Aether’s Guard (Aether’s Revival Book 2)

Stepping out onto the arena floor, Gregory was surprised to find Gin speaking with Klim. Now I know why we didn’t find him at the clan hall… Gregory thought.

“There he is now,” Gin said. “I’ll be adjudicating these sparring sessions. It will be as follows; bo, su yari, kama yari, guandao, and then the naginata. Any questions?”

“No, Sensei,” Gregory said, bowing his head to Gin.

“No, sir,” Klim said. “I’m surprised we have an audience, though.”

Gregory looked over to find not just Yukiko and Jenn, but the entirety of the clan, including the clan staff, present. In addition to them, Paul Erichson was there with his clan head, Master Chen, and a dozen other magi of various tiers from the Iron Hand.

“It looks like our clans are expecting us to do well,” Gregory said.

“Indeed,” Klim said as she accepted a bo from Inda. “Let’s do our best.”

Gregory thanked Indara for bringing him the bo, then turned back to Klim. “As it should be, but I’m sure you’ll win most of the matches.”

Klim gave him a smile. “I would embarrass my clan if I didn’t. I will be trying to win them all.”

Gregory nodded. “I’ll be trying, too, even with no training with the third and fourth weapon.”

“Bow to the audience,” Gin said.

Once they had bowed to the audience, Gin, and then each other, Gregory and Klim set themselves into a defensive posture.

“Fight!” Gin commanded as he stepped back.

Gregory came forward fast and hard. He knew any lengthy encounter would heavily favor Klim. Klim nodded, clearly expecting him to take the initiative. The clack-clack of the two wooden staves meeting echoed over the sands.

Separating, they circled each other, both looking for an opening. Gregory darted forward again, thrusting hard at Klim’s ribs only to be met and rejected by a cross block, pushing his bo well to the side. Klim followed the block with a downward chop. Gregory anticipated the return attack and was able to step in and to the side, using the trailing end of his staff to deflect the strike.

The two separated and circled again. “You’re more skilled than the novices left in the class,” Klim said. “I was sad that you left. I don’t have a valuable training aid now.”

“I follow my sensei’s instructions,” Gregory said. “Besides, it’s obvious that the classes are now even more dangerous to be in.”

Klim agreed as she darted forward, her bo spinning a complex figure. “Indeed.”

The hard wooden smack of the staves meeting again echoed in the air as Klim pushed on Gregory. Gregory was focused on Klim, but could feel his chances of winning, or even prolonging, rapidly decreasing.

Not even a minute later, Gregory, well off-balance from Klim’s constant assault, stumbled and lost his footing. Klim slapped Gregory’s right leg, pulling it out from under him. Going down, Gregory winced and tried to bring his bo up to stop the next attack. Klim’s staff slammed into the sand an inch from his head.

“Stop!” Gin called out. “Adept Klim wins the round.”

Klim bowed to Gregory, then to Gin, before turning back to help Gregory to his feet. “You never should’ve stopped attacking me,” Klim told him. “You gave me time, which let me set the stage for my attack.”

“Agreed,” Gregory said as he got to his feet. His right calf twitched in anger, the bruise already forming.

“I would like even matches,” Klim said, giving Gregory’s shoulder a squeeze.

The warmth of Klim’s aether flowed through Gregory for a moment before it vanished. Flexing his calf, the pain was gone. “My thanks. Sparring with a healer has some bonuses.”

Klim laughed as she exchanged the bo for the su yari that Inda held out for her. “Minor as those may be.”

Gregory exchanged weapons with Indara, bowing his head to her in thanks. “I don’t think it’s a minor one,” he replied to Klim.

“Bow to the audience,” Gin said once they’d reached him.

The moment he told them to fight, Gregory attacked. He had a better feel for the su yari than he did for the bo staff, which gave him hope for this match. Klim’s smile became a frown of concentration as she defended herself. Gregory didn’t let up— he pushed into the attack, trying to win as quickly as he could while still being mindful of the proper forms.

The fight lasted minutes this time, but Gregory still lost. Klim eventually executed a beautiful counter, catching Gregory off-balance and driving him back. She ended it with a thrust that he didn’t block in time.

Wheezing slightly, as the strike had hit him hard, Gregory gave her a pained smile. “Almost…”

“Much better than the last time we fought,” Klim said. “It amazes me how skilled you are after only a week of training with it.” She healed his ribs. “Almost broke it… glad I didn’t.”

“Me, too.”

The kama yari and the guandao weren’t nearly as competitive. The kama yari might have gone better if Gregory had trained with it at all, but since he hadn’t, he failed to account for the side blade. Klim easily won when they fought with the guandao, which was a more powerful style than any of the other weapons.

“Four of four,” Klim sighed. “I’m disappointed. I thought you’d do better with the kama yari, at least.”

“I’m disappointed in me, too,” Gregory said as he traded weapons with Indara. “I won’t lose this match, though.”

“Very confident,” Klim chuckled. “I know you beat an apprentice with a naginata, but I’ve had much more time to train with it.”

“That’s true, you have,” Gin said. “You’re quite skilled with all the weapons you’ve sparred with so far.”

“Thank you, Armsmaster,” Klim said, bowing her head to him. “Might I entice you into a match?”

Gin chuckled. “If you beat him this time, I will spar a single match with you.”

Klim’s smile grew wide. “I look forward to it.”

Gregory kept his face impassive as he took up his position across from Klim. He did as instructed, bowing to the audience, Gin, then Klim. When Gin called for them to fight, he stood still.

Klim frowned when he didn’t attack. “Your form is good,” Klim said. “Better than when you’ve held any other weapon, in fact… But playing defensively won’t win this for you.”

Gregory stayed impassive, his weapon completely still.

“Very well. I’d hoped for more, but I’ll end it quickly,” Klim said.

When Klim came forward, Gregory just waited until his training naginata caught hers and deflected it. The follow-up strike was also pushed away from him, though his feet never moved. Klim reset her stance, wearing a puzzled expression on her face. She tested with another attack, only to be defeated with Gregory not moving an inch.

“What is this?” Klim murmured as she started to circle.

Gregory shifted with her, his feet moving as little as possible as he kept her in front of him. Klim watched closely, waiting for him to make a mistake, but she made it a hundred-eighty degrees around and his balance never wavered from perfect.

“You seem very poised,” Klim said.

Gregory didn’t talk, but he did move. His footwork was perfect as he launched his attack. Klim deflected the first, second, and third attacks with little effort, but by the fourth, her balance was being shifted little by little and she knew it.

Determined not to be positioned to his will, Klim launched an attack of her own to force him back. Gregory deflected it and used the momentum to unbalance Klim further, slamming the shaft of his weapon against hers. Klim grunted— the attack made her take an unwanted step, but she thought she was safe.

Gregory stepped closer as Klim started to regain her balance. Letting go of the naginata with one hand, he grabbed Klim’s kimono with his free hand. Klim blinked, not having expected him to grapple with her, and was startled when he began to twist.

Klim let out a startled cry when she was suddenly airborne for a few feet. The moment she landed, she started to roll back to her feet, but a tap on the back of her neck stopped her.

“Stop!” Gin shouted as he moved forward. “Match is over. Novice Pettit wins.”

Gregory bowed to Klim as she stood, then turned and bowed to Gin and the audience. “At least I wasn’t swept.”

Klim shook her head. “There was no flaw in your stance or attacks… It almost felt like you were toying with me.”

“That weapon is the one he is most skilled with,” Gin said.

“I agree,” Klim said, bowing to Gin. “My thanks for your time, Armsmaster.” Turning to Gregory, she bowed to him, as well. “My thanks for keeping your promise, even if it wasn’t like I had envisioned.”

“My thanks for the matches and the learning experience,” Gregory replied, bowing just as formally to her.

With the fight over, they handed the weapons back to Inda and Indara before heading for the exits. Yukiko and Jenn met Gregory as he left the waiting area.

“That was amazing,” Jenn said. “You handled the naginata so easily.”

“Greg is a man of many talents,” Yukiko said with a soft smile. “I have no doubt he can change the world if he wishes to.”

“I think changing the entire world would be a long and difficult task,” Gregory replied with a chuckle.

“The differences between the naginata and the other weapons were pronounced,” Jenn said.

“That’s true,” Gin said, joining them. “We’ll be narrowing that gap soon, though.”

“Thank you, Sensei,” Gregory said.

“It’s your day off,” Gin said. “Enjoy yourselves.”

“Sensei,” Jenn asked quickly before he could leave, “I was wondering if you could spare an hour of your time for me today?”

Gin nodded. “An hour is fine. Let’s go back to the clan hall.”

“Armsmaster Gin,” Master Chen greeted them as he came down the hall. “If you have a few moments, I’d like to discuss some things with you.”

“If you’ll excuse us.” Gregory bowed to Gin, then Chen.

Yukiko bowed as well before the two of them walked away.

Jenn watched them go, missing the start of the conversation between Gin and Chen. Another pang of jealousy hit her as they vanished around a corner, but she pushed it down, turning her attention to the conversation happening next to her.