A/N: Thanks for the support so far. Hope you're enjoying!
Sofia's eyes adjusted as the white light receded from her vision. She was in a strange, spacious room of steel and white walls. A bizarre machine was nearby, and she stood on a large blue mat. A young man in unusual clothing stood nearby, clearly distraught.
Was this how it was when princesses were summoned to me?
"S-sam?" Dean asked as he approached. "No. Who are you? Have you seen Sam?"
Sofia shook her head. "No, I'm Sofia. I was in the Mystic Isles a moment ago. Where am I? Have I been summoned here?"
"You're in WOOHP HQ."
Sofia looked at him with a blank stare.
"Los Angeles. Earth," he added, then gestured for her to sit in his chair.
"This isn't the Ever Realm, is it?"
She readied her Enchantlet, hoping it still worked, ready to lasso the stranger at the first sign of trouble.
"Did you bring me here? I want to go back!" she said sharply.
"No!" he exclaimed, ready to dodge if need be.
He hadn't slacked off on physical training, despite his numerous responsibilities. Sofia paused at his tone.
"I was working the teleporter, there was a malfunction-"
He threw up his hands, then deflated, not caring if attacked.
"And?" Sofia asked.
"And Sam vanished. And you appeared."
A serious look passed over Sofia's features. "What magic are you using? Can you reverse the spell?" She looked at the device beside her dubiously.
Dean was about to reply when a musical ringtone rang. He brought out a flat, black object, opened it, and an image of a young woman with odd, 'swooping' hair appeared.
"Sorry if I'm interrupting anything with you and Sam, but it's late, there's a storm, and- who is that girl with you?!" she rattled off.
"Clover, I-" Dean started.
She held up a hand. "There's no way you'd two-time Sam. If you did, I'd smack you into next week. What's going on? Where's Sam?"
Sofia blinked at the exchange.
"Of course not. And Sam's missing. I need to get you and Alex here," he said.
"Missing?! Yeah, bring us over. Remember, Alex lives in a place with Martin now."
Dean tapped buttons on his communicator.
"Whoa…!" Clover's voice rang out and faded.
Only to be heard from a nearby wall as a circular opening appeared. Clover and a darker-skinned young woman with short black hair flew from out of the wall to land on a cushion beneath them.
No longer a monochrome hologram, Sofia saw that Clover had blonde hair and wore light purple short sleeved shirt and darker pajama bottoms. After gaining her bearings, she stalked to Dean and put a hand to her forehead.
"Let me guess. You were playing mad scientist, and Sammy's somehow the victim!" She gestured to the machine. "And you need our help."
"Clover, calm down," said the other woman in a surprisingly musical high tone.
She gave a wave to Sofia. "I'm Alex. Clover. Dean," she said, gesturing to each of them. She wore salmon-colored pajamas with a red collar on the long sleeved top.
"I'm Sofia. And I was brought from my world by accident," She looked at Dean. "So when you called them here, that wasn't magic either?"
"Nope. Technology," he replied. "And I tried calling Sam, like you saw me call them."
"Calling..." Sofia thought for a moment. "I'll try my Enchantlet." She raised her arm. "Hello, Chysta?"
Nothing happened, and she frowned.
"Do you even have magic on- Earth, is it?"
Dean, Clover, and Alex looked from her to each other.
"Yes," Alex said decisively. "C'mon, remember that evil magician we fought?"
Clover nodded. "Mummies, zombies, and those two wizards-"
"Well, those are rare exceptions," Dean explained. "Usually, we don't have it."
Clover marched Dean over to the keyboard. "Dean, why don't you just bring Sam back?"
He looked down for a second, then met her eyes. "I wish it were that simple, Clover."
"Sam, I think you should go to Sofia's dear friend, Cedric the Great," Orion said.
She blinked at this, smiled, then pointed towards the castle. "Great, he's right in there? Then he sends me home and brings back Sofia."
Vega shook her head. "I'm sorry, but he's down at the castle in Enchancia."
Sam's shoulders dropped. "Let me guess. It's incredibly dangerous. And what do you mean by 'down there'?"
Orion smiled. "Don't worry. It's not dangerous. And Skye will be your way down."
Relieved, but curious about 'Skye', Sam saw a white winged unicorn promptly glide into view and land beside her.
"Sam, meet Skye. Skye, meet Sam," Vega said.
"Whooa," Sam simply replied.
"Pleased to make your acquaintance," the unicorn said to Sam's surprise. "Glad to be of service. I've been friends with Sofia for a while, and I hope we get her back. "
After a few moments Sam found her voice. "G-good to, uh- meet you. Oh, and we will. Somehow."
Skye angled himself slightly. "Just climb on, and hold on tight, my lady."
Sam made a sound of agreement, climbed on his back and looked to the Protectors as they approached.
"Good luck, Sam," said Vega.
"Thank you so much!" Sam replied.
She looked ahead as Skye began to gallop, then flapped his wings and flew. He dove through a break in the clouds, then soared to the land below. Here, the sky was a normal blue. There was a picturesque landscape of meadows, hills, trees, and a lake with a bridge, which in turn led to an impressive castle.
Though made of traditional stucco and stone, this castle had many towers, the tops of which were colored red, purple, and the tallest central one- blue.
"Here we are," said Skye, upon landing before a pair of surprised guards.
They recognized Sofia's unicorn and were at ease. A moment later a thin man in a dark robe, yellow bow tie, and black hair with grey bangs hurried through the giant front doorway and down the wide staircase to Sam and Skye.
"It's alright," he said in a British accent to the armored guards. "We received word from the Mystic Isles that you were on the way," he said to the others.
"Oh, good," Sam said, dismounting. "I'm Sam."
"Cedric. And- have you seen Sofia?" he asked worriedly.
"No, but we'll figure it out," said Sam.
"Let me know how it goes," chimed in Skye. "I'd better head home."
"We will. Thank you, Skye," Cedric replied.
"Thanks!" Sam called out before he galloped away, then flew off.
Cedric ushered her up the stairs and through the open front doors.
"Let's get you introduced to the royal family briefly, then up to my tower for a solution," he said, as they entered the grand foyer.
Sam gave a curt nod, then marveled at the magnificent room with carpeted stairways and hallways branching out in different directions.
"I heard you're from a realm called Earth?" Cedric asked as he walked to a hallway for them to take. He looked nervously at Sam's skintight catsuit, then back forward.
They hurried past large portrait paintings and potted plants to reach a large pair of doors. Sam kept a close eye on Cedric, knowing from experience not to trust anyone she didn't know.
She thought of Cedric's flustered glance she'd caught.
"I should change to a suitable outfit," she said.
"Oh no, dear. There's hardly time. We-"
He turned from the doors to glance back and saw her holding a purple compact. She tapped it, causing a musical tone and a flash of light. After the light passed over her, she was garbed in a long blue dress, similar to a woman in a painting in the hall.
"You know magic," Cedric remarked. "But without even a wand."
Sam smiled. "No, this is just advanced technology." She stashed her X-Powder compact in a pocket.
"I see. Well, time to meet the royal family. They're quite nice, I assure you."
Sam nodded and they walked into the large throne room.
A middle aged man with kind features and strawberry blonde hair sat in the large center throne. By his side was a woman in a pink dress with long brown hair. On either side of them were a blonde young lady wearing a light green dress and a blonde young man in a suit of similar hue. They appeared to be twins.
"Y-your majesties," Sam said.
She curtsied, then bowed and dropped to a knee, head down.
"Oh, no need for formalities," the man said. "I'm Roland. This is my wife, Miranda."
Still kneeling, Sam bowed her head to the woman.
"Amber," said the young woman in a dulcet voice.
"James," said the boy about her age. "I heard you're from another realm, and you might have a clue where Sofia is?"
"Yes, uh, your majesty," Sam bowed her head to him.
Amber looked to her family, stood, then followed by the others, descended the small set of stairs to meet the visitors.
"Please no curtsying or titles," she said, kindly. "We just want to help you get home and get Sofia back."
"She's my daughter, and we all love her so much," Miranda said. "I'm sure your loved ones back home are worried about you as well."
"Yes, Queen Miranda," Sam said, meeting the woman's compassionate look.
Roland put a hand on Cedric's shoulder.
"If you need help with anything, Cedric, let us know immediately."
"I will."
Cedric met the eyes of the family, then Sam. "Let's go find a solution."
She nodded in response.
"Good meeting all of you," Sam said.
She curtsied again, then followed Cedric out. The family watched them depart, then looked to each other in hope.
"They were so nice and down to earth," Sam remarked as they strode through the hall. "You're not at war? No one's trying to take over your kingdom?"
Her eyes were everywhere, alert for danger.
Cedric blanched, which Sam noticed. He held up a hand, counting off responses.
"Agreed on the royal family. No on war. And… we're here. Let's climb these stairs."
What's he hiding?
He stopped before a spiral staircase, and Sam turned her attention to it. She pursed her lips, whipped out her X-Powder, then changed to her original outfit of jeans and a sweatshirt. They ascended quickly, and after opening a wooden door, Cedric led her into a stone, high-ceiling workshop.
It had a second floor, sleeping area, and bookcases. A painting of an older couple was on the wall. Cedric gestured to a stool near a large wood table and he claimed a seat across from her.
"Do you know how you arrived here?" he asked, looking at her expectantly.
"Yes, we were testing teleportation- technology. There was a power surge, and I was pulled into a white light." She looked down. "I met people with wings in the clouds and thought I'd died and gone to heaven."
"Oh dear, that must've been quite an experience for you."
"Thanks," she said sincerely. "Now, let's focus on that solution for Sofia and myself."
Cedric nodded, impressed with her resolve and decisiveness. There was something about her that reminded him of Sofia.
A/N: Feel free to review if you have a moment. Thanks for reading!