“Yes, that’s true,” Lightshield said. “Speaking of, I do have three new novices to welcome to my clan. I was just bringing them to dinner. Please step aside for us.”
The older magi on the second floor looked past him to where the three novices were standing, and many looked sour. Marcia was among that number for a moment before she laughed.
“Enjoy the moment, Elder. Your clan still holds to the antiquated notion that magi should be able to leave a clan whenever they wish, don’t you?”
“We’ve always believed in that freedom,” Lightshield replied.
The other magi suddenly looked a bit happier and a few went back to their tables. Elkit sneered at them. “Weakness in the novices and weaknesses in the leadership. No wonder your clan is all but dead.”
Lightshield’s eyes sparkled. “Excuse me, child, but did you just insult me, my new members, and my clan?”
“I did. What ar—?” Elkit began.
A sudden displacement of air ruffled everyone’s kimonos on the terrace. When the sudden gust abated, Elkit gasped and fell over. He wasn’t moving and was breathing shallowly. Everyone present looked suddenly wary.
Lightshield sighed, “I broke a rule there. I’ll have to see the council or even the overseer himself before I leave now. A pity. It should be a minor infraction, though; I didn’t permanently harm him. Well, besides his ego, but that could use a bit of deflating.”
Marcia cleared her throat. “Elder, if you will pardon me? I’ll be taking my leave.”
“Of course,” Lightshield stepped aside, motioning the novices to come up and get behind him. “Do tell your grandfather I wish him well. There are so few of us left now.”
Marcia inclined her head. “When I see him next, I will.” Walking slowly and using her cane, she left them standing there as she went down the stairs.
“It appears the fun is over,” Lightshield smiled. “I reserved a table over this way. Follow me.”
“What did you do to him?” a female voice hissed at Lightshield.
Gregory was surprised to see Gina, Michelle’s friend, cradling Elkit’s head.
Lightshield gave her a sad smile. “Helped him get some much-needed rest. I do think that put a damper on your plans tonight. One of the healers could have him up again in a moment or two, but he’ll be in a foul mood at that point. Excuse us.”
Gina glared as Lightshield and the three novices went past her and onto the second floor of the mess hall. Gregory could feel the hatred and spite from the two points digging into his back.
“Elder, did you create a scene on the balcony?” a tall, extremely thin woman asked when they stepped inside.
“I was forced to act. He insulted my novices, myself, and my clan. I do apologize to you and the others, but I won’t to him.”
“Always a ruckus when you’re here,” the woman sighed. “Twenty years was too short a reprieve.”
“For an elf, it would seem that way,” Lightshield replied. “Only magi come close to your life spans. Is the room ready for us? Oh, and I was right. It’s going to be three for dinner. Don’t mind that there are four of us currently.”
Gregory felt a chill and shared a glance with Yukiko. She dipped her head an inch, letting him know she had heard it as well.
“What did he mean, do you think?” Jenn whispered to Yukiko.
“You’ll see,” Lightshield said.
“Ignore him,” the elf said, looking past Lightshield. “He’s insufferable when you acknowledge him being right.”
“Still mad about me telling you about your husband? I was trying to save you the heartache.”
The elf sniffed and led them to a private dining room. Once they were seated, she poured them drinks before pausing in front of the door. “The meal will be served in half an hour. Until then, the room will be sealed. No one, except perhaps the emperor himself, will be able to hear anything you say.” With that, she stepped back and shut the door.
Lightshield exhaled deeply. “Still hates me for it. You’d think she’d be happy that I told her about her husband cheating on her.”
“Did he?” Gregory asked, unable to help himself.
“He did. I might have told her differently, though that was some time ago now. Before we get into anything important, you three all wish to join Aether’s Guard, yes?”
“Yes, sir,” Gregory said.
“Yes, Elder,” Yukiko said.
“If I’m allowed,” Jenn said.
“Very well.” Lightshield handed out three badges, each being identical to the others— a shield with stylized blue flames in the middle of it. “Welcome to Aether’s Guard. You are the first novices in twenty years to join our path. I’ve arranged for a clan hall, staff, and instructors. Your leader will be back in a little under six months, so until then, I have tasked an old friend with holding that post. Keeper Dia is known to you three, and you would be amenable to her caring for you still, right?”
All three of them agreed that Dia was more than acceptable as the one to oversee them.
“Very good. Gin and his assistants will be there tomorrow. I have staff taking care of his home in the city, and he’s agreed that you may use it during your days off. Speaking of which, you must take your single day off every week. That is not negotiable, and Gin understands that.”
“Why, sir?” Yukiko asked.
“Because you will face enough while inside the walls. Being able to rest will help you. I know what you underwent before the first tournament, but since Gin will be your instructor every day, you will soon learn to enjoy the day off, as will he.”
“Armsmaster Gin will be our instructor?” Jenn asked with wide eyes.
“Yes. He will be training you in the ways of combat. We don’t pressure you to train one path over the others. If you need someone to teach you about magic, one will be provided… well, in most cases,” Lightshield finished, looking at Gregory. “In some cases, that will be problematic.”
“Just train as we like, and you’ll provide for it to happen?” Jenn asked.
“As long as you hold to the ideal of the clan, we’ll do everything we can for you in return.”
“Ideal of the clan?” Jenn asked.
“Believing that Aether will return. When he does, we will be his shield and his guard against those that try to do him harm.”
“I believe,” Gregory said.
“As do I, and I will make sure he is as safe as my dear one,” Yukiko said.
Jenn hesitated, but she nodded. “I’ll do my best.”
“That’s all we ask. Trials will come up, and your belief will be tested. Hold firm to your belief and Aether will reward you in kind,” Lightshield said. “If you wish to be part of the clan, just attach the badge to your kimono.”
Gregory didn’t hesitate. He attached the badge and his kimono suddenly had the clan emblem embroidered on it. Yukiko had been only a fraction of a second behind him. Jenn took a deep breath and copied them, her kimono changing, as well.
“Just place the badge on all of your kimonos and it will make sure you are properly attired.”
“Thank you, sir,” Gregory said.
“Don’t thank me, Novice Pettit. Your road is going to be long, difficult, and full of pain,” Lightshield said somberly. “There will be bright points that will help keep you moving forward, and those points will glow all the brighter as long as they stay true.”
“I will be beside him every step of the way, Elder,” Yukiko said.
“Yes. He’s a lucky man. Congratulations on your betrothal. I hope to see the wedding.” His smile held a hint of pain when he said the last few words. “Our time is about up,” he added as he looked to the door. “Eat, enjoy, and welcome to Aether’s Guard. All of you will do the clan proud, as will those that follow you.”
There was a knock on the door and it opened up to reveal the three members of the academy council. The elder of the council stepped forward. “Elder Lightshield, you have caused problems today. We require that you come
with us.”
“Elder Cho, it’s good to see you again,” Lightshield said. “Novices, I apologize for this, but it seems the council has need of me. My novices are allowed to enjoy the meal, I hope?”
“They may,” Cho replied. “Warlin, Pettit, Bean, stay and enjoy the food. Now, Lightshield—”
A gust of wind blew through the room and Lightshield was suddenly beside Cho. “I’m ready, Elder.”
One of the grandmasters behind her grunted and gestured. The moment he did, all four of them vanished.
As the novices sat there in silence, the elf returned and looked into the room. “Dinner is ready, and there are indeed only three of you.”
Chapter Fifteen
Dinner was lavish. It consisted of six courses, each one helping prepare them for the next. The drink that went with was a diluted wine that had their aether burning bright. Dessert was what stood out the most to Gregory— it was chilled purity plums, diced into small sections and mixed with frozen cream.
Conversation had been mostly nonexistent, since the food had come out almost as soon as they had finished the previous course. With dessert gone and the table cleared of everything but a mint tea, the elf who had greeted and served them, Bella, told them they could stay as late as they wanted to before leaving them alone.
“This was very different,” Jenn said. “An elder who appears to know the future...”
“I can do the same, although to a greatly reduced degree,” Gregory said, deciding to play into what people would know once Damon had informed people.
Jenn stared at him. “Did you use that to beat me?”
“No. I don’t have conscious control over it yet, though it saved me twice during the tournament.”
“Oh, the earth spike and Jason?”
“Yes. Master Damon is going to tell the academy and it’ll be out soon enough. Figured telling you up-front would be for the best.”
“Thank you for trusting me,” Jenn said, brushing some hair behind her ear.
“Lightshield can see further into the future, I think,” Yukiko said. “He knew there would be three eating. They also only served us meals for novices, who normally don’t eat up here, instead of two for novices and one for an elder.”
Gregory nodded. “I think you’re right... but he was also using wind magic. I thought people could only use a single type of magic?”
“There are stories of dual affinities, but they’re very rare and normally can’t do as much as a person with a single affinity,” Jenn said. “I’ve been reading about different magics over the last few days.”
“We should get going,” Yukiko said. “Jenn needs to get her stuff moved to the clan building and we need to find out where it is.”
“Good point,” Gregory agreed. “Let’s go.” He took one last sip of his tea before standing.
As they left the private room and walked through the main room of the second floor, all eyes turned to them. Muttered conversation about why three novices were unescorted sprang up, but when Bella bid them farewell, the muttering cut down.
When they descended to the ground floor, a warm voice called out to them, “Novices, are you ready?”
“Keeper, we are,” Gregory replied.
Dia shook her head. “I’m no longer a Keeper. I am Magus Dia, now that I am not in charge of the dormitory. You may all call me Dia. All of your things have been sent to the clan hall. I am here to show you the way.”
“Even my things, Kee… Dia?” Jenn asked.
“Yes.”
“But I didn’t even know I was—” Jenn began.
“Elder Lightshield said it would be so,” Dia cut her off. “If we had been wrong, it would have reflected badly on the clan. He appears to have been correct, however.”
“Yes, but that’s very unnerving,” Jenn said.
“Are you part of the clan, Dia?” Yukiko asked.
“Yes. I joined the other day when I was asked if I would care for you. It makes it easier for me to interact with the others if I’m an official member of a clan,” Dia said and smiled. “Now, if you will follow me?”
Trailing her, Gregory watched the path with a curious eye. Just before the last branch that would take them to the archive, Dia turned away and led them a different way. After another minute of walking and going past a large hedge, the clan hall came into view. It was a large building with ample grounds around it. The hedge they had passed surrounded the entirety of the area.
“This is Aether’s Guard clan hall inside the walls of the academy,” Dia said as she led them toward the doors. “It will easily accommodate everyone this year and for years to come.”
Gregory was glad the building wasn’t gaudy like the others he’d seen. It was very understated and appeared to be more defensive than anything. The windows were thin and tall, looking more like enlarged arrow slits than actual windows. The doors were iron-banded thick wood. The entire building abutted the wall, and the roof of the building was the same height as the walls. Gregory wondered if there was a trap door that would lead into the hall.
“Before I show you all the different rooms, we should start with the staff,” Dia said. “I think you know them.” Stopping on the porch, she pulled the bell-rope.
The doors opened to reveal five eurtiks that Gregory and Yukiko knew as friends. Ravol, Zenim, Steva, Velma, and Quilet all stood there in uniforms, smiling broadly. “Greetings, Novices,” the five said in unison.
Gregory and Yukiko smiled back at them, shocked that the cooks were there, but happy. Jenn’s brow furrowed as she tried to figure out why the cooks were there.
Dia chuckled, “They are most of the staff currently, but I’m sure we’ll be getting more before next year.”
“It’s good to see you all,” Yukiko said, moving forward to give Velma a hug. “We’ll miss your cooking, but it’s better to have you here.”
Zenim’s laugh was rough. “We’ll be cooking still. Most clans use the mess hall, as it’s free. Elder Lightshield assured us he’d rather we cook for the clan. Breakfast will be made to order, snacks will be ready at the start of the day, but dinner will be set to Dia’s specifications.”
Gregory shook hands with Steva. “Thank you again.”
“We still thank you both,” Steva grinned.
Yukiko looked back at Jenn, who seemed uncertain of what to do. “Jenn, these are our friends. Jenn is also our friend and joined the clan with us,” she told the staff.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Jenn said a little stiffly.
Dia placed a hand on her shoulder. “The clan doesn’t hold any prejudices and asks its members to do their best to dispel theirs.”
Jenn smiled. “Thank you, Dia.”
“Now that you’ve met with most of the staff,” Dia said, “we should continue the tour of the building. Follow me.”
The tour went fairly quickly, as Dia didn’t let them pause in any one area long. There was a garden for meditating, with a rock garden, a small pond with koi in it, and bonsai trees. The room with wooden sparring dummies made Jenn’s eyes light up. They paused for a little longer in the dining area and kitchen area so the staff could give a brief idea of what each person could order for food and snacks. Bedrooms ranged from half the size of what the novices had at the dormitory up to full suites. A room with a heavy covering on the large table and shelving was called the war room, but Dia didn’t elaborate on it further. The study was full of books with four tables and the last staff member.
Murium rose to her feet and looked mortified. Licking her lips, she brushed at her uniform and hurried to greet them after setting aside the book she had been reading. “I’m sorry, Dia. I never heard the bell.”
“Murium is the one who’ll be in charge of the study,” Dia said, ignoring her apology for the moment. “I’ve been told she’s highly skilled in knowing what and where everything is when it comes to knowledge.”
“She worked in the archive,” Gregory said. “She was always there with the book or scrolls we as
ked for.”
Murium lowered her head, clearly flustered. “Yet I’ve screwed this up already...” She chewed at her lip as she worried over what would happen.
Dia shook her head. “Murium, everyone makes mistakes. It’s not repeating them and learning to do better that matters. I trust you to never ignore the bell again.”
Murium looked up, hope in her eyes. “No, ma’am. Never.”
“Dia, not ma’am,” Dia said simply. “If you wish to study, Murium will assist you, Novices. The chief archivist herself vouched for her.”
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