Elysia in Another World

Ch17: A Big Mistake, P4

Chapter 17: A Big Mistake, P4
~17.4~
*****

In Allison's office, her siblings and Elliot were seated, sharing drinks and sweets. Allison was having sweetened black tea and cake, James and Layla were having coffee and cookies, and Elliot was having regular black tea and several desserts. Elliot recently met with Shiro and Amelia, though the other associate, Gustav, was absent. Because of Shiro's personality, Elliot could not ask questions about things he wasn't involved with, so he couldn't get any information about Gustav's assignment.

"To think Amelia Evans is on his side," James said. "It'll be much harder to find an excuse to go to Icarus just to meet with her, especially without Kye here to help plan it."

"It's not impossible, but I don't think we should try to convert her yet anyway," Allison said. She took another bite of cake before continuing. "I think we should leave her be for now. She's doing her job running Icarus just fine, so there's no problem on that end. It will be annoying to find an archnoble to replace her if things go wrong, and I'm sure Father won't enjoy having to fill in."

"Very true. If he has to manage a planet even for a few years, he'll probably resent us for centuries for messing it up."

"Do you have any guesses as to what Gustav is doing?" Layla asked.

Elliot shook his head. "I haven't the foggiest. He's usually the one in charge of acquiring targets, so I wouldn't doubt if he's out searching for someone. It was his subordinates that carried out the attempt to kidnap Lady Kye and Lady Alethea the day they were born."

"We'll just have to wait and stay vigilant," Allison said. "Elliot, are you certain you're willing to continue doing this? If you want to remain here in Arslade, rather than risk your life meeting with that man, you have my permission. I have a slight suspicion that he's on to you since Amelia was assigned to assist Gustav."

"That's okay, I'm willing to continue." Elliot gave them a reluctant smile. "I think even if he discovers that I'm reporting to you, he'll overlook it so long as you allow me to continue giving him some information."

Layla sighed, but nodded her head. "If you're certain. We can protect you here, though." Elliot refused again, so the siblings approved his continued efforts. "From what Kye has told me of this man, he's very prideful. He probably would relish the challenge from giving out some information to us. He's also very cunning, so make sure you keep that ring on you at all times."

Elliot touched the ring on his right hand. It contained a very powerful barrier spell that Kye and Alethea designed to protect him that was jointly enchanted by the Barrett siblings. When activated, the barrier spell could protect him for a period of a single minute and transport him directly to the underground laboratory in the academy.

*****

"I found out pretty much right away, even though I was in Apex," Alfia said.

"Apex?" Hannah asked.

"It's similar to Atlantis," Kye said. "It's basically a mega-city on a floating island. Except this island is the highest point of Elysium, situated directly above Athas. Fia, how did you even find out if you were on Apex?"

"I went to visit Kyra and Liya, but they weren't there. They left a message behind. Since Azalea, Kaede, Ariel, Adriel, and Anna were no longer there, they got bored."

Kye raised an eyebrow. "Kyra and Liya?"

"She doesn't know who they are," Alethea said. "You know that."

"Yeah, I know that, but it's time to know. They're here in this room."

"Excuse me?"

Alfia smirked and eyed Kye, her eyes glowing. "Female identical twins. The mana inside you belongs to your youngest daughters from Athas. They're a pair of redheads. They're your youngest daughters chronologically speaking, but they're your oldest by number. Kyra the Ninth and Liya the Tenth."

"So my memories of them are behind the seal?"

"Yes, love," Alethea said.

Alfia sighed.

"What?" Kye asked.

"You should prepare yourself. Things are going to get complicated with those two around."

"What do you mean?"

"Kyra's power is Time and Space, and Liya's power is Creation and Destruction. And they love to prank each other. Historically, you were the only one that could keep them in line."

Kye smiled. "Then I have nothing to worry about." As she said that, everyone realized it wasn't a normal smile. Suddenly, everyone in the room, even Alfia, feared for the unborn girls.

*****

In the early morning, a few days later, each of the Barrett siblings received a message from the Magic King commanding them to report to the palace immediately, specifically in Avalon Palace. When they arrived, they found the guards posted there dead on the floor, Edward and his attendants examining the place, and the place trashed. There was no damage to the outer walls or doors, so whoever intruded did so without physically forcing their way in.

"It's gotta be someone with an extremely high skill level in space magic," Michelle said. She, Adele, and Alethea were there discussing the case at the scene, rather than in the Void Palace discussing it with Kye, meaning Kye was out.

"Has Kye been contacted?" Layla asked.

"No," Alethea said coldly, her pupils constricted. "She's busy right now, and I want to spare her the anxiety I'm feeling if I can." She was in such a state of anger that her outward demeanor was eerily calm. "Do you have any ideas?" Adele and Michelle were in similar states, though the look in their eyes could not match Alethea's.

"What exactly happened? Edward summoned us without saying why."

Alethea turned her eyes to Layla. Behind the anger and anxiety in her eyes, there was an even greater amount of sadness. "Rei has been kidnapped."

A sudden silence washed over the room. Layla's eyes widened, and she fell to her knees. Allison kneeled down to comfort her sister while James immediately began examining every inch of the scene. Layla looked up and met Alethea's eyes. The two stared at each other for a while. Slowly, Alethea's pupils dilated back to normal size. She saw the same desperation in Layla's eyes as she felt in herself. It was then that she noticed a hand on each shoulder, one belonging to Adele and the other to Michelle. She saw the concern in their eyes, too.

As desperation was replaced with determination, Alethea's body began to glow with an intense aura of white aether with a silver tinge, the same that Kye used to transcend the boundary to save Aisha. Adele and Michelle stepped back in surprise.

I will find her. I have to!

*****

Revision: 2024-6-7