Hello again! Hope you all have had a great week and I hope you enjoy this chapter! Sorry it's a tad late, school is making it a little more difficult to update, but hey, at least I'm still sticking to the once a week postings! I'm hoping I have enough written to get y'all through my semester, because I haven't actually been able to work on my most recent chapter for a couple of weeks. Anyway! Thank you to my wonderful betas, artemismk1.2 and AquaTurquoise! If any of you want to read a good story, definitely check out the things that they have posted.
I don't own Sofia, or any of the characters associated with the show. All original characters, like the soldiers and anyone associated with Vasilia, (other than Birk) I own.
Enjoy!
Chapter 27: Rescue
Miranda, Roland, Birk, and the four soldiers accompanying them made their way through the long, dark corridor with Birk leading the group while the King and Queen walked with two soldiers in front and behind them. Birk had insisted on going first since he knew the castle the best. Miranda and Roland would have followed closely behind him, but the soldiers were intent on keeping the royals safe and would only move forward if they were protected from front and back at all times.
Birk strode through the corridor, knowing full well that Vasilia may have already known they were there. If she did, it was only a matter of time before she came and tried to stop them, but he hoped that if they hurried, they might be able to get to Sofia before the sorceress got to them. At his current pace, they'd reach the dungeon in about ten minutes. Birk gritted his teeth, that was too long. He wished they didn't have to leave the flying horses at the cliff, but the creatures were much too large for the narrow tunnel with low ceilings. The group had been walking for just a few minutes when they felt the tunnel rumble.
"Battle must have broken out. Me must hurry!" exclaimed Birk as he began to jog.
"Wait, Birk! Stay in formation!" Roland commanded.
"It's only a matter of time before Vasilia tires of fending off the army, so we have to cover as much ground as we can if we want to get to Sofia before she gets to us! You can go slow if you want, but I promise that if you do, Vasilia will surely catch you, and I don't want to know what she'll do after she's been badly poisoned," he declared, briefly facing the rest of the group before jogging ahead again.
The soldier in front nodded to the group behind him. "Well, you heard the man. Move, move, move!" He had to yell over the deep rumbling sounds of the battle going on above ground and motioned his hand for the group to follow suit.
If adrenaline hadn't been coursing through their veins, Miranda and Roland surely would have tired after jogging for only a short period of time; but they were keeping up with Birk and the soldiers just fine so far. Don't worry Sofia, we're coming! It was the thought that ran through both parents' minds.
Birk hadn't realized that he was slowly but surely accelerating as the group drew closer to the end of the tunnel. At this pace, he guessed they'd reach it in just a couple more minutes. He fought to keep his breath under control as his strides lengthened. Anya. Ian. Stassia. He kept saying their names over and over in his head to help him stay in control as he nearly sprinted the last hundred meters to the door at the end of the tunnel. "There must be a way to open it from the outside," he muttered to himself through labored breaths. He couldn't see very well without his own lantern, and he had accidently left the rest of the group behind. They weren't too far, because he could still see the faint glow from their lanterns, but he figured that if he could find a way in before they got there, they'd save some time.
He pawed desperately at the wall, pushing on the rocks, and hoping that there'd be a sort of button that made the camouflaged door open. He glanced around the corridor to see if there was a hidden lever somewhere, but he could hardly see in the dim light. "Ugh, there's no time for this!" Birk grunted in frustration as he rushed to find anything that would open the door.
The rest of the group came up behind him a few seconds later. "Stand back, Mr. Balthazar," commanded the head soldier. He pulled out a small disc from his pack and secured it to the wall before pressing a button on the top. The devise began beeping as a red light on the top pulsated with each sound. "Get back," he said, calmly walking backwards with an arm extended, ushering the rest of the group behind him. The beeps steadily picked up pace little by little before rushing rapidly at the end. A small blast emanated from the devise and the stone door crumbled, leaving the structure around the arch intact.
"That's some gadget you got there." Birk whistled as he stared at the rubble with wide eyes.
"Thank our resident inventor, Gwen. That small of a blast should have gone unnoticed with all the commotion going on up top. Now let's get going," the soldier replied gruffly.
Birk stepped over the rubble and through the archway, but stopped and cocked his head to the left, pointing with his mouth slightly ajar.
"Birk, what is it?" Miranda asked as the two soldiers stepped out into the dungeon before her.
"Um?" Birk closed his mouth and shifted his eyes from the scene he saw before him back to the Queen. "You know what, I'll just let you guys see it for yourselves."
Miranda raised an eyebrow at him and then looked back at her husband. He shrugged and motioned for her to go ahead of him through the crumbled archway. Carefully, she overstepped the debris and went out into the dungeon. Her eyes widened, brow furrowing deeply as her jaw dropped. "Cedric? Aren't you supposed to be with James and Amber?" she demanded, appalled and irritated.
"Mom! Dad!" Sofia shouted.
"Sofia!" Miranda and Roland exclaimed at the same time as they rushed to the cell by where Cedric was standing and reached through the bars to touch their daughter.
"Oh, Sofia! I'm so glad we finally found you! Don't worry we're going to get you out of here." Miranda then turned to the sorcerer and shot him a derisive glare. "We'll talk about this later," she murmured, her tone dark and threatening. Cedric gulped as sweat trickled down his brow.
"Cedric, can you undo this lock?" King Roland asked.
The sorcerer shook his head. "I'm afraid I cannot. Vasilia has placed powerful nullification spells all over the dungeon and my magic is not strong enough to undo it," he admitted, hanging his head.
"Not to worry, your Majesties," stated the head soldier, stepping up to the cell gate. "This is why I paid a visit to Gwen before we departed." He pulled out a much smaller version of the discus devise he used on the door and secured it to the lock on the cell door. It beeped similarly to the other devise and let out a small pop, breaking the lock. He opened the door, and Sofia ran out and hugged her parents before extending the same gesture to Cedric.
Birk looked around the cellar. "Sofia, where are Anya, Ian and Anastassia?" he asked, concern raising in his voice.
Sofia looked down at the floor. "I gave up my amulet so they could go free."
"You did WHAT!?" Cedric shouted, waving his arms dramatically.
"It was the only way!" Sofia retorted, defending herself.
"I can't believe you just gave the Amulet of Avalor to one of the most dangerous Sorceresses in the world!" Cedric exclaimed grabbing a fistful of his own hair.
"I told you, it was the only way," the princess repeated more solemnly.
Cedric let out an aggravated grunt. "You had to know we were coming for you, Sofia, why didn't you just wait for us?" the sorcerer chided.
"Because if I didn't give her my Amulet, she was going to torture Anya again!" Sofia shouted, squeezing her eyes shut and clenching her fists.
The room went silent while rumbling blasts still sounded from above. Birk stepped up to Sofia and kneeled before the girl. "What do you mean by again?" his voice was low and serious as he gripped his daughter's shoulders.
Sofia sighed and cast her eyes to the floor. "We had almost escaped the castle when Vasilia found us. She said that if I gave her the Amulet, she'd take good care of them until you got back… but I didn't give it to her. She brought us back here, and then all I remember is going with Anya to another cell block. Then I was back here again and Vasilia told me that if I gave her the Amulet, she'd let them go free." Sofia hugged herself and gazed at the floor.
"Oh, my goodness! Sofia, did she hurt you?" Miranda gasped, kneeling by her daughter and cupping a loving hand around her cheek.
Sofia just shrugged as she let her mother inspect her. "I don't feel hurt. But I can't remember anything that went on in that room."
Roland watched the scene as Miranda and Birk tried to comfort Sofia. A sort of somber nostalgia came over him as he thought that this was how the family would have been if Miranda had not left Birk. Then again, if she hadn't left him he may have never met Anya and sobered up. Roland also would have been left alone after his former wife died. The corner of his lip twitched slightly. He guessed he had Birk's alcoholism to thank for his happy marriage now; that, and Miranda's willingness to leave him when she saw the need. It was funny, the tragic things that happened all lead to their new families…which were now both in danger. Roland knelt by Sofia and touched her on the shoulder.
Sofia threw herself into Roland's chest and hugged him tightly. "Dad, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed.
Roland returned the embrace and pet her head gently. "You have nothing to apologize for, Sofia," he said softly.
"But I gave away my amulet. You're not mad?" she asked, looking up at him with shining eyes.
Roland couldn't help but let out a breathy chuckle. "Why would I be mad at you for giving away your amulet to save the lives of others?"
"Because now that Vasilia has my amulet, she might do something horrible, and now everyone could be in big trouble! I don't know what she wants to do with it, but it can't be good!" Sofia said frantically as stray tears fell from her eyes.
"Try not to think about that right now, Sofia. What's happening right now is not your fault," Roland replied calmly.
"But if I never had the Amulet, none of this would have happened in the first place! The only reason Vasilia sent Papa to Enchancia and kidnapped his family was because she knew I had it." Sofia protested.
Birk decided it was his turn to chime in. "It's all right, Sofia. You did what you thought was right. Even if you didn't have the Amulet, I'm sure Vasilia would have found someone else to blackmail and steal it for her, so it doesn't matter who had it. Now please, stop trying to blame yourself and answer me this: do you have any idea which way Anya would have gone?"
The princess shook her head and looked at Birk. "No. I'm sorry, Papa."
Cedric felt the distinct, sharp pain of someone's elbow jamming into his ribcage. "Ow!" He grunted, recoiling from the attack. "We—I-I-I mean I saw them on my way here. They were headed to the Northern exit of the castle," he stuttered before glancing with narrowed eyes in the direction of the invisible person who had just assaulted him.
"The Northern Gate, huh? How long ago did you run into them?" Birk asked, standing to face the man.
"Perhaps ten minutes ago," Cedric hummed.
"What was Anya, my wife's, condition? How well was she looking? Was she stumbling as she walked?"
Cedric put his finger and thumb on his chin and looked up, trying to find the proper words to describe it. "She definitely did not look healthy, but she was walking fairly well, holding an infant."
"Okay, good. That should have given them enough time to escape the castle grounds before the battle broke out." Birk sighed in relief. "Thank you, Cedric."
The sorcerer gave a slight nod, pleased with the man's gratitude. Just then, the ground shook and tiny specs of dust fell from the ceiling. "We'll have time for pleasantries later, we must take the Princess and get out of here as soon as possible," commanded the head soldier in his typical, gruff tone. "What is the fastest way out of this castle, Birk?"
"That would be the Northern Gate. It may be risky with all the battle going on outside, but it's our best bet since Vasilia is obviously distracted," Birk replied as he stood up and faced the other man.
"Tell us which way to go. Private Tom, up here with me. Sinise, Gary, in back. Everyone else, in the middle. Once we get onto the field, I want you all to circle around Their Majesties and Birk. Cedric, you make sure to deflect any magic blasts that come our way."
Cedric nodded and saluted the man. "Yes, Corporal Hanks."
"Up the stairs we go," Birk said, motioning to the stone steps.
"Right then. Move out!" Corporal Hanks shouted over another rumble.
The walls around them shook and seemed to be crumbling as they headed through the castle. At each turn, Birk simply yelled which direction to go as the party tried to shield themselves from occasional falling debris. Cedric walked just a little bit away from the group, allowing space for two certain, currently invisible, adolescents to be protected. The soldiers took their swords from their sheaths and then unlatched their sheaths from their sides. Each sheath expanded into a metal shield with Enchancia's crest on it.
"What?! It's a shield?!" Birk exclaimed, taking his own sword and sheath from his hip.
Roland followed suit of the other soldiers, while Cedric conjured a large shield of his own with his wand, making sure that it could cover both him and the two twins. "That's right! Take hold of it in the middle and jostle your arm like so!" Roland demonstrated the action and his own shield popped out, which he used to cover Sofia.
Birk mimicked Roland's actions. "Whoa!" he exclaimed, laughing as his shield also expanded from the sheath. "You tell that inventor girl that she's a real genius!"
Miranda couldn't help but let a small smile tug at the corner of her mouth as she pulled out her own sword and shield. The man still had that youthful essence about him she used to admire all those years ago.
"Shell formation, NOW!" Corporal Hanks shouted. The party huddled together as a piece of stone, about the size of an end table tumbled down from the castle walls and clattered onto the mass of shields. Sofia instinctively covered her head with her arms as the party pushed the large boulder off of their shields. "MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!" the Corporal shouted as another, much larger boulder fell towards them. Just as the boulder crashed to the ground, the last two soldiers jumped and just barely dodged the large rock which made a crater in the ornate tile floor.
"Through here! It's a shortcut to the main entrance!" Birk shouted, gesturing to the large hole in the wall that had just opened up to their left. The group followed Birk through the room, where a large golden bowl lay splayed out on the floor and luminescent strands lay floating in a large puddle around the destroyed chamber. "Don't step in that!" Birk ordered, side stepping the strange liquid-like substance.
The party obeyed, taking a route close to the wall to avoid the shimmering puddle. Amber had gotten behind and ran to catch up with the group. She stepped to the side near the wall, trying to avoid the puddle as instructed. She heard a loud crack from above her and looked up to see the ceiling beginning to cave in. Quickly, she jumped out of the way, away from the wall, and fell with a splash into the strange puddle. James looked back and ran to her. "Amber, are you okay?!" he exclaimed, pulling his sister up.
"Y-yes," she stammered, quickly righting herself before running after her brother and the rest of the group.
"There's the exit! It's just a little ways to the North Gate from there!" Birk shouted. Corporal Hanks nodded and motioned for everyone to go ahead, as he took up the rear. "Help me open this door!" Birk shouted as he tried in vain to push the large door open. Private Tom came up to Birk and motioned for him to step back as he placed a large explosive disc on the exit. After he took a few steps back, the device went off with a loud bang and made the door crumble, revealing a large boulder on the other side. Luckily, it wasn't too large and didn't block the entire entryway, so the party easily made their way around the fallen chunk of tower.
It was only 50 meters to the Northern gate, but with all the magic blasts flying everywhere, it was going to be difficult to get past. "Cedric!" Corporal Hanks shouted.
The sorcerer didn't need any other commands, "Totum Protegus!" he shouted as he swiftly waved his wand, causing an almost clear force field that shone with white light to cascade all around the entire party.
The group moved as quickly as they could, protected from the magical spells. A shining blue blast ricocheted off the barrier, small, blue ice crystals melted on contact, and a sweeping gust of wind dissipated when it met the light magic shell. Cedric winced as magic blasts and debris continued to assault the dome.
"You can do it, Mr. Cedric, we're almost there!" yelled Sofia.
Cedric sent out another pulse of magic from his wand, and nodded at the young girl, encouraged by her support. They were little more than halfway to the stone gate when all of the beams of magic suddenly ceased.
The party stopped and glanced around hesitantly as an eerie silence hung in the air. Corporal Hanks raised an eyebrow and glanced around one last time before motioning for the group to continue. They were only a few meters away from the exit when they heard a scream of absolute agony.
"That sounded like Lieutenant Daniel!" exclaimed Private Tom.
"Indeed it did," replied Corporal Hanks, his tone low and grave. He looked down and waited for a moment in silence. "We must continue." Just then, another scream came from the other side of the castle grounds. Corporal Hanks gritted his teeth before speaking again. "Come on. We've got a mission to finish." He walked forward to the open stone gateway and was about the cross the threshold of the castle grounds when he stumbled backwards, having run face first into an invisible barrier. "What the ff—" the man grunted, restraining his tongue.
"What happened, Corporal?" asked Roland.
Hanks shook his head and growled under his breath. "Damned magic barrier, that's what," he spat.
"Cedric, do you think you could dispel it?" Roland inquired, turning his attention to the sorcerer.
Cedric touched his chin and hummed thoughtfully as he walked up to the invisible shield. He stuck his hand out until it met the solid barrier, causing faint, blue ripples to appear around his hand. Balling his hand into a fist, he knocked gently on the force field, which caused the whole thing to reverberate with a low hum that was too quiet to hear except for a specially trained ear. Cedric looked up and knocked once more, trying to determine just how large the barrier was. The sorcerer let out a low hum as he leaned down and dug into the soil. As he expected, it would be useless to try and dig underneath. Finally, Cedric took out his wand and held it right up to the threshold of the castle gate. "Oh, magic of old, do answer my plea; reveal thy wondrous power to me!" he commanded, making sure to enunciate clearly while keeping his wand steady. The end glowed a bright, light blue before the light receded into little veins that danced in symbols on the purple wand. The sorcerer brought his wand near to his face, examining it as he hummed thoughtfully. "It's as I thought. This particular spell is a very strong, ancient magic. Regretfully, I have neither the counter spell, nor the adequate power to undo such a spell without seriously injuring myself, or worse."
"You can't try anything?" asked one of the soldiers.
Corporal Hanks smacked the soldier in the back of the head. "What are you, a dunce, Private Gary? Don't you think he would've tried something already if he could?"
Gary winced and resisted the urge to rub the back of his head. "Apologies, sir."
"Don't apologize to me, you twit; apologize to Cedric for doubting his expertise and judgment!"
Cedric did his best to hide the smirk that was appearing on his face, but didn't do a very good job of it. He couldn't help but swell with pride at the way Corporal Hanks defended him. He knew there was a reason he liked that fellow.
"Apologies, Cedric. I was wrong to question your authority in magic," the private apologized, bowing his head respectfully.
"Apology accepted, Private Gary." Cedric nodded with a smug smile.
"So, what should we do, Cedric?" Roland asked.
The sorcerer looked up at the king and suddenly realized everyone was watching him. "Uh-um," he stammered, his voice faltering. He had never been the one to call the shots, not for something as vital as this. The pressure of everyone staring at him made his heartbeat quicken as sweat began to drip on his brow.
Suddenly, he felt a familiar, small hand come and take his. He looked down and saw none other than his faithful apprentice gazing up at him with her large, blue orbs full of hope and admiration. "I know you can think of something, Mr. Cedric," she whispered to him.
Cedric's smiled at the princess, his heart rate returning to normal as he gave her a thankful nod. He looked up at Roland again and cleared his throat. "Right. Since there's no way for us to escape currently… Sofia, take this." He handed her the dark purple, silk-like cloth with golden hydrangeas embroidered into it.
"What's this?" she asked, admiring the beautiful cloth.
"It's a stealth cloak. Not only does it make you invisible, but it also hides any energy that you put off, magical or otherwise, making you extremely difficult to find for even the most advanced detection spells. Think of it as a containment field of sorts."
"Wow!" Sofia breathed in amazement.
"That's very impressive, Cedric. Where did you get such a thing?" asked Roland.
"I made it myself, actually. I have been working for years trying to perfect it, and I believe I finally figured it out," he said, sticking his chest out proudly.
Miranda raised a quizzical eyebrow at the sorcerer. "And what were you planning on doing with such a powerful cloak when you finished it?"
"Oh! Well, I may have wanted to use it for other purposes in the past, but when I began working on it again a few months ago, I meant it only for protection!" he explained, waving his hands innocently.
"Don't worry, Mom. Mr. Cedric would never use it for something bad." Sofia smiled.
Miranda returned the smile and nodded. "I know he wouldn't, Sofia." She turned her attention to the sorcerer and narrowed her eyes slightly. It was then that Cedric realized that she wasn't mad about the cloak, but rather she was still cross about him supposedly leaving Amber and James behind. He gulped. If she ever found out that he brought them into the castle, he was certain she'd have his head.
Cedric cleared his throat and turned his attention back to Sofia. "Well, hurry up and put it on! If Vasilia finds you missing, she'll probably come looking for you."
"Right!" Sofia donned the oversized, light-weight robe, and Cedric quickly flipped her hood up, causing her to instantly disappear from view. "How do I look?" the girl chirped.
Cedric couldn't help but let out a chortle, imagining the girl raising her arms in a typical 'ta-da' pose. "Sofia, you're invisible, I can't see you at all!"
Sofia snickered as she strode up to her mother. "What about you, mom?"
Miranda looked in the general direction of where her daughter's voice came from, but couldn't look right at the little girl. "Sofia, are you there?" she asked, blindly feeling in front of her for her daughter. Sofia giggled and grabbed her mom's hand, eliciting a small, startled gasp from the woman. The queen laughed lightheartedly as her husband joined in on the playful mood, feeling for his daughter as well.
Roland chuckled warmly as his hand stopped right on top of he assumed to be his youngest daughter's head. "This really is quite something, Cedric."
Cedric smiled and gave a quick bow of his head. "Thank you, Your Highness."
James, caught up in the excitement had really been the one who received the pat on the head from his father. He clenched his teeth and hunched down so that he was closer to Sofia's height. Amber rolled her eyes as she smacked a hand to her forehead. She loved her brother, truly, but sometimes, he just got too excited for his own good, which made him careless. Sofia put a hand in front of her mouth and let out a giggle, still holding onto her mother's hand.
"As much as I hate to disrupt…whatever this is, we need to figure out a plan," Corporal Hanks grunted. "We can't just sit around and wait for Vasilia to release the spell she's put around the castle."
The royal family stopped their giggling as Roland stood up and nodded at the man. "The Corporal is right. Birk, do you know if there's anywhere we could go?"
Birk opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by a huge boom from above. The shock wave knocked every single party member flat on their backs and the clear blue sky quickly turned dark as ominous clouds rolled in like a cavalry of a thousand pegasi. The clouds whirled around small eddies, encircling, what looked to be, a human figure amidst the clouds.
Cedric shielded his eyes from the whipping wind as he looked on, trying to make sense of what was happening. The magic felt similar to Vasilia's but instead of burning lilies, this magic carried the scent of a burning holly tree, filled with berries. A second later, a black blur shot out of the sky and hit the ground in the castle courtyard, causing the earth to quake beneath it. About twenty meters from where the party lay. A gaunt man cloaked in a wispy, black garment floated out of the crater and stretched his long, gangly arms. Sofia's eyes widened as she scrambled over to her mentor and grasped onto his arm as he sat up.
Amber propped herself up on her arms next to the sorcerer, staring with her mouth slightly agape at the spectacle that just appeared before them. "Cedric. That looks like—"
"Yes, Princess Amber. I'm afraid it is."
