More Than Imagined

Chapter 16

Rhoawyn and Eli wandered along the silent, sanitary hallways of the IOB in unhurried steps. Shoulder to shoulder. It was odd for Eli to not be wearing his trench coat, even within the warm walls of the IOB, and Rhoawyn could feel the warmth of his body seeping through the thin of her blouse.

She fiddled with her fingers, eyes distant, as she replayed yesterday's action again and again in her mind. Her fight with Rem. How she defeated her by chance. How she manifested, but it still wasn't good enough.

"This is the place," Eli muttered, snapping Rhoawyn out of her thoughts.

Her eyes lingered on the small font that spelled out the words The Athenaeum on a placard next to the door. Eli pressed his finger to the scanner. A familiar ding and the mechanical grind of tumblers welcomed them as the door slid open.

Eli entered first, and Rhoawyn followed, eyes widening in awe at the size of the place. Large alloy bookshelves lined every wall with their towering presence. Some were decorated with the fleshy spines of old volumes and others with polished artifacts Rhoawyn could only assume are from times long past.

As she trailed Eli, she let the pads of her fingers trace along the cold silver of the shelves stacked like untipped dominos.

"What is this place exactly?" Rhoawyn's question came in a hushed breath, not necessarily seeking an answer.

"The Athenaeum," Eli replied, causing Rhoawyn to blanch at the literal response.

She fixed her lips to say something sarcastic, but the comeback died prematurely on her tongue when she looked at Eli. His gaze was glassy, jaw clenched in the same annoyance Rhoawyn remembered from the fight with Paraly.

"Yeah, but what is this place for?" She replied, gently—cautiously.

"It's the only place that bothers to remember us Imaginaries when we finally fade out of existence."

In an instant, Eli turned down an aisle between two shelves, his body on autopilot as he navigated the place. Rhoawyn kept pace with him, gaining, as she willed herself to walk by his side.

"Sounds pretty...depressing," she spoke up, and his eyes dart down to look at her.

"That's because it is. But it's still an invaluable resource."

They approached a new area with walls still overrun with bookcases, but they lacked the aging tomes kept near the entrance. Instead, slender tablets are stacked back-to-back on the shelves.

As they continued to pass a multitude of cases, Rhoawyn noticed that some clusters of shelves are labeled. They reached a shelf nestled in the very back of the room; it was a silver less polished than the others. It looked old. Forgotten. On its body is a plain, white card labeled "Imaginaries."

"So, why did you bring me here?"

"I just wanted to show you something, is all." Eli lifted an unsteady finger up to one tablet in particular and pulled it down into a secure embrace, cradled on his forearms like a child he cherishes. The sight made Rhoawyn's mouth go dry.

"Not long before they assigned me captain of this squad, I was actually a part of another..."

Rhoawyn twiddled her fingers anxiously as she watched him, but his gaze was trained on the now glowing screen of the device.

"I didn't think we would ever get the chance to have more than one squad," Rhoawyn breathed out, her voice tiny enough to disappear under the tension radiating from Eli.

He focused his gaze on her at the slight sound of it, as if she had yelled—the mirth in his eyes Rhoawyn had become so familiar with now darkened with something she couldn't decipher.