Chapter Two: Recovery

Takamichi was surprised to find his eyes fluttering open as morning light poured into the small room and directly into his face. He winced as he placed a hand over his face. Drowsily he sat up and yawned.

Almost immediately, his memories returned to him, and his eyes widened as he looked down at his bare chest, expecting to see the vicious injuries he had sustained, instead all he could discern was the outline of several new scars that had appeared on his chest.

"You're awake, sir." A young Abunas child said, surprising Takamichi. The child bore a toothy grin, "I will get the healer, he will be glad that you're awake." Without another word, the child rushed out of the room.

What in the world happened, he thought. His memory was fuzzy, and as such he presumed it was also slightly inaccurate. He remembered being assigned to Sanbalya to investigate human rights violation on the part of the Nongovernmental Organization, Austro-Africus Aetemalls, which had been investigating such atrocities in the region. That was when he had stumbled across the Village of Bacara, and he had been following the death squad that had been traveling from rural village-to-village butchering each one before moving on. He remembered arriving in that last town, believing that he had almost been too late.

Then something strange had happened. Just as the soldiers were about to execute the villagers, their weapons had malfunctioned. He had taken the opportunity to intervene and had been lucky enough to incapacitate most of them when…

The grenade, then he remembered bleeding out, and finally…

"Nagi!" He whispered in surprise as his memory finally cleared.

Just at that moment, the door to the room opened and the small child came back, with a hooded man in tow.

"Ah, you're awake at last." The hooded man spoke with a touch of humor in his voice. "You slept long enough Takamichi. It's been nearly three days since you arrived."

"Nagi, is that you!" He said suddenly attempting to peer into the shadow that the cloak's hood cast over the man's face.

The hooded man chuckled. Looking down at the young child he continued to look between the two men during their exchange. "Sala, you should go see your sister." He reached into his pocket and removed a pair of chocolate bars. "Please give one of these to your sister, the other is for you."

The child grinned widely as he accepted the gifts. "Yes, sir." He said energetically as he scampered out of the room.

Once he had left the hooded man closed to door behind him, then he turned back to Takamichi, "You've grown quite a bit since the last time that I saw you." He admitted as his hands lifted towards his hood, pulling it back to reveal his face to the Japanese man.

Takamichi looked at the stranger perplexed, he looked so much like the Thousand Master that he had initially mistaken him for, yet there were apparent differences that distinguished him from the famous Nagi Springfield. His hair was cut short much like Takamichi's but still the same shade of crimson that he remembered of Nagi, with piercing emerald eyes. Yet his facial bones were different, with a stronger ridge line. He looked more like a youthful sage than the rebellious risk taker that Takamichi had mistaken him for.

The other man chuckled, "Still don't recognize me?" He asked.

Takamichi grudgingly shook his head, which caused the other man to chuckle louder.

"I'm not surprised. I've changed my appearance in the decade since we last met." The man extended his right hand, while his left rolled up his sleeve. Underneath, emblazoned across his skin was a very intricate and ornate tattoo.

Takamichi instantly recognized it; he looked up at the man's face in shock. "Mathias!" He whispered breathlessly.

He shook his head, "I'm not Mathias any more, Takamichi. I go by Magnus Locke these days."

"I see," He admitted, looking at the man standing before him. "I have to say, I'm surprised that you're still alive."

"You and me both," Magnus conceded. "Trust me, after you and I last saw each other, it was pretty touch and go there for a while." Then he shrugged, "But I guess; alls well that ends well right?

He honestly could not believe all of this transpiring, never would he have imagined that he would run into a surviving member of the famous Ala Rubra, especially one thought to be dead for so long. "What are you doing here in Sanbalya?" He asked.

"You know my profession." Magnus replied somberly much of the humor suddenly vacant from his voice.

The other man was willing to concede that point. Given the atrocities that had been committed, and reported, throughout the world, there was little wonder that Mathias…Magnus, he corrected, would be present.

Takamichi remembered that soldier's weapons not working suddenly, "You were the one who disabled the soldier's guns."

Magnus shrugged, "I decided that I wasn't in the mood to witness a massacre that day." He looked to the door vacantly, and sighed. "Truth be told, I've sort of grown attached to this place."

"You've been here for a while?" He asked.

"More than 'a while,' actually it's going on three years." He stated.

"That's much longer than this whole situation started."

"I'm glad to see that that concussion you suffered hasn't slowed you down any, Takamichi." Magnus said somberly leaning against a wall. "Actually, I've been here helping with the missionaries over in Jurrorwa, going from town to town as a healer."

"That's certainly a change of pace for you."

"That it is." He admitted, "This last decade's been…insightful." He said with a grin, "I honestly cannot remember the last time that I was able to actually live like a human being, I had almost forgotten what its like."

"I can understand that."

"But enough about me," He said waving his hand absently, "How has Takamichi been for this last decade? Last I remember you were going to Mahora Academy with the Princess."

Takamichi smiled, "Yeah, I ended up taking a teaching position there, been there ever since." "Doesn't surprise me," Magnus waved with a genuine smile crossing his face, "I haven't seen Konoemon in decades, how's that kid doing these days?"

Takamichi couldn't help but stifle a chuckle of his own. This truly was the Mathias he remembered from all those years ago. No matter who it was that he was talking to, he always seemed to think of them as "kids" from his perspective.

Takamichi grinned, "Well that 'kid' as you put it, is still the Dean at Mahora Academy and I have to say he's aged pretty well."

He shook his head, "I'm glad to know that he's doing well. How is the Princess?"

"Living happily." Takamichi said with his own smile. He looked around the room, finding his pants folded neatly in a chair next to his bed. He reached for it, quickly removing his wallet. Opening it, he presented a small photograph and offered it to Magnus.

The other man accepted the photo and looked at it with a smile still on his face. "She's grown quite a bit."

"That she has." Takamichi affirmed. "She's certainly gotten herself in a bit of trouble as of late though."

"Anything serious?" Magnus asked concerned.

He shook his head, "Oh nothing too bad. But I will say that things have gotten a little…interesting since we had a new teacher begin working at the Academy."

"Oh?" the other man frowned, seeing the slightly humorous glint in Takamichi's eye. "And who exactly would this new teacher be that seemed to getting our Princess into such trouble?"

"Well his name is Negi Springfield." Takamichi said with a wide grin.

"Nagi's son?" Magnus replied incredulously. "That's quite the interesting revelation…he's what nine or ten?"

"Yep, and quite the overachieving young lad as well." Takamichi said happily. "Managed to graduate from the Magic Academy at the age of nine, and wound up getting a teaching assignment at Mahora as a reward for all of his hard work."

"That's quite the accomplishment."

Takamichi paused as he suddenly remembered his current surroundings. "What happened to those soldiers that I was pursuing?"

"Well, you managed to knock most of them out with that iaido that Gateau taught you. You've gotten pretty good with that by the way." Magnus said with a smile. "The ones that tried to run I stopped. Afterwards, we took their weapons, destroyed them and tied them up to wait for that U.N. forces that you were talking about to pick them up." He shrugged, "They asked about you, but I told them that you were resting. Figured you would rather recoup around here, at least the cooking is a bit better than what you would find in a UN hospital."

Takamichi actually managed to laugh at that statement. "Well I appreciate it." His hand brushed against his chest. "I'm glad to see that your healing spells haven't gone to waste."

"Eh, you weren't hurt that bad. Just a punctured lung and a couple of torn arteries, nothing too severe." He said with faux modesty.

"Right…" He swung his legs over the side of the bed. "I think I'm going to get dressed. Magnus is there any way that I might be able to get a lift back to Ghraffa."

"I think I can spare up a truck to get us there." He replied, standing and walking out of the room.

Ghraffa was the capital of Sanbalya, it was also a city marked with history dating all the way back to the initial English Colonialism that had given life to the city as the premier trading post on the Indian Coastline. Modernized with what little income that Sanbalya's economy could produce, it was not the friendliest of locations in this part of the world, but if you knew what to look for there was little need for concern.

For individuals such as Takahata Takamichi and Magnus Locke they were hardly concerned given that they were possibly the most dangerous individuals in the entire city.

Magnus parked the truck on the side of the street, turning the engine off as he exited the vehicle and looked at the Austro-Africus Aetemalls Branch office that resided near the local airport. He journeyed around to the back of the canvas-covered truck as Takamichi exited the vehicle.

"Well, looks like this is your stop." He said with a faint smile. "It's been good seeing you, Takamichi, you take care of yourself, and watch out for the grenades, will you."

"You know Magnus, you should come back with me to Mahora Academy." He said.

Magnus snorted, "What, and become a teacher like you, I'm sorry but I don't think that your students need that sort of agony forced upon them."

"I'm serious." Takamichi said, "When was the last time you were in Japan?"

"A bit over a decade ago." He said simply. "And what good would I be at an Academy? I'm not exactly qualified to be a teacher."

"I don't know why not, you've certainly got the life experience to teach."

"I think this conversation has gone far enough." Magnus said with a chuckle, then his expression turned thoughtful, "Actually, is Evangeline still there?"

Takamichi nodded, "Yeah, and the curse is still in effect."

Magnus nodded thoughtfully then walked back around the truck.

"Well, Magnus?" Takamichi asked.

Magnus looked back at his old friend then smiled, "We'll see." He said before turning the keys and starting the truck back up.

"Well, if you do decide, here." He reached into his suit's inner pocket and removed a small business card. "The first number is to the sat-phone that the AAA gave me. The second number is my personal cell phone in Japan." He shrugged, "If you can't contact me with either of these, you can always call up the faculty department at Mahora."

Magnus accepted the card, looked it over for a long moment then pocketed it.

"Take care, Takamichi." He yelled as he drove off.

"Same to you." He said softly, shaking his head. To think after all this time, the infamous Ala Ferrum from the Great War would be a healer in a war torn African nation. He supposed people actually could change.