An Expected Betrayal |TBATE

Chapter 58

ELEANOR LEYWIN

"You ok Ellie?" Jenaka asked, leaning a bit too close for comfort. I pushed her head away, although she held some resistance.

"No, not at all. My brother came back, ended up being a Scythe and somehow got here, the safest place in Dicathen. We've lost the war, but..." I trailed off. I still hadn't collected my thoughts. Nathen and Seamus were kind enough to stay silent to let me get my mind back in shape. Jenaka however, refused to leave me alone. Which was nice, in a way.

"Well your brother is still your brother. Only he glows," Regis offered his opinion from the corner of the room.

The sheer absurdity of that broke my confusion. "What?"

"Yeah, he uses aether now and aether glows a ton. So your brother is the same, only now he's glow in the dark! Just what every kid wants!" he continued.

"What even are you?" I asked. He had just appeared out of Ar-Grey's shadow. I hadn't asked because I was too focused on my brother returning.

"I'm Regis, a weapon created by the ancient mages themselves. I was created to mimic the asura's weapons then found by your brother. I manifested a couple years later." He answered.

"You're a wolf. How is a wolf a weapon?" Seamus deadpanned.

"I have my ways. You know, teeth, claws, my wits and the fact I keep Ellie's brother sane at times." he shrugged. Well, shrugged as well as a wolf could.

He suddenly winced, well, I think he did. "Are you okay?" I asked, somewhat worried for Ar-Grey's companion. "I am, but your brother isn't." he answered. He was worried, an emotion I could tell didn't fit him. His lupine face frowned and he looked into space, similar to how Grey did with Sylvie before that day.

"You share a bond?" I questioned. Boo seemed to prop up at the mention of bonds, peering at Regis while he laid on my lap.

"It's not really a bond, but the same effect," Regis explained. Before we could add further comment, Sylvie walked into the room. "Eleanor, could I talk to you please?" she turned to me, ignoring everyone. She hadn't even bothered to look at anyone else.

Sylvie's fist was clenched, a rare gesture for her. I don't think I've ever seen it. Her gaze was also cast down. Regis stared at her, an unreadable expression on his face. I don't think I could identify it even if he had a human face.

Even Jenaka seemed to sense the gravity of her tone seeing as she had finally backed off. I nodded, standing up to follow Sylvie. I followed her through the maze that was the castle. We moved deeper into the castle, passing so many doors I lost count.

Soon we came across a small door at the end of the hall. It was made entirely of metal. Sylvie pushed it open without much effort even despite it being half a foot thick of heavy metal.

The inside was musty. The entire floor was covered with dust, although I could see imprints that showed someone had been there a while ago. "Where are we?" I asked, somewhat cautious of the situation.

"The heart of the castle. It's what keeps the whole thing floating." Sylvie answered. Her small form began to disappear in the dim light. I realized immediately what her plan was. "What about everyone though?" I asked.

"I had them retreat into the few portals that aren't the main one. The only others are Grey and your friends. And if a little bit of Arthur is still alive in him, he'll save them." She answered.

"That doesn't explain why you need me, or what you wanted to talk about?"

"I want to know what your plan is."