Chapter 397 (1/2)

Chapter 397

Chapter 395: Preparations

The scaldingit black as the flesh around itup a cloud of steam I cursed and pulled back

Ellie slappedon the stove “Just let rease, anyway? Have you ever even cooked before?”

I dipped ers into the saucer of water I’d cooled the pan with and flicked several drops into her face as she struggled to flip the slab ofnothing but fish, rats, and is was sitting in thewith interest, his nose twitching with every waft of meat-scented air “You know, that looks pretty much irreparable Just toss it over to me”

Ellie dropped a handful of cut-upwith irritation “I can do more with rat and mushrooms than you can with the whole royal pantry, I bet”

“I’ about,” I pointed out, laughing

Ellie’s leg shot out and thu out fro on the tiles beneath her

“Hey, not fair!” she shouted, swinging her arms as she tried futilely to land a punch

The whisper of soft turnshoes on stone tile drew ,” I said, waving with the hand suspending Ellie upside down so that doll “It’s notsorumped, her arms crossed “Arthur was mostly just in the—ow!” she yelped as I let her tumble to the floor

“Oh,” Ellie ?” It was then I realized there were quiet tears running down Mom’s cheeks

“Huh? What do you—oh” She wiped at her cheeks with the back of her long sleeves “Why auess it’s just…waking up to so time”

I pulled out a chair for her, and she eased into it with a grateful, tear-streaked saze was is scooted back so that he was directly in front of her, and she began petting him behind the ears

Ellie and I pushed and shoved at the stove, but in the end I let her clai a handful of wooden plates and utensils to set the table Ellie delivered stacks of slightly burned reens, red beans, and a coil of soround lake—that Ellie insisted was delicious, and together we filled up three plates

Moiven her and fed it to Regis, who took it right off her fork

“He's going to keep asking for stuff like this if you spoil him, Mom,” I said around a mouthful

She wavedhe's done to help out around here, he's earned it?”

Regis’s oversized puppy eyes gleaiven him an award “Would you believe this et plenty of aether,” I is eyed it uncertainly, then said, “Maybe some more of that meat instead?”

Mom’s brows rose “It’s ihtly scolded

Regis blinked cartoonishly, then leaned forward and gingerly took theit with such clear dejection that Ellie took pity on hi when he pounced on it and sed it with a single bite

Truly a ht to see froht

“Anyway, how are you feeling this ?” I asked Moht, but watching her carefully

“So much better,” she said Her bloodshot, tired eyes squinted in appreciation “Thank you, Arthur, but you don’t have to worry about me You have so much on your mind already”

Ellie scoffed and opened her mouth, but paused when Mo and sing, then said, “He let us think he was dead for months, didn’t he? Let him worry”

My mother’s soft smile wavered, and I reached across the table to squeeze her hand “I do have a lot on my rowing pile”

Mom’s eyes fell to her plate, but I still saw thein them Ellie watched her, a small frown on her is, who chewed loudly, oblivious to everything except the warh I could feel the thrill he felt at sharing a fah our mental connection

We ate in silence for a while after that, but it wasn’t the kind of quiet that ard or tense Instead, it was co tiht that it felt like another life flashed through my mind, but I knew that wasn’t really true I had lived another life on Earth, and then, in Alacrya, I had pretended to be so a part of me that had died when I’d been reincarnated in Dicathen I had needed Grey to survive there, and as ain had reminded me why I’d become him in the first place

Until this as over, truly over, I couldn’t let Grey go Not yet

“—thur?”

“Sorry?” I asked, realizingthat I really should go check in at thea bit better” She looked slightly eis “There are only a couple of e on me to be there Besides, I’m sure you have your own business to attend to”

Before I could respond, there was a gasp from Ellie “Oh! That reminds me! I told Saria Triscan that I’d help relocate the elven refugees today Most of them were temporarily housed on the lower levels, which were pretty badly da them to more permanent places to stay,” she added by way of explanation as she pushed herself away from the table

At the same tie furry body shoved the table aside, nearing knocking Regis to the floor

“Boo!” Ellie said, exasperated “I’er! And I’ve said not to poof into the roorumbled, and Ellie’s eyes narrowed “Don’t bla so overprotective” The bear let out a hurunt that shook the plates on the table, which were pressed against his side

Moe of the kitchen, but stopped to lean against the doorway arch and look at us all, sht, okay? I’ll cook” Her s as her expression beca war her the warmest smile I could muster

She returned it, waved, then vanished behind Boo’s bulk I heard the suite door open and shut, then turned to Ellie “Do you think she’s okay?”

Ellie was scratching Boo between the big mana beast’s eyes “I haven’t seen her s at me, she put her shoulder into Boo’s side and shoved “Coure out how to squeeze you through the front door” She stopped and threw a tentative look over her shoulder at ees…they’ve had a hard tiave her an apologetic s my head “I would, El, but I have duties of s that need to be taken care of before I can leave, I almost added

She rolled her eyes, but her s “Yeah, yeah, I know, there is sobrother Well…see you, then”

Ellie slipped around Boo, who turned to inspect htfully, his face scrunched between his shoulder and the wall before grunting and turning to follow her He nearly overturned the table, and then had to squeeze to fit through first the kitchen doorway, then the front door into the Earthborn Institute’s sprawling series of interconnected tunnels

My sly around the suite, wishi+ng I could stay longer The time with my family had been a ainst me, and there was still toothe e artifacts while my family had slept The interplay between aether andI’d seen before, but it reminded me of the soul realm within the aether orb, where I’d trained with Kordri for so long The artifacts didn’t contain an extra-dimensional space, but they weren’t simply containers for massive quantities of mana, either It was almost like Kezess had drawn in and contained potential, and by using the artifacts, that potential was expended into a living being

It was a difficult concept to wrap es of understanding I needed to see the artifacts in use, but without activating whatever power Rinia had seen destroying the continent

“So,” Regis said, interrupting hts I could sense his contentment with his belly full of ho the Triple Ds?”

“I…” I sputtered, rubbing a hand down my face, then turned to scowl at my companion “What?”

“Dicathen’s Dynamic Duo You know,it was best not to engage Regis on this front, I instead said, “No time for the Relictombs yet First, we need to make sure we can leave Vildorial without it iave Ellie a minute or two head start, then followed her out the door Instead of heading toward the exit, I went deeper down into the Earthborn Institute

As I’d expected, I found Gideon, Ees already at work

The old inventor barely spared lance as I walked into the lab, clearly unsurprised to see o, at least four of which I spent sleeping Nothing has changed in the meantime, Arthur”