Page 91 of Caelum

In that, I could actually thank the boy whose moods made my father’s look friendly.

“I’m glad you stood up for yourself. I wasn’t sure with your past whether that was possible or not.”

I shrugged. “It was a Were day.”

His lips twitched and the snake coming out of the eye socket tattoo wriggled like it was alive as he bunched his biceps when he folded his arms across his chest. “Ouch. Totally a bad day for Samuel.”

“He’s lucky Nestor held me back,” I confirmed.

“You’re almost right about why we fight so much,” he stated after a few seconds. “We do have a lot of energy we need to burn off, but we’re also in training for something specific.”

Something flashed in his eyes that had me sitting straighter in my seat. “What? Like a competition?”

He shook his head. “If only it were,” he said on a sigh as he headed over to the table and took a seat opposite me.

The tutors rarely sat. It was almost as though they were too edgy to rest even for a second.

“Okay, so why then?”

“When you’re twenty-one, the main soul will surge forward. It might be before your birthday or after it. It’s just around that time. One soul decides it’s had enough of sharing its space, and poof, it cannibalizes the others.”

My eyes widened. “That sounds painful.”

His grin was sheepish. “It is. But it’s just as bad as being punched in the face by a girl on a Were day.”

I snorted. “Touché.”

Though he smirked, it swiftly died as he carried on explaining, “The portal you passed through, it’s special. Unless you’re like Merry or me, creatures only go through it twice in their life.”

“When?”

“In and out. In, when they’re ready for the protection and education Caelum offers. Out, when their main soul is in full power.” He sighed. “Even creatures with as much knowledge as we have can’t really explain why the portal exists, but it’s why Caelum was built here. Back in the eighteen hundreds, a ship meandered this way on a scientific mission and they discovered the island as well as the fact we’re on an oceanic trench. Some say that’s what fuels the portal, but?—”

“You don’t agree?” I prompted, intrigued by what he was telling me.

“No. It’s not magic, but I don’t knowwhatit is. I just know that it spits you out one way and you can speaktongues. Then, when you’ve just the one soul to worry about, it spits you out onto the other side and suddenly, that soul can manifest.”

I studied him for a second. “What are you, Damon?” I’d never asked, not wanting to be rude. Damon was intimidating sometimes. Nicholas was the same. I had a feeling he was a Sin Eater but wouldn’t know for sure until I built up the courage to ask him.

He made a face that let him reveal his fangs. I reached up and touched my own teeth, and he nodded. “The fangs appearafteryou’ve crossed through the portal. As does the animal if you’re a Were or a Hell Hound. Then with thegouilles, they can pull that freaky shit with their skin. Sin Eaters can do their business and so can the ‘Buses.” That was what most people shorted the Incubi and Succubi down to.

“Only the Lorelei can sing and use their voice to the max pre-portal?”

“Yes. We don’t know why. Another mystery. While there is much we understand about our species, there is a lot we don’t, and although we investigate our beginnings as much as we can, we don’t always have the time to.”

“Why not?”

“Because we’re at war.”

I jolted back in surprise. “We are? With who?”

His smile grew pained. “Ghouls.”

“Like ghosts?”

He shook his head. “No. Not like ghosts. I wish they were.” I watched as he reached up and rubbed his brow and realized that something had happened with one of the Ghouls. Something that had affected him personally.

“What are they?”

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