Sophitz kotlc

Chapter 70

"Well hello again, Sophie." Brant said, his eyes gleaming with hatred. Sophie took a step back from the large glass window, pressing herself against the back wall. 

Lady Vespera smiled. "Oh no, Sophie. No reason to worry this time. Were just here to talk," She explained. Sophie noticed how Lady Gisela and Lady Vespera were as far away from each other as possible. She remembered how they both disagreed with each other when it came to almost anything. Except torturing her and her friends. 

"What do you want with me this time?" Sophie asked, taking a step towards them. She swallowed her fear, remembering the way Keefe stood so casually when faced with something terrible. She looked around for something to lean on, but the room was empty. 

Oralie spoke up this time, and the ferocity in her gaze was of something Sophie had never seen on Oralie before. She hardly recognized her with the ever-present glare she cast in every direction. 

"We just wanted to let you know that we will no longer be bothering you." Oralie said, raising her chin confidently. Sophie didn't believe the words for a second. She laughed. "And I suppose pigs have begun to fly?" She asked. "You don't care about the Moonlark anymore?" Sophie ventured, tempted to laugh hysterically and ask the real reason. Oralie just shrugged. 

"We don't need you anymore. Like I said in the cave, we've done tests. We have everything we need." She explained, not bothering to fill in the obvious blanks. 

"Everything you need for what?" Sophie asked, taking another step towards the glass. She focused on inflicting, a rare power the Black Swan had gifted her. She concentrated on hurt, pain, the memory of how the Neverseen had broken every bone in her hand. She could almost feel the pain, welling up inside her. She gathered it all into one place, ready to launch the agony towards her enemies. She focused on the cold ball of pain in her mind, forced it out and ... 

It hit a wall of silence. 

All the members of the Neverseen in front of her laughed, as if she had just tried to break the glass with a toothpick. "Inflicting won't work here, Sophie." Gethen explained. "Now, Oralie, tell Sophie about what you've been working on." He gave a sly grin, as if whatever Oralie was about her would tear her apart piece by piece. Maybe it would. She braced herself. "Ah, yes. We've decided that project Moonlark is no more. We've created something much more powerful." 

Oralie stepped aside, revealing a small girl with neat brown hair tucked behind her ears standing next to her. If Sophie had to guess, she was about 7. The next words that came almost did tear her apart. "Sophie, meet your replacement. This is project Gorgodon."