I have to admit I was very much saddened be the reveal that Halea (the real Halea) is indeed dead. Of course, not being a passive observer in your own body as someone else uses it for nefarious purposes is generally preferable, but I had held out some hope that Halea would be restored to somewhat normal by the story's end. (Besides, I grew up on Animorphs and the American cartoon/comic version of Sonic the Hedgehog, so that concept hardly fazes me anymore.)
And with all the magic in play, especially the purple MacGuffin that has something to do with reviving the dead, there's still a chance. But I'm not holding my breath.
I had the vague thought that maybe Cal would sacrifice his chance at returning to life to bring back Halea instead. His remarks before about not being upset at being a ghost and having the chance to see a few more sunrises almost feel like foreshadowing that. But that's a serious stretch, not a serious prediction.
