Eilis leaned her head against his arm, warmth spreading through her at the merest touch of his. 
She was so thankful for Arn. For his strength and trust in her, she doubted she would have made it half as far if it were not for the fire mage granting her his never ending support. Whether it was the simple act of holding her hand back at the ship or his fiery defence of her.
Uilles meanwhile had stood up and grabbed his cane, moving away from the desk in thought to one of the windows.
Tyrhallan watched him.
Uilles tried to make sense of what Scylla had said last night. 
[i]What had it meant? Why her? Why not just any talented mage of the Empire? Assuredly there were reasons for her being chosen?[/i]
He gazed out of the window as he asked Eilis.
[color=a0410d]“In what way does your magic express itself? What kind of magic do you do?”[/color]
Eilis looked up at the man in curiosity before answering.
[color=f6989d]“I have Psionic abilities, though the common man would call me a ‘Force Mage’.”[/color]
Uilles looked over his shoulder before he barked rather than asked. 
[color=a0410d]“And do we know who else was a ‘Force Mage?’”[/color]
Tyrhallan’s frown deepened, but it was Eilis who answered slightly more nervous at the barking tone of Uilles.
[color=f6989d]“Agamemnon The Sorcerer King.”[/color]
[color=a0410d]“Exactly.”[/color] Was the short response from the old warrior.
[color=ed1c24]“Wait didn’t this Scylla call you a prison and a key. That despicable man wanted you bound magically, a prison if you will. Not only because it would force you to comply, but also to be able to cultivate you as a weapon. Letting you wrestle and grow stronger against your own binds.”[/color] Tyrhallan spoke thinking aloud in suggestion. [color=ed1c24]“Perhaps that is why they need you back so badly, because you were meant to be their weapon.”[/color]
Eilis looked at him in worry.
[color=f6989d]“But I don’t want to be a weapon.”[/color]
Uilles shook his head.
[color=a0410d]“I doubt things are so easily explained away, dear nephew. We must examine what we know…”[/color] The old man moved to one of the many bookshelves letting his fingers brush over the tomes, seeking for something. 
[color=a0410d]“One we know she’s a Force Mage. Her speciality lies in her psionic abilities.”[/color] The old man continued as he sought further. 
[color=a0410d]“Two, we know they bound her magically for some reason, inked her from head to toe most likely. A practice once belonging to old tribes as a ritual of cleansing, relief or even an indication of adulthood. Why they decided to abuse it and twist it into such a dreadful thing is beyond me.”[/color] He apparently found something he was looking for. An old book that had seen better days and was practically falling apart, its seems worn and its covers stained and muddied with heaven knows what.   
[color=a0410d]“Three, we assume to know she is Rhevendahli, as Scylla said so. Revendahl was once a rather nasty thorn in the Empire’s side. Powerful little state with resources and knowledge to outmaneuver the old lumbering Empire.”[/color] Uilles said with a twisted smile. [color=a0410d]“Still it couldn’t prevent itself from falling in the end.”[/color] He placed the book back on the desk.
[color=a0410d]“And Four, we know that despite her wishes and her failing their tests, she still qualified for whatever they had in mind for her…and they are very keen on retrieving her.”[/color] Uilles said as he looked down upon Eilis. He couldn’t fault Arn for his attachment to her, especially regarding his own past, but also looking at the expectant soulful eyes of the young girl it made Uilles wonder if Vaim’s plan had been as well thought out in the first place.
[color=ed1c24]“What’s that Uncle?”[/color] Tyrhallan demanded to know, bringing the man’s thoughts back the book he had picked up from one of the shelves.
[color=a0410d]“Your great grand uncle wrote this. His name was Zherethan, he was the youngest of the four brothers and the most adventurous. He loved to travel and explore the different continents when the world was still whole. I used to read this spending the last of the candle light and ruining my eyes tucked safely in my warm bed. Reading of his exploits in the bustling cities to which he travelled or him describing the beauty of the rugged landscape that once was our world. His journey also leads him into Rhevendahl and he speaks of the many caves of wonder that it holds, hidden below the surface. He speaks of the Eye of Stars, a great machine that can look outward beyond our world and of the mysterious mages that seem to calculate time and are able to weave with the Aether itself. He speaks of its stronghold Sensaridh, Mound of the All mother herself.”[/color] He eyed Eilis carefully.
[color=a0410d]“I believe if you are to discover why they need her so desperately. I would suggest you start your search there first.”[/color] Uilles suggested seeing the horrified look of his nephew in the corner of his eye and hearing his protest soon after.
[color=ed1c24]“But Rhevendahl was destroyed and forced to become part of the Empire. We would have to take the risk of taking her to the enemy if we were to do that.”[/color]
Eilis grabbed Arn’s arm in worry at Uilles’s suggestion.
[color=f6989d]“No…”[/color] Her voice spoke trembling in horror. [color=f6989d]“Don’t take me back…”[/color]
 Uilles gave her a look that was as cold as the steel he carried.
[color=a0410d]“They will never stop hunting you Eilis. Whether or not you decide to go back, they will try to make you and as far as I see it, the answers all lie there. So do the one thing they do not expect you to do. Go back.”[/color]