“I may be able to help, if you are interested.”
“How?”
He tuts. “Manners, dear boy!”
My jaw clenches. I was never sure if this man actually killed some of my classmates, or whether he was simply with the people who did. But I have no time, and he’s right. If he can help … “Please.”
“Hmm.” He raises an eyebrow. “Unconvincing, but Iamcurious to see what you can do. Are you still able to sense the Will around us?”
Part of me wants to ask, or dissemble, but I already know what he’s talking about. I’ve thought about it a lot, this past month, and it’s the only thing that makes sense. “No. It faded after the Iudicium. Though it did come back briefly, when I touched the Aurora Columnae.”
“It will return in time, as you learn to look for it. Assuming all remains well in Luceum.” He sighs. “It’s not necessary, but it is an excellent counterpart to an ability you have called Adoption. Adoption allows you to take control of any Will imbued into something, no matter who imbued it.”
I cough a disbelieving laugh. Certain I’ve misunderstood and then, under the man’s steady gaze, certain he is insane. “That’s not possible.”
“Nor is being able to sense concentrations of Will. And yet you have experienced it. Along with many other ‘impossible’ things, recently, no doubt.” He shrugs. “Believe me or do not, Catenicus. But if you touch an object that has been imbued, youcanuse the Will within it.”
Silence. My mind races. It goes against everything we learned at the Academy. “How?”
“From what I understand, you simply need to make physical contact, and keep the object in your mind as if you were the one imbuing it. Other than that?” He shrugs again. “The joy of discovery, my boy. I never had the ability, myself.”
I glower. “Very helpful.”
“And yet worth knowing, given your situation. Especially if you’re not going to reclaim the rest of your Will from whoever you’re ceding to.”
I hold my breath. “He should be outside. In the crowd. But they barred the gate, stopped anyone from coming in. I don’t know how to get to him.” Perhaps he has a way to help.
The man’s mouth twists. Amusement as he glances out the long window. “Ah,” he says apologetically.
I stare at him. The implication clear enough. “It was you?Youtold people I would be here?”
He spreads his hands. Not so much regretful, as an indication that he thought it was necessary. “Locked gates mean lax security. Fewer eyes. More spaces for conversations such as these. And Ididthink this morning would be more complicated.”
I exhale. Frustrated. Feeling the seconds tick away. He’s not going to help with Eidhin. Gods, he still seems more amused by the whole thing than anything else. “How did you convince so many people to come?”
“Convince them? My boy. I only had towhisperyour name; Caten already talks of little else. The thrill of a storied hero presented with yet another challenge. Can he overcome? Has he been wronged, the way his prior victories have been so thoroughly ignored? Will his youth be swallowed by the political maw of the Senate?” Theatrical, revelling in the drama of the questions. “You know of the divisions between Governance and Military and Religion, of course, but do you think those truly matter to the Octavii and Septimii who work the fields and mines? No. They watch in fear. They wonder when the ambitions of their betters will lead to the deaths of their children. And then amidst it all, is you. The man who saved them. The man who survives. These people are desperate for a hero, Catenicus. Hidden away though you have been, your popularity only grows.”
I’m silent after he finishes. Mind racing. He’s right; I’ve been so shut away that I have no idea what people think of me now. What he’s describing is far from definitively beneficial: every senator inside and outside of Governance would be wary of such popularity.
But it may have its uses, too.
The stranger waves a hand as he continues to pace. “Our time grows short, so listen carefully. In five months, at the Festival of Pletuna, there will be a gathering at the Forum as there is every year. You need to be in attendance, and you need to make sure everyone sees you. Really takes note of you. You’ll also need a way to conceal your identity that night, when the time comes. A mask.Something to hide your missing arm.” He pauses. “And you must ensure you have learned how to perform Adoption before then.”
“Why?”
He chuckles. “You know better than to ask.”
I feel my hand ball into a fist. This list he’s given me … it doesn’t sound promising. “And if I were to refuse?”
His smile fades. For the first time, he stops moving. “You know better than to ask.”
My breath is tight. This man’s hands are as bloody as Relucia’s, but unlike hers, they do not seem to be that way for a reason. “So this is all for the Anguis again?”
“I suppose. But for much bigger things than that too, Catenicus. For theworld. Have you seen the way the Aurora Columnae glow so brightly? Time is running out.” He glances toward the door. “But if it helps to sweeten the deal—once you have done what I ask, I will give you every single senator who agreed to our little adventure on Solivagus. The names of every man and woman in Caten who knew your friends would die.”
I freeze. The time pressure forgotten. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I no longer need them. But I do need you.” His smile shows too many teeth. “Until then, Catenicus.”
