Gregory, Jenn, and Yukiko stood in the tunnel, waiting for their match to begin. They were happy to see that the healer in the arena for the day was Mindie.
“We know we’ll be in good hands,” Yukiko smiled.
“And I’ll have an idea of what to be prepared for, having been there for all of your training,” Mindie smiled back. “I do hope you all have a good match.”
“Is it just you here?” Jenn asked after they thanked her.
“Magus Klim is in the other tunnel.”
“Then we are in very good hands, indeed. The two of you are always exceptional,” Gregory said.
Mindie looked down. She smiled and her cheeks lightly flushed. “Thank you. I just want to heal those who care for others.”
“That’s Greg,” Yukiko said, but she eyed Mindie questioningly.
“And you, and me,” Jenn added, also wondering about Mindie’s reaction.
Gregory was about to say more, but Grandmaster Yunlo, the council member with spatial magic, was suddenly in the middle of the arena floor. The eighth bell began to chime a heartbeat after he appeared.
When the bell stopped, he raised a glowing bronze disk to his mouth. “Magi and guests, welcome to the first bouts of the apprentice class. Before we begin, there is important news— the keeper of the academy has agreed to a request from the Buldoun royal family. The clans whose apprentices take the top three places will be going to a special event near the Buldoun border to face young magi of theirs.”
Yunlo paused, as the crowd began to talk excitedly enough that it reached him. He gave them a minute before he coughed into the disk, and everyone quieted.
“More than that, the apprentice class will be undergoing a tournament in their tactics class. The top three groupings there will also be going to the event, which means the second tournament this year will be a little less than it has been in the past. To counter that, the council has arranged for more magi to be here to give demonstrations.”
“Well, that explains what Lightshield meant at breakfast,” Gregory said. “Wonder what they mean to do if a clan earns spots in both events?”
“We’ll find out,” Jenn chuckled.
“Yes, we will,” Yukiko grinned.
Mindie watched them with amusement, staying silent.
“Now, without further delay, let us begin the apprentice tournament matches,” Yunlo finished. “The first match features both champions from last year’s novice tournaments. Aether’s Guard will be facing off with Shining Light.”
Gregory exhaled and went forward, his wives falling in behind him and a few paces to either side. As they exited the tunnel, Gregory put on his sparring mask. His eyes were focused on Klein and the two others with him. Spatial, wind, and enchanting… Gregory reminded himself. Klein is the dangerous one, followed by Gula and Floxin.
“Greg?” Yukiko asked softly. “Shadow throw? Are you sure?”
“Yes. We need to beat them quickly, and I don’t think they’ll be ready for it. Jenn?”
“Bait. Got it,” Jenn said.
They were silent by the time they reached Yunlo, and waited for Klein’s group.
“Apprentices,” Yunlo addressed them when they were both a few feet away, “the rules are the same as last year. Try not to kill your opponents, but otherwise, do your best to win. Any injury that would kill if the weapons were metal knocks you out. When called out, raise your arm and head for the tunnels. If you wish to step out of the fight for any reason, raise your arm and head for the tunnels. Do not try to use this as a tactic to fool your opponents, as I will not be kind if you do. If you are knocked out, you will be sent to one of the healers. Questions?”
When no one spoke, Yunlo nodded. “Very well. Bow to the boxes.”
Gregory straightened up after bowing and focused on Klein. Triggering his aether sight, he waited for the signal to begin. Klein stood with his two thin swords at his sides. His enchanting friend was holding a su yari, and the wind magi held a large axe.
The aether around Yunlo flared bright, and the magi was suddenly twenty feet away. “Fight!”
Klein didn’t hesitate— his swords darted forward as two small tears opened in front of him. Neither of those attacks was directed at Gregory, instead aimed at his wives. Gregory trusted them to survive and rushed Klein, only to find a large swirl of aether growing between him and the spatial magi. Grimacing, he closed his eyes, dismissing aether sight and pushing aether into foresight.
The confusion of uncertainty was there for Klein and Gula, the wind magi, but Gregory just fed his foresight more aether to break the block, as he had with Bishop months before. Gula’s block was broken first, and Gregory knew what he and the enchanter would be doing in the next minute. Pushing even more aether into foresight, he broke past Klein’s block and inhaled sharply, ducking as he ran into the harsh sand tornado in front of him.
The wooden blade of Klein’s right-hand weapon passed an inch over Gregory’s back. Gregory tucked his naginata in close and went into a roll, making Klein miss with his left-hand blade, too. The wind-whipped sand scoured his exposed skin, and Gregory gritted his teeth as his skin was scraped away.
“Did you get him?” Gula asked as he watched Jenn rush around the mini-tornado he had made.
“No,” Klein said. “He’d call—!” Klein cut off with a grunt, a sharp pain hitting the back of his neck.
“Armit, out,” Yunlo said.
Raising his arm, Klein looked back to see the blood-stained wooden shuriken on the sand behind him. “We were not fast enough.”
Gregory came out of the vortex, his skin red and raw and eyes still closed. He didn’t aim for Klein, going for the wind magi who had spun and thrown up a wall of wind behind him, saving him from the other shuriken that Yukiko had flung, leaving his back open to Gregory. The blade of his naginata hit the apprentice in the back of the head, and the wind magi dropped to his knees as his vision blurred.
“Rodgers, out!” Yunlo called.
“I surrender,” Floxin said, raising both arms a second before Jenn reached him.
“Shining Light is defeated!” Yunlo announced.
Jenn turned immediately to Gregory, who kept his eyes closed. “Goodness, that…”
“It doesn’t feel good,” Gregory said with a pained grimace.
“It doesn’t look good, either,” Jenn said.
“We didn’t expect you to bring shurikens,” Klein said to Yukiko as he pushed a cloth against his bleeding neck. “We should have, in hindsight. If we face you again, we’ll be ready, but everyone you face next will be ready, too.”
“We know,” Yukiko replied as she went past him, going to Gregory. “Gregory deemed you a threat worthy of us using it.”
Klein looked at Gregory and bowed slightly. “We hadn’t thought you’d push through.”
“Hold still,” Klim told Klein as she touched his shoulder.
“Oh, please hold still,” Mindie told Gregory anxiously, staring at his abraded skin.
“My eyes first, please?” Gregory asked.
“Of course,” Mindie said.
“Winner is Aether’s Guard!” Yunlo announced as the healers checked on the injured magi. “There will be a pause between fights.”
The pain began to fade and Gregory sighed in relief. Blinking a few times, he got the grit out from the edges of his eyes. “Thank you. I had them closed tight, but it only mitigated it.”
“I’m glad you closed your eyes, or it would have been much worse and taxed me further,” Mindie said. “All done.”
“Thank you, again,” Gregory said. “Next time, I’ll have to go around the vortex.”
Mindie gave him a smile and went back to the tunnel. Gregory gave his wives an apologetic smile, then motioned to the academy box. In unison, the three of them bowed. Gregory grinned when he saw the Shining Light apprentices doing the same, having been waiting on them.
“Good luck with your other fights,” Gregory told Klein.
“Thank you. We hope to acquit ourselves better in those,” Klein replied, his slightly detached voice indicating his light meditation.
As a group, all six apprentices turned and bowed to Yunlo, then each other, before walking off the arena floor.
~*~*~
When they reached the stands, Dia was waiting for them with some jerky in hand. “Eat and relax for now. I’ll give you some more when you go to fight again, so you’ll have it for before your final match.”
“Thank you, Dia,” they said, taking the jerky and their seats.
“Why did you push through it?” Hao asked Gregory.
“Shortest distance, and I didn’t expect it to be quite that bad.”
“I’ve seen a dust devil peel paint from wagons,” Hao said, “but I suppose you know how that feels, now.”
“I do, Father,” Gregory said. “I’ll try not to experience it again.”
“You used the shuriken trick already?” Bishop asked. “Why against them?”
“Spatial magic,” Gregory explained. “Klein against just me, I can handle, but neither Jenn nor Yukiko is equipped to deal with suddenly-appearing swords. If I hadn’t charged, he would have gone for Jenn while the other two would have worked to keep Yukiko at bay. If they eliminated Jenn, they could have turned on Yukiko while Klein kept me busy long enough for them to manage it. I ruined that by charging and forcing Klein to try attacking me. That’s when their plan fell apart.”
“I see, and I believe you are correct in your assessment,” Bishop said. “You’ll not be able to use that again today, and maybe not for the rest of the tournament.”
“We are aware,” Jenn said. “The two we’re most worried about now are Swift Wind and Eternal Flame. They have a vast advantage in numbers. It’ll be harder to beat them. The fights will be longer with more chance of injury.”
“Yes. You won’t see them today, though, and possibly won’t tomorrow, either.”
“Agreed, Bishop,” Yukiko said. “Us, Swift Wind, Eternal Flame, Han Merchant Exchange, Yamato Shipping, and the Iron Hand are the most likely to be there for the last day, and only four of us can make it.”
“Concurred,” Bishop nodded.
“Just do your best,” Dia said. “That’s all the clan asks, but we are certain your best will see you win.”
“We always do our best,” Gregory said. “Oh, it looks like we get to see Yamato Shipping next.”
