Key to my Heart [COMPLETED]

Chapter Sixteen

Sophie POV:

"AHH!" Sophie shrieked, scrambling off her bed. "Fintan? What are you doing here?" she demanded, looking for something, anything, to throw at him. She picked up a pillow and held it up threateningly, but ended up looking a bit pathetic.

Fintan scowled in the dark, and rolled his eyes, "If I wanted to hurt you, Sophie, you'd be dead on the floor by now. I just want to talk, and perhaps cut a deal with you."

Sophie didn't lower her pillow. "What do you want with me?" She asked in a hostile voice. Just to be safe, she created a force field around him so he couldn't move more than an inch without getting shocked.

"It's about the Black Swan. Your family didn't say anything about it, but they are in control of Exsulia for the time being, and they rule in fear of the council finding out about them. We found out that the Black Swan told the council about a part of Exsulia, far off in the west, which was enough to convince them Exsulia exists, and now the council is desperate to find the rest of the Exsules. They already conquered part of it," he added in a serious tone. "They put up a good fight, but there wasn't enough Exsules to fight off all of the elves. Worse yet, now the council knows about all the powers Exsules have."

"The Black Swan told them about Exsulia? Did they find out how to get here?" Sophie asked, worried and angry at the Black Swan for doing yet another awful thing.

"Not yet, but it's only a matter of time before they do. Gethen did leave a very obvious trail here, with the notes and all." Fintan told her gently. "But it's best to be prepared."

Sophie nodded, not feeling prepared at all to fight her friends. "I'll tell Ruy and-" she was cut off by a loud explosion outside. The impact rattled the walls of the apartment, and she had to steady herself by holding onto Fintan, who was as alarmed as she was.

Ruy and Rayni woke up. "What's going on? If this is a prank, I'm going to kill someone, Exsule or not," Rayni threatened.

"It's not a prank. The Black Swan are here," Fintan hastily told them about the council conquering a part of Exsulia and the Black Swan. "We have to stop them before they take over as the rulers of Exsulia. I'll get your family to safety while you three hold them off," he added hurriedly. Then he ran into Ivan's room to get him out of bed. A second later, he and Sawyer were led out the back door by Fintan, followed by Alora. Everyone looked a mixture of annoyed and confused.

Ruy, Rayni and Sophie changed into their armor and ran outside to face the Black Swan, where they found Fitz, Biana, Linh, Tam, Dex, Wylie, and Keefe waiting for them, along with the Collective.

Sophie hadn't seen Exsulia when she had leaped here. The unmapped star had taken her straight to her Aunt Alora's apartment.

Exsulia managed to make the Lost Cities look dim and small. The buildings were built in towering heights, with steel structures surrounding each one. It was a simple style, but looked breathtaking and airy, not crowded like the Lost Cities, either. There was no glitter or flash, but just the simplicity of an elegant place.

"Sophie! You're safe!" Biana ran over to her and tried to embrace her, but Rayni pushed her away with a snarl.

"Don't touch her," she growled, flashing a ball of light in their direction. Biana covered her eyes, temporarily blinded.

"Sophie, come on," Fitz told her, but she shook her head.

"Why should I? The Black Swan is trying to hurt my family and take over Exsulia, my home," she shouted, then in a quieter voice she added, "You hurt me, too, just as much if not more."

Fitz tore a hand through his hair. "I didn't mean to," he told her roughly. Behind him, Sophie saw a building that was supposedly the capitol reduced to rubble.

Keefe stepped forward. He looked horrible, with dark shadows under his eyes, as if he couldn't sleep. His rumpled blonde hair was even messier than it usually was, and his clothes were dirty, like he hadn't showered in days.

"Why are you doing this to us Sophie? What's going on?" he asked in a hoarse voice. Sophie felt a twinge of guilt as she saw how hurt Keefe was. He was clearly not taking it well. Sophie remembered back to when Keefe confessed his feelings for her, and she realized he still cared for her, even though she had joined the Neverseen.

"You're not mad? For joining the Neverseen, for helping your mom? You don't hate me?" she asked quietly, almost afraid to hear his answer.

"Sophie, you can hurt me as many times as you want, but I'll never hate you, because whatever you do is for a good reason. I just want you to explain," he assured her. Sophie's gaze flitted to Mr. Forkle, who was looking at her sadly.

"Why don't you tell them?" Sophie told more than asked the Collective coldly. When they didn't respond, Sophie sighed.

"I found out that I'm not an experiment. I was born here, in Exsulia, and my mother died giving birth to me and my twin brother, Sawyer. My father is Gethen. That's why I was kidnapped," Sophie told her friends about her new abilities, how Gethen led her here, and her encounter with her aunt, cousin, and brother. She also went into detail on how the Black Swan. Mr. Forkle looked extremely guilty when they reached that part, and everyone shot surprised and accusing glares at him when they realized what Sophie had to go through.