A/N: I apologize for not updating for nearly three weeks. I had intended to before going on vacation, but wound up not doing so. As at least a partial apology, I have another chapter ready, and will release it in the next few days.

Magister Negi Magi is owned by Ken Akamatsu and Kodansha Ltd. Tokyo in Japan, and by Funimation and Kodansha USA in the United States, NOT by me.

Other characters are also the property of their respective creators and owners, not me.

Some characters created by kafka'sdragon for his 'Markham Chronicles Negima' story are used here with his permission.

(-)

"Chao Lingshen and I once joked that nothing was more important than scientific research and discovery… I think I'm starting to learn otherwise…"
-Satomi Hakase: from a journal entry recorded during her first visit to New Ostia

Mage War

Chapter Eleven: Kurt and Satomi – Part 2

(-)

(Nagi Springfield Cup Arena, New Ostia, Cincinnatus Conference Room)

"…thank you, Miss Hakase, for your time. You may step down."

Rising from her chair, Satomi Hakase nodded to R'burt Trimble before moving to sit next to a seemingly shut down Serio in the back of the room.

As she did so, Trimble looked at the other members of the panel investigating the partial collapse of the Governor General's Compound. "Of course all the details will be analyzed in much greater detail later; but it does seem on the surface that the collapse was the result of unseen damage from Fourth Ostia. It light of that; and if there are no further questions; I move that this panel be adjourned."

Several seats to Trimble's left, another panel member raised his hand. "I'll second the motion to adjourn."

Nodding, and seeing no one else raising their hand, Trimble scooted his chair back and stood. "This panel is adjourned."

With a whir, Serio's eyes came open. Turning to Satomi, she gave her master an inquiring look. "Is that all, Master Hakase?"

Watching Serio out of the corner of her eye, Satomi gave a small nod before standing up. "Yes. Begin analysis."

With an equal small nod, Serio retracted a tiny sensor into one of her ear antennas before rising to follow as Satomi started working her way out of the conference room.

Just before stepping through the door, Serio noticed someone who seemed to be staring at her… A quick memory inquiry brought no match, though his clothes seemed to indicate he was a government functionary of some type from Megalo-Mesembria. With just an electronic thought, she captured an image of the man, intending to ask Satomi if she knew who it was when the chance arose.

(-)

After knocking on the door to Satomi Hakase's room, Kurt carefully opened it and walked in when he heard the call to do so. Looking around; he was relieved to see there would be no repeat of his accidental viewing of a pale form streaking across the room. This time Satomi Hakase was already dressed; though he did note that instead of her normal, rather dull clothes; she was wearing a blouse and slacks, and had carefully done her hair up in a single ponytail. "Any luck with what you wanted to do?"

Turning away from a holo-monitor examination of the data Serio had collected, Satomi smiled at Kurt before shaking her head. "Not really; everyone at the inquiry pretty much asked normal questions of all the witnesses. Nobody did anything that stood out, and none of the detectable mana signatures of the people in the room matched the one I recorded outside your residence. If I hadn't seen that mana trace myself; I'd be just as inclined to think it was undetected damage as anyone else."

Leaning over Satomi; Kurt noticed she seemed to be wearing perfume. Nothing fancy or expensive, though pleasantly scented; and if his memory served; one that had actually gone out of fashion several years ago. "Well, sometimes a person gives themselves away less by what or how much they say; than by how little they say…"

Touching the holo-image; Satomi scrolled it a few times. When it stabilized; the displayed showed three of the people from the board of inquiry… One of which was Kurt. "I thought of that. There really wasn't much of 'talked less' factor; and if I use that standard to establish suspicion; then you were the most suspicious of all!"

Recalling the only question he'd asked had been about when exactly the last structural survey of the Governor General's Compound had occurred, Kurt chuckled and nodded to concede Satomi's point. "The two seated next to me are the Captain of New Ostia's Lawgivers, and the current administrator of the arena… Jakob McKandles has that job because he's been a lawgiver for twenty years and wants to retire from it. Verus Priscus is Jack Rakan's man; hardly the first two you might think would wish me harm."

Throwing up her hands; Satomi sat back. "Well, that's it then. Nobody seems to have done anything to make you question their motivations, so I don't know what else to do."

Timidly; Serio raised her hand. "Master Hakase; I might have something."

Satomi and Kurt both turned to face Serio with curious looks on their faces.

Caught off guard by the intensity of the twin looks, Serio dropped her eyes. "There was a person in the inquiry who seemed oddly interested in me. I took an image of him; but there must be something wrong with my image recorders or storage memory… When I accessed the image just prior to seeking your attention, I found nothing on it except people leaving the conference room and an empty chair…"

Feeling her heart rate increase, Satomi glanced briefly at Kurt. After seeing the look of recognition on his face; she turned back to Serio. "Transfer the image."

Everything was as Serio said; but there was obviously someone or something in the chair, because the seat cushion was crushed in a manner indicating weight was on it.

Stepping back, Kurt started to rub his chin. "Most likely anti-imagery magic; maybe stealth too; since I don't remember anyone actually sitting where that seems to be."

Kurt's analysis mirrored her own; so Satomi nodded in agreement. "Serio; like all her sisters; can see in several different spectrums. It's likely she saw the person because his magic didn't fully cover the visual spectrum. Cross programing filled in the gaps; so to speak; since she wasn't looking for something specific; and is probably why she thought there was a problem… I'll need to take care of that somehow so it isn't an issue in the future."

Already having an idea who it might be, Kurt looked up at Satomi's gynoid. "Please describe him for me, Seriomaru."

"Call her Serio…"

Distracted, Kurt looked back down at Satomi. "What?"

Uncharacteristically wringing her hands, Satomi glanced up furtively at Kurt. "We're close now, right? Friends; who are helping each other out…. You can call her 'Serio;' and… please call me Satomi…"

Nodding, Kurt smiled and gave Satomi's shoulder a gentle squeeze, then looked over at Serio again. "If you don't mind, please proceed."

Thanks to the lessons learned from her elder sister Chachamaru; Serio was fully capable of showing embarrassment; so she blushed and looked at the floor due to the attention she was now the focus of. "We'll; he was dressed in clothing that seemed to indicate he was an official from Megalo-Mesembria…"

He wasn't completely sure in the beginning; but Kurt's suspicions were confirmed by the time Serio finished speaking... "Of course there isn't enough proof to justify taking any action; but that sounds like Tayura Mardel… He's the representative from the Mage Council who came to ask if I had any issues with the Northern Alliance wanting to establish a permanent military presence in New Ostia. He's also the favorite right now in Megalo-Mesembria to replace me as governor general if something 'unfortunate' should happen."

Sighing, Satomi let her shoulders fall, hoping Kurt wouldn't take it as a sign to remove his hand. "So in other words; you can't do anything without additional proof."

Reaching out with his free hand, Kurt took the chance he would be able to do so and scrolled Satomi's holo image display. After a few swipes, it settled once more on a picture of the mana trace she had recorded beneath his balcony. "Even if you can somehow link this to Mardel; it still wouldn't be enough proof. He'd practically have to shoot me dead with a gun from the Mundus Vertus; in front of unimpeachable witnesses; to overcome the support he has on the Mage Council right now."

Trying to seem sympathetic, Satomi reached up to put a hand on top of Kurt's. "I think we're stuck then… Why don't we go ahead and go out to Old Ostia, since I still need to do that research I mentioned. Doing so will give us time to think about what needs to be done next."

Glancing down, Kurt could see that Satomi's ears were a slight shade of red. Giving a smile she couldn't see, he squeezed her shoulder one last time before letting it go. "I'll make the arrangements right away."

(-)

Lingering irritation over being reminded by his staff that he should take an escort with him into Old Ostia had Kurt grinding his teeth as he, Satomi, and Serio stepped down out of his personal airfish flyer and into the main courtyard of the Temple of Chandika.

Many of his old executive staff had retired in recent years, and now the new ones were making the same mistakes the old ones once had… Seriously… he wasn't so old a crowd of bodyguards needed to be constantly hovering about, holding his hand. In any case; if something did happen while they were in Old Ostia; he should be able to protect himself, Satomi and Serio with relative ease. Losing a guard whose only fault might be self-sacrificing loyalty; should Tayura Mardel actually attempt some kind of attack; was something he didn't want to deal with… though admittedly; leaving them behind also prevented any possibility of being backstabbed by one who might be working for Mardel.

Relying on Serio and her sensors to warn of any imminent danger; Satomi hefted her bag of instruments and headed directly for the temple entrance. "Let's get inside; there's some equipment I don't want to get out where it's easy for unseen eyes to watch."

Stopping for a moment and turning back, Kurt touched a remote control glyph on a fob attached to his vest. The airfish responded by closing up and activating its proximity defenses. Satisfied everything was secure; he turned once more and trotted for a few steps to catch up with Satomi and Serio. "Anything in particular I should know about?"

Eyes focused on the temple entrance, Satomi shook her head without looking back at Kurt. "Not really; if it becomes necessary I'll explain the details; but you should easily recognize everything."

Inside the temple, Satomi knelt with Serio to unpack her equipment. Seeing something odd-looking against a pile of nearby rubble, Kurt walked over to take a closer look.

Reaching a pool of light covering the jumbled pile of masonry; he reached down and came up with something completely unexpected… the slightly rotted and dust-covered wooden sheath of a sword. By style it seemed to belong to a Shinmei-Ryu's blade, but since such a simple design wasn't that uncommon, he couldn't be sure.

If it had belonged to a Shinmei-Ryu, it was impossible to identify without the rest of the sheath, since the name of the sword was always engraved on the hilt. Already damaged from exposure to the weather, there was no reason to keep the thing, so Kurt tossed it aside. Knowing who it once belonged to might prove interesting; but the thing could have been there for ten years or ever since the Schismatic War… there was no way to really tell.

Back with Serio, Satomi was looking as some kind of small device. Hanging from her shoulder by a sling seemed to be some kind of automatic weapon… "Is that an AK? How in the world did you get something so obvious through customs in Megalo-Mesembria?"

Looking up from a paperback sized monitor she could use to examine the findings of Serio's sensors; Satomi caught and held Kurt's gaze for a long moment. Though it wasn't exactly something that should be permitted to get out; he had asked her the question directly. Lying to him, or concealing the facts in any way; was something with the potential to cause more harm than simply telling the truth would. "It's not exactly an AK, it's closer to a Galil; and I prefer to call it a Hakase-Kalashnikov; since it's a modification I made myself. As far as how I made it through customs; it's amazing what you can get through when your restricted items hammerspace is inventoried and sealed on the other side by the right people…"

Letting his shoulders droop, Kurt shook his head. Stephan Dilane preferred to stay in the Mundus Vertus; but he was still a Mage Council Member… As an ally of Negi Springfield; it was easy to believe what Satomi had said… Nekane Springfield would likely become the leader of the Meldiana Magorum in Wales if the old mage ever retired; so she would probably also inherit Dilane's seat on the Mage Council… Since she was also an ally of Negi; never mind being his cousin; such 'smuggling' would likely continue. "Please tell me it won't do anything massively destructive…"

Surprised; Satomi suddenly looked at Kurt. "Oh! Don't worry about that; it doesn't fire anything stronger than catalyst-based lightning sagita; though I also have several clips of special rounds for emergency situations."

Seeing that Satomi finally seemed ready to move further into the temple, Kurt checked one more time to make sure his nodachi was ready to use. "After you then, Doctor Hakase; this is your show. Since you went to so much effort, I shall do my best to make sure any unpleasant creatures or individuals we may encounter refrain from disturbing your work."

Though she was far from helpless; in many ways; the amused, mildly irritated tone caused Satomi to turn beet red after remembering who exactly Kurt was. Not trusting herself to say anything that wouldn't annoy the Mage Council Representative who also happened to be Governor General of New Ostia further; she simply nodded and started off down the corridor leading to the gate port located at the center of the Temple of Chandika.

(-)

When they had covered nearly two-thirds of the distance to the gateport chamber, Kurt noticed one of the columns supporting the roof appeared to have been slashed by some kind of clawed creature… Right above the marks was the yellowed remains of what looked like some kind of ofuda spell tag. "Look at that… I wonder how long it's been here."

Raising her eyes from the monitor, Satomi examined the scrap of paper Kurt was pointing at. "That's probably the spell tag used by Negi's scouts back during Fourth Ostia. Kaede Nagase told me Setsuna Sakurazaki used an endless corridor trap when they were attacked by minions of King Enteofushia. After they managed to get away; a demon Kaede wound up fighting later broke the spell and let the trapped mooks out. I'd expect those are his claw marks."

An ofuda spell trap likely meant an Onmyou mage; and if they were related to Negi Springfield; then Kurt knew that meant Konoka Konoe… Like Negi; the Konoe girl sometimes seemed like someone who didn't want to DO anything with the power she held…

However; if she was involved with the 'Blue Mars' project of Negi Springfield's he'd heard rumors about; like Asuna Kagurazaka and several others who had been present during Fourth Ostia seemed to be… it was likely she was doing more with her power than Kurt knew. "I've heard Konoka Konoe is already the leader of the Kansai Mage Association, and should take over the Kanto Mage Association when her grandfather finally retires; how is Eishun's daughter holding up against all that responsibility?"

Kurt's question gave Satomi a reason to smile. "As well as a mother shepherding a bunch of unruly stepchildren might be! She pretty much runs the Kanto association already; so it's hard for anyone to cause much trouble beyond name-calling and mostly baseless accusations. Some of those people constantly see offence in every little move or utterance their former rivals make; but I think Konoka is going to have them whipped into shape faster than even they realize."

Despite the differences of opinion he and Eishun Konoe had had over the years, Kurt remembered the man saying his daughter was a master of seeming foolishly uninterested in things; then suddenly surprising everyone with how closely she had actually been paying attention. That thought was a reminder that Konoka Konoe probably was quite deeply involved in whatever Negi was doing; and wasn't just sitting around, wasting her power. "That's kind of annoying… I've said many times that I thought Negi was wasting his potential as a leader; but it's starting to look like he's a lot more busy and subtle than I've given him credit for."

Stopping just short of the shattered doors leading out into the gateport chamber, Satomi turned to fully face her companion. "Kurt; don't sell yourself short. For a city that's seen more than its share of conflict over the centuries; your tenure as Governor General has been one of relative peace and prosperity; don't ever forget that."

Considering Satomi Hakase was an indirect representative of Negi Springfield; someone he'd been in conflict with several times; Kurt was surprised by her generous words. Stiffening slightly, he gave a formal bow. "Thank you very much, Miss Hakase."

(-)

Entering the gateport chamber was like walking into the shell of a collapsed building. None of the chamber's central structure remained intact; it and most of the ceiling was now dust, sand, and unidentifiable small bits of rubble filling the pit that was normally found beneath a gateport's anchor-stone and transport platforms.

Following Satomi's instructions, Serio began making her way along what remained of the perimeter walkway, searching for any openings in the outer wall. "It looks like everything is normal. There are no fluctuations, and no unusual buildup of mana-related energy."

Hearing about the destruction that had occurred and seeing it were two different things… Shaking his head, Kurt walked up and peered into the pit. "What a mess; all of the gateports were established during the First Crisis; or in the years afterwards. It's barely possible to repair these things anymore; forget about building one completely from scratch."

Seeing Serio waving on the far side of the chamber, Satomi began examining the monitor. "Well; from the point of view of Mahora; without the direct link being operable, it becomes all but impossible to access their gateport from the Mundus Magicus without permission."

Squinting and holding a hand over his eyes, Kurt looked across the gateport chamber to where Serio seemed to be… it looked like the gynoid was moving rubble from one pile to another. "Of course; the reverse is also true; no one at Mahora can access a gateport here without permission; though I expect that isn't a critical concern for Konoemon or Eishun's daughter."

Seeing a particularly unwelcome icon begin to flash on her monitor, Satomi uttered a barely audible pejorative and began making adjustments to the display. "Serio's monitoring the security and perimeter defenses on your transport. She says someone's snooping around it; and that there seems to be a pair of airfish hovering near by."

Considering what Negi Springfield's hacker had apparently managed to do during Fourth Ostia; Kurt found he wasn't surprised another of the mage's technically-minded allies had so easily inserted a monitoring link into the supposedly impenetrable systems on his airfish. He might ask Satomi about that later, if he remembered; but right now personal safety and survival took precedence. "There haven't been any other visitors authorized to come out to Old Ostia; at least none I am aware of; so the chances it's someone hostile are reasonably good… Presuming that to be the case; can Serio tell how many there are?"

Turning to look, Satomi saw that Kurt had all but drawn his nodachi, "Three, plus several more on the two airfish…" before he could draw the blade, she reached out and put a hand on his sleeve. "We don't have to go out the way we came in; that's why Serio is on the other side of the chamber; I sent her to look for the way Negi got in before, and she's found it."

As much as Kurt felt six or twelve, or even twenty mercenaries would be no match if he attacked using Shinmei-Ryu techniques; it was also true he did not know If they were that; or something more dangerous like assassins or remnant KE Cultists. Better then to avoid a fight, until such time that things were more to his advantage. "I know about a place over on the main island where we should be safe for a bit. Going on foot will take a while, but going back to the airfish is out; odds are they'll probably be waiting for us to try that anyway."

(-)

(Koi-class airfish Gamilas)

"You're saying the Governor General went out into Old Ostia, effectively alone, and you haven't managed to deal with him yet?"

In his private cabin on the Gamilas, Tayura Mardel in response to the question posed by the cloaked person standing in the telepathia-holo image. "Rest assured Sir; without his airfish; which has been sabotaged in case the Governor General somehow evades my men and tries to use it; there is little chance he can survive to return to New Ostia! The creatures in the valley…"

"…are of no consequence! My experience has been that a hopeless situation is not always so hopeless; especially when the person in question is Shinmei-Ryu. Besides that; you really have no idea what his companions are capable of. The only thing you have managed to assure me of so far is that your 'assurances' sound like they are coming from a desperate man who is on the verge of losing control of a situation. Get that mess in New Ostia dealt with, immediately, or you may find my backing has suddenly evaporated."

Without waiting for a reply from Tayura, the cloaked person cut off the telepathia transmission.

Angry beyond belief, Tayura slammed a fist down on his desk. ("Kurt Gödel should already be dead! My plan to use a mana explosion to cause a fracture in the Governor General's Compound residential quarters should have killed him! The only reason he's still alive is that 'Hakase' person from Argyre called him away… Now the two of them have vanished without a trace, out of a building where they should have been trapped!")

Standing up, Tayura began to pace. "Maybe I should just destroy that airfish; blame it on the creatures here in the valley; then go back to New Ostia and solidify my control over the city administratively… That way if Kurt Gödel manages to get back somehow; it will be too late for him to do anything."

Satisfied for the moment, Tayura left his cabin and went to go locate the Gamilas' captain.

(-)

For someone who seemed on the surface to be a… soft… scientist type; Kurt was beginning to find Satomi Hakase to be anything but… The streak he'd seen running across a room may have been pale from a lack of sunlight; but had also been quite fit in appearance… Satomi might prefer to stay in a lab; but she also seemed to take the time to stay in shape.

It was an interesting, apparent contradiction, and one more thing he'd have to consider asking her about once they returned to New Ostia…

Finally reaching the fallen island they sought, Kurt took the lead and went directly to the old Royal Treasury building. Most of the entrance seemed to have collapsed, so he worked his way around to the right until a narrow pathway appeared. Turning sideways, he slipped into the gap and made his way through to the main hallway of the treasury. "It wasn't like this the last time I was here… There's been so many things collapsing as mana to refloat the islands builds back up, that I doubt anything usable will be left when that finally happens."

Followed by Serio, Satomi slipped into the gap just behind Kurt. "It's getting dark; won't you be missed if we aren't back by tonight?"

Activating an illumination spell, Kurt began examining the area inside the entrance to the Royal Treasury... He had been concerned about leaving footprints in dust on the floor, but it looked like wind coming in through gaps in the collapsed entrance had blown everything into the corners. "I will be missed, but that won't matter since it's already too late in the day to make any kind of a search or rescue effort before the sun comes back up. Even if he wants to do so, Mardel won't be able to just replace me arbitrarily. Chief Lawgiver McKandles is next in line as Governor General whenever I'm out of the city, or am indisposed, and I doubt he's going to allow himself to be rushed into something by someone from outside the city… We do have time to spare; just not very much time."

After a brief pause to help when Serio's clothes became snagged on something, Satomi turned back to find Kurt heading deeper into the building. Not wanting to become separated, she rushed to catch up, followed closely by the apologetic gynoid. "Is there something in particular you're looking for?"

Reaching a point half-way down the hallway, Kurt suddenly turned between two of the high ceiling's supporting columns and headed for a partially hidden door. "Not really… I'm just going to see if something that might be useful is still stored inside the wreckage of old plans and ambitions…"

Opening the door, he entered a staircase and quickly descended through several switchbacks before emerging into what appeared to be an old records storage room.

As Kurt began looking into several smaller rooms extending off of the main area, Satomi took out a flashlight and began looking around on her own. Eventually finding what looked like an operating table, as well as other corrosion and dust covered medical equipment, her eyes started going wide in confusion. "What is all this stuff?"

Stepping out of the smaller room he was currently in, Kurt watched Satomi for a moment before moving to the next. "It's a memory of the past I'd prefer to forget, considering the end result of all the effort that occurred here."

Knowing that the Governor General of New Ostia had in the past been involved in several conflicts with Asuna Kagurazaka and Negi Springfield, Satomi wondered if that was what he was talking about… Before she could think about it any further, her train of thought was interrupted by an; 'Ah-hah! I knew he kept that spare set of armor here!'

Exiting the closet, Kurt went to an open area of the room and tossed a briefcase-sized box down onto the floor. There was a flash as a hammerspace spell activated, and by the time it faded, a valet holding a complete set of mage knight armor was standing in the middle of the room. Nodding with satisfaction, he stepped forward to make sure everything was still functional.

Anyone familiar with the Mundus Magicus was aware of the existence of mage knights, and Satomi was no exception. What had her surprised though was the unfamiliar crest on the helm, as well as the larger than normal appearance of the armor itself. "Who did this belong to?"

Satisfied everything was in order, Kurt began preparing the armor so it could be donned at a moment's notice. "An old business partner… the two of us may not have been true friends; but we did work very well together… He met an unfortunate end…"

Though her curiosity was piqued, Satomi knew it was probably not a good idea to pry too much. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Stopping and looking towards Satomi, Kurt watched her for a moment, then shrugged and went back work. "He was a bit zealous… that got him in trouble back during the war; and may have been what did him in… in the end."

Seeing Serio standing by the entrance to the room, Satomi went over to her. "I want you to go up to the top of the stairs and keep an eye on things. Stay out of sight, and let me know by text burst if anything unusual appears."

With a slight bow, Serio acknowledged her orders before heading back up the stairs.

Returning her thoughts to something she hoped it wouldn't be too prying to talk about, Satomi went back to where Kurt was still working. "This set of armor seems a bit unusual; is there something in particular that's special about it?"

With a satisfied grunt, Kurt finally managed to pry off a small panel inside the back plate of the armor. Plucking a hair out of his forelock, he tossed it against a glowing red rune that was inside. There was a slight pause before the rune flashed green, then the panel closed itself. Satisfied it would now be possible to use the armor if necessary; he stepped back and started to stretch. "It's a Terminatus pattern mage knight armor, instead of the standard Marauder. Fully flight capable, extra mobility and extra capacity for the user to cast more than standard mage knight spells; though I won't need that…"

A low whistles was Satomi's initial response. "It almost sounds like it could make you a Shinmei-Ryu Paladin."

After a mild twitch, Kurt shook his head ruefully. "No… it won't make me anything so grand as that; though I will be able to focus more on attack than defense by using it."

Suddenly having to suppress a yawn, Satomi flushed after doing so, then went over and sat down against a wall. "Well; whatever your plan is; I guess it's a good thing this was here."

Not having anything else to do, Kurt went and sat down next to Satomi. "My former partner had it awarded for valor early in the war; when he fell out of favor all they could do was forbid him to wear it any more, since by tradition; once it is awarded, it can never be taken back. The only other person authorized to wear or use it is the awardee's squire or second; we never really expected to have to do so; but one day my partner suggested we set the armor up for me to use. I finished the final step and confirmed that just now."

Thinking to rest for just a moment, Satomi nodded after shutting her eyes…

…then woke up with a start…

Beyond the room being pitch black; illuminated only by a faint glow coming from the mage knight armor; she realized she'd fallen over against an also sleeping Kurt… something she didn't exactly object to… Unfortunately her bottom and legs were tingling painfully from sitting on a hard floor for so long.

After rolling out from under Kurt's cloak; which he'd apparently covered her with; she stood up and realized her monitor for Serio was quietly buzzing. Activating it in low-light mode; she found a pair of warning texts from the gynoid…

'Master; an airfish has landed outside the building,' and; 'six individuals dressed in stealth armor are inside the building.'

Refraining from any pejorative utterances, she turned and gently began to shake Kurt's shoulder. When he woke suddenly, she covered his mouth with a hand and held a finger to her own. When he reached for his nodachi, she shook her head again and pointed at the HK.

Wondering what Satomi intended to do, Kurt still kept the nodachi close as he watched Satomi pick up the weapon and exchange the clip it already held for another. After doing so, she signaled she was going to go hide in a closet, then pointed at him and made a 'hands-together, head lain down on them' signal that she wanted him to stay put and act like he was asleep.

Knowing Kurt would be taking a huge risk by trusting her, Satomi kept her eyes directly focused on his until he nodded in agreement.

Retreating to a storage room whose door had a clear view of the stairs and most of the main part of the room; she took out the monitor and used a finger type out a text to Serio…

'Serio; access your audio programs and make a sound like a rat running across loose tile; then get down here."

'Master; the individuals will hear that and likely discover the stairs.'

'Don't worry; I want to draw them down here so I can use the TDBs.'

'Understood.'

Lying down on the floor, Satomi positioned herself so she could just see out of the closet. When Serio came down the stairs and joined her, she positioned the HK and quietly pulled back the charging handle in order to load it. "Serio; kneel behind me, then activate your white noise functions and anti-sprite masking.'

Responding to the whispered command, Serio knelt and extended two smaller antennas from the larger ones that functioned as her ears.

Nodachi close at hand, Kurt settled into a restful position and closed his eyes.

Using exercises learned through Shinmei-Ryu training, he consciously reduced his breathing until it wasn't any higher than that of someone who was sleeping… Beyond the tension of impending danger, he wondered what it was Satomi intended to do…

(-)

The first assassin through the door into the lab wanted desperately to just attack the apparently sleeping target… However helpless he looked though, the situation seemed too good to be true… and so he reported to his leader.

That person agreed with the assessment.

Tracking the target to the old Royal Treasury building had been tedious; but not really that difficult; finding the stairs because of some fleeing creature though… that had been a bit too convenient; and so the leader said to wait; all six of them would attack at the same time…

After a brief pause came a whispered question from his leader; 'What of the other two?'

Looking around the lab produced no immediate results; searching with his stealth armor's magic and noise detecting sprites also produced no definitive result… The set of mage knight armor in the middle of the room was practically blinding one set of sprites; and all the other could detect was the sounds of one sleeping man; so he reported that no one else seemed to be present.

One after another, the remaining assassins filed into the room. When all of them were ready, their leader raised his hand…

There was a sudden burst of light near the floor of one doors leading out of the main room…

When it faded, the target was gone, the mage knight armor was gone… and when all of them rushed back up the stairs and out of the building… their airfish was gone…

Situated on one of Old Ostia's main islands, the Royal Treasury building was about as far from the edge of the valley as it was possible to get…

Not having an airfish to fly over everything meant a long, dangerous trip past all the many creatures inhabiting the valley before the six of them could get anywhere near someplace they could even remotely consider reasonably safe…

(-)

Just as he felt remaining still would be impossible, Kurt heard the sound of Satomi's HK firing. Opening his eyes after the burst of loud pops, he was just in time to see the six assassins encased in spinning globes, glowing with a purplish-black light, which quickly shrank to dots before vanishing completely…

Standing up, he reactivated his illumination spell; then turned to look at Satomi as she rose to her feet and came out of the storage room, followed by Serio. "What exactly it is you did to those people is something for later; right now I want to know how a girl who looks like she spends too much time in a lab has knowledge about how to take care of something like this."

In the light of the illumination spell, Satomi could see both admiration and curiosity on Kurt's face. Feeling her face heat up, she turned and started fiddling with something which was hanging from her belt. "Well; it's partly my Magister, partly the training Evangeline McDowell made different people in Class A take, and a little bit was my high school homeroom teacher's influence… most of it though was a bunch of MahoraFests, and a couple of attacks on Mahora itself… When you get involved in as much as I did; you eventually pick a few things up."

Since the easiest way to move the mage knight armor without putting it back in hammerspace storage was to wear it, Kurt nodded as he started getting ready to put it on. I suppose so… wait; you said; 'my Magister?"

Ready to go, Satomi moved to stand in front of Kurt. "It's not that big a deal; I have a provisional contract with someone from my old class besides Negi. It wasn't anything romantic; just a business arrangement she and I entered into for one particular MahoraFest."

As he climbed into the armor and explained to Satomi how to help him close it up; Kurt wished he could explain to himself why he felt relieved that Satomi's provisional contract didn't involve a male mage, or anything emotional… "In any case; there's an equipment access ramp we can use to get out of this lab; we'll leave that way and go see if the nice assassins left us an airfish to use."

tsuzuku

(-)

Author's Notes:

Jakob McKandles: From the movie 'Big Jake.'

Verus Priscus: Based on the names of the two gladiators who participated in the only fight in the Coliseum in Rome that was ever mentioned specifically in documents which survived from that time in Roman history. (Approximately 80-90AD.)

'Jack's man:' I believe it was mentioned at some point, (in the Maho Sensei Negima manga I think,) that Jack Rakan owns the Nagi Springfield Cup Arena in New Ostia. As a fellow former gladiator; Verus Priscus was hired to be the administrator of the arena, while Jack remains in relative obscurity at his home outside Granicus City.

Monitor used by Satomi to see the data from Serio's sensors: Some type of pad-computer-like device, smart-phone; or to be retro; something like a Tri-corder from Star Trek.

TDBs: Time Displacement Bullets; the same kind used by the 'Martian' forces, Mana Tatsumiya, and Chao Lingshen during MahoraFest in the manga.

White noise functions and anti-sprite masking: Basically devices to mask the sounds Satomi and Serio might make, (breathing, as one example,) as well as anti-magic (stealth) programs to prevent discovery by search-sprites.

Koi-class Airfish Gamilas: An airfish similar to Haruna's Great Paru-sama.

By the way... Did you know there is a Uchuu Senkan Yamato remake out right now called 'Uchuu Senkan Yamato: 2199?' (Space Battleship Yamato, or Starblazers, for anyone old enough to remember.)

Next up: Lightning strikes twice.