-Sophie-

Ruy. That stupid psionipath ruined my life once, he's not allowed to do it again. I can't let him get to Keefe. According to Councillor Oralie's cache, the one that gave us nothing, Ruy might be involved in Stellarlune. It's only a theory, but Ruy's name was all I was thinking while watching the forgotten secret.

 "What are you waiting for? Are you going to attack me or what?" he snarls. 

"It would be idiotic to attack someone who can hurt you with their defense," Biana says. "It's best to bide our time and wait for the perfect moment when your guard is down."

 I see Linh sneaking out the back of her cell when Ruy's eyes are on us. I look away so he won't follow my eyes to her. 

"But that's not fun, are you sure you don't want to try your vanishing moves?" Ruy asks. 

Biana notices Linh and disappears. "You know, maybe I will." 

Gethen has his eyes locked on me. 

"What's wrong Moonlark?" he taunts. "How about we take this conversation telepathic?"

"Sophie don't you dare open your mind to Gethen!" Grady shouts from inside his cell. 

"Dad? What are you doing here you weren't supposed to follow us!"

"You think us fathers would just let our children and our wives stroll into danger?" Alden adds. 

"Just stay quiet! Please," I plead. 

I return focus to Gethen. 

And what would I gain from this conversation then Gethen? I transmit to him.

At last the Moonlark and I get to talk in our heads. Let's see, you can earn so much information, if you just look. He smirks.

I'd never be so foolish as to open my mind in your head. What do you want to talk about?

Are you sure you wouldn't? Isn't this what you've been waiting for?

No, what I'm trying to do is get Gisela and Vespera in the somnatorium, and you too. We didn't forget what you did to Eternalia. 

Now now Sophie, don't you understand? Eternalia is the source of all wrong, where the elves have too much control. 

And you thought destroying it and nearly killing all of the people inside would solve that?

Radical problems require radical solutions. When no one listens, you have to be bold. 

The words ring around in my head. It's not that us and the Neverseen have such different views on world issues. It's how each happens. But then I remember how little our being polite and diplomatic has done for the Black Swan. Sure, we've made progress. But when will we ever do enough? We don't have to bring down cities, but we do have to be bold. 

Am I making sense to you now Sophie? Gethen's head starts broadcasting his thoughts to me again. I remember his manipulative skills. 

You're right, we do need to be bold, but not like this. I would never pretend to kill someone and keep them locked away. Think of the damage you've done to people like Grady and Edaline! You're hurting innocent people who share your same beliefs! You can't do this Gethen, you won't get away with this. Being bold and reckless are not the same.

Linh douses Gethen in water, breaking our connection. Startled, he falls to the ground. I pull a dagger out of my tunic and rush at him, knocking him out cold with the butt of my knife. 

Chaos is still around, Biana is flashing in and out of sight, luring Ruy out of the narrow hallway. 

"Let's go then Wayward!" She disappears.

Ruy is busy looking for any sign of Biana, and and while he's flustered, Linh raises her arms, and brings pouring water over Ruy's head. Ruy slumps to the ground, still conscious. It's now when Linh pulls all the water from the prison. She traps Ruy in a bubble. 

"Unlock the cell! I can keep a hold on the bubble until you get everyone free!" Linh shouts. I get to work on Fitz's chains, as Biana gets the cell holding our fathers. 

"Hurry! She can't hold on much longer, the bubble will burst and drown us!" Biana calls. 

She's mostly done on the cell. The latch on Fitz's chains opens and he's free. I rush to help Biana. The lock on the cell clicks and Biana opens the door. Quickly, we pull off the thinking caps off our fathers and Tiergan and undo their chains. The chains are easy, they're just a clasp, unlike Fitz's. I guess because everyone knew that they were alive.

"What were you thinking? Running off like that?" Alden scolds.

We all run to the end of the hall, and Linh lets go of the bubble. Ruy gets doused in water and the small wave goes over our feet. Grady gets hold of Ruy's mind and gets him to make us a path of light. Then, Ruy smacks himself in the nose, and joins Gethen in their little party on the floor. We all surge forward. Before we leap away, Biana grabs Ruy, and I take hold of Gethen. Alden grabs Fitz gently, holding him like a baby. Grady, holding the crystal up to the light on the facet Ruy left for us, calls angrily for us to come.

"Never, ever run off like that again Sophie!" Grady shouts when we get back into the hall of mirrors. 

"It's not like we could help it! Besides, we captured Ruy and Gethen!" I say. 

"They'll sentence him to the somnatorium, I'm sure of it!" Biana says. 

Linh stays quiet. "While it was very heroic. Do you understand the risks you took?! You don't even know what hideout it was!" Tiergan says. 

"I'm sorry Tiergan, I just wanted to do something for a change." Linh says, quietly. Tiergan hugs her. 

"You always do important things, small things are important too, not just the big ones," he tells her.  After more lecturing from Grady, Alden and Tiergan, Grady finally interjects. 

"Can we focus on the fact that your son is actually alive now?!" he asks. 

"Right. But we need to take Fitz to Elwin. Now," Linh says. And so, that's where we go to resume our reunion.

Marella

So, we arrived at the Neverseen's storehouse. Pretty much destroyed. But it's fine we can find some stuff to use. 

"I remember the way. Sophie told me everything," Edaline says, so I let her take the lead.

When we get inside the storehouse it's mostly burnt crumpled up stuff, but I feel my way through the wreckage anyway. 

"I found something!" I whisper shout to Edaline. 

She comes over and picks up something. A key. 

"Let's take this and get out of this storehouse. The key might lead somewhere else in the hideout," I say. 

Edaline nods. We walk out and I notice the waterfall. There's a door hidden behind it. Edaline follows my gaze. 

"Open the door. And conjure a melder. We're going to end this." She conjures two melders and hands one to me. "Shoot on sight, don't let them start a fight." She says. We all know how that ended last time. She carefully opens the door. It opens silently, and we see Gisela and someone I can only assume to be Trix. They're deep in conversation.

"You will tell me what Glimmer's motive to leave was, right now!" Gisela snaps at him.

"I don't know! She hated all leadership but you. Something changed when the Shade boy arrived. He must've talked about your son," he says calmly.

"And how long do you suppose she'll take before she makes things worse than she already did." Gisela's voice is ice. "She brought the Moonlark right to our storehouse and let her burn it all down! I'm sure they'll be back soon to investigate, move anything left to the Paris location. We don't have time for this, I must get to my son before Sophie does, and we can't have them thwarting my Foxfire plan." 

We take this as a signal to the nearing end of their conversation. 

"Fine," Trix says calmly, "let them capture you at Foxfire when you try to bring the boy. But this is stupid. I'll go move the things." 

 As he says this. Edaline counts down on her fingers from three. Trix turns away to leave, but we shoot them with the melders easily. Trix and Gisela collapse, unconscious. 

"That was easy," I say. 

"Too easy. Grab them, and get out," Edaline says. 

I do what she says, grabbing Gisela while she picks up Trix. I look at Edaline and she nods. So I light a fire, destroying the room. The waterfall will douse anything that spreads. 

"We have to leave. Now," I say. 

Hurriedly, we leave the hideout and leap to Foxfire. "

Elwin," Edaline says. 

We rush there and find Sophie, Biana, Grady, Alden, Tiergan, Ruy, Gethen, and shockingly Fitz. Isn't this an eventful day?

a/n there were some major plot holes in this chapter that I'm so happy I was able to fix editing. lmk how you like it! also, don't be a ghost reader, I love talking with you and any of your engagement really helps.