Magi's Path (Aether's Revival Book 3) by Daniel Schinhofen (best black authors .TXT) 📗

came when Greg beat the Apprentice Jenga in their duel.”

“Hmm… I don’t know. We avoided them as much as we could. But I guess he did act civilly during the second tournament,” Gregory said.

“Swift Wind might not be an ally, but they aren’t an active foe like the Eternal Flame,” Yukiko said. “Now, shall we play a three-way game? We can ask that they leave the table alone so we can continue it over the next few days.”

“I like that idea. I’ll take the empire,” Jenn said.

“I’ll take Buldoun,” Yukiko said. “I need to look into more what they can and can’t do.”

“Hmm, give me Krogga. We’ll set it at the border, so we can all have a place to retreat to.”

“It’s been decades since a war enveloped multiple nations,” Yukiko said, “but it will make it fair this way.” She paused, then gave Gregory a hard look. “No foresight.”

“I was hoping you wouldn’t think of it,” Gregory chuckled. “I wasn’t going to use it… not often, anyway.”

Jenn shook her head. “I’m fairly certain that whoever instructs us next year will say the same thing.”

“Which hampers us a little,” Gregory countered. “There are no foresight magi in the decks. I wonder what they’ll do about that?”

Yukiko looked thoughtful. “I suppose we will see when we get there. For now, we’ll just have to let you pick a magi commander. It’ll do us good to get used to all of them, as it is.”

“Okay,” Gregory said as he picked up the commander cards for the empire. “Physical enhancement for Jenn…”

Chapter Eight

 

The bar was being tended by an older man with thinning white hair. “Apprentices, I will get the breakfast that was made for you. Give me one moment.”

“Thank you, sir,” Yukiko smiled. “We’ll be at the table by the window.”

“The game last night was frustrating,” Jenn said. “We didn’t play with the other nations with our instructors. The rules for them are different enough that I still don’t know what to expect.”

Gregory nodded. “Krogga has the zealots. That’s the only reason I was able to hold off your push just before bed.”

“Buldoun’s armies can equip at such a reduced cost that fielding the advanced armies is nearly trivial,” Yukiko mused. “Of course, getting a magi onto the field is incredibly difficult and gets more expensive the longer I keep them there.”

“Your troops still carved through the zealots,” Gregory reminded her. “They might be able to ignore magi, but troops with gear cut through them like a hot knife through butter.”

“I almost felt bad about that,” Yukiko grinned, “but then Jenn used the magi that survived you to take half of them off the board.”

The old man brought a tray of food to their table. “Your meal, magi. Are you playing Empire’s Gambit already? I thought that was reserved for your upcoming year.”

“We are, and it is,” Gregory responded. “We like to be ahead, if possible.”

“The forward-thinking ones do,” the old man chuckled as he served them. “The tea will help cut the aether of the food if you require it. That is what the note with it said.”

“Thank you, sir,” Yukiko beamed at him. “We’ll be keeping to this schedule as long as we are here.”

“I will make sure that Gordon knows. Enjoy your food.”

“Sir, what’s your name?” Jenn called out to him.

“I’m Leroy Brown, miss. My older brother is the chef. Enjoy your meal.”

Gregory frowned at his plate, not understanding what he was looking at. “Yuki, do you have any idea?”

“No,” Yukiko said, “though I think it’s egg-based. Jenn?”

“I have no idea,” Jenn said. “Dinner was really good, though, so I’m sure this will be, too.”

“I’m going to give it a try,” Gregory said. He picked up the pie-shaped food and bit into it. Chewing slowly, he smiled as he savored the moment.

When Yukiko and Jenn both saw him enjoying it, they sampled theirs.

“This is…” Gregory trailed off, unsure of how to properly phrase it. He set the food back on the plate and poured tea for them. “I wouldn’t think to use egg as a pie, nor the sweet squash as a filling for it. The creamy cheese flavor helps pull it together with the spices.”

“It is good,” Yukiko said as she set her slice down and exhaled slowly. “It’s also potent.”

“Very,” Gregory agreed, sipping the tea. “Oh, that helps temper the flare-up.”

Both Jenn and Yukiko sipped at their tea, sighing as their aether settled down. “We’ll have to eat this slowly,” Jenn said.

“Leroy,” Yukiko called out to him, “what is this dish called?”

“Crookneck frittata,” Leroy replied.

“It’s delicious,” Jenn added. “Please let Gordon know for us.”

“I will,” Leroy smiled.

~*~*~

Stepping outside once they’d finished their breakfast, the friends looked down the street, which had only occasional pockets of light. “We know which way the park is, so we can still get there, but I’m surprised at how unlit the town is,” Gregory said.

“I’m not. We’ve just gotten used to the academy,” Yukiko said.

“Most towns don’t use much lighting during dark hours,” Jenn said. “The cost alone, as Magus Han showed us, is prohibitive for the majority of towns, and even most cities.”

“Fair,” Gregory said. “Stretch, then jog to the park?”

“Yes,” Yukiko said, moving away from the door and window.

The town was nearly deserted as they jogged. They did hear the occasional muted voice, and once or twice caught sight of people staggering away down alleyways. The friends stayed together, and no one bothered them.

There were lights at the corners of the park, making it easy to find, but the light didn’t extend far from the lanterns. They stayed near the closest post, just inside the dim light it cast, though apart enough to do their exercises.

“No guards?” Gregory asked as they