"Until then, Leader."
Ithril waited until he'd walked away to sag with relief. As much as he believed in his convictions, this was the first time he was even attempting something like this, and he was unsure how well it was going to work.
Carver was the one who had the plans. He had always been the one to come up with ideas and make sure that they were seen through. He was the one with the quick mind and easy smile that put people at ease while Ithril stood in the background and looked angry or uncomfortable. But he had to get past that. Carver was gone now. His transporter was probably already closing in on Earth, and Ithril had made it so that there was no way for him to get back until he was ready for him to come back.
Ithril was on his own for the moment, and he had to make it count.
By the time the Council was ready to convene again, he had a plan firmly in his mind. It had taken a lot of thought, and he'd gone for a long walk after lunch, wracking his brain for what he could say to explain Carver's absence. But really, it had been so clear. Their father's passing was the perfect excuse, and secure in his knowledge that no one would be the wiser, he sat down at the head of the table and watched everyone else file in.
"Will Carver be joining us later?" Marsh asked, looking around the room.
Ithril shook his head, eyes solemn. "I'm afraid not," he said, sighing heavily. That caught everyone's attention, and he kept his head high and his voice steady. "My brother has not been handling the passing of our father very well at all. I went to check on him earlier since he wasn't at lunch, and I found his rooms trashed. Of course, I thought some treachery was at work and immediately assumed the worst, but then when I went down to the transporter bay, I saw that one of the transports was missing. I believe Carver has fled."
Shocked murmurs met his words, and he raised his hands, asking for quiet. "I know. It's unthinkable that my brother would do something like that, but I've looked everywhere. I've tried to contact him on his personal communicator, but there's no answer. There was no sign of forced entry, and no one saw anything. I don't know what else to think. Maybe the grief was too much, and he needed time away. Maybe he couldn't handle being given leadership all of a sudden. I don't know. What I do know, is that he isn't here, and I don't know where he is."
"Do you think the Des'kos came and took him?" one of the women murmured, eyes wide.
Ithril shook his head again. "No, kidnapping isn't really their style, and there's no way a Des'kos rebel could have gotten into Carver's room with no one seeing it. Especially with the way the mourners were thick in the streets last night. And anyway, if one of them had taken Carver, they most likely would have killed him and made sure we knew about it. They really don't have any reason to try and bargain or ransom him since we've given them everything they wanted anyway." He swallowed past the lump in his throat. "We all know they didn't hesitate to kill our mother, even knowing who she was."
There was a general rumble of agreement at that, and Cain turned his solemn eyes to Ithril. "How do we proceed?" he asked.
"As planned. Father wanted Carver and I to lead together, but we can't really do that if he's not here. So, I'll take up the mantle of leader on my own. Someone has to."
A few uneasy looks were exchanged between certain people, and Ithril took note of it. If this was going to work the way he wanted it to, then he was going to need people to trust him and be on his side. There had to be some way to make sure that everyone thought this was the best plan.
He leaned back in his chair and thought on that while each member talked about the way their group was dealing with Angen's passing. Since there were no funerals, the Sitheri chose to celebrate the life and mourn the passing of their kind with little vigils and displays for the two weeks that mourning lasted. Ithril made a note to go out and speak to some of them, to show up at some of the gatherings. It was only right that he show his face there since he was Angen's son and Carver wasn't there to do it. Maybe he'd take E'lira with him. She would definitely be good at smoothing the way with people since everyone liked her.
Cain spoke a bit about reaching out to other clans, and the other members were intrigued, but neither Cain nor Ithril elaborated just yet. It wasn't the time for that. Not so soon, and not right after he'd just announced that Carver had gone missing. All of this had to be timed perfectly if he wanted the results that were necessary.
When the meeting adjourned for the night, Ithril waited for all of the Council members to file out before he sighed and thunked his head onto the table. His father had been leader since he was twenty years old, which was just two years younger than Ithril was now.