Do you think you can hold them all?"
"I don't know," Kael admitted. "But I have to try. What's the alternative?"
"We could destroy them."
"Could we, though? They're fundamental forces of reality. Destroying them might be worse than letting them run wild."
Lyra was quiet for a moment. "You've changed, you know. Not just the power. You're... harder. More certain."
"Is that a bad thing?"
"I don't know yet. Ask me after this is all over."
The Sorceress joined them, her green eyes assessing Kael with the same mixture of hope and concern they always held.
"The Council of Seven Realms has convened," she said. "They want to meet you. The boy who saved them all. The container who holds two Hearts and still breathes."
"What do they want from me?" Kael asked.
"Everything. Nothing. Reassurance that you won't become what they fear. A plan for the future. You're a symbol now, Kael Ashford. Whether you want to be or not."
"I just wanted to save my family," he said softly. "That's all this was supposed to be."
"Saving one person is always how it starts," the Sorceress said. "Then you save two. Then ten. Then two realms. And before you know it, you're responsible for the fate of existence itself." She smiled, and it was almost kind. "Welcome to being a hero. It's exactly as terrible as everyone says."
The Council meeting was held in a grand amphitheater that existed simultaneously in all seven realms—a feat of magic that had been impossible before the barriers fell. Representatives from each realm sat in their designated sections, and all eyes turned to Kael as he entered.
He felt small. Sixteen years old and carrying the weight of worlds.
But he wasn't alone. Lyra walked beside him. Lord Azure and Lady Crimson flanked them. Even Theron stood with him, the former enemy now a grudging ally.
"Kael Ashford," spoke the First Councilor, a being of pure light from the First Realm. "You have done what no one thought possible. You've reconnected the realms. You've contained two Hearts. You've prevented a war that would have destroyed us all."
"I had help," Kael said. "A lot of help."
"Nevertheless, you are the lynchpin. The container. The one who bears the burden." The Councilor's light dimmed slightly. "Which is why we must ask: what happens when you contain all seven Hearts? What will you become?"
"I don't know," Kael said honestly. "Maybe something terrible. Maybe something wonderful. Maybe just... someone who can finally rest."
"And if the Hearts corrupt you? If you become the very threat we fear?"
"Then you'll have to stop me." Kael's voice was steady. "I'm not doing this because I think I'm special or chosen. I'm doing it because someone has to, and I'm the only one who can. But I'm not a god. I'm just a person. And if I fall, if I fail, then you do what needs to be done."
The Council murmured among themselves. Finally, the First Councilor spoke again.
"Very well. You have our support. All seven realms will aid you in your quest to find the remaining Hearts. But know this, Kael Ashford—we will be watching. And we will be ready."
"I wouldn't expect anything less," Kael said.
After the meeting, as they prepared to leave for the next Heart's location, Kael found a quiet moment alone. He closed his eyes and reached inward, feeling the two Hearts pulsing within him.
They showed him possibilities. Futures where he succeeded. Futures where he failed. Futures where he became a monster. Futures where he became a legend.
But there was one future that appeared more often than the others. A future where all seven Hearts were contained, where the realms lived in harmony, where he finally got to go home and live a normal life.
It seemed impossible. But then again, everything he'd done seemed impossible.
He felt Lyra approach before she spoke. "Ready to save the world again?"
"As ready as I'll ever be." He turned to her, and despite everything—the pain, the fear, the impossible burden—he smiled. "You know what's funny? A month ago, I was just a farm boy worried about the harvest. Now I'm responsible for the fate of seven realms."
"Life comes at you fast," Lyra said.
"Yeah. But I'm glad you're here for it."
"Always," she promised. "Through all seven Hearts. Through all seven realms. Through whatever comes next."
"Even if I become a monster?"
"Especially then. Because someone will need to remind you who you really are."
Kael pulled her close, and they stood there for a moment, two young people carrying impossible burdens, finding strength in each other.
Then they went to join the others. There was work to be done. Hearts to find. Realms to save. Futures to secure.
Kael Ashford had started this journey to save his family. Now he was trying to save everyone.
It should have been too much for one person. It probably was.
But he had friends. He had allies. He had Lyra. He had hope.
And sometimes, that was enough.
The portal opened before them, leading to the Third Realm, where the Heart of Oceans waited. Kael took one last look at the Seventh Realm—the place that had changed his life forever—and then stepped forward into the unknown.
Five Hearts remained.
Five impossible challenges.
Five chances to fail or succeed.
But Kael wasn't thinking about that. He was thinking about his sister's laugh. His father's pride. The wheat fields of Millbrook. The simple, beautiful life he'd left behind and hoped to return to.
He was thinking about all the people counting on him. All the realms that needed him. All the futures that hung in the balance.
And he was thinking about the promise he'd made to himself when he first touched the Heart of All Things:
He would not let them down.
Not his family. Not his friends. Not the billions of people across seven realms who just wanted to live their lives in peace.
He would carry this burden as far as it needed to go. And when it was done, when all seven Hearts were contained and all seven realms were safe, then—and only then—would he allow himself to rest.
But that day was not today.
Today, there was work to be done.
Today, there were more impossible things to accomplish.
Today, Kael Ashford was a hero.
And tomorrow?
Tomorrow, he'd do it all again.
Because that's what heroes did.
They kept going.
Even when it was impossible.
Especia lly when it was impossible.
The portal closed behind them, and the real adventure began.