(A Note from the Author: I'm super excited for this new season, and I'd like to offer another apology for the long delay, but here it is!)
It's been months since the Lich Queen incident and things seem to be normal for Fionna the Human. That is, her kind of normal. The kind that involves punching monsters and visiting Prince Gumball for taste-testing his latest creations. The newest addition to her 'normal' is the Flame Prince, her boyfriend whom she gladly goes on dates with every few nights. But someone doesn't like this new normal.
Fair weather had favored the grasslands all summer, and as autumn set in, so did a light chill. Cake the Cat and Fionna the Human spent more of their spare time inside with the cold, but Fionna also had an excuse to see her boyfriend of several months more often, the Flame Prince Flint Morkai. She loved to be near him, he was charming and intelligent and always attentive. Sometimes she wondered how he dealt with her endless and usually strange ramblings of whatever came to mind, but he seemed to do so happily. Their relationship had been made even better the day that they sought a pendant of flame protection from the flambits. Instead of Fionna wearing it, Flint now wore it constantly and it protected all around him from his flames no matter how heated his temper became thus far.
One autumn evening as the sun set over Aaa, Fionna found herself beside Flint with his arm wrapped about her shoulders. They'd enjoyed quiet dates every few nights for some time now, but in that time, Fionna had noticed that whenever Flint was around, Marshall Lee would either avoid her or, if he was already in her company, make an excuse to leave. She missed her best friend. She had said as much to Flint before, but he didn't seem too keen on Marshall Lee lately. Though they'd once been fair friends, a rift had been driven between them over what one or the other believed was best for Fionna, and Fionna hated that they seemed to think that they knew what was best. She'd had a talk with Flint about it and he'd said nothing more, but Marshall would never stick around long enough to broach the subject.
With a sigh, Fionna laid her head on Flint's shoulder. "I know you don't wanna hear this… but I really wish Marshall Lee would come back and hang out with us like he used to…"
"I'm sorry I'm not as entertaining," Flint sighed in return, trying not to sound angry though he really got jealous of Fionna's longer friendship with Marshall Lee.
"It's not that at all," Fionna told him quickly, lifting her head and looking up at him. "It's just… you know… he's one of my best friends for a reason, just like Cake is and you're my boyfriend. I love you all for different things. And not having all of you around is kinda depressing sometimes."
"… Would you like me to invite Cake and Marshall Lee on our dungeon run tomorrow night?"
"You wouldn't mind?" Fionna's eyes lit up brightly with hope.
"No, I wouldn't." Flint forced a smile, but Fionna knew he was lying. All the same, she hugged him tightly and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
"You're the best."
The next evening, Fionna had managed to talk Marshall Lee into coming over. She made sure not to let on her plans with Flint and warned Cake no to say a word. They were playing games on BMO when Flint arrived. Marshall Lee looked up, visibly retreated within himself, and after a few minutes, tried to fake a casual goodbye with some lame excuse to do with his cat. Fionna caught him by his collar before he could flee.
"No way, man. We're going to a cool dungeon. All four of us."
"But Schwab-"
"Nope. Come on." Fionna knew he wouldn't leave without his axe guitar so she picked it up and strapped it across her shoulder after pulling on her backpack. Marshall fell back quietly beside Cake, sharing a look with her that said 'Fionna's trying too hard'. They ventured across the plains to a small dip in the land near the border of the Ice Kingdom, where the ground had fallen away to reveal a crevice in the earth no doubt caused by an earthquake at some point.
"Flint and I checked it out a little bit last time we were here and we found the dungeon door. It looks like someone made it a long time ago when this thing first opened up," Fionna explained.
"The crude architecture suggests that it may be from –according to what humans a millennium ago called it- the 'Archaic Period'. But humans back then didn't really build such underground fortresses, especially not the people in the part of the world we're in, so… I don't know what group of people could've made it."
"Weird. I'm totally gonna forget all of that," Marshall crossed his arms as he floated along.
Flint glanced over to Fionna with an annoyed expression at Marshall Lee's lack of manners. Fionna gave his arm a squeeze to silently ask for his patience. When they got to the edge of the crevice, they found the rope that Fionna and Flint had used last time, but opted for Cake to stretch them down. Marshall Lee drifted down behind them and when they came to land, they found themselves in a massive, almost perfectly-domed cavern that definitely was not natural. It didn't seem like humans could manage such perfection, but the carvings were ancient and definitely made by human tools, as Flint pointed out in the chiseling and the aging, and also the tiny stalactites and stalagmites that had formed. He explained how they formed slowly, only up to an inch or so every thousand years. Marshall Lee, of course, paid no attention, studying the stone door at one side with little interest.
The great door was carved with intricate depictions that Flint couldn't identify. He knew they couldn't be what the humans had called 'Native American'. If anything, they looked like carvings from places humans knew as 'Greece' and 'Rome'. How they'd ended up in North America, which was where Flint believed Aaa was, no one had any idea. But as Flint thought aloud about how that could be possible, Marshall sighed and spoke up.
"They're not 'Greek' or whatever. They're demonic."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah. Mom made this one." Marshall pointed to a carved depiction of a mortal man facing a horrific minotaur beast.
"How do you know?"
"I know her style. And she left her symbol."
"Where?"
Marshall drifted up to the very top of the door where a small carving lay, in the exact shape of the amulet of the Nightosphere. "It's kinda her thing. And it's usually a button." He pressed the shape into the wall, and the door groaned in protest, but sunk into the floor slowly. Dust drifted out along with the coldest air any of them had ever felt, likely thanks to the Ice Kingdom above.
As Marshall Lee came to hover by Fionna, the bunny-eared girl shared a glance with him. Both knew that if Helen Abadeer was responsible for this fortress, there was probably something either very valuable or very dangerous inside. Or both. And it was probably guarded by a plethora of traps, puzzles, pitfalls, and ancient demons. Cake hugged Fionna about the waist, letting her trepidation be known. Fionna unconsciously reached out to take Marshall's hand on one side, and Flint's on the other. This was going to be a challenge and it was probably going to be terrifying, knowing the Mistress of Darkness. Fionna could only wonder how Marshall would deal with the whole thing as he was still a bit at odds with his mother. Secretly, though, she was glad he was there with her. If anyone could find their way past Helen Abadeer's trickery and deadly workings, it was the son she'd always tried to turn into her mirror image.
In just one step, they were enshrouded in darkness that was only warded off by Flint's fiery glow. They stopped as the door slid shut behind them, glancing over the minotaur carved into the back of the stone slab, clearly warning them of the guardian of the ancient fortress. Fionna took a deep breath and looked to Flint, to Cake, and then to Marshall. "Let's go." She said as Marshall Lee's gaze met her own.
So what'd ya'll think? It's not nearly as long as I'd hoped, but if I'd expanded any further, I would've delved into part two. Thanks so much for sticking with me, followers, and thanks to the reviewers for all their supportive and constructive comments last season! I hope you like this season, and I'm always looking for input and ideas! Let me know what you think in the reviews, and I'll see you next time!
-Taiylor Wallace