AR10 Ch13

Chapter Thirteen

Ragnar’s body blazed with aether flame as he rushed Gregory. He was amused and upset at the same time. If he delayed dinner, his mother might refuse to let him eat until everyone else was done. His sister would do her best to ensure there was only a scant bit left, too— she’d done it before. Gregory was going to do his best to keep the spar going as long as he could, just to get back at him for suggesting it. It’s like it was before… The thought brought a smile to his lips as his axe swung forcefully, but with control, at Gregory. But he wasn’t there. He’d moved right as the swing began. Twisting his body, Ragnar aborted the attack and got his axe around to defend against the thrust from the naginata.

“He’s always been like this,” Moha sighed. “I thought I’d taught him better than to spar right before dinner.” Tsking, Moha turned for the door. “I never get to watch, either. I still have to get dinner ready.”

“If you don’t mind, I can handle cooking,” Roshana said. “This way, you can watch the spar.”

Moha’s hackles rose on reflex— a magi couldn’t be trusted. If she went into the kitchen unsupervised, who knew what kind of poison might end up in the food? Her son and daughter trusted them, but they were still young.

As if reading her mother’s thoughts, Verka put a hand on Moha’s shoulder. “They healed my eyes. I trust them with my life, as does Ragnar.”

Moha inhaled slowly before she gave a curt nod. “Very well. Magi, we are in your hands.”

“We’ll go help, too,” Clover said.

Ling nodded as Clover grabbed her hand. “If Roshana wants our help.”

“I’d be happy to have more hands,” Roshana said.

“Mortum, protect us…” Moha whispered, an edge of worry to her tone.

“Krog already does, and Aether has shown his favor on your family, too,” Yukiko said softly. “We’re not your enemies, Moha. You never have to worry about us or our clan.”

Moha tried to quash the worry in her gut as she watched the fight. Ragnar had always put his family first, his sister chief among them. It was one of the two reasons she could let magi into her home unsupervised. The second was that the magi had healed Verka’s eyes on their very first meeting. She’d always felt terrible about that— the priests couldn’t heal her eyes when she was born. The only known way to cure the condition was with a rare and expensive alchemical concoction, but Verka had never let that slow her down. She’d been at her brother’s side every moment. When the pair went to test for Aether’s blessing, Moha had been shocked that both had been blessed. Ragnar being blessed in the ways of Krog hadn’t been a surprise, but her darling girl being a healer and protector… she’d wept that night. Aether had given her two magics, one to heal her brother and another to keep herself safe. In the years after their blessing, Verka began to move more confidently, her spiritual sense helping her compensate for her lack of sight. Taking a deep breath, Moha tried to set aside her worry, trusting that her children were right, and enjoy seeing her son best a magi in a spar.

Ivar’s eyebrows rose as he focused on the fight, not even paying attention to the magi going inside their home. Ragnar was a prodigy unlike any he’d ever heard of, and Ivar was proud of his son. Ragnar had trained hard before his blessing, more so before his first raid. Over the years, that pride had only grown. His son drew other champions into his circle, friends from childhood who rose in power with him, which is why he was shocked when the spar in the yard lasted past one minute. They’d heard of Gregory and the fight during the festival, but it was far different to see it in person. The magi was a spirit, always just avoiding being hit and attacking from angles that made Ragnar use everything he had to deflect them. The sunset cast the world in shadows as the dim orange of the day faded by the minute. Awe at the spectacle filled his heart. If Verka wished to marry this magi, he would consider it. The magi was making his son work far harder than other champions ever had, proving his strength. Now, he’d just need to prove his character.

Rangar was elated, but frustrated, too. Gregory was fighting for time, not to win. Ragnar had left small gaps to be exploited so Gregory could capitalize on them, but he never took the bait. All those openings would’ve been a minor wound to Ragnar, but the trade off would have been a bigger one to Gregory. That’d always been the trouble with fighting his brother-in-law, he knew the feints and traps for what they were. Shouting and letting out all of his bloodlust, directed right at Gregory, he pushed his aether to burn hotter, giving him a greater edge in speed and strength.

Gregory was grinning as widely as Ragnar, but he was fighting for every inch he could get. Ragnar wasn’t holding back much, if at all, and Gregory was burning his aether in foresight and physical enhancement to buy all the time he could. Winning wasn’t going to be possible, not with Ragnar blazing the way he was, but making the fight last until dinner was ready… that was possible. When Ragnar’s full bloodlust hammered into his soul, Gregory was glad he trained the spirit path as much as he did. If he hadn’t, he would’ve faltered and Ragnar would’ve capitalized on it. Even with his spirit as trained as it was, he still felt the pressure. The sheer weight of it took away his perception of the watchers, but he managed to barely hold off the ferocious attacks Ragnar leveled at him.

“We might need to call them to stop,” Mindie said as the night closed in.

“Dinner will be ready soon, too,” Verka chuckled. “More food for us.”

The last light of day faded away, leaving the two men coated in blue aether flame as the only light source in the yard. They didn’t stop, continuing the spar with the same intensity. Moha and Ivar were both astonished that Gregory had managed to stymie Ragnar as long as he did.

“Dinner’s ready!” Clover said, coming out of the house.

“Dinner!” Verka called. “You’re late, Brother.”

Ragnar leapt back from Gregory to get space as he held up a hand. “I guess we’ll call it a draw for now.”

Gregory let his aether fade. “No, you win. I’m nearly done at this point.”

Ragnar sighed as he had his axe vanish. “Just had to delay me long enough, didn’t you?”

“I wasn’t going to win, so I aimed for the next best thing.”

“Let’s go inside,” Ivar called to the men.

“I won’t make you wait to eat tonight, Son,” Moha said. “As long as you don’t make us wait any longer.”

Ragnar was beside her a moment later, his aether vanishing as he came to a stop. “Thank you, Mother.”

“What?” Jenn asked.

“If he spars too long and delays dinner, he has to wait until everyone else is done before he can eat,” Verka chuckled. “It was the only way to get him to stop sometimes. If there was barely any food left for him, well… lessons have to be learned.”

“He was only late a few times before the lesson stuck,” Ivar laughed.

Gregory used his ring to have the dark of night bring him to Yukiko’s side. “I didn’t know what the reason for his frenzy was, but now, I understand. I’d still have done it again.”

“You’ll be a terrible trouble for me,” Ragnar laughed as they filed inside to eat.

The table was set, but could only sit six. Moha slowed when she realized they didn’t have nearly enough places for their guests. It was a terrible oversight, but she hadn’t expected seven magi to come, either. She thought it would be Gregory and maybe one of the others.

“It’s okay,” Gregory said softly beside Moha. “We can sit on the floor and eat. At least three of us have done it often enough because of our time in the field during our adept years.”

“I will join them,” Ragnar said.

“I will, too,” Verka said. “The cooks should take the table, along with you and Father, Mother.”

“But—” Moha began.

Yukiko bowed low to Moha, gently cutting her off. “It is our imposition that caused this problem. I’m sure you didn’t expect seven magi to come today. When has a magi ever loved, much less seven of them? I will sit with you and our wives. During the meal, I can tell you about the love our family has and why Vera herself seems to have blessed us.”

Moha stared at the beautiful white-haired magi for a moment before she placed her fist to her chest. “I accept. Please tell me how much love your family has so I can embrace that my daughter will have the love she deserves.”

Ragnar pulled a chair out for his mother. “You don’t need to worry, Mother. I would never have allowed my sister to be courted by anyone who didn’t know love.”

Ivar chuckled as he took his seat at the table. “Like when you chased off Tollason?”

“Useless lump he is, too,” Ragnar grunted. “His looks were all he ever had. Why he ever thought my sister…” He coughed as he looked down.

“I was blind, not dumb,” Verka laughed as she sat on the ground beside Mindie. “He was as dumb as he was full of himself.” She accepted the plate from Clover, who’d brought it to her. “Thank you, Clover.”

“You’re welcome. I love your family. It’ll all love and care,” Clover beamed. “I can’t wait for you to marry us.”

Moha exhaled slowly as she took the seat Ragnar held for her. “What about your families? Your parents and siblings?”

“We’ll be glad to share with you,” Roshana said as she poured ale for the parents. “Family is important.”

Gregory sat on the other side of Verka, giving Ling a smile when she brought him his plate. He soaked in the love in the room. It was everything he wanted his family to be. He didn’t blame Ivar and Moha for being cautious of them. Before they left in two days, he hoped they’d be accepting of the marriage.

Jenn sat beside Gregory, gently bumping his knee with hers. When he looked her way, she gave him a soft smile. “I’m glad you didn’t get injured.”

“That would’ve dampened the mood a bit,” Gregory smiled back at her. “He would’ve won if we’d continued it too much longer.”

“He’s more advanced in aether. It’s hard to fight anyone above you in power,” Jenn said, but her eyes shifted toward the single spy’s magic at the window.

“We’ll grow and be equal or more than them in time,” Gregory said.