TIGHTROPE | fitz vacker

Chapter 8.

"ARE YOU KEEFE'S sister?" Was the first thing Azalea heard when she woke up. She stopped in the tracks, her hand in mid-air from stretching.

   She looked at the mats on the ground where Sophie, Mr. Forkle, and Tam were conversing. It had been almost a week since she last saw Sophie and a few days since she saw Mr. Forkle. She had passed a note of Sophie saying that she needed to meet Mr. Forkle as-soon-as-possible. She told him about her achievement, and over the next few days, he was there during all her trainings. So far, Azalea only managed to make energy zaps(releasing energy in short burst causing little damage), energy beams(projecting concentrated beams of energy causing explosions) and energy waves. The most exciting thing was that she could name them.

   Taking a little longer to register what was going on in the present, she just stared at them.

   Then Mr. Forkle cleared his throat and Azalea snapped out of it. She covered her face with her hands and muttered, "No I'm not."

   "You are Keefe's sister." Sophie insisted. "He told us to help him find you and I saw you in some pictures and Keefe's memory." Then she repeated, as if trying to make sense of it herself. "You're Keefe's sister."

   "Who's sister? I mean! Who's Keefe?"

   "You know Keefe. I introduced you guys a few weeks ago."

   "I don't think I know a Keefe," Azalea said.

   "Yeah, we don't know a Keefe," Tam said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

   "Keefe?" Linh said as she walked into the living room. "The blonde guy, right."

   "No!"

   "Linh!"

   "I knew it!"

   "Oh, God," Azalea stuffed her face into her hands and groaned.

   "You are his sister, right?" Sophie asked, a little more softly.

   "Yes." Azalea said, giving up on trying to hide it from Sophie. "Please don't tell him. I not ready for that yet."

   "Okay, I won't," Sophie said. "But Keefe really misses you."

   "And maybe you could thank him for me." Azalea said.

   "Children, please, we have important issues to discuss. Would you mind sitting down?"

   Mr. Forkle and Sophie explained what had happened the past few days. The Ogres had admitted that they were behind the plague, and that the only cure was a type of tree. The tree was in the Ogres possession and The Ogres said they will give gnomes the cure if they become slaves in Ravagog. 

   Mr. Forkle and Sophie wanted Tam, Linh, and Azalea to help Sophie and her friends to break into Ravagog to steal the cure that evening.

   Oh, and also, they were part of a secret organization called the Black Swan.

   "That's a lot of information to get in five minutes," Tam said, staring at the curved ceiling of the small den. 

   "So... if I'm understanding this correctly," Tam said, "you want us to take a secret tunnel into Ravagog to steal the cure from the King?" 

   "It might not be directly in King Dimitar's possession," Mr. Forkle said. "We're actually not sure where he's keeping it, or what kind of vessel it will be contained in." 

   "Oh, oh! I just came up with the best name for this! 'Mission: Impossible'!" Azalea said, hi-fiving Tam.

   "Nothing is impossible with the right team," Mr. Forkle told her. "That's why we need your help. Mr. Tam's shadows can keep everyone hidden."