*** Author's Note-I wanted to take a moment and thank all the great reviews I've received, especially those of you who have been so kind as to offer me feedback on nearly every chapter. I deeply appreciate it and I feel the story has been greatly improved by your insights. Thanks again. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and the remaining story I have left to tell. We're almost to Atlantis, I promise.
Ch 37 The Iron Tower
They had just finished dinner when Samuel appeared by the fireside. "I've found it. I've found the valley."
Ron stood up and voiced the sentiments of everyone there. "Let's go."
Ignoring their aching feet and tired backs, the group quickly packed and began marching again behind Samuel and Remus.
Two hours later, Remus paused at the top of the pass and gazed down into the valley. "Sarced," he muttered and the valley expanded. He looked down at the mist shrouded woods and hills below him and then glanced sharply at the Iron Tower in the distance under the dim moonlight, still shrouded in mist. After a moment of study, he looked high above and found Samuel's hawk form circling the valley, also studying the terrain. Then he looked back down the path at those who were following him. They were nearly exhausted, he knew. He had been arguing with Samuel for days now about the incredible pace he had been putting them through. Even the Aurors looked tired. But there had not been one complaint, not even from the young girls. This was a tough group and he was proud of them. He held up his hand, indicating they would take a brief rest at the top for a few minutes.
Ron stepped near and asked quietly. "So this is it, huh? This is the hidden valley?"
"No, you need to say the password first. Samuel has been flying all around the perimeter, but there seems to be only one small passage that allows you into the valley, even with the password. Try it."
Ron muttered "Sarced," and then whistled in awe as the valley changed form before his eyes. He then squinted in concentration. "Is that the Iron Tower?"
"I believe so."
"But what happened on the edge there-it looks like one of the walls has been knocked down or…"
"So have the trees and hills in a circular pattern around it."
"But what could have…"
Ron looked at Remus suddenly. "The earthquake and flash of light we heard three days ago. Harry!" He rushed forward only to be restrained by Remus' powerful hand.
"Whatever happened there three days ago, there is nothing we can do about it now. We will give the others a few minutes to rest and then we will go into the valley and make our way to the Tower. We'll wait for Samuel to return-he might have discovered something we can't see."
Remus led him back to the others who were sitting and resting in various positions alongside the trail in the snow. "The Iron Tower is in the next valley. We're almost there folks. We'll rest for fifteen minutes and then continue." Nods replaced the need for vocal affirmations, as Remus pulled a large thermos from his pack. He then walked around, filling everyone's cup with a shot of hot cocoa that tasted very refreshing and warm.
Ten minutes later, Samuel landed on the edge of a rock and transformed back into his human form. "That's quite a little blast area Harry created. He took down an entire corner of the castle walls and flattened a couple of square miles of forest and hills. But there's no trace of him anywhere in there. If you're all rested, let's go."
Remus didn't object this time. The group reshouldered their packs and followed Samuel and Remus through the heavy snow, over the pass and down into the valley. Once on the valley floor, they aimed straight for the Iron Tower as they trudged through the forest.
An hour later, they came across the skeleton of a small dragon. Samuel bent down by it and examined it closely. "A wyvern." Pointing at several fractures in the front shoulder and some broken wing bones he added. "Looks like this one crashed hard. He hasn't been dead very long, a couple of days maybe."
"But he's nothing but bones," protested Ron. "How could it have decomposed so…"
Samuel glanced at him and continued, "Some sort of predator ate him. Something small. Lots of `em by the marks left on these bones."
Ron and several others in the group shuddered as they continued.
Ten minutes later they found another wyvern skeleton. Samuel stopped and examined this one as well. Examining a large leg bone and the backbone, he declared. "Harry finished this one off with his sword. Probably the other one as well. He stabbed it in the leg while they were still airborne. The wyvern landed over there, and…" Then he looked up at a nearby tree and stepped closer, examining the ground and the branches. "And Harry fell into this tree. See the broken branches coming down the side of the trunk? Harry got up there, the wyvern found him, and Harry dove underneath it, slicing so deeply into its stomach he scratched the inside of the backbone there and there with his sword tip." Samuel shook his head from side to side. "Sloppy, sloppy. Too deep a cut risks getting it stuck in the creature."
Remus and the rest just stared in shock at Samuel as he criticized what to them must have been an amazing battle. Part of their astonishment came from the fact that he could decipher what had happened from a few scratches on some bones and a few broken branches in a tree.
"Why didn't he just use a spell?" asked Ron.
"And possibly set off who knows how many defensive wards they might have scattered around the valley? He was trying to maintain the element of surprise."
"So Harry's on foot now?" asked Ron. "But what happened to his motorcycle?"
Samuel looked at him incredulously and snapped, "He didn't bring the motorcycle."
"What? I thought…" stuttered Ron.
"He probably left it back in Sofiyah. He would have used his Firebolt here, it's more agile and it's silent. It's probably around here somewhere, but we need to move…"
"Maybe I can find it…" offered Ron.
"Put that wand down, you idiot!" hissed Samuel.
"But what about the big explosion? I'm sure that announced his presence to everyone here."
"And for probably a hundred miles around. Why he lost control like that I don't know, but there's no reason to let them know there are others in the valley. Let's go."
It was easy to follow the trail, even those with little experience in tracking could spot the huge drops of blood that marked Harry's trail in the snow. Several hours later they came across the destroyed area they had seen from the hills bordering the valley. It was an impressive and chilling sight. All of the snow had been swept from the area. Huge trees had been snapped from the ground and broken into splinters. Huge boulders had been smashed into pebbles. They walked slowly through the area, working their way towards the Iron Tower under the feeble light of the stars. Samuel suddenly paused and kneeled on the ground. Remus, Ron, Fred and George paused and sniffed the air, their noses crinkling.
"Wolves," hissed the three Weasleys in unison.
Samuel picked up and held what seemed to be a fluff of fur then walked around slowly, occasionally bending down to look at the ground before adding, "Yeah, lots of wolves."
Several minutes later, Samuel halted on the crest of a ridge. "Here's where Harry lost control." He searched the area for several minutes, but found nothing but Harry's tracks wandering off to the North. "I don't get it. He wasn't attacked by anything on the ground." He glanced up. "And there's no way to tell if it was something from the air. But you would think that whatever it was, its body would be around here somewhere unless he incinerated it completely or…I don't know. I don't know what set him off like this. But he had to have been desperate to unleash so much power." Samuel ignored the worried stares of his companions and began following the tracks. Five minutes later they ended at the edge of a large fissure in the ground. Laying on his stomach, he peered down. "That goes down a long ways," he whispered. Then he looked up at the Iron Tower, which was only another mile or two away and shook his head. "So close. I can't tell if he fell down or… "
"He's not dead!" insisted Ron. "He's not!"
Samuel glared back at him and started to say something when Remus spoke. "Nobody said he was. What we need to do is decide which way to go. Do we follow Harry down or do we go to the Iron Tower?"
Samuel looked over at Remus. "We go to the Iron Tower."
"And abandon Harry?! Never!" shouted Ron. "I'm going after him!" And Ron jumped into the darkness.
Samuel reached for him but too late. Cursing he glared at the twins. "Go with him! Hopefully he had enough brains to transform into a hawk before he hits bottom. Bring him back if you can, either way, the rest of us are moving on to the Iron Tower."
Fred and George transformed and dove into the dark crack in the ground.
Luna looked sadly after them and stood closer to Ginny who also had a very worried expression on her face.
Snape and Malfoy stared at the hole in shock as did several of the Aurors, shaking their heads in amazement. Samuel snapped, "Let's go!" and marched off.
Lupin was a little more gentle in his persuasions and walked beside the two girls with Hagrid in the rear.
*-*-*
Ron floated down through the cavern, using his excellent eyesight and the feeling of the air drafts to avoid crashing into the walls. He didn't know how long he descended, but finally sensed the bottom of the cave approaching. He landed and transformed back into his human form. He raised his wand and muttered "Lumos!"
A moment later, he heard two soft thumps and then the hissed recriminations of two very upset older
siblings.
"Of all the stupid,"
"idiotic things to do,"
"this has to be,"
"right at the top!"
"Shut up you two," he hissed back, "unless you want everything that lives down here to know we're here."
"Like they don't already,"
"you stupid prat."
"Your stupid wand practically,"
"screams, `Come eat me!"
"OK, OK. Let's stop arguing and go looking for Harry."
"No, we're going back up and…"
"Unless you can carry me in a full body-bind, I'm staying down here."
Fred and George glanced at each other and then turned toward their younger brother.
"Fine. Do you know where you're going?"
"No, but Harry had to come this way." Ron looked around and found a small pool of blood on the ground. He looked at it thoughtfully and then looked back up. "That can't be Harry's. There would be a lot more if he fell all the way down here."
"Harry can fly too, you prat!" snapped Fred.
"Right. So he's probably OK, then. And it looks like there's only one way out of here. That way." He said pointing with his wand.
The three walked side by side, with Fred and George holding their wands at the ready while Ron held his lit wand up for them to see.
Ten minutes later, they heard several loud, thumping sounds and the clink of metal banging on metal. They looked for a place to hide but there was none in the wide hall. The three fanned out, to give themselves a little bit of space and readied themselves for a possible fight.
Ron squinted at the three figures who came jogging down the corridor. They slowed and then began walking forward cautiously while Ron and his brothers held their ground.
They barely reached Ron's ribcage, but were a bit wider than he was with long beards and metal armor. And they were carrying huge axes that seemed way too large for them.
"Hey look! They look like the dwarves that sang the Valentine Day songs a couple of years ago…" started Ron.
"Except they look ten times meaner!" finished George as the three ducked a pair of axes thrown in their direction.
The middle dwarf shouted something at the other dwarves and then said in English, "Are you from the island in the West as well?"
Ron repeated the dwarf's question. "Island in the West?"
"Great Britain? Yes, yes," shouted Fred.
"Was Harry here as well, then?" asked George.
"Are you friends of Harry Potter then?" asked the dwarf, while the others still watched the three Weasleys with doubt and mistrust.
"Yes!" the three answered.
"Is he hurt? Is he OK?" asked Ron.
"He was, but we helped heal him. But he is in grave danger as we speak. He seeks to destroy the deathless ones all by himself."
"You let him go by himself?" screamed Ron.
"We tried to help him, but he…"
Fred held up his hands. "Yeah, OK, we got the picture."
"Can you show us where he went? We've come to help him," added George.
Fribig looked at them for a moment and then turned to his dwarf companions and said something. They ran off in the direction they had been heading and turned down a corridor they had somehow missed.
Fribig then spoke. "Come, I will take you there myself. Are you wizards as well?"
"Yeah," replied Ron.
"That is good. Though larger than your friend, you do not look strong enough to lift an axe. Come."
*-*-*
Harry paused in the center of the chamber. Something was wrong. This was too easy. Corlyn and Aardus were just sitting there, as if they were expecting…
Corlyn disappeared just as a huge hole exploded in the back of his throne.
Harry was struck so hard in the chest that he went flying back to the middle of the room, sliding halfway on his back. He rolled over and struggled to get to his knees, tried to catch his breath and realized he had lost the short black sword. When he managed to stand up he saw that Corlyn had pulled it from the front of his chair.
He held the sword cautiously, looking at the humming blade with loathing as the black pearl pulsed darkly, before he turned towards Harry. "I see you've defeated my pets below. Very impressive young Potter. That's what I've always enjoyed about you. You are truly a man of action, a man of few words. Indeed, your actions speak far more loudly than anything you ever say. But not really very sporting of you to try and kill me without even letting me see you."
Harry uncloaked himself and stood still, feeling his rage return and grow, trying to come up with another strategy.
"And I see you have acquired some nice new toys. The mail shirt is very nice, but will not save you from a vampire's bite I'm afraid. And of course, I cannot allow you to play with this any longer-I'm afraid I will have to hold on to it for you. Shadowbreaker is far too dangerous in the hands of someone like yourself. But where are my manners? Children, let me introduce you to one of the heroes of the wizarding world, Harry Potter."
Harry looked around in disbelief as dozens of vampires emerged from the dark shadows. He had anticipated there would be more than just Aardus and Elysa, but not this many.
"Harry Potter, meet my children." Corlyn raised his arms dramatically as he looked around the room. "You will be one of them soon."
"Never."
"Ah, I was afraid you'd lost your voice entirely. Surely you don't believe that you will be walking out of here alive?" Vespus began chuckling.
"Nobody's walking out of here." Harry raised his wand-sword and hissed "NECO FLAMEN!" The bright, pulsing white of the sword dimmed in comparison to his flashing green eyes.
"Take him children. Be careful of his sword though, he is quite skilled with it."
Harry simply smiled as the ring of vampires closed in on him. All eyes were focused on his gleaming sword as he slowly turned around, trying to anticipate which vampire would attack first. Nobody noticed his left hand reach into his pouch and pull out a small object.
When the vampires were within ten feet, Harry dropped the acorn a few feet in front of him. The sound echoed in the silent room and all eyes snapped to the rolling seed on the floor as Harry raised his hand towards it.
"What?" asked Corlyn in surprise. The air suddenly chilled as there was a rumble in the floor. Cracks appeared around the oakseed as a green tendril shout up out of it. The walls shook and seemed to melt as the green stem grew, upward and outward. Within moments it stood at a foot, then two, then ten and then twenty five, and finally threatened to crash through the roof as the vampires backed up. The oaks limbs and trunk grew thick and stout and finally forced Harry, too, to step back. "What?" repeated Corlyn and then he shouted, "NO! Get back my children! NOOO!"
Harry disappeared as the oak tree suddenly exploded in the faces of the vampires, sending deadly slivers of wood everywhere in the room. Aardus dove to the ground and moaned as he started pulling thick slivers out of his side. Corlyn had moved behind the throne, but the other vampires in the room were not so lucky. Over half had been impaled immediately by the flying stakes and many of the remaining had been severely wounded. The room echoed with the screams of the injured vampires desperately clawing at their flesh to try and remove the deadly wood from their bodies.
"SOLARIS ORBIS INFLAMMUS!" shouted Harry and a glowing ball of fire exploded in the center of the room where the tree had been. The walls had been melted earlier when Harry drew on their energy to fuel the tree's growth and had been left with a highly polished, reflective surface. Not only was the light blinding, but also extremely painful to the surviving vampires, though not as deadly as actual sunlight.
"Accio Shadowbreaker!" yelled Harry as he stabbed the nearest vampire to him with his wand-sword. The sword tore itself from the startled vampire's grasp and flew to Harry's outstretched hand. Harry had closed his eyes and was relying on his other senses to assist him since he was unable to see in the blinding light either. The moans and groans of the wounded vampires were very helpful. His building rage broke through the carefully controlled order he had displayed until now, making it impossible to tap effectively into his elemental powers.
Suddenly the light was gone. Corlyn had recovered and extinguished the light quicker than he had hoped, but Harry continued stabbing vampires as quickly as possible, trying to lessen the odds stacked against him, as he ducked beneath swiping claws and various weapons swung at him by his vampiric foes.
His arms and legs were soon bleeding freely from dozens of scratches and narrow misses, but they healed as quickly as Shadowbreaker found a new victim. His mail shirt protected his chest, shoulders, and back from the more savage blows, as well as several spells launched by some of the vampires who had once been wizards. Suddenly he was knocked flying again. This time he managed to hang on to both of his swords, though he struggled to regain his breath. Standing as quickly as he was able, Harry spun to face Corlyn and the thirty or so surviving vampires who were able to stand.
"Enough!" roared Corlyn. "You will surrender now and serve me. Or you will die and serve me like the dragon. It is your choice."
Harry began chanting in a very low voice as he raised both of his swords, his eyes blazing with fury.
"Kill him," ordered Corlyn. The vampires rushed forward eagerly.
Harry sidestepped the first series of attacks, moving more quickly than was humanly possible. Three vampires fell as the next wave washed over Harry. Harry teleported back and forth among the vampires, his swords never pausing, his rage and fury driving him beyond even his exceptional limits. The white arcs he weaved were punctuated with straight black lines as he slashed and stabbed his way through the vampires. He was untouchable when he teleported, and when he was beside an enemy, the speed spell he was chanting gave him superhuman quickness that exceeded even that of a vampire. The vampires altered their tactics, too, shifting to shadow before the onslaught of his wand-sword. But the black sword stole their energy just as quickly whether they were corporeal or ethereal in form. Finally, one of the vampires landed a solid blow in Harry's back, right above the kidney, and then another struck his stomach, knocking the wind from him and sending him sliding backwards a dozen feet. As he struggled to rise again, his arms were grabbed by hands with inhuman strength and he was raised roughly to face Corlyn.
Harry took some joy in the fact that there were only six vampires besides Corlyn still standing, though he was disappointed he hadn't killed them all. Suddenly he collapsed in the arms of the vampires, feeling suddenly drained. "The speed spell," he thought as Samuel's words echoed in his head, "is very useful in a fight, but make sure you finish off everyone when you're done with it or they'll finish you off very easily. Once you stop repeating the chant, you'll be as weak as a lamb for about an hour or so, depending on how long you chanted the incantation."
"Have you finally accepted the inevitable, Potter?" sneered Corlyn angrily. He looked around at the devastation and shook his head in disbelief. "I should kill you for what you've done to my family, but on the other hand, if they were so easily defeated by a mere boy, then maybe they did not deserve the power I gave them. As impressive as your powers are now, they will be as nothing when I have turned you and made you my slave. And since I have obtained the knowledge I needed about Atlantis soon there will be nothing to stop me."
Harry's eyes blazed when he heard the word Atlantis and he closed his eyes in concentration. Corlyn's throne ripped itself from the floor and crashed into the vampire, sending the seat and its master crashing to the floor in a heap halfway across the room. Harry fought desperately against the exhaustion that overwhelmed him and managed to find the energy to turn towards the vampire holding his hand and the black sword and his fury doubled when he saw that it was Aardus. He tried to twist the sword and stab Aardus, but realized he didn't have the strength to do so. Suddenly his hand was twisted and pulled into Aardus's side. Harry gasped as the energy flowed into him. Sensing movement to his side, he didn't have time to unravel the mystery that continued to be Aardus as he then tore free of Aardus's grip and stabbed the vampire holding his right arm. Then he disappeared behind the other vampires and stabbed two more before Corlyn regained his feet after tossing the throne aside. Harry slashed and stabbed the remaining two as Corlyn advanced again though not before one opened a huge gash on his right arm and the other stabbed his leg again. Harry dropped to a knee and plunged Shadowbreaker deeply into one of the wounded vampires, soaking up its energy and watching calmly as Corlyn walked forward, brushing dust from his robes.
Corlyn simply held out his hands. "Well done, well done. I must admit that I have seriously underestimated you, Mr. Potter. But I am afraid that your resistance must stop here."
"You've killed everything I care about. All for some stupid trinket from Atlantis. I swore an oath that I would destroy those who murdered my Hermione. And I'm only one vampire away from fulfilling that promise."
"Murder Miss Granger? She is not dead, you foolish boy. She is more alive now than she has ever been. But I promise you, that if you destroy me, you will destroy her as well."
"WHAT?!" exclaimed Harry in disbelief. "I don't have time for any more of your lies monster!" Harry stepped forward as he raised his swords.
"Potter! She's alive!" hissed Aardus. "As alive as a vampire can be. But if you kill Master Vespus, then she will die. We will all die."
"Silence!" commanded Corlyn.
"What?"
"What Aardus was trying to explain to you was that because I was the vampire who turned her, if you destroy me, you destroy her as well. All of my children, including traitorous Aardus and your beloved Hermione, owe their continued existence as well as their obedience to the vampire who turns them. They serve me, as will you."
Harry turned in disbelief as Corlyn shifted to shadow and then reappeared by a hidden recess near the throne. With a bony finger he beckoned. "Come and see your precious Hermione. And then you will have one final choice. Join us and I will allow you to spend some time with Miss Granger, or die, and end up serving me anyways. As you said, none of us will walk out of here today-alive."
Shaking, Harry followed dumbly. Entering the room, he saw a large bed with Hermione laid out on it. Her face was pale, but she looked more beautiful than he had ever seen her appear before. Her features seemed sharper, and yet more delicate and feminine at the same time. She was easily the most beautiful person he had ever seen, veela included, and he could feel a slight tugging on his mind similar to the charms Gabrielle had used, but much more powerful. Her curly brown hair still framed her ivory colored face, but there was a streak of silver in her hair just by her left brow as if she had bleached just a few locks of hair. But he couldn't tell if she was breathing or not. She appeared to be lifeless on the bed. He fell to his knees beside her, his sword tips ringing on the stone beside him.
"Mione! Mione! What have they done to you?!" he cried. He felt the anger and rage and frustration building again. To come so close only to lose her again. He couldn't take it. Not again. He screamed in rage. Then Svetlina's words came back to him "Do not fear to do what is necessary when the time comes. NOOO! I can't do it! I can't! I can't kill Mione!" Tears poured down his face as his hands curled around the hilts of his swords.
"Have you made your decision? Are you ready to join your beloved in my service?" sneered Corlyn, as he raised his bloody fangs from his wrist and leaned towards Harry.
"Go to hell!" roared Harry as he spun and stabbed upward.
But the vampire was quicker and stronger. He easily captured Harry's wrists and squeezed until Harry heard the bones snap. He screamed in agony and fought to maintain his grip but the pain was unbearable. Again, they fell clattering to his side.
"What foolish mortal pride is this? She thought she could resist me as well. She broke and you will break as well, my foolish young wizard. I might have allowed you to spend some time with her before she is destroyed to fulfill the prophecy but you must be punished for your willful resistance. He slammed a fist into Harry's chest and he could feel several of the ribs crack beneath the blow. Another blow to the side of his head sent him flying across the room and he bounced hard off of the stone wall. Harry struggled to rise, fought to find the rage that had brought him this far, sought desperately to find anything that might help him survive long enough to turn things around one final time. His body ached and screamed with pain while the accumulated exhaustion from the last week's worth of battles suddenly drained whatever energy he might have had. He managed to raise his head slightly as the vampire bent down and lifted him as he would a rag doll.
Shaking him furiously, Corlyn slowly lowered Harry close to his face. Harry struggled to breathe, as Corlyn's hand slowly tightened on his throat. "I will break you tonight. You will take the place of the treacherous Aardus who somehow led you here. You will pay every day for the rest of your miserable existence for destroying my family. Know now that you will become the thing you hate and despise the most, just as Aardus did. Your first victims will be those you love and care about the most, starting with that red-headed family and your beloved mentor Dumbledore." With a flick of his wrist, Corlyn sent him flying across the room again where he landed on the floor next to the bed.
Coughing blood, Harry looked around for some means of escape. He couldn't even think straight anymore. The pain and weariness, combined with his surging emotions, made it difficult to concentrate on anything but his desire to kill Corlyn. In addition, he could feel his head starting to ache again like it had the first time he had met Corlyn. He realized it now for what it was-a subtle form of mental attack. Between them all, he didn't have the energy or the mental clarity to teleport or Apparate away. Besides, he could not and would not abandon Hermione now that he had found her again.
Corlyn reached down and picked up Harry again and lifted him from the floor, holding him again with one hand around his throat.
Choking, Harry realized he was finished. He had no more tricks up his sleeve. "Hermione. I'm so sorry I failed you. I love you. I'm sorry I didn't get here in time to save you, I'm sorry. Please forgive me."
"Master Potter…"
"Saldar?!"
"Master Potter, I've been trying to reach thee since ye defeated the great wyrm in the cavern below, but thou hast been consumed with thoughts of revenge."
"Uhhh, what?" mumbled Harry as he began to lose consciousness.
"Master, I've been trying to tell you that Mistress Granger…"
Harry suddenly dropped to the floor. He managed to roll to his side and looked up and then nearly went into shock at what he saw. Hermione was awake and had plunged the Sword of Godric Gryffindor through Corlyn's chest. Corlyn had such a look of surprise on his face that Harry wanted to laugh. Then he saw a mist around his body as she twisted the sword, causing him to scream in agony. Harry reached for the black sword, fighting to ignore the pain. He gritted his teeth as his fingers found the hilt and he dragged it slowly on the ground until it hit part of the mist around the vampire's body. As the energy filled him he glanced at Hermione and nodded.
She kicked him in the back, so that he fell forward on his knees. Crouching low on one knee, Harry drove Shadowbreaker into his chest as Hermione pulled her sword smoothly from his back and with a quick overhead motion easily severed his head from the rest of his body.
"That's for Harry," she spat at the headless corpse, and then kicked the head angrily through the open door, "and that's for me!"
Harry looked at her in shock for a moment. "Mione!" he screamed. "You're alive! You're not dead! I thought…He lied again! I knew I shouldn't have believed that either of those…"
"Oh, Harry! Are you OK?" asked Hermione, kneeling by his side.
"What?!" cried Harry. "I thought I was too late to save you! I thought I'd lost you. And then I thought you'd die if I killed him and…and I'm so sorry I didn't get here sooner…"
"It's not your fault Harry. You did everything you could. I'm just so happy to see you again before…"
"I'm here Mione. I'll never let anything happen to you again, I…"
"Shh. Don't worry, it's OK now Harry," she insisted, wrapping her strong arms around him. "It's almost over now. Corlyn is dead and…"
"I'm afraid not," whispered Aardus, who had crawled to the open door, "because I'm still alive."
Harry and Hermione broke their embrace and looked at him in surprise.
"Apparently you didn't leave your new little sword in me long enough to take away all of my energy or life force or whatever it is that nasty little thing feeds on. And an Eldor is very difficult to kill. It takes more than a simple wooden stake or even," he smiled grimly at Hermione, "decapitation."
Hermione turned from Aardus to look sadly at Harry. "Then you'll have to do it Harry."
"Do what?"
"You need to kill me."
"I can't. I won't!"
"You were ready to a moment ago."
"That was different. We'll find a way to break the binds between you, we'll find a spell to imprison him or something. We'll figure out something together. You don't have to die just because you…"
"I'm sorry, Harry, but I'm too dangerous to the world. I'm the next Queen of Darkness which has been prophesied, and I will destroy the world."
"I will not kill you because of some stupid prophecy!" screamed Harry.
"Mistress!"
"I am sorry, but my life isn't worth the lives of thousands or millions of people." She reached down and grabbed Harry's wrist right below where he still gripped Shadowbreaker. "I am sorry, Harry. Please understand."
She slowly pulled his arm and the sword tip closer to her stomach. He tried to pull back but couldn't-she was much stronger than he was. Realizing what she was trying to do, Harry grabbed the sword with both hands and put one of his feet against her stomach to try and stop the blade's plunge into Hermione's stomach. "Saldar! Aardus! Help me!"
"Mistress, NOOOO!"
"Don't Miss Granger!"
Harry could feel her arm tense for the final plunge into her stomach. Harry, in desperation, pulled sideways on the hilt and sliced open part of Hermione's stomach and her left bicep. Harry screamed in pain as a similar cut opened on his stomach and arm and he doubled over in pain.
"Harry! What have I done?!" screamed Hermione, dropping the sword and rushing to his side.
"Pick up the sword and bring him here," rasped Aardus. As Hermione moved, he added "Now help him hold the blade." When she did so, he grabbed the blade tightly, ignoring the searing pain it caused him as he plunged it into his wound for a moment and then pushed it away.
Harry's body immediately relaxed and he rose to his feet, glancing from his own healed wounds to those of Hermione. Then he looked from the blade held in Hermione's hand to Aardus, who lay collapsed on the floor. "What's the matter with you two?!" he yelled and took a step towards Hermoine. "Give me that back before someone gets killed with it." He managed to wrench the sword out of her strong fingers as she looked at Aardus in complete surprise.
"I don't understand," said Hermione. "Why did the sword hurt Harry? And why did it heal both of us when it touched you Aardus?"
"You are not a vampire, Hermione," whispered Aardus, lying weakly on the floor.
"What?! How can you say that? You saw what he did…You saw me drink the unicorn's…You were there! I am a vampire and I need to be destroyed before I do any more damage to…"
"Oh, shut up and just listen for a minute. You can be so infuriating!" hissed Aardus. "First of all, no vampire turned by Master Vespus would be able to attack him like you did. I have dreamt of doing that to him for centuries, but I cannot. I am bound to him by blood."
"But so am I. He…"
"Just listen. Something must have happened when you drank the unicorn's blood. Something unique to you…"
"But how…how…"
"I don't know, but try and listen without speaking for a moment. There is a reason Shadowbreaker was hidden with the dragon. It is a wonderful weapon, and I am glad it has resurfaced. Master Vespus defeated its wielder long ago but couldn't destroy it. Its sole purpose is to defeat creatures of death and darkness. Ghosts, zombies, shades, vampire mastiffs, liches, and obviously, vampires-anything that is evil and should be dead. When the blade strikes them, it heals the wielder of any wounds he or she has received."
"Like the scabbard of Excalibur," murmured Hermione.
"But this blade does not work on living flesh, as Harry and you both discovered. It was never designed to be used against mortal foes. Instead of healing…"
"It inflicts the same wounds on both the attacked and the attacker," finished Harry, rubbing his stomach.
"But then that means,"
"what I have been trying to explain to you Miss Granger. For some reason, you did not turn. Either you have an unbelievable amount of willpower or,"
"Mistress Granger. You are different from them. You are no vampire. Hast thou forgotten?"
"Forgotten what?"
"Recall the words of the dying unicorn, Mistress. Remember what he told thee."
Hermione struggled to remember as Harry and Aardus watched her quietly. So much of what had happened the last several days was hazy and vague, like a nightmare she would rather forget.
She recalled Vespus carrying her down the stairs and outside into the cold air and laying her next to the suffering unicorn. And she remembered the nearly overwhelming urge to sink her teeth into his neck and try to quench the maddening thirst torturing her throat and chest and very mind. She thought again of how she tried to hide behind the walls she and Saldar had built and fought to ignore the intoxicating allure of the warm blood that was so close. She looked again at the pale blue eyes of the unicorn filled with pain. And then the words returned to her mind.
"I am so sorry they have done this to you. It is all my fault, I wish there was something I could do for you, something to ease your pain…"
"You are not to blame young maiden. You are nothing like them, I can see that. You are virtuous and pure and innocent, Maiden. But there is nothing you can do for me now, I am dying. But there may be something I can do for you. Drink. Drink of my blood."
"Noo! I can't! I won't! I don't want to become a vampire! I'll fight it!"
"Maiden, you must drink. Even as strong as you are, the bloodlust almost consumes you,
even I can see that. Please, drink my blood."
"But I'll be cursed. Everyone knows that whatever drinks the blood of a unicorn will live a cursed life."
"A vampire's life is a cursed life Maiden. But the blood of a unicorn only damns those who take it by force. I choose to give you my lifeblood Maiden of my own free will, and I pray that it may help you overcome the blood curse of the vampire."
She remembered that the pounding in her ears and the pain in her chest had eased when she made her choice. She lifted her bloody hand to her mouth and then lost consciousness. The next thing she remembered was hearing Harry and Saldar calling to her and she barely woke up in time to help Harry defeat the Eldor.
"The unicorn," she whispered. "I was trying to fight the call of the blood curse and the unicorn told me to drink. He gave me his blood freely to try and save me."
"And he did Miss Granger. He did."
"I still can't…"
"Do you want to drink young Potter's blood right now? Do you want to drink your own?"
Horrified, Hermione shook her head and said "NO!"
"Can you not hear the pounding of the blood in his heart, in his arteries? Can you not smell the scent of fresh blood spilt in the chamber?
"Yes," admitted Hermoine.
"And do you not want to bite and drink and…"
"NOOO! Part of me did when I saw the unicorn but I tried to resist. But not now…" answered Hermione.
"Are you sure? The taste, the power…"
"Shut up!" roared Hermione. "I have no desire to drink Harry's blood! Or anyone else's!"
"Then you are not a vampire. I heard Master Vespus tell you of the blood curse. It is something that haunts us every minute of every hour of every day of our existence. We are never free of it."
"But how do you resist?" asked Harry.
"I am not fully able to resist it," whispered Aardus as he lowered his eyes to the floor. "But I do my best to avoid innocent victims. I try to kill only the guilty or evil."
"Like those thieves in Greece. Or the wanna be vamps in Britain."
"Yes," admitted Aardus.
Hermione looked at him sadly and said nothing more of the unicorn.
"If I'm not a vampire, then what am I? I'm no longer human…Harry…"
"Don't even think about trying to push me away Mione. We're in this together, no matter what. You were willing to stay by me after Voldemort's defeat. I will never abandon you." Holding up his right hand so that she could see the faint scar across the palm, he continued. "I have sworn to be your protector and defender, and to do all I can to give you joy and happiness. I have pledged everything I am to your service. Even if I hadn't, I would still stay by your side Mione. I love you and always will."
"But…"
"No buts, Mione. You have always stood by me, no matter how tough or dangerous. I will do no less for you. Don't you understand that I love you-no matter what?"
Tears were falling down Hermione's cheeks as she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Harry and hugged him tightly. "Thank you Harry. I love you too."
"HARRY!" All three looked up at the shout. Harry glanced at Hermione for a moment.
"I'll stay in here with Aardus while you explain what happened Harry. I…I don't want to see anyone else right now. Not yet."
"Mione."
"NOOO! Just go!"
Harry nodded sadly and left the two in the room. As he left, Hermione kneeled by Aardus and started bandaging his wounds.
"Harry! You're OK! What happened to you?! What happened in here?! Did you find Hermione-is she alright?" shouted Ron as he and his brothers ran through the room.
Harry stepped towards the three Weasleys and the dwarf. "Hermione is resting, but first things first. We need to finish staking the rest of these vampires. I'll make the stakes, you guys pound them in. Uhh, how did you guys get here?"
"Long story," replied Fred.
"We'll tell you while we're staking," added George.
Harry nodded and pulled out four mallets from his pouch and tossed them to the Weasleys and Fribig and then began reforming wood splinters from the exploded tree into large stakes for them. Harry stabbed several of the more active vampires with Shadowbreaker in order for one of the others to more easily stake them.
Fifteen minutes later, Fred asked, "Blimey Harry, how many vampires did you beat today?"
"This has to be some kind of record," added George.
"That's Harry for you, taking all the fun for himself," joked Ron. "You didn't leave any vampires somewhere else in the castle for us to stake, did you?"
Harry looked sharply at him and then sighed. "No. These are all the vampires we stake today."
The four whirled towards the main doors as they heard more quiet footsteps approaching. Samuel and Remus stepped through quickly, taking in the scene in a glance. Snape, Hagrid, Malfoy, the other Weasleys, Luna and the three Aurors came in right behind them. All of them had torn and bloody clothing and looked a little tired.
"What kept you?" quipped Fred.
"You guys were only a mile or so from the castle when we left," added George.
"We ran into a few defenders in the part of the castle we entered," sneered Snape. "For some reason, Hunt thought it best to come through the front doors."
Harry appeared from behind the group, holding out Shadowbreaker. "Here, take turns stabbing one of the dying vampires with this. It will help you feel better, in more ways than one."
Harry handed the sword to Ginny and everyone watched in awe as her wounds were healed. Looking at the twins and Ron and the dwarf he added, "You four finish staking the rest. You can listen while I explain what happened."
"Where is Hermione? Is she OK? Did you find her?" asked Remus, Ginny, Luna, and Hagrid.
"She's resting for a bit. It's been a rough week for her." Harry then recapped his adventures up through the battle with the vampires, but not to the final fight with Corlyn and Hermione.
"Simply amazing," muttered Remus in amazement. "An exploding tree-who would have thought?"
Samuel and Snape looked around in awe as well, while the others simply looked around in disbelief.
"But what about Hermione?" asked Remus again.
"I'm getting to that. The thing is…"
"I'm over here," announced a clear voice from the other end of the room. Everyone looked up as a dark figure emerged from the heavy shadows at the far side of the room behind a raised dais.
As she stepped closer to the group, she paused in front of a large beam of sunlight that was now pouring over the hills through one of the large windows where one of the heavy curtains had fallen during the battle. She stretched out her hand slowly, tentatively, and then her arm broke into the light. When nothing happened she stepped forward fully into the light.
Hermione stood before them, but there was much more to her than they had ever seen before. She radiated power and beauty, it seemed to flow from her in waves. Her skin was still pale, but seemed more like silver ivory, strong and healthy rather than weak and sickly. Harry and the others saw the silver streak in her brown hair, several locks curling down the side of her face. And then the others noticed with surprise something Harry had already seen-Hermione's eyes. They were no longer the deep rich chocolate brown with golden flecks. Her eyes were now a bright blue and they seemed to sparkle with flashes of silver.
Ron started apologizing and then asked the obvious question, as only he could. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you-I swear it will never happen again, I…What on earth happened to you Hermione? Are you…are you OK?"
She turned to look at him and replied. "I think so-I don't know yet. I don't even know what I am anymore. I'm not human, I'm not a vampire…I…I don't know what I am." Luna and Ginny ran forward and threw their arms around her. After a moment came Hermione's clear voice again. "I'm tired, I want to go home. Please take me home Harry."
Harry looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, as if listening to something only he could hear and nodded. He pulled a coin from his pouch and whispered softly, "Portus. I'll send the three of you home now. The rest of us will finish cleaning up here and be there shortly." Harry handed the coin to Hermione and the other two girls touched it as it lay in her open palm. Hermione whispered "Home," and the three girls disappeared from sight.
Harry turned back towards the group, his eyes flashing. "Is everybody healed then? Good, go back downstairs with Fribig. I'll meet you in the courtyard in a few minutes."
"Harry," started Remus and Ron but stopped at the cold glance Harry gave them.
Charlie and Bill led the others out behind Fribig, with Samuel and Lupin bringing up the rear.
Harry walked back to the room where Aardus lay quietly. "Is there anything I can do for you?"
"You can finish me off with that nasty little sword you have," he whispered.
"There is no need to do…"
"No need?" he hissed angrily. "As soon as Vespus regains his power and takes another body, I will become his slave again. You must destroy me before I become dangerous to you or Miss Granger again. I don't want to hurt you anymore than I already have, but I may not have a choice. And Vespus will come back, I guarantee it."
"Hermione needs your help. Now more than ever."
"What? How can I…"
"You are a vampire. She has vampirelike powers, but no idea how to use them. She wants you to show her how to control them so that she doesn't hurt anyone or…"
"I can't. I can't take the risk that I might hurt anyone else. Please, just destroy me."
"NOOO! She needs you. And I need you to help her. Please, Aardus, please help her just once more. You can stay in the Forest and I'll get the potions you need to control your blood lust. Please, Aardus."
"Very well."
"Thank you. I'll make a portkey for you that will take you to a large cave I know about deep in the forest. You'll be safe there. Do you have any idea where Vespus might go to hide and recuperate?"
"I know of several of his sanctuaries, but I am sure he has several more that I don't know of. He never really trusted me, you know."
"Well, we can check those places and make sure that he's not using them, and that he'll never use them again, but that will have to be later. Now go. I will stop by later today."
Several minutes later, Harry was alone again in the top of the Iron Tower. He looked out in the courtyard and saw his friends standing in the cool air, looking up anxiously at the Tower. Satisfied that none of the vampires were moving, he moved back towards the room where he had found Hermione.
He focused for a moment on the fear and pain he had felt when he first found her and let it build within him. He then added all of his frustrations and anger he had experienced during the long search for her. He then let his rage explode with the anguish he felt at what had been done to her and his inability to save her. There was a whooshing of air that whipped his hair as the leaping flames in the room sucked in the air from the outside chamber. Harry threw his hands in the air and tilted back his head and roared with all of the pain and hurt and fear he had seen and felt in Hermione since he had found her. The roof was blown into the sky and Harry could feel the Tower begin to tremble. For a moment, he exulted in the savagery of the energy he was unleashing and the sheer recklessness and power of the destruction he was directing. He then disappeared from the flaming inferno and reappeared in front of his friends in the courtyard. His eyes continued to burn ferociously as the entire tower shook as the flames spread downward burning everything flammable and the stones began thundering down on top of each other. After a few minutes, the entire tower collapsed in on itself as Harry watched with tremendous satisfaction.
Harry turned and in surprise noticed that Snape, Samuel, and Remus had erected a magical barrier to protect them and the others from the heat and flaming fragments of the tower.
"Uhhh, I'm sorry about that. I didn't think about…" began Harry earnestly.
Lupin simply raised his hand. "Just remember next time that we don't all have the remarkable defenses of an elemental mage."
Harry then turned to Fribig. "Thank you again for all of your help. And thank your father for me as well."
"Harry Potter. Thank you for everything you have done for my people. I am forever in your debt. If there is anything my father or I could ever do to repay the debt in part, please let us know." He then bowed and marched away from the smoldering ruin of the tower through the collapsed walls of the castle.
"I don't know about you Potter, but I could use some warm food and a soft bed," added Samuel as he picked up a large branch from the ground. "Portus." Everyone grabbed hold and disappeared when Samuel said "Hogwarts."
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