Heir of Elessar
By E. C. R. Potter
Summary: 2 years into the Second Magical War, Voldemort leads his followers to a long lost volcano. There, he makes a final pact with an ancient evil, granting him more powers than anyone could've ever imagined. Now, there is no one who can stand against the reborn Dark Lord save one: the heir of the ancient king Aragorn Elessar Telcontar, Harry Potter.
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and related characters and settings belong to J. K. Rowling. The Lord of the Rings and related mythology belong to the heir of J. R. R. Tolkien.
A/N Every beginning A/N of this fic will be an explanation of the title of each chapter, since they'll all be in a Tolkien invented language. In this case, "Ash nazg durbatuluk" is Black Speech for "One Ring to rule them all".
Chapter 1: Ash nazg durbatuluk...
Dark and frightening were good words to describe those woods deep in Eastern Europe. The forests ranging from Albania all the way to the Black Sea were long considered a forbidden zone. The locals spread many rumors about the zone, such as it was a lair of demons, or vampires, or even the very gates of Hell. Those skeptics who foolishly dared to venture into the zone never came back alive, adding further fear to the mystery of the area.
But of course, how could any of the locals understand the truth of the forbidden zone? They were mere muggles after all; even among wizards, only the wisest and the most learned had an inkling of an idea of what truly lay in the forbidden zone. In fact in the entire world, only two people knew the true terrifying secret of the zone and one of them was currently leading his followers deep into that very zone.
He was the wizard Tom Marvolo Riddle, better known as the evil Lord Voldemort. He was the center of the many atrocities of the two Magical Wars, the supreme lord and master of the Death Eaters and their many allies, and one of the greatest champions of the Dark Side ever to walk the Earth. Following him were his followers, the collection of dark wizards and witches known as the Death Eaters. They were a highly elite society of power hungry psychopaths who sought to reshape the wizarding world into their vision of what it should be. Many of them had been killed or captured during the past two years the Second Magical War had been raging but the tide was still undeniably on their side. This was why many of them were confused as to why their master was leading them through the forbidden zone.
"Where is the master taking us?" whispered Lucius Malfoy, recently broken out of Azkaban Wizarding Prison. Despite his time in the fortress, he still had much of his aristocratic flair in tact.
"I do not know," said his sister in law, Bellatrix Black Lestrange. "But wherever the master leads us, I shall follow willingly."
"I bet you would," snarled Lucius. "This had better not be another half insane scheme to kill Harry Potter is all I have to say."
At that, Voldemort turned his hooded head toward Lucius, his scarlet eyes gleaming and his skull white face twisted into a smirk. "You are fortunate that I am in a good mood today Lucius or you might've been in great trouble," he hissed in his high-pitched voice. Lucius cowered before Voldemort's gaze.
"Where is it that you are taking us my Lord, and how much further is it?" asked Bellatrix.
"Patience, patience Bella," said Voldemort. "You will learn soon enough where it is I am taking all of you for we have now arrived."
The Death Eaters looked around to notice that they had left the forest and were now standing on a beach before the Black Sea. Voldemort looked toward the east over the waves, his face twisted in glee. Confused, the Death Eaters looked around. They noted that their allies the Dementors, foul soul sucking fiends who formerly guarded Azkaban Prison before joining Voldemort were swooping down to join them. But other than that, all they saw was the Black Sea before them and the dark forest behind them.
"Finally, ultimate power is at hand," said Voldemort, still staring out to the eastern horizon. "I first learned of the secrets of the forbidden zone when I was just a young man, hidden in some ancient tomes. It revealed to me the ultimate way of achieving power and immortality; but as it meant sharing that power with another, I abandoned it in favor of searching for other means. However, then came that accursed prophecy and my first encounter with Harry Potter. Upon my defeat, the secrets of the forbidden zone were suddenly far more appealing so I journeyed here. Unfortunately, in my weakened state," all the Death Eaters save Belatrix, her husband Rodolphus, and brother in law Rabastan cowered at Voldemort's glare, "I was unable to make it past the zone's entrance in the forests of Albania. After I was rejuvenated, I set out to find out the full contents of the prophecy but even then," here the Lestranges cowered as well, "my Death Eaters failed me again. But no matter, once I claim the secrets of the forbidden zone for myself and my soon to be partner, nothing can stop me; not some troublesome prophecy, not Albus Dumbledore, not Harry Potter, nothing!"
Peter "Wormtail" Pettigrew stepped up to Voldemort and asked, "Master, what is it that you are looking at?"
"Fools! Are my servants so hopelessly blind?" exclaimed Voldemort, "Look closer, and you will see."
The Death Eaters looked harder toward the east. At first they could see nothing but then, Wormtail gave a startled gasp and fell to the ground. The remaining Death Eaters soon saw what had startled Wormtail and were shocked themselves.
It was a volcano. A black volcano taller than any mountain they had ever seen had sprung up from the waters of the Black Sea billowing lava and smoke with tremendous booms. The clouds around the volcano were thundering with lightning and the commotion was so great that the Death Eaters couldn't understand how it was that they hadn't noticed any of this before.
"My lord, what is all this?" whispered Bellatrix.
"Perhaps a little explaining is in order," said Voldemort. "For you see my friends, in ancient days the Black Sea was in fact the Black Land. Mordor it was called back then. And the mountain before is Orodruin, the Mountain of Doom. Be honored my Death Eaters for you are the first to lay eyes on Mt. Doom in millennia."
* * *
Voldemort led his Death Eaters over the sea to the great volcano. As they grew closer, the glee on his face was growing more and more evident, which disturbed some of his followers. Soon, he was leading them up the slopes of the volcano itself. Many of the Death Eaters were forced to erect shield charms to avoid falling boulders issued from the volcano and even the Dementors appeared to be on edge. Voldemort however seemed oblivious to all this as he led them further up the mountain.
Eventually, Voldemort and the Death Eaters came up to a large crack in the surface of a particularly steep cliff. They entered the crack and traveled through a short tunnel before emerging in a wide opening within the volcano itself. The Death Eaters found themselves standing on a narrow ledge, overlooking a blazing river of molten magma. The sheer intensity of the heat was astounding and the Dementors were having a hard time staying in place, floating in the air near the Death Eaters. The interior of the volcano was shaped like a large amphitheater, and there were thousands of openings within the walls themselves, leading into dark caverns that undeniably ventured far underground where no light could penetrate. Finally, a single half bridge of stone led forth from the bridge to a point overlooking the river of magma. As the Death Eaters stayed behind on the ledge cowering in fear and confusion, Voldemort walked out over the bridge, surveying the cavern.
"Perfect, everything is just as the ancient tomes have had written in them," he said. "And that should mean that the ancient minions are still hiding deep within the caverns under Orodruin, bidding for their time, waiting for their master's return." Voldemort suddenly raised his arms out and proclaimed, "That time is now! Let the Horde assemble again!"
At first nothing happened. But after a few seconds, the Death Eaters started hearing sounds of laughter, jeering, cursing, growling, drums, and the clanking of metal: and the sounds were coming closer and closer. Finally, the very source of the sounds appeared in the many openings in the cavern's walls and the Death Eaters gasped. Wormtail started shaking in fright at the sight in front of him and even the Dementors seemed on edge at the sight before them.
Creatures, thousands upon thousands of foul, hideous creatures were standing at the entrances of these openings, jeering and laughing. They closely resembled goblins, but they were much uglier. Their skin was charred black, and their eyes were blood red, not too unlike Voldemort's own eyes. They were generally hunched over but quite a number of them stood tall and straight, powerfully built. Their teeth were jagged and the armor and weapons they wore and carried were crude, ancient, foul, yet devastatingly effective as they seemed ready to demonstrate amongst themselves. Voldemort looked upon these creatures, his face alight with delight.
"What are these... these... these things my lord?" Lucius said, quite fearfully.
"Orcs," said Voldemort. "See how the Orcish Horde has assembled once more. For millennia they have been hiding, cowering in fear from the forces that hunted them down so long ago. Many of their number left to diminish into the modern race of goblins. Pathetic is it not? A once proud and savage race degraded to nothing more than a collection of bankers. But I have long suspected that the original race of Orcs still hid within the caverns of Orodruin, waiting for the call: and how correct my suspicions turned out to be."
"This is most incredible Master," exclaimed Bellatrix, growing excited herself. "Now we have a powerful army at our command to take on our enemies. You have achieved ultimate power master!"
"Ultimate power?" said Voldemort, "Oh no, this is not the ultimate power I was talking about. While it is true that the Orcs shall serve as our new army, it is from their old master whom I shall gain ultimate power. And now I shall summon him!"
Voldemort pulled out his wand and flicked it, chanting silently. A pale, purplish light emerged from his wand and hovered over the magma. Suddenly, Voldemort spread out his arms and shouted in a language none of the Death Eaters heard before. Yet they somehow understood the words:
"Ash nazg durbatuluk..."
One Ring to rule them all...
"Ash nazg gimbatul..."
One Ring to find them...
"Ash nazg thrakatuluk..."
One Ring to bring them all...
"Agh burzum-ishi krimpatul!"
And in the darkness bind them!
As soon as the words had been uttered the light shining over the magma imploded on itself before exploding in a blast of fire and wind. It opened up a portal and from there a being of great dread and malevolence emerged.
It was a single lidless Eye, wreathed in flame. The Death Eaters were completely terrified now and the Dementors tried to drift away from the intense heat of the Eye. Even the Orcs had quieted down in reverence and fear. Among those present, Voldemort alone looked confident enough to smirk as the Eye observed him. Finally, a deep, thundering voice issued from the Eye: "Why have you summoned me, human?"
Voldemort laughed. "Human? I abandoned my humanity a long time ago. I am something... better now," he said.
The Eye did not seem impressed. "You still did not answer my question," it said. "Why have you summoned me?"
"To make a pact," said Voldemort. "You and I as equal partners, as one: a simple deal that will grant both of us ultimate power. Simply put, we both need each other's help and I believe we could both benefit from it."
"I do not need your help!" snapped the Eye, its flames flaring up. The Death Eaters, Dementors, and Orcs all flinched but Voldemort seemed unaffected.
"Fair enough," replied Voldemort. "Ultimately I can do without you; your help just would have made my life easier. I suppose you can just wait in the void for another few millennia until someone else decides to unleash you." That caught the Eye's attention. Smirking, Voldemort moved in for the kill: "With our powers combined, we'll even have the power to restore your precious."
The Eye gave pause. "My precious?" it asked.
"Yes, your precious," said Voldemort. He stuck out his hand and continued, "So what do you say, partner?"
The Eye appeared to consider for a moment before it answered, "The pact is sealed." Unexpectedly, it dove down toward the Dark Wizard and engulfed him in an inferno of flames, much to the Death Eaters' horror. Voldemort however was laughing as his body started levitating into the air. As he hovered above the magma, black metal began to spring forth from Voldemort's skin, completely encasing him in black armor. Voldemort's cloak now draped behind his back like a cape and a horned helmet completely encased his head, leaving only his scarlet eyes visible. He also appeared to have grown a full foot taller as he was lowered back onto the half bridge, the flames absorbing into his body. Finally, like a grand finale, a single gold ring with writing on it formed around his right middle finger.
The Orcs immediately started cheering but the Death Eaters remained speechless as the Dark Lord started examining his own body. Finally Bellatrix walked up to him and fearfully asked "Master?"
The Dark Lord chose to ignore Bellatrix for the time being as he continued examining his now armor encased body. "This shall suit our purposes well," he said, and when he spoke, the Death Eaters received another shock for two voices had just spoken as one: the high-pitched voice of Lord Voldemort and the deep, booming voice of the Eye.
He next examined the ring on his finger. "Finally, the precious has returned to where it rightfully belongs, on our finger." The Dark Lord looked up and noticed the Death Eaters. He spoke in Voldemort's voice, "Why do you cower in fear my friends? It is still I, only greater."
Slowly, the Death Eaters crowded around the Dark Lord, their curiosity overcoming their fear. The Dementors joined them as well and the Orcs' cheers were now greater. Soon, the Death Eaters were starting to cheer as well and within minutes, a great jubilation of evil arose within the volcano.
"It is done!" exclaimed Lucius Malfoy. "You have finally achieved ultimate power, master!"
"Now, none can stand in the way of Lord Voldemort!" shouted Bellatrix, surprising all the Death Eaters including herself for daring to say the name.
"Voldemort?" said the Dark Lord, speaking in two voices again. "Not quite anymore, Bella. We are Voldemort-Sauron!"
* * *
Far away, deep within a magical castle, the only other man who knew the true secrets of the forbidden zone started in alarm. Somehow he sensed what had just happened and he alone knew the ultimate consequences of Voldemort's actions, the thought filling him with great dread. Silently, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore walked up to a window and looked out toward the east.
"My God, Tom," he whispered. "What have you done?"
To be continued...
A/N Well now, here's the first chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. I had actually written this chapter about a week ago but the file was lost so I had to rewrite the whole thing. This fic may venture to AU areas in the LOTR saga to make it work with the plot and HP saga but I'll try to keep both as close to canon as possible. For now, read and enjoy.