Magia: Eli's Awakening (BxB)

Chapter 42- The Council

Eli had thought the city buildings would've blocked off the sea breeze and warm him up a little but he couldn't have been more wrong.

While he wasn't feeling as cold or numb due to him being closer to Aurum and actively searching for him. The departure of the side effect numbness allowed another type of cold to infiltrate his body.

It wasn't the type of cold that gave you goosebumps or make your hairs stand on end. It was the type of cold you felt in your very being, that sense of emptiness and deprivation. Ethan seemed unaffected but not Eli. With every glance his eyes took he could saw something else that made his already cold insides drop a few more degrees.

He looked to an alleyway between two large buildings and saw people huddled up around a small fire, struggling to get warm in these winter temperatures. Their clothes were filthy and he could smell them from where he walking by. The clothes were also loose fitting and thin probably from being washed multiple times and the loose clothes revealed their malnourished bodies and it made Eli feel sick to his stomach.

Where he had grown up, thankfully, in his realm everyone helped each other. There was no one starving and living off scraps, sure it wasn't perfect but there were institutions that aided the unfortunate so no one was without a roof over there head, not saying that the roof was always a safe one, but it was a roof nonetheless.

"Come on, we'll get out of the slums soon and rest a bit in a motel." Eli didn't reply verbally, just nodded his head and continued trailing behind the boy who didn't even bat an eye at the people that were watching them with starving eyes.

A boy in particular caught his attention. His eyes were a glowing indigo that demanded Eli's attention and made the boy feel as if he were put in a hypnotic trance, but as soon as Eli began to really focus on him, he fled from his sight.

He couldn't help but feel a little dirty, he wasn't even from their realm and he was welcomed with opened arms and everything he needed was provided for him. What was stopping them from extending the same treatment to their own residents?

The motel was not what Eli was expecting. It was comprised of two stories and three individual buildings that had been laid out around each other in a U-shape. It seemed pretty comfortable from an outside perspective.

They made their way to the reception and saw the hostess seated, smiling at the phone in hand. She looked up once she takes note of their presence, and goes through her boring everyday process, handing them the key to the room.

They then made their way up the stairs, towards room 109 and the halls were eerily quiet, most likely due to it being so early in the morning. The beds weren't the best, but they could do for a couple hours.

The minute Ethan's head hit the bed, he was out. However, Eli wasn't as fortunate. He was tired, he knew he was, but that wasn't how his body felt. Every cell in his body was just humming at the thought of reaching Aurum, he was close and he could feel him.

After much twisting and turning in the room bare of personal items, he did eventually fall into a sleep that was much like the room where he laid, empty.

When he awoke, the sun rays were peaking through the window blinds. He looked over to Ethan who was faintly snoring, one of his legs thrown off the bed along with a pillow and some of the bed sheets.

His stomach growled lightly, alerting his body that it was now time to sustain it. He pulled out his phone and checked the time and saw that it was 9:39, he had gotten about five hours and based on the yawn he released shortly after checking the time, it wasn't enough.

"Ethan."

The boy grunted and mumbled something that Eli didn't quite catch and turned his head opposite to the direction of the sound, and covered his head with an arm in an attempt to block the sound out completely.

"Ethan, get up." He received no audible response which caused him to walk up to the opposing bed and ripping what little of the sheets had been left covering the boy.

He regretted it instantly when he was met with a bare backside that made him quite aware that he was still a hormonal teenager. He yelped and jumped back, tripping over the very sheets he had thrown off the boy's naked body.

Ethan groaned and turned back now looking at Eli who was glad that his blushes weren't visible and he rolled his eyes and chuckled a bit.

"Morning." He said as he pushed off the bed, not even noticing his lack of clothes and went off in the direction of the bathroom. "Javier was right, you have a good relationship with the floor.

With that he went into the bathroom and shut the door behind him, leaving a flustered Eli on the floor cursing Javier to the darkest depths of hell.

***

"I see no reason why we all had to come here for something as trivial as this."

"Lady Imal, the man committed treason and caused the deaths of almost one hundred students." Imal rolled her eyes, already knowing that Lord Stathon was twisting her words.

"Stathon, shut up. I meant it's quite obvious that he should be executed, this is a waste of time." Stathon ran a hand through his long black hair, his silver eyes trained on the redheaded woman as he dished out his rebuttal.

"I swear, this is why I hate these meetings, the incessant bickering has got to stop." Another man said, as he walked up to the round table, taking his seat in between the two who were still arguing.

"Shut up, Nebraska." Kessem said making Nebujosa's pale face reddened, the colour mimicking his eyes, which were fixed on the table as he restrained himself from killing the other members of the council.

Kessem sat next to Stathon, crossing his legs while he adjusted his pink locs which stood out even more against his dark skin. He leaned behind Stathon over towards Nebujosa and blew a kiss towards the man making his face red for a completely different reason.

"Enough."

The room became silent instantly, as Edgar Morgen took his seat, removing his fedora and placing it on the table. His posture exuded power and it wasn't becuase he currently held two seats on the council.

There had been six members of council, all chosen from the highest ranking noble families in their society. The sixth seat was to be filled by the sole living Rodriguez, Javier.

After he graduates from the academy, he would become an apprentice to the current head of the council, Edgar Morgen. The man who had taken him in after the death of his parents.

"Let's discuss this matter quickly so we can move on to more important things. Q'avan Spear is to be executed in three days time for his treason. Objections?"

"No sir."