Keeper of The Lost Cities Fanfic: Elysian

Chapter 26

The downtown of Eternalia was nothing but wall-to-wall sparkly buildings for block after block. Some of the buildings were made of two colors and some of them were one solid color. Sophie hadn't seen Eternalia since she had come here to heal Fintan's shattered mind. Which had woken him up, caused him to call Everblaze down, and...killed Kenric with his flames. But she pushed those memories deep down, then locked them in a box, and continued down the street with her friends. Since Dex was the one with the tracker, he was in the lead, with Sandor bringing up the rear, and Ro–who'd gotten here by tracking Keefe–was with Dex. They kept getting looks from Eternalia's citizens, probably because of the goblin and ogre, but Sophie didn't care. They were there to do one thing and one thing only. "We're almost there. A few more turns and they should be right in front of us." Dex called as they took a left. Sophie couldn't look at the buildings without seeing them in flames. It was like she was in the present and past at the same time. Then a calming, blue breeze filled her head, pushing away the horrible flashbacks until she was back in the present, with Keefe's hand gently squeezing hers. They took a right, standing in front of the building that had held Fintan, and Dex looked around. "Aren't they supposed to be here?" Biana asked, a look of worry crossing her face. "According to this." Dex answered her. Then Sophie realized, even before they showed themselves, what had happened. "It's a trap!" She called on the energy around her, making a dome of blue light around them, watching as ten cloaked figures surrounded them.

Chapter 27

Sophie knew the seven of them were no match for ten. Even with her added abilities, some of which she couldn't even control, they couldn't win. Marella still didn't have her ability. Keefe could only do so much with his, like Biana. Ro and Sandor had been used as leverage before. Dex could use gadgets, but they would still lose. And Sophie...she could only do one thing at a time. That's why she knew what to do. "There's ten of them. Seven of us. And they're only here for me." Unfortunately, Keefe knew what she meant. "No! We're not doing that. We can't." His voice was full of hurt. All his life, his mother and father had been bad to him, causing him to doubt himself and cling to what he loved. "Don't you see we're outmatched, Keefe? Besides, all of you will find a way to save me. That's our thing." Sophie said, blinking back tears. She didn't want to do this. But there wasn't a choice. It was either hand herself over, or fight and get everyone captured. "I'm sorry." Sophie pushed her friends away with a wave of water, despite their protests and threats. She was doing this for them. That's why she let one of the cloaked figures walk up to her, why she let them put glowing bands on her wrists, why she was handing herself over. "That was easier than I thought." Elysian's voice whispered, standing behind Sophie. "The moonlark cares deeply for her friends. She found out the hard way." Ruy's voice whispered. She swore she could hear the smirk in his voice. But she ignored him. She wasn't rising to his bait. "This should make it more fun." Something heavy came down on her head, making her pass out, but she heard what Elysian said. "Looks like she's my creation now."

Chapter 28

Sophie woke up on a bed in a small room, complete with moon jars, and small, sparkly cat statues. She sat up, rubbing her head, and pulled one of her sleeves up. She was back in freaky-elf mode. Fun. At least she was alone. She grabbed a pillow and strangled it. Had she done the right thing? Did her friends hate her now? Were they really working on a way to get her back? SOPHIE! The voice in her head was so loud, she recoiled. Then she recognized it. F-Fitz? She could imagine him scowling as he transmitted, KEEFE TOLD ME WHAT YOU DID! Sophie rolled her eyes. Do you really want to do this right now? I did this for all of you! She heard him sigh in her head. No, I don't, I'm sorry. Let me try again. Are you ok? That was the question she constantly asked herself. Fine. She told him. What about everyone else? He was silent for so long, Sophie wondered if they lost the connection. Biana's pacing angrily. Dex is trying to track you. Marella's calming down. Sandor is rambling in goblin, Ro in ogre, and I'm not a Polyglot, but I don't think they're saying anything nice. Sophie gave a weak chuckle. And... Keefe? Again, he went silent. He's...not talking to anyone. Not even Edaline. That broke Sophie's heart a bit. Edaline was the best person to talk to. Keefe loved her. So, if he wasn't talking... "Doesn't sound like she's awake." Fitz, I've got to go. Someone's at the door. She severed the connection just as a cloaked figure walked through the door. But his hood was down. And it was someone she hadn't seen in a while. "Gethen. So you finally decide to come out of hiding." She let go of the pillow, putting it down beside her as Gethen sat next to her. "Funny that you're the one talking to me about hiding." He pulled a Shamkniv from his cloak, smirking. "I heard your little conversation, Sophie. You know, I punished your Shade friend differently, because there was no reason for revenge on him. But you..." He pinned her to the bed and dragged the jagged knife up her chin and across her nose in one quick movement. Even though it felt like teeth were sinking into her skin, she kept her face straight, and ignored the pain. "You're a different case. If I catch you in a conversation again, the punishment will be far worse." Then, he walked out, locking the door behind him.