Author's Preface
Casimir rose at the crack of dawn and began his usual routine, getting dressed, studying, and braving the bitter cold for his morning run. The misty haze over the campus from yesterday carried on to that morning, turning the sky a muted mauve. Snow stuck to his shoulders, and the brisk wind numbed the parts of his face with every gust. Casimir made a lap around the quad, managing a steady rhythm of his Aether heart and breathing.
He spotted the spire of Olman Rise peeking from the haze. Maybe Tristan would be interested in joining Cornelius and me, especially since he is… going through a rough time.
Casimir heard another set of footsteps coming up behind him. He looked over at the path heading to his dorm and saw Alistair running towards him. His pale face glistened from sweat. Casimir slowed down his pace to a walk. “Morning, Alistair.”
“I did not ask you to slow down for me!” Alistair overtook him.
Casimir smirked and increased his speed. It did not take long for him to catch up. “This is the first time I’ve seen you out here.”
Alistair glanced at him and fixed his gaze forward. “I decided to modify my training routine.”
“Is it because of our previous fight?” Casimir side-eyed Alistair and cracked a sly grin.
Alistair pushed ahead of Casimir. “I told you not to slow down for me!”
“Hmph.” Casimir broke out into a full sprint, leaving Alistair behind. He dashed out of the path around the quad and down towards the main building. Casimir glanced over his shoulder and saw Alistair trailing behind by several feet.
He smiled to himself. Arrogant prick.
Suddenly, Alistair was replaced by a blur of yellow that breezed past him, whipping up Casimir’s silver hair and coat and nearly knocking him off balance.
It took him a moment to register what had happened, and when he did, he gritted his teeth.
That cheat!
Casimir weaved Lightstep and was taken away by a gust of wind. He sensed that Alistair had already made his way to the side path around the main building. His Aether heart pumped faster, drawing in more Aether and propelling him ahead. He caught up to Alistair when he reached the front of the building. Casimir returned to his place first, and Alistair. Neck and neck, they raced down the path leading to the campus entrance. The gate came upon them in a matter of minutes.
Casimir slowed his Aether heart and decelerated his speed. He staggered forward and caught himself from falling by gripping the bars of the iron gate. He caught his breath.
I can’t believe that only a few days ago, it would have taken me about 30 minutes to get here on foot. He glanced over to Alistair, who got there a few seconds before him.
Alistair hunched over with his hands on his knees. Sweat pooled at the tip of his nose and dripped into the snow. He looked up at Casimir with a prideful grin that spanned across his face, followed by a chuckle between gasps. “I warned you…not to…make light of me. ”
“It was supposed to be a foot race, you dodger!”
“No pity for the unprepared.”
Casimir grunted. “Race you back to Clifford’s Rise.”
Alistair weaved LightStep, and they dashed back up the path.
***
Back in the dorm’s common area, Casimir weaved a triangular pattern over the logs in the fireplace, and his hand ignited into a flame that violently flashed outward. The fire licked and feasted on the logs like a ravenous wolf, and snapped at Casimir’s hand, forcing him to yank it away.
Alistair weaved a triangular pattern, and the jumping flames calmed. “And I was just about to respect you.”
“I’m still learning that pattern,” Casimir said, shaking the sting out of his hand.
Alistair smirked and shook his head. “When you get to E7 to H10, reduce the amount of Aether you pour into those sections.”
“Thanks.”
Alistair then claimed the couch in front of the marble fireplace, while Casimir sat on the stool.
It did not take long for the rest of Casimir to warm up. Before he got too comfortable, he checked his watch. A quarter till eight. I still have time. Cornelius isn’t going to be up yet.
“How did a Mindrattler end up with the Inquis?” Alistair asked in a blunt tone that evoked a head turn from Casimir.
“You noticed?”
“I met my fair share of Inquis in court, including one impudent cad, who makes that snake Merritt look tame.”
Casimir quirked his brow.
Alistair’s left eye twitched from annoyance as he recalled, “ He was stationed there as my bodyguard and was shamelessly invasive during every conversation we shared. Sometimes he would leak, revealing information about me in passing, and feign surprise and swear it was a mistake. I would get back at him, twofold for his offense, but the bastard never let up.”
Nosy and loose-lipped… sounds familiar. Casimir sighed. “Was it Corbin?”
“Yes, you resemble him a bit in the face and how you prowl around on campus. Thankfully, that is all you seem to share with him.”
“It appears that he has not changed much.”
Alistair leaned forward in his chair. “Now, back to you. Were you a late bloomer whose abilities manifested only recently?”
“More or less.”
“I figure as much, although why didn’t the Mindrattlers crush the Inquis for keeping you away from them? Heaven knows, they are desperate for members.”
Whitley’s excuse reappeared in his mind, and he frowned. “They agreed it was for the best that I stay with the Inquis, and now that the circumstances have changed, I was sent to live with my father’s family.”
“If what my sources say about you is true, that is an understatement.”
Casimir bit his lip. Blast it! Of course, he would know!
He suppressed his irritation and asked unamused, “So why are you here? The Emperor couldn’t spare you a master to study under?”
Alistair sat up and tilted his chin up proudly. “I’m here to forge my own path away from the capital.”
“You weren’t fleeing from court because of my cousin?” Casimir smirked.
Alistair wrinkled his nose. “Hrmp, if I want to take over the Empire from Grandfather one day, I should get to know my future subjects.”
“You should have been more amicable if you wanted my support,” Casimir snapped. “And who knows, I might also be aiming for the Emperor’s seat?”
Alistair laughed. “You don’t strike me as the type.” He lowered his eyes and cracked a sympathetic smile.
When he rose from his seat, the smile was replaced with a stern frown. “No, you’ll be betrayed and devoured as soon as you step into court. That is, if that cousin of yours or I don’t kick you out first.”
He patted Casimir on his shoulder. “This was fun. Farewell, Mindrattler.”
Casimir watched Alistair leave the common room and disappear up the stairs.
As if I’d vote for him to be the next Emperor. Then again, I have no interest in politics, so Whitley will probably be the one voting. Would he vote for him?
Casimir thought back to the moments he shared with Whitley. From his controlling personality with all aspects of his training and personal life to the arrogant way he spoke. Lastly, how he carried himself, and his obsession with managing his image and those around him.
If anything, Whitley would strive to become Emperor and pressure me to run the Mindrattler estate while he is gone. He dug his hands into his scalp and groaned. Being an Inquisitor would have been simpler.
Casimir got up from his stool and returned it in front of the side chair. “I should check if Cornelius is up.”
***
It did not take long for Casimir to return to his dorm and knock on Cornelius’ door. He heard some shuffling of the covers from inside. Shortly after that, the door opened, and a disheveled and groggy Cornelius greeted him with a yawn. “Couldn’t you wake me up at a more reasonable hour?”
Casimir looked at him, confused, and pointed at the time displayed on his watch. “It is past eight o'clock. We usually have class at around this time.”
Cornelius groaned and raised his hand in defeat. “Okay, I’ll get dressed.”
Casimir held on to the door, preventing Cornelius from closing it. “Perfect! We can pick up Tristan and have breakfast before we head down to the bog.”
Cornelius wiped some crust from underneath his eye. “You want to bring Tristan?”
“Why not? We are all taking the same class together, and he is missing a partner.” Casimir released his grip.
“Alright.” Cornelius forced a smile and slowly began to close the door. “Why don’t you go get Tristan? We’ll meet up at the cafeteria, okay?”
“Yes, thank yo—”
The door slammed closed before Casimir could finish. He is definitely not a morning person.
***
Ten minutes later, Casimir was knocking on another person’s door.
Tristan answered it, fully dressed and wide awake, unlike Cornelius. He looked at Casimir, surprised. “Casimir? What are you…”
“Cornelius and I are going to work on Awldriver’s project today. Do you want to join? We will get breakfast before heading down to the creek.”
Tristan hesitated for a moment until he lowered his gaze. “Sure, I’ll get ready.” He then closed the door.
One minute passed, then five, and next ten. Casimir checked his watch, and his patience further waned. It should not take that long. He is already dressed.
Casimir activated his Aether heart, and he could sense Tristan pacing back and forth near the door until he moved to the back of his room and leaned over something that Casimir assumed was his desk.
Tristan stayed there for several more minutes, his Aether trembling.
“Tristan?” Casimir called out.
“Wha–uh…coming,” Tristan replied in a weak, shaky voice.
Is he crying? Casimir slowed his Aetherheart, and Tristan’s Aether faded away. He backed away from the door. This feels too invasive. I need to learn Aether Suppression right away.
Eventually, Tristan exited his dorm.
“Sorry for the wait. I could not find one of my pipettes.” He locked the door.
“No, it’s fine. We should get a move on. Cornelius is waiting.”
Tristan quietly trailed behind him, hunched over and dragging his heels like a dark cloud burdened by rain.
Casimir gritted his teeth when they reached the lobby, and he saw Merritt chatting with the dorm viceroy. This blighter is keeping tabs on me.
Merritt waved, feigning fake surprise. “Hey! Where are you two going?”
“Breakfast,” Casimir replied.
Merritt rushed over to Casimir and rested his arm on his shoulder. “Glad I caught you in time. I’m heading there too. Where is Cornelius?”
Casimir slipped out of his grasp. “He said he would meet with us there.”
***
By the time they reached the cafeteria, the dull yellow from the sun peeked through the thick fog. Its light barely penetrated through the glass windows that encased the room. Cornelius and Fenna were halfway done with their breakfast when Casimir and his group arrived.
Cornelius frowned while looking out of the window. “It is ghastly outside. Maybe we should try again tomorrow?”
Casimir glanced at Tristan, who kept his head down while stirring his oatmeal around with a blank expression on his face.
He shifted his gaze to Cornelius. “No, we should get this done today, and we will have the rest of the weekend left. This will give us a perfect buffer just in case something arises.”
“Or it might give Awldriver an excuse to pile on more work.” Merritt cut in.
Cornelius nodded. “True, but she is my master, so I do want to impress her. ”
Casimir noticed Tristan raise his head slightly with a surprised look on his face.
Sequentially, Tristan ceased his stirring, his lips parted to speak, but he returned to staring into his bowl of oatmeal with defeat etched onto his face.
Merritt leaned over to Casimir and asked in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear. “What is the matter with him?”
Cornelius shot him a stern look.
“Okay, okay, never mind.” Merritt waved his hand up and down. “It is just you know… Casimir invites a new guy out of the blue.” He glanced at Tristan. “And he is a bit of a downer.”
Merritt gained a glare from Fenna that he ignored.
“Unbelievable,” Casimir snarled.
Tristan forced a smile that quickly flatlined. “Don’t mind me, I’m just tired, but I should be fine once the coffee kicks in.” He took a swig from his mug. “Let’s complete this awful assignment.”
***
With their hunger satiated and fatigue quelled with caffeine, the group of five became four when Fenna parted ways to study in the library. The rest of them began their journey to the creek, down the path beyond the student dorms.
Casimir looked overhead as the fog consumed the landscape in a thick white veil. “Tsk.”
“Looks like Tristan isn’t the only person here in a bad mood.” Merritt jabbed Casimir in the arm. “Will it kill you to lighten up a bit and not walk around like you starch your drawers?”
Casimir ignored him and kept his attention on the mist. Will I be able to Lightstep through it? I had to rely on following Aetherseeker yesterday.
Casimir felt another nudge from Merritt. “I take that as a no. You’re not even going to spare us that fake cordial smile you usually give us to look non-threatening.”
“Will you piss off?!” Casimir snapped. “Don’t you have your own assignments to do?”
Merritt smiled. “No.”
Casimir turned red and addressed the entire group. “Does everyone know Lightstep?”
He got a hesitant nod from Tristan.
Cornelius looked into the mist and bit his bottom lip. “Yes, but would that be wise?”
Casimir sighed and heard a snicker from Merritt.
This is going to be a long day.