PART ONE

——————

Eli sat on the edge of the minecart, feet dangling, staring out at the vast, endless sea that stretched out before them. The cart creaked as it rocked slowly along the train tracks, the end disappeared into the horizon.

"You think we're actually going to make it?" Tobias (or Tobi, as everyone called him) kicked his feet impatiently, his eyes scanning the endless water below.

"Why wouldn’t we?" Maeve replied, her voice bright, as always. She was sitting across from Eli, humming a little tune as her fingers traced the edge of the cart. "I’m sure there’s something cool waiting for us, you know? Maybe a treasure, or a castle, or—"

"Or a giant monster," Tobi interrupted with a grin. "That’d be epic. I’ve always wanted to see a real one."

"Or a trap that sends us plummeting into the ocean," Jade added from the corner, her arms folded as she studied the tracks ahead. "We don’t even know how we ended up here. One minute we were at the station, and the next—poof!—this weird ride to nowhere.I don’t know where my dads  are, you don’t know wher your parents are, so why are you so—"

“Stop overthinking! At the very least, this road leads home. We’ll be fine.” Tobi nodded, his eyes shining.

Eli glanced at his friends. They were an odd bunch, Jade worried, Tobias probably planning the next reckless adventure, Maeve smiling through. Eli just felt like the odd one out. Nothing about this situation made sense. But, then again, when had his life ever made sense? It was always just... normal. He wasn't smart like Jade, reckless like Tobi, or bubbly like Maeve. He was just Eli.

"I don’t know about you guys," he said, glancing toward the horizon, "but this feels like a dream. Like we're in one of those stories where we wake up and nothing makes sense."

Jade raised an eyebrow. "Or it could be a trap. A test of sorts. We don’t even know where the tracks are leading us. It could be a science experiment or—"

"Or maybe," Tobi interrupted, leaning back and throwing his arms behind his head, "We’re going to get superpowers. I’m thinking invisibility or flying. That’d be sweet."

Eli shook his head with a smile. "There’s no way this is leading to superpowers. But somethings going to happern at the end, I think. What if this is all part of some bigger plan?"

Jade's eyes widened. "That’s actually not a bad theory. Maybe we’ve been chosen to figure something out."

The distant shape ahead was getting clearer now, a vague shadow on the horizon. It almost looked like a castle, not clearly shown, but it was enough to send a chill through Eli’s spine. They were getting closer. Much closer. The cart clattered along the tracks, and the shadow ahead grew larger, now unmistakably a castle.

“It’s definitely a castle,” Tobi said, excitement bubbling in his tone. “We’re almost there!”

Jade frowned, scanning the horizon. “This doesn’t feel right. What if it's a trap?”

“We’ll deal with whatever comes,” Eli said, his voice steady. "We can’t turn back now."

“It’s not like we could Tobi,” Jade huffed, pushing her circle glasses up her freckled nose.    

“Hey, thats not fair! I—” 

“Guys stop fighting, we’re here.” Maeve breathed in awe as the purple-gray castle was so close they could hear voices from inside.

Eli glanced at his friends. Whatever waited ahead, they were in this together. The journey was just beginning. If there was an answer, he’d find it there.

🩵