“It’s time for me to move from mentoring and be helpful in other ways.”
“A desk job.”
I laughed and shook my head.
“Are you busting my balls over that? I’m fifty-five.”
“And still in excellent health. I’m sure you were taking part in the post-graduation festivities at the academy today.”
He was referring to the weekend-long party and orgy. I nodded.
“Mentorship is the most important thing one can do at the academy. You have a direct impact on those young men, which in turn helps the Kings more than a paper pusher at the council.”
When I didn’t say anything, he stood and walked toward the windows to look out over the city.
“Atlas Christos…a graduate of Omnia Academy at twenty-three from the Aqua cohort. Wasn’t selected by a King in your graduating class because the Kings who were selecting Omnias at that time were a bunch of fucking blind old men.”
“Will—”
“You were gifted in multiple languages. Fluent in Latin, Greek, French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Russian.”
“Will—”
“And, oh yeah, self-taught English when your family immigrated to the U.S. from Greece when you were seven. You are incredibly successful as a mentor, Atlas.”
“I think any mentor at Omnia Academy is successful when their student graduates.”
Will turned his head sideways for a moment, as if considering what I’d said. He turned to face me and nodded.
“Yes, that’s true. Those young men go through a lot. To get a student to graduate is a success.” Will walked slowly toward his chair. “You have mentored eight students all the way from their first year to their graduation. You have dedicated yourself to each young man for four years.” Will stood beside the chair and stared down at me. “Every single one of those eight students were not only selected by a King when they graduated but were selected first.”
“I think this is the first time you’ve fed me my own resume,” I said lightheartedly, and kind of jokingly, to lighten the mood.
“First,” Will said as he sat down, “not only do I feel that I need an Omnia now for appearances, but also to possibly help me keep an eye on the other Kings.”
“Other Kings?” I frowned, and Will sighed loudly.
“I would rather this group be known for manipulating things behind the curtain for good and the betterment of humankind than for greed. And I don’t believe for a moment that you believe everything the Kings do and have done has been done out of pure intentions. Hell, the Reges Dei and the Kings were started in Rome during the height of the Empire. You can’t get more corrupt than that.”
I nodded. I understood what he was saying without him needing to elaborate. People who gained power and wealth often became blinded by greed. Will wanted to change that. I circled back to his comment about needing an Omnia now.
“I can tell you there are several Omnia graduates who weren’t selected at this year’s ceremony, and any of them would be excellent for appearances of your assistant?—”
“No. I’m not a one-size-fits-all kind of person, Atlas. I’m not like the other Kings either. I don’t crave power for greed; you know that. You also know that all those young men who were selected to attend the academy come from power or status somewhere in their family trees.”
“I know.”
“I want you to find me an Omnia, and I want you to mentor him for his four years. I want an observant and street-savvy Omnia. I want him to help me find those with ulterior motives.”
“That’s going to be challenging. Many of the students who will be starting the academy in the next class have already been selected to receive their official invitation. And there are hundreds who have applied for special consideration. TheOmnia Academy Council has begun matching up mentors and students.”
“You don’t have one assigned to you since they know and expect you to be taking a desk job within the council.”
“That’s right. The councilknowsandexpectsme to take on a new position starting next week. They won’t take too kindly to me saying, ‘Oh, disregard my request to change positions.’ It’s not that simple, Will.”
Will raised his eyebrow and then leaned back in his chair. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and pressed something on the screen before putting the phone against his ear. From where I sat, I could hear a man answer the call on the other end.
“Yes, good evening, Kaleb.”Kaleb? Kaleb Andrews? Was Will speaking to the president of the Omnia Academy Council?“I’m not sure if you’re aware, but the academy’s best mentor, Atlas Christos, is a good friend of mine.” I couldn’t hear what Kaleb was saying on the other end, but the tone sounded upbeat. “We were catching up this evening, and I know he’s set to begin working within the council on January 2nd, but he would love to return to mentoring at the start of the following year. Can you see to it that it happens?” A smile spread across his face. “Yes, absolutely. Atlas will carry out his duties for the council, but I’d like to ask that you allot him extra time to visit potential students who will be invited to the academy.” Will was quiet while Kaleb spoke. “Brilliant, Kaleb. Thank you… Yes, Happy New Year to you as well.”
