Reborn

Goodbye

Fitz pulled out a slender silver wand with intricate carvings etched into the sides. At the tip, a small, round crystal sparkled in the sunlight.

"Is that your magic wand?" she couldn't resist asking when he pulled his pathfinder out.

He rolled his eyes. "Actually, it's a pathfinder." He spun the crystal and locked it into place with the silver latch at the top. "Now, this can be dangerous. Do you promise you'll do exactly what I tell you to do?"

"What do you want me to do?"

"You need to take my hand and concentrate on holding on. And by concentrate, I mean you can't think about anything else—no matter what happens. Can you do that?"

"Yeah... of course." Sophie's mind flashed back to how she not only have previously almost faded twice but also had two nexus's on her arm for the longest time. It was going to be weird to go through that again.

"One," he counted, raising the wand. Sunlight hit a facet in the crystal and a bright beam refracted toward the ground.

"Two." He tightened his grip. Sophie held her breath.

"Three."

Fitz pulled her forward, and the warm tingling in her hand shot through her body—like a million feathers swelling underneath her skin, tickling her from the inside out. She fought off a giggle and concentrated on Fitz.  Not that she could think about anything but those teal eyes anyways.

In the blink of an eye, a majestic city appeared for her. It was the Lost Cities capital, Eternalia. Sophie zoned out as Fitz droned on and on about the wonders of Eternalia. He must have stopped because when Sophie looked at him he was staring at her.

"You can let go of my hand now."

She dropped his hand.

Her heart was doing the stupid fluttery thing again.

Fitz went on to further explain how the elven world worked. He gestured to buildings and creatures that should have been new to Sophie.

The castle bells chimed, and Fitz yanked her behind a large rock as a gateway opened. Two elves with floor-length velvet capes draped over their black tunics emerged, followed by dozens of bizarre creatures marching in military formation down the rocky path. They were at least seven feet tall and wore only black pants, leaving their thick muscles prominently on display. With their flat noses and coarse gray skin, which fell in pleated folds, they looked part alien, part armadillo.

"Goblins," Fitz whispered. "Probably the most dangerous creatures you'll ever meet."

Sophie took a deep breath and promised herself this time everything would be different. She'd make sure everything went right time around. But first, she had to go home.

"Fitz, I need to go home." She wore an expression of urgency.

"Now? Already? I thought you want to-"

"Trust me I do. But there are things I cannot explain and I need to do them. Now." She hoped that was enough for him to send her home.

"What thing? Isn't introducing you to your new home important?"

New home.

The words felt like a knife. She loved the Lost Cities but wasn't ready to give up her old life all over again. It was already so much for her to go through.

"Fitz please." She begged.

He sighed and took her hand. The light engulfed them and in a moment she was home.