Chapter 2: Thank you!
"Ughh... What the~ where the hell am I?"
Ninyo woke up with a low grunt as he relished on the painful feeling on his back and a huge confusion in his head.
'Wait I... Am I in heaven or something? Im supposed to be dead right?'
He was bewildered, confused and in pain but he was somehow glad that he felt more alive than ever.
Out of the blue, a surge of broken, and strange memories flashed like a movie inside his head.
A childhood life as the prince of a kingdom.
The growth of a warrior.
The love of a friend.
The wolves in sheep skin.
The religion.
The invaders who use fire and thunder.
The battle by the bay.
The death and resurrection.
It took quite a while but he was soon able to organise things in his head.
'Lapu-Lapu.... Huh? Now that name sounds eerily familiar... where have I... Holy crab! Don't tell me I traveled through time and possessed the body of a hero...'
He was familiar with the name. In fact everyone who went to grade one would have to be familiar with it as well. It was the name of a very well known but mysterious hero.
"Why would I have these memories inside of me? Did I really die and regressed to the time of my ancestors?"
There was more of doubt than confusion on the authenticity of this newly perceived reality.
Is this happening for real?
Am I in a dream?
'Let's see.'
"...."
He willed for the dream to change without success.
Controlling his dreams is one of the skills that he remembered he used according to his scattered memories. The skill basically consists of commanding one's self to bend the reality of the dream. This skill saved the Ninyo from countless nightmares that haunted him in the past.
'Alright...'
He looked around and found a brass mirror hanging on a wall not too far from his bed.
He stood up and in front of the mirror is the image of a young man in his twenties, with long black hair, tanned copper skin, and a body lined with tribal tattoos. He smiled wryly with a little bit of a reluctant feeling about this situation he is in.
He was able confirm that he really did wake up as someone named Lapu-Lapu, a name very likely to be of one of the very first heroes in Philippine history to have resisted the colonisers from imperial Spain.
From what little he knew about this hero, he was recognised for his bravery in the epic battle of Mactan that reaped the life of Ferdinand Magellan who was in his quest to find the Moluccas Islands, the land of spice.
From what a normal Filipino knows about the first hero. His people calls him Salip Lapu-Lapu Dimantag.
(Salip meaning 'his highness' a name prefix for a sovereign in ancient Mactan, derived from the sanskrit word 'Sri' with similar meaning.)
His father Salip Mangal Dimantag, the previous ruler of Opong more famously known as Mactan in modern tongue died to Raja Humabon leader of the Indianized kingdom of Sugbo (Cebu, a nearby island separated by a canal from Mactan) Lapu-Lapu's sworn archenemy.
Being separated by an easy to cross body of water, the two island kingdoms have frequent clashes in the field of battle leading to a constant tension.
Salip Lapu-Lapu is the sole ruler of the densely populated (this is ancient time standards) island of Mactan, boasting nearly a thousand families of different castes and sizes ranging from small to big and from the slaves to the nobles.
The people of Mactan are known for their bravery and are feared for their impeccable marksmanship in using their bows, capable of targeting unprotected areas in the armor of the colonisers, the very reason for Magellan's defeat. (Aside from the fact that he is outnumbered.)
'So... If I truly regressed... What do I do?'
His mind gears began to churn.
His thoughts are interrupted when the blanket from his right suddenly rose up revealing an ethereal beauty of a classic Filipina. He must have covered her with the blanket he tossed aside when he got up. He searched his memories for her name and alas.
'Daragang Marikit (Lady Marikit)'
She was the youngest daughter of Lakan Kalamayin from the Namayan kingdom of Lucoes (Luzon). An unparalleled beauty he won through a hand to hand combat amongst other suitors and then spending three ships of gold, precious stones, silk and imported ceramics as dowry.
'Shit that's a lot of wealth...'
But then he remembered how abundant in gold the archipelago was in ancient times and that was just a fraction of his entire wealth.
"Oh! You are finally awake! You have made me worry again beloved~ will you promise to not go to battle ever again? For me? For our child?"
She stood and held Lapu-Lapu's hands in between hers while tears flowed down as she poured her heart out in front of her beloved.
She has always been a good wife but what shocked Lapu-Lapu is the mention of a child. He didn't remember having children, so could she be implying that she is currently pregnant, or he could have misunderstood so to make sure that he heard wrong...
"Y-You mean to say that... that you are p-pregnant?"
His face must have been a sight to behold for Mari to smile despite her tears. There is an innate feeling welling inside of him that makes him feel as if he's in cloud nine. An uncontrollable happiness that seems to have made the remaining ego of the supposed departed hero want to jump in joy.
"Yes dear husband. We are having a child in six months. Apo Bulan (healer/shaman) says it is likely a boy. You will finally have an heir to your name my beloved husband."
"Oh! Oh! Ow!!!"
"Are you alright? What happened?"
The pain on the wound in his left shoulder left by the poisoned arrow erupted painfully brought him to a stop.
'Wait arrow... Come to think of it. The Spanish invaders did not use arrows... it could only mean that someone from my side took an accidental shot? Impossible! His men could hit the eye of a bull two hundred yards away nine out of ten tries. They simply don't miss anymore. It's highly likely that someone have betrayed me and aimed to take me out at the most opportuned moment. Who? Why? I must find out soon, I can't have my ass getting stabbed when I'm taking a dump in the wilds.'
"I'm fine dear. The wound must have reopened it seems. Would you be a darling and fetch an Apo for me?"
"Alright dear. Hang in there I'll be back soon with the Apo."
She almost walk-run out of the door. She would have teleported out of there if she could. The moment Lapu-Lapu couldn't see her anymore he began to scour every bit of the former owner's memories and was able to point out the possible suspects. Layang his most trusted friend, he had a thing for Mari but gave her up to honor their friendship. He never married after that and he often saw him staring at Mari's direction from afar.
The Apo arrived very quickly with the out of breath Marikit who forgot that she is pregnant and that she can simply ask her servants to fetch the Apo.
'I will have to tell her to be careful, pregnancy is a very vulnerable condition.'
It totally escaped his mind when he went through the pain, but now that he is thinking straight once again he finally remembered that she is in a delicate condition. Well people at this era are quite more durable than modern people but it wouldn't hurt to be careful, just to be safe.
"You. You reckless fool. Have you gone insane? Why would you risk your own life in a battle you can surely win?"
The scolding began. Well she had the right to. An Apo is more than a healer. She is an elder. An ancestor. A mother to all in the scope of his lands. So she has great influence in her hands but no political sway.
"You... Just like your father. Rushing and rushing to the battlefield. Look where it brought him! Dead! He left you, a sixteen year old boy to rule his lands! Boy, heed my advice. Use this in battle, not this."
The Apo pointed at Lapu-Lapu's head and then to his chest. Marikit just stood in a corner not daring to speak up. Lapu-Lapu didn't know how to refute, disrespecting the elderly is frowned upon in the whole kingdom and as its leading figure he can't be the very first to break this culture, especially when he personally believes that it is a good practice to have.
"I will listen to you from now on Apo. Thank ABBA for this second chance, and the gift that he brought me. Now Apo would you please look at my wound now? I still have tons of things to do."
The Apo was shocked she never would have expected this hard headed Salip to listen to her ramblings. She squinted her eyes to focus on his but saw no pretense in them and so she nodded her head and inspected his wound. She cleaned it with a solution from a gourd then ground some herbs and placed the paste inside the gauss.
"You should be fine in a week. I'll send for the elders to come here and listen to your instructions. Rest well son of Mangal."
"Thank you very much Apo."
'Okay. Since I'm already here, I will live this life. I will change the course of history and record the name Lapu-Lapu in the annals of history to show you my gratitude. I will also take care of your family and your lands. Thank you very much. I will not waste this chance. I swear it on my soul.'
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