Keeper of the Lost Cities: Elysian

Chapter 63

Sophie woke drenched in cold sweat.

The scene that she so desperately wanted to escape now loomed in her consciousness, replaying over and over.

And unlike the abyss, she had no idea how to stop it.

For a terrifying moment, she didn't recognize her surroundings and thought that she was still in the nightmare.

But she registered the blanket wrapped around her, the cushions, and the couch, all of which meant that she was once again taking outrageous advantage of Elysian's hospitality.

"Sophie!" Sandor yelled, bursting into the room. Then he saw her and gasped for air. "What happened?"

Flori wasn't far behind and her eyes were wide in fear.

"What?" Sophie asked, bewildered. "What do you mean?"

"You cried out," Flori answered, biting her lip. "Are you sure everything's fine?"

The long moment of hesitation should have been enough of an indication of her lie, but Flori didn't address it. "Well... we're glad you're back."

She glanced at Sandor, whose eyes glinted with frustration at those words. "Although I- we should have been there with you."

Sophie shoved the blankets off of herself so she could sit up properly. "You don't know what Elysian, Merida, and I were dealing with."

Sandor shook his head vehemently. "It doesn't matter."

"It does," Sophie insisted. "Very little actually happened in the physical world. The majority of it depended on the void and the connection between our minds and the abyss- it's rather complicated and I'll explain more later, but the point remains. There are some things you can't protect me from, because I'm meant to face them."

"That was very well said, and I agree," Flori murmured. "Wait- did you say abyss?"

"We'd like to know as well," Biana announced, walking out of the air between them.

"Who's we?" Sophie asked but immediately felt the presence of several other minds in the living room where there shouldn't have been people.

The walls sighed collectively, and then the light shimmered and fizzled to reveal Dex, Tam, Linh, Maruca, Marella, Wylie, Rayni, and their bodyguards.

"You're awake," Elysian said tiredly. She was smiling, but there were dark circles under her eyes. "I suppose we're officially doing the explanation now?"

"I will," Sophie said, standing up properly for the first time in so long. "You should rest."

She turned toward the window and suddenly realized by the pink, lavender, and vermillion streaks of the sunset outside that she had slept for Way. Too. Long.

But there's so much to handle, Elysian transmitted. The Council is still unconscious and I don't know what to do with them. According to the Black Swan's reports, the Lost Cities are in turmoil due to their absence. Also, given that it's still Nightfall and that I released nearly half of the esylune in my body into the ether of this island two nights ago, there's always the risk of someone unwanted getting their hands on a crystal. As if that's not enough, there's the p-

Suddenly, their mental connection split like ice splintering into thousands of tiny chips.

"Indeed," Merida said. She stared straight at Elysian but Sophie could sense tension radiating from her. "Sophie's right- you should rest."

Had she interrupted their conversation intentionally?

Tam glanced between the three of them with a frown on his face.