Gregory grinned as he stepped back and fished his medallion out of his kimono, showing him the two glowing, sunflower-yellow rings that were lit up. “I think I can do more than you think.”
Parks’ eyes widened slightly at the sight of Gregory’s status, but he sneered. “Nick is rank one, only one rank dow…” Parks trailed off, his eyes going wider as he watched the medallion change.
Gregory saw Parks’ reaction and looked down; the third ring was filling in as he watched. “Sorry, what were you saying?” Gregory laughed.
Yunlo’s eyebrows twitched when he saw the ring energize in the middle of the fight. Glancing toward the council box, he saw an animated discussion taking place amongst those watching.
Parks rushed Gregory, intent on crushing him. Gregory changed his stance, wearing a smile on his face as he deflected the onslaught of attacks using nothing more than just his skill with the naginata. Parks was in a near frenzy— that frenzy grew as he tried time and again to use small shields of aether to trip Gregory up, only to have him sidestep, leap over, and avoid each one. He constantly had to use shields to block Gregory’s attacks that made it past the maul, making him realize he was bleeding his aether faster than he wanted to.
Gregory kept a smile on his face as he went with the flow of combat. Having used only his aether sight the entire fight, he’d been able to keep up with Parks, but it was starting to diminish under the constant use. When Parks wrapped himself in a shell of aether, Gregory wasn’t sure what he had planned, but he didn’t expect what Parks did.
Dropping his maul, Parks slammed into Gregory, making him drop the naginata to defend himself. They both hit the ground and, with the two of them unarmed, they rolled around, exchanging elbows, knees, and fists.
When they finally separated, Gregory was sporting a black eye and a split lip, and Parks had a broken nose. Getting back to their feet, they both settled into unarmed fighting stances.
“I’m going to break you!” Parks spat, a glob of blood landing near Gregory’s foot.
“Haven’t yet,” Gregory replied as he extended a left hand and beckoned him. “Come on.”
Parks gritted his teeth and rushed Gregory. Gregory let go of aether sight, pulling up his foresight for a couple of seconds. With the knowledge of the future in his mind, Gregory followed the pattern he’d seen until he changed direction.
Parks howled in pain and staggered back, his broken and bleeding nose gushing again after Gregory headbutted him. Clutching at his now flattened nose, Parks was in no place to defend against Gregory’s follow up attack.
Gregory caught Parks in a clinch, snaking his arms around Parks’ neck. “Tap out,” Gregory said as he clamped his arms tight.
Parks tried to throw Gregory over his back, but Gregory dropped his weight and further stressed Parks’ neck. Gasping as he tried to get airflow back, Parks reached out with his aether, attempting to form a shield between his skin and Gregory’s arm in desperation.
A sharp pain flared in Gregory’s left arm. He shouted, pushing off the other man, right before Yunlo was suddenly beside them. “Healers!”
Gregory looked down to see his bicep gashed almost to the bone, blood welling from the deep wound. Hissing in pain, he looked at Parks and saw Yunlo pressing his kimono to his neck.
Mindie was at Gregory’s side a moment later, checking his arm. She began to wrap a bandage around the wound. “Apply pressure,” she said when she finished.
Klim was kneeling beside Parks, her face grim as she touched his forehead and chest. “It’s like a knife went through his neck...” she was telling Yunlo.
Mindie dropped to her knees beside Yunlo and poured her aether into helping Klim. “Same with Pettit’s arm.”
Yunlo rose, no longer needed since the healers there. He moved to Gregory with an unreadable expression. “A knife?”
“No, sir. I don’t know what happened,” Gregory replied, feeling a little faint as his healing ring and aether tried to stabilize him. “I had his neck with my arm, then felt a sharp pain and let him go.”
Yunlo exhaled, sadness crossing his features for a moment. “He tried to insert a shield between you two... Fool. That’s advanced, and takes years of practice.” Pulling out the disk, he announced Gregory the winner.
Gregory bowed to Parks, wondering if the other novice would survive, before bowing to Yunlo, and finally, the council’s box. Walking slowly, Gregory saw the bandage was already stained red and figured he should see the healers soon.
He’d barely made it to the hallway outside the waiting area before Dia was suddenly in front of him. “Drink,” she said firmly, handing him a flask.
Gregory took the offered flask and drank it without question. The pain in his arm faded, and he felt a little less woozy. “Thank you, Dia.”
“Greg?” Yukiko, Jenn, and the rest were heading his way.
“My arm was gashed badly,” he said. “I should go see the healers.”
“What happened?” Hao asked.
“Parks tried to put a barrier between my arm and his neck,” Gregory replied. “It sliced us both.”
“Will he survive?” Adolphus asked.
“Mindie and Klim were working on him,” Gregory said. “I think he’ll survive.”
“Unwrap the bandage,” Dia said. “I’ll salve your arm.”
“You brought those items with you?” Yoo-jin asked.
“Elder Lightshield gave them to me when I was leaving this morning,” Dia replied.
“He has impressive foresight,” Gregory muttered.
“He sees many things,” Dia agreed. “I’ll be quick about it, then you can go on with your evening.”
Chapter Sixty
Gregory looked at the cloth-wrapped book on the table in his room and smiled. I’m glad it made it last night. I thought for sure I was going to have to ask Steva if he could run an errand... A long wait, but after today—
There was a knock on the door, and Gregory went to open it, leaving his thought unfinished. He smiled when he saw Yukiko waiting for him. “Good morning, Yuki.”
“Good morning, Greg. Might I come in?”
Gregory almost stepped aside when he remembered the book on the table. It was covered, but he worried that Yukiko might figure out what it was. “Uh…”
Seeing his hesitance, she stepped back. “We can go to my room, instead?”
“That’d be good,” Gregory said, leaving his room.
Yukiko’s eyes twinkled as she took his hand and stepped to her door. “You must have something special inside your room.” Gregory’s eyes shot open and Yukiko giggled softly. “Sorry, dear one. You’re easy to read at times.”
Gregory started to panic that she knew what his gift was. “Yuki, if it’s—!”
“Greg? Are you okay?” Yukiko asked, concerned after seeing his face.
Gregory was still trying to find the words when she helped him into her room and shut the door. The moment it closed, she was in his arms, and he started to relax. “It’s the gift. If it’s not what you wanted—”
“Gift?” Yukiko murmured, trying to understand. “Greg, what’re you so worried about? How can I dislike any gift from you?”
Looking into her eyes and seeing only love, concern, and honesty, Gregory felt like an idiot. “Oh… I’m sorry. Now I feel kind of stupid for worrying.”
“No, dear one. I worry about my gift to you, too,” Yukiko said softly. “It’s because we love each other so deeply that we feel this way. Mother said it was the same for her, when I asked.”
A pang of loss made his heart clench at her words.
Feeling him tense, Yukiko kissed his cheek. “My gift will be early... I hope that’s okay. It should be here after we train.”
Gregory was able to push the emotional turmoil aside. “I’ll love it.”
“I hope so, but like you, I worry, dear one.”
Gregory lowered his lips to hers and gave her a soft kiss, filled with his love. Yukiko returned it, softly, gently, not want
ing anything more than to share the moment with him.
They broke after some time, and Yukiko’s cheeks were flushed. “Tomorrow… just need to wait…”
Gregory rested his forehead against hers. “I know.”
“Greg... win with everything you have in you. Push as hard as you can to win against Jenn.”
“I will. I would even if it was you, Yuki. We grow best when we can push with everything we have. We’ve both said we want Jenn beside us on this journey, so we need to push her as hard as we do each other.”
Yukiko’s eyes held hope, and she started to speak when there was a knock on her door. Snapping her jaw shut, she took a deep breath and stepped out of his arms. She cleared her throat and opened the door a second later. “Jenn, are you ready?”
Jenn’s gaze flickered from one to the other and back. “If you need another minute, I can go dow—”
“No, it’s fine. We were just about to go, too,” Yukiko said, cutting her off gently.
“Are you two okay?” Jenn asked.
“Nervous,” Gregory said.
Jenn grinned. “You should be. I plan to win today.”
Yukiko giggled. “Would you care to wager on that, Jenn?”
Jenn became serious and met Yukiko’s eyes. “My wish, if I win.”
Yukiko bowed her head. “I’ll do my best. If you lose, though?”
Turning away, Jenn was lost in thought as she tried to find a good balance.
“Yuki, is this re—?” Gregory started to ask.
Yukiko placed a hand on his, cutting his sentence off. She didn’t say anything, just watching and waiting for Jenn.
Jenn turned back, looking downcast. “There’s nothing of equal balance... Even my leaving the clan and never speaking to you both again wouldn’t balance it.”
“I would never ask for that,” Yukiko said softly. “I have no intention of losing my best friend over a bet.”
Jenn swallowed, her eyes shimmering. “Yuki…”
“If you lose, you’ll have to wait a whole year before you can ask again, and you’ll not argue if another gets ahead of you.”
Jenn’s nostrils flared and her eyes stopped shimmering with unshed tears. Instead, they started to spark with aether. “I won’t lose!” Her words were soft, but forceful, as she stared at Yukiko.
“Good. You need to hold to that determination if you ever want your wish to come true. We grow best by pushing each other. Gregory will do his best to make you lose, and you need to do the same. No hesitation, no holding back.”
Jenn’s nod was sharp and crisp. “Understood.”
“Uh, Jenn? Yuki? You’re both scaring me a little.”
Both women turned toward him, and Gregory felt his foresight trigger. A throaty laugh filled his head and the vision didn’t solidify for him. His confusion must have shown on his face, because Yukiko and Jenn were looking at him with concern when he was able to see clearly again.
“Greg?” they asked together. Once again, the vision started to appear before slamming shut as Darkness laughed.
He held up a hand as he got his bearings. “Darkness stopped me from seeing something.”
“Darkness?” Jenn asked.
Yukiko exhaled softly. “Remember when I said there are things that have to wait for later, Jenn? This is one of them.”
Gregory couldn’t believe he slipped up that badly. “Yeah... That would take some explaining.”
Jenn wasn’t sure who she should be trying to press for answers. “A secret?”
“One worth more than I can even estimate,” Yukiko said.
Jenn inhaled sharply. “Yuki…”
“Yes. I mean it, Jenn. Can you wait until after the wedding? Please?”
Jenn looked at Gregory, who looked abashed. “Greg, is it okay for me to know?”
“We haven’t even told her parents,” Gregory muttered, “it’s that important. If Yuki says you should know…”
“After the wedding, if things go the way I think they will,” Yukiko said. “It does mean Jenn needs to win, though.”
“I will win,” Jenn said softly, but with the full force of her will.
“Earn it,” Yukiko said in challenge. “I will never accept less.”
Gregory was totally off balance. They appeared to have gone back to the earlier conversation, and he didn’t see how they were connected. “Uh—”
“Breakfast will be ready shortly,” Dia said, coming down the stairs. “If you three are going to keep your routine, you really should be going.”
They all turned to look at Dia, who paused on the landing.
“Hallways are not the best places for conversations,” Dia admonished them lightly. “Now, shall we?”
“Yes, Dia,” they said.
~*~*~
Breakfast was quieter than normal, as they didn’t banter like they usually would.
Velma was watching them all with a bit of concern, worried for them. As they rose to leave, she spoke up, “Good luck. I can’t cheer for one of you over the other, but I hope you don’t have bad feelings when it’s finished.”
All of them turned to her, touched by her concern for their friendship. Gregory was the one who replied first, “Velma, it’ll be fine. We knew that this was going to happen, and that I would be facing one of them. We won’t have hard feelings when the match ends.”
“He’s right,” Jenn said. “Even if he beats me again, I’ll know that I gave it everything I had, and he was just better than me. It’ll push me to strive for more. If I win, Greg will be the one striving even harder.”
“Okay. I was worried,” Velma said, bowing her head to them as she rubbed at one of her ears. “None of us can think of the clan without you three now.”
“None of us are leaving the clan,” Yukiko said. “We might grow closer, but we won’t grow apart.”
Velma’s relief would’ve been comical if not for her obvious worry before. “Thank you. We’ll be cheering for you both.”
~*~*~
“Novices, good morning. Today might see a repeat of a champion for the novice year. It doesn’t happen often at all,” Rafiq greeted them.
“It’ll be a tough fight,” Gregory said. “I’ll be doing my best.”
“As will I,” Jenn added.
“Your books are waiting for you,” Rafiq said, “along with your friends. They came in even earlier than normal. I think they couldn’t sleep.”
Yukiko giggled. “Yes, they’ve been even more excited than we have. Well, for the tournament, at least.”
Rafiq’s laughter boomed for a second before he cut it off and coughed. “I’m sorry for that, Chief.”
Sarinia snorted from above them. “Yes, I would think so. Luckily, there’s no one else here for you to disrupt with such rudeness.” Turning her gaze to the novices, she nodded. “I wish you and Bean a good fight, and for you and Warlin to have a happy and long marriage.”
“Thank you,” they said, bowing to her.
“I’ll be watching your fight with interest. That’s the most I can do for either of the events I mentioned. I was touched to hear you would have liked Rafiq or the others to attend your betrothal dinner. Not many even think about us for moments like that, but there are rules that must be followed. We did hear about it, though, and it sounded wonderful.”
“Thank you, Chief Archivist,” Yukiko bowed with a large smile.
“Your friends are waiting, so go. Learn, grow, and thrive.”
They did as she bade them, going off to see their waiting friends.
~*~*~
“You lost, Yuki. What happened?” Daciana asked without preamble as they approached.
“Jenn beat me,” Yukiko said. “I thought my plan would be enough, but she proved me wrong.”
“Almost had me. If I hadn’t emptied out my storage earring, I wouldn’t have had enough aether to win,” Jenn said.
“I had to empty mine to keep you in place for as long as I did,” Yukiko replied, recalling a conversation they’d had
the night before.
“How did you break free? It looked like she had you,” Nessa asked.
“I surged aether through my entire body and forced my way free,” Jenn said. “Thankfully, my body path helped the channels be strong enough to endure it, or I would have torn ligaments and tendons.”
“We’re working on the body path,” Daciana said.
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