"Everything is being taken care of as you asked. Soon enough, this will all die down." Rasmus spoke to the rulers whom were seated on their five thrones. They all were in a more happy mood than the last time he spoke to them.
"Aella picked the right people for the job, where is she? Why isn't she here?" Constantine asked.
"She is with Blackman at the moment, my King," Rasmus responded.
"Blackman? I did hear that he had returned, but I thought I must have been mistaken."
"Why will he suddenly come back?" Brielle wondered.
"He had better not start any trouble," said Renjiro.
"Blackman does whatever he wants to and going about causing trouble is not one of them," Roderick spoke up.
"What if he decides to act? Especially since Aella was and still is being affected. I honestly suggest that he is closely watched if he stays around," Brielle said. They all found her words reasonable. Blackman was someone they could not trust at the moment.
"Rasmus, you can do that, can't you? His every move, where he goes and what he does should be closely monitored," Constantine ordered.
"I will report anything suspicious," Rasmus said with a bow.
"I still don't think we should be bothered about him. Especially since Aella is under my protection." Roderick said.
"That is enough reason to be bothered," Constantine countered.
"You may leave." Sensing another back and forth banter was about to occur, Brielle immediately dismissed Rasmus.
He was about leaving the tower when he received a message from Roderick. "Send Aella to me, and if you can, Blackman too. As soon as possible," the message read.
Rasmus rubbed his temples with his fingers to calm his stress after reading the message. He now had to go find them. As soon as he took Aella to Blackman, they both left to a place he had no idea of. He knew no matter how much he tried to reach her now, she would ignore it, and oddly, he couldn't track her watch. He had no way of getting through to Blackman either.
"Where are the both of you?" He wondered and got into his car. He wondered about the Truesdale cities knowing they wouldn't venture into the cities under the rule of anyone other than Roderick. One reason to be safe and the other just because a certain someone doesn't trust them.
Rasmus tried repeatedly to contact Aella but it wasn't working. He waited at where he dropped her off for a while and eventually got tired. He decided the best place to wait would be at Aella's place and so he went there instead.
She stayed in her home which was on a small hill a bit away from people, just the way she liked it. Less noise, less humans, more nature, more peace. He arrived at the apartment and looked at the dark painted building for a while before teleporting himself inside.
For a person always jolly and pink, her home decor was entirely different. Probably because a person had handled the interior design for her. She never changed it even when she showed distaste for it. Blackman liked and designed it, so she accepted it. In a way, it reflected her inner self.
Rasmus turned on the lights and sat on the grey coloured sofa with his legs crossed in wait. He was hopeful that they would show up. He did nothing but stare at the slowly drifting time showing on her digital clock. He didn't know for how long he had been staring because he had zoned out. That was until the sound of laughter and the door clicking snapped him out of it. Fortunately, they has returned, but it was already past midnight.
"Rasmus? What are you doing here? How many times have I told you to stop coming in here like you own the place?" Aella asked upon walking in and found him comfortably seated.
"I was waiting for you," he said with a yawn and stretched his limbs afterwards. He looked behind her and at the man who has his black hat on. "Good, you came with her." Rasmus said to him.
Blackman made to seat on the chair beside Rasmus. He took off his hat and placed it on his lap. He then looked at Rasmus with his pitch black eyes that would glow at intervals. While people thought his name was due to his style of clothing and his eyes, it was actually because of his skin tone.
He was given the name by Roderick who said the first word he thought of. It was preferable to Blackman to bear it than have no name. He hardly ever looked at people and always has his head down and his hat on. But when it came to Aella, Rasmus and the rulers, there was an exception.
"It seems you have something to talk about," Blackman said to Rasmus. Aella laid on the couch on the other side of the living room and picked up a book she had left on it and began reading.
"It is more of a message than I having something to discuss about," Rasmus replied. "It's King Roderick, he wants to see the both of you."
"Really?" Aella asked and immediately sat up. She had a look of excitement on. Blackman's smile slowly turned into a frown. Roderick wanting to speak to them both meant something big. But, if that was the case, why would he do that through Rasmus, it would be too risky. Contacting Aella or him would have been the best.
Rasmus looked at Blackman for a while before speaking again. "He wants to see you both urgently. Perhaps, something's up." Blackman still sat in silence while Aella paused a bit as if in thought.
"We'll see him in the morning," Blackman said. "She needs to sleep. I hear she hasn't done that in the past week."
"She was too restless about the task given. You know how she is," said Rasmus. "I will let him know your reply." He stood up and as he teleported in, he did the same thing out.
"Do we leave now?" Aella asked Blackman as Rasmus left.
"No. We'll see him tomorrow. Something doesn't feel right," he replied.
"Hm, if you say so." Aella laid back on the couch and continued reading her book until she fell asleep. Blackman just sat watching her rest with the book falling out of her hold and onto the floor. Blackman took the book and placed it on the glass table in the middle of the room. He then lifted her in his arms and into her room. He covered her up with the sheets and opened up the windows. She always preferred sleeping that way.
He then turned off the lights Rasmus had turned on and lay in the darkness of the living room and on the cold floor as he preferred.
Meanwhile in Roderick's manor, he lay in bed snoring away. There was a shadow of a man lurking around the place in wait. He had been around for a while still no one had showed up, no message had been received.
"It's already past midnight, I thought he would have found them by now," the figure wondered. He waited a little longer and a message was coming in. He intercepted it and received it in his own watch instead. They both had decided to see Roderick the next day.
"What a waste of time." He sighed and left.