Moonlark Turned Evil

36: A Dark Meeting

Summary of chapter 35:

Sophie and the members of Phoenix (plus Squall) join forces with the Council's goblin army in a temporary alliance to fight off the Elys. The fight begins in the air, but gradually descends to the ground after most of the Elys battleships are destroyed.

During the battle, Sophie fights two Elys called Eria and Jevro. The former is Irily's older sister, the very person who designed the battleships, and the latter is the commander of the 'Left Wing'.

In the climax of the battle, the two remaining battleships drop missiles over the field. The Elys retreat into the water, as planned, leaving Phoenix to die.

Or so they thought.

Sophie holds off the thousand or so missiles with a powerful shield, and then faints from overuse of her special abilities.

Sooo

I managed to squeeze in some time to write this—surprisingly—so I whipped it up. This was originally supposed to be about Sophie and the gang, but I didn't have enough time for that, so I went with the next best thing: a chapter about our favorite (or least favorite) villains.

Let the curtains open!

Happy (several days early) New Year!

"You know why I've called you here."

The room was silent.

Councillor Emery sat at the head of the glass table in a tall chair, cushioned with crimson red velvet. His elbows were resting on the delicate glass, fingers intertwined in the classic pose of an intelligent, elegant, and refined gentleman.

"Sophie Foster," Zarina spoke up, answering his question. "The Moonlark. Or possibly not."

"I agree that Sophie's choice of wording is quite troublesome." Oralie stood up to address them all, smoothing her skirt as she spoke. "But surely you must all see that she is the least of our problems. Right now, she is helping us—and I think that's enough."

Speech concluded, she sat down, blonde ringlets swaying.

Velia stood next, a Guster who was the closest thing the Council had to a hotheaded member—well, she was fighting Zarina for first place. "We should dig out our traitors before we face our enemies. It'll make us stronger if we know who we can trust."

Noland rose, pushing back his chair. "The Moonlark needs to be watched. Her fighting prowess is something that has been cultivated by years of training. It's likely that she's known about the Lost Cities her whole life. She's been lying since she got here, and if she somehow has a way to stop Oralie's empathy from picking out her lies, then we have to get rid of her. Fast."

"If the rumors about Phoenix are true, then the Moonlark is a former member of the Neverseen," Bronte said. "I will send someone to watch her."

Oralie ran her finger over her pink skirt.

This meeting was getting nowhere. Everyone had their own thoughts and goals, and it was all jumbling together in one big mess.

"We should ask the Moonlark herself."

Surprisingly, it was Liora who spoke. The Conjurer usually kept her thoughts to herself in the Council battles, so she must have decided she needed to reveal her hand early on in this round.

"And if she plays dumb?" Darek asked.

"We torture it out of her," Ramira shrugged, and Oralie winced.

"Torturing should be our last resort," Kenric said, his voice cutting through the room.

"I agree," Oralie said, but no one was listening.

"Should we send an official letter to Havenfield?" Clarette asked.

"It's our only option, really," Velia said. "Kidnapping her would be insanely difficult, since she's always with her bodyguard. Not to mention . . ."

Everyone looked at the hologram, where the image of Sophie pointing her sword forwards was portrayed in clear, distinct lines.

"Send someone to Havenfield to formally invite her to an audience," Emery said, rising.

The other eleven Councillors followed suit, chairs scraping against the ground.

"If she speaks, there's no need to bring anything unpleasant in. If she refuses talk, then torture her. And if she won't tell the truth even then, you may torture her friends."