Aether's Apprentices

by Daniel Schinhofen

  Exhaling, he nodded, then sat up on the edge of the bed closest to her, unconcerned about his nakedness. “And the dream I couldn’t remember before the bathhouse?”

  “That was your magic at work. I didn’t touch the dream, nor stop you from remembering.”

  “Ah, okay. Are they all…?”

  “Past wives?” Darkness asked with a giggle. “Yes. Your rebirth brought them all back, even the one or two that were born before you.”

  “Some are older?” Gregory asked.

  “Yes, though not as old as Bishop or Dia,” Darkness reassured him. “Nothing you would find… objectionable.”

  “Do you know all of them?”

  “Know for certain? No. But a few, I am sure about. A few more resonate correctly.”

  “Roshana?”

  “Yes, dearest. She is indeed one of them. You enjoyed seeing her, too. Would it shock you if I said I was more endowed than she is?” The shadow in the darkness shifted as if displaying her chest.

  “I can’t say I’m not thinking about it now,” Gregory snorted.

  “It is almost time,” Darkness sighed. “They all do care and want to love you, but will abide by Yuki’s rules, dearest. You will not have another wife for a while yet, so do not worry.”

  “Alright. Yuki and Jenn are really okay with this?”

  “Yes. They are excited, almost as much as you are, and I can see how excited that is,” Darkness whispered, hunger in her words.

  “That’s because of you, my heart,” Gregory said, motioning at what she was referring to. “And if we’re done, I need to try and claim my heart.” He launched himself off the bed, making it a little more than a single step before the vice of darkness grasped him.

  “Soon...” Darkness whispered as his consciousness fled.

  ~*~*~

  Gregory woke with a shuddering gasp, his whole body trembling. “Oh, Vera,” he panted.

  “Close,” Yukiko exhaled as she lay atop him. “Good morning, our love.”

  “Yes, good morning,” Jenn murmured, moving to kiss him. “We thought you would have woken sooner.”

  “Darkness,” Gregory said.

  Yukiko looked at Jenn’s bare chest, where her medallion glowed with a single orange ring. “Oh, we didn’t notice.”

  Jenn giggled. “We had other matters in hand... and mouth and…”

  “I noticed,” Gregory laughed when she trailed off. “Is it—?”

  He cut off when the third bell started to chime.

  “Sadly,” Jenn sighed.

  “You’re not done yet,” Yukiko said as she got off Gregory and lay on the edge of the bed. “Come on, hurry up so we aren’t late. Dearest, grab our clothes, please?”

  Gregory sat up, then smirked when Jenn dove between Yukiko’s thighs. “I see. Must have been a deal about who got me or seconds?”

  “No deal. She’s mine to use as I wish,” Yukiko gasped. “That’s what she loves and what I love.”

  Shaking his head, Gregory went to the armoire to get their clothes and spare himself from another rise, which would only delay them further. To stop the small sounds of pleasure behind them, he filled them in on what Darkness told him as he dressed. He was just finishing when Yukiko and Jenn came up on either side of him, both grinning.

  “She’s right, our heart,” Jenn said. “We’re excited about them joining us. Is that okay with you? The fact that we want them, too?”

  Gregory paused, letting the idea bounce around in his head for a moment. “Yes. I like the idea of you both being loved by them. It makes it easier for me to accept.”

  “Good, because we want them to love you, too,” Yukiko added. “Thank you for our clothes, dearest. Why don’t you go see our friends? We’ll join you at the table.”

  “Okay.”

  When Gregory made it down to the next floor, he found Clover and Ling waiting. Clover’s smile was large as she broke into one of her dances. Her medallion had six rings, illuminated yellow.

  “We grew, we grew, we grew!” she chanted as she danced.

  “You did,” Gregory chuckled. “Congratulations to both of you.”

  “The novices knew,” Ling said thoughtfully. “I find it interesting that they’re growing so equally and that we are in sync with each other in that growth.”

  Gregory pulled his medallion out, showing them the glowing orange ring. “We are.”

  “Initiate...” Clover said, touching his medallion. “So high already.”

  “You’ll be there, too, in time,” Gregory said.

  “We know,” Ling said softly, touching Clover’s arm. “We have faith in Aether… and you.” When she saw his eyes widened slightly, she quickly added, “The three of you.”

  “In all three of you,” Clover nodded, “but you a little bit more, at least for me. I believe the past is connected to now.”

  Ling glanced at Clover, then nodded. “So do I, but…”

  “I’m not disturbed by it,” Gregory told them. “And I believe we are, too.”

  Clover’s smile grew wider. “Really?”

  “Really, really,” Gregory smiled back at her. “Yuki and Jenn said they’ll join us at the tables. Come on, the novices are probably waiting like you were.”

  “We were,” Daciana said as she came up the stairs, “but I heard you, so we came up.” She hesitated, then blurted out, “Is it okay? To be connected both past and now?”

  “It is,” Gregory said. “Did you grow in rank?”

  “And in tier,” Nessa said, coming up beside Daciana, showing them that her medallion was glowing with a single yellow ring.

  “Congratulations,” Ling told them.

  A small round of congratulations went around the group before Gregory got them moving downstairs.

  “We don’t want Dia getting upset with us,” he told them as he led the way.

  They all agreed with that, but Victoria asked, “Greg? Are you okay with the idea of what we all want? I worry you’re just saying yes, but you really aren’t.”

  Gregory paused on the bottom floor, looking back at her. “I’m nervous, but yes, as long as our friendship is undamaged and Yuki approves. But it won’t be soon.”

  “Resonance, first,” Nessa nodded. “We know, and we’ll wait.”

  “They don’t have to,” Daciana sighed. “Already at the right rank to try finding resonance.”

  “Even if they find it tomorrow, they won’t be folded in right away,” Yukiko said as she came down the stairs. “Clover, Ling, we should talk before you try finding your resonance. We might be able to help you.”

  “Yes, Yuki,” Clover nodded quickly.

  “Agreed,” Ling added.

  “And ladies?” Yukiko added, addressing the three novices. “The same goes for you. In fact, if you rush, it will likely stop your chances entirely. Safe and slow— that is the way.”

  “Yes, Yuki,” Daciana said, lowering her head as her tail curled between her legs.

  “We’ll keep her and us in check,” Nessa said. “We follow, Yuki.”

  “Good,” Yukiko smiled. “Now, think about how your class will react when they catch sight of your new rank.”

  Daciana grinned broadly, her tailing starting to wag again. “Oh, that will be fun!”

  Bishop and Dia were already seated at the table when the group entered the room. Dia’s smile grew as she saw the hint of Daciana’s medallion. “Novices, already apprentice tier?”

  Daciana displayed her medallion proudly. “Yes, because Aether leads us.”

  Gregory’s eye twitched at her phrasing, but no one saw it.

  “He leads all of us,” Dia agreed. “We are his guard. What about the rest of you?”

  Dia and Bishop praised Clover and Ling when they showed them how they’d grown. Both older magi were silent for a long moment when Gregory, Yukiko, and Jenn showed them their medallions.

  “Our clan will be sought after next year...” Bishop said. “We’ll need some stronger magi to help guide the newer ones.�
�

  “Yes. I believe the elder will make arrangements, but I will send him a letter,” Dia said. “You three again exceed what we think should be. Well done. Your contemporaries will be beside themselves when they find out. I suggest you keep your power hidden as long as you can.”

  “We will, Dia,” Jenn said.

  “Good,” Dia exhaled.

  “I’ll have breakfast ready shortly,” Zenim said when they all took their seats.

  ~*~*~

  When they entered the classroom, Roshana was already there. Her medallion was plainly visible as she greeted them. “Good morning to you all.”

  “You made it to the third rank of apprentice? Well done,” Yukiko grinned. “Did you grow faster than you had anticipated?”

  Roshana blinked for a moment, then bowed her head. “I did. It’s because of the Peaceful Fist, isn’t it?”

  “In part,” Jenn grinned. “When are you going to join the clan? We’d welcome you into our ranks.”

  Roshana clearly wanted what Jenn was asking for, but she shook her head. “I have to wait. I don’t want to be separated from you all now.”

  “Why would you be?” Paul asked, having stepped into the doorway.

  “Sir,” Roshana bowed along with the others to him. “Magi-killer separated all the larger clans into smaller groups. I figured he didn’t want any class to have all members of a single clan.”

  “He didn’t,” Paul agreed. “These three have a persuasive charisma about them, we’ve noticed. It’s why I invited Farin when I did, because he was going to try joining them, otherwise. It also turned out to be the right call. He will be a good commander and is making progress with his magics and skill in combat.”

  “So she shouldn’t join our clan?” Gregory asked.

  “She can,” Paul said, holding up a hand to add, “but I’d suggest she wait until you all leave for the tournament. That will make it impossible for others to cause trouble.”

  Roshana bowed deeply. “I will wait, sir. Thank you. I was afraid you would say if I did, I’d have to leave the group.”

  “No, it would cause… problems if you did it now.”

  “Understood. Thank you, and Magi-killer, sir.”

  “Thank you,” Gregory said, echoed by the others as they all bowed to him.

  “That kind of loyalty is hard to find. How I wish you’d joined our clan,” he sighed wistfully, then went back to business. “Okay, the game today is Roshana against Gregory. Fields with light forest. Get to it. Roshana, you’re a water magi, of course. Gregory, let’s give you alchemy.”

  “Yes, sir,” all six said in unison before moving to set the board.

  Chapter Forty-four

  After their class, they arrived back at the clan hall in time to join part of physical training. Gregory was all smiles when weapons training ended up as a three-way fight between him, Ling, and Clover, all using the bo staff. They both focused on him, with occasional jabs at each other. The fight was fluid, all three straining to be the winner. In the end, Ling caught Gregory in the head, then Clover in the gut in a perfect combo.

  Ling and Clover were excited when they went to magic training, which had been switched to after weapons training, but before their bath. They were explaining their match to Daciana as they went inside.

  “Your skill with that weapon is improving,” Gin said. “They are improving faster than I thought they would.”

  “They really are,” Rhea agreed. “They’ll be my equal by the time they leave, I think.”

  “But I still think they shouldn’t join the group combat,” Gin added. “That decision is yours and theirs, though. Is the plus worth the risk of pain and injury to them?”

  Gregory considered it. “I don’t know if we’ll get another group training session against the Hardened Fist, but maybe we can judge it then?”

  “Perhaps. Go train your magic, Gregory.”

  “I’ll learn with Yuki today,” Gregory said.

  He made his way to the interior garden where Inda and Yukiko were training. Inda was explaining how to mold the shadows to form better-concealed traps with them, but paused when Gregory joined them.

  “Gregory,” Inda said. “You are going to be with us today?”

  “If that’s okay, Inda?”

  “It should be fine. I was going to have her work on concealing her shadow weapons better,” Inda said.

  “I’ll sit over here and watch,” Gregory said, sitting on a bench by the door.

  Inda went back to telling Yukiko about how she’d worked on this specific magic before. Gregory listened, hoping to grasp the details, even though he couldn’t grasp their magic. When Yukiko started to spin her magic into blades of shadow, Gregory studied each one with aether sight, then stretched out his resonance and felt them carefully.

  He didn’t know how long he sat there as Yukiko pushed to hide the blades in darker shadows and disguise them. Time lost its meaning as he felt the shadows, but after a while, the shadows grew welcoming. His resonance shifted and, for a moment, he matched their thrum.

  Yukiko gasped and jerked around to face him, snapping Gregory out of his trance. “Greg, what did you do?”

  Blinking slowly as he lost his connection to resonance and his aether sight faded, he just stared at her for a moment. “Huh?”

  “You touched my shadows. I felt your aether directly touching mine.”

  Inda watched them with an impassive gaze, but her ears bent toward them.

  “Resonance. I just felt connected to them.”

  “Can you...?” Yukiko asked, then stiffened when she suddenly remembered that Inda was there with them.

  “No,” Gregory said. “I felt it and it was right, but no, I can’t mold shadows. I just… know.” He frowned as he considered what he’d just said.

  “It would be unusual in the extreme if you suddenly had a second affinity,” Inda said. “Though there is an old story of spirit path followers who could feel others’ magics. They can’t do anything, but it could warn them of a trap.”

  “Maybe that’s what it was,” Gregory said.

  “Of course, those magi were magus tier,” Inda finished after Gregory spoke.

  “Oh...” Gregory faltered.

  “Interesting, but only conjecture,” Inda said. “Yukiko, back to work. Gregory, leave her shadows be for now, please.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” they said together, though each was clearly thinking about what Gregory had just done.

  When sixteenth bell chimed, Inda called Yukiko to stop. “You are progressing well. We’ll continue with that for the next few weeks, at least. The hidden blade is the weapon of the shadow magi.”

  “Yes, Inda,” Yukiko replied, bowing to her.

  “Don’t talk too long,” Inda said as she let the shadows swallow her, vanishing from the room.

  “She knows we want to talk?” Gregory asked.

  “It’s obvious that something happened and we didn’t want to say it,” Yukiko sighed. “She’s gone... do you know if she’s listening?”

  Gregory turned his aether sight back on and scanned the garden. “Not that I can see.”

  “Okay. What happened?”

  “I resonated with your shadows. That was all, but it was a pure connection.” Gregory paused, thinking of the feeling he’d had when he touched her magic. “Let me see your ring.”

  Yukiko pulled her ring off and handed it to him with wide eyes. “You think?”

  Gregory put the ring on and motioned her to him. “Shadow me, please.”

  She went to him instantly, her shadow falling over him. Gregory reached out to the ring he had put on, feeling the enchantment infused into it. It refused to listen to him— his aether was not what it wanted. Pausing and taking a deep breath, he tried to recreate the resonance he’d felt when he’d been in tune with Yukiko’s magic. Seconds ticked by before the ring suddenly hummed with energy. Head snapping up, he focused on a shadow across the garden and willed himself to that spot.

  Yukiko gasp
ed when the shadows rose up, swallowing Gregory. She spun around, looking for him, and found him sitting across the garden with a stunned look on his face. She rushed to him.

  Gregory blinked for a second as his sense of self stabilized. Going through the shadow felt like being pulled through a tunnel to him, and his sense of awareness had been thrown into chaos. It only took a second, but he grinned when he stabilized. “It worked!” The two words were an exclamation, but a soft one as he grinned at Yukiko rushing to his side.