Chapter 3

"The Bestiarius Academy? You got an offer to go there?" Illedris repeated, shaking her head in disbelief. Casimir silently appreciated this rare moment. Surprise was an expression of hers he hardly ever saw.

"Of course I got an offer. They were practically begging me to join them." Casimir smiled to himself as he stood in the middle of the chamber, swinging his soul-projected axe across his body as if he were cutting down an imaginary opponent. To his disappointment, the weapon itself wasn't particularly nimble or swift and required a stronger arm than his to be more effective.

Illedris leaned back, afloat in the air as if she was on an invisible sofa. Smoke swirled and gathered around her head like storm clouds before lightning struck. "That's certainly a turn of events." she murmured. "Academy..."

"You know that this academy is pretty far from here, right? Not exactly walking distance." Casimir pointed out. He ran his hand along the bronze shaft of the axe, feigning disinterest in the conversation, but in actuality, he was studying her carefully in the corner of his eye.

Illedris chuckled, "Don't tell me you've forgotten that I'm a rogus, and not just any rogus. I could easily leave my territory and appear near the academy's campus in a matter of seconds. Unfortunately, I can't go into the school itself."

"Right, they'd kill you on the spot," Casimir muttered. He dropped his axe, which disintegrated into fine particles before it hit the ground.

Illedris shot him an annoyed glare. "As I was saying," she continued with a wave of her hand, "I can't get inside, but you can. I think you should accept the offer."

Casimir straightened up. It was his turn to be surprised. "Really? You're saying I should go?"

"No. I'm ordering you to go," she said with a malicious, eager grin slowly sprouting on her face. Heat rose up from the Ouroboros Mark over his shoulder blade, but it was bearable.

"You want me to join this venator's academy that bad?"

Illedris nodded. "So you'd better go find those other...people like you before they depart. But make sure they don't stay here very long. If they sense me in the area, then you'll have to fight them and then your offer goes up in smoke." To make her point, her form blurred as she spoke, until Casimir could only see a dark cloud that gradually wafted toward the chamber's ceiling.

"Fine." Casimir sighed. So much for getting a decent amount of sleep tonight.

***

Sneaking through town at three-thirty in the morning wasn't too difficult. Hardly anyone was walking the streets, and there was only one inn in the entire town, so it was just a matter of finding out which room those two venators were occupying. The door opened into a small lobby, consisting of a cozy waiting area with a few couches and a coffee table beside the reception desk, which was empty. A bell sat on the edge of the desk, but as he reached over to ring it, he caught sight of a stack of papers on the other side. The check-in sheet was still lying there, so all Casimir had to do was look until he found the name "Leo Novak."

Was that his name? Leo? Deciding it was, he made his way up the stairs to the third floor until he reached the room indicated by the sheet. Ryker's room was supposed to be the one adjacent, but Leo sounded like he could give him the information he needed to enroll.

He knocked on the wooden door three times, then waited patiently, hoping that was enough to wake him. A few moments passed, and he raised his fist to knock again, when the door creaked open, and Leo's head peeked out. His hair was messy, standing up in the back with a few cowlicks above his forehead. He yawned groggily, but perked up when he realized who was at the door, opening it wider to let Casimir in. As he stepped in, Casimir did his best to give a pleasant smile. Illedris had given him a command to get into the school, so he couldn't blow it this time.

"So have you thought about enrolling? Made up your mind?" Leo inquired, fixing his loose shirt so he didn't look too muddled after having his sleep interrupted. Casimir was impressed that he wasn't at all cranky, but then again, Leo seemed like someone who had a great deal of patience.

"Yeah, I'm in," Casimir nodded, "But about my brother...you sure he can handle it there? And he won't find out the truth about us?" On the way, Casimir had considered going to the academy by himself, but he couldn't bring himself to leave Ulrich behind. He'd miss his brother too much--though he'd never admit it--and without Casimir nearby, there could be another stray rogus with an appetite for his soul.

Truth be told, that was extremely unlikely since this was Illedris's territory, but he also remembered Illedris saying that Ulrich 's soul was more appealing than most, and he shuddered to think that all rogus shared a taste for his kind of soul. A more likely scenario involved Illedris killing Ulrich while Casimir was away, if for some reason she decided his service was no longer of use to her. No, he had to be close enough to keep any rogus away from his brother.

"The academy dorms house at least five hundred people who don't have the slightest clue about rogus or venators at all," Leo reassured him. "The campus is designed so that the mortals have very limited contact with the venators."

"You sound like a salesman."

"I just feel like it's my job to help recruit." Leo shrugged. "It's hard to find venators who know what they're doing. I could convince your brother to come with us for you, and I could persuade your parents to let you enroll as well, if you'd like."

"You won't have to do too much persuading." Casimir gave a dry smile. "We live with our foster parents, so they wouldn't care where we went. They'd probably even be relieved to see us go."

Leo frowned, apparently concerned at the careless nature Casimir used to describe his foster parents, though Casimir couldn't see why Leo would be at all concerned. Parents were just placeholders there to restrain him because he was still a minor and couldn't care for his brother by himself yet. Casimir had learned a long time ago that he was the only one who could protect himself and his brother, because he was the only one who cared enough to ensure their survival. His parents didn't care. Foster parents, blood parents, it didn't matter. None of them ever cared.

Leo quickly recomposed himself, "All right. Ryker and I will come by your place tomorrow morning and I'll take care of everything. I'll need your address and your full name."

"Casimir Warlin, at your service," he introduced, shaking Leo's hand, but in the back of his mind, he thought, what an ironic thing for me to say.

***

The next morning was a blur. Leo and Ryker had shown up at his house, as promised, and with some clever words on Leo's part, his foster parents were easily swayed to let Ulrich and Casimir attend the Bestiarius Academy. Leo spoke about the academy like it was the premium membership of all the high schools in the country. When he mentioned it was a prestigious private school, Casimir's foster parents became skeptical. They weren't exactly the richest family on the block, and the area they lived in couldn’t even be considered middle class. However, Leo shocked them by saying that both of their foster kids had been noticed by recruiters for their exceptional talents and would receive full scholarships to this top-notch school. Even Casimir was astonished to hear that, and he wondered how many phone calls Leo had to make in the morning to pull enough strings to make that happen. The abruptness of it was overwhelming, but their foster parents couldn't resist such an offer, especially when Casimir of all people had received a full scholarship.

"All the perks of a private school without the money leeching or uniforms. So what do you guys think?" Ryker beamed as he studied their faces for approval.

"I'm sold," Casimir replied before the Kastillans had the chance to discuss it. Clearly his enthusiasm was unexpected, but his foster parents were pleased to see him take initiative. Casimir glanced at his brother. "What about you?"

"I can't pass this up," Ulrich agreed after a brief moment of thought. "Especially with the scholarship." While Casimir was certainly relieved, he wasn't too surprised by his brother’s answer. Ulrich was way too smart for their current lackluster high school, and everyone in town knew it. He never complained, but Casimir knew he had been eagerly awaiting his chance to apply into a prestigious university after getting his diploma.

"Great," Leo said, "We thank you on behalf of our headmaster for choosing our school. Ryker and I are heading back today, but we can return next week once our headmaster gives the final okay."

"That's so soon." Mrs. Kastillan frowned, her eyebrows knit with concern. "We'll need time to think about it..."

Leo opened his mouth to reply, but Casimir interjected, "What's there to think about? Obviously, this academy is ten times better than the school we go to now. I mean, look at Ulrich's textbooks. They're old and outdated. And the longer we wait the more we fall behind in our classes. We can’t miss this opportunity, right, Ulrich?" He looked at his brother pointedly, praying he would agree. Casimir didn't care about falling behind; he rarely went out of his way to pursue academic endeavors, but Illedris's command had all but engulfed his thoughts. Attending the Bestiarius Academy was not an option for Casimir, and waiting for his foster parents to think about the decision would only hinder him. Ulrich's concurrence was imperative. Their foster parents might see Casimir as irrational and impulsive, but if Ulrich agreed, they would without a doubt send the boys on their way.

Ulrich hesitated but finally caved under Casimir's expectant stare. "Yeah, Cas and I should go next week if possible."

"It's settled then." Ryker clapped Casimir and Ulrich on the shoulder. "Your satisfaction, guaranteed."

"We'll be back this time next week to escort you two back to the academy," Leo said once he was finished explaining the paperwork to Mr. and Mrs. Kastillan, then both Ryker and Leo shook hands with their foster parents before leaving.

***

Dinner that night was unlike previous supper times, in that Casimir actually listened to the conversation while they ate. Mrs. Kastillan had also gone out of her way to whip up what looked like a holiday dinner with ham, steamed corn, and mashed potatoes, and even apple pie for dessert, knowing it would be the last meal they would have together for a while.

"Make good use of this opportunity, boys," Mr. Kastillan said between bites of ham, "You two are probably the luckiest kids in Silas. No one here could afford going to that academy. Don't blow it." He glanced at Casimir, who grunted in response.

"I'm serious, Casimir. This is a chance I never had as a boy." The wrinkles etched around his foster father's eyes became more prominent as he frowned.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Casimir replied as he drove his fork into his food. "Don't worry about me."

"Well, I'm just happy for both of you," Mrs. Kastillan gushed, "Be sure to write back to us once in a while."

"Of course." Ulrich nodded, but Casimir didn't bother answering. He didn't plan on writing back. Ulrich would sign both their names at the end of each letter anyway.

After a pause in the conversation, Mrs. Kastillan frowned. "You boys will be alright without us, then? I mean we won't be around to take care of you."

Ulrich offered a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about--"

"Of course we'll be fine," Casimir interrupted sharply as he stood from his seat, nothing but crumbs left on his plate. "We don't need you to take care of us."

"Casimir," Ulrich chided, but his brother left the table and trudged to his room.

After closing the door behind him, Casimir lay on his bed and stared at the wooden ceiling. Ulrich might have been under the impression that his foster parents loved them, but Casimir had not been convinced once in seven years. They acted like they cared, and maybe his foster parents did have an attachment to them, but if Mr. and Mrs. Kastillan loved them, then they would have adopted them a long time ago. Casimir knew why they hadn't, and while he didn't care about them, he didn't hate them for it either. His foster parents knew that they could not adopt one of the boys without the other, or they would have adopted Ulrich. He understood why they remained foster parents instead of adopted parents; to them, Casimir was unstable, a wild card they didn't want to commit to. If Casimir did anything insane, they could easily return him to the foster program. Not exactly what Casimir considered a healthy relationship.

Sometime in the hour after supper, Casimir had fallen asleep until the sound of light knocking on his door stirred him awake. Three knocks, as always. Casimir sighed. "Come in," he called.

Mr. Kastillan stepped inside, shutting the door behind him. Casimir sat up and searched his expression for signs of anger, but there were none. Just tired eyes and a sad smile. For a moment, neither of them spoke, and Casimir decided he would have to make amends if he wanted to go back to sleep.

"I'm sorry about dinner," he murmured, his gaze concentrated on the wooden floorboards.

"Don't be." Mr. Kastillan took a deep breath. "I just didn't want that to be the last thing you remember of us before you leave tomorrow. Listen, I know how you must feel about us, and how alone you must feel after everything you've been through. Your mother and I...we're sorry that--"

"It's okay, really." Casimir stopped him before his foster father's voice could become too shaky, forcing a small smile. He didn't want to listen to Mr. Kastillan's spiel about being better parents and doing what's right for the kids, so he would have to say what his foster father wanted to hear. "You don't have to say all that. I know." To top it off, Casimir stood and gave him a hug. Mr. Kastillan was astonished, but he hugged back. When Casimir stepped back, he said, "You two have been the best parents I could've asked for. I'll make you proud, I promise."

Those words were the icing on the cake. Mr. Kastillan smiled, the lines around his eyes following suit, indicating to Casimir that he had succeeded. Before leaving his room, he replied, "You already have, son."

Yeah, right, Casimir thought as he crawled under his covers, Your words are as empty as mine.

The week could not have gone by any slower for Casimir. His motivation to do anything other than prepare to meet and challenge other venators had been in the gutter since the moment his foster parents agreed to send them to the new academy. Finally, the sun began to set on their final day in Sila. Once Casimir had finished packing his meager amount of possessions, he tried to peek into Ulrich's room to see how his packing was coming along, but Ulrich hit him with the door as he was stepping out into the hall. Casimir noticed he wore a jacket and tennis shoes as he rubbed his nose. "Going somewhere?"

"I'm just going to say goodbye to some friends," Ulrich answered before heading out the front door and leaving Casimir alone. Ulrich clearly wasn't ecstatic with the idea of leaving them behind, and for a brief moment Casimir wondered if he should feel guilty for putting him in such a position, but he shrugged it off. Casimir knew Ulrich would only miss them for a short while before finding new friends at the academy. Not once had it crossed Casimir's mind to say goodbye to any of his friends. What friends? Casimir thought to himself indifferently. There was no one he could think of that was worth seeing before he left, except for Ulrich, but they weren't separating. Another exception came to mind, but Casimir didn't consider her a person. His master would want to see him one more time before his departure from her territory. Later, he told himself grudgingly.

***

"I'm leaving at noon." Casimir rested against a stalagmite by the wall of the chamber.

"Perfect." Illedris smirked. The pale grey tinge of the smoke below her hips a brighter shade than usual. Casimir had been with her long enough to know it meant she was pleased. "You are absolutely forbidden to reveal any connection to me to anyone you meet there. Don't ever speak my name. That's an order."

"Because I would go to a school for people who hunt rogus and announce that I'm working for one," Casimir said, ignoring the next surge of heat from his Mark.

"Just clarifying. You can be quite dense sometimes." Before Casimir could refute that comment, she added, "I want you to integrate yourself into their system like you've always belonged. Get to know the other venators. Don't do anything to jeopardize your spot at this school."

More heat emanated from his Mark, and Casimir wondered how many commands she would have to give to start burning his skin. "Yes, master," Casimir muttered, disdain dripping from his voice.

Illedris disappeared as soon as he spoke, before reforming instantly in front of him, her eyes alight with sudden anger. "I hope you're taking this seriously, dear boy. It would be absolutely tragic if your poor brother got hurt because you slipped up this time."

Casimir remained still, though her cold presence made the hairs on the back of his neck stand. He clenched his fists, silently cursing himself for forgetting to hold his tongue. No matter how familiar the two became, Casimir had to remind himself that she, as a rogus, could easily dispose of him and his brother. "There won't be any need for that," he said in a low voice.

"Good." As his master floated back to the center of the cavern, Casimir allowed himself to breathe normally again. She continued, "Be friendly. I know that'll be a bit harder for you, but you'll get used to it."

Casimir only nodded, not daring to say the wrong thing twice.

"That's all I have to say for now." Illedris's form became hazy as the smoke surrounded her and thickened. "Remember, don't mention any word of me to anyone. Insert yourself into their ranks. And don't mess up." The smoke diffused throughout the chamber, but her figure was gone. Her whisper echoed off the cavern's wall. "Wait for my signal. Until then, my servant."