Capítulo 25: Another Secret Revealed
A/N: Pat-reon: HelloDarkness07
Second One!
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You know, I always dreamt of being a Millionaire. Well, dreamt was exactly the right thing I did. I never tried to become a millionaire either, just sat on my arse and imagined what I would do with a Million Dollars. And my dreams weren't that big. 1 Million Dollars, was the most amount of money I could imagine myself with, even in those dreams.
Reality, however, is often disappointing, and I had about $500 to my name when I died. At most. Which is still a lot, considering I was in India, where 500 meant a.. liveable monthly salary to have.
Now, though? I can call myself a millionaire without any issues! I actually am a Multi Millionaire, even if it is just my ancestors' money. It's mine now, fuck them.
The Slytherin Vault may have been emptied of all the cash, given to the Goblin's as late fees, along with most of the Goblin Silver tools, weapons, and armours. It had to happen, because the Vault was way past claiming period, and I'm just glad they allowed me to keep my stuff. Thankfully, I didn't lose much, just 100,000 Galleons in total, and all of the Goblin Silver in the Vault, which also wasn't that much.
I had to negotiate for all the other items, by giving them permission to copy the books there. Not like they would do them any good, since they're all in Parselscript. So, I didn't lose anything significant. If the Goblins were unable to break the Enchantments on the Vault to enter it, then they definitely can't break the Enchantments to decode the language.
However, the Aves vault was literally filled with money. 980,000 Galleons, that was how much cash the Aves Family Vault had. Which amounts to about 3.8 Million Pounds in all, which was more than enough for me. I didn't need to hoard cash in Billions to love a happy life. I was happy with my 13,000 too! These 967,000 Galleons extra were just a bonus.
Along with the cash, the Aves Vault had various Knightly weapons, two full armours that were made of Steel, a lot of Jewellery, few artefacts, and different trunks belonging to my different ancestors.
One of those trunks was literally an expanced library, which belonged to one Henry Aves, Harrison Aves's grandfather. Most of the books there were already present in the Room of Knowledge, but some were the journals and Grimoires of my ancestors, which the Room did not have. They must not have brought them to school.
As for the Slytherin Vault, it had given me a few amazing finds. The Library for one, which was way more expansive than the one in the Chamber. Fortunately, it also had a lot of the Sorcery Primers, and Guides, that the Chamber did not have, and which were mentioned in his Sorcery Journal.
Then there was the literal stockpile of Creature body parts, many of whom were still intact. They were hidden under cloths, in a hidden compartment behind the Library, which is why I did not find them at first.
Think of a Magical Creature, and Salazar had already had at least something of that animal. Tears of a Phoenix, Venom of a Nundu, horns of Unicorns, and even the cloaks of both Lethifolds and Dementors.
These were the only ones intact however. Most of the other ingredients had been rotten even through the Stasis and Preservation Charms.
There were also multiple entirely intact carcasses, including a Re'em, a pair of Unicorns, a baby dragon(which I am really upset about,) and a goddamn Cerebrus. He had bodies of them all, completely alright, and I wonder if there used to be more. His other descendants from the Slytherin family line must have used up something, right?
The compartment wasn't hidden that much, there was just a small additional mechanism that opened a hidden door. But, at least my Ritual necessities won't be lacking.
Funnily enough, Salazar did have a few Golden Graphorn horns, but they didn't stay intact in these centuries that the Vault was abandoned.
There was also a wardrobe section there, from the years 700 BC to the early 1500s AD, which also included actual fighting armours, both magical and mundane, and many different kinds of Robes.
Anyway, after spending a day just going through everything in my Vaults, both Aves and Slytherin, and finding many interesting things, I came back home, to the orphanage. I was going to spend another year here, having told Sister Agnes that I was working a job at the hospital, which wasn't exactly a lie. Soon, however, I'll have to make something up to own the Malbern Terrace house in my own name, and not in Harrison Evans's.
Harrison Evans did make an appearance once in a while, in his Islington house, driving a Royal Enfield, but it wasn't too often. It was just enough to not make the neighbours too suspicious.
I kept my bike at Malbern Terrace itself, since Mason Aves is too poor for the bike. Soon, I'll get to drive the bike as Mason too.
When monday comes, I show up outside the office of Master Euphemia Potter, the Head Healer of St Mungo's, to begin my Healing Apprenticeship.
"Good, you're on time." Master Potter says, opening her door at exactly 7 AM. Wonder how long she's been actually here.
Nodding, I smile, a bit excited to begin, and say, "I'm eager to start working, and learning, ma'am."
She smiles gently, and says, "You'll be cursing your excitement soon enough. Now, follow me. You won't be doing anything for the first month, other than reading your books which I assigned you, and observing the Healers at work. I'll show you to your first station, in the Dai Llewellyn ward, where you'll be shadowing Healer Smethwyck for 5 hours. After lunch, which Healer Smethwyck will inform you of, you will come to my office so I can gauge your actual medical knowledge. Any question?"
"Just one. Will I be assigned a different Healer everyday, for shadowing, or will Healer Smethwyck be responsible for my learning?" I ask.
I'm asking this because the questions I ask the Healers will depend on that. An unknown Healer won't bother answering me with the same enthusiasm that a regular teacher would.
Master Potter says, "A different Department, everyday, and then you'll cycle through them all. You'll be allowed to clarify your doubts with them, or you can note them down to ask me later."
We had reached the Dai Llewellyn ward by then, by way of stairs, and she walks in without a knock. There were 6 patients, and 5 Healers in the room, one of the healers wearing a badge called 'Department Head- Dai Llewellyn ward.'
That was obviously Healer Smethwyck, whom Master Potter approaches, with me following behind. She says, "Hippocrates, this is our new Trainee Healer. Mason Aves. He might be young, but he's smart enough to be here. Apprentice Aves, this is Healer Smethwyck, he'll be responsible for your education for the day. I'll leave you in his hands. Remember, sharp at 1:00 PM, I want you in my office."
Well, so begins my Medical education.
-Time Skip: August 1936.
A year has gone by, and my journey in learning Healing has gone on splendidly! It isn't easy, Healing.
The first month, as Master Potter had told me, was spent just shadowing different Healers, watching what they do, and how they do it. Other than that, Master Potter gave me short, hour long lectures about different parts of the books that she assigned me.
It was easy, at first, since I had read the books ahead, but casting the spells she taught me, even on dead animals, was really hard.
The first spells she taught me were Diagnosis Charms. And there were a lot of them!
First came the Categorisation Charms, One for visible ailments, one for invisible ailments, both of which would just tell me what type of ailment it is, and which Ward the patient should belong to.
Curse damage, Charm Injuries, Hex Exposure, failed transfiguration, Dark Arts, Mundane wounds, and genuine Illnesses were just few of the types that Wizards can befall.
Then, after the type of ailment is determined, you need to learn different Diagnosis charms that help you determine the specifics of the wound, injury, ailment, illness, etc.
These are the spells that help you determine if the cut visible on the arm is from a cursed dagger, curse, muggle knife, or a spontaneous event. Hell, it also helps you determine what the material of the weapon was, and how long ago the injury took place.
These kinds of spell took me 3 months to master, which is quick according to Master Potter.
Finally, the last part that I have learned this year, is healing minor wounds. I was just on physical wounds right now, with the actual spell damage and all being for later. There's still at least a year of my education remaining, even with my perfect recall.
But I am also enjoying myself. Healing is fun, and there is a different kind of joy in making sure someone else is healthy. It's frustrating too, because not all patients listen to healers, let alone the junior Trainee, but I like the environment in St Mungo's.
And yes, I am still a Trainee. I won't be a true Healer until Master Potter proclaims me so. But, that was, as I said, at least a year away right now.
Currently, I was walking through London, with Darla by my side, tears falling down her face. She had just had another fight with her parents, and she sent me a Patronus, asking for a friend to talk to. I immediately apparated to her house, and took her to the City, to help her calm her mind.
"It just makes me so frustrated, you know? All these years, I've done as they asked of me. I went to the bloody Finishing school in my summers, studying how to curtsey, and knit, and fake laugh, and they still can't accept who I am! Sometimes I wonder, if there's something wrong with me?" Darla rants, having spoken for 5 continuous minutes.
As she finally stops her rant, I say, "Parents.. are complicated. This is ironic, I understand, coming from the orphan."
Darla snorts, wiping her tears. So I say, "But I've seen something in my life, while observing the public, and now, observing my patients. Some parents are completely understanding of their children. A very small percentage of the population is like this. They are ready to accept their child as they are, no matter what they do, or.. whom they love."
Darla sniffles, so I hand her my handkerchief, and carry on saying, "Some parents meanwhile, they do love their children, but only an image of them. That love is conditional, for them. The child should act a certain way, dress only what they want the child to, obey every order without question. It's not right, but the majority of the people are like this."
Stopping Darla from walking forward, I pull her towards the ice cream parlor that was next to us, and say, "They might not accept who you love, Darla, nor the way you dress. But that doesn't mean that there's a fault in you."
Sniffling her nose, Darla whispers, "It sure does feel like it sometime."
Ordering icecream for both of us, I softly scold her, "Don't do that. Don't blame yourself for your parents' faults. They're the ones that still think you a Demon dealing Witch. They're the ones who think that you deserve to go to hell, because you love Ana. They're the ones trying to force you to marry that Bobby. If anyone here has faults, it is them.'
Darla snorts, and stays silent, as she starts stabbing her icecream with the spoon. I allow her the silence, and eat my own icecream.
Darla had told her parents about her relationship with Ana, which had gone about as well as everyone had expected it to go. The religious pair of parents had not accepted her confession at all.
Not like same-sex relationships are common in this era. They're there, and some people do support them. But almost everyone would rather their own child not be gay. They'd support their neighbours child coming out of the closet any time, but their own child should remain straight, according to them. Hypocrites.
After a lot of accusations of Witchcraft messing with her mind, to Demons making her gay, her parents had shut her in her room. That was two days ago. Today, however, her father brought a marriage proposal for her, from a fellow Police officer of his.
Other than the small problem that the police officer is male, he is also in his late 30s, while Darla has just turned 17 a few days ago. That was the cause of a bigger fight, after which Darla had to run away to clear her head, and called me.
I hold her hand, noticing that she had begun crying again. Once again, I'm thankful for the Notice-me-not charm on us, when my plain Vanilla scoop explodes, sending the icecream flying to my face.
"Sorry." Darla mumbles, holding her free hand to her mouth to hide her amusement.
I just smile at her, and cast a few cleaning spells on my face, to get rid of the icecream. I say, "Well, at least you're smiling now. And don't worry about it. I told you then, and I'm telling you again. If you want, my house has a room reserved for you, for however long you want."
This gives me an opportunity to claim the house as Mason's. Welp, it's time for Harrison Evans to go overseas and disappear.
Darla opens her mouth, still smiling a tearful smile, to say something, but we both suddenly widen our eyes, feeling dread right in our bones.
I snap my head around, to find whatever I'm feeling, but nothing clicks. I can feel where it's coming from, but it wasn't even remotely close to me. For some reason though, Darla and I are the only ones to feel it, and none of the muggles here react to it.
"Please tell me you can feel whatever the fuck that is?" Darla asks, whispering in fear.
I shake my head, force my mind to try and defeat the fear, take out my wand, and say, "Yes. Wands out, Darla, and stay close to me."
Getting up, I start walking towards the door, a £5 note on the table. Whatever this was, it's evil. Not like Dementors, but for sure, way, way worse.
Dementors bring our bad memories to the front, and they make us feel sad, hopeless, and cold, the severity depending on the closeness. But this.. this was sending chills down my spine continuously. This was as if Dementors were a child, compared to whatever this is. It also felt disgusting, just knowing something this evil exists.
Once outside, I look around, and spin my foot to apparate towards the Evil, knowing the direction it's coming from. Unfortunately, I just spin around my foot, the Apparition failing. Damn, not a Ward, but something else is stopping apparition.
Beside me, Darla herself had tried to get out of here, and even her apparition fails, making her more afraid, visibly.
Holding Darla's hand, I keep it on my shoulder, reassurance for both of us, and say, "I guess we're walking towards the danger then?" When both of us automatically start our walk.
Both of us, at least subconsciously, know that we need to get rid of the danger before anything happens. This Evil is in the Muggle world, and only Wizards can feel it. I'm afraid, but I don't think running away is an option.
As we start walking in the direction of the feeling, I realise that I might have to use Sorcery today, and say, "Whatever you see me do today, promise me that you won't tell anyone."
Darla immediately whispers, "I swear Mason, if you bring me home alive, after we've dealt with whatever this is, then I'll keep all your secrets forever, without question."
Closing my eyes, I expand my mind, telepathy branching out from mind to mind. I jump from one mind to another, searching for whatever is causing us to be this afraid, without stopping. I'll either find the being that's causing this, and it is a being, or I'll be able to see it from someone's mind.
Meanwhile, my hands are busy with a method of their own. Scrying.
I can sort of feel what direction the fear is coming from. Well, more like, my Entire being is yelling at me, not to go in a particular direction. But.. this could be a trick, conjured by the weak to just inspire fear.
As I start walking towards the Evil, Darla following behind me with her left hand on my shoulder, right hand holding her wand, I keep my eyes closed to cast the scrying spell.
"Prorumpo Malignus!" I whisper, after a few seconds of intricate wand motions, and stab my wand into the solid ground.
The Wand sinks into the ground, both because of it's intrinsic magical properties, and because of the spell I just cast. And then, I see it.
In my inner eye, I see the entire neighborhood, about 300 meters wide in all directions from me, and floating above all of it, was a cloud of purple gas. It wasn't visible in the real world, however, with the help of the Evil Seeking Spell, I could see it quite clearly. There was just one place, where it was almost pitch black, and it was moving. I see just a small image of a silver amulet in that black spot, before the Spell fails and I'm pushed out. Even my telepathy attempts shatter, returning my mind completely to me.
"I know where it's coming from." I say, standing up with a scowl, and turn towards Darla while rubbing my head.
Contrary to my belief, Darla nods resolutely, her fear still showing, and says, "Well? What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
"We?" I ask, looking at Darla as if she's crazy. "Darla you're not coming. It's going to be dangerous."
Darla glares at me, and whispers furiously, "Excuse me if I'm not willing to listen to another man about what I should, and shouldn't do! I do that at home enough."
"Darla." I say, but before I can argue, there's a bump in the feel, as if the Evil buzzer had been turned to two, from one. I say, "Okay, we both felt that, and you want to go towards.. that? Are you crazy?!"
"And what?! You're not Merlin, Mason! I might not be as good a Witch as you are, but I know how to defend myself! I'm going, and you're not stopping me." Darla starts walking towards the direction of the being.
Sighing, I pull her back towards me, and say, "Fine, but you'll leave and get an Auror as soon as it feels like it's going to get too dangerous."
Darla nods and asks, "So.. what's the plan?"
I pause, to think. I can't tell the Ministry anything, not without sounding crazy. Wizards think that Dementors, Lethifolds, and Obscuri are the most dangerous Dark Magical creatures, and anything more dangerous is not something they'll accept.
And the Evil bumped to level three, whatever it is, is getting stronger by the minute. The more time I waste, the stronger the Evil enemy becomes.
I say, "This was the second jump in it's strength. Whatever it is needs to be dealt with, and none of us are qualified to do that. What we need to do, is find a way to stop it from getting even stronger, or separate it from the muggles."
"Right, and we don't know what's making it stronger. So separation it is. Now, how in the world will we do that?" Darla asks, as she joins me in thinking up plans.
I smile, and say, "Don't worry about that. Just give me cover fire if the enemy is beyond my strength."
Highly unlikely, but not impossible. I am not yet the strongest Wizard, hell, I'm barely a competent Wizard, when it comes to combat Magics, and all that, I've learned came from books! No teacher, means I definitely have some drawbacks when fighting whatever this will be.
Shaking me head when Darla tries to ask a question, I say, "No time for an explanation right now. Don't be too shocked by whatever I do today, and you'll be fine."
As Darla nods, hesitant to accept it all blindly, I raise my left hand up, and spin my right hand in counterclockwise direction.
"What ar-" Darla begins to ask, looking at me as if I'm crazy, but stops, seeing a golden portal forming in the air in front of us.
"Explanations later, follow me if you really want to fight." I say, and walk through the portal I created. Darla follows me a second later, and looks around.
We were currently in an alleyway, looking out towards the road, and now, I can feel it clearly. The Evil, it was close, very close. Now I just have to find the silver locket.
-
Finally, he was free. After so many years, countless millennia, of having to stay away from Earth, he had gotten free. All because a simple mortal couldn't keep his hands to himself in a museum.
Many times, in the past, this being had come to Earth, fought it's defenders, and inevitably been defeated. But he knew, that the only reason he was defeated at all, was because the defenders managed to see him coming. And they did see through every plan he laid, no matter how precisely he had done it.
So, he had not planned anything at all, for his return. He had just asked his followers to plan something, that does not have a fixed time for the inevitable result, while leaving even him in the dark.
They had planned to leave an artefact of his in the World, where anyone can accidentally touch it, and summon the being. It had taken a long time to feed souls to the artefact, to power the Summoning Ritual, while also being discreet, and so, he had to wait more.
Alas, his followers had died, at least those that had managed this feat, but not before hiding the artefact away.
And now, a mortal had found it in the British Museum, touched it bare handed for the first time since it was charged, activated the Summoning Ritual, and summoned the being into this Realm. Then, he had possessed the man, taking more souls to make himself stronger, and hidden himself inside a very strong barrier. All before anyone even knew about his arrival.
Behind the being, one could see numerous humans, old, young, male, female, and even children, laying down unmoving. They had died spontaneously, with no reason that anyone could see.
The Being had simply eaten their souls, to make his Avatar here more powerful, powerful enough to bring his entire body here, he hoped.
Soon, he knew, the Defenders would learn of his arrival, but it will be too late. The being will have gotten too strong to defeat by the time the barrier gets removed, mortal souls being just that powerful.
As he walks away from his latest victim, the old man falling down on the ground in the middle of the road as if his strings were cut off, he suddenly pauses. The reason, he found himself displaced, the area looking very similar to the place he was in a moment ago, but not it.
"Sorcerers." He snarls, looking around to find the pests and kill them.
-
It didn't take me long to find the reason of our fear. Not like the man was subtle at all. There he was, walking along the road, ignoring the man dying right beside him, and the dozen or so other people lying dead in the back.
He was wearing a locket, made of silver, that I had seen as the source of all of this fear that I'm feeling, which means a Dark Artefact. Great, the man might actually be innocent of this all, and a victim to boot. This is going to be an issue, trying to save him. If it's tough, though, I'm just going to kill him. Can't risk the entire City of London for one soul.
The muggles might have just seen the people dying, but Darla and I, being Wizards, could see what was happening, and it honestly scares both of us.
When the being touched the old man with his left palm, the man simply dropped down. When he did, however, a small marble of silver light came out of his mouth, and entered the body of the being.
Note to self, stay away from the man.
Darla and I observe him silently for a few seconds, trying to find an opportunity to take him away, both of us reluctant to rush. Alas, we don't get much time to think, since I see him eyeing another human as a Victim of his soul sucking.
Fuck.
"Mason, no!" Darla whispers, seeing me about to rush in.
Leaving Darla in the alley, I run towards the being from his back, and drop down, my hands slamming down on the ground. Immediately, the Mirror Dimension forms around the two of us.
The Mirror Dimension wasn't a single dimension, but a cluster of many. It was the collection of all the Dimensions, that form the borders between the different Energy Dimensions, which is what also makes it that much more dangerous. It is almost impossible to escape from, unless you can create Dimensional Portals, since you never know where you'll appear.
The many Mirror Dimensions is what allows Sorcerers to trap enemies here, indefinitely, without worrying about them ever meeting each other. There are just so many of the Mirror Dimensions, that finding the same Dimension again is next to impossible unless you have a Sling Ring
So, unless you have Sling Ring, that can create Portals between the Mirror Dimension and the real world, you'll be stuck here. I still, however, cannot risk that the being in front of me has a Sling Ring, or can create Inter-dimensional portals, so I'll have to stay here for a while.
Before the Mirror Gateway disappears completely, Darla jumps in, having apparated to shorten the distance.
"Are you crazy?!"
"Do you want to die?!"
Both of us exclaim to each other, whispering to not gain the brings attention, as I cast the Disillusionment charm on both of us before the being can see us.
I had just jumped into the situation, and she had done the same, despite my wishes otherwise. No time to argue now. At least I know why we're friends, we're both idiots.
Shaking my head, I say, "Stay in the back, and stay invisible. I'll go and talk to him. Not negotiable." I add the last part when I see her try to argue.
She nods, not saying anything. She's probably running on instinct right now, too afraid to think things through. Well, as long as she stays in one place, she won't be detected, I hope.
Gods, I should have just sent her home, but I didn't think she would agree. She might hate him, but she is the daughter of a Police officer.
"Sorcerers!" The being snarls, turning around to search for me. I walk away from Darla, keeping my telepathy connected to her mind to know where she is, and become visible at a spot to the right of the being.
The being immediately snaps his head towards me, startling me with the bright yellow eyes. I patiently look at it, my mind running fast, thinking up plans.
"I thought my barrier would have prevented you from coming here, but obviously not." The being says, looking at me like I'm literally an insect.
I just stare at him, not saying anything. His barrier was strong, no doubt. But it also had one fault. It didn't prevent teleportation of any kind, when I was already inside the barrier. I couldn't create portals to go outside the Barrier, but I could do it from one spot inside the barrier to another. It is also why Darla managed to apparate towards me, which honestly I didn't foresee. We just couldn't approach him in this manner.
"No words?" The being asks, and starts walking towards me. It then chuckles, and says, "No matter, you will die anyway."
Well, that's not on my agenda right now.
Snapping my hand forward, I fire a stunner, just as a test. The man doesn't dodge, and allows the spell to hit him on the chest.
"Tickles." The man says, taunting me.
Well, I expected that. Low level spells probably won't have any effect on him, as seen right now. So, I won't use low level spells.
As the man keeps walking towards me, I stamp my feet on the ground, sending a ripple through the ground of the Mirror Dimension. The earthly ripple slams into the man, sending him flying backwards.
I chuckle, and start spinning my wand in intricate motions. Charms are useless right now, but it seems physical impact does have an effect on the man. And Mirror Dimension manipulation is particularly good at causing physical attacks.
My spell takes effect almost immediately, and the ground underneath me starts rising above the surface, forming into shapes. The first shape to rise is the form of a Nundu, made entirely of concrete, transfigured out of the ground.
Similarly, other animals form near me, most of them big enough to seriously harm the man, and others small enough to go relatively unnoticed.
I've noticed, after having mastered the Mirror Dimension spell, that Transfiguration spells are more stable here. It's like, the Dimension itself is more allowing of changes in Reality.
Seeing the man running towards me, now furious, I point my wand at him, and say, "Attack."
"ROAAR!!" with a loud roar, the concrete Nundu starts running towards the man, and reaches him in barely four seconds. Nundu are Magical leopards, and their speeds greater than most brooms. This Nundu, however was just a transfigured model, and hence, not that fast. A real Nundu would have trampled on the man before he had even seen it.
The Nundu slams its head into the man's chest, sending him crashing into the ground. As he starts bouncing on the ground, by the force of the Nundu's hit, my hope raises a little, despite the fear that's still running rampant.
The Nundu sees its victim stopping from the hit, and runs again, approaching the man with high speeds, this time, the other bigger animals right beside it.
As one, the Nundu, a bull, and two gorillas, all jump at the man, aiming to trample him to death. This time, however, the man was ready, and the animals slam into a Magical shield, gross purple in colour.
I try to pull my animals away, but no matter how much I try to order telepathically, the animals don't listen. They remain stuck to the shield. Slowly, the four animals rise up from the shields, and turn towards me, their eyes now glowing yellow.
Well.. fuck.
I cross my arms in front of me, summoning the shield artefact from my ring, just in time to save myself from being killed by the Nundu's thorny head. This time, the Nundu was just as fast as a real Nundu, and the full brunt of it slams into my shield. Coincidentally, the Nundu's rampaging run killed all the smaller animals in their spots before they can even do anything.
The Enchantments on the shield prevents my arms from being too damaged by the hit, but it doesn't dull the pain completely, and nor does it save me from being thrown into the air. I still feel my bones vibrate with the force as I fly upwards, involuntarily, and then start my drop downwards.
Pointing my shield downwards, I brace myself for the approaching ground, and cast a spell at the last moment. "Arresto Momentum!"
I slow down, enough that I can drop down safely, without dying immediately. Banishing the shield, I frown, knowing that the hit could have killed me, if I didn't have my shield.
Well, 'Boom boom whoosh!' now I have two shields.
The man appears in front of me with a purple flash of light, and looks surprised. He asks, "You're still alive? Well, deal with him."
I see my animals jump from similar purple flashes towards me. The Nundu is the first to approach, owing to its speed, and it hits my left Tao Mandala shield. This time, the force is negated by the shield completely, stopping the Nundu in it's spot.
I hit the edge of my right shield on it's neck, the spell on the shield shattering the nundu back into stone. The Bull approaches next, and I spin my hand on the shield, spinning the Sanskrit symbols around. As the bull hits my shield, this time, it gets transfigured into water, that I send towards the gorillas.
The water pulls the Gorillas under the ground, where they merge with the ground again. All of this, happens within 10 seconds, which does make me feel better about myself. I'm not completely useless, after all.
The man takes that time to appear to my right, and before I can do anything, holds me by the neck. The Tao Mandala shields disappear from my hands, as I feel the man start putting pressure on my delicate neck.
Pain. That much was obvious. But the amount of fear that I feel, has multiplied hundred times when the man touched me, making me freeze in my place. I don't even make a single noise, when the man starts choking me, increasing the force on my neck.
I hear him say, "You fought bravely, Sorcerer. Alas, your enemy was I. An Elder God of the highest calibre. Even the Sorcerer Supreme trembles in front of me, and you think you can defeat me. You think, you can defeat the First Demon?!"
I can still see him, hear him, however my body refuses to respond to my commands. My mind, mostly because it is too afraid, has no control over my body, so powerful was the spell on me.
Now, I just had my mind with me, which I use to do something that will probably be the stupidest idea I ever have. I enter the mind of the self proclaimed Elder God, so I can hopefully save my Mind, even if my body dies.
I look into his eyes, and use Legilimency to enter his mind, however, he slams me down on the ground, breaking my concentration and bringing me back to my body. He has a knowing glint in his eyes, as he says, "You're one of Oshtur's, aren't you? Your Magic, it is not that of the Sorcerers, but yes, you're one of Oshtur's spawn. My, what secrets she has hidden here."
Now back in control of my own body, I choke out, "Who- ugh- are you?"
The man chuckles, his eyes glowing even more, as I see the illusion of a giant snake standing right behind the man. He says, "I am the first Demon, the second oldest of the Olde Ones! My name is Set! Surrender your soul to me, and I shall show you mercy!"
Fuck! He's actually an Elder God? And this is his weakened power? What the fuck is his true power like?!
I focus as much as I can, knowing that I'll only get one chance at this, and raise my right hand. My hand, which was pale white now because of a lack of blood flow to it, glows a pale white light, as Runes flash on my skin for a second.
Set looks at the hand, curious, and gets a punch to his face in return. The point-black punch hits him on the nose, sending his head snapping back. The force of the punch forces Set to take a few steps back, and drop me at the same time.
I had used the runes to temporarily increase my strength 5 fold, but there was a small side effect.
My hand drops down beside me, now useless, as I start coughing to regain my breath, with tears in my eyes. I put my left hand in my pouch, that's always at my hip, and take out a Healing Elixer, which speeds up the regeneration of a Wizard by twice. It only works for 5 minutes, however, which is how long I have before the Potion knocks me out of commission to let my Magic heal the rest naturally.
Seeing Set still standing, I summon a Tao Mandala shield in my left hand, and place it between us, as I struggle to stand back up.
Set looks at me, glaring hard at me, which sends another shiver down my spine. He then does something that scares me even more. He raises his hand, and creates an exact replica of the Tao Mandala shield in his own hand, only purple in colour.
I know it is one he replicated off of me, because I can see the Sanskrit additions that I myself used, to allow me to stop the Nundu's hit, as well as to Transmutate the Bull.
He raises his hand to hit me, and I block his Tao Mandala edge with my own shield. It holds, however I am still weakened, despite my healing, and I drop down to my knees, Set standing in a relaxed position in front of me.
Putting pressure on my shield, he says, "You should just surrender your soul, mortal. Join me, and you will be truly immortal, become my Vessel in this world! And you won't have to be afraid of anyone anymore, not even death."
"Tempting offer." I grit out, cursing my idiotic plans, and then smile. I say, "But I'm afraid I'm going to have to refuse."
Set opens his mouth to ask why, when I stand up, the Tao Mandala in my hand disappearing in a shower of golden sparks. It causes Set's own shield to drop down, barely missing my hand, as he loses his balance.
Ducking around his arm, I summon my physical shield artefact, and slam it into Set's face, breaking his nose once again. As he stumbles back, I stomp my feet on the ground again, the ripple taking me away from Set this time with the shifting ground.
His nose healing, Set says, "So be it."
And he jumps into the sky. The jump takes him flying into the air, hundreds of feet up, as he then flies towards me.
Well.. crap.
My one hand is useless, and the other has the shield in it. Set, meanwhile, has both his hands, and magical spells covering both his hands. He then points the hands towards me, still in mid air, sending a purple wave of evil magic at me.
I turn around, using the shield to divert the spell away from me, and throw the same shield towards an approaching Set. The shield, which had begun rusting because of the Evil spell, hits Set in the face, temporarily blinding him.
Taking the opportunity, I point my left hand at the dangerous being in front of me, and cast the most dangerous spell that I can successfully cast, with the low amount of magic that I currently have.
"SECTUMSEMPRA!" I yell loudly, sending the dark cutting curse at Set's stomach.
At the same time, a beam of yellow light slams into his back, which I recognise as the Flesh Rotting Curse. Set starts screaming, the two spells attacking him from both sides. I guess even dark curses work.
I snap my eyes to the back of Set, to see something which makes me curse my stupid brain once again. Apparating towards her, thankful that it works within the Mirror Dimension, I furiously ask, "What the hell happened to stay hidden?"
Darla starts casting a spell at my arm, which slowly brings sensation back to it, and says, "Well, someone wasn't doing so well out here. Are you an idiot?! This wizard is dangerous, probably more than Grindelwald, and you're here fighting it, and losing badly! Have you seen yourself, you're bleeding from everywhere!"
I allow her to cast the spell, wondering how she knows the counter to a paralysis curse, and ask, "Is Ana teaching you curses?" I obviously didn't know I'm bleeding, and I'm definitely not cursed. Which means he caught me with something, and I just didn't notice.
Darla avoids my eyes, and stares at the screaming Set. Frowning, she says, "Ana and I practice everything we can get our hands on, Dark or Light. We need something to defend us, when shit inevitably hits the fan regarding our sexuality."
I shake my head, wondering how I could have missed that. The screams stop sounding at that time, telling us that Set was healing now. I stay vigilant, and ask her, "Can you use Fiendfyre?"
Darla takes a second, and nods. She says, "That necklace, right? It's the source of it all."
Nodding, I say, "I have something that can take it off, or at least damage it. I want you to burn him as soon as I stab him. Understand?"
Darla nods, this time a bit hesitantly. So I say, "Darla, I need you to promise me. Doesn't matter if I'm safe or not, we need to kill this Being before he can get out of here. Everyone will die if we fail here because you didn't want to harm me."
"Okay, okay, you prat. I'll try. Promise me you'll try to get away." Darla says, holding my right hand with her left.
Well, at least I got the feeling back to it. And I'm going to have to come back from this, or Darla will be stuck here until some other Sorcerer finds her, which is.. highly unlikely.
Pressing her hand in support, I walk a few steps forward, wanting Set to keep his attention at me.
Now completely healed, he looks at me, and then Darla. I feel her shiver at his look, even when the telepathic connection is dulled after everything I've been through right now. Then, he looks at me, and says, "Last chance, Spawn, join me."
"I'm guessing you can't eat my soul, for some reason, or you would have already killed me twice. Is this Oshtur limiting your appetite?" I ask, getting ready with two Tao Mandala spinning around my both fists.
Summoning two magic circles of his own, Set says, "Doesn't matter, pest. I just have to kill you the old way. By my own hands."
And then, he fires a thick beam of purple light at me, from his hands. I create a portal in front of me, making it appear at his back. The beam hits him in the back, pushing him towards me.
I run forward, and slam my shields in Set's neck, the edges trying to cut into it. It fails, as I expected, and Set headbutts me in the face. As I bleed from my head, falling down on the ground, Set picks me up.
He says, "I gave you three chances to surrender your soul, but it seems you don't want Power, or your life. Now, you. Will. Die."
This time too, I feel myself being paralyzed, my body not responding to me. However, this time, I was ready for it.
With a small push, my Astral Form gets out of my body, and then slams right back into it, creating a small shock of Universal Magic within my heart. This shock is enough to break my paralysis, allowing me to move again.
Before Set can react to the innovative use of Astral Projection, I conjure a dagger from my Pouch, and slam it into the locket in Set's neck. The Dagger, made of Goblin's Silver, and dipped in Basilisk Venom, stabs right through the protection spells it was covered by, and goes through it, into the flesh of the mortal vessel.
Set drops me, more out of surprise than anything else, and stares at his broken locket, as the Basilisk Venom has already melted most of it. The Basilisk Venom is now also coursing through his blood, which makes him drop down to a knee. The spot I stabbed into is black, with the Venom slowly rotting his body from the inside.
I stumble back up, and start running backwards, knowing that Basilisk Venom is not enough to defeat an Elder God. It just weakened him, but it won't take long for him to recover.
As Set starts to stand up, however, a gigantic bird made of flames smacks into his back, sending him crashing into the ground, and covering him from head to toe in flames.
"AAAARGHHHHHH!!!" The possessed human screams, his voice echoing, as the Fiendfyre burns him, and the Demon within him.
I lay down on the ground, finally confident that this worked. The Fires keep burning, so I turn to Darla, who had come to support me, and say, "Let's get out of here. If this doesn't work, I don't think anything will."
Darla helps me stand up, and says, "You're explaining everything to me, as soon as you're recovered."
I smile, not having enough willpower to argue. I just stumble through the hand motions, and create a portal to go outside the Mirror Dimension, leaving the uncontrollable flames behind.
The body of the human burns, completely turning to ash, and takes the locket with it. As soon as we walk out of the portal, outside the house of Master Potter, I drop down, unconscious, the strain of everything finally taking its toll.
-
Seeing her friend become unconscious, Darla panics, finding herself in an unknown location, and as soon as a House Elf appears, she attacks it with a stunning charm, instinct taking over.
A stunning spell to her back drops her down, right beside her friend, Mason. From behind her, Fleamont Potter removes a piece of cloth from his body, turning himself visible again, and frowns, seeing two unknown people, both injured beyond belief, having appeared out of a glowing hole in space.
He turns towards his House Elf, Trappy, and orders, "Take them to the guest rooms, and keep an eye on them. Tell me when the girl wakes, I'll have Mia heal the boy."
The House elf mutely follows his orders, snapping his fingers to disappear.
Meanwhile, in the Mirror Dimension, as soon as Mason and Darla leave, numerous other portals appear one after the other, bringing people of various ethnic backgrounds into the Mirror Dimension. They all immediately take charge, and cast spells to suffocate the flames out, showing that not even ash had remained now.
Their leader, a woman with no hair on her head, looks around, and says, "It seems someone already defeated Set, although not completely."
Her faithful companion, Hamir the Hermit, a Sorcerer descended from a long line of monks, sniffs his nose a few times, and says, "Wizards. Curious, I didn't know Wizards could even enter the Mirror Dimension, let alone fight a Demon Lord head on."
The bald lady smiles, and says, "This particular Wizard is also a Sorcerer, Master Hamir, he has learned the Mystic Arts on his own. Curiously enough, I have taught a few of the child's ancestors." She then turns to the Three Masters of the Sanctums, and orders, "Spread around, we need to send this fragment of Set back to his Realm before he finds his way out of here."
As the Sorcerers start following her orders, Hamir asks, "Are we going to approach him? The Wizard? Sorcery is not something a child should learn alone, no matter the affinity, Master."
"Don't worry, Master Hamir. I have faith in the Wizard, that he won't do anything dangerous. He doesn't even use Dimensional Magic, and Headmaster Dippet himself has reassured me of his talents.." The Sorcerer Supreme says, turning to walk towards a portal.
Hamir stays behind, to see these things through. He knew that his Master had already seen the future, various times. So, if she's confident that Set will be found, then he will.
He then snorts, and mumbles, "Wizards, always arrogant. Don't use Dimensional Magic, and think they can fight Demon Lords."
Shaking his head, he joins the search for Set, knowing that his Master has the Wizard situation handled.
---
A/N: Set wasn't at full power, not even close. He was barely at a fraction of a fraction of his power, even with the Souls as a power-up.
Oshtur is a part of the Vishanti, and in my Universe, she created the Wizards, while Gaea created the Magical creatures. It isn't canon, just something I cooked up for this fic, and it might or might not have any relevance in the future.
The reason why Set couldn't just eat Mason's soul, is because Oshtur has a sort of claim on it, like she does every Witch and Wizard.
Hamir the Hermit is not Hamir from the Doctor Strange Movie, look him up. According to canon, they're the same, but I'm keeping them different. This Hamir is an ancestor of Wong.
If there's any doubts, or questions, feel free to ask!
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