347 Searching For The Right Place

At the very least, he was not alone on his journey. 

"What do you think they'll say?" Lycster asked Aether as they continued their flight through the sky. 

-We don't even know if they might still be there.- Aether replied. 

The Future Eye was a secretive organization. At the very beginning, before Vy left, they were being briefed on what would happen. Though Lycster could not be there for much of it, he was allowed to ask a few questions. 

Needless to say, his first question was how long the mission would take. The Blackfire siblings had never really been separated for more than a week or a month. The last three months had been painful to endure through. 

Lycster returned to the Prism Sector to ensure their business ran as usual and that their house was taken care of. But being alone there with only Aether by his side soon felt lonely. 

It made him extremely restless. 

So Lycster decided to return to Timbretune. He spent most of his time helping Carole at her store, or visiting different places around town. At one point, he asked Caster to teach him some hand to hand combat and weapon mastery to pass the time. 

Now that he's had both his arms back, Lycster wanted to ensure that he trained the use of both. Aether was the quiet type. Without Vy around he had been mostly silent, deep in his own mind and thoughts. 

But regardless, he would always keep a close eye on Lycster, making sure he was taken care of. 

The mission was only supposed to last for a month. But towards the end of the month, Lycster received a letter from the Future Eye. His sister was not going to return so soon. 

They did not mention when she would return either. After waiting for another two months, Lycster could not take it anymore. Together with Aether, they made their way to Aldergard City.

They were going to find Zylphy or any Future Eye representative they were able to meet and ask for answers. Though Aether was still very much connected to Vyrena, he could not tell where she was. 

The fact that he was still alive and living meant that Vy was still alive. But that was all they knew. It was not difficult for them to get into the city. Despite last visiting Aldergard three months ago, they noticed that parts of the city were no longer the same. 

Lucky for them, the changes did not affect them. Aether was still able to find the building they had gone to the first time they were there. 

-You need rest. We've travelled for a long time.- Aether said to Lycster. 

They had been travelling for days, only taking breaks to sleep and eat, the bare minimum. Aether caught the boy yawning a couple of times but did not want to say anything. 

"We can rest after," Lycster replied monotonously. 

The boy had not been his smiling, annoying self ever since they received the letter. He always seemed to be deep in thought. There were a couple of times Aether noticed the boy still awake late into the night. It was unlike Lycster to be like this. 

As they came up upon the building, Aether immediately sensed that something was off. He was in his human form, so that it was easier for him to move around. They walked up the stairs towards the entrance. 

There were two guards standing outside, unlike last time where the door was unguarded. The guards stopped Lycster and Aether from entering. 

"This is Maxim Corporation Headquarters. State your purpose," one of the guards spoke in a deep voice. 

"Maxim Corporation?" Lycster asked in bewilderment. 

"If you have no business here, please leave," the guard on the other side continued. There was animosity in his voice, Aether did not appreciate it. 

Before Lycster could ask another question, a small group of people came up the stairs, showing a pass to the guards. Immediately, they were being let into the building. 

Aether observed in silence. 

"Why can they enter then?" Lycster asked. 

"They are employees with employee passes, of course they would be allowed to enter," The guard bent down, his shadow cast over Lycster, "If you've got no appointment, boy, I think it would be best if you leave now with your friend."

Any other boy his age would have been shaking in fear from such intimidation. But he was Lycster Blackfire, a Blackfire is not easily shaken. Lycster did not have any readable expression on his face, he was thinking about what to do next.

Aether tapped the boy on the shoulder. Lycster was pulled out of his thoughts immediately. He turned to look at Aether who signalled him to leave. 

"But…"

"This isn't the place we're looking for," Aether said to get his attention. 

Lycster did not protest any further, he followed Aether down the steps. The boy did not understand why his sister's Familiar would have said that. He never made any mistakes. 

What was going on?

Once they were further away from the building, out of the sight of the guards, Aether turned back to Lycster. 

"It is the right building, but it's not the right place." 

Lycster creased his eyebrows, he did not understand what Aether meant. The Familiar could see the boy's quizzed expression. 

"Let me explain," he said, "The building was the place we came to three months ago with Vyrena. But it no longer belongs to Future Eye." 

Lycster understood now. After all, the building seemed to be owned by a different organisation and ran by different rules. 

"You've got a good nose right? Sniff the surrounding air, it is different." Aether added. 

Lycster took in a deep breath, taking in all the smells that surrounded him. Focusing his mind, he blocked out the scents of the thousands of people around him. He concentrated on the scent that surrounded the building. 

The boy opened his eyes in shock. The scent it once had of the Future Eye Association was no longer there. In fact, it was completely gone. 

"How is it possible that the trace of scent is completely wiped away?" Lycster sighed in disbelief. 

Anything and everything left a scent. Especially when it had been in one location for a long time. The trace of the scent, even if it was faint, would linger on often for more than a few months. 

Yet the scent of the place they had once been to was completely wiped clean, leaving no trace behind.