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ARCHIVAL RECORDS OF THE 57TH OF THE IMPERIUM Redocumented By SCHOLAR QUINTA IN THE YEAR 305
With a third of the continent in their control, it was getting difficult for the Solarin and his round table to tame the masses under their regime. With rebellions on the horizon, Valedara, Solarin's second in command, sought out the High Palatines of the most dominant Sanctums within their territory.
A brokered meeting between High Palatines and Solarin led to the signing of the Treaty of Trinitas.
The Treaty of Trinitas was established as a perpetual agreement between both parties, where the Sanctums of Solarius, Sylvannis, and Varniel would aid the Imperium in pacifying the masses to their rule. In turn, the Imperium would ensure the exclusive worship of those Divine within the Imperium.
The first allied action was the destruction of Sanctums not belonging to the Trinitas through an allied army referred to as the Custodes Aeternae.
The modern-day Custodes Aeternae are in charge of regulating all citizens with Non-Trinitas Virtues. This is done by registration and consistent monitoring of such individuals.
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I gently knocked on the door.
"Enter!" Rhetor Felix said.
The bland smell of the Rhetor's office had grown familiar. Almost comforting. A slight, dewy scent that vitiated the air within the room whenever the windows were closed. They were closed. Hence, the grassy smell that drew me to the garden each evening struck me as soon as I settled in my chair. I sighed. It was slowly becoming my second haven.
The Rhetor was in the next room. Locked behind walls that hid his actions from me, so I had to wait. After a long while, he came.
"Sorry for the wait," he rushed to his seat. He greeted me with a weary smile. Rhetor Felix was a walking contradiction. He seemed to be aging faster with every meeting. Wrinkles crumbled his face into dense folds of skin that drained the wealth of youth from it. However, he carried hair that was lush and full on his head. He complained that his bones could no longer bear his weight, though he walked deftly as if gliding on the floor. No sound as he approached his chair. A supposed commoner with the political acumen of a seasoned noble. He was an enigma but not for long.
"It's okay. I like the ambience," I said.
"The herbs remind me of home back when I was a boy," I heard the nostalgia in his voice. He continues," You know I wanted to be a farmer."
I didn't. He scowled, disappointed I did not know that, and I did not care to ask why. I let him continue.
"I spent my morning in the field. Hands wet with soil," he rubbed his first fingers to his thumbs, recalling the feel of soil, " the rising sun was gentle as we worked happily. I did this until I became a man. Once a man, I wanted to be a hero," He stopped.
"Are you a hero?" I asked. This I wanted to know.
"No. I become a coward instead," He lends me his smile once more. His brown eyes were gentler than usual.
I smile back.
"Your father sends his regards," Rhetor Felix said. He walks to the food trolley right by the room he emerged from," I was by the estate over the weekend."
"For someone who is supposed to be teaching you are often off-premise," I joked.
"I am burdened by duties that yank me away from the academy," He pours himself a cup of herbal tea," and it seems you are learning regardless."
"I am," I said. I recognised the scent of the tea.
The leaves were from the first meeting since Nighthold.
"Are you averting from being a brooding brute?" Rhetor asked as he chuckled.
"From the duel two weeks back. I tried joking with Darsius. He was not having it."
"What was the joke?" he was curious.
I felt a smile beam as I remembered, "It was not a joke per se. He asked why my eyes weren't purple."
"What did you say?" he interrupted.
"I said,' These are new. ' Darsius didn't laugh."
It took Rhetor Felix a minute before he burst out laughing. I waited as he recovered.
"That was a terrible joke, but picturing him with an ugly frown makes it funnier," Rhetor commented," I am a great teacher after all."
Silence lingered, but I did not let it thicken.
"How is father?"I asked.
"Same old same old," Rhetor Felix said. He was back at his seat," he was wondering why you gave it out."
"The blood needle?" I questioned. Memories of my father giving the previous Cassian the relic flashed then flickered away. Another question answered, I thought.
"Yes. He was not wondering but questioning why. However, he seemed quite pleased with all of it."
"I thought he would be angered by it. Elevating the enemy."
Rhetor Felix laughed gently," Everyone knows Lucius has no love for his family and your alliance proves it. Your siblings are worried by your proactiveness."
"I should be careful then," I sighed.
"You should be. The academy is made of hollow walls. Nothing stays in. Nothing stays out."
I nodded in acknowledgement," I will heed this warning."
Silence crept in, lumbering and heavy.
"What were father's regards?" I questioned, then went on," He's not one for casual greetings."
Rhetor Felix lit up as he recalled," I had forgotten about that. He expressed his joy in your recent actions, attributing them to our time shared. He even rewarded me handsomely for it."
"Only that?"I interrupted.
"I was getting to it. He said it was about time you stepped up even further. He demands you win the final exams entirely, and there will be consequences if you were to lose."
"What is there to win? To my knowledge, the exams are the dorm wars."
"Then you are in for a surprise," Rhetor grinned as he went for his tea. His face folded in disappointment," It went cold."
As he went back to the food tray. I stood ready to leave. His cryptic messaging forced urgency upon me, the need to prepare burgeoning within me.
"I shall take my leave, teacher," I said.
He nodded. I bowed.
By the door, I stopped and turned. My tongue burning with a question.
"Are you still a coward?" I asked.
He donned his frequent smile," Yes, but soon I might be a hero."
With the question's gravity puttering away, I left.
*-----*
My evenings by the Garden of Laelia no longer brought me the much-needed peace I desired. The profound silence echoed through me. I was no longer lost in the stars that succeeded the beautiful vermilion horizon of dusk. Instead, I was confined within my thoughts.
The garden lacked benches to rest on, forcing me to sit close to the grass. The evening breeze caressed me gently as I lay down, its whispers were oblivious to my senses as I wondered what I should do next.
It had been a week since my talk with Rhetor Felix, and just like our previous encounters, I was left with so much food for thought. Time spared for training and preparing for the exams was often eaten away by matters of the mind. Mostly questions and sentiments about what my future held. Would I have to stop surviving and probably start living? However, I was bothered. If I were to live. Did I have anything to live for?
All my actions and reactions yielded fruits of ambition. Forced down my throat they were, without a moment to savor. Dangling from the thin line between survival and true purpose, I first need to find control. Tether my feet to the ground before venturing out and the academy was indeed the best place to do exactly that. A relatively safe place to lay foundations for my pursuit of strength and dominion over my life and fate.
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I never registered Lucius' presence until he was close. He wore an oriental perfume, its notes clashing with the woody scent of nature. Stern as always he just stood, blocks of filed papers hugged under his right arm.
The blood needle was strapped to his left hip. I smiled.
"I do not know why you insist we meet here," Lucius said as he set the files beside me, and went back to standing. He continued," There are more private places within campus."
"I was informed that we are surrounded by hollow walls, so we just as well could meet in the open, where it's quiet and peaceful."
"You are very intriguing. Nothing you do or say remotely makes sense," Lucius countered.
"It's the dilemma of man. We are a puzzle to ourselves, let alone others," I said back.
"This is exactly what I mean," Lucius cracked a smile as he unhooked the blood needle to sit. The files and the relic separated us.
"How are you?" I asked.
"Great. I'm still getting used to the attention. The stares. The praise. What about you?"
"I'm great. Thinking. A lot. How about we spar? Blow off steam."
"No. Find new pleasures. Like women," Lucius said.
"I thought I was the funny one."
Lucius stares at me," It was not a joke. Most find delectation in the flesh."
"Even you?" I questioned.
"I am not most."
Lucius reached for the files. Snooped through them, then fished on and handed it to me.
It was a dossier. A thick one. Recorded by the Custodes Aeternae stamped in red on the cover. The more I skimmed through the pages, the more amazed I became.
"I thought you needed to know," Lucius noted my shock.
The dossier was about Rhetor Felix. Information on him was mostly redacted by thick black lines, save for the basic things about him.
Lucius let me read through it, and from it, I knew why Rhetor Felix was a coward.
"Wonderful," I muttered.
I closed the folder. I spared Lucius a glance. I smiled. It was a great day.