Broken Mirrors & Binding Magic

Alexander couldn’t believe his ears, this couldn’t be happening, how was she even able to do this?

“Okay Isabella, show me.”

His eyes widened as he turned to Lovino, did his best friend not hear the same thing he did?

“Lovi, you can’t be serious. She-”

Alexander flinched as Lovino glared at him, “If she has a way to bring back the dead, why shouldn’t I investigate it?”

He couldn’t believe his best friend, he had to know this was not a good idea, “Because it’s unstable, old, dark magic that even scared the Sweeney and Ayers Clan.”

Lovino’s glare hardened, “And?”

“And?! And they are the most powerful magic clans in Tebos! If they’ve sworn off raising the dead then it either can’t be done or the cost is too high.”

Isabella shrugged, walking away from them, “Or they don’t value life as much as us. We’d give anything to have our loved ones back, right Lovino? Nothing is too steep a price.”

To Alexander’s horror, Lovino nodded as he began to follow her retreating form, “They started this war, so why shouldn’t they pay the price to return those they slayed?”

Alexander couldn’t understand where he drew that conclusion, “What are you saying? You know it was your aunt and mother that started this war.”

“No, it was King Wyn. If the Sweeney clan wasn’t so high and mighty, the Epherial Kingdom wouldn’t have stepped out of line against us!”

Alexander glared at Isaeblla’s back, she was the one putting these ideas into his friend’s head. He wouldn’t be saying any of this if she hadn’t wormed her way into their ranks. She may have been born in Epherial, but she was born with the bloodthirsty spirit of the Avis Kingdom she called home.

“Look, Lovi, let's just talk to Alice. Hell, we can take your dragon over to the Grissirynn Island and talk to the Ayers trio! There’s no way you should just jump into this without asking them. I’m sure Isabella’s done her research, but their families made those spells.”

“Alex, I’ve made my decision. You’re either with me or against me.”

Gilbert eyed the new boy from across the room, he could tell that he didn’t want to be here. He knew the other kingdoms didn’t have the same tie to their royals as the Sweeney and Lehmann of Ephariel did, but he honestly didn’t understand it until he started following Alice to the other kingdoms on her trips to royal gatherings. He couldn’t believe that some of the other royal families treated their servant clans as expendable toys to be used, abused and tossed away. His fists clenched when he recalled the look on Alice’s face when the boy was ‘gifted’ to her in the cage that still sat in the room with him. The boy hadn’t said much outside of telling Alice and him to stay away from him, and honestly, it was getting on his nerves. He hated watching how upset Alice looked every time she tried to help the boy only to receive an insult thrown at her.

His eyes widened when he watched the boy try to swing at Alice, “Hey, I wouldn’t do that if I were you! She might be nice, but I’m not! You hurt her and I’ll break your arm!”

Gilbert kept his eyes on the boy but crossed his arms when Alice waved him off, “Gil, relax. He’s new and scared. I don’t know what they did to him in Atadell, but he’s entitled to not trust me and see me as a new enemy. If it’ll make him less scared to be able to take a swing, so be it.”

“I’m your guard, I’m not going to le-”

Alice rolled her eyes, walking by him, “Gilbert, I’m not asking. Now, I’m going to see what I can grab from the kitchen, keep him company.”

Before Alice slipped out the door, she quickly shot him a glare, “And be nice, or else we won’t have our weekly sleepover!”

A snort caught his attention as the boy finally glared at him, “What are you, her dog?”

Gilbert returned his glare, puffing out his chest, “No, I’m her best friend! And her personal guard! I’ll be head of the royal guard one day!”

He frowned as the boy rolled his eyes, “So you’re a glorified show pony until she gets bored of you.”

“Don’t talk about her like that! I don’t know what your problem is! She’s done nothing but be nice to you!”

Gilbert felt his anger rise when the boy waved him off, “She’s a royal, no different than any other. She’ll brand me and then I’ll be just another toy until I’m not useful anymore. You’re not special because you’re higher on the pecking order of servants here.”

“I choose to serve her! It’s the highest honour in my family to be the personal guard to the heirs of the Sweeney Clan! Even before they became the rulers of Ephariel!”

The boy scoffed again, “So you’re from a long line of pets.”

That was the last thing Gilbert needed to hear before he lunged at the boy, only to be pulled by the back of his shirt.

“Gilbert! I said be nice! Go stand outside while I get him settled into his room!”