Casimir left her booth and scanned over the various student displays until one caught his interest. The Weaver’s Combat Club stood out with its bold red and gold colors. Before Casimir could approach, the wiry, titian haired senior student manning the booth noticed his gaze and flagged him down.

  “Hey, Mindrattler, do you want to join?” asked the senior with a pristine smile that seemed brighter against his dark blue Weaver’s gambeson.

  Casimir passed the armor training dummy that was propped up front and said, “Yes, when are your meetings?”

  “On Saturdays at 8 pm in the training room, but you will have to be invited by a current member first.”

  Casimir rubbed his chin and smirked. “Could you invite me?”

  A mischievous grin spanned across the senior’s face, and he chuckled, “I don’t know. You will have to prove your worth first.”

  “In what way? If it is something foolish, I might change my mind.”

  The titian-haired senior tilted back his head and broke out in boisterous laughter. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to ask you to go streaking at midnight. Instead, I want you to give everyone a showcase of your skills. Right, here and now.”

  Casimir cracked a confident smile. “Seems fair. I accept.”

  “Good. Follow me to the arena around back.”

  Behind the booth was a makeshift ring of shoved snow revealing the dormant grass beneath. Off to the side was a peculiar-looking girl sitting on a folding chair. Her short, dark-blue hair fell just below her ears in a bob, and bright-yellow, slit eyes scanned over the pages of a Vaults School Catalog.

  Someone from the Partsong family is a member of this club? The majority of them are socialites and entertainers.

  “Hey, Piper! We got a potential member!”

  The woman hopped out of her chair, her large eyes wide with excitement. “Ohh Rodrick, who did you bring me?!” She rushed over to Casimir.

  “Ah, a Mindrattler!” She blushed slightly and offered him her hand. “Hi, I am Piper Partsong. I will be your opponent. Nice to meet you.”

  “Casimir Mindrattler, it is a pleasure.” He took off his glove and shook her hand. He took advantage of the close proximity to study her further. She has an athletic build with calluses on her fingertips, possibly from a string instrument. Her eyes look perceptive, but her frame is small.

  I could probably rush her. He glanced at Rodrick with a mixture of mild irritation and confusion.

  Rodrick smiled. “Piper joined us last quarter. She might be small, but she packs a mean punch.”

  Piper turned beet red and touched her cheek with her free hand. “What is it? Is there something on my face?”

  “Do you play the harp?”

  Her eyes sparkled, and she stood up on her toes to get a better look at his face. “Yes, how did you know?! Do you also play?!”

  Casimir released her hand and took a step back. “No, it was just a hunch. I took some piano lessons–”

  “Ah, the piano!” She continued to inch closer as he retreated. “Who is your favorite composer? Is it Chopin? Beethoven? Or someone more contemporary like Call– ”

  Rodrick’s cough drew their attention back to him. Casimir offered a handshake to the titian-haired man. “Sorry, I did not catch your name.”

  “I’m Rodrick Mattersmith, club president. Shall we?” He gestured to Casimir to follow him into the ring, eager to get this match started.

  “Of course.” After their greeting, Casimir stepped into the ring. He noticed a group of students had begun to form, excited by the prospect of a fight. “Alright, what are the rules for the match?”

  Rodrick positioned himself at the center of the ring. “Nothing lethal, so no fire patterns or high-level elemental patterns. I also want this to be a fair fight, so no Weaver family abilities that do not require drawing a pattern. The match will end when someone concedes, is unable to continue, or when I deem it too dangerous to continue.”

  I don’t know any of the Mindrattler’s patterns, anyway. Casimir nodded. “Alright. I’m ready.”

  “Great.” Rodrick gave them a thumbs-up. “Take ten steps back and bow. We will be following standard dueling etiquette.”

  They took ten steps in opposite directions. Casimir bowed, and Piper gave him a graceful curtsy that didn’t fit her bombastic personality.

  Rodrick created a shield around the arena and shouted, “Begin!”

  Before Piper could raise a finger, Casimir appeared inches away from her face in a full sprint. Frightened, ashen white, the girl recoiled and guarded her face with her hands.

  He ducked underneath her guard, seized her by the waist, and lifted her onto his shoulders, before she could scream. Triumphantly, Casimir wrapped his arm around the girl’s dangling legs.

  “What are you doing?!” Piper’s scream was followed by laughter from their fellow classmates.

  Casimir spotted Cornelius, Fenna, and Merritt in the crowd with their refreshments.

  Cornelius failed to cover his wily smirk with his cup, Fenna choked down a laugh, and Merritt spewed out his drink from howling laughter.

  “Sorry, I got carried away.” Casimir placed her back down with the same care as he would with one of his uncle’s loaded guns.

  Piper’s face blared bright red as she pouted. The shield around them went down and Rodrick’s piercing green eyes appraised Casimir with intensity.

  What is he?

  Rodrick walked over and patted Casimir on the back. “I get it, but control yourself next time.” He flexed his eyebrows, which only succeeded in making Casimir feel uneasy.

  “Wait, I was not trying to–”

  Rodrick turned to Piper. “Switch places with me. This was a poor match up.”

  “But, I can’t maintain the barrier like you,” Piper protested.

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  “That is fine,” Rodrick’s head turned toward the crowd and he pointed at Merritt. “Hey, if you shield the crowd for this match, we’ll let you join our club.”

  Merritt swirled the cider in his cup as if he was weighing his options, after a smirk he shrugged. “I’ll gladly do it for more entertainment.” He left the crowd and weaved a complex pattern that caused a twenty foot tall barrier of blue Aether to wrap around the ring.

  Merritt then laughed. “Hey Cas, don’t end this fight as quickly this time!”

  Cas?

  Clenching her fist and trembling, Piper shot Casimir with a look of determination. “Next time you better be ready. I won’t hold back.”

  “I’ll look forward to it,” He said with a smile.

  Blushing, she made way for Rodrick who positioned himself confidently across from Casimir.

  The titian haired senior’s muscles flexed as he stretched his forearms. “Ready?”

  Casimir nodded and the two of them took ten steps back and bowed.

  Piper watched the two men gauging one another and raised her hand. “Begin!” She let her arm down with a chop.

  Rodrick’s hand moved like a blur, encasing his body in blue Aether and launching himself forward. Casimir only had a few seconds to weave an Aether Shield to block Rodrick’s punch.

  His blow connected with the shield and made short work of it, shattering it with one blow. Fortunately, the barrier gave Casimir enough time to weave his own Iron Sinew and hop away from another one of Rodrick’s strikes.

  “Wooo!” Rodrick’s face beamed with excitement as his Aetherian threads shaped ground in front of him.

  Casimir narrowed his eyes and readied himself for another dodge. Rolling Earth.

  A mass of dirt, stones, and dormant grass rose up to five feet and rolled towards Casimir with the speed of a boulder careening down a steep incline. He leaped to the right and weaved an Ice bolt out of retaliation, but Rodick blocked it with a stone wall.

  The soil beneath Casimir loosen and a pair of hands fashioned from mud grabbed his ankle. He frowned. Blast it, I missed his last pattern because of that damn wall.

  Casimir shadowstepped away before he could sink further and appeared to Rodrick’s left but the senior was ready for him and greeted him with an Aether infused punch. Casimir deflected his blow and punished him with a strike to the chest, causing Rodrick to instinctively grasp his chest and skid backwards. With his opponent stunted, Casimir blitzed Rodrick and struck him with an electric jab.

  Rodrick grunted as Casimir’s electrified Aether rippled through his shield. Although it held, its constitution wavered and thinned.

  He gritted his teeth and blocked another blow from Casimir with a stone wall and shaped the wall to grab and enclose around Casimir. Unfortunately for Rodrick, his opponent leaped back and reappeared behind him. Rodrick spun around in time to block the blow with his forearms. He withstood Casimir’s attack but his Iron Sinew gave out and the Aether around him diminished.

  Rendered defensiveness, Rodrick laughed. “Damn, you are such a slippery bastard.”

  Casimir relaxed and ended his own Iron Sinew. “I had to be.”

  “Well we’ve seen enough,” Rodrick glanced at Piper who gave them a nod, and offered Casimir his hand. “Welcome to the club.”

  “Than—” Casimir was pulled into a bear hug.

  “Finally we got another member! Remember Saturday.”

  Casimir left the ring feeling invigorated.

  “I never took you for being such a bully,” Cornelius said, meeting him out of the ring.

  “The senior already took responsibility for it,” said Casimir.

  “Well, to be fair to him, how would he know that you were a former Inquisitor, ” said Merritt casually.

  Casimir shot Cornelius a glare causing the red head to nervously take off his monocle and clean it.

  “Oh so you already knew about it?” Merritt asked Cornelius with a laugh. He then walked up to Casimir and smiled. “Lighten up, I figured it out myself. You move like one and smell of a nark.” He then pinched his nose.

  “I should have expected as much from a Shields,” Casimir said. “My uncle worked with some of your kinsmen in Cael Brisa.”

  “Yeah, yeah I’m related to those stiffs.” Merritt scrunched up his face and grumbled.

  Casimir noticed several students passing him by in the direction of the makeshift ring. Another fight?

  He turned his head and saw Bryson and Tristan chatting with Rodrick and Piper who was back to her normal palette of pink. Casimir felt some relief when Tristan stepped inside of the ring instead of Bryson.

  “Hey, that’s the– no his hand isn’t messed up. It must be the other guy,” Merritt said after correctly identifying Bryson with a point. He then turned to Casimir while gesturing to Tristan. “Say, how good is that guy?”

  “He seems decent for a novice,” said Casimir.

  Cornelius nodded in agreement and gave Merritt a smirk. “Unfortunately, I doubt this match will be a total beating.”

  Merritt snapped his fingers. “Just my luck.”

  Tristan positioned himself across from Piper. After they got their formalities out of the way, the match began.

  Piper drew a square pattern with fluid, effortless movements and launched an Aether Arrow that zipped through the air.

  Tristan quickly weaved a square pattern and deflected the arrow, sending it to his right into the barrier.

  Casimir crossed his arms. He was a little too late.

  Tristan fired his own Aether Arrow which Piper successfully returned to him with two more arrows for good measure. He blocked them with an Aether Shield, but Piper continued to pelt him with Aether Arrows, whittling away his defenses.

  Merritt cracked a smirk and glanced at Casimir. “Decent, huh?”

  They watched the shield break, knocking Tristan back and forcing him to flee from Piper’s assault. He ducked, dodging an arrow that whizzed passed his head and weaved a diamond pattern. When his hand connected with the ground a six foot wall of compacted dirt shot up in front of him, giving him a respite from Piper’s barrage of arrows.

  “Go, Tristan!” Bryson cried.

  “He is doing better than most,” Casimir said, watching Piper weaving a complex circular pattern. He frowned. He needs to start firing back and stop hiding.

  Merritt tilted his head and shrugged.

  When Piper’s pattern was complete, it twisted into a seven foot tall waterspout that raced right towards Tristan.

  Casimir could see Tristan’s eyes go white from fear and he pointed his finger to start a pattern but then stopped.

  “Ohhh, this is not a good time for nerves,” Cornelius observed.

  Tristan took a step back with his hands now clenched by his side.

  “Tristan!” Bryson shouted.

  A minute before the waterspout hit his dirt wall, Tristan threw himself out of the way of Piper’s attack. The swirling torrent made short work of his dirt wall and did not stop until it smashed against Rodrick’s barrier.

  He scrambled to his feet and began weaving his own circular pattern only to abandon it when Piper sent another fast moving Aether Arrow. Unfortunately, he failed to dodge in time and was struck in the chest and knocked on to his back.

  “Ooo!” Merritt said and blew air through his teeth. “That was a clean hit. Knocked the Aether right out of him!”

  “Yes, he is done,” said Cornelius.

  Casimir silently watched Piper frown and hang back to make way for Rodrick.

  The senior then knelt beside Tristan and asked, “Are you okay, there?”

  “Yeah,” Tristan said sitting up.

  Rodrick helped him up. “Not bad. You at least know how to defend yourself somewhat. We can work with that.”

  Piper’s eyes lit up and her lips spanned into a grand smile. “Wonderful effort!” She said with applause.

  Casimir pressed his lip together as he watched Piper. I should have taken a hit.

  “So, how did that happen? I thought most Inquisitors steer clear of Weavers?” Merritt asked.

  It took Casimir a few seconds for Merritt’s question to register until he took his eyes off of Piper and asked, “Pardon?”

  Merritt smiled at him suspiciously while rubbing his chin.

  “My parents were outliers on all fronts,” said Casimir.

  Merritt laughed. “That is certainly true. Your parents weren’t–”

  Cornelius slapped a hand onto Merritt’s shoulder, causing him to flinch. “Well, the Inquisitors have sworn to be impartial to Weaver court affairs. If Casimir is bearing the Mindrattler name, then he can hardly be considered one.” He glanced at Casimir and smiled. “Right, friend?”

  “Yes, that is correct,” Casimir said sadly.

  Although it pains me to say it out loud.

  “Is there something wrong?” Fenna asked him innocently enough.

  “No, I’m heading out.” Casimir bid them good bye, walking away from the group and fleeing from Merritt’s constant questions, but the loud mouth voice blabbered on.

  Merritt sighed performatively. “And here, I thought I had a stressful family.”

  “Are you happy?” Cornelius grumbled.

  Casimir heard Merritt laugh and thought. What a bastard.