Authors Note:

Irish Names & pronunciations

Niamh - (ne ve)

Niall - (nile)

Chapter 35

Vatulele Island - Fiji

Dawn

Tommy POV

Blankets had been set out all over the beach and everyone who wasn't participating, was sitting down to watch the competition. He'd managed to find Finn, Ada and Michael fairly easily, what with Finn's voice travelling across the area to guide him.

He'd been a fountain of questions. Asking about whether he knew what Aoife was going to compete in. Or if she'd explained any of the different rigging to him. He didn't have any answers as he and Aoife hadn't really been talking the previous night or much this morning. He was remembering the lovely kiss she'd given him, or taken from him as she said it was for luck.

He was looking out the window into the darkness while he nursed a cup of tea. Waiting for Aoife to come back out of the bedroom. When she did he noticed her lips were pursed and her brow creased.

"What's wrong Aoife?"

"Nothing...It just feels like I've forgotten something."

She looked up locking eyes with him before her thoughtful expression turned into a mischievous one as she began walking over to him.

"That's what I forgot."

"What?"

"My luck of course... Now if I can just remember where I left it..."

She'd stepped into his space taking a hold of his cup, sipping from it before setting it aside. Her hands cupped his jaw pulling him gently down as she raised up to plant her lips on his. It was soft and her lips moved gently over his own, before she lightly nibbled on his bottom lip then ran her tongue across it. He certainly wasn't ever going to refuse a kiss from her lips so when she silently requested a deeper one he obliged. When she pulled away her smirk was in place. She leaned forward to plant a peck on his neck. That decidedly erotic purr of hers registering in his ears before he heard her whisper to him.

"Mm, yep. That's right where I left it."

His mind returned to the present when Alfie and Aine joined them. So far he and Alfie had managed to be civil and even friendly to one another. With the two of them you never knew. He made sure not to question Aine on how she was feeling. He didn't need Alfie misconstruing anything.

He watched as small groups of airmen seemed to clump together beneath their respective airships. He saw Aoife, Eirnin, Carrick and Reilly having a discussion. It wasn't long before Bastien and Yael came and sat on an empty blanket next to theirs.

Meeting them both the other night had been interesting and unnerving. The man knew a lot about him and his family. He suspected that he might actually have his military file as well. He had quickly come to understand why Aoife suggested they speak with him about the current situation. As well as, what he hoped they could do in regards to his shipment. The man may be retired but he missed nothing.

As they were basically all sitting together it was hard for him not to hear the conversation taking place between Aine and her grandmother.

"Are you feeling any better today Aine?"

"Yes, Memere."

The older woman studied Aine closely and a knowing glint flashed through her eyes.

"We'll speak more later on it, Aine?"

"... All right, Memere."

The moment was disrupted by multiple engines starting. Looking back towards the area where he'd last seen Aoife, he noticed that Carrick and Reilly were no longer there. Only Aoife and Eirnin stood below the Adelisa. He watched as several of the airships started to gain a bit of altitude. They were now sitting at various heights in the air, causing the riggings to be at several different levels.

It seemed that there were two members of each airship left on the beach, all of which moved to stand in what would be the center of the circle of airships. Everyone faced their own ship and watched intently as the ships then started to shift position and move in a circle around them. A loud horn sounded and one person from each team ran toward their ship, the other running after them when a second horn sounded. The signal to the beginning of what he'd been told was called 'The Gauntlet'.

Eirnin had headed out first with Aoife following behind. He watched as Eirnin came to a skidding stop beneath the Adelisa's rigging, crouching down slightly. Aoife ran full bore and stepped into Eirnin's cupped hands. He came out of his crouch throwing her up into the air as high as he could. Aoife caught hold of the third lowest rigging. Giving a quick scan of the others, he noted that she was higher than those around her.

She nimbly climbed, swung and jumped her way up the rigging lines as fast as she was able. When she came to the topmost horizontal wire line, she removed what appeared to be a wooden rod that had been attached to an upper rope. She climbed the single rope as high as she could before using the rod to catch latches as though she was climbing a salmon ladder.

She pulled herself over the deck railing with her arms and body strength in a pullover type movement that was reminiscent of aerial circus performers. Taking to her feet she ran down the railing toward the bow of her ship, as it started to rotate towards the ship to the right of them. She didn't slow or hesitate as she neared the end, she simply dove off. Tommy's breath was in his throat when she fell but she grabbed hold of a loose line and used it to swing herself to the rigging setup on the neighboring ship.

She continued to move through rigging and various other obstacles. The ships would continually rotate, sway from side to side, rise and fall, ensuring that everything was in constant motion. There were a number of instances where he'd had to hold his breath but was to worried to close his eyes.

On every ship there seemed to be a different set of obstacles to overcome. One would randomly open and close its cannon hatches and she'd have to jump, climb, swing and drop from one to the next to make it across and over to the next ship. Who's hatches were doing the same thing just as randomly. There were rope ladders and netting to traverse, both vertical and horizontal.

There was one set of ships that had various lines connecting them. She ran across them like they were slack lines. She was depending on her balance to get her across the tight ropes without falling as the two ships rose and fell changing the lines angles. Masts to climb, crossbars to jump and even climbing and traversing the dirigibles. They'd run across the top of the dirigible and then jump down onto the top of the next, which in one case had been a good two stories below. All of this done without any safety netting or harnesses to keep them from falling to the ground below.

He could tell it was a test and show of strength, speed, agility, coordination, flexibility and intelligence. The entire thing lasted for perhaps thirty minutes. Aoife had maintained a solid lead on most of the other members she was competing against. Cam was the only other one that came close to catching her. He watched as she did another fucking swan dive, except off the top of a dirigible this time. She caught hold of a rope that came out of nowhere. Someone having swung it down from the Adelisa and she slid down the line to the sand in one swift motion.

She was joined shortly by the members in her family that had participated as they finished their runs through the gauntlet. Everyone watching from the beach clapped and congratulated the Adelisa for a fine show of perfection. Something that apparently didn't come as a surprise. Looking to Aine he saw a large smile and look of pride on her face. Catching his look, she shook her head and her smile became reassuring.

"Relax and take a breath Tommy. The Adelisa has won the Gauntlet since Aoife started running it. She knew what she was doing, she was never in any real danger."

Tommy looked away from her shaking his head slightly. No danger, right, all it would have taken was one slip, one wrongly timed move. Ada had been sitting next to him and he felt her hand clasp on top of his as she leaned into his shoulder.

"I know how ya feel. But ya need to remember that she's been doing this for years. She's trained and skilled at what she does. She knows what she's doing Tommy. While we think its ridiculously dangerous, it's all in a days' work for them."

"Seen a lot of this 'ave ya?"

"Some of it and also more than that. Remember when we were driving ta the fair? She told us that being an airmen challenged you in ways ya never expected. Things like what they just did in the Gauntlet Tommy."

"Mm. Doesn't mean I have ta enjoy watchin' it."

"No. But at least this way ya can see and learn what she's capable of. So you don't have ta worry so much for her in the future."

"Ada, I'll worry no matter what."

Ada smiled and squeezed his hand as another horn blared and he turned his attention back to the strip of sand in front of him. He focused in on the Adelisa. All the ships had moved off shore over the deeper part of the water. Reilly dove off the stern of the ship down into the water below, pulling off a couple of flips before breaking the waters' surface. It was a few heartbeats before he saw the boys head pop up out of the water a few meters from where he went in. He swam quickly toward shore where Eirnin was waiting for him. Once he reached his brother, he passed him a small cylinder. Eirnin took off running down the sand, heading toward the base of the tall rocky hill that jetted up into the sky.

Once he reached the base he passed off the cylinder to Carrick who started to free climb the rocky out cropping. He had to swing and sometimes throw himself to his next handholds before he could continue moving vertically again. There were a couple of times that the rocks beneath his handholds crumbled and he had to quickly readjust. When he finally made it to the top, he ran toward the outward edge. There were apparently sets of bows and arrows waiting for them there. He strapped the cylinder to an arrow and set it straight for the Adelisa. A large target waiting for it.

Aoife removed the cylinder and disappeared from view. A short moment later she appeared on the bow, a rifle drawn to her shoulder. There was a loud bang as she pulled the trigger ejecting the small cylinder out over the ship. The cylinder exploded a moment later out over the water in a shower of sparks. The remaining ships firing off their own cylinders in short order after Aoife. Again those watching from the shore clapped and cheered.

He watched as the ships started to return to the original circle they'd been in. Every other one descending further toward the land below them. A large circular piece of canvas had been spread out on the sand in the center of the ships. Once they'd all come to a stationary altitude each ship dropped a single line from its stern.

On the ground he watched as Reilly hooked the line from the Adelisa onto the piece of canvas. Each ship doing the same. Reilly then walked out onto the center of the canvas and the ships began to move outward. Slowly the canvas began lifting from the sand. Once it was fully stretched and about eight feet off the ground, everything stopped. Apparently the canvas was actually some sort of stretchy mesh material. Reilly started jumping and shot up into the air. They'd created their own large trampoline.

Reilly stopped and allowed the trampoline to come to a standstill. He stayed there as one of his cousins joined him. One of Aoife's uncles started shouting out so everyone could hear him.

"As always we'll be going off last years' rosters. Up first Reilly and Leo."

The two boys shook hands and then stepped away from one another. Two rolls of what appeared to be bandaging was dropped down to them. He watched as they both quickly wrapped their knuckles and then dropped the remainder of the roll onto the sand. A bell rang and they started to circle each other. Tommy's brain caught up to him as he realized they'd created a type of boxing ring.

Reilly dodged a punch by back flipping away from his opponent, using the bounce in the ring floor to assist him. His opponent then had to adjust to the floors movement. Essentially it was boxing with a twist. Throwing in the additional need to balance and adjust to the changing environment that they fought in.

As the match continued they became more aggressive. It seemed the goal was not to knock out your opponent in the traditional sense. Rather to knock them off and out of the ring onto the sand below. He imagined this kept the fighting friendlier and allowed for limited injuries.

They were both tall and agile, a good match in weight and class. Each seemed skilled in the same, if not extremely similar fighting styles. After a bit of dancing around each other they moved into attack once more. Reilly took a punch to the side, he dropped down to his knees and when he bounced back up, he somersaulted in toward his opponent forcing the boy into backing away. When Reilly landed on the mat, springing to his feet, he jumped into the air as high as he could before coming back down toward his cousin even more. The bounce, along with his forward movement causing the other to lose his balance and fall back over the edge.

Reilly continued to bounce and then did a front flip over the side to land next to his cousin and help him up from the fall. Reilly was declared the winner of the match. This continued for several more matches, each entertaining in their own right. Different fighting styles, techniques and acrobatics being showcased. He noticed that with each match the fighting became more intricate and skilled. It was strange to be among a group of people that cheered for both fighters at the same time and afterwards there was nothing but camaraderie between opponents. Carrick had lost his match to his cousin Peter but Eirnin had tied with Cam, both of them having fallen out of the ring together.

The heat of the day was beginning to creep up on everyone as morning moved into afternoon. One of the females could be heard announcing that after the next fight, brunch would be served since no one had eaten breakfast. He'd been sitting in between Ada and Finn throughout the morning and he'd been happy to listen to Finn's excited chatter. However upon hearing the announcement of food soon to come he heard Finn mutter lowly under his breath about how it was about bloody time he got to eat something. Tommy couldn't help but chuckle at him.

The next match soon began and this time it was between the girl he'd come to learn was Addie and a blonde girl that people were calling Niamh. While the men had moved with more aggression and force, the females had a graceful fluidity to their movements. They were evenly matched and each landed a number of hits before Niamh feinted a move and caught Addie unprepared for the opposing attack. Addie was sent flying backwards over the edge. She managed to catch the lip of the mat with her hands and used the leverage to flip so that she landed on her feet in the sand. Niamh the victor.

As soon as the match was called a slew of women and older children started going through the field of spectators delivering baskets of food to everyone. Finn was fairly jumping with joy as Ada received theirs and started to divvy the contents between all of them. As they ate Michael, Finn, Alfie and himself discussed the different matches and fighting styles. Finn stating that he'd enjoyed Eirnin's match the most. Aine who'd been silent during their conversation spoke.

"Just wait Finn, I'm sure that will change."

"Why?"

"Well because there's still two more matches to come, we're not done yet."

"Really? And ya think I'll like one of 'em better than Eirnin?"

"I have a feeling you will. Besides the next two are more exciting. The elders actually allow bets to take place on them."

"Tommy says bettin' is for mugs. It's just wastin' money on fixed races."

Alfie and Aoife's grandfather Bastien both laughed before the old man spoke to Finn.

"Aye and typically your brother would be right, but in this, there is nothing fixed. Just a simple bet on the opponent you think will win. Besides we don't bet money, we bet island duties, like cleaning up the mess we make today or the huts before we ship out."

"How do ya know who ta bet for?"

"That decision is based off of your knowledge of the skill of the person who's fighting when paired up against their opponent."

"I don't know who's fighting or their skills so I wouldn't know who ta bet for."

Aoife's grandmother, Bastiens' wife Yael spoke up.

"Watch closely then, that way you'll have a good idea who to bid on next year."

Tommy caught the smiles lighting up both Finn and Ada's face at Yaels' comment. A verbal indicator that she believed Aoife and Tommy would still be together come this time next year. The comment seemed to bring him a sense of relief. Her family elders had accepted him as a part of their granddaughters life. Approved of him even knowing that he wasn't a good man. He appreciated greatly the fact that he didn't have to pretend to be something he wasn't in order to be welcomed by them.

Aoife POV

Aoife sat on the deck of the Adelisa in the little shade that she could find, waiting for all the food baskets to be passed out. Once everyone had something to eat the bell would ring and the fights would resume. She'd removed the tunic she'd had on under her corset, she didn't need the loose fabric. It only served as something for her opponent to grab a hold of. She'd also removed her bracers and changed into boots that didn't have iron rods imbedded in them. Doing so had helped reduce how hot she'd been feeling in the sun.

She was glad that this was the last part of the competition. When she finished her fight she would be able to find some shade to cool off in and grab a bite to eat. If she was lucky she might even be able to relax in Tommy's arms for a bit.

She wondered what Tommy had thought of the competition so far. She hoped that all the Shelby's were at least entertained. God knows there's nothing worse than being forced to sit in the heat and watch something you're not interested in. Hopefully Michael and Ada had been paying attention during the matches, it was good study material for their own fighting lessons.

She heard the bell ring and looked out to see her cousins Germaine and Liam jump down into the ring. She watched as they fought, noticing that Germaine seemed to have learned a few new moves. She could tell it surprised Liam but he'd always been vigilant and adaptable. If she were to bet she'd bet on Liam winning. Germaine may have expanded his moves but as she watched she could tell he still had no patience. He'd eventually make a mistake because of that. Liam would simply patiently wait for it and then use it to his advantage. The only way Germaine would win was if he got lucky.

She felt Eirnin come up next to her and turned away from the match to look at him.

"How's the ring Eirnin?"

"It's stretched tight. Make sure you put extra power into any jumps if you want height. Think outside the ring and implement usage of the lines if you find an opening to... Liam should be finishing up with Germaine in a few. Here, let me wrap your hands."

Aoife held her hands out for Eirnin to wrap. As he worked on making sure her hands were at least somewhat protected she questioned him about his own match.

"What happened down there with you and Cam? Thought for sure you had him."

"As did I. The bugger knew it too, which is why he grabbed hold and latched on like a fucking alligator. God that man has some serious grip strength. Have to hand it to him though, a tie is better than a loss for him."

"What about Carrick? Did you see what happened there?"

"I think he just wasn't feeling it, you know. He put on a good show but he didn't seem to have interest in winning."

"Yeah. Has he said anything to you about whats been bothering him?"

"No...I think he spoke with Papi the other night though. He'll be okay."

They both heard loud shouts from the crowd below. Returning their attention to the match they watched their cousins try and work each other toward the edge of the ring.

"Who do you think will win Aoife?"

"Liam... not that I don't trust Carrick..."

"With his mind seeming preoccupied, you'd prefer if I kept a watch too."

"Have I told you recently how much I love and adore you."

"Come to think of it no, not a bloody single time this year. All right so that's one complement of appreciation per day. Which means you owe me fifty more descriptions of how incredible I am and how lucky you are to have me!"

"God fifty! Are you off your rocker! You can't have possibly been perfect for all fifty days. I had to have found you annoying and generally irritating for some of those."

"Ahh, but alas, you can't remember, so I'll take fifty... Come on... I'm waiting."

"Ugh, fine, fine...I love you, you're perfect, the best big brother in the world...said times fifty."

"Hm. Not quite what I was looking for... but I'll take it. You are officially forgiven for having forgotten to show the appreciation due me on a daily basis."

"Oh really... well I must say I am impressed with your gracious benevolence over my lack of sufficient admiration."

"So glad you see it my way."

Aoife couldn't keep her laughter in any longer and as she began to let it out, Eirnin joined her.

"If you two are quite finished with your hysterically inaccurate conversation. Liam has won and the bell is about to ring for your match Aoife. Somehow I don't think you'll be able to laugh Niall out of the ring."

"Ahem, right... sorry Carrick."

"Hang on a moment Carrick, what do you mean that our conversation was inaccurate?"

"Eirnin...We all know that I am the best big brother in the world...not you, as I have yet to relinquish that title. Which I will only do upon my death."

"Well fucking hell, that ain't fair."

"Life isn't fair. I was born first, so I'll always be the biggest brother... Suck it up buttercup."

Aoife listened to Eirnin give a heavy sigh, rolling his eyes to continue their playful banter.

"Fine, fine Carrick I concede the title to you... until your passing. At which point it will be bestowed upon me."

"Whatever floats your boat Eirnin. Are you ready Aoife?"

"Yeah, as ready as I ever am."

"Good, then this should be a piece of cake for you. If it's not you'll be doubling your training and sparring sessions."

"Yes Sir, Captain my Captain, sir."

"Now she fucking remembers that I'm the Captain!? Get your ass down there Aoife and remind them what real entertainment is."

Niall POV

He watched from the railing of the Bebinn as Aoife vaulted off the railing of the Adelisa, completing a perfect Amanar. As always she landed gracefully and with extremely little rebound. Good to know she was still light on her feet. His sister Niamh had informed him that the ring was on the tight side this year. There was a possibility that it could work to his advantage, she may not be able to get decent height on her bounces. It also meant that she shouldn't be able to use the reverb as a tool to unbalance him.

He'd fought Aoife every year for the past 4 years, sometimes she won, sometimes he did. It never mattered who won though, it was always fun and he loved fighting her. She was unpredictable, adaptable, patient, and above all innovative. He never knew from one moment to the next how a fight with her would go. She didn't half ass things either and he loved that about her. He did wonder though if she'd play it safe, what with her beau here. She might take more care to ensure that she walked away with minimal bruising. Things to consider.

Niall calmly walked over to the opposite railing to prepare for his own entrance vault, a double front flip. He crouched down to limit the rebound on his landing, Aoife had done the same to help keep her feet under her. When the floor beneath them settled they both stood and knocked hands to signal their readiness to begin.

Each knowing the others fighting style they circled one another and watched for a tell of an incoming attack. Aoife was the first to move but it wasn't at him it was in and back and to the side, a feint. Which he came to realize was more about her testing the bounce in the floor than trying to trick him. He didn't want her to become too familiar with the flooring so he went in for a cross and she ducked to avoid him. He saw her roll to the side in an effort to come at him from his blind spot.

Realizing what she was attempting he sprang into a back flip to remove himself from her reach. Being petite her reach was limited but she was highly skilled in hand to hand. She took advantage of her ability to move swiftly. While he was in the air rotating back to his feet for landing she pounced into his space throwing her shoulder into his stomach and wrapping her arms around his waist before using his own reverb to help push herself into him.

He staggered back to catch his balance and attempted to put her in a headlock, but she'd released him as soon as he'd started his backwards momentum and she was out of his reach. They maintained eye contact as he steadied himself. She didn't attack, just waited for him to decide his next move.

***************0***************

They had been going at it for a fair amount of time now. The sun was beating down on them and the only relief came when a breeze would blow in from the sea. He had started to notice some dark clouds out in the distance and wondered if the growing storm would hit Vatulele or not. He knew that everyone was entertained and enjoying the bout. He could hear wagers being placed and some of them yelling at their chosen champion not to let them down.

He'd managed to get a few hits in same as she had and they'd both been somersaulting and flipping through the air left and right. There had been one instance where he could have sworn he'd had her dead to rights. She'd flown backwards and with the force he'd put into his throw there should have been no way for her to remain in the ring.

It was one of those times where fighting her was a joy. Her innovative nature had her reaching out and grabbing hold of the line closest to her. She'd used her momentum to swing around and back towards him. Where he'd taken a foot to the stomach. He'd grabbed her foot and pushed it up into the air as high as he could. She'd fallen onto her back, then wrapped her feet around his legs and brought him down next to her.

He knew better than to try and take advantage of her position. The last time he had it'd cost him the match because she'd managed to get her legs between them and kicked his sorry ass out of the ring. They each rolled away from each other and back on their feet. They were getting ready to charge one another again when he felt a slight slack come into the floor. It had paused them both in their actions but when it remained unchanged they both launched toward the other. Aoife had charged straight at him and stepped up onto his bent leg before he felt her hand dig into his shoulder.

He knew he only had a single second to do something that would stop her from wrapping around his back and neck to throw him forward. As he reached up to try and block her, he felt the floor slacken beneath him even more. They both heard the straining snap of one of the lines breaking off. Aoife halted her movements so that she was sitting on his shoulders and he wrapped his hands around her thighs to keep her there as they held their breath.

He could hear his sister and his cousins on the Adelisa yelling out orders to start lowering the ring back to the sand. Unfortunately whoever was steering the Sif moved out instead of down pulling the ring out over the shallow water and that line pulled taught before it too broke loose. The loss of the second line sent them tumbling toward the shallows of the beach that were dotted with coral. That was going to fucking hurt if they got pitched in there. The sound around him drowned into nothingness as he grabbed hold of Aoife's feet and hoisted her up from his shoulders. He heard her shout right and automatically pitched in that direction as they started to fall.

A milisecond later he heard her tell him to hold tight, so he firmed his grip on her ankles and a moment later they were dangling from the line she'd managed to grab hold of. The sound of Carrick and Eirnin shouting orders for other ships to drop their lines could be heard above them. Soon they were swinging back towards the sandy beach instead of dangling over the shallow reef filled water. As soon as he knew he'd land on land he let go and dropped to the ground with a roll to save his knees.

He watched from his position as Aoife swiftly climbed up the line to board the Bebinn shouting down at him that by default she won. Equipment malfunction or not she was right, he'd touched land first.

As always please comment and share your thoughts! Love to all!