Reimagia

Summary: Now a graduate of Ever Realm Academy, Sofia accepts Cedric's invitation to train in a secret realm called Reimagia, which is home to some of the most powerful sorcerers on earth. However, there's a dark force lurking in the realm, destroying conjurors one by one, all while offering cryptic clues to his identity. If Cedric and Sofia can't solve the mystery, they'll be next.

Disclaimer: I don't own Sofia the First or any characters affiliated with the show. However, I do own the Kingdom of Reimagia and many new OCs mentioned in the story.

A/N: Riddle time, people! 😊 This is probably the shortest chapter, but it is an important one. It's the first of a few different riddles, and probably one of the easier ones to understand. Fluff alert for chapter 6 (you knew that was coming at some point, lol), and even more complicated messages in chapter 7! Lots to look out for! I'm going to try my hardest to have chapter 6 up tonight for my fluff-lovers, so keep an eye out. 😉

Chapter 5: Riddle Me This

Cedric and Sofia were positively stunned when they'd been summoned to The Galley Tuesday morning, rather than pursuing her training. She knew he'd asked for her help the previous week, though she was a bit surprised that he needed her so soon. After only one day, she knew she'd learned a bit more, but she didn't feel near ready enough to be a sorceress, so what was this all about? Had they changed their minds about training her? Or…

"We have a serious problem," Sir Leignton announced as the two Enchancians stood next to his advisors. "First of all, for any unaware, there is a murderer somewhere here in Reimagia, quite possibly even closer than we think."

Sofia inhaled, her eyes widening a bit as Cedric nervously held onto her shoulders. "What? Here?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so," one of the elders said, the two friends turning to face him now. "I understand that Sir Leignton indicated to you both that there is a darkness—or a dark force—that has been felt here. I also believe he mentioned the thirteen murdered conjurors from not long ago. It's quite clear that the dark force has manifested in a slaughterer now, as we have lost three more."

"W-Who's been killed?" Cedric asked anxiously, still keeping his hold on his friend. He could feel her shaking a bit under his grasp, although he certainly couldn't blame her.

"Three of our most promising up-and-coming sorcerers, unfortunately," Sir Leignton responded, sighing. "They were set to take on some sorcery courses at a university not far from here, and now we've lost them. However, there was a note left in the wake of their demise."

"A note?" Sofia frowned. "What did it say?"

The leader walked to a pedestal in the middle of the meeting room where they were gathered, and he used his wand to project the letter onto a blank wall at the other end of the room. The writing was quite elegant, somewhat contradictory to the dirty state of the parchment itself.

A member of Reimagia
I am indeed;
The destroyer of sorcerers-
I am he.

"So the murderer is clearly a male," one of the advisors declared.

"He could be saying that just to throw us off," another argued. "It could just as easily be a female. Sometimes they're more ruthless than males."

Sofia held her tongue on this one, although she definitely agreed with the second man. After all, after dealing with the likes of Vor, Morgana, Kitanya, and Shuriki, she'd dealt with more than her share of female villains.

"I suggest looking for anyone suspicious living amongst us," Sir Leignton spoke. "Anyone who, perhaps, is absent during a time when he's supposed to be present; anyone who speaks in code or is acting strangely…"

"I don't know, Sir Leignton," Sofia finally refuted, unable to help herself. "It's not that easy. In my experience, sometimes the most notorious and evil beings may appear to be the most 'normal-looking' people. You shouldn't judge a book by its cover."

"Evil isn't something you can gift-wrap, young lady," one of the elder advisors argued. "It's hard to hide the true colors of a nay-sayer or villainous person. Perhaps a thinly-veiled disguise will do, but ultimately the true intentions will always be put on display."

The princess sighed, glancing up toward Cedric for validation.

He was about to speak, but another advisor spoke up instead.

"Quite right. Murderers always have similar traits: they're often very calculating, very intelligent, and not always that great with steady relationships."

"That's preposterous," a third advisor countered, scoffing. "I agree with Princess Sofia."

Well, that was surprising, to both visiting friends.

"Not every villain—murderer—whatever you want to call that being… Not everyone will fall into some prescribed form. You can't just look at someone and say, 'Oh, creepy-looking features, dark clothing, gloomy outlook on life, negative commentary. Yes, you must be the villain.'"

Sir Leignton nodded, sighing. "Unfortunately, that's very true… Now that I think about it, true evil is able to disguise itself into more palatable forms…until the time is ready for it to strike."

"If we were to take the message of this letter at face value," the first advisor began, clearing his throat, "then we know three things for sure: one, he is male; two, he is a resident of Reimagia; and three, he has murdered—several times. And I don't know about you, gentlemen, but in my experience, if one murders this many times…"

The leader frowned. "He will murder again."

Soon after their meeting, Sir Leignton dismissed his advisors and Cedric and Sofia. He took a long walk around his castle, pondering over those words and how unhurriedly they'd been written. It was obvious to him that this had been premeditated. These three murders weren't the only ones in and around Reimagia. There had been, again, thirteen other reports of sorcerers dying before. It was horrendous to think that anyone could possibly stoop so low. A serial sorcerer killer? Is that what they were dealing with?

"We must put a stop to this," he murmured, continuing his trek around the castle. When he returned to the meeting room, he shuffled over to a large table where he and his advisors would normally meet, collapsing into his chair. He removed his spectacles and lowered them to the table, his eyes closing and a hand resting over them. A few minutes later, he heard a small thud, and he instantly darted up, looking around in alarm.

Seeing no one, he sighed in relief, until his burgundy eyes caught sight of another mysterious letter before him. He immediately retrieved his spectacles and replaced them. His hands shaking a bit, he tore open the envelope and withdrew its contents. After looking over it for several minutes, he frowned heavily. "This just got a great deal more complicated…"

To be continued

Next Chapter: What I See