Shadowseeker

chapter seventeen

A few people ran up to the platform, surrounding Cyrus's body and obscuring his body from Aelia's view. She saw Lorelai consoling Evelyn, her arm over the girl's shoulder as she steered her out of the room. Sulien trailed after them, his feet dragging on the ground and his shoulders hunched as he cast his eyes downwards. 

Pairs of Sunkeepers were leaning on each other for support as they quickly left. Many were limping, while others had blood trickling down their faces from debris. A faint crackle of energy still rippled throughout the room, remnants of the destruction that had happened that night.

Aelia stayed seated as she watched her surroundings, leaning back against the chair. She didn't trust herself to stand up without falling over or passing out. 

She looked up tiredly as someone sat at the opposite end of her table. Her movements were sluggish, and it took her a moment to recognise them as Eli.

"The High Council called an emergency meeting. Our parents are safe, but they've been called to attend the meeting," Eli informed her curtly. His slender fingers tapped on the tabletop as he stared at her with an accusing glint in his eye. Aelia nodded slowly, rooting herself in reality by watching his fingers, his dark skin standing out against the white tablecloth.

They sat in silence as the last few people left, and the room cleared out.

"Cyrus Rhodes is dead because of you and your kind," Eli stated bluntly, his voice flat and emotionless as he spoke. "He might've done some questionable things in the past, but he was innocent. A father of two children, and a husband to a loving wife. All of whom will remember this night for the rest of their lives."

"I told you, I didn't know about any of this," Aelia pleaded, though her voice sounded faint compared to Eli's. "They barely tell me anything. I-I promise."

"You expect me to believe you?" Eli asked incredulously, punctuated by a sharp, bitter laugh. "After you've been lying to me for the past few weeks?"

"I never lied to you, Eli," she murmured, shaking her head. "I didn't know what to do. It all happened very quickly, and I had no idea what to do."

It was a tragic scene, Aelia thought bitterly. She glanced around the abandoned hall. Eli and Aelia were surrounded by shattered glass and splintered wood, their clothes ripped in several places. Both of them were bleeding; Eli from a cut above his eye and Aelia from her lip. Despite this, they stared at each other, neither one willing to back down.

"You could've told me, right at the start," Eli argued, his voice raised as he grew more agitated. "We could've gone to the High Council and asked for help. They would've raised a search party for their arrest."

"What if I didn't want to, Eli?" Aelia sat up, her fist slamming against the table as she scowled at him. His eyes widened, and his mouth opened to object, but Aelia interrupted him before he could speak. "Are you really going to hunt them down for who they are? For a power that they were born with, just like you or I?"

"We hunt them down because of the terror they cause," Eli responded through gritted teeth. "They can't be trusted to have their powers without misusing them."

"Are you saying you can't trust me?" Aelia froze, her leg bouncing up and down nervously. "I have those abilities too. Technically, I'm one of them."

Eli hesitated, and Aelia's heart sunk as regret flashed in his eyes. He averted his gaze, refusing to look at her.

"You're not the person I thought you were," Eli admitted quietly, rubbing his temples with his fingers. "I-I'm not sure who you've become."

"I'm becoming a person who can see this society for what it truly is. And I'm not going to be ashamed of it, Eli," Aelia lifted her chin, regaining some strength as she spoke. "We sit here with our fancy parties and events while everyone else in the city struggles to even feed their families. Not to mention how we exploit them with unfair policies just so we can slightly improve the town hall!"