“What about your fights today?” Daciana asked suddenly. “Do you have plans now?”
“We do,” Yukiko smiled. “You’ll have to watch the fights though.”
Daciana frowned and Nessa snickered. “She hates being left out. Daciana, they have to play it safe.”
“Yeah, I know. After tomorrow, it won’t matter,” Daciana said. She glanced at Yukiko. “After we join the clan, will you tell us about training all three paths as we’ve been doing?”
Yukiko met Daciana’s eyes, holding them until she looked away. “Daciana, we’ll tell you as much as we can, but part of it is… special. We see all three of you as friends— good friends— but some of what we do is kept even from our families.”
Daciana looked up, opening her mouth to speak, but Jenn spoke over her, “We have Magi Squares and studying to get to before we fight.”
Nessa nodded. “We understand. We’ll join the clan first and do our very best.”
“Our very best,” Victoria agreed.
“Fine,” Daciana said. “First, we join the clan.”
“Let’s get working,” Yukiko said.
Gregory watched them thoughtfully for a moment longer. You’re imagining it... daydreams and desires. Don’t be an idiot, Greg.
“Dear one?” Yukiko asked when he didn’t pull a paper out.
“Huh? Oh, I’m sorry. I was just thinking,” he apologized, flushing a little as he considered what he had been thinking.
Yukiko’s lips pursed, but she didn’t push him. Instead, she started working on her Magi Squares.
~*~*~
They’d been in the arena for hours, watching the various displays of magic from different magi and clans. The one that impressed Gregory most was the light magic demonstration— the man had been able to disappear from sight and conjure different images that moved as he wished.
“It is more rare than shadow magic,” Lightshield said when Gregory mentioned how amazing it was. “It is prized by many clans for its ability to misdirect, as the magi showed us. He went invisible as a copy of him kept walking.”
Gregory fought to keep his aether sight off, knowing he’d need all of his aether for later, but he really wanted to see the magic in use. “Can they spread it to cover a unit of men?”
“They can, indeed,” Lightshield smiled, “though it does nothing about sound.”
“That would make it difficult to hide a lot of men, since their equipment would still make noise,” Yukiko said.
“Wouldn’t give you an exact position, but it would be enough to cause them trouble,” Jenn nodded.
“Thinking of how to apply it to the battlefield is good. Hopefully, you will never need to, but life takes paths we would rather not trod at times,” Lightshield said. “Now, you should all go to get ready. Your fight is not far off.”
“Yes, sir,” they said.
They were on their way down to the waiting area under the arena when Gregory caught sight of Hayworth and the Swift Wind apprentices. Pausing just above the steps, Gregory gave Hayworth a nod. “Hayworth.”
“I see you made it here first,” Hayworth said. “We’ll circle around to the other one, then. I knew we should have come sooner.”
“Wanted to take some shadows away from us?”
“Of course. Best tactical decision.”
Gregory looked at the two apprentices behind Hayworth. “Lost some more?”
“They’re not fully recovered, and we’ll have another fight one way or another,” Hayworth said. “Things might have been different if we hadn’t lost Kang to the earth trap the other day.”
“I can’t argue that,” Gregory said. “You’d have had an easier time with your last fight, at the very least.”
“Exactly. We’ll see you on the sands. Good luck.”
“You, too,” Gregory nodded to the apprentices. “We’re looking forward to a good fight. A loss does mean not facing the Eternal Flame, though, so maybe a loss is better overall.”
Hayworth snorted. “If you really thought that, you’d forfeit the match before it started.”
“And give Nick the satisfaction of not fighting us? I can’t do that.”
“Fair. Either way, he’ll have to earn it.”
“Good, though I don’t want him to earn it. I want him to fail again.”
Hayworth laughed. “So do I.” He turned to walk away. “Come on, we have to circle around.”
Making it down the stairs, Gregory found his wives waiting for him. “Is everything okay?” Jenn asked.
“Yeah, just making small talk. It’s just going to be Hayworth and two others. I hinted that a loss means not facing the Eternal Flame. The two with him seemed to hear that.”
“Trying to get them to back out?” Yukiko giggled. “Hayworth wouldn’t do that.”
“I’m not so sure,” Jenn said. “He just needs to finish in the top three. If they go all out against us, we might cost them more, and then Nick will roast them. What good does it do to get there, then get cooked or killed?”
“That’s a good point,” Yukiko said. “He played smart during the Empire’s Gambit challenge. I’ll consider it a possibility, but I won’t hold my breath.”
“Best that you don’t,” Gregory chuckled.
“They’ll be ready for you in a few minutes,” Mindie said from the tunnel.
“At least we know we’re in good hands if things go badly,” Jenn said. “How are you, Mindie?”
“Well, but I’m worried about today,” Mindie admitted. “The Eternal Flame has been burning so many... Some of the flames have been tempered this time, but the number of burns has gone up. With the bad will between your clans, if you face them... I worry it won’t be just mild burns.”
“We have plans,” Yukiko said, “but thank you. We’ll do our best to not get incinerated, if they even make it to the finals.”
Mindie exhaled slowly. “You have to win to face them, too.”
“Yes,” Gregory said. “Have you heard anything about your posting?”
Mindie shook her head. “Nothing yet. I might hear something after the solstice. I’ve applied to stay here for my five years, but I’m sure they’ll post me somewhere else. I have no clan to fight for me, so I’ll be posted at the whim of whoever decides.”
“Because a clan can help influence that,” Yukiko nodded. “Why not join a clan, then, and ask them to get you a spot you’d like?”
“Because…” Mindie trailed off and shook her head.
“Because none of them understand or care to change the things that should be changed,” Yukiko finished for her.
Mindie blinked, then smiled softly. “Of course you’d understand... Yes.”
“Have you considered speaking with our elder?” Gregory asked, seeing where Yukiko was going.
Mindie just stared at them for a long moment. “I… considered it briefly.” Her head whipped around, and she exhaled. “They’re calling for you.”
The three picked up their helmets and weapons. Walking up the stairs and down the hall, Gregory was in the back with Mindie trailing him by a step.
“Think about it,” Gregory said. “You’ve been a good person to us, and we can always use more friends who share the same views. It just requires the belief that Aether will eventually return. Anyone can leave the clan at any time, so unlike the others, you’d never be stuck and unable to leave.”
Mindie stopped a few feet short of the exit. “I’ll consider it. Good luck.”
Gregory gave her a smile before slipping his helmet on. “Thank you. I hope you don’t need to heal us.”
Mindie smiled. “Me, too.”
Chapter Seventy-five
Gregory walked across the arena floor with one hand raised to acknowledge the crowd, which was cheering, clapping, stomping their feet, and even chanting the clan name. No one could see the smile on his face underneath his sparring mask.
Yunlo stood in the middle of the arena, waiting for both teams. He nodded when they stopped a few feet away
from him. All of them looked to the other tunnel and, as if they’d been waiting for that moment, Hayworth led his two clan members out of the tunnel.
The cheers were just as loud for them, and Hayworth took the time to wave and smile to the crowd, as he had his helmet under his arm. The two with him waved, as well.
“One more fight for you to reach the finals,” Yunlo told them. “If you lose, you still have another fight to claim third place. You know the rules. Turn to the boxes and bow.”
Hayworth and his clanmates slipped their helmets on before turning to bow. Gregory exhaled— he’d half-hoped Hayworth would concede the match.
After they’d bowed, the three of them huddled and backed away a few paces. Gregory looked at the crossbows the two magi behind Hayworth had and he grimaced. Yunlo’s arm rose, and Gregory triggered foresight and aether sight.
Gregory’s hands slid along the naginata shaft and he tapped his index finger in a small rhythm. He trusted Jenn to see his signal.
“Fight!” Yunlo called.
The moment the word left Yunlo’s mouth, Jenn’s legs blazed and she shot away around the wall. Yukiko ran behind Gregory and ducked into his shadow. Hayworth shook his head and made a motion— the two men behind him fired their crossbows, then reloaded them.
“Jenn, down!” Gregory shouted, hoping his voice reached her over the crowd.
The spatial rift appeared in front of Gregory, taking the padded bolts that had been aimed at him. Another rift appeared before Jenn, and the two bolts came zipping out of it toward her. Jenn had heard Gregory’s warning and dropped to her knees, bending over backward. One bolt passed just above her, and she slapped away the second. Jenn grimaced, as she knew that the arrow would have gone through her hand because she hadn’t infused her body in that location. She pulled her arm to her chest and forced herself to keep it there.
Yukiko used Gregory’s shadow to vanish, popping up behind the two archers. Her blade caught one of them in the neck, but before she could get the second, Hayworth’s blade hit her in the back, as he’d opened another rift at just the right moment. Yukiko and the other apprentice raised their hands and started to walk away.
“Focus on him!” Hayworth told his remaining clanmate before turning to Jenn, who was nearly on top of them.
The other apprentice was still reloading and focused on Gregory, who had started to run forward.
Jenn met Hayworth, and he used his shield to blunt her assault. He grimaced, snapping his sword out only to be deflected each time. Knowing Gregory was closing in, Hayworth gambled by shoving into Jenn, hoping to knock her off balance long enough to get a clean blow. He grunted when he bounced off the slight woman, staggering back a step.
Jenn kicked Hayworth’s shield and he landed hard on his back. Not giving him any time, she went to capitalize on it, taking her awareness off the archer. The other member of Swift Wind finished reloading his crossbow— he knew it would be pointless to try shooting Gregory, so he spun and fired at Jenn. She looked up in time to bat the bolt aside, but it still skipped off her right arm.
Grimacing, Jenn dropped her wakizashi before kicking down at Hayworth. He was just able to get his shield back up to cover the stomp. Half-braced against the ground, he felt his shield crack under her heel. He jabbed out with his sword and it vanished, tapping the back of Jenn’s head. Growling, she backed up and raised her hand.
Hayworth was getting back up to his feet when his clanmate let out a pained yell. He jerked up to find Gregory closing on him. “And we meet again...” Hayworth said.
Gregory didn’t reply— he just kept coming, his naginata set and ready. Hayworth thrust three times in quick succession, each one popping up at different angles. Gregory slid past each attack, barely slowing as he closed the distance between them. Hayworth shook his head and gave up on using his aether, knowing he’d need it for the next fight.
The resulting clash ended with Gregory tripping Hayworth and tapping his helm with the blade of the naginata. Letting go of his magic, Gregory exhaled hard and pushed his helm up.
“Made us work for that win,” Gregory said, extending his free hand.
“We almost had it,” Hayworth replied, taking the offered hand and getting to his feet. “On the plus side of things, we don’t have to face Nick. Good luck with that.”
Gregory laughed as Yunlo announced the winners. “Neither of us took injuries, either, so good luck with your opponent.”
Klim and Mindie were there to check them and, after a moment, they both backed up. Gregory’s wives and Hayworth’s clanmates came back out onto the arena floor, then bowed as they were supposed to.
“Good fight,” Gregory said.
“You, too,” one of the two apprentices said, glancing at Hayworth with concern.
“You did the right thing,” Hayworth said. “You got her arm, so I was able to get her and have a chance against him.”
“I didn’t expect you to hit me without even looking,” Yukiko said. “How did you manage that?”
“We left that spot open intentionally,” Hayworth said, “to bait you into attacking them. We had to remove you to have a chance.”
“If you hadn’t caught my other arm with that first volley, I might’ve been able to do more,” Jenn sighed. “It was a good plan.”
The archers bowed to her.
“If you’re done?” Yunlo asked stiffly.
“Sorry, sir,” Gregory and Hayworth said in echo.
With that, they each led their teams off the field. Mindie trailed them, looking thoughtful as she followed their gaze up to the stands where their clan sat. The elder met her gaze and bowed his head respectfully to her in thanks.
“Well, that could’ve gone better,” Jenn sighed as they entered the tunnel. “We knew they might do that, but we hadn’t counted on them going for me. If I hadn’t gone out as wide, it might have been different.”
“We had no idea Hayworth can target places he can’t see,” Yukiko said. “Now we do, so we’ll factor that in next time.”
“I took too long to move,” Gregory added. “I thought they’d target me. My own damned hubris almost cost us that match.”
“I thought you all did well,” Mindie chimed in. “I’m sure you know better than I do, but none of you acted as badly as you think. Gregory, you didn’t sit still. You moved as soon as you were sure they were after someone else. Yukiko, maybe you don’t realize how close he came to missing you, but he did. Jenn, many would have tried to ignore the minor touch on your arm and say it hadn’t touched you, but you did the honorable thing. Even then, you nearly had him.”
The friends exchanged looks before they turned to face her as a group. Mindie froze in place, wondering if she’d gone too far.
“Thank you, Mindie,” Yukiko said.
“You’re right. We did the best we could,” Gregory added.
“We get hard on ourselves to try to improve, but sometimes, it minimizes what we do,” Jenn said. “Thanks.”
“Oh, uh... you’re welcome,” Mindie said, a little flustered. “Your clan is one of the few who has constructive conversations after a fight. You don’t point fingers and cast blame. I didn’t want you all to think you had done badly, especially when Klim and I had no real injuries to heal. The worst was Hayworth’s shield arm, which only had a minor strain.”
“It would’ve broken his arm if he hadn’t braced his shield on the ground,” Jenn said. “He is smart, lucky, or possibly both. We weren’t trying to maim them, though. That isn’t how we normally fight.”
“That might change for the last fight,” Gregory said. “We’ll not have a lot of choice if it’s against the Eternal Flame.”
Mindie nodded, her chest tightening. “Yes... that will be an unpleasant fight. Are you sure you need to fight? Couldn’t you just concede to them?”
“How do you think Nick would act if we did?” Yukiko asked her. “Do you think he’d stop his antagonism? Would he stop attacking eurtik?”
“No, but...” Mindi
e looked down. “You might all get burned badly or… or killed.”
Gregory went up to her and put a hand on her shoulder. “We might, but if we stand by and let them do what they want unopposed, it’ll be worse for everyone else. My mother told me that Lionel Lighthand once said, ‘All evil needs to triumph is for good men to do nothing.’ I never understood it clearly until I met Nick Shun.”
Mindie took a deep breath and looked up, meeting Gregory’s eyes. “I’ll heal you. As long as you draw breath at the end of the fight, I’ll be there to help.”
Magi's Path (Aether's Revival Book 3) Page 58