keep your friends close

(28)

The ground is approaching fast.

Too fast.

Sophie can't even teleport away with Lodestar still clinging to her with a white-knuckled grip. She squeezes her eyes shut and channels her levitation skills instead, barely softening the blow in time as they hit the ground.

The impact knocks the air out of her lungs. She rolls onto her side, gasping, hoping she didn't break anything.

They've landed in one of Foxfire's outdoor courtyards. A fountain gurgles in the center of a field of purple grass, surrounded by lush plants and blooming flowers. On the other side of the courtyard, muffled voices and music can be heard behind a set of doors leading back into the ballroom.

Her hands fly to her face. Somehow, her mask is still secure on her head, but her dress is now streaked with dirt.

Lodestar groans beside her. Sophie scrambles to her feet as he pulls himself upright.

He clutches his arm, glaring up at her with eyes that seethe with plain anger even behind his mask. "You're going to regret that," he growls.

Her hands automatically move toward her legs, where she normally keeps her daggers sheathed, but there's only the swish of fabric against her bare skin underneath. She silently curses herself for thinking tonight would have been uneventful enough to go without weapons for once.

She flicks her gaze to where Lodestar's melder had landed halfway across the courtyard. She glances back at him.

He looks at her. He looks back at the melder.

They lunge towards it at the same time. Sophie reaches down to grab it, but the melder suddenly flings itself in the opposite direction, landing into Lodestar's hands.

She whirls around as he raises the melder and points it directly at her.

"Better luck next time, Moonlark," he chides, tilting his head in a show of mock pity.

The doors to the ballroom burst open, and a sudden clamor of music and light and noise spills out of it as three elves scramble into the courtyard.

"Sophie!" Dex shouts as he sprints toward her, Maruca and Stina trailing after him.

"Dex!" Sophie calls back. "Watch out!"

Lodestar swivels his aim towards Dex and shoots. Maruca steps forward with her palms raised, deflecting the melder blast with a shimmering forcefield.

Sophie runs toward them, ducking behind the fountain when Lodestar turns the melder back towards her. Maruca widens her forcefield to encompass Dex and Stina, safely bubbling them in.

"You guys have to get out of here!" Sophie says to her friends as another melder blast zaps past her head, singeing the grass beside her. "Is the Black Swan here yet?"

"Still on their way," Stina replies. She's barefoot, having discarded her stiletto heels at some point. "Wylie and my dad are already here, helping with evacuations."

"Good." Things aren't great, but they could be worse. For now, she has to keep her friends safe.

Sophie leaps out from behind the fountain, prepared to unleash her inflicting, but Lodestar is nowhere to be found.

"Not again," she hisses, turning in a slow circle, but there's no sign of him in the courtyard.

Maruca drops her forcefield. Dex scrambles towards Sophie, throwing his arms around her in a relieved hug.

"Thank goodness," he breathes as she hugs him tightly. "When you said he was here—I really thought the worst—"

"I'm okay," she tells Dex, pulling away to give him a reassuring smile. "But listen, something really weird happened. Lodestar was—he knew I was talking to you. Telepathically."

"It was him, wasn't it?" Dex asked grimly. "When you were transmitting to me. I heard another voice."

Sophie can only nod in response. Dex curses quietly.

"Wait. So what does that mean?" Maruca asks.

Sophie scowls. "It means we don't know him as well as we thought we did." And he knows who I am now, she thinks helplessly. Lodestar has always been one step ahead of her and he knows it. The very thought makes her want to scream.

"Sophie. Where's Fitz?" Stina demands.

Sophie bites her lip. "I... I don't know."

Stina narrows her eyes. "You don't know? There's an active Neverseen threat, and you don't know where Fitz is?"

Maruca's eyes widen. "What about Biana?"

"Cut it out," Dex interjects. "Arguing isn't going to help anyone. Right now, we need to help each other. Sophie, what do you need us to do?"

Sophie gives him an appreciative glance. "Right now, you guys should prioritize getting everyone out of Foxfire before the Neverseen do anything drastic. There's a lot of people here and it's going to take some time." Ignoring Stina's critical stare, she adds, "It should also help us find Fitz and Biana quicker."

"I'll look for them," Maruca offers. "My pathfinder still has a leaping crystal to Everglen, so I can take them there."

Dex frowns. "What about you, Sophie?"

She pauses, then says, "I'm going after Lodestar."

"What?!" Stina exclaims.

"There was someone else at the glass pyramid earlier," Sophie continues. "I think he went there. I can't let him get away again."

"No way. I'm coming with you," Dex insists.

"No. I'll feel better if I know you guys are here taking care of things."

"If Lodestar's out there, running around with some new, super freaky ability—"

She stands her ground. "Please."

Dex still doesn't look convinced, but concedes with a sigh. "Fine. But if you're not back here in fifteen minutes, we're going after you."

"Deal."

Someone stops her with a hand on her arm before she can turn to leave.

"Sophie," Stina warns, "be careful."

Sophie holds her gaze for a second. There's no sign of animosity from Stina, just her usual stubborn glare. It's a little comforting—almost.

"You too," she replies.

Stina nods. With one last glance, Sophie turns and runs out of the courtyard.