Cobs is soooo close to 50k - hot damn!

I'm excited, namely because 4 = death = please go away 4, no one likes you~

Anyways, update!

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         Earth or not, Káel had never walked the streets of a city. He'd heard about them and seen them in movies. They never slept, filled with more shops and restaurants than you could ever try in a lifetime. Wondrous and strange in his imagination.

          Cramped and disgusting in his reality.

          There was still space to walk across the white stones of the main streets, but in the blur of lavish clothes, trinket stuffed shops, strange animals, and deal screaming merchants, Káel felt there was so much of a fight to do anything even breathing the air was harder. 

          It was only until the paths became ornate, and the towering piles of stacked shops shrank to singular boutiques, that some air and calm could be found. But where the screaming merchants running street side carts had vanished, the enticing lure of cooked meat and fresh flowers shifted to the pounding assault of the perfume clinging to the people they passed. Walking rainbows of fur and jewels, prim and proper down to the last toddler. Every chin raised, and the few fingers of the children gawking at Nel and Puff quickly ripped away by parents.

          The deeper they delved into the opulent stretch of houses and shops, the more guards there were to line the streets. Instead of sandy yellow, emerald green uniforms fit them perfectly, blending their bodies with the boxed purple and gold flowers rimming the white stone streets. 

          Deeper still and there were more guards than people, a second wall of iron woven stone encircling the castle he had seen from afar. An iron gate sat open, six guards in white unflinching in their positions, gatekeepers to the palace's courtyard. A second last obstacle to the outstretched golden doors. The final one was a daunting stretch of golden stairs, leaking their shimmering colour into the white sidewalk with swirling strands. 

          "Wow, that's nice." Truvius breathed, ogling the impressive piece until Locke approached the gate. "Wait, are we going in there?"

          Locke didn't seem struck by the beautiful palace, treating all the sights surrounding him like patches of grass. "He should be in there."

          Káel bit his cheek at the words, the iron gates engulfing them in a cracked web of shadows as Locke spoke with the gatekeepers. He was getting a bad feeling about this. 

          A really bad feeling.

          They were allowed to pass into the courtyard, Káel feeling the curious looks of the guests already in the grassy lot, a few of them moving their lips to whisper at the people around them. He tried to focus on every last person in sight, hoping to see his uncle's face somewhere in the groups. But Locke forged onwards, taking on the beastly mountain of golden steps without pause and leaving Truvius to gasp for air as he rested on Káel's shoulder for the second half of the trip. 

          They finally hit the last polished step, Káel's body sapped by the duel stars as he stared at the shiny plateau of coloured stones, set into a tapestraic depiction of a winged wolf. A fenirock. 

          Káel smiled. At least he remembered a few things from all those classes.

          "Your uncle has a very nice house," Phantom chimed, undefeated by the mountain of stairs and as energetic as ever. "Got a house like this back on Earth too?"

          Káel waited for the Songbird to go in, slowing his steps to whisper at Phantom. "It's not his house. He's just in here somewhere." He eyed the small gatherings of colourfully dressed nobles littering the palace's grand entrance. Many of them lounged on the plump sofas like dogs, the expensive furniture looking more than welcoming to the exhausted group. "It's like Versailles or something, he probably just rents a room..."

          "And who did you have a meeting with?"

          Káel flinched at the sharp voice. He'd lingered too far behind his friends, and now faced a younger man, dressed in a white button up with glossed back hair and a warm smile. 

          "I uh..." He took a step back, relieved as the man didn't close the distance. "My uncle..."

          The man's lips moved to speak, but emptied as he shifted his gaze to a shadow over Káel's shoulder. Locke paid the butler a nod, leading Káel back to the group as they passed a waxed counter barring off similarly uniformed people. One of them broke away, a fair girl with her golden hair pinned up. Locke slowed to allow her to take the lead.

          "Ariabella is between meetings. You'll have less than ten minutes unfortunately." The girl started, waving them out of the expansive lobby of an entrance, the carved golden stone halls as busily decorated as the building's exterior. In a strange contrast to the lobby however, they were empty, spare a few guards stood at each turn.

          After cutting through a hall laced with an abstract display of paintings of ships, the buttress gave the waxy door at the end three knocks, 'Augebelle' carved into a gold plaque at its eye level.  She was careful not to scratch the rich brown surface as she pushed it open a crack, slipping through to hold open the door at the other side.

          "Ariabella, you have a guest."

          Káel barely caught the tail end of what the woman named Ariabella muttered, "busy" the only distinct sound that met his ears as he entered the room behind Locke. It was a large office space, windowless at the heart of the castle with more paintings of ships, twice as extravagant, lining the sandy yellow walls. The space seemed to be the root cause of the hallway's theme.

          His gaze landed on the single lady sitting behind a wooden desk. Like Samanthra's, it was teeming with papers, but in a stark contrast it was painstakingly organised, every slip of paper and envelope filed or stacked within the clutter. She was busily signing a small bundle of invitations, her straight black hair tied back and the few loose bangs tucked behind her ears.

          Káel couldn't help but squint. He'd seen her before, from a distance perhaps. 

          The buttress raised her hand to stop Káel from stepping closer. "Your guest holds a crown sigil, he requested you by name Ms. Augebelle."

          Ariabella lifted her gaze, something in her face surprised by the multitude of guests, and something else sprinkled with dread as she eyed Locke. Káel paled when her golden eyes shifted to him, but it wasn't fear that spurred the nausea.

          He knew that scowl, even from the distance of a small blue car. The car that always sped off with his uncle after barely a few hours of conversation. He'd assumed she worked with him, or was in some sort of strange relationship. 

          The words came out before Káel could control himself, his entire body moving forwards as if closing the distance would bring some truth. "You're from Iridis."

          Ariabella's eyes narrowed, her voice filled with shards of ice to prick away Káel's encroachment. "I'm not sure what that is." she eyed Locke, disappointment dragging the corner of her lips. "You were to bring them back to Cobalt."

           Locke shook his head. "The closest safety." 

          "Which was Cobalt," Ariabella pressed, calmly stacking the invitations when Káel got too close. She motioned at a small cluster of simpler couches. "There are seats for everyone. Our staff will serve any refreshments while I sort this out," she continued, eyeing Locke with clear displeasure. "and retrieve your payment."

          Káel felt her gaze drilling into his forehead as he didn't move, glued to the small show of her penmanship that filled the bottom of a Missional Application for Cobalt. The rich black ink and curving font was unmistakable. "You're the careless secretary." he lifted his gaze to Ariabella, touched with a smile as he clicked the pieces together. "You work for my uncle, right?"

          "That's impossible," Vera cut in, already swallowed up by a fat brown sofa and helping herself to the crystal bowl of Kingsberry taffies.

          "My writing is common to the Revesti scribes and any sort of imperial assistants that work here," Ariabella said, slowly flipping the form before Káel could read it, her voice no longer a request, but a stern order. "Please, have a seat while I arrange safe travel back to Cobalt." 

          When Káel cautiously took the seat closest to the door, Ariabella waved for Locke to follow her. But her fingers barely grazed the doorknob when it was tossed open. The lack of a knock nearly cost the side of her face, a sharp breeze only catching her bangs with her grace of quick reflexes. 

          The man on the other side only announced his presence afterwards, unable to keep his strong voice from filling every crack of the small room. "Bella, where are you at with the guest list? Memorised?" Oblivious to the world around him, he passed her, sumptuous golden fabric cascading from his body in droves to touch the floor. The shadow of serpentine dragons swimming in the shimmering robes as he moved.

          Káel felt his body rise. Dumbstruck. He knew the voice entirely, just not the clothes, nor the thorns of iron poking past his rough brown hair in a crown. 

          Ariabella held the door for a small grey cat to slip through, stopped where it had nearly hit her as she side eyed the man. "Sir."

          He was still scouring the stack of invitations at her desk, head bobbing in a slow nod as he flicked out a small flask to sip at it. "These look good, but the guest list Bella. It's not a party if they think I've forgotten their names." 

          "I've memorised it sir." Ariabella replied, her voice pressing through gritted teeth. "But you have guests."

          He glanced over the wrong shoulder with irritation "I told you to tell any visitors I was-" he started, eyes landing on Locke with a scoffing laugh. "What are you doing here? Party's tomorrow, and my bratty nephew won't find himself. Pity the damn students that went with him!" He grabbed the mission application as he fully turned to Locke, waving the sheet with a fatuous grin. "Sammy nearly told Cilvren until I gave her this idea, can you believe it? He'd have flooded the entire Mauran region with two sliv soldiers in bucket hats!"

          Káel stared at Staz. His uncle. The same crappy personality only wrapped in gold. He looked down at the cat approaching him, Jeremiah's frosty blue eyes wide with surprise at his presence. A look the cat would soon be sharing with his uncle. 

          He was dead to him if he didn't have the explanation of the century on hand.

          "Funny you'd mention that." Locke's voice pulled into the conversation, a dull force against Staz' energy. "I'm actually here to collect payment."

          Staz stopped, brow screwed with confusion. "You flew all the way here? I always deliver it."

          "Sir." Ariabella said, nudging her chin to the circle of chairs for Staz to finally look at the gawking students.

          The room went silent. Káel locked eyes for less than a second, his uncle brushing past addressing him to land on Vera instead. He gave her a small nod of greeting. "Strylez."

          Her response was tipped to a cynical song as she smiled. "Your majesty."

          He mimed her flat smile, cutting the conversation right there as he turned back to Locke and Ariabella, waving them to the door where he could whisper away from prying ears. Káel wanted to make out what he was saying, but a hand stopped him, Vera firm to his wrist as she motioned at Talli and Truvius.

          Káel looked at his other friends, heads dipped to the floor as the sat silently in their chairs. He frowned as Vera motioned for him to do the same. But he was afraid to make a sound and call attention, so he pointed at the man and mouthed it. "That's my uncle."

          Vera's face dropped, giving the man a second glance as if she expected him to change entirely. Her eyebrows slowly rose, now bouncing her gaze between the two to look for some semblance of similarity. 

          Káel crouched lower to risk a whisper. "It's him. I'm positive."

          "That's Elisious Aeric." Vera replied, her eye twitching as her whisper rolled with a growl. "There's a painting of him in the school."

          "I didn't see it, there's a lot of hallways." 

          He felt Vera's nails dig into his wrist, grinding at the bone. "It's in the front lobby you half-bred coinkidink."

          "Well he doesn't usually dress like-" 

          "Káel Williams."

          Káel perked at Ariabella's voice, shifting his gaze between her and Elisious, both pressing on him with cold stares.

          "His majesty has requested your presence."

          Káel stood straight. His majesty. He hadn't seen the man for months. At least in Iridis he popped by. Smiled. But now that he'd jumped past the barricade of letters, the play he'd lived in Iridis his whole life, his uncle only had the gift of a disappointed scowl. The same scowl Káel paid Jeremiah when he disappeared for days back on Earth.

          "Come, his majesty has a tight schedule." Ariabella pressed, holding the door as Káel wordlessly complied. He flinched at the two guards that had stationed themselves outside the door, feeling a hand on his back that pushed his steps into strides. The silent journey ended at an unmarked door, Elisious shoving it open to thrust Káel in without a care for his balance.

          Elisious checked the empty guest room before leading Káel to its center, the gold casting a massive shadow as he used his extra head and a half to bear down on Káel. Arms folded, voice drawn, and eyes still filled with disappointment. "Well?"

         Káel motioned at his clothes, mocking his voice to demand the same answer. "Well?"

          "Would you prefer I take it off and stand half-naked like an earthling? Would that finally soothe your incessant whining to get back there?" Elisious hissed, his face so close Káel could smell whatever sharp brew was in the flask. "I told you. I'm trying to get you back. That just gets hard when the time I put aside to help you turns into meetings with Samanthra while you assault half the school's populace!"

          "Two people." Káel corrected. "One of them twice."

          Elisious snatched his wrist, squeezing the white cloth neatly wrapping it. "Three. And now The Council wants to know why a student marked as mentally unfit has been sent on a minor mission, and without an experienced guide no less." he dropped Káel's wrist, driving his finger into his shoulder to push him back a step. "They're looking into you, and that's tracing right back to me. Now you've practically handed it to them by walking through my front door!"

          "Handed what to them?" Káel paled as one thing came to mind, whispering just in case the walls had ears. "The battery?"

          Elisious shook his head, the golden rays of his royal dress emanating anything but the warmth of golden sunshine. "I couldn't care less about ancient garbage right now. You don't exist here." 

          Káel's stopped, his squared shoulders laxing as Elisious held them. 

          He was the problem.

          Elisious' voice was soft now, as if he could read the thoughts on Káel's face. "Look at me." He pointed at the his thorny crown, brushing some gravelly dust that still clung to Káel's shoulder. "How do I explain you?"

          Káel's heart sunk. Somehow, even with the ridiculous outfit his uncle was flaunting, the words still stung. The man in front of him had tried everything to avoid this meeting. To protect himself from seeing him. But why? What had sent him off to live alone in Iridis?

          He stared up at Elisious, a living painting of power. Had he disappointed him at such a young age he was sent off? The halls held no familiarity in his mind, few memories stretching back to when he was perhaps five or six.

          When had the war started? Káel furrowed his brow, cursing his poor retention of Lumi's droning history lessons. Although he obviously hadn't taken enough time to stare at the paintings of Cobalt's main entrance, he knew what the people depicted were. "You're a warlord."

          Elisious' voice sizzled with humour. "Well spotted."

          Káel shrank. He remembered the rumours better than the books, his voice cracked with weakness. "Did you send me away?"

          "I would never do that." Somehow his uncle's voice was soothing, the man shrinking his engulfing shadow as he gave Káel an assuring squeeze. "I would have loved nothing more than to raise you here, I just couldn't find a way to bring you back. And when the years became too many, I stopped looking and raised you to fit in to another world."

          Raised? Káel curled his tongue from slipping the thought out. "Well, don't stress it. I found a way back."

          "To Earth?" The soft demeanour dropped as he rubbed his temples, an irritated moan escaping his lips. "Not this again. Did your kidnapper give you more false hope?" A light flicked in his eyes as he squinted at the door. "He's not one of the brats that followed you, is he?"

          "Did any of them look six foot or blonde to you?" Káel countered, Elisious' scrunching nose prompting him to get on with it. "I need a paravelt to temporarily go to Earth, like you do, to grab a winter tree branch. Then I can go back permanently and forget this whole thing happened."

          Elisious paused as the plan went through his brain, breaking down into delayed laughter as he sipped his flask again. "A winter tree branch? From Earth?"

          "Yeah, unless you have one lying around in your basement full of gold coins." He saw the irritation bloom on Elisious' face. "There's a tree at my real school, my friends think it's one."

          Elisious popped an eyebrow, drawing his arms up into a loose fold. "I can sell three thumbs of its bark for a thousand slivs, where was that in your letters? Was crying about your teachers more important?"

          Káel's nose scrunched. There was the uncle he knew. "Where was the fact that you're a violent, stinking rich emperor in your letters?"

          Elisious snorted. "Don't be immature, we're not playing that game right now." He brushed back his sleeves, a row of senders clinking like various hooped bracelets. His mocking tone returned, sparking more irritation in Káel's stomach. "I doubt the word of your friends has any merit, but what kind of uncle would I be if I didn't humour you? In exchange for the ride, I want a branch too. No less than half my leg." he singled out a sender he wanted, pressing down on its button. "Come back without one and I'll hand your invisible friend over to The Council."

          "Can we keep me out of this?" Phantom grumbled, 

          "Deal." Káel gulped, watching the white orb rise above his head and spill out the rear end of Vera's booming voice, the words gargled by the distance.

          Ariabella's voice came in after the silence. "Sir?"

          "Bella, make sure those kids sign the mission form. I'll be keeping Káel here, you can send the rest of them back to Cobalt immediately."

          "Yes sir, I was in the middle of that," Ariabella's said, tone as flat as an automated message. "Princess Vera is demanding compensation."

          Elisious hummed, unsurprised. "How much?"

          "Not money, sir."

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Quality Quip #51:

'I don't know who are the best people to educate the young, but I know that parents are the worst.'

~ William Morris