Gregory woke slowly the next morning. He knew that he’d dreamt, but he couldn’t recall what. The soft, warm body beside him made him smile. Turning his head, he saw Yukiko was asleep with her head on his chest and one leg over his.
Brow furrowing, Gregory realized it was light outside. Guess we slept later than I thought we would. Wonder if Jenn already tried to wake us? With a mental shrug, he leaned over and kissed Yukiko’s cheek.
“Hmm…” Yukiko murmured and kissed his chest. “Again, dear heart?”
Gregory chuckled. “It’s late. The sun has already risen.”
Yukiko’s eyelids fluttered open and she looked up at him. “Oh, then we should get up. Jenn is probably already waiting for us.” She shifted her leg and giggled. “Or was I right, after all?”
“I wouldn’t tell you no,” Gregory murmured. “I doubt I’ll ever get enough of last night.”
“Agreed,” Yukiko kissed his chest again, “but we should be good and not keep our friend waiting any longer.”
“You’re right,” Gregory sighed.
“But if she hasn’t knocked yet…” Yukiko murmured, “maybe a little longer wouldn’t hurt?” With a mischievous smile, she began to kiss down his chest.
“I’ll feel bad about not being able to return the attention,” Gregory told her.
“You can tonight,” Yukiko said as she continued to trail kisses down his body.
Gregory didn’t object— he planned on returning her attention at least threefold later.
~*~*~
Gregory just finished getting dressed when a knock sounded. Yukiko answered the door and opened it to admit Jenn.
“I thought maybe I was the only one to wake up late,” Jenn said. “I’m glad I wasn’t.”
“No, we just got out of bed, too,” Yukiko replied, giving her friend a hug. “Do you know what time it is?”
“I looked out my window,” Jenn said. “The sun is just fully above the horizon, so we still have time.”
“Should we study first, then see about breakfast?” Gregory suggested.
“That works for me,” Jenn replied. “We can ask about open spaces where we can do our meditation, too.”
“That’s a good idea,” Yukiko agreed. “What are we studying?”
“Empire’s Gambit,” Gregory said. “We can discuss the advanced tactics that are in your new book.”
“That would be easier if we had the war room with us,” Jenn said. “It’s not a bad idea though.”
“Okay,” Yukiko said, going over to the armoire to get her book. “Let’s have a seat and we’ll get started.”
~*~*~
They were all hungry when they finally made it downstairs. Dia waved them over to her table, where she had a lot of food piled on plates.
“I see you all woke up late. The food is still warm, so dig in. The cook did the best they could, but it’s been some time since they’ve cooked for apprentice magi. I did make sure that your supply of additives was packed for this month.”
“Thank you for that,” Gregory said. “We were surprised when we found it in our bags.”
“I realized that you might not think of it ahead of time.”
“Hmm, I should let Father know,” Yukiko said as they took seats. “We’ll need the same thing for our third year and possibly beyond.”
Dia nodded. “It wouldn’t hurt to continue them during that time.”
Serving themselves large portions, the three apprentices were eager to dig in. The food was amazing— they thought it might even be better than what they normally got at the clan hall. The aether-infused food hit them hard, and they had to slow their pace.
“This is incredible,” Gregory said after a few bites, “and it’s very rich in aether.”
“He is quite talented,” Dia said, watching them with a smile. “If he weren’t so abrasive, I’m sure a grandmaster or elder would have hired him as a personal chef.”
“The cook is hard to deal with?” Yukiko asked.
“Quite,” Dia replied with a grin. “You’ll see, I’m sure. Someone will upset him, and he will let his displeasure be known.”
“Is he a magi, Dia?” Jenn asked.
“He was trained and did his time for the empire, but never moved past the status of magus. As a chef, he is as skilled as the cooks of Sakura-ji. It is rumored they once asked him to join them, but he refused.”
Yukiko’s eyes widened and she swallowed quickly. “He refused?”
“That’s the rumor. His love of food is trying new things, and that isn’t what Sakura-ji does. If he comes out of the back, be respectful and do not try to flatter him.”
“Yes, Dia,” they all replied, staggered, as they were still eating.
“I’m sure you’re wondering where you might get your training in, correct?” They each nodded their heads and she smiled. “There’s a small park that can be utilized. If you go out the door, turn right, and walk for a while, you will find it.”
They thanked her again between bites.
“There is also a place where you can study Empire’s Gambit, if you wish,” Dia said, “I’ll have to ask the innkeeper to prepare it if you want to use it.”
“We aren’t sure if we’ll have time,” Yukiko replied. “If we do, we’d like to.”
“I’ll make arrangements,” Dia said. “It is a room in the inn, or was. It has been a number of years since the clan was here.”
“About that,” Gregory asked, “where are we, Dia?”
Dia laughed lightly. “We are in Waterrock, a small town a few days to the northwest of Wesrik. You’ll see why it is named that when you go train. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do. I’ll see you back here at midday.”
Not waiting for their replies, Dia left them to their meal.
~*~*~
The park wasn’t large, but it was well kept and big enough for what they needed. Dia’s comment about understanding the name of the town was readily apparent— in the center of the park was a six-foot-tall rock with a smooth vee-cleft splitting it to the center. A pool of water dozens of yards across surrounded it. From that cleft, a spray of water gently fountained.
“That is interesting,” Yukiko said, going to study the rock.
Gregory agreed with her and pulled up what he was dubbing “aether sight.” Thick strands of aether encircled the rock. Gregory’s mouth fell open as he stared at the sheer power in those strands.
“Greg?” Jenn asked.
“Whoever did that was powerful,” Gregory said.
“Did what?” Jenn prompted.
“The rock is nearly swallowed by thick aether strands,” Gregory replied after looking around to see if anyone was nearby. “I don’t think they will fade for millennia. Why did they do it?”
“We’ll likely never know,” Yukiko said. “That does answer the question I had though. There are koi in that pool.”
“I’m not surprised,” Gregory said as he dismissed aether sight.
Jenn stretched. “I wonder how long it’s been here?”
“As long as the town, if the town is named for it,” Yukiko suggested as she began to stretch.
“Far longer,” Gregory said after a moment. “Those strands felt ancient to me.”
“Older than the empire?” Jenn asked.
“Yes,” Gregory replied.
“I think that would fit in with why this is the town we were sent to,” Yukiko said, taking the first stance of their meditation.
“Lightshield,” Gregory murmured as he matched her.
“He believes deeply in Aether,” Jenn commented.
But does he know? The question hung in Gregory’s mind as he moved in the controlled, slow movements of the Peaceful Fist.
The exercises helped settle Gregory’s mind. As each form flowed smoothly into the next, he found himself in his aether cave. The fire danced as if a gentle breeze was blowing through the area. The flames rose a little higher and formed a Magi Squares problem for him.
“Thank you,” Gregory said. “Can you give me Empire’s Gambit?”
The fire wavered a little, then dimmed, before returning to the Magi Squares.
“Not yet, then?”
A single flame grew larger briefly.
“I need to grow a little stronger? I will. This isn’t the extent of what you can do, is it?”
Again, the flame died down before returning to normal.
“I look forward to helping you grow and purify,” Gregory said.
The flame danced and Gregory laughed as he continued the measured steps of his meditation. Giving his attention to the Magi Squares, he worked on them as he continued to move his body.
~*~*~
Meditation came to an end, and Gregory was smiling. He’d solved several of the problems, some quickly, and some with difficulty.
“That was peaceful,” Yukiko said, having just finished, as well. “The Magi Squares were simple, except for a few difficult ones.”
“I did well, but not as well as you, I feel, Yuki,” Jenn said.
“I’m with you, Jenn,” Gregory said. “We have come to expect her to be better with numbers than we are though.”
“Entirely,” Jenn nodded.
Yukiko gave them both a put-upon expression. “If you two are done, we should get back to the inn.”
“Taking the fun out of it,” Gregory chuckled before grabbing her and giving her a one-armed hug to his side.
“She has reason,” Jenn snickered softly. “If we had both picked on you, you’d feel the same way she does.”
“That’s fair,” Gregory conceded. “I do want to see if the war room, or whatever they have at the inn, is going to work for us.”
“Oh, yes,” Yukiko said, giving Gregory a gentle nudge with her elbow. “Now, come on.”
It didn’t take them long to get back to the inn, and Gregory looked at the sign above the door with amusement. Aether’s Rest? Well, it was chosen by Lightshield and was used years before I came along.
The taproom had a few older men in it playing Go, and a middle-aged man standing behind the bar. Yukiko was the one in the lead, so she made it there first.
“Excuse me, we were hoping to see the room for Empire’s Gambit,” Yukiko said in place of a greeting.
“The room is still being cleaned and readied,” the man apologized. “I hope to have it ready for you tonight, magi.”
“We understand,” Yukiko sighed. “We don’t have long before we need to go anyway. Could we get a snack, please?”
“I’ll let the chef know,” the bartender smiled. “Did you also want something to drink?”
“Any cold tea would be nice,” Gregory said.
“I’ll have some brought right over,” the man replied.
“Thank you, uh…?”
“Oh, excuse me, magi. I’m Milton Brown.”
“Thank you, Mister Brown,” Gregory said. “We’ll take a seat by the window.”
“I’ll have it brought right out.”
