/ another short chapter. i'm sorry /

None of her friends asked any questions. They just followed. Blindly. Letting Sophie lead the way to the meeting area.

"I'm going to need someone to go inside and make sure all the leaders are there," Sophie said. "We're using Luzia Vacker's trick with lights to make us all seem present, but I need someone to actually be there to detonate the bomb. Someone who can get out of there fast."

"That's... Only you," Keefe pointed out. "You can Teleport."

Sophie bit her lip. "But it can't be me. It has to-" 

"Look, you're here!" Dark Hearts came, spreading his arms wide. "And all your friends! Talking about illusions, are we?"

Sophie looked panicked. Had he heard about the bomb? But it looked like he hadn't. And she read his mind - for some reason, he had no mind defense - and he really didn't know anything.

Unless his 'mind' was a fake.

But he had a shadow.

"Yeah. Trying to make you look less ugly," Keefe explained. "You see, if we can remove the wrinkles here and round your ears a little..."

"These ears are the mark of an Ancient and are not playthings. Don't you dare. And come on and enter, stop lurking outside. Where is the Collective?"

"Late," Sophie said, and quickly sent Mr Forkle her memories of everything going on.

He knew about the bomb. He knew the risks.

And he knew people were going to die.

Maybe people on their side.

But definitely their enemies.

"Very well. Gisela!"

Lady Gisela came, her eyes following Keefe. "My son. You came." Her eyes narrowed at Sophie. "Still following her around, the petty child?"

"Yes, Mommy Dearest? Can't hear you!" Keefe shouted, plugging his ears.

Gisela sighed. "Keefe. Common. Sense. PLEASE."

"Thanks for the super freaky new ability, by the way! Totally a failure. But thanks anyway!"

Her smile pulled tight. "It is NOT a failure. It's a new ability. Exactly as it should be. But you might want to tell me what's going on so I can help-"

"LA LA LA" Keefe sang. "Can you hear someone talking, Sophie?"

"You," Sophie said with a shuddering sigh, inwardly trying to create a plan.

But she could only communicate with someone who was always ready for telepathic messages. And that left Fitz.

But... That also meant that he had to be the one.

It was an awful plan.

It involves dying.

On their side.

And Fitz... Fitz had to be that one.

No, she couldn't ask that of him.

She refused to-

𝙎𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙚, 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙖 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙣?

She composed herself and strolled away from Lady Gisela to a secluded corner. 𝘠𝘦𝘴, 𝘐 𝘥𝘰. 𝘈𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘰𝘯𝘦. She transmitted her horrible plan to Fitz.

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠.

𝘍𝘪𝘵𝘻... 𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘮𝘣 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴. 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯'𝘵 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵.

𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙬𝙚 𝙙𝙤 𝙞𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠, 𝙎𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙚. 𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚.

𝘍𝘪𝘵𝘻, 𝘕𝘖! 𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘪𝘦!

𝙎𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙚... 𝙄'𝙢 𝙤𝙠𝙖𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩. 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙮. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙆𝙚𝙚𝙛𝙚. 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙆𝙚𝙚𝙛𝙚. Across the room, he closed his eyes. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩'𝙨 𝙤𝙠𝙖𝙮. 𝙄𝙩'𝙨 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙚. 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙜𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙄'𝙢 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 

𝙎𝙤 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙤 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪.

Sophie sighed inwardly, her heart breaking, but all she ended up saying was, 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘮𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘢, 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘓𝘪𝘯𝘩.

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢?

𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘵.

Sophie transmitted the plan to each and every one of her friends. And they all looked grim.

It was a desperate time. And desperate times called for desperate measures.