章節 30: War
A/N: Pat-reon: HelloDarkness07.
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October 1940:
A front kick hits my gut, forcing me to Take a few steps back with a wince. My opponent then takes a few step forward, and kicks his left leg high up at my head.
I duck, dodging the kick, and throw my left fist at his stomach myself. My opponent blocks it with his forearm, only to catch my arm, and throw me on my back in a judo throw, which causes me to momentarily lose my breath.
I raise my arms instinctively, protecting my head from a few repeated punches, and focus, as my light returns. Turning my head to the left, I allow a punch to slide from my right, and hit the canvas. As it does that, I use my arms to lock his arm, headbutt him, and use my legs to kick him to his left, on his back, with his arm in a lock between my legs.
My opponent struggles for a while, trying to get loose by himself. So, I tighten my lock, making him freeze in his place, after which he taps my leg repeatedly with his free hand, surrendering the fight.
I immediately loosen the lock, allowing his arm free, and get up, arms raised, to the cheers of everyone gathered here, to witness the fight.
"MASON AVES, EVERYBODY!" A man yells into the mic, walking into the fighting ring.
As he holds my wrist to raise my hand into the air, I yell in excitement, "YEEEAAAHHH!!"
All the while, ignoring the blood flowing down my head, and the other injuries I suffered during the day's fights, including a cracked rib, broken fingers, and a swollen eye. I'd fought 4 people today, and won all of them, which was a real good progress from winning none of them at the beginning.
I had begun fighting in a fighting ring soon after having begun my Mind training with the Phoenix. This was so I can get an experience in fighting hand to hand, as well as dirty fighting that's so blatant here, while also keeping my mind sharp with the help of the Phoenix.
I came here once every weekend, to fight for my life, and for supplies. I had lost many fights, most of them in the beginning of my career, but now, I would win most of my fights. The losses were because the people fighting were truly desperate for winning, and some because street fighters were actually pretty talented in fighting.
The Second World War had begun last year, properly, and we were feeling it, in the muggle world. The Wizarding World was safe, relatively speaking, at least from the food shortages going around the United Kingdom. But, the muggle world, not so much.
This was why the fighting rings had gotten so popular. You get grain, fruits, vegetables in place of prize money. Where they get the stuff from, is a question best left unanswered for many of the fighters, since I know they stole it, and everyone already suspects it.
Taking the bag of rice, which I had won by winning the final round of the elimination fights, I shake the hand of my opponent, then the organising goon, and walk out, bandages now covering my wounds from the first aid treatment they give us. It's… not good.
Outside the club, was a pair of bouncers, waiting to slowly let people out, so as to prevent suspicion. Nodding at the two larger men, I walk towards my Harley Davidson, enchanted to run without petrol now, and kick start it, the small bag of rice kept in my bag.
As I start my drive, I think over my life since meeting with Phoenix.
It has been two years, and I had since begun learning Medicine at the Imperial College of London. It was a good waste of time, for me, since I was already a doctor, although not in the Muggle world. Which is the reason for my fighting club visits.
But, I did have some things to learn here, that I hadn't gotten a deep understanding in. Mainly muggle anatomy, Scientific medicines, and the human brain. There was more, of which only some I had learned until now, and I will learn them when I'm taught. I also had the copies of every book in the ICL's MBBS section, so I can learn at my own pace.
Other than fighting in clubs to improve my instinct, and learn proper and dirty fighting, I would visit the Phoenix, or her shard, once every week, to learn telepathy and telekinesis. The lower frequency of my learning from her was mostly because I didn't have much time over all my other priorities. Plus, she always embarrasses me with her superior power.
You know, I'd thought I was a good telepath, one of the best even, thanks to the Mind Arts book that I had gotten from Helena, and my visits to the Room of Knowledge. But noo.. Rowena disabused me of that notion pretty easily.
She could enter my mind easier than I could enter the mind of a defenceless muggle, that's how good she is. And I couldn't even find her mind, let alone enter it.
But, it was also a matter of Being, and practice. She's literally the Phoenix Force personified, who just preferred to go by Rowena, for old times' sake. And she literally had billions of years of practice using the Psionic Arts, as they're collectively called.
Me? I'm a human of 21 years, with barely any experience with competent minds, the later of which is why I was mostly useless in the Psionic Arts. Out of fear that someone will detect me, I never tried to enter the minds of those actually trained in the Mind Arts.
So, my mind had just gotten used to hearing the thoughts of untrained minds, and lesser trained ones. Same with gaining access to their memories. I think, if I'd have gone by the same pace, I wouldn't have lasted a minute against an actual trained Mind like Emma Frost, or Dumbledore, or even Voldemort.
But now, after 100 or so training sessions with Rowena, I could say that I'm.. competent. Where at first, I couldn't even detect Rowena when she entered my mind, I could now do that, and distract her while trying to push her out. Trying.
I'm getting there, if slowly.
As for Telekinesis, it was also slow going, since I'm not an actual Telekinesis user. I just use my Magic to Mimic telekinesis, but my magic does work like true telekinesis in some ways. I can move anything with my mind, as long as it's physical, and I can somewhat break things down to their components.
Of course, there are limits. I can't block spells using Telekinesis, not even a simple tickling charm, nor can I lift more than 10 times my body weight with it. (Rowena did assure me that the limit would increase as I practice.)
I also can't break down things into dust, like the Phoenix can do, since I'm not a Phoenix host, neither can I disintegrate anything with a touch, or burn them. Bummer.
But, I didn't have a limit on how many objects I can manipulate at a time, or the size of object, which was good. I could literally pick sand with my telekinesis now and use it like Gaara. But I won't, because I'm not a thief.
Anyway, other than practicing all my talents, using the Time Slower to give myself enough time to sleep and practice, I was also studying Medicine, to become a GP, and making time for my friends.
Speaking of my friends, Darla passed her Auror Exams, and was selected to be an apprentice to Persephone Crickerly, the daughter of ex-Minister Venusia Crickerly herself. She's a good, strict Auror, from what I found in her mind, and was a good guide to Darla.
It was barely a few months worth of apprenticeship, since her training was already over. This was to just slowly expose Darla to the world of Magical crime, which is not that exciting, from what I've heard.
After the Apprenticeship was over, Darla joined a team of 6 Aurors, with her speciality being Crime scene investigation. She was mostly stuck on guard duty though, or table duty, depending on where her team was based, since crimes aren't that frequent in the Wizarding World.
Ignoring the War currently happening, that is.
Ana was still handling her shop, while Dorea.. it's a bit complicated. She had decided to just stay home, handling her father's businesses along with Cassiopeia, since their brother Pollux was, frankly speaking, a moron.
What else would you call someone who arranges his daughter's marriage with his own cousin's son?
Anyway, ignoring the Black Family complications, we were all still good friends. We would meet at last twice a month, depending on all of our free time. We went for lunches, dinners, and evena few pubs just for the heck of it.
Stopping my bike once I reach my destination, I walk towards the front door, and knock gently, since it was already 3 AM. But, I know Sister Agnes was awake from the thoughts I could hear from her mind.
The door opens, and I'm met with the frowning visage of my old caretaker, my pseudo grandma, Sister Agnes. I grin at her, the bag held in front of my chest, while resting my shoulder on the wall.
"You should really stop doing this, Mason. You'll actually hurt yourself one of these days." Sister Agnes says, admonishing me, while at the same time opening the door wider to let me in.
Walking in, I allow Sister Agnes to lead me towards the nurse's office, and say, "We both know we need this, Sister. Stockwell's money is practically useless in these trying times, yeah, and the food I bring does help in filling some stomachs better."
Sighing, Sister Agnes says, "Keep the bag over there, and sit down. I'll see over your wounds now. Lord knows the medics in that.. place aren't competent."
Smiling, I do as she asks, already knowing the routine.
When Great Britain declared War on the Axis powers in September last year, the muggles had begun facing many problems, which just increased as time went on. Food shortages was one of them, and the Biltz was another.
Where the Wizarding world had plenty of food, thanks to the few families like Weasleys and the Prewetts, that owned farms, the Wizarding world had no shortage of poultry, animals, and grain.
But the muggles had no such choice. Those that had farms were forced to either donate their produce, or sell them to the government at a lower price. This, along with the food Britain imported (read looted) from their colonies, like India, was then rationed for the public, which quickly caused a food shortage after another.
I would anonymously donate food to the orphanage every month, knowing that they need it right now, after buying it in bulk in the Wizarding world. Runes kept everything fresh anyway, so it wasn't like I was wasting anything.
Even with that, however, I would bring anything I win in my fights here, along with any extra food I'd have stocked, since I didn't actually need it. I had plenty of food for myself and Blinky, of all kind. But the orphanage needs it.
"Wipe that smile off your face, before I wipe it for you." Sister Agnes says, dabbing the cotton wipe a little harder on my head wound.
Wincing, I say, "Sorry." And stay silent as she ranted about my irresponsible behaviour.
"Your mother would kill me if she saw you like this. Honestly, what are you thinking, is this how you'll become a Doctor, hm? By hitting people?" Sister Agnes says, without any heat to her words.
I chuckle, and say, "Beating people up does work in finding which places are the most delicate. And it's not like I'm an actual Doctor yet, you know."
"No, but you're my child, and I can't see you being beaten up, again and again." Sister Agnes says, putting another piece of cotton on my wound.
"Should I drop the bags off at the door and disappear the next time, then?" I ask, grinning at her.
I receive a smack on my head, right next to the wound in return, as she says, "Shut it, you. You'll come here every time you return from your fights, doesn't matter if you win or lose. I'd rather patch your wounds, than find out you've.." and then she stops speaking, focusing on the wound so as to not tear up.
As she prepares to bandage it up, I hold her hand, looking at her with a soft glare, and say, "I do this not because I like being hurt, Sister. I know how much the orphanage needs food, how much the children need food. Please.. let me do this, for my own satisfaction if nothing else."
Sister Agnes stares at me for a few seconds, and then nods. She says, "Don't forget, you'll return here after every fight you have, always return."
I smile, understanding the hidden meaning, and say, "I'll always return here, Sister. Don't worry. Now, are we done? It's way past your bedtime, innit?"
Sister Agnes glares at me, and smacks me on my head, making me yelp from the still tender wound, and says, "Just.. take your bag, and get out. Have some sleep yourself, Mason. Don't lose sleep over us."
Soon, I leave the orphanage after saying goodbye to her. Both of us know, that I'll return there the next weekend too, if I win all my fights that is.
As I reach my Islington house, I park my bike in the garage, hang the helmet on the mirror, and walk inside the house. Thankfully, none of the bombs from the frequent Blitz attacks had harmed my house, or the orphanage, but I had taken care of it anyway. There were wards around my Orphanage, and my house, that made it so the bombs didn't directly hit the buildings.
Any bomb thrown at the two buildings will glide through the air, and drop at least 400 meters away. I can't do anything else without breaking the Statute, and then even this protection spells will be removed.
I don't have anything important, or secret in this house, since the protection spells weren't that extensive here.
There were the standard wards, that a muggle area house were allowed to have, and a few more personal wards to prevent unwanted guests without warning, or to prevent from being spied on.
But, it still wasn't completely secure, so I don't sleep there, unless I really need to. After checking over the protection spells, I apparate to the Aves Manor, in Scotland, and smile, happy to be back home.
It was almost 4 AM now, so when I appear into the Welcoming Hall, I find the house to be completely silent. Blinky is probably already asleep, tired from her study session, while Sly was in a room underground, enchanted for him specifically.
Blinky had progressed really well in her mental training, that I was giving her. She no longer called me Master, not even by mistake, and she was slowly improving in her speaking skills. I'd begun actually teaching her 2 years ago, starting with speaking English properly.
Along with English, I was also teaching her Magic, the Wizarding kind, while she taught me the Elf spells. They're not that different, unfortunately, so they didn't allow me to apparate inside Hogwarts, or something like that.
But, she did teach me to apparate silently, and to disappear into a wisp, so that I don't warn anyone I'm coming. Other than that, she taught me how to clean rooms quickly using magic, and some other household spells for cooking, gardening, and even handling creatures. She's a gold mine of simple spells, and I was teaching her other, harder ones too.
Hopefully, she'll become completely independent soon, although I won't be able to deal with whatever the bond between her and me is, yet.
After a light dinner, I go towards the Potions lab, and pick out a few Potion vials. Skele-gro, Nerve Repair, and a Healing Potion are the ones I take, and drink one after another, just half vial each.
Along with that, I point my want at the left hand, which had a few broken fingers, and say, "Brackium Emendo!" Which brings the finger bones back into the right position, allowing the Skele-gro ease in healing it properly.
Doing the same with my ribs, wincing as the bone pieces snap back together, I cast a Swell reducing charm on the side of my eye, and an Episkey to stop the blood flow completely. And then, leaving the bandages in their place, to remove in the morning, I go to sleep.
Just before I sleep, however, I turn the dial on my Time Slower to two, making me experience Time twice as fast as the rest of the Universe. This is why I could stay awake for so long without any problem, I was literally living 30-35 hours per day.
Well, at least I look older now, thanks to it. I might have been born 21 years ago, but I was closer to 22 than 21, thanks to all the extra hours.
And then, I go to sleep, the meds doing their work.
--Two Years Later--
"Mr Mason Aves,
You are warned that you will be required to join for service, starting 28th May, 1942. You are therefore required to present yourself at the Recruiting Office no later than 9 AM on the above date. Please bring this paper with you, along with your Ration Card. A railway Warrant is enclosed herewith.
Sgt Frank Ashby.
Recruiting Officer."
I raise an eyebrow, waiting for the head of DMLE to say something. Mr Shafiq, the Head, was reading the Conscription letter again and again, with a scowl on his face, already knowing why I'm here.
I cannot legally fight in a muggle war, since I classify as a Wizard. If I need to help out, I needed to join the efforts on the Wizarding side of things, with former Head Auror Scamander, and the other Allied Aurors.
But this Conscription letter changes things. I was being recognised as a citizen in the muggle world, as I did study there for the past 4 years, and I was also born there.
"This complicates things." Mr Shafiq mumbles. He then rubs his head, offering me the letter back, and says, "I'll have to discuss this with my superiors, Mr Aves. This.. is a very delicate matter. We can't just have you refuse the Order, or you'll be labelled a Criminal, and we can't send in the Obliviators, because you're currently a member of the muggle school, Merlin knows why."
Nodding, I say, "That is why I had Darla bring this topic to you before leaving for the Recruitment centre. I knew not to take the order lightly."
Sighing, Shafiq stands up, and says, "Wait here, Auror Moody will keep you company. I need to take this to my superiors. Mind if I take the letter?"
I shake my head, still stuck on 'Auror Moody.'
As Shafiq leaves his office, another Auror enters, looking at me with a small amount of suspicion. Huh, so this is Alastair Moody. Doesn't look paranoid enough to be him, but, it could be that he's just paranoid in the future.
Plus, he doesn't have a single wound on his face, nor is he missing an eye. If I hadn't used Telepathy to read his memories, I wouldn't have believed him to be Alastor Moody, but his father or something.
"You're Mason Aves, ain't ya? Alastor Moody. I remember seeing you in Hogwarts. And White talks about you, says you helped her train." Moody says, snapping me out of my thoughts.
Nodding, I shake his offered hand, and say, "Yeah, I taught her some spells, Potions, and a bit of muggle fighting. Thought it'd be useful. But, she was already a pretty amazing Witch on her own, I just helped her realise her potential."
Moody smiles at me, and says, "She's good, alright. Despite being less experienced than me by a good 5 years, she's almost as good an Auror as me. Good thing Crickerly picked her, or she'd have been stuck behind a desk all day."
I chuckle a bit uncomfortably, knowing that it's true. Darla, being a Muggleborn, didn't have much of a scope in the Auror business. It was only because she had a good mentor that she's a proper Auror now, someone that people respect. It's more because of who her mentor is, than who she is though, which she's slowly changing on her own.
I say, "I'm sorry to say that I don't remember seeing you around Hogwarts. Or I don't recognise you."
Moody snorts, and says, "I didn't meet you personally, just saw you around. Was a Slytherin, couldn't show softness to a first year, let alone someone everyone thought to be a Muggleborn. Aves, clear as water and no one made a connection, hah!"
I smile along with him, both of us getting silent. After half an hour or so, Moody calls for an elf, who brings us both some snacks and tea. It takes two hours, for Mr Shafiq to return to his office, and he looks as tired as we look entertained.
He finds us on his visiting chairs, playing a game of chess, which Moody was going to lose.
"Auror Moody! You're on duty!" Shafiq snaps, as soon as he enters his office.
Moody snaps to attention, which messes the Chess board. I see him smirk a little, and realise that he messed it up on purpose. That cunt.
Moody salutes Shafiq, and then leaves the office. Shafiq says, "Alright, here's how it goes. You'll show up at the Recruitment office, and sign up for Service, wherever you like. But, there are conditions."
"What are they?" I ask, not agreeing outright.
Shafiq lays down a contract on the table, and says, "You won't use Magic in front of any muggle, which is a given. You won't reveal our world to anyone in the Muggle Army, not even if they say they know about the Wizarding World. For all intents and purposes, you'll fight as a muggle, live as a muggle, and if need be, die as a muggle. Lastly, if you encounter any of Grindelwald's Wizards while in the Military, you will inform us immediately."
I frown, since this sounds very limiting. I say, "I won't mention the Wizarding World at all, even if anyone directly asks me about it, nor will I deliberately break the Statute of Secrecy in any way. But, if need be, I will us magic to defend myself."
Shafiq scowls, probably tired from the very long meeting he just had, and says, "We can't send Obliviators into hostile territory when you expose yourself, Mr Aves. Either brush up on the Obliviate Charm, or don't use Magic at all. One Wizard, genius or not, is not important enough for us to risk the Statute."
A few more minutes are wasted in hashing out the details of my Drafting, after which I'm finally allowed to leave, now with the permission of the Wizarding World to take part in the muggle armies.
In the end, they knew they couldn't stop me from going. First of all, I didn't work at the Ministry, I was a civilian, who had rights. Secondly, I didn't meet with Shafiq to ask for permission, I went there to tell them that I'm going.
And now, I actually am, with their own blessings.
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The next day, I meet up with Darla to tell her the news over proper drinks. She can tell the others later, which saves me the troubles.
Meanwhile, I prepare some stuff that I was going to take with me, hidden away in my Mokeskin pouch. Chief among them, were a pair of Goblin's Silver Daggers, dipped in Basilisk Venom, that I enchanted to return to their scabbards 5 seconds after they're thrown, if I don't summon them. I was quite good at throwing daggers, and my magic helped in speeding them up anyway.
If I find need for something else, I'll just take the portal express and come here myself.
I still have two days before I need to show myself in the Recruitment Office in London, after which, my training will begin. Hopefully, I won't die in my first battle itself. That would be embarrassing, since it's actually possible.
Well, no choice but to keep my Telekinesis active at all times, so I can save myself. Good thing Rowena's training methods work on Magical telekinesis too.
Damn, I really miss my mobile phone right now. I'd have blasted some really good songs for this occasion.
As I go to sleep, I internally sing to myself, 'War! Hngh! What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!'
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A/N: Fast paced chapter. I wanted to get Mason to War quickly.
Disclaimers:
1. I don't know much about Doctors, or Medicine. The only things I know, is that Analgesic is for Headache, Antacid for stomach, and Morphine makes me high. But, I really wanted Mason to be a Dr, so, forgive me for any mistakes I make.
2. I might make a few mistakes in the War timeline, ignore them. I'll also make more than a few mistakes in the actual strategy behind wars, so ignore them too. Despite what movies say, being a good chess player does not mean you get good at planning strategies. By good, I mean I'm average at Chess.
Thank you for your support! Tata!
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