55. Fulsin

There was a pause of silence, and a reply was heard from the other side.

"You may enter." The voice was smooth, like a gentle stream in the air. It relaxed Castus and Shi, but Aria appeared more tense than ever.

They entered the room, pushing past the marvel of a door. It revealed an office with no windows and the only light came from a fireplace that roared even at this hour. Sir Fulsin, twilight protocol has been initiated." Aria took a light bow. "I am off to retrieve Erin." With that Aria quickly left the room, shutting the door behind her.

The man she was speaking to walked into the light of the fire. "Is it true. Are you really Castus?" The man looked menacing in the light. He was of average height and wore thick glasses. He was thin with black hair and blue eyes. He wore a very clean and distinguished suit currently. The fire light flickered off of his glasses, obscuring a lot of his features.

Castus paused for a second, thinking of what could prove who he was. Reaching into his sack he produced the monocle. "This is my father's treasured monocle. Is this proof enough?" Castus spoke. The man seemed less than impressed though.

"Any hooligan can find a monocle. If you are really Castus, show me your sigil. That information is not known by many." The man took another step forward towards Castus.

Castus hesitated, then buckled under the pressure. He took his shirt off revealing his sigil to the man. He hadn't paid much attention to the sigil, but in the light, he took a good look at it, just like the man. It was comprised of a gear creating a circle around a hammer and anvil. The hammer and anvil were set on top of a grid.

The man took a moment and even touched the sigil, much to Castus dismay. For a full minute this awkward standoff continued. He looked to Shi for comfort, but Shi only shrugged. Finally the man stood up and reached over to a side table. Then light flooded the room.

"You really are Castus! Ah, that is wonderful news. We didn't know what happened to you. After the fire I sent a group to dig through the house. I found your mother and Yursa, but I did not find you. We searched for months and found no trace of you." The man sat down on in a love seat. His expression was that of joy.

The sudden shift in gears took Castus by surprise. He slowly put his shirt on, trying to think of what to ask or do. "Um, Sir Fulsin, what is twilight protocol?" Castus asked hesitantly. The man's newfound happiness vanished off of his face.

"Twilight protocol is for containing information about things that happen in the complex." He sat up slowly. In the new light Castus realized that Sir Fulsin didn't seem nearly as intimidating as he had before. "Your arrival is huge news. Not only do you serve as firsthand experience within the churches infrastructure, but you also serve as evidence that they are kidnapping people. The church has eyes and ears everywhere though and I need to keep you hidden for now." Sir Fulsin rubbed his chin.

"I just wanted to make sure my sisters were ok." Castus stumbled through, trying to convey that whatever gravitas Sir Fulsin had for him he didn't want to partake in. Sir Fulsin raised an eyebrow and looked at Castus.

"I don't think you understand that this related to your sister's well being." He spoke, but then his expression changed quickly and he spoke again. "Come in."

The door swung open and Aria and Erin entered. While Aria had matured greatly to become a much more well put together girl, Erin seemed to have embraced a wild side. She rushed at Castus and tackled him like a linebacker. Contrary to her frame she moved like an Olympic sprinter and hit as hard as a strong man. Castus gasped for air on the ground, and he felt liquid splash on to him.

"I'm so glad you're alright. We were so worried!" Erin continued to give him a crushing hug. Tears streamed down his face. Aria walked forward and picked her up off Castus. She then gave Castus a long heartfelt hug. "We are glad you are alright. We tried to find you after we found out about the fire." Aria and Erin moved to sit down on a sofa and motioned to the third sofa around the fire for Castus and Shi. They took their seats.

Sir Fulsin had a relaxed smile on his face and looked at Castus, his eyes conveyed how much he was in control of the situation. Castus didn't like the look, but he was still thankful that he had taken care of his sisters.

Erin, flipping from the saddness before, quickly became excited. "Castus, Castus, Castus, tell us about what happened to you!" Erin vomited the words. She literally bounced on the couch. Sir Fulsin put a hand on her shoulder to try to get her to still a bit, but it did nothing.

Castus looked to them and then back to Fulsin. "I suppose you all want to know what happened. But first let me introduce to you." Castus motioned to Shi. "This is Shi, we went through the same ordeal, and we came out the other side friends." Castus explained.

Shi smiled and said hello to everyone. Castus and Shi had an upspoken conversation with their eyes, agreeing not to reveal that Shi was not human. While various races seemed to be accepted, most creatures from the more monstrous side of things clearly were not.

After the round of introductions Castus dove into the story of the betray of Ben and Annabelle, followed by his meeting with Darius, subsequent enslavement, learning forging and enchantment, and then the Umbral. Up until then nothing Castus said caused a single reaction from Fulsin, but the word umbral caused him to frown deeply. He finished the story talking about how brave Shi had been defending Rys and tweaking the ending as to not reveal Shi's true form. He then talked about how the group split up and he had come back with Shi to make sure his sisters were alright, while the other group went to Afeerbah to secure transit off the island. He made sure to omit information that would reveal him as a transplant and his two sisters ate it up. Erin bounced in excitement hearing the story and Aria even leaned in, enraptured by his tale.

Castus and Shi finished catching everyone up and Castus looked to Fulsin. "So what has happened while I was gone?" Fulsin looked at the girls and then stood. He walked to his desk and pulled out a carefully stashed letter. Holding it up, he showed the seal of his father. "Your father sent me this letter, two weeks before your home burned to the ground. In it he willed guardianship over your two siblings to me and asked me to find you, but he did not give me guardianship of you." He set the letter down. his gaze held other intentions in it. "In it he asked me to take care of your sisters and to find you afterwards. He said once I met you I would understand. Your sisters have been in academy all this time, working to better themselves. Although." He paused looking at Erin.

"Someone could do with better etiquette classes." Castus smirked at the comment. Fulsin continued. "There has been a lot of movement politically though. Disturbing movement. Recently a disgusting fetid man from the Prodome family has been pressuring me to marry off Aria to him. I refused, not only because he is horrid, but because it is an attempt to aid my political opponents. So far, we are dealing with it without issue, but I believe a larger move will be coming soon. We will be prepared though." Fulsin summarized.

He then stood. "I'll let you four chat some more and catch up, but after that I would like to talk to Castus and Shi alone." He stood and left the room. For another few hours Castus and his sisters chatted. They talked of the kingdom, food, and whatever else they could come up with. After a while the girls bid them farewell for now and Fulsin re-entered the room. He waited for the door to close and his happy expression was replaced with seriousness.

"So your transplants." Fulsin spoke slowly, letting the words sink in.

Castus immediately summoned his spear preparing to defend his secret and Shi's. Fulsin simply waved his hand and a transparent blade swatted his spear away. "Let's not get defensive here Castus. While I know your secret I am an ally. Not an enemy. I owed a lot to Tyrus and I wish to respect his wishes." Fulsin stood and paced behind his desk.

"What do you really want Fulsin?" Castus spoke in a straight manner trying to get to the root of the issue.

Fulsin smirked. "Want me to get straight into it then?" He spoke. He was a sly fox. Clearly about to play his cards and get his way. Castus was on edge.