UNLOCKED, kotlc

Chapter 41

If Sophie didn't know any better, she would've assumed she was dead.

But when her eyes snapped open, she didn't feel dead.... although how was she supposed to know what being dead felt like?  It took her a while to adjust to her surroundings, but this time, she wasn't in the Healing Center and the person leaning over her with crystal blue eyes filled with concern wasn't Elwin.  It was...

"Keefe?" She croaked, her head feeling like it was being inflated like a balloon.

"Yup!" Keefe forced humor into his words but Sophie didn't believe his teasing tone for a minute.  "I let you out of my sight for less than five minutes and you already go an almost die on me."

Sophie laughed, although it turned into more of a wince as she recognized the same words that Keefe had told her when Mr. Forkle had reset her abilities the first time.  "You do it too," Sophie pointed out.  "And it's not like it's anything out of the ordinary."

"It's not," Keefe agreed.  "But don't do it again, okay?"

"I won't," Sophie promised, though her words were laced with sadness as she realized that none of them could ever keep that promise.  Sophie scraped together enough strength to lift her head from where it lay cradled in Keefe's hands as she scanned her surroundings.

"Where are we?  How am I not dead? What happened with Adela and Lady Gisela?"

"Were right below the cliff, right were Gethen pushed you off.  I saw you falling and used my telekinesis to slow your fall... although you did land pretty hard still.  And by the time I got there, my mom was helping Adela up and just said, 'Remember your legacy' and then she was gone."

"Sorry you had to do that," Sophie said, even though she shouldn't have felt sorry for him.

"It's not your fault," Keefe assured her.  "If anything, I'm sorry.  If I hadn't been so reckless, I could've helped...."

"The only difference would've been that you would've fallen off the cliff too and then there'd be nobody to levitate us to safety."

"Maybe," Keefe relented, and the conversation kind of died there.

"Why aren't we up there with Elwin and everyone?" Sophie pointed to the top of the cliff.  

"Um... Okay, so, don't hate me, but we kinda might have blown up the stairs and the cave while I was fighting with my mom and nobody knows we're down here."  He gave her an apologetic glance.  Sophie managed to sit up and lean against the back of the cliff to clear her head.  It was impossible to think laying down.

"I'll never hate you, but...."

"I know, it was stupid.  I'd try levitating but I'm wiped and you don't have enough energy to teleport us up there, but Grady and Edaline are probably freaking out like they always do, so..."

"I can teleport us," Sophie said instantly.  

"Um, no you can't.  Hate to break it to you, Foster, but you look like you're going to die any second now."  

Sophie flushed and pushed the strands of greasy hair over her eyes.  She was losing her vision slowly, Keefe's beautiful face slowly fading out of view.  She gripped Keefe's broad shoulders and looked at him in the eyes.

"I think I'm gonna black out sometime soon...."

"We have to get you to Elwin,"  Keefe agreed.  "What if Silveny came to get us?"

"Too far,"  Sophie managed in shaky breaths.  The world faded to gray.  "I have an idea.  Can you get them to cooperate?"

"Who?"  Keefe asked, looking around.

Sophie faded into her telepathic world, and shouted one thing, using the last of her mental energy.

And right before the world completely faded out of sight, she was filled with blazing hope.

Because swooping out of the sky was none other than....

Wynn and Luna.