Once Gaude had definitive proof that the Skinwalker process worked on Irma all the way to transforming into a Werewolf, he decided to test out the process on those that had taken the Dragon blood potion.
He figured that the process shouldn't be all that different from what it was like for the Werewolves, just inhale some smoke, go into the mindscape and bond with the inner animal.
He started with the one that had taken a single drop of purified Dragon blood.
When he had inhaled the smoke, the man managed to safely enter his mindscape, but soon started sweating and breathing unsteadily, as if in distress. Soon, the man broke out of the trance and started to shiver.
"It was a fucking Dragon! It tried to eat me!", the man exclaimed once he saw Gaude just sitting there.
Gaude had used telekinesis to avoid inhaling the smoke, after all, he had to make sure the procedure was safe beforehand.
Gaude tested the procedure on each of the men that had taken the bloodline potion, yet all of them had a similar reaction.
"How did it go?", Gaude asked the last of them, curiously.
"There was a big-ass Dragon waiting for me, it wanted to fight me!", the man who had gotten ten drops spoke.
"How did the fight go?", Gaude rephrased the question.
"All I could do was try and dodge out of the way, it was too damn strong.", the man reported.
It seemed that there was a lot of training left before any of them could come to an understanding with the inner Dragon.
Finally, Gaude decided to take the plunge.
He took out another bundle of herbs and ignited it. The silver disc was a bit different from the skinwalker one – Gaude had somewhat comprehended the meaning between the symbols and discovered that it had something to do with Legilimency, most likely just there to help open a person's mindscape. However, he had swapped the wolf-type imagery to that of Dragon-type.
He was quite familiar with entering his mindscape, so he relaxed and simply let the smoke guide him. Suddenly, he found himself at the foot of a tall mountain. There was a dense tropical-looking forest to his left and a vast desert to his right. In the distance behind him, the blue of a sea could be seen.
Suddenly, he could hear the flapping of wings and with a *swoosh*, a Dragon had landed in front of him.
'So, you're the fool that dared summon the Great Lord, and you still have the guts to stand here before me. Good, good. I will show you how worthless you are.'
Gaude looked at the majestic creature before him and tried to make sense of its words, or more accurately thoughts that it had transmitted to him.
Finally, he replied: "Hey, I never intended to summon anyone. I just wanted to mix some Dragon blood into mine, figured it'd make me stronger. I mean, sure, I modified the ritual of stabilization a little, but that shouldn't be enough to turn it into the ritual of summoning, right?"
'Do you think I would believe your pathetic excuses? No mage would accidentally use high-level magic to suspend the time of a Dragon's heart so that it could be sacrificed while still alive.'
"First of all. Totally not a mage. I suppose I could be called a Wizard by a small stretch of imagination. Second, it's a spell most commonly used to preserve ingredients until they're needed. Sure, there's been a recent modification with elements from time-related magic, but that was about twenty years ago. No way that's advanced or high-level magic, whatever you said before."
'You say you summoned the Great Lord by accident? Unbelievable.' While the Dragon didn't want to believe what Gaude was telling it, it had no choice but to do so – their minds were linked so there was no way that Gaude could lie to it, at least that was what the Dragon believed.
'Very well. I will choose to believe you for now. However, if you desire to gain the power of Dragons, you will have to earn it. Only when you can defeat me in a battle will you be worthy of our true might.'
"Alright, let's get started. Let's say, the longer I can last against you, the more I get access to, does that sound reasonable?"
'That is acceptable. You won't wake up for a few days if you die in here, so keep that in mind.' Normally, if Gaude died in his mindscape, his soul would receive massive injuries and he would risk dying permanently, but with all the modifications his soul had gone through, it had become somewhat more resilient on all fronts, including the matters of his own mindscape.
Suddenly, a tail swipe came in almost faster than Gaude could react. Still, he managed to throw himself on the ground and roll towards it fast enough that it barely went past him. Gaude was on all fours in an instant, and a fire breath was coming right after the tail swipe.
Gaude had no choice but to rush under the Dragon, hoping to find shelter there. Yet, an instant later, he noticed the 'ceiling' coming at him and he jumped out of his hiding spot. The Dragon's body slammed at the ground, causing cracks to form in the seemingly soft rocks.
From the corner of his eye, Gaude noticed that the Dragon's paw was coming at him.
"Hey, I thought big guys were supposed to be slow?", Gaude voiced his grievances.
'Perhaps, but you move like a slippery snail.', the dragon replied.
Like that, seconds ticked by agonizingly, with Gaude trying and barely succeeding at dodging the Dragon's strikes, breaths and occasional hurricane-grade gusts of wind when the beast decided to mix things up with a flap of its wings.
Even if it was within Gaude's mindscape, where stamina didn't play a role, his mind was still getting exhausted from the constant concentration to the extreme. Finally, Gaude took a heavy hit from the Dragon's tail and decided that it was enough, there was no way he could dodge the next one after taking damage in addition to already being exhausted. He bolted out of the mindscape that he had managed to access thanks to the smoke and found himself in the one where a wizard practicing Occlumency would normally end up in.
Gaude organized and categorized his more recent memories and added them to the branching structure of his memory tree. He used a few strands of magic to link the new memories together with some old ones that had similar content to make accessing the whole picture easier and left his mindscape completely, returning to reality.
He decided to check how much he had managed to gain from sparring with that annoying Dragon. He imagined himself as a humanoid with Dragon features. He imagined it as detailed as he could, almost feeling the scales on his skin, the horns on his head and the claws instead of his finger- and toenails. Gaude concentrated hard and suddenly felt his skin tingling.
When Gaude opened his eyes and undressed in front of a body-sized mirror, he discovered that there was only a small patch of skin that had sprouted scales.
With some effort, he managed to return that patch of skin to normal. Considering the size of that patch, Gaude decided that there was really only one place where he could meaningfully apply that transformation.
###
Ross knew that two of the trainees were different from the rest. One of them was a grown man with what looked like two big lumps on his head and the other was the kid. They both had slitted pupils and golden irises on their eyes. The man also had sharp-looking claws instead of his fingernails.
It wasn't Carter's job to ask questions, so he left that matter be – if he needed to know about it, he'd be briefed by the Boss, as the men had taken to calling Charles.
That was still all reasonable, but then the men were called away by Charles one by one and returned different from before – now all of them had at least one eye golden with a slitted pupil. The boy now had claws instead of his previous fingernails and scales covering the backside of his hands, as if he was wearing crocodile leather boxing gloves.
The one who had the lumps on his head previously had lost them and his muscle mass seemed to have reduced by at least half. The man's face was reptile-like and covered in scales. A forked tongue could occasionally be seen peeking out of his mouth.
It wasn't only Carter that was looking at the freak show, the rest of the trainees were staring at the changed men with a healthy amount of trepidation.
That shit was just wrong. It looked like whatever the boss was brewing, he had inhaled too much of the fumes.
Irma had taken up a spar with the beastliest of them all and wasn't that the kicker – the half-beast was keeping up with her, even pushing her back.
Whatever the boss had done to the last one, definitely gave the man a big boost. Carter wasn't willing to become so deformed even for all that extra power, however. He'd much rather just train himself up slow and steady.
Suddenly, Irma started regaining her advantage. He noticed that she now had what looked like black dog ears on top of her head.
It was official, the boss had gone off his rocker, doing some weird animal hybridization experiments.
Gaude observed the results of the first Skinwalker session on the people he had given Dragon blood. The partially transformed men were demolishing the others, except Irma. She was holding on just fine, with a partial transformation of her own. She looked extremely ferocious, beating a Weredragon-looking thing black and blue.
"Alright, wrap it up, all of you. It seems that some changes in the structure of the training group are in order."
Gaude decided that there would simply be no point in having highly enhanced people sparring against Muggles, even if well-trained ones. Instead, they'd have to spar against each other, and perhaps the Werewolves.
For the time being, it seemed that none but Gaude had managed to go through the changes both ways – they had managed to transform, but reversing the process seemed to still be a distant goal for them.
Gaude had wanted to test the 'Dragon serum' on a Werewolf as well, but now it suddenly seemed like a bad idea that might end up causing very adverse effects. He'd have to wait until he gets his draconic claws on a Werewolf he wouldn't feel bad losing.
'Actually, why wait? I should just start the hunt already. Greyback has been frolicking around long enough. I'm sure he made a few mistakes. Hell, I could probably get his approximate location by following reports of missing children.'
That was something easier said than done – Gaude ended up having to call through many Muggle police stations, only to be shut down by them. Apparently, claiming to be a private investigator trying to track down a serial kidnapper meant squat without either the reputation or credentials to back him up.
However, as soon as he tried out his identity as the head of DOSI, the police were suddenly a lot more cooperative. After all, it sounded very official and governmental. It was only natural for them to cooperate in matters that went way above their paygrade.
Slowly, Gaude started drawing a map of missing children's cases. That was just the beginning, however – each of the disappearances had to be cross-checked with various registries, to remove those that had been found, dead or alive and other cases that had no ties to Greyback's operation.
Evening, a week later
Once again, Gaude was warming the ground below while panting heavily. This time, he wasn't the only short-statured person on the ground, however. Amanda was in a similar position, just a few feet away. Amanda had asked Gaude to take her with him a few days ago, she didn't want to stay home all alone with the house elves.
It turned out that other than having some speed advantages and the ability to use a few vampire-specific magic such as compulsions through her eyes and her family's ability to command through voice, she wasn't all that much when it came to fighting. Physically, she was on par with an average adult, in other words, she was pitifully weak.
Yet, while Gaude was regretting ever thinking about joining the academy and beginning his physical and tactical training under the tutelage of Irma and Carter, there hadn't been a single complaint from Amanda so far.
"Oh, Gaude, looks like you're done with the warm-ups?", came a sickly-sweet voice of Irma from a short distance away.
Gaude's danger sense suddenly went from imminent threat to high probability of death to eternal torment.
"Big sis Irma, was there something you needed me for?"
"You know, little Gaude, you haven't done your stretches yet. You've been smelling like an animal recently, so I think you've caught some kind of a werebeast curse as well. I should prepare you properly before you turn."
Irma sounded very helpful but somehow, the feeling of dread that Gaude had wasn't going anywhere, instead it was only gathering strength. It was a feeling similar to the one he had before he had been captured in his previous world.
He wanted to protest that the particular werebeast condition he had was very manageable, but he doubted that Irma would believe him.
Soon, Gaude found out the reason for that feeling of dread.
"AAAARGH!", Gaude screamed. It was the only thing he was capable of doing for the past ten minutes as all his joints, muscles and tendons felt like they were repeatedly torn apart and reassembled. Sure, they were a bit more flexible each time they were regrown, however…
"Why can't I take a pain numbing potion?", Gaude had asked what felt like an eternity of pain ago when Irma flipped him over like a piece of meat that was in the process of being tenderized.
"You know, I did some testing and it turned out that it works better without the painkillers, it accelerates the recovery process.", Irma replied.
Gaude had heard no reports of anything like that. He suspected that somehow, Irma had gone from being his 'big sis' to a 'SS class sadist'.
Things weren't helped by Amanda that was going through similar treatment without complaints. She even said: "Humph. I thought that you'd grow up to be a reliable man, but it turns out there's little chance of that."
The only time that Gaude felt safe anymore was during the tactical training days – during those days, there was no stretching, just practice of various situations, such as missions in a city and other various settlements as well as on terrain.
All the landscapes were shaped by the construction team of house elves, now a hundred strong, enough to create a small town from scratch overnight. All the training facilities were still underground and heavily enchanted to replicate the conditions outside. There were two reasons for that – not to draw any attention to the fact that there was a small army being trained and to improve the abilities of Gaude's hired runesmiths.
The runesmiths were a subspecialization of artificers, dedicated to purely researching the applications of Ancient Runes. The main applications of the runes were naturally various rune schemes, among them both rune clusters and runic arrays. The runesmiths had tested the magic ink Gaude had asked Snape to develop and it was revealed that the ink could in fact produce effects up to three times more potent with the same-sized rune scheme.
However, the best thing about the magic ink was something that had been difficult with the previous methods of Runecarving – the scalability of the charms. Due to that, it was finally possible to regulate the amount of light, heat, water or wind produced by a permanent charm, something that could previously only be accomplished by remaking the rune scheme to limit or increase the flow of magic within it.
What was important however was the fact that there was a small world of different landscapes tucked away neatly right underneath London. The environmental magic was to the point that one couldn't tell if it was outside or inside, well, except for Amanda – she was well aware that the sunlight in that place had no adverse effects on her. As a result, she could be found just 'sunbathing' during break times, something she would've thought as impossible just a month ago.
###
Gaude was running between the buildings like his life depended on it, trying to keep a track on his surroundings through his hearing, sight and sense of smell. Every once in a while, Gaude suppressed his heavy panting and stopped, listening carefully. Amanda that had been sticking to him like a leech moved in sync with Gaude, allowing him to hear occasional footsteps in the distance that gave away the positions of hostiles.
There were bracelets adorning each of Gaude's wrists. They were fashioned after the Wizarding handcuffs, devices that suppressed one's magic. Gaude wanted to avoid using magic during training completely, accidental or not.
Gaude continued running towards his goal, taking a roundabout route to avoid any hostiles that were blocking a direct path. That was until suddenly, a heavy blow landed in his stomach, causing him to fold and fly backwards, gastric fluid spewing from his mouth.
Gaude rolled backward until his feet found purchase on the soft soil underneath him, then rushed forward. In front of him, there was a person wearing a ski mask and black coveralls, another hostile.
When Gaude was still way too far to make contact, he suddenly took a dive and did a barrel roll before suddenly putting his part-dragon muscles to good use, releasing all the energy that was available in his compacted position like a compressed spring and returned the favor to his attacker.
Unfortunately for Gaude, the payback didn't end up being as satisfactory as he had hoped, all his fist managed to achieve was striking into rock solid abs and lifting the assailant a few feet off the ground. Amanda chose that moment to land a kick between the assailant's legs, causing them to let out a low groan.
However, such a small inconvenience wasn't enough to get rid of their opponent and Gaude felt a heavy chop land on his shoulder with a 'crack', causing sharp pain to shoot down his outstretched arm and up his neck. Gaude saw white for a moment but dove under the still airborne opponent and jumped up with a spin, performing a roundhouse kick at the back of their head.
Their opponent seemed to slow down or even go completely limp. That was enough for the duo, they continued running, disappearing between the structures before the hostile managed to regain his bearings.
Unfortunately for the two, their small skirmish had caused a loud enough of a commotion to alert the others and allowed them to position themselves on their path. They ran straight into an encirclement.
Gaude tried to escape through the gap between them but it was quickly closed and what greeted him instead was a heavy kick by steel-toed boots, straight into his ribs. Gaude wasn't going to let the sound of cracking ribs or the pain stop him. There was still a chance, still a way out. He just had to use the moment he landed well.
There was another kick, this time to his back, the pain causing him to black out for just a moment. Another kick soon followed, this time to his head. The world went dark.
At least, Gaude's efforts had been enough to create an opening for Amanda to slip through. She had even managed to reach the goal that was just a hundred paces away.
A while later
"Good morning, little princess!", came Irma's cheerful voice.
Gaude opened his eyes and found himself in a comfortable bed. Looking around, he discovered that he was in the 'Werewolf Academy' infirmary. He had dubbed the army base as such, because he had a feeling that the most capable and numerous graduates would come from that particular species.
"You're still way to slow and weak little bro. There were so many broken bones and internal injuries that the doctor had to put you under for an entire day.", Irma spoke nonchalantly.
Once again, it was one of those moments that Gaude really questioned his own decision to go through the training program like all the others. It would've been so easy just to give up and return to his studies on magic. Yet, there was also the Dragon he had to defeat, and he had taken a baby step closer to that each time he tried again.
Gaude felt like it would be nice to just spend a day in bed and do nothing for a change, he was so sick and tired of being chased around, beaten to a pulp, chasing after others on the running track. Just giving orders to put the trainees through such a program had seemed like a good idea, yet now that he himself was going through the same meat grinder, it felt like he had inadvertently created Hell on Earth.
There turned out to be another presence in the room, looking at Gaude with more worry than Irma had displayed during the entire time that Gaude had been subject to her tortu- training.
"Gaude, are you sure there is no better way?", she asked.
He had people he cared about now. In a world as dangerous as the one they lived in, only the strong had the right to survive. Gaude reaffirmed his resolve. Seeing that cute and innocent look in Amanda's eyes, he couldn't let anything happen to her. As for Irma? Screw her, she was already a big girl and could take care of herself, a little hardship might even be good for her soul. Gaude had become quite spiteful towards Irma.
"Mandy, there are things a man needs to do to keep his important people safe. If I have to suffer a little in the process of obtaining the abilities needed, I'll do it, it's that simple. Besides, didn't I get you out of that ambush? Now, come over and heal me."
"I'll do it just this once, because you look too pitiful.", Amanda said, the pout on her face barely visible, but still very much present and accounted for.
Amanda walked closer to the bed and Gaude rose into a seated position, groaning, still in a decent amount of pain. The injuries may have healed but there was still some bruising on his bones and joints, making him pay a price for every movement.
Finally, Gaude managed to wrap his arms around his adoptive little sister and just sat like that for a while, recharging his hug bar. Amanda was turning her head away from Gaude's neck – she felt an extreme urge to just sink her fangs into him and drink her fill – his blood just smelled so delicious, powerful and pure.
There were two reasons she didn't: Gaude was her lifeline and if she did it at that moment, she had no doubt that Irma would kill her in the blink of an eye.
Amanda had been in training as well, sure, but her growth rate had been so much slower than either Gaude or Irma's team. She was still blissfully unaware of the fact that there were a whole lot of Werewolves among the training group. Washing in a timely manner tended to get rid of that wet dog smell their sweat had.
All she knew was that the trainees were widely split into two groups, those with slower growth and those with faster growth when it came to physical aspects. The part-dragons had already been moved to a different facility for both observation and special training, they were simply that far outside the norm that Gaude had decided to put them into a special program under a separate instructor.