350 What Can We Do?

"As you might already know, this mission is different from the ones before. There were not only many variables that were out of our control, we had no way of knowing for certain how things would turn out. After all, the associates and spies we had sent in before, never exactly returned."

Aether was not having it.

"Cut straight to the point, Zylphy. We've waited long enough to hear the truth," Aether hissed as he folded his arms. 

He was not a fan of stalling for time, which he knew she was clearly trying to do. Zylphy bit her lip, she nodded before continuing. 

"The short answer is, the mission has taken a different turn. As of now, it's completion date is inconclusive."

"What?" Lycster asked for clarification. 

"She means, even they don't know when Vy would return. If she was to return," Aether translated her words. 

Lycster slammed his hand down on the table in anger, jolting everyone else out of their seats. No one expected the boy to get so angry. Zylphy could see the mix of emotions in his eyes. He was angry, he was upset, he was worried about his sister. 

"You said it was going to be a month, then that it would take longer. It's been three months, Zylphy, three months! You had us go on increasingly dangerous missions. She did it, all for me! And now you're telling me you don't know if she would even return?" Lycster's voice was beginning to tremble. 

The boy's vision blurred as tears welled up in his eyes. But he refused to cry. Now was not the time for tears. It was the time for action. 

"Do you at the very least know where she is?" Lycster asked in desperation. 

Zylphy could not meet his eyes. 

Aether moved swiftly. Before she even had time to react, he had her by the collar. Lycster did not say anything to protest, he silently watched as the Familiar did as he pleased. Aether pushed Zylphy up against the wall. His expression was cold and unreadable. 

"You better start talking, Zylphy. Or you and I are going to have a problem."

Zylphy did not waver, she was not afraid of them. She knew they would react this way, which was one of the reasons why she avoided meeting them face to face. 

"If you put me down, I will explain what I can," she replied. 

Aether released her collar, causing her to fall to the ground with a thud. She picked herself back up and dusted off her clothes. She began to explain to them what she could. As mentioned early on, the Future Eye had been tracking the Usagi Ring for a long time. 

They even had reason to believe there were spies in their midst. That, unfortunately, turned out to be true. Despite all the precautions they took to keep the mission a secret, they were betrayed internally. 

After the move of the Headquarters, they were still able to keep track of Vy's location for a period of time. In fact, the tracker they had placed on her led them straight to a facility that they had been hoping to find. 

The Rabbit Warren. 

Since the mission was still active, only a select few knew of it's exact location. Now, they were waiting for the right time to strike. Vyrena's mission was not only to obtain intel, but to send them a signal to infiltrate. 

"How did you expect her to get you intel when technically there is no way to get in and out safely without being compromised?" Aether asked in bewilderment, some of it just was not adding up. 

Zylphy cleared her throat before replying, "That, unfortunately, is classified intel. I cannot share with you how that is done."

She could sense Aether's intent to threaten her into talking. 

"Even if you were to threaten my life right now, I still will not be able to tell you anything more than that."

"What you're saying right now, is all we can do is wait?" Lycster sighed. 

She nodded in response before adding, "The fact that Aether, as Vy's Familiar, is alive and well is a good sign. It means that Vy is alive and well."

"But she could be tortured and we would not know," Aether hissed. 

"Based on the accounts we have about the Rabbit Warren, it is not a torture chamber. Although I guess in a way, it sort of is. But not in the way you're thinking of."

From the reports they had once gathered from the man that escaped, the Rabbit Warren was a maze. People of all species were kidnapped and placed into the maze. The masterminds of the Usagi Ring hunted for sport and leisure. 

Their original theory was that it had been more like a museum, where creatures were collected and put on display in the location. Now they had more reason to believe that anyone who was kidnapped and placed there were hunted. 

Unseen eyes were watching their every move. 

"So my sister is trapped in a maze."

"Yes"

"She likely has no memories of her past, trapped in a maze and hunted for sport"

"Yes…"

"We don't know when she will return, or even if that is possible."

Zylphy nodded, "I know it is in no means an ideal situation but it is what it is."

"Then what am I supposed to do now?"

Lycster did not need to hear the answer to that question. He already knew what it was. He knew from the moment they parted ways that this was a possibility. Aether was worried about Vy. The information Zylphy provided was more than he had expected. But it also told them nothing. 

"That is all you can tell us?" Aether asked. 

"I am afraid so."

"Is there anything we can do to help?"

"Thank you for the offer. But with the way things are, the uncertainty that someone might be watching and monitoring, it would be best that less people are involved. Unless absolutely necessary,"

Aether and Lycster glanced over to one another. They knew what that meant. 

All they could do now is wait.