Keefe's POV this time! Sorry that it took me so long to update! Although, you never know, touring you with that last cliffhanger could've been my plan all along. Jk, although it was a bonus.
At Sophie's command, the Black Swan shook out of their daze, standing up and resuming the battle, fighting harder than before.
But Keefe didn't care. To him nothing mattered aside from the beautiful girl who now lay unconscious in his arms.
He could no longer feel her emotions, could no longer see her unique, gold flecked eyes. Her breath still came softly, but it was as if the life had been drained out of her. Somehow, Keefe knew, she was broken, her mind was shattered.
How had she used his ability? It was supposed to be him laying there. He had no answer, but he did know one thing: He was going to bring her back. He couldn't live in a world without her.
Keefe examined his surroundings. To his amazement, despite the difference in numbers, the Black Swan was winning!
In front of him, Lady Gisela, Gethen, and the cloaked figure beside them seemed to be in shock.
Keefe stood preparing to fight.
His mother then seemed to recover from her surprise, "Gethen." The Neverseen member retrieved a meddler from the pocket of his cloak. He then pointed it at Keefe, and he braced for pain. But suddenly, at the last minute he turned the weapon on Lady Gisela.
"I was blinded before by pain and my need for revenge. But my daughters have reminded me of what's right." he said.
Keefe was dumbfounded, but also puzzled, "daughters?"
Gisela developed a murderous glare, and thrust out her hand. This time, Keefe didn't struggle. He knew that no matter what the command was, the strength get Sophie out of there was more important.
"Stop." slipped through his lips.
Keefe expected the order to be directed at Gethen, but to his surprise, both he and the other figure froze.
"What?!" exclaimed the figure.
Gisela sighed, "Drop the act, Echo."
"What act? You know where my loyalties lie!" she responded.
The code name seemed familiar to Keefe. Then he realized that Sophie had used it earlier. She must be a double agent. he thought.
"Yes, yes I do. Did you really think that you were fooling anyone?" Gisela asked.
Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Keefe spotted a figure lurking in the shadows. Tam.
Echo must've seen him to, because she began play along, distracting Lady Gisela. "Yes. I guess I thought you were even dumber than you really are." she said.
Gisela sneered, "Watch your tongue. Remember who here has the upper hand."
"Why don't you just shove that hand up your-"
Suddenly, a blast of shadowflux came from behind, hitting Gisela and causing her to fall to the ground.
Tam then came running.
When he reached them, he punched Lady Gisela in the back of the head, knocking her out. "Oh that felt good!" he said. He then looked at Keefe, "Hey, you could always wake her up and take a turn."
Keefe glanced at Sophie.
Tam nodded, "Go."
Keefe used his ability to free Echo and Gethen, although he didn't necessarily trust either.
He then picked up Sophie, and ran as fast as he could.
Being that he was supposedly turning himself in, he didn't have a leaping crystal on hand, but he had another idea.
He headed for the pond, well aware of the risks.
He glanced at Linh, who was across the field protecting Wylie. He wondered if he should ask her to keep the power of the water at bay, but after seeing Wylie's wounds he didn't question it again.
Holding tight to Sophie, Keefe jumped into the water.
He knew that the elixir she had mentioned earlier would protect her, but Keefe had to fight to make it through the trap. It was much easier this time, because the only person who had kept him alive last time, was now relying on him to save her life.
Not unlike light leaping, he wrapped his consciousness around Sophie and himself. But it was pure determination and love that brought them through.
When they reached the bottom, he walked over to the door on the far side of the room. A DNA strip. He licked it, and miraculously it opened. Perks of having an evil mom. he thought sarcastically.
He started down, floor by floor.
The hideout was fairly empty, most of the members fighting on the surface, but occasionally he would have to use his ability to knock out a few guards.
He couldn't find a leap master, and was running out of hope by the time he reached the bottom floor. And then he saw it; a nearly black wall that looked almost like the void. A closer look told him that it wasn't solid either.
But there were about a dozen Neverseen members guarding it.
He hid behind a wall, readying himself to make a command. He poured all of his desperation and determination into one word; "Sleep!"
Suddenly, everyone in the room fell to the ground, unconscious.
Stepping over the limp bodies, Keefe felt as though he was part of a horror scene. He hoped that wasn't the case as he neared the wall.
"Here goes nothing." he whispered.
Taking a leap of faith, he stepped into the black.
As he entered what lied beyond, he was sure that it was the void. He felt the same way he did when teleporting: empty and small.
He took a deep breath, and pictured the place he needed to go. The healing center.
The void parted, and they fell into the portal.
They had made it.
But where they appeared, definitely wasn't the healing center.