How a Roman Should Die
Welcome to another fanfiction story of mine. This one will be different than my others, but I do recommend that all y'all give the others a chance and give them a read. I love reviews and comments, and if you notice anything wrong, off, or inconsistent then feel free to send me a PM.
This will be time travel, and it will be historical fiction. If I make blatant errors please PM me, but keep in mind that it may be intentional.
This is only the Prologue, the first chapter might be/ should be up tonight, possibly with another chapter of What Was Once Forgotten.
Hadrian 'Harry' James Potter had done many things during his long life. As a teenager he had defeated Lord Voldemort and became the Master of Deathly Hallows. This had been the greatest curse in his life. Upon becoming the Master of Death not much had changed immediately, but gradually changed Harry's life had changed. First he lived to the age of 100, a healthy, respectable age for a wizard. And then 150 came around, he was still healthy and spry. Harry was now 300 years old, but he did not look a day over 25, which had caused some unwanted questions from the press and the Ministry of Magic.
After outliving the last of his friends, Harry had completely dropped into seclusion. Hiding, moving, always researching more and more obscure magics Harry never stayed in one area for too long ever again. For 150 years he had lived this life, watching the world around him change constantly. Wars, invasions, Dark uprisings, Harry had watched it all from afar. During his seclusion Harry had become more powerful than ever, researching obscure and ancient magics, and training in various forms of combat.
That was how Harry kept himself sane in his hermitude. While tracking down various magical artifacts and tomes was what interested him greatly, he turned his will and discipline into mastering different combat forms and styles, mainly hand to hand combat and various melee weapons.
Currently Harry was tracking down an ancient scroll that was supposed to contain the incantation for a very powerful Ancient Roman spell. Which was how Harry found himself searching through a musty and gloomy cave on the island of Sardinia, rather near the city of Cagliari, or Caralis as it was once known. It had taken him months to track this spell down to this particular cave, and now it was time to see his months of work come to fruition.
Moving slowly with his wand in his right hand, held aloft with a lumos spell providing light, and a steel short-sword in his left hand Harry felt prepared. His clothing was enchanted to protect him from magic and physical damage, his reflexes were as good as they were in his quidditch days, and he was confident in his skills with not just his wand, but with his blade. Despite being about 300 years old at this point Harry was still at his peak, thanks to being Master of the Deathly Hallows.
Thinking of the Hallows, as he did quite often he glanced at the wand in his right hand. At first the Elder Wand had been quite difficult to use, and he had not even wanted to use it. Hermione and Ron had convinced him that it was too great of an opportunity to waste, and was dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands. The Ressurection Stone was on his finger, Harry sometimes used it to hold conversations with his long since departed friends and family members. Thinking of the Invisibility Cloak Harry patted a small leather pouch on his hip, content once he felt the weight and mass of the Cloak.
Staying in a ready stance and slowly progressing his way through the rather tight cave Harry stayed on alert. He could almost taste the latent magic in the air, something towards the rear end of the cave was heavily enchanted, very heavily enchanted.
Looking at his surroundings Harry paused for a moment. His lumos spell cast light through the small cavern that he was standing in, and he could see a small tunnel half hidden by a large grey boulder that continued onwards. The tunnel seemed to be leading not just further inside, but also slanting downwards deeper underground. It was also in the direction that Harry could sense the magical buildup. Glancing around the grey stone walls of the cave Harry continued on through the tunnel, crouching slightly and staying alert.
After a few minutes walk, with the feeling of powerful and ancient magics not unlike the ones at Hogwarts becoming stronger and stronger, Harry reached a dead end. The slate grey stone suddenly formed a perfectly smooth wall face, with no fissures or cracks. It was completely sealed, and it was puzzling to Harry. But Harry was not without experience in these situations, after 150 years of seclusion and recovering artifacts and spells he was quite competent in this regard.
"Lux Morari" This spell transferred the small ball of light that lumos provided from the tip of Harry's wand to the stone that Harry had tapped. This freed up his wand for further spell casting.
"Ostium Revelare" Harry cast a simple detection spell next, a dark red jolt of light shot from his wand to the smooth stone surface of the odd wall and simply shimmered out of existence. While the spell did not make contact it did prove that some sort of magical defenses were present.
"Invenio Vitium!" This spell was slightly more complicated, but it was still child's play for Harry. After the incantation and a brief yet complex wand motion, another reddish light sprang from Harry's wand and flew towards the wall. However this time, as the spell reached exactly where the Ostium spell had dissolved this spell activated. It activated the ancient protective spell, and it came roaring to life. The old spell had not deteriorated in its age, instead it had grown more powerful, feeding off the slight latent magic floating in the air. It was similar to how the wards and spells at Hogwarts gained their power over time.
A blue dome came into existence, and at first glance it seemed just as smooth and flawless as the stone wall behind it, yet to Harry's trained eye a minute imperfection was spotted after just a few moments of observation.
Thinking for a moment Harry decided that a Command would be better suited than a spell in this situation. A Command was an order, heavily draped with magic, that was meant to be irresistibly powerful to whatever it was spoken to. It was a near lost magical art that Harry had rediscovered for himself in Egypt a decade or so ago.
"Nihil in his tibi velis . Tendunt ad voluntatem meam."
With his sword back in it's scabbard on his hip and his wand in his right palm Harry watched with interest. It was not everyday that he had an opportunity to test a Command against an ancient and powerful protection.
The Command proved too powerful and the blue dome simply popped out of existence. An ordinary spell that had overpowered or circumnavigated the protection might have led to an explosion or more dramatic ending, but the Command had been to simply bend to Harry's will, which had been for the protection to cease existing. And the powerful illusion that had made the tunnel appear to be a smooth stone wall also ceased to exist.
Drawing his sword once more, dispelling the lux morari spell and relighting his simple lumos Harry pressed forward through the now open tunnel, now on high alert.
Making his way through the tunnel at a slightly slower pace than before, he soon came upon another barrier, however this one was much simpler. A small wooden door, with an engraved inscription upon it, and a skeleton were directly ahead. The inscription on the magically preserved door read, "Nolite ascendere, non. Apollo hoc locum blasphemum."
Looking down to the crumbled skeleton at the base of the door Harry crouched and grabbed a brass key still clutched between bony and long dead fingers, the other hand clutching a long since decayed sword handle. Deliberately and carefully raising the dull brass key to the keyhole of the door Harry prepared himself for what he would find inside. He had since sheathed his sword once more, still preferring wand over blade when it came down to it. Turning the key in the lock and hearing the click sounding the lock giving way Harry pressed the door gently.
A sweeping gust of sudden wind came out of the now opened doorway, extinguishing Harry's lumos spell, which was strange, as no regular wind could dispel lumos like that.
Continuing through into the complete and utter darkness despite trying to hold himself back Harry found that he was no longer in control of himself. Taking half a dozen slow steps into the unknown and inky blackness Harry was suddenly blinded. A flash of light as bright as the sun itself pierced his eyes, sending searing pain straight through them. A splitting headache developed immediately, and Harry's vision did not return.
Regaining some control of his movement Harry drew his sword and wand. Casting various battle magic spells that would have done horrible damage and had devastating effects on the cavern around him had each and every spell not been simply vanishing and ceasing to exist immediately.
Still blind Harry felt the breath forced out of his lungs and his entire body erupt in fiery pain Harry screamed a harsh and brutal cry.
The most beautiful and powerful voice Harry had ever heard then spoke, "Stop. You are here for a reason, now stop." It was impossible to resist the command, and Harry quieted immediately. Though his head still throbbed and his sight was still gone Harry was somewhat calmed.
Nodding his head in submission, knowing that despite how much he disliked doing so that it was impossible to resist such a powerful being, Harry waited for the being to speak again.
"I am Apollo, and you, Harry Potter, will be my tool."
Apollo. The Greek and Roman god of the sun and prophecy? Harry had had enough of prophecies in his time on earth, he needed no more, but it seemed that he was about to be roped into another prophecy.
"It was prophesied that you would one day come to me here. And come you did. It was also prophesied that you would be my servant, my agent, my sword and shield in the physical world. Us gods no longer interfere directly too much, but we can utilize mortals."
But, Harry thought, he was not exactly a mortal, he was in fact quite the opposite now.
"I know you are the so- called 'Master of Death.' That is what will allow you to survive the transportation."
Transportation? What transportation?
"Go to Delphi, Hadrian, and meet my Oracle. She will give you further direction."
Touching his hand to Harry's head Apollo channeled his immense power through Harry.
And thus, still blinded, Hadrian 'Harry' Potter was sent on his way, tumbling through time at the mere touch of a god.
How did y'all like that? It was fun to write, but I think the next parts will be even more fun. Again if anyone of y'all find any blatant errors just let me know. Leave a review and tell me what you think, it really is incredibly motivating and encouraging.