Chapter 15: Brutal Elimination

When Casimir stepped onto the main campus, there was an uncomfortable stillness. There was no wind or snow, just foreboding dark clouds and oppressive cold.

“What is going on? You look like someone kicked your dog.” Cornelius muttered through the scarf wrapped around his face.

Casimir’s eyes scanned over the quad. He noticed a group of wardens hurrying away from the direction of Olman’s Rise. Their expressions were tense.

Did something happen last night?

“Casimir!” Cornelius gave him a look of concern.

“It’s nothing.”

Cornelius frowned, and Casimir assumed his lie was not convincing.

When they finally made it to the cafeteria, Casimir savored his coffee. His mind sharpened, and the weights on his movements were lifted. He took a bite of his fried corn mush and figs. “This is surprisingly good.”

Cornelius only ate the figs and ignored the rest.“It is okay. I would rather have something less homely.”

Fenna nodded while carefully chewing through the mush. She openly displayed her displeasure with a grimace, but continued to eat.

“Hey!” Merritt announced his arrival with a shout and placed an intrusive hand on Casimir’s shoulder. “I see that Casimir is the only one here enjoying the food. ”

Casimir gave Merritt a glare as he quietly chewed.

Cornelius glanced over at Casimir. “Our new friend has surprisingly pedestrian taste.”

“I’m hungry,” Casimir grumbled.

Merritt plopped down in the empty chair between Casimir and Cornelius. “Anyway, did any of you guys notice the increased security around the campus?”

Of course, he noticed.

“Yes, I did. Do you know the reason?” Casimir asked.

“I was hoping that you knew.” Merritt gave him a cheeky grin.

“No, I don’t.” But Sully might.

Cornelius groaned, “I hope whatever it is, they sort it out soon. Casimir and I still have to finish that assignment for Awldriver.”

After breakfast, Casimir headed for the main lobby. There, he found the front desk occupied by a senior male student from the Forevergreene family.

Casimir’s stern expression spooked him, and he quickly raised his hands.“Don’t worry, I’m supposed to be here. I’m just filling in for Mr. Wanek. ”

“Do you know where he is?”

“Yes, he is part of a search party. Um, a student went missing from the nurse’s ward.”

Bryson?

Casimir’s eyes widened, and he left the desk without a word. He headed directly to the nurse's office. There, he saw Nurse Feverfew clasping her hands at her desk with a miserable look on her pale face. “Ah, you must have heard the bad news.” Her voice dragged from a lack of sleep.

“What happened?”

Nurse Feverfew fluttered her eyelashes, holding back tears from her weary eyes. “Bryson is gone. He must have slipped out before I made my rounds in the morning.”

She shook her head, but a few tears were able to escape. “I wish I were more cautious and firm with him. He was in no condition to be wandering around in the woods.”

The woods? “Ms. Feverfew, do you know why he might have left unprompted?”

“Ah, Mr. Lightwell barged in here again. A senior student, who was filling in for me at the time, was unaware of their …bitter relationship and let him in. Even though the student claimed their conversation seemed relatively calm, and Mr. Lightwell seemed to come from a place of concern, it just—it didn’t sit well with me.”

So that is where Alistair went after he stormed off. Casimir maintained a neutral expression despite his growing suspicions.“Do you know what Mr. Lightwell might have said to him?”

“Yes, it was the same thing as before. Mr. Lightwell told him he should drop out, and Bryson refused. The student also said he mentioned something about completing an assignment and proving him and everyone wrong.”

Could Alistair’s pestering push Bryson to work on his alchemy assignment alone in the dead of night? He has done his fair share of reckless things, but he also seemed terrified of his encounters at the bog. “Can you please tell me the name of the student who was watching Bryson for you?”

Nurse Feverfew's eyes shifted with a look of apprehension. She gave him an uneasy smile. “He did not do anything wrong. Please don’t bother him. I’m sure he feels terrible about what happened.”

So it is not Magnolia, but it is probably someone from the first aid club. Casimir gave her a sympathetic smile. “Don’t worry, I won’t. I just thought he might have seen or heard something that he didn’t realize was important at the time.”

Nurse Feverfew nodded. “I see, but I’m sure he already received enough questioning this morning from the Administration Staff and that eerie fellow from Security.” She placed her hand on her cheek and sighed. “Oh, I hope they find him.”

“Indeed, do you know how Tristan is doing?”

Nurse Feverfew’s mood soured. “He is not taking it well, the poor dear.”

Casimir bid her goodbye, and he pondered his next move as he returned to the main lobby.

I wonder if I can join the search party. He approached the Forevergreene senior student, who tensed up upon seeing him again.

“Can I help with the search?” Casimir asked.

The Forevergreene student shook his head. “No, there is no need. We already have experienced faculty members and senior students looking for him. Focus on your classes if you can. We will keep you updated. ”

“Alright, thank you.” Casimir turned away from the desk and checked his watch. Class will have to wait. I must find Sully and hopefully Bryson.

***

Wind numbed his face as he dashed through the snow towards the creek. He couldn’t sense anyone within his range. He could only use the boot prints heading toward the forest as a guide. How far out did they expand their search? Casimir checked his watch again. It is going to take about twenty minutes to reach the creek and close to an hour to the bog at this speed. Now would be a good time to try it. Casimir stopped and consulted his notes for Lightstep.

The pattern was simple enough to do on a loom. It shouldn’t be too difficult to do without it. Casimir weaved the semicircular pattern. The air around him quickened, and he took one step and propelled forward with a loud crack that made him wince. The tree that was several feet away became inches away from his face in seconds.

He veered to the right, opting to plow through a spiny bush that made him grateful that he was wearing durable pants. Barrelling through the trees made it impossible to check for tracks. However, he could now sense two human figures up ahead.

Drat, I’m about to overshoot them. Casimir slowed his Aether heart and skidded to a stop. His body had not caught up with the decrease in speed, and a wave of motion sickness assaulted him.

He hunched over and heaved. Maybe I should have skipped breakfast.

“First time using Lightstep, Mindrattler?” Professor Deadeye’s voice caught him by surprise.

He looked up to his professor, staring back at him quizzically. Dirt covered her pants and leather jacket.

“Yes.” Casimir dusted himself off. His gaze drifted to a blocky, 20-something warden with dusky brown hair stalking nearby.

Sully isn’t here.

“Shouldn’t you be in class?” Her tone was friendly but had a bit of firmness to it.

I could ask you the same thing. He held his tongue. “I wanted to help. A life is at stake. Isn’t that more important than class? ”

“It is.” Deadeye smiled at him warmly. “Alright, due to the serious circumstances, I’ll give you a pass for skipping. Just make sure you can perform all of the patterns I gave you on Tuesday.”

“Thank you, Professor.”

Professor Deadeye turned to the warden for his response.

“As long as he does not slow us down, I’m fine with it,” he answered plainly.

Professor Deadeye playfully dismissed his concern. “Ah, Ollie, it will be alright. I'm sure he did this before, Inquisitors, you know.”

Warden Ollie’s eyes widened with surprise. “I’ve seen everything now.”

Of course, she noticed. “So where are we in the search?”

Professor Deadeye pointed.“We found his tracks and a bag of alchemy tools within a grove of pine trees. It looks like he was collecting pine resin.”

Casimir furrowed his brow. “Why would he collect pine resin, alone, in the dead of night? It does not make sense.”

She rubbed her bottom lip as she pondered. “Yes, his friend mentioned something about that, but he also screamed, insecure commoner with something to prove.” She winced from second-hand embarrassment. “Trust me, I know from experience.”

Warden Ollie nodded. “Young and dumb. Hopefully, he just got lost. ”

A red streak followed by a plume of smoke lit up the colorless sky. Casimir deduced it was shot about ten miles away from their current location. This is far beyond the zone designated for the assignment. Maybe he did get lost.

Ollie watched the flare fall from the sky. “They found something, all the way out there?”

“We can mull over the how later. Let’s get going!” She glanced at Casimir with a mixture of worry and apprehension. “Try your best to keep up and don’t strain yourself.”

Both Deadeye and Warden Ollie weaved a semi-circular pattern and zipped through the trees. By the time Casimir activated his Aether heart, they were already out of range.

I have no time to waste. He weaved Lightstep and barreled through the trees. Deadeye told him not to strain himself, but that proved to be a challenge. The distortion of time and space was disorientating, not only that, it required a fair bit of Aether, which drained his stamina. He had taken several breaks to adjust himself from plowing into a tree, falling off a cliff, or vomiting up figs. When he caught up to Deadeye and the warden, he was sweating bullets. They were out of the forest and standing in front of an abandoned rock quarry.

“This does not look good,” Ollie muttered.

Ollie, Deadeye, and a group of about twenty volunteers gawked at old blood staining the snow. A body looked like it was dragged by a large beast, based on the claw marks and footprints. Casimir’s expression became grave. This looks like the tracks from an unnaturally large puma.

A pained cry from an animal broke the disquieting silence. Everyone rushed over in the direction of the sound, resonating from a man-made cave. Casimir sensed the Aether of three human figures huddling over a beast. The creature’s Aether gradually diminished. Only that of the humans remained.

I guess they killed it. I can’t make out who exactly is in there, but…they are too tall to be Bryson.

Chancellor Salamander marched out of the cave with a grim and tired face bearing the burden of giving out bad news. One look at his hands told it all. Within his grip were the tattered remains of a student uniform. There were a few gasps from the female students. Ollie groaned, and Deadeye shook her head and sighed.

Sully and a Weaver with muscles that could rival his uncle’s carried out the charred carcass of a massive puma. The blood and ash from the animal soiled their overcoats. Its mouth hung, revealing malformed fangs that were as long as a human’s head, and one paw could floor a man with a swipe.

I doubt Bryson could stand a chance against that thing. His eyes drifted away from the beast and to Sully, straining to carry the beast on his shoulder. I hope it was quick.

The team of faculty and senior students was abuzz in excitement from the size of the beast. The group consensus was that the puma dragged Bryson off and ate him, but they could not agree on why it was hunting so far away from its den.

Chancellor Salamander projected his solemn, fatigued voice above the crowd. “Thank you all for your efforts. It is with a heavy heart that I must announce that the student, Bryson Rottenborn, has been found dead. The beast that killed him has been eradicated, I’ve made sure of it. I will release an official statement later in the day. You are all dismissed. ”

The band of volunteers dispersed, disheartened but eager to leave.

Casimir approached the Chancellor, who frowned upon seeing him.

“Casimir, what are you doing here?!”

“I wanted to help,” Casimir answered solemnly.

Chancellor Salamander sniffed. “As you can see, we have it under control. You missed your classes for nothing.”

He looked over his shoulder at Sully. “Warden, escort him back to the main campus. We would not want any more casualties.” With that, the Chancellor coldly brushed past Casimir without a word.

The brawny Weaver spoke up, “Chancellor Salamander, there is no need to be harsh on the boy. You can’t blame him for wanting to save his friend.”

The man’s massive hand clasped Casimir’s shoulder. He looked up at the hazel-haired, bespectacled stranger, giving him a sympathetic smile. This man was one of the few Weavers around here who bested him in height. He has quite the grip.

Chancellor Salamander halted his departure and sighed. “You do have a point, Aetherseeker.” He turned around to face Casimir. “If you want to help, head back to your dorm and don’t pull a stunt like this again.”

Casimir clenched his teeth. I’m an Inquisitor! Why is he treating me like a troublesome brat? Casimir nodded. “Understood.”

“Good.” Once Chancellor Salamander was sure there would not be any more interruptions, he darted away in a flash.

After a polite nod, Aetherseeker soon followed, leaving Casimir and Sully alone with the charred remains of the beast.

Sully placed a comforting hand on Casimir’s head. “You look like you had a more exhausting morning than I did.”

Casimir looked at the beast and sighed. “That poor kid did not have a chance.”

“You can’t save everyone.” Sully patted Casimir on the back. “Come, we will talk about it back in the office, after you get something to eat.”