Exile (Keeper of the Lost Cities) (35 page)

She didn’t want to go back.

Not yet at least. She wasn’t ready to face that reality.

Free?
Silveny transmitted.

Yes.

Sophie didn’t transmit the thought, but Silveny seemed to hear it anyway. Her glimmering body surged with a new rush of energy as she tucked her wings and dove.

FREE!

Down down down they went, flying faster faster faster as the ground rushed toward them.

Fly!
Sophie transmitted, but she wasn’t sure the alicorn could hear her. Silveny’s mind hummed with a strange new energy, one that seemed to swell and spread through both of them as the seconds passed, until Sophie’s head was filled with so many tingles she thought she might burst.

Trust,
Silveny told her as the energy exploded with a thunderous clap and a crack opened in space.

Sophie’s scream echoed in her ears as they rocketed into the oblivion beyond.

T
HE FORCE OF THE VOID
was so strong Sophie felt like her body was being pulled and stretched and twisted. It didn’t hurt. She honestly couldn’t feel anything except a tugging and twirling as she whipped through the cold emptiness.

Silveny filled her mind with a crisp image: a lush meadow surrounded by snow-capped mountains. Then white light flashed and thunder cracked and everything squished back together, leaving her in the middle of a valley, staring at the same mountains she’d seen in Silveny’s thoughts.

“Whoa,” she breathed as Silveny touched down on the grassy floor, right next to the misty river. If she hadn’t been able to feel tiny drips of the cold water splashing
her skin, Sophie might’ve thought she was hallucinating.

She clung to Silveny’s neck with all the strength she could muster, afraid that if she let go, Silveny would fly away and leave her there—wherever
there
was. “What was that?” she screamed, hearing her voice echo off the valley walls. “Did we just . . .”

She didn’t even have a word for what just happened. One second they’d been at Havenfield, and then the sky tore open and now they were somewhere else—and it definitely hadn’t been a light leap.

Free!
Silveny told her, leaning down to take a drink. Sophie tumbled forward, and only her death grip on the alicorn’s neck saved her from toppling headfirst into the rushing river. But she still drenched her legs as she landed on her feet in the shallows.

What did you do?
she transmitted as she waded back to dry land. Her soggy shoes squished with every step.

A sound echoed through her head, and it took a second for her brain to translate the word.

“We
teleported
?”

Silveny whinnied.

Sophie didn’t even know that was possible—though she supposed it explained how Silveny had visited so many places. And why alicorns were so elusive. It was hard to catch something that could rip an opening in the sky and vanish into it.

A wave of panic hit her as she considered what that must’ve
looked like to the Council—or what they must be thinking now that she’d disappeared.

You have to take me back!

Silveny munched on the long stalks of grass.
Free.

Sophie looked around for some clue to tell her where they were, but all she could see was that they were in the middle of nowhere—and that it was breathtakingly beautiful. She could understand why Silveny didn’t want to go back to Havenfield and be caged again. Something about the pen must keep her trapped—maybe there wasn’t enough space for her to get up to speed to teleport. That would explain why she’d seen Silveny dipping and diving sometimes. Trying to get away.

But they
had
to go home.

Grady was probably having a heart attack.

How could she convince the stubborn horse to take her home? She couldn’t exactly teleport them back on her own.

Or maybe she didn’t need to. There was more than one way to leap around the world.

She grabbed her home crystal and held it up to the sunlight, imagining her consciousness wrapping around Silveny’s glimmering body. Before Silveny figured out what she was doing, she pressed her palm against the horse’s neck and stepped into the light, letting the rushing warmth whisk them both away.

TO SAY SOPHIE ARRIVED BACK
at Havenfield to pandemonium would have been understating things.
Greatly
.

Bronte was screaming at Grady, Grady was screaming at Sandor, the Councillors were screaming at each other—the only one not freaking out was Keefe, who was also the first one to spot her. He gave her a thumbs-up and she tried to smile, but everything was spinning and blurring and her ears were ringing and her head was throbbing and her body felt too heavy for her weary legs.

Silveny whinnied and the screaming quadrupled as everyone noticed them and shouted something like
“Wherehaveyoubeenareyoucrazywhathappened?”

But Sophie couldn’t answer. She didn’t remember falling but she did feel the pain as she hit the muddy ground.

“Somebody call Elwin,” Grady ordered, and she was surprised to realize he was cradling her in his arms. “I’m taking her up to her room.”

“I’m fine,” she promised—but she didn’t feel fine. And she knew what Grady was going to say even before he said it. She could tell from the worried look everyone was giving her. Especially Keefe.

“You’re not
fine
, Sophie. You’ve faded again.”

“LOOKS LIKE YOU GET A
new accessory,” Elwin told her as he handed her the blue vial of the special limbium-free Fade Fuel strung to a cord. He squeezed the atomizer on the end and she inhaled the medicine before he tied it around her neck. “How you can fade with
two
nexuses is beyond me. But at least you
got your color back quickly this time. I want you to inhale a dose of this every time you leap, just to be safe.”

“I’m sure the fading only happened because of the teleporting,” she said, trying to convince Elwin as much as herself.

“Maybe,” Elwin agreed. “Though I have to say,
teleporting
? Will you ever stop being full of surprises?”

“That was Silveny, not me.” She climbed out of her bed and checked her reflection in the mirror.

“Whoa, what happened to you?” Vertina asked, and Sophie jumped back to get out of range. Clearly her color wasn’t all the way back.

Grady opened the door a crack and peeked through. “You’re up.”

“Can’t keep that girl down,” Elwin said as Grady ran across the room and strangled Sophie with a hug.

“You can’t disappear on me like that,” he told her. “Never again.”

“I won’t,” she promised.

He cleared his throat and let her go, wiping his eyes on his cape. “Are you up to facing the Council? They obviously have some questions.”

She nodded, though she had no idea what she was going to say. “Did this make it worse?” she whispered.

“It definitely didn’t help. But once you talk to them, hopefully . . .”

He left the thought unfinished, and Sophie had no choice
but to follow him down the stairs and back outside where twelve very serious-looking Councillors—and a smirking Keefe—were waiting for her.

“Are you all right, Miss Foster?” Councillor Emery asked, and the crease between his brows made Sophie wonder if he’d switched to the Sophie-must-be-malfunctioning camp.

“Yes,” she said, glad her voice sounded strong. “Teleporting just takes a lot out of you.”

The word unleashed an explosion of questions, most of which she didn’t know the answer to. She gave them what little information she could and they switched to arguing among themselves again.

Friend?
Silveny transmitted, and Sophie tensed, realizing she’d forgotten all about the finicky alicorn. She spun around, relieved to see Silveny safely cantering around her enclosure.

“How did you . . .”

“Keefe calmed her down and lured her to her pen,” Grady answered. “Clearly she responds well to Empaths.”

“Or maybe Silveny just has good taste,” Keefe said, stepping close enough to lean in and whisper, “Just so you know, you’re pretty much my hero now. It takes serious talent to freak out the entire Council. I may need you to give me some pointers!”

Sophie rolled her eyes.

“Though I gotta say, you look much better with color, Foster. The faded look, it just”—his smile vanished—“well, don’t do it again, is all I’m saying.”

Sophie squeezed the vial hanging from her neck. “I won’t.”

“It’s quite remarkable, isn’t it?” Councillor Terik interrupted, making everyone turn to face him. “All these centuries we’ve had an alicorn in our custody and we never knew its secrets. But now, thanks to an uncannily talented thirteen-year-old girl, we’ve discovered the first animal with a special ability—a special ability none of us have ever developed. Our world will never be the same.”

Everyone murmured their agreement.

“What did teleporting feel like?” Kenric asked, before Sophie could figure out how to respond to that. “Did it hurt?”

“Not really. It was kind of like I was a rubber band being stretched as thin as I could go before I snapped back into form once we got there—and if you’re going to ask, I don’t know where we went. Some valley in the middle of nowhere.”

They pummeled her with more questions until Grady finally stepped in and reminded them that she’d had a very exhausting day and they could continue this conversation later.

Sophie knew she should be relieved—but the glare Bronte gave her as he leaped away told her she had
not
satisfied his doubts in her abilities. And she couldn’t even blame him. She was starting to doubt them herself.

The rest of the Councillors slowly glittered away, and Keefe elbowed Sophie. “I guess that’s my cue to leave too.” He dipped an exaggerated bow and held his crystal up to the light, saying, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Foster,” as he leaped home.

Grady rubbed his temples. “So . . . Keefe Sencen?”

“What about him?”

“What about Dex?”

“What
about
Dex
?”

Grady held out his hands. “Never mind. We should head back inside. Elwin said he wanted to check you again before he leaves.”

Someone cleared their throat behind them, making Sophie and Grady turn.

“Councillor Terik?” Grady sounded as surprised as Sophie felt. “I thought you’d left.”

“I had. But I realized I’d forgotten to say one thing to Sophie.”

When he didn’t continue, Grady said, “I guess I’ll wait in the house.”

Sophie watched him walk away, trying to guess what Councillor Terik could possibly want. She hoped not another descrying session.

“Can I see your Imparter?” he asked, when Grady had closed the door.

Sophie dug it out of her pocket and handed the silver square to him.

He flipped it over to the dull side and pressed his finger in the center of the square, holding it there until the Imparter flashed with a deep green light. “Permission granted,” he said, and the light turned blue. “There—now you’ll be able to reach
me. Just say my name and if I’m within range, it’ll hail me.”

“Um . . . thank you.”

“I know that you used to rely on Alden when you needed advice, so I want you to know that you are welcome to come to me any time. Don’t let that the fact that I’m a Councillor make you feel like you shouldn’t bother me. I am
always
here for you, Sophie.”

She nodded, feeling dazed as he pulled out his pathfinder and leaped away.

“What did he want?” Grady asked as soon as she set foot in the living room.

“I’m not sure. I think he just wanted to help me.”

“Help you?”

“He said he wanted me go to him with the kind of things I used to go to Alden with. He even adjusted my Imparter so I can call him whenever I need.”

“You can come to me, too, you know,” Grady said quietly. “I know you and Alden had a different kind of relationship than you and I do. But . . . I’m here if you need me. For
anything.
”

“Even if it’s about the Black Swan?”

She bit her lip as his eyes narrowed, wondering if she’d pushed too far. But when he answered he said, “Yes, Sophie. I still don’t trust them—but that doesn’t mean you can’t come to me. I promise I will try to be objective. Okay?”

“Okay.”

She was halfway up the stairs before he added, “I would be
careful, Sophie. I’m sure Councillor Terik means well, but that won’t change the fact that as a Councillor he is bound by our laws at all times. If you ever asked him about something that turned out to be illegal, you could end up in a mess of trouble.”

A lump formed in her throat as she imagined another Tribunal . . .

“I’ll be careful,” she promised—and she would.

But as she made her way to her room, she realized that she
finally
had a way to track her old journal down. So as soon as Elwin left, she pulled out her Imparter, needing a second for courage before she gave the command.

“Show me Councillor Terik.”

C
OUNCILLOR TERIK HAD SEEMED
surprised to hear from her so soon—and even more surprised by her request. Apparently the elves
had
packed up all of her old human things after she’d left them behind and brought them to Eternalia to be inspected. But they’d found nothing significant, and he had no idea if they’d since been discarded.

“Can I ask what you’re looking for?”

“I’d rather not say.” Sophie held her breath, hoping she hadn’t just committed some sort of treason or perjury or other Exile-able crime.

Councillor Terik laughed. “I’ve always admired your
gumption, Miss Foster. I’ll do my best to find out what I can, and I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

His image clicked away.

Sophie stared at the blank screen of her Imparter.

She was used to seeing Alden’s face there—his bright teal eyes crinkling around the corners as he smiled.

What if she never saw him do that again?

She blinked back the tears and forced the fear to the same corner of her mind where she’d shoved all the other worries she couldn’t let herself think about. She only had energy for the things she could control. Finding her journal. Figuring out what memory had been stolen. Learning the truth about the Black Swan. Terik promised her answers “
tomorrow
.” In the meantime, she just had to wait.