Forgotten Remains (on hiatus)

Keefe's POV

I should get to sleep. Keefe thought to himself. It was the middle of the night. Sophie and Dex were dead. He needed to get over it. But he couldn't. He'd only known Sophie for a few short months and she'd already changed his life forever. He'd live with this pain for literal eternity.

Sophie and Dex's funeral had been a few days ago. He couldn't get it in his brain that she was dead. He couldn't believe it.

It's all my fault. Keefe realized. I told Fitz to leave her alone when she was clearly upset in the hallway. If I just hadn't said that and let Fitz go after her she's be okay. So would Dex. They'd be safe at home and he not dead. He felt tears filling up his eyes. No, he wouldn't cry again. He had to overcome this.

He was just about to turn his light off when his imparter chimed. It was Fitz.

"Hey Fitz, what are you doing up at this time?" Fitz looked startled. "Are you okay? You look a little pale."

Fitz breathed in sharply. "Dex just came to Everglen. He's here right now." Keefe couldn't believe what he was hearing. This had to be some sort of cruel joke. At the same time, Fitz wouldn't make that kind of joke. If Dex was there, did that mean Sophie was too?

Keefe kept messing up his words. "W-what? But, he's...dead" He tore a hand through his hair. Keefe sat up in his bed.

"That's what we all thought. Get over here." Keefe jumped up and ran across his room to get to the leap master on the other side of Candleshade. He called out Everglen and let himself get whisked away by the beam of light.
Wait, if Dex is there, where is Sophie? Keefe felt his chest deflate a little. But he was still happy that Dex was home.

Fitz welcomed Keefe at the gate of Everglen they walked side by side towards the doors of the expansive palace. "You're not pulling my leg are you Fitz?"

"You and I both know that I would never joke about something like this. Dex really is here. Elwin won't let him tell us anything until he is all checked out." Fitz sighed, and the two boys walked towards the living room where Dex was being treated.

Elwin had all sorts of flashing orbs of light around him with an array of elixirs at his side. "Besides clear exhaustion, a few burns, dehydration, and messed up lungs from being in human air for so long, there's not too much bad done to your body." Elwin sighed, clearly thinking what everyone else was. "If you're here then where is Sophie?"

Alden, Della, and Biana stood against the wall waiting to hear what Dex had to say. Keefe turned his head at the sound of a sniffle. In the corner of the room stood a distraught Edaline and Grady comforting her. Standing beside them were Dex's parents, Juline and Kesler, the triplets on their sides, being quiet for once.

Alden stepped forward. "Are you okay to tell us what happened Dex? Or do you need a day to recover? It's totally okay if you don't feel like talking tonight, we have enough guest bedrooms to house you all till morning. There's no reason to worry." Keefe was getting sick of that little phrase of his, "no reason to worry". There very much was in fact a reason to worry. Sophie was quite literally still missing and Dex was right in front of them, potentially with the knowledge of her location.

Dex took a deep breath and straightened up. "No that's all right. It's important. Where should I start?" His voice was a little dry and Elwin handed him a Bottle of Youth. He downed it in one king gulp.

"All the way from the beginning." Alden stated. Everyone in the room seemed to brace themselves for the worst.

Dex nodded. "After Sophie ran off at Foxfire, Fitz told me that I should go check on her so I leaped to Havenfield and went into the caves where we usually hung out and studied. But much to my surprise, I'd walked into an abduction." Dex paused as everyone gasped. He wiped his eyes with the back of his finger. "I watched as a cloaked figure grabbed her and lifted her up. She told meto run but before I could they lifted a cloth laced with a sedative to my nose and I passed out. I assume they did the same to her."

Everyone looked uncomfortable as he continued especially Kesler and Juline, Grady and Edaline just looked scared.

"I woke up in a hard chair tied to the arms and legs. Sophie was screaming. I think they were questioning her, I heard a few of the questions they asked. There was a male, the guy that burned us, and he kept asking her why she was made, but she didn't know. I tried to scream for help a few times but they burned me to keep me quiet. They said they would torture her again if I moved a muscle. They were going to poison us to get rid of us, but Sophie's old neighbor, Mr. Forkle, rescued us. He's not a bad person."

Alden and Grady gasped. Everyone was wide eyed. He knew he should wait till Dex was finished but he wanted to ask, if Mr. Forkle rescued them, then where was Sophie?

"He dropped us off in Paris where Sophie manifested as a polyglot and Inflictor, oh and if you didn't know, Sophie's a telepath, the cloaked figures tried to grab us again but we fought them off and they shot me with a melder. Sophie was worried about my safety so she wrapped all of her consciousness around me and we leaped to the four seasons tree. Sophie was almost entirely faded away. I could see right through her." Dex's voice quieted towards the last part.

Edaline began to cry quietly again, she buried herself in Grady's chest. Grady was trying to keep it together. Keefe's hands were shaking, his mouth slightly parted, anyone could see the heavy feelings in his eyes. Fitz was ghostly pale.

"The cloaked guys came again, they managed to get into Sophie's head, they gave her a sedative and leaped away. Mr Forkle found me and told me they were most likely going to alter her memories. She'll be on their side soon. That's it." A painful silence filled the room as everyone took in the information.

Dex's parents and siblings walked over to his and wrapped him in a big hug. They all cried quietly together. It had been around 3 weeks since he'd been kidnapped.

Sophie, such a kind, strong girl. This explained the secrets. Sophie was a telepath. Now also a polyglot and Inflictor. His mysterious Miss F. His stomach sunk thinking that Sophie wouldn't remember him, or anyone else, and fight for the wrong team.

Fitz broke the silence. "This is all my fault." He said quietly, barely over a mumble.

"How is it your fault Fitz? You didn't do anything." Della moved to her sons side and rubbed his arm.

"That's the thing. I didn't do anything." Della looked at him questioningly. "S-sophie transmitted to me multiple times, but I didn't believe her. I thought my mind was playing cruel tricks on me. She called out to me so many times. I just couldn't believe it. The last time she transmitted to me she told me she was at the Four Seasons Tree. She even sent me a picture of it." Fitz shook at his realization.

Fitz was crying at this point. Della pulled him into a hug, and Keefe moved over to him to put his arm around him. "It's okay Fitz. I don't think anyone in this room blames you." Alden reassured him.

Fitz looked towards Grady and Edaline. "We don't blame you, I myself probably wouldn't have believed it either." Grady told him with a half-hearted smile. Edaline nodded.

Biana stayed quiet throughout this whole ordeal. She looked guilty. She'd been in that fight with Sophie the day she went missing.

"Is there anything we can do now to try to get her back? Anyway to track her down?" Keefe asked.

Alden moved towards Keefe and placed a hand on his shoulder. "There's not much we can do till morning. I believe it is time to call it a night. Everyone is welcome to stay the night."

Keefe made his was up the stairs to the guest room he usually stayed in when he slept over. Crawling into the familiar bed while wearing clothes he's borrowed from Fitz.

He burried himself under the covers. Letting himself cry about Sophie. He wished he could take her place. He'd do it in a heartbeat.
But for now, he closed his eyes and let sleep take him away.