KOTLC Sokeefe One-Shots, Alternate Endings, etc

Protect (Keefe POV)

The first thing Keefe noticed--apart from his own horror--was the fact that Sophie didn't even feel panicked, and barely felt surprised.

That feeling of inevitability he picked up from her broke his heart--but hardened his resolve.

He was going to get them out of this.

The figures around them tightened the net, but Keefe found that the situation gave him clarity rather than crippling terror.

"I got this!" Keefe shouted to Sophie as he pulled the melder out of his pocket and took aim without hesitation. His aim was true, hitting one of the cloaked figures and making him collapse into a trembling heap on the ground.

"They have a melder!" one of the others shouted as Silveny reared back, trying to get free now that the net was looser.

"Where did you get that?" Sophie yelled as he fired another shot.

"Grady insisted I take it, but he didn't want me to tell you in case it freaked you out." He fired again, but Silveny was thrashing around too much for him to be able to aim very well.

The four figures still standing closed ranks, and one of them reached for a melder. Keefe noticed a strange symbol on the arm of their cloak.

"Don't hit the alicorn!" one of the others shouted at the one with the melder.

Because of course they cared more about protecting an animal than about two children.

"Isn't this the point where you develop some new, impossible ability and get us out of here?" Keefe yelled to Sophie as they ducked a melder blast aimed at them. He hated that she was the one in front. It was so much harder to protect her when he couldn't shield her with his body.

"I wish," she told him. "Nothing's working right now."

That wasn't her fault, but he didn't have time to tell her that right now. He tried to take aim at the figure armed with the melder, but before he could, another one threw a rock at his head so fast he didn't even have time to duck. It hit, and he felt an intense flash of pain, and his head continued to throb afterwards. Most unfortunately, the pain caused him to loosen his grip on the melder and it slipped out of his hand.

"Oh, so that's how it is?" He shouted angrily, quickly whipping out one of the throwing stars and flinging it toward the person who'd hit him with the rock.

It sliced across the guy's shoulder, tearing his cloak and making him drop his end of the net.

Keefe found that it didn't bother him as much as he had assumed it would.

He didn't know if that was just adrenaline or if there was something wrong with him, but he had no time to contemplate the complexities of elvin sanity.

"Don't let the alicorn away!" the guy shouted, trying to grab the net again.

Keefe flung another star but completely missed this time. "These things are hard to aim!" he shouted.

"How many weapons do you have?" Sophie asked him. He barely registered her surprise at him being armed. He was too busy trying to save their lives.

He really hadn't been prepared for this.

"Hopefully enough." Unfortunately, his third star also missed.

"Try cutting the ropes!" Sophie shouted to him.

That made sense, even though it was going to be hard to stop trying to fend off their attackers long enough to try.

But he ended up not having time to do either. Silveny bucked and then reared back, managing to pull them partially free of the net and spread her wings.