They couldn’t rightly ask him to leave after he presented the gift, so Dia said, “Magus, that is a truly extravagant gift. I’m sure my juniors will enjoy it in the future. Would you care to join the meal?”
Yang waved off the offer. “No, no. I can see this is a clan affair, so I will not stay.”
The three apprentices felt relief at his words, but they smiled and bowed their heads to him respectfully.
“If you are free after dinner, though, Ursinda, I would love to talk some more.”
Dia lowered her head fractionally. “Will you be in the main room?”
“I was thinking,” Yang said with a widening smile, “that you might come to my home. I know your time here is coming to an end shortly, and I haven’t had you over yet.”
Dia’s smile became fixed. “I shall be over, Yang.”
“Good, good.” Yang beamed and he moved toward the door. “I’ll make sure my carriage is here to bring you.” He looked back to the apprentices. “Congratulations again, and I wish you a delightful evening.”
When the door shut behind him, Dia’s smile fell away. “We’re here for a few more days. If I don’t show, it will strain things.” Tsking, she gave them an apologetic smile. “I’m sorry that this celebration was dimmed in that manner.”
“It’s fine,” Jenn said. “Is koi jerky really that rare?”
Dia nodded. “It is. Proper preparation of koi jerky is something only a true…” Trailing off, Dia looked pensive. “Brown.” Without saying more, she pulled the rope behind her chair. “Please go back to enjoying your food.”
They did as she bade them, but they waited, as they knew Brown would be coming soon.
They didn’t have to wait long, and when Brown arrived, he looked a bit unhappy. “I’m sorry, but the dessert is still—”
“This isn’t about dessert,” Dia cut him off. “Did you ever prepare koi jerky for Yang?”
Brown blinked, unprepared for the sudden curveball. “It’s been a few months, but yes. I was surprised he wanted it, considering the surcharge I put upon it.”
Dia snorted. “The idiot tax?”
Brown chuckled. “Indeed. It has served me well over the years. The fact that he could pay it at all was a surprise all by itself, but he did, so I made him a box of jerky.”
“Considering your normal price for such, yes, it is curious that he could afford it,” Dia sighed, “which means that his gift is even more extravagant than I had thought.”
Brown frowned, but when he saw the box on the table, his lips pursed. “He gave the newlyweds the jerky?”
“He has been trying to get my attention since we came to town,” Dia replied. “He delivered this just moments ago and then asked me to stop by his home after dinner.”
“I don’t envy you,” Brown said. “Yes, that box is the one I gave him for the koi jerky. If there is nothing else, I need to return to the desserts.”
“That is all. Please bring them when you’re finished. Don’t wait for us to call you.”
“Very well,” Brown said, giving her a small bow before leaving the room.
When the door shut, Dia gave them a smile. “I can promise that jerky will be first-rate, now that I know who prepared it.”
Gregory set his fork down. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
Both Yukiko and Jenn nodded in agreement with him.
Dia shook her head, a smile touching her lips. “No. I do thank you three for the thought, but everything I can think of wouldn’t work, considering it is your wedding night. I shall endure. I have endured far worse than Yang.”
“We still wish we could help,” Yukiko said.
“Alas, if wishes were horses, we’d all own a stable,” Dia said. “Enjoy the meal. Don’t let his coming overshadow the joy that should be.”
They did as she said, and went back to happily eating.
Brown brought the desserts in just as they were finishing. He was all smiles when he saw they had eaten nearly everything. “I’m glad that my efforts were not wasted,” Brown smiled. He placed a single platter on the table and gave them all a grin before removing the lid.
Gregory looked at the vela-sized black things on the plate and was at a loss for what they could be. The center of each was golden-brown with white sprinkles on them. He looked to Yukiko, who was looking at the dessert curiously, as well.
“Oh, salted caramel brownie bites? It’s been a long time since I’ve had them,” Dia grinned. “This will almost make going to Yang’s bearable.”
“Enjoy them,” Brown grinned as he left the room.
“Dia, you’ve had them before?” Jenn asked.
“Yes. Each is two bites,” Dia said, picking one off the platter. “Just try them. Bite it in half, but be careful, as the center will try to ooze away.” She showed them what she meant by biting hers in half, then tilting the other half when the center tried to get away.
Seeing Dia obviously enjoying hers, they all took one from the tray. With a shared look, they bit into them together. Their eyes widened as they quickly tipped the brownie back to keep the rest of the caramel from escaping. No words were spoken as they all quickly finished their first bite of the dessert.
“I’m glad to see that you like them,” Dia laughed. “There are enough for us to have three each. Just savor the moment— don’t rush them, for they will be gone too quickly as it is.”
They did what she said, but even taking the time to savor them, they were gone all too soon. Gregory sighed and touched his stomach— he felt full, and his aether was burning brightly.
“We’ll be leaving in three days,” Dia told them. “The next two days are the last with your instructors. Learn all you can, and finish any projects you are working on.”
“We have a figurine coming from a woodcarver,” Yukiko said. “I believe it will be here the day after tomorrow. If it isn’t, may we check the market before we leave?”
“That is acceptable. We’ll be returning by normal carriage and detouring to come back from a different direction,” Dia told them. “Any questions?”
“No, Dia,” they said.
“Very well. I wish you all a good night.” Her smile tilted into a subtle smirk before it faded entirely. “A much better night than I’ll be having.”
“Night, Dia,” they said, feeling a little bad they couldn’t help her.
When Dia left the room, Gregory shook his head. “She’s only going to make it easier for the clan to come back next year, isn’t she?”
“Yes,” Yukiko said. “The politics of the clans.”
“Any chance he’ll be gone before next year?” Jenn asked.
“He’s a magus, so it’s unlikely,” Yukiko said. “I doubt he’d want to go, considering that it’s almost a given that he’s skimming the coin for the town for his own profit.”
“Could we use that to help push him out?” Gregory asked.
“Not subtly enough that it wouldn’t come back onto the clan,” Yukiko sighed. “I’ve considered it a few ways already. Dia might know of some avenues that we don’t, but if she was willing to take them, I doubt she’d tell us, just in case.”
“I’m glad she’s been in charge of us,” Jenn said softly. “She’s very understanding.”
“She is, indeed,” Yukiko nodded.
“Motherly,” Gregory said softly. “A few times, she’s reminded me of my mother.”
Yukiko gave him a sad smile and covered his hand with hers. “Yes… she does feel like a surrogate mother.”
“But less huggy,” Jenn said with a wry smile.
Yukiko giggled. “Your mother does love to hug you.”
“Enough of my mother,” Jenn said as she got to her feet.
Yukiko stood up a second behind her. “Back to our room?”
“Yes,” Jenn nodded with a grin. “Now that we won’t be interrupted again, I want to take the time to explore you, Yuki. I haven’t gotten to do that yet.”
“Fair is fair,” Gregory smirked as he got u
p. “She’s been the only one not given that treatment tonight.”
Yukiko gave them both a large smile. “If that’s what my dear husband and beautiful wife wish.”
Chapter Twenty-one
The three of them were all smiles when they went down to breakfast. Gregory felt like he was on top of the world— he’d tag-teamed Yukiko with Jenn for a good while after dinner, but in the end, they both turned on him.
They found Dia already seated when they entered the main room. She was wearing a frown as she gazed out the window, but when she glanced their way, her frown faded and she gave them a nod.
“Morning to you all,” Dia greeted them.
“Dia, it’s good to see you,” Yukiko said, meaning every word.
Dia’s lips turned up at the corners. “Yang would never push too much, but it did take me hours to find a good time to take my leave.”
“Did you get enough sleep?” Gregory asked.
Dia shook her head. “No, but my aether helped refresh me. I will sleep well tonight.”
“Is that something we’ll be able to do?” Jenn asked.
“You’ll begin doing so this year. You’ve been splitting your games over multiple days, correct? The games at the academy are played start to finish, and some can stretch out for a few days. You’ll have a day or two after those long games to recover. You can only replace sleep with aether for a few days before it stops being effective. If you’re forced to those lengths, you’ll end up passed out as your body recovers from the strain.”
“Shouldn’t we practice doing that to get used to it?” Gregory asked.
“Practice doesn’t help,” Dia said. “The body path will keep your body fit and ready to go, but your mind might become a little foggy. Mind path will keep you sharp, but your reflexes will be dulled. The spirit path is the odd one, as usual— a follower of the spirit path can meditate to help offset the costs and catch snippets of sleep, allowing you to go a little longer than the others.”
“Oh,” Yukiko said, “that is interesting. We had no idea the games were played straight through or that we could burn aether that way. The history where Emperor Toja stayed awake during the night of the eurtik attack makes sense now.”
“Oh, right,” Gregory nodded.
“Your food,” Leroy Brown said, bringing over their breakfast. “Gratulations on your nuptials,” he said to Jenn before turning to Gregory. “No idea how you’ll manage two of them. Takes a strong man to have an equally strong wife, much less multiple of them.”
“Vera blessed me with them,” Gregory said. “I just hope I can be the man they think I am.”
The old man laughed and nodded. “We all hope that for our wives. Have a good day, magi.”
“Hmm, egg toast,” Dia smiled. “I enjoy this. The syrup is sweet, and an expensive condiment. Use it sparingly.”
“Yes, Dia,” Gregory and Jenn said.
“I wonder what this one is made from,” Yukiko said. “I’ve had it made from maple tree sap, and once, it was a nutty flavor.”
“With Brown, that’s a good question,” Dia said, picking up the small pitcher. Dipping her knife into it, she tasted it. One eyebrow raised as she poured a little over her egg toast. “It’s flavored with apples and cinnamon. I would ask him how he managed that, but he’d never tell me.”
Yukiko accepted the syrup from Dia, and did as Dia had, taste-testing it. “Hmm... it’s tasty.”
The syrup went around the table, each of them taking a small amount that they dribbled over their food, then spread onto the toast with their knives. Silence fell over the table as they all focused on eating.
Dia smiled, the first one finished. “Did you notice the aether-infusion in the syrup?”
“I was wondering where it was coming from,” Gregory said. “It was gentle, which makes sense, considering we all used the syrup so sparingly.”
“It would have been problematic if you had used more,” Dia smiled. “Are you ready to go train?”
“Yes, Dia,” they said, having all finished their meal.
~*~*~
They’d reached the park and were getting ready to start meditation when Jenn spoke up, “Dia, we met Grandmaster Baltur at the temple.”
Dia blinked. “He’s still here? I wonder why he wasn’t there when I stopped by... I’ll go back and see if he’s still there after training. Thank you for telling me.”
“We thought it odd that he hadn’t mentioned talking with you,” Jenn said.
“How is he?” Dia asked.
“Fading,” Yukiko said softly, “like Elder Lightshield.”
Dia exhaled slowly. “Yes. It is inevitable, and yet sad all the same.” Shaking her head, she took the first stance of the Peaceful Fist. “Let’s begin. You have work today.”
“Yes, Dia,” they said, already ready.
~*~*~
As meditation came to an end, Dia was smiling widely. She fished out her medallion, and the eighth circle was glowing a rich cyan. “This trip out of the academy has been a wonder.”
“Congratulations, Dia,” Gregory grinned. “You just reached the next rank?”
“I’ve been in the seventh rank for a long while,” Dia replied. “When I touched both paths the other day, I was hopeful that the next rank wouldn’t be far behind.”
“You’ll make it to master tier easily,” Yukiko said.
“Yes,” Dia agreed. “I worry about making it to the grandmaster tier, and I doubt I’ll ever see elder.”
“Elder is hard to reach,” Jenn said. “At least, it appears that way, from everything I’ve read.”
“It is,” Dia agreed. “Magus, master, and grandmaster are the most common ranks in the empire. Elders are rare, but there are a good number of them. The number of sages has only ever diminished over the years. They were never common, though back in the days of Lionel Lighthand, there were over a dozen sages. There are fewer than half that now, and there hasn’t been a new one for a few hundred years.”
“Lightshield is certain he won’t make it to sage,” Gregory said softly.
“He isn’t wrong,” Dia said sadly. “He’s only made it to the fifth rank of elder.” She shook her head. “You all have places to be. Go now. I’ll make sure dinner is ready when you finish your bath this evening.”
“Yes, Dia,” they said together before jogging off into town.
~*~*~
Gregory finished making another arrow and glanced over at Bryn. “Sir, I want to thank you for your tutelage. I feel confident that I’ll be able to avoid the worst an unscrupulous bowyer tries to foist off on me.”
“You’ve been a good pupil,” Bryn said. “If I had a year or two, I’m sure I could make you a journeyman bowyer in your own right.”
“I’m flattered, sir. It’s a craft I would do if I could. I’m a magi, though, and a peaceful life is not likely.”
“That is true,” Bryn nodded. “Even if there are no wars, magi often seem to find bad ends, between clan conflicts or them overstepping in the wrong places against the wrong people. I don’t think you’ll be in that last group. You’re far too honorable for that.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“It’s time for you to pack up for the day,” Bryn said, looking out the window of his shop. “Tomorrow is your last day. It’ll be more arrows.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you again for the gifts.”
“You’ve earned them through your effort,” Bryn said. “I doubt I’ll have another apprentice next year. If I do, they’ll have large shoes to fill.”
Gregory bowed his head again. “Thank you, sir.”
“Enough. Go on. I’m sure your wife is waiting for you.”
“Yes, sir,” Gregory grinned as he left the shop.
Bryn watched him go, then went to check on the arrows Gregory had made.
~*~*~
Gregory was almost at the inn’s door when a hand tapped his shoulder. He spun to find the person, but no one was there. Another tug on his sleeve had him turning back the
other way. Again, no one was there.
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