The Phoenix Prophecy

Chapter 17: Epilogue – Part 6

Monday — July 21^st

Professor Albus Dumbledore:

While Walt and Martha were keeping Kai and Nyssa engaged in conversation, I decided that it was a good time to confer quietly with Minerva to see what she had to say about the events that had transpired since making contact with our mysterious hosts. Just as I was about to ask Minerva her opinion, Sirius and Madelyn walked over to where we were standing.

“Albus, exactly what are we dealing with here,” he asked, nodding his head in Nyssa and Kai’s direction. “I can’t believe what just happened. Nyssa had no right to treat Hermione and Harry like that. If I weren’t so worried about how we are going to get back to our universe, I would have let them know just what I think of the way we are being treated.”

“I’m as upset as you are,” Madelyn added, turning to Sirius. “However, we must bear in mind that they did save Ron and Gretchen, and I suspect Harry and Hermione as well. We also need to remember that even though Nyssa and Kai look human, they are anything but human. We do not have the slightest idea of what they are capable of or what their motives are for bringing us here. For the moment I think it would be wise if we just played along with them and see what happens.”

“We don’t really know if they personally saved Ron and Gretchen or not,” Sirius growled, his voice full of suspicion and mistrust. “And besides, even if they are the ones responsible for Ron and Gretchen’s recovery, I don’t like being kidnapped, no matter what their motives might be. This whole business about the end of life as we know it sounds a little fishy if you ask me.”

“It is true that we do not know for certain who is responsible for Ron and Gretchen’s miraculous recovery, or how they came by the baby Gretchen was holding when they returned. But if we proceed from the point of view that the simplest explanation is probably the correct one, then I think we can safely assume that Kai and Nyssa are the responsible parties.”

“Madelyn, the bloody problem with you is that you trust people too much.”

“Yes, Sirius, I know that,” Madelyn answered with a sigh. “You on the other hand, have just the opposite perspective. You distrust everybody.”

“You’re right, of course. It is a habit that I find very hard to break. I’ll try and work on it, just for you.”

“Why don’t the both of you go and check on Harry and Hermione,” I suggested. Harry and Hermione seemed to be over their initial reaction to the spell Nyssa had cast on them as they were talking easily with Ron and Gretchen. “Maybe the six of you can join Walt and Martha and find out more about why we are here.”

“Sure, Albus. The sooner we get to the bottom of what’s going on the better I will feel,” Sirius replied and then he and Madelyn turned and headed towards where Harry and Hermione were seated.

“Minerva, how are you holding up?” I asked once Sirius and Madelyn were out of earshot.

“I should say quite well under the circumstances. If fact, since we arrived here in this meadow I have been feeling steadily better with each passing minute. I can’t remember the last time I felt this good. If I continue to feel this way, I might begin to believe there is still some hope for me after all. I can actually take a deep breath and not start coughing.”

“I suspected that might be the case. I too have felt more youthful since arriving here in this place. I suspect that some benevolent force, which is unknown to us, has the power to heal our sicknesses and improve our overall health. Not only has this power affected my body, but my mind seems sharper as well.”

“I have noticed that as too. It seems as if I am in closer touch with all the living things around us. I am having many more images flashing though my mind than I normally do. If fact, there are so many of them that I am having trouble keeping up with them. It has been a long time since I used the few divination skills that I learned in my youth. This place has definitely opened my mind up to the possibilities of what the future may hold.”

“Have you been able to discern anything definite?”

“No I haven’t. Just a vague sense that all is not as it seems on the surface. Sirius’ apprehensions should not be taken lightly. I know that he can be a bit of an alarmist, but I have a feeling, almost a premonition, that he may be right about our hosts.”

“That may well be the case. I am forced to agree with his opinion of Kai’s prediction of the end of our world. I doubt that anyone, no matter what universe they come from, can see the distant future with any degree of certainty.”

“That is the way I see it as well,” Minerva replied. “If the future really can be seen with the degree of certainty that they profess to have, then what is the point of trying to make the best choices you can. No, I just don’t buy this tale any more that Sirius does.”

“Let’s continue as we have been doing. I’ll engage them in conversation, or let the others do the talking, while you try and pick up on any unspoken thoughts or attitudes that might be of some help to us.”

“As you wish, Albus. Maybe one or more of these images that keep flashing through my mind will trigger something. All we can do is play along and see where this all leads to, just like Madelyn said.”

While Minerva and I were talking, I noticed Sirius and Madelyn had followed the kids over to where Kai and Nyssa were standing, still talking with Walt and Martha. Since I was most anxious to hear what was being said, I motioned for Minerva to move closer so that we would not miss anything. Even though my hearing had improved, I did not want to chance missing even the smallest piece of information. We stood behind all of the others so we could hear and not have to participate directly in the discussion. I wanted to listen to what Kai and Nyssa had to say to the others.

It didn’t take long for them to confirm my assumptions that Kai and Nyssa were indeed responsible for Ron and Gretchen’s recovery, and as it turned out, Harry and Hermione’s as well. The most startling piece of information to come out of the conversation thus far was that we were supposedly on the world known as Eden. There were boundless tales of a mythical world called Eden, both on Earth and in the Realm. Up until now, I had always assumed that Eden did not in fact actually exist. If I were not standing in the middle of this magnificent meadow, soaking up the invigorating energy it was giving off, and feeling fifty years younger in the process, I would be highly skeptical of Kai’s claim. I have always found it difficult and foolish to deny the existence of what is staring you in the face, or in this case, what we were standing in the middle of.

“I assume that you must have known that Mortius trapped Cetus along with his brother and sister on the island,” Harry said, trying his best not to sound accusatory or judgmental. “Why didn’t you free them from the island? You were indirectly responsible for their imprisonment. They were merely innocent victims.”

“When we were punished for interfering in the affairs of your world we were forbidden to ever interfere again,” Kai replied without any emotion in his voice. “To do so would have meant that we would have been banished from our universe, never to return. As this is a fate worse than death, we were forced to just sit by and watch events unfold as a consequence of our actions. It was agonizing for us to see Cetus unjustly imprisoned, but there was nothing we could do about it. Several times we petitioned the High Council to do something to remedy the injustice, but they steadfastly refused to interfere in the affairs of your world. We were always reminded that none of this would be our concern if we had not meddled in the affairs of the Realm in the first place. After a while we stopped asking, and stopped looking, at what was happening in the Realm.”

Neither Nyssa nor Kai looked or sounded overly distraught by their actions, or the lack of action on the High Council’s part. I would have thought that the unjust imprisonment of Cetus, Gemini and Virgo would have bothered them more.

“Why wouldn’t this High Council of yours free Cetus and his brother and sister?” Ron asked. “Surely that would have been quite easy for them.”

“Yes, it would have been quite easy, but the High Council felt that their actions could have unforeseen and therefore grave repercussions,” Nyssa answered. “Their philosophy was basically, what is done is done. Events in the Realm must be allowed to take their natural course without any outside influence. We truly were powerless to help.”

Nyssa seemed unduly tense as she spoke. Her hands were in constant motion as if she was worried about something.

“So what changed? I mean you helped us,” Gretchen asked in the silence that followed Nyssa’s statement.

“You destroyed the island by combining the Rings of Power. To the High Council, this was too catastrophic an event to ignore,” Kai answered. “After much deliberation they decided that interference was necessary to restore a semblance of order and power. Since we were deemed responsible—and no one else wanted the task—we were told politely, to clean up our mess. While we were deciding on the best course of action, you saved us from having to interfere by undoing the island’s destruction. With the island once again intact and the dragons freed, our only responsibility was to minimize the effects that all of you suffered in the process.”

If what Kai and Nyssa had just told us was the truth, then why did they go to the trouble of bringing us here and tell us that the human race was going to end with the destruction of life, as we knew it. I had the distinct feeling that we were being lied to by being told only part of the truth. I felt certain that there was something important that they were not telling us, either by design or out of fear. The only way we were going to find out what they were not telling us was by asking questions to keep them talking. Specifically questions that would uncover their motives for what they were hiding.

“Do you know what happened to Mortius?” Hermione asked.

“Mortius left the island after he realized that his cult was a failure and that he would never be able to create dragons that would obey his commands,” Nyssa answered. “Sadly, many innocent men and women suffered needlessly in his pursuit of power. Luther and Eliza, whom you met, were an especially sad case. Before Mortius abducted them, they were actually very nice people. You two are very much like they were at your age,” Nyssa concluded, looking directly at Harry and Hermione.

“What happened to Mortius after he left the island?” Harry asked after he and Hermione stared at each other for a few seconds.

“He fled to the Dark Forest and was never seen or heard from again,” Kai answered abruptly. “Rumors of his continued existence have surfaced from time to time. Whether there is any truth to these rumors, no one knows for sure. In the past two hundred years, no one who has entered the forest has ever emerged from it. The Dark Forest is the most evil and vile place in all of the Realm. You would do well to abandon your quest for the ‘Impervious’ charm. It is out of your reach. If you enter the Dark Forest, you will suffer the same fate as those who have gone before you.”

“How did you know that we were trying to obtain the ‘Impervious’ charm?” Harry asked, a note of caution creeping into his voice. Harry was not the only one who seemed suddenly more alert. Sirius’ body stiffened noticeably and I felt a distinct change in Minerva presence.

“While we were studying you, following the destruction of the island, we learned of your desire to obtain this ancient charm,” Nyssa answered easily. A bit too easily for my liking.

“We have already collected half of the ingredients that we need. It would seem like a shame to just quit after everything we have gone through,” Ron said.

“If you continue on with your quest, your child will be an orphan before she even learns to recognize you,” Nyssa added scathingly. “Count your blessings and enjoy what you have.”

“We are not after the ‘Impervious’ charm just for the fun-of-it,” Ron shot back indignantly. “Back on our world there is a very evil wizard that would like nothing better than having the pleasure to kill us all, and that includes our newborn child.”

“That may be so, but you cannot enter the Dark Forest and expect to live,” Nyssa replied. “But who am I to try and tell you what to do. Go ahead and get yourselves killed. It will matter very little to me,” she replied flippantly and abruptly looked away.

“Setting the matter of the ‘Impervious’ charm aside, am I correct in assuming that both Rings of Power should not have been on the island,” Sirius asked after a moment or two of awkward silence.

“You are very perceptive,” Kai answered after studying Sirius closely for several seconds. “Only one ring should have been on the island. The other ring should have been on its’ sister island. It was Mortius who obtained the second ring and brought it to the island where he established his cult. Each ring in its own right has tremendous power. Because the rings contain opposite polarities they were never intended to be in the same place. You have witnessed first hand the awesome destructive power that is unleashed when the rings are joined together.”

“Yes, we certainly did,” Harry added.

I was just about to ask how Marcus had become involved in the island when Minerva started coughing, seemingly unable to catch her breath. Before I could ask if she was going to be all right, she abruptly reached out and took a hold of my forearm. The strength of her grip was surprisingly firm. Then suddenly, without warning, her eyes rolled up in her head and she collapsed to the ground, pulling me with her.

Madelyn reached our side an instant later. After a quick check of her pulse and pupils, Madelyn said that Minerva had just fainted. The others had crowded in on us and Madelyn motioned for them to back up so that Minerva could get some air. After everyone had backed up a short distance, Minerva’s eyelids began to flutter, and opened shortly after that. At first, she looked quite bewildered. When our eyes meet, she recognized me almost at once. Her hand gripped the sleeve of my gown and she pulled my head towards hers so that she could whisper something in my ear.

“Albus, we are in mortal peril. Get us out of here, at once,” she whispered urgently so that I would be the only one to hear her words. Before I could ask what she was afraid of, her eyes rolled up once again and she fainted for a second time.

One of Martha’s girls stifled a cry that I barely heard. In my gut, I felt a sinking feeling that told me Minerva was absolutely correct. Unfortunately, I knew with a certainty that it was already too late. With a swiftness I had not managed in many a long year, I rose up and drew my wand, ready to confront our abductors. Turning to where Kai and Nyssa were standing, I discovered that I was staring at nothing but empty space. They had vanished without our notice.

On by one, the youngsters began to gasp when they noticed that Kai and Nyssa were gone. Martha and Walt quickly herded their children between them as they gazed out over the empty meadow, their wands already in their hands. Sirius and Madelyn were also instantly alert. For almost a full minute, we just stood there in the middle of the meadow waiting for something to happen. I relaxed just a little as one minute turned into two and then into five.

“Albus, what do we do now?” Sirius asked in a hushed voice without taking his eyes off the edge of the meadow.

“We wait.” I didn’t want any of us to move just yet, and besides I was not sure what would happen next. Anything could happen, that was the problem. I had never found myself in a situation quite like this one. To say that I felt helpless was a gross understatement.

And that is exactly what we did—we waited. For the next fifteen minutes we just stood in a tight circle in the middle of the meadow while my mind raced furiously trying to think of a way that we could get back to our world. When I was quite sure that it was going to take a considerable amount of time to decide how to proceed, I gave up trying to come up with a quick solution to our problem. If Kai and Nyssa did not return us to our world, it would very likely be a long time before we managed to find our own way back. When at last I felt that nothing was to be gained by standing in a tight knot, I relaxed my guard and told everyone else to do the same.

“Albus, Minerva has regained consciousness,” Madelyn said, forcing my attention away from the surrounding meadow.

“I could do with some water,” Minerva said, her voice raspy after Madelyn helped her to a sitting position.

“We could all do with some water,” Sirius added, gazing over his shoulder to glance down at Minerva. “Albus, I am going to change into Padfoot and do some sniffing around. With all of this lush growth, water can’t be too far away.”

“I think that is an excellent idea, but do be careful.”

“I’ll go with you,” Harry added, before I could add that I felt someone should go with him.

“Harry, I think it would be better if you stayed here,” Sirius answered. “Your stag may attract the attention of some unwanted predators. We have no idea what kinds of animals live in the surrounding forest.”

“Sirius, my wolf form would be even better suited to detecting the presence of nearby predators than Padfoot,” Alec interjected eagerly, cutting off Harry’s protest before he could voice one. “I doubt that I would even have to leave the meadow to be able to tell if there was water within a mile of this place.”

“Alec is right. I suggest that you take him with you,” I told Sirius just as Walt was about to say something. From the look on his face, I was sure that he was not particularly happy with my instructions, but Alec was correct in his thinking. His wolf form was ideal for detecting the presence of water as wells as any predators that might be lurking nearby. I did not want to use any of our bird forms just yet. Better to be as inconspicuous as possible for the time being. The natural instincts of the wolf would keep Alec hidden from view once he entered the forest.

“Alec, be careful and follow Sirius’ lead,” Martha said as she gave him a quick hug before Alec and Sirius stepped away from the group and quickly transformed into their animagus forms.

For a few seconds both of them stood perfectly still and sniffed the air and then the ground. After glancing at each other, they bounded off towards the edge of the meadow and quickly disappeared out of sight.

“All we can do now is wait,” I said to the others, trying to sound confident. If this really were Eden, as Kai had said, then Sirius and Alec would most likely be just fine as long as they do not wander too far from the meadow. Nevertheless, I knew that we would all be anxiously awaiting their return.

After five minutes turned into ten, Harry started to get a little fidgety. From long experience, I knew that telling him to relax was a waste of time. Thankfully, Sirius and Alec returned five minutes later and changed back into their human forms when they reached the center of the meadow where we were still standing.

“We located a decent sized stream at the bottom of a small hill just past the edge of the meadow,” Sirius said as soon as he was able to talk. From the look on his face, I knew that they had discovered something else.

“And that’s not all we found,” Alec added excitedly. “We found a good sized cottage a hundred yards downstream. No one lives there, or at least hasn’t lived there for a long time. I was unable to detect scents of any kind anywhere near the cottage.”

“That’s true, Albus. I could not pick up any scents either,” Sirius added, a deep scowl on his face. “It is almost as if the cottage and everything around it suddenly came into being. I didn’t pick up the scent of a single animal, none at all. With a natural setting like that, many animals should have used the nearby stream for drinking water.”

“Based on the sun’s movement it appears to me that we are approaching late afternoon. I think it would be wise to see if this cottage will afford us shelter for the night. As grand as this meadow is, I do not think it wise to spend the night here in the hope that Kai and Nyssa will return and take us back to our world. We can decide what to do about our predicament after we have suitable shelter.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Madelyn replied. “We are completely exposed here. On top of that, I suspect that it gets quite chilly at night.”

“Minerva, do you think you can walk?” I asked.

“Walking will not be a problem. If someone would be kind enough to help me up, we can get started. You know, I find that I am suddenly quite anxious to see the cottage you have found. What did it look like?”

“The cottage is made from stone and has a thatched roof,” Sirius answered as Madelyn and I helped Minerva to her feet. “I spotted three chimneys, two doors and plenty of windows. It is easily large enough to accommodate all of us. Actually, it looks kind of inviting. Oh yes, the place seems to be over-run with wildflowers. I’m sure you will find it to your liking.”

“Well then, what are we waiting for?” Minerva replied more cheerfully than I would have expected under the circumstances. She kept a firm grip on my arm for the first few steps as we headed off in the direction Sirius and Alec had taken earlier. About half way to the edge of the meadow, she seemed to have regained her strength and balance as she released her grip on my arm and walked along beside me unassisted.

“The stream is at the bottom of this path,” Alec called out as he reached the edge of the meadow with Harry and Hermione close on his heels. “There is a dirt path that follows the winding stream to the cottage. I don’t think anyone will have any trouble making their way.”

“I think he is referring to us hopelessly old folks,” I said quietly so that only Minerva would hear.

“I’m sure you are correct. We must seem incredibly old to his young eyes,” she replied with a twinkle in her eye that did wonders to lessen my worries over her health.

“No doubt we do,” I replied, chuckling quietly to myself as we reached the start of a path that led off through the trees.

The incredible sense of awe that I felt as we moved down the path, surrounded by trees that were at least two hundred years old, was almost enough to make me forget about how we had come to find ourselves on this path in the first place. I could tell that the others were feeling the same sense of wonder that I was feeling by the way they were looking around at the trees towering far above our heads. In less than five minutes, we found ourselves on the bank of a clear stream of rapidly flowing water.

Minerva transfigured several wildflowers into delicate goblets, which the boys filled from the stream. Once everyone had something to drink, we followed the path downstream to one of the most charming cottages I had seen in a good long time. Sirius was quite right; this cottage definitely looked inviting. From the looks on their faces, everyone else must have thought so as well. During the twenty minutes it took to get here, I had continually felt calmer with each passing minute. I knew intellectually that I should still feel very upset over what had happened to us, but for some reason that I could not explain, I found it almost impossible to bring myself to worry in such a beautiful and serene setting.

When we were about fifty feet from the cottage, a doe and two fawns walked slowly out of the woods, a mere twenty feet in front of us. With barely a glance in our direction, they continued to the bank of the stream where they began to lap up water. They continued to drink until we came to within ten feet of where they were standing, at which time they quickly crossed the stream and disappeared into the thick woods that lined the far side of the stream. At the same instant, a movement off to my left caught my attention. Several rabbits were hopping near a small clump of while flowers growing close to the ground.

“Albus, I swear to you that when Alec and I were here before, there wasn’t a trace of any animal within a hundred yards of this place,” Sirius said after he watched the rabbits disappear behind the flowers. “I have the distinct feeling that Kai and Nyssa created this cottage just for us, and not too long ago at that. It is the only way to account for the fact that there were no animal scents around such a natural drinking area.”

“You may be right, Sirius” I replied gazing at this picture perfect setting. “If so, I am sure we will encounter other evidence to prove your point.”

I didn’t have long to wait for that proof to come, as Alice called out to us shortly after she and her sister reached the front door of the cottage.

“Look, our names are printed on a plaque next to the door!”

After hurrying the rest of the way as quickly as we could, we found ourselves facing a large bronzed plaque imbedded in the stone wall upon which each of our names were neatly inscribed.