The Academy - 2. Part 2

World of Ares

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Chapter Two:

First Day

When Gideon and Alex arrived for the first day of lessons at the Academy barracks, it was loud with camaraderie of other rowdy young men. On seeing Alex and Gideon together, however, the whole barracks went silent, as if they expected a fight to break out right then and there. Gideon, though, knew how to end that expectation; he kissed Alex on the lips while his hand gave Alex’s rear a possessive squeeze. This sent a series of loud shouts and cheers throughout the barracks, the students amazed that Alex was taking the role as a passive partner to Gideon and his one good arm.

Believing that the still ever popular Gideon no longer held a grudge against Alex, the other youths warmed up to the former loner, with two of them offering to switch cots with him so he could have one adjoining Gideon’s. Alex happily accepted.

Just as Alex was getting settled in, the sergeant in charge of their section of the barracks came in to make his inspection. “Positions!” the heavyset man called out. All the boys stopped what they were doing and stood with their backs straight, shoulders rolled back, and heads looking forward.

“As you may know there was an attack against the Field Marshals. Field Marshal Gorr is dead and Field Marshal Lukas was seriously wounded. To replace Gorr, General Darius, conqueror of Qul Tos, is now Field Marshal of the East, but that is a minor development. The Commandant has just received a message that Field Marshal Lukas is personally leading his forces against the Kingdom of Jadoor. That means Domus itself is now at war with the Federation!” the sergeant stressed. "While some wanted to cheer and other’s cringe, all the boys remained silent. The sergeant paced up and down the barracks as he continued to give his speech. “This war will be difficult and may last years... hopefully not as long as the siege of Qul Tos, but it might last longer than the life of Field Marshal Lukas and his staff. New leaders will be needed in this war and it is my job to make sure that all of you fine lads are ready to provide that leadership when the time comes. So you boys better not disappoint me, or I will personally be the one to cut your foreskins, and you better believe I will use a very dull knife.”

“Yes sir!” all the boys shouted as one.

The sergeant stopped pacing at the entrance to his private room. “Good, now get dressed and outside in formation. You have a ten-mile run and I don’t want to see any foot dragging... do I make myself clear?”

“Yes sir!”

“I see he is sending us out early,” Gideon said looking at the darkness of early morning.

Alex eyes were bright with excitement. “That is to be expected as we will have to undergo war training.”

“You will... I’ll have to take lessons on how to be a secretary,” Gideon moaned. “Your penmanship is awful though.” Alex laughed. “I know... I’m going to miss the running course,” Gideon sighed.

“I’m sorry, Gideon,” Alex said guiltily.

“Don’t worry about it, Alex... I’ve forgiven you,” Gideon said as he lay down on his cot, to take advantage of the extra sleep he was allowed.

“I will not bring it up again,” Alex said as he began to get dressed.

“Good... Good night,” Gideon grunted. The last thing he wanted to deal with was Alex apologizing to him in every sentence. “Night,” Alex sighed as he hurried to join the others outside.

When he finally could not stand remaining in bed any longer, Gideon went to his usual table in the mess hall for the morning meal “I hear that you and Alex have found yourself a Legatio bed­ warmer.” Natrilo, Gideon’s friend, laughed during breakfast.

“Jason is no bed-warmer.” Gideon glared, stabbing a fat sausage with his fork.

“Sorry, but what do you expect others to think. Legatio are not known for taking interest in Centurions unless they want something,”

Natrilo replied eyeing the stump of Gideon’s right arm. “Jason is not like that. He has just never had friends before.

Unlike most Legatio... I feel... I feel he needs me.”

“That is how a Legatio is supposed to be. All of them, even the ones from the poorer merchant families treat us as if we are nothing more than a sword to be directed.”

“Trust me, Natrilo, when you meet Jason you will see how he needs us even though the last thing he would want any of us to do is kill another person.”

“I’ll take your word on that,” Natrilo agreed as his eyes focused on a group of Legatio students who had just walked in. “Look who has just arrived.”

“Felix...” Gideon hissed.

“Watch it, the punishment for attacking a Legatio is expulsion.”

“I know, but look at him... he’s even wearing the gold fringe as Academic Horst’s pet snoop.”

“Is he not a little young for that? He is only twenty.”

“He is also the adopted son of Senator Perils, my father. Since the Senate controls the funding of the Academy it is not surprising that the Academics are giving him extra privileges.

“Well, I hope Jason will fix that,” Gideon grumbled before

returning to his meal.

“I do not want to wear this,” Jason pouted, looking at the red, ruffled, tasseled, and beaded shirt Kristen was holding out for him to

put on.

“It is part of your uniform and you will wear it!” How else are the other Legatio going to know your status? The tassels show the wealth of your family while the number of ruffles signify that your

father was a general. “But what about the beads?” Jason almost whined.

“Those show off your academic skills. The Commandant and I have been keeping a close eye on you, so we know you can read, and write in Mord. The way you have been able to keep track of your money with the merchants and food sellers also shows you have basic skills with numbers.

“I will still have fewer than most Legatio.”

“Almost all of them,” Kristen agreed. “But you will be the only one with this,” he added, taking out a white sash with two silver pendants.

“What is that?”

“All the Centurion students wear these,” Kristen explained as he put it on Jason.

“What about Legatio?” Jason asked.

“You are the only Legatio with combat badges.”

“So I’m going to stick out.” Jason sighed.

“You don’t have to wear the sash,” Kristen offered, almost taking it off.

“No... I will wear it,” Jason said, stopping his servant from removing it.

“Good... now let’s go to class.” Kristen grinned. Carrying Jason’s books for him, Kristen led Jason into the cube-shaped Academy building. Inside was a large, square atrium across the top entangled with ivy, allowing a soft green light to pour in from the sky.

Jason’s first class was literature. It was made up of 30 students, all sitting on tall stools with writing desks in front of them while their Famulus servants sat by their sides on low boxes, ensuring that their masters always sat higher. The teacher, dressed in red robes and a black sash marked with what looked like over a hundred medals, stood at the podium.

As soon as Jason took his seat, nearly every student turned to look at him. “Please remove that sash,” the teacher ordered.

“My pardon Academic Horst... it was a gift from the Commandant.” Kristen bowed while at the same time removing Jason’s hand from taking the white cloth off.

“It is a Centurion sash and I will not stand for such propaganda in my classroom!”

“And why is that,” a strong voice spoke from the doorway.

“Commandant... what nonsense is this!” Academic Horst demanded.

“Jason earned his duel and first blood mark before arriving here, therefore he has every right to wear the white sash and I expect you to allow it.”

Horst, face red with anger, shouted; “I will not!”

Oktor walked right into Horst’s face, glaring down at the shorter man. “YES YOU WILL! And to stress my point, you will assist Academic Philip with his combat lessons.”

“I would rather resign,” Horst said as he began to pick up his books.

“Your resignation is declined,” Oktor said, summoning two green cloaked guards into the room. “We are now in a state of war, and according to the law, no teacher may resign without the approval of the Commandant which is me.”

“That law was established only to prevent you bloody

Centurions from abandoning the Academy to join the fighting,” Horst pointed out.

“Yes, but the law does not make a distinction between Centurion or Legatio,” Oktor said, stabbing Horst with one of his calloused fingers.

“So you would keep me a prisoner?”

“Not a prisoner... just detained.” Oktor grinned as his guards took position next to the teacher. “My men will be with you day and night to make sure you keep performing your duties. When class is done for the day, you will move your things to the fifteen-year barracks. Your servants will be sent back home to Domus as you will not need them anymore.”

“This is outrageous!”

“Be careful, Academic Horst... soon you will be living in a Centurion Barracks, which means you will be under Centurion rules of discipline. It would be a shame to have to flog you in the central courtyard,” Oktor warned. Horst went pale on hearing the Commandant’s threat. “Yes...

yes, Commandant.”

“Good... don’t worry, Horst... I plan to say the same thing to the rest of the Legatio Academics, so I am not just targeting you. Good day.”

After the Commandant left, the class remained stunned for almost three minutes before Horst could gather his thoughts again. “Today we will be studying the poems of Lamprey the second son of Field Marshal Todos...”

And so, class passed. Every now and then one of the students

would glare at Jason with a look of pure hatred. Jason fingered the

smooth silk of his sash, fearing that his simple choice in clothes had caused all this trouble and anger. Still each time he thought about

removing it, Kristen would remove Jason’s fidgeting hands. Thus began Jason’s turbulent life at the Academy.

Chapter Three:

The Changes of War

During lunch, the dining hall was not divided by any physical means but a wall clearly existed between the solid rows of red and white, Legatio and Centurions refusing to sit with each other. When Jason entered however, Alex and Gideon waved him over.

Seeing the ugly faces the other Legatio gave him, Jason crossed the invisible line and joined his friends, a spot of red in what had been

a sea of white.

Alex reached over and gave Jason a hug. “How’s it going?”

“Bad... all my teachers have been told they have to move into the barracks.” Jason sighed. “I think all the Legatio blame me for it.”

“Don’t Jason... the Commandant has been planning this since he first heard that we’d be going to war. During war, the powers of the Senate are limited, giving the Commandant greater control over the school,” Gideon said to ease Jason’s mind.

Alex turned to look at the sullen Legatio, seeing their near banquet size meals. “It is going to get much worse for them... The Commandant is going to make a big announcement after lunch.”

“Speaking of lunch...” Kristen smiled as he took three small casserole dishes from his bag. I made some for each of you.”

Alex and Gideon took one look at the still warm chicken casseroles and then at the beans, hard bread, and dried beef on their plates and laughed.

“Thank you, Kristen!” Alex grinned as he started digging into one of the casseroles.

“Thank you, Kristen,” Gideon said more calmly as he took one of the two remaining dishes.

“You’re welcome.” Kristen smiled.

Seeing the happy and hungry looks his friends had on their faces, Jason reached over and gave Kristen a hug. “Thank you, Kristen.”

“My pleasure, master,” Kristen said, returning the hug.

The three of them ate while talking about their lessons. Gideon was bored with having to take two language courses and another in code ciphering... Jadoorian did not seem to share anything with his native Mord. With the invasion of the Western Federation, however, the need for linguists was on the rise.

Alex, now entering officer’s training, was being flooded with information on strategy and geography. Jason, for his part, had his first lessons in math and history after Horst’s literature class.

They were almost done eating when the dining hall door opened and four ranks of spear-wielding guards marched in. The room that had been filled with talking and laughter went silent as the Commandant came into the room, walking to a raised platform.

“Welcome students... it is good to see all of you back to continue your education to become productive members of Domus society. Many things have happened over the past few months that will change how things are done here. First, as many of our Legatio students now know, all Legatio Academics will live in the barracks.”

This triggered a series of boos from the Legatio half of the cafeteria.

“SILENCE!” Oktor ordered and received at once. “Now that we are at war, it is time that our Legatio brothers learn of the sacrifices we Centurions make to keep Domus safe. To that end, all Legatio students will take weapon lessons. There will also be an exchange program... half of you will be moving to the barracks while twice that number of Centurion students will move into the apartments of the remaining Legatio.”

This time the Legatio were too stunned to reply, but Gideon and Alex had wide grins on their faces.

“What?” Jason whispered while Oktor continued to discuss how the exchange of students was supposed to happen.

“Don’t worry, Jason... you won’t have to move. You will be getting two roommates though,” Alex giggled.

Jason saw how Gideon and Alex were looking at him and could guess what it meant. “You two are moving in with me?”

“Yes... the Commandant told us personally. He thinks we will make a good team,” Gideon explained.

“We will have to find a place for Caleb as well.” “He can stay with me,” Kristen offered at once. “My bed is large

enough.”

“Good...”Alex grinned. “You can deal with his snoring.”

“Among other things,” Kristen laughed.

Just then Jason felt a large hand grasp his shoulder. “You three paying attention?” Philip grinned. He was in his officer’s uniform, carrying a spear in his hands.

“We already know what the Commandant is going to say,” Alex said.

“Still, you should at least pretend to listen. Oktor has been looking forward to giving this speech for years.”

“We will cheer when he is finished,” Alex replied. “Good... just be sure you cheer loud enough to block out the

shouting of the Legatio.”

“We outnumber them twenty to one... I think we will win.” Gideon smiled.

“You forget they have all their Famulus servants here with them. I don’t think they are happy about having to move to the barracks.”

“You’re right,” Alex sighed.

Against the walls were row after row of black-robed Famulus, ready to serve their Legatio masters at a moment’s notice. While the Centurion had their own Famulus servant, they did not follow their charges around like the Legatio. They also took their meals in a separate dining hall.

Near the end of his speech, Oktor waved two Centurion instructors forward ...”Now I know most of you know Instructor Zophar from officer’s training and Aegis from water combat and swimming instruction... both will be joining General Prat in the war. As a result, I will be teaching Zophar’s officer class, while swimming and water combat have been canceled for the year. That is all.”

Having finished his speech, Commandant Oktor left the podium and marched out of the hall with his guards.

As soon as thedoors closed, the Legatio jumped off their benches and began to shout in protest along with their Famulus servants. The larger number of Centurions, though, began to cheer and pound on the tables. It was not long before food and plates began to be thrown by the Legatio and their Famulus at their happier cousins.

The Centurions, of course, would have any of that. In a matter of moments they jumped from their tables and rushed over to the Legatio benches. Alex and Gideon also reacted quickly, taking hold of Jason and Kristen and pinning them to the ground.

“What’s happening?” Jason asked panicked.

“My Centurion brothers are going to teach the Legatio a lesson.” Alex chuckled while remaining on top of Jason.

“Won’t they get in trouble?” Jason asked worried as he remained down on the ground.

“No... why do you think the Commandant took his men out of the hall. He knew the Legatio would riot and he knew that we would not put up with it. The Legatio are going to learn a lesson in humility.”

It seemed that Alex was correct. The Legatio, quickly seeing that the guards were not there to save them, made a rush to the doors, only to find them locked. Within minutes all the Legatio and their servants had been stripped of their robes and tied up with the rags.

When Alex finally let Jason stand up again, he was the only Legatio left still dressed in red. A few Centurions, on seeing him made to rush him but Gideon and Alex sandwiched themselves around Jason, holding him possessively. When one of them did not stop his approach, Alex tore the neckline of Jason’s robe, showing the two tattoos on his shoulder.

“Those can’t be real...” the boy declared.

“They are very much real, Natrilo,” Gideon said in a warning voice. “Natrilo... I would like you to meet Jason, the son of Agamemnon. Jason... I would like you to meet Natrilo, son of Senator Jaspoar.”

“The son of Agamemnon... the one who defied Field Marshal Lukas? He does not look ten feet tall and as strong as a bear.” Natrilo laughed.

“No, but he has a heart of one,” Alex said as he kissed the back of Jason’s neck.

“You mean you and Gideon are now...?” Natrilo said shocked, noticing how both men held Jason possessively.

“We are going to become bond-mates after our 21st birthdays,” Alex finished for him.

Natrilo raised his eyebrows on hearing that. “May I ask which one of you is the superior?”

“Gideon is,” Alex spoke up before Gideon could.

“Well...well... I would have never guessed that.” Natrilo snickered.

“If you’d ever seen all of Gideon you would understand,” Alex retorted.

“I will have to one day.” Natrilo grinned.

“Not likely to happen anytime soon, unless I become your commander.” Gideon grinned.

“That’s never going to happen... now that you are a cripple that is.” Natrilo sighed... disappointed.

“Then I guess you better hope that I become your commander.” Alex laughed.

Natrilo took a few steps back from Alex. “By the demons, no... No offense, Alex, but almost everyone thinks you’re crazy.”

“The Commandant says that is a good thing... keeps me unpredictable.” Alex defended himself.

“Yes... it’s a good thing so long as you win,” Natrilo replied.

Alex stood up and took a few steps closer to Natrilo, giving him an intimidating stare. “I play to win... I always have.”

“Alex is not crazy... he is just scary.” Gideon grinned, breaking the mood.

“I am not!” Alex said in disbelief. “Right, Jason?”

“You are sometimes scary,” Jason disagreed.

“Ughhhh!” Alex moaned.

Suddenly, the doors to the hall finally reopened and the guards returned, wide grins on their faces on seeing the Legatio stripped

and bound. Next to come in were the Centurions’ Famulus, carrying bundles of red and white clothes.

The clothes were stacks of red pants and white shirts, Jason’s favorite outfit. At first the Legatio protested, but the guards would not let them leave the hall until they had changed into their new uniforms. Caleb himself went over to Jason with his new uniform, which Jason happily took as he did not like the excessive tassels, buttons and ruffles of his red uniform.

Once all the Legatio had changed, Philip came in and started handing out the new class schedules. More groans and many complaints were heard, with not a few students threatening to go back home to Domus.

“What does your schedule say?” Alex asked when Jason was handed his.

“Combat-staff... diplomacy... and combat-hand,” Jason read off.

“... diplomacy? I think our Commandant sees a future ambassador in you,” Gideon said excitedly.

“Me... an ambassador?” Jason laughed in disbelief.

“You do get along with almost everybody. You also have adapted to our culture quickly. I think you would make a good ambassador.” Gideon grinned. “If you need a secretary and translator I hope you will ask me to join you wherever you end up.”

“Being an ambassador would also take you away from Domus,” Alex grunted, not pleased at all.

“You never know, Alex... you might end up being part of his personal guard,” Gideon said encouragingly.

“Maybe, but I think the Commandant sees me as the next great general. I will get assigned to a war, not guard duty at an embassy.”

“Let’s not worry about that... we are only 20. Nothing will happen until I am finished at the Academy four years from now,” Jason begged.

“You’re right... come, Alex, we need to get our stuff moved to Jason’s apartment,” Gideon said cheerfully.

“We only have a half hour until combat lessons,” Alex agreed. “See you, Jason.”

“Bye.” Jason waved to his two friends.

“Are you ready, Jason?” Kristen asked.

“Yes.” Jason smiled as he let Kristen lead him out of the dining hall.

Chapter Four:

Varrus

Jason’s first weapons class was held under the shaded light of the main courtyard of the Cube. All of the twenty-year-old Legatio, sixty-seven of them, waited in their new white and red uniforms, looking very angry. Jason was glad he forgot to put his white sash back on as he was sure it would bring glares his way.

After the class settled down, taking their seats on the nearby benches, the instructor came in, a tall man, over seven feet tall, wearing only a short piece of white cloth just below his waist, the rest of his body covered with a sheen of sweat. The Centurion instructor carried a heavy, iron-shod quarterstaff in his arms, with which he gave a few swings. When he arrived in the middle of the courtyard, he then began the one hundred exercises of a quarterstaff master.

Jason watched, mesmerized by the flexing and stretching of nearly every muscle on the man’s sinewy body. The beauty of the man combined with the exquisite moves sent Jason’s heart a flutter. When the staff master finished, Jason felt as if the man’s violet eyes were staring right at him. Jason clapped, but soon stopped when none of his fellow Legatio joined in. In fact, a few of them looked at Jason with snickering looks. Thank you,” the teacher said in a strong baritone voice, smiling at Jason.

Jason blushed on seeing the man’s smile. He had never felt this way before... not about Alex or Gideon... not even Philip. The instructor had a magnetism about him that made Jason unable to take his eyes off him.

The teacher then turned his attention to the class. “Welcome... I am Staff Master Varrus. I served in the first regiment of the Western Army for five years before becoming an instructor here at the Academy, where I have taught your Centurion cousins for three years. For those of you doing your math that makes me 29 years of age so any of you think I’m going to drop dead anytime soon might as well give up on that hope,” the staff master joked, but only received a laugh from Jason. “I see one of my students understands my humor.” Varrus grinned. “Why don’t you come up?” Varrus said, waving his hand at Jason.

Jason, now bright red with embarrassment, got up and made his way over to the staff master. As soon as Jason was close, Varrus threw his staff at Jason, who surprised him by catching it. “Very good! You Legatio might be teachable after all.”

“Why do we need to learn the staff in the first place?” one of the unhappy students asked.

“Because we are at war... the largest war since General Agamemnon defeated the Eastern Confederacy at the Battle of the

Gate. The Western Federation have nearly a quarter of a million armed men and over two thousand warships. Our Western Army is made up of twenty legions, one-hundred thousand troops strong. Our fleet is made up of only 600 ships however. This will be a difficult fight.”

“But why do we need to learn how to fight... is that not what the Centurions are for?” The Legatio asked.

“Because we don’t know if we can win this war. What would you do if Jadoorian troops invade the capital? Would you have your Famulus servants protect you? You need to learn how to fight for your own good. You are learning the quarterstaff and not the knife because there is less of a chance of cutting yourselves with it. By the time I am done with you, all of you will be weapons masters.” “Not likely... does the Senate know what you are doing?” Felix snickered. “My orders come from the Field Marshals themselves and THEY... not the Senate have final say on what happens at the Academy.”

“What if we refuse to even pick up the staff?” a boy sitting next to Felix asked, his voice filled with insolence.

“Guards!” Varrus called out. Before he knew what was happening, two guards picked the boy up and brought him to the staff master. Varrus then took up another staff that had been lying on the ground before taking back the staff he had thrown Jason.

“Take the staff,” Varrus said in a serious voice.

“No...” the boy refused.

“Then you will have to fight me unarmed... I would prefer an armed opponent... but so be it. The question now is how many bones of yours I am going to break before you try to defend yourself.”

Seeing he had no choice, the boy reached for one of the staves. As soon as he grabbed one, the two guards let go of him and stepped back. Varrus then took up a guard position and waited for the boy to make a move.

The boy moved quicker than Jason had expected him to. With only one hand on the staff, the boy charged his teacher swinging out of control. Varrus only had to block one out of every five blows, the boy’s aim was so far off. Then, as if he had enough of this game, Varrus blocked one of the boy’s wild swings, hitting the boy’s staff so hard that it was thrown out of the student’s hand. Hitting the butt of his staff into the boy’s stomach, Varrus knocked the air out of the Legatio’s lungs, toppling him over.

“If this is the best I can expect from you Legatio I will be very disappointed.” Varrus shook his head. “Until one of you can put up a decent attack and defense all of you will have to join your Centurion cousins in their morning exercises. Is there anyone willing to challenge me?”

No one spoke. The staff master seemed happy to let what he had done to the impertinent boy to sink into the minds of the rest of the class. Jason though saw a chance... if he put up a good enough fight, then the class might not be forced to run in the morning. It might do a lot to help him earn friends among his fellow Legatio. So silently Jason went to the where the boy’s staff had fallen and picked it up.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Varrus asked with an amused grin.

“Yes,” Jason replied, bowing and taking up a guard position, surprising the staff master.

A peculiar smile grew on the staff instructor’s face, one that sent a shiver down Jason’s spine. His violet eyes not leaving Jason’s face, Varrus bowed to his young opponent. As soon as he straighten back up, Varrus was forced to block a blow, a hard one from Jason followed by another and another in quick succession. It soon became clear to the weapon master that Jason was not some novice; he had actually been taught how to handle the staff. While he knew he could easily defeat the young Legatio; he let the duel continue, wanting to see how skilled the young man really was.

After Jason attacked him for a while, Varrus started throwing in a few swings himself, testing Jason’s defense. By the time he was ready to end the fight, Varrus knew that the boy had actually been taught by two different Centurions... one of them having learned from Varrus himself. Second, Varrus realized that the boy was only half way through the 100 exercises of a staff master from the limited moves he made. The only question Varrus had left was how would the young man handle defeat? He found out soon, when he knocked one of his opponent’s blows out of the way to make a sweep of his leg, causing the boy to fall on his back.

“Better!” Varrus laughed. “I can only hope that most of your fellow Legatio will have your skill.”

“Thank you, sir,” Jason said as he tried to stand up but found he could not put weight on the foot that Varrus had hit.

“Are you alright?” The Staff Master asked worried.

“I think I hurt my ankle,” Jason said as he hopped on one foot. “Damn it!” Varrus cursed. “Here, let me help you back down.”

“It’s alright,” Jason said through the pain, his teeth clenched, while his ankle swelled.

“There, there now,” Varrus cooed as he lowered Jason onto his back. The weapon master actually found he liked seeing Jason spread out on the ground, for he looked like no Legatio he had ever seen, muscular like a Centurion but narrow in frame.

“You were toying with me,” Jason accused while the staff master pulled up his pant’s leg.

“I am a master... did you want me to kill you?”

“No... it just showed how much I have to learn.”

“You’ve learned a lot so far. I just realized though that I don’t even know your name.” “Jason.”

Varrus’s brow furrowed as he tried to remember where he had heard that name before. “Jason... I don’t remember you from last year.”

“I was not here last year,” Jason replied.

That confused Varrus, yes there were other schools than the Academy, but they were for Centurion students who had done poorly on the entrance exams. Every once in a while one of those students would improve enough to attend the Academy, but that did not include Legatio. All Legatio children from age fifteen to twenty-four were supposed to go to the Academy. “So you are a new student... where were you before you came here?”

“The Labyrinth Tower in Qul Tos.”

On hearing the name “Qul Tos”, Varrus finally realized who Jason was.

“You’re the son of Agamemnon who I’ve been hearing so much about.”

“Yes,” Jason blushed.

“Would you mind showing me your back?” Varrus asked/

“No,” Jason said as he pulled off his shirt.

Varrus raised Jason up to a sitting position so he could look at his back. “Yes... I see you are the young man I’ve heard about. Living at the Academy all year round, the only news I receive is from the periodic messengers.

“I understand,” Jason said as he felt as sharp pain run up his spine from his leg.

That was how the rest of the class went. Varrus talking to Jason while they waited for a healer, who arrived just as the bell ending class rang.

“Now what has Jason done this time.” Erik laughed as he came in with his black bag.

“It was my fault, I was the one to hit him,” Varrus apologized.

“No... it was my fault. I should have been able to block him,” Jason said between throbs of pain.

“I very much doubt you would be able to block a staff master.”

Erik grinned, as he took out some bandages.

“Won’t he need crutches?” Varrus asked worried. “Not when I am done with him... you can go now.”

“I guess I should. I have to go teach a younger class. Be sure to take care of my new favorite student,” Varrus said before planting a

kiss on Jason’s cheek and leaving. “My my... what a charmer you’ve become.” Erik grinned.

“What do you mean?” Jason asked.

“Centurions by their nature are a passionate people. They are quick to anger as well as love, but I have never seen a Centurion fall in love so quickly. A Legatio with a weapon must be a fetish of theirs.”

“A fetish?” Jason asked.

Erik let out a deep sigh. “Never mind... you’ll find out one day.”

“Alright...” Jason groaned as Erik wrapped his ankle up.

“Now this will sting a little,” Erik warned as he took out a sharp needle.

“What is that?” Jason said not recognizing the instrument.”

“It is called a syringe. I will inject some medicine into your foot that will help it heal faster.”

Jason closed his eyes nervously as he watched Erik bring the long needle closer to his foot.

“You might want to relax a bit,” Erik suggested when he saw Jason tense up.

“I’ll try...” Jason agreed as he took in a deep breath. Soon he felt a short sharp pain and then it was gone. “You can open your eyes now.” Erik chuckled.

Jason opened his eyes expecting to see a lot of blood but all he saw was a small paste of Centurion bone over the spot where Erik had given him the injection. Jason felt relieved as the swelling and pain left his foot, replaced by numbness.

After putting his instruments away, Erik helped Jason onto his feet. “You think you can get to class now?”

“Yes...” Jason nodded as he put more weight on his foot.

“I will need to give you more shots until the foot heals, but I think you will be okay.”

“Thank you, Erik.” Jason smiled, giving him a hug. He did not know what “okay” meant but, by the Famulus’ tone, it had to be good.

“Get going, you big flirt.” Erik laughed, handing Jason his shirt back.