Fusion of Destinies II: Day of Reckoning
a Harry Potter/Metroid crossover
Chapter 48: A Prince and His Angel
7-23-2010
by Grey-X
Disclaimer: The Harry Potter series and all of its characters are the creation and property of J. K. Rowling. Samus Aran and the Metroid series are the creation and property of Nintendo, and was originally masterminded by Gunpei Yokoi (1941-1997) .
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The mic that Adam made Harry place on his ear was uncomfortably itchy, but the commands blared out in his grating, synthesized voice were even more insufferable. Since this lunar station didn't cause radio interference anywhere near as powerful as that of the Founders' four sanctuaries, Adam gave him and Samus the same communication devices he outfitted Ron and Hermione with. Remembering that, Harry gladly put up with Adam's usual gruff bluntness, since with his help, they might be led right to them.
"Coming up on your left there should be another long hallway. According to these latest readings, the dark energy signatures will get stronger in that direction. Kor-Zor, and perhaps Valkyrie, may be down there," buzzed Adam's voice. The deeper they delved into Valkyrie's last holdout, the more garbled Adam's transmissions became, and Harry didn't like it one bit.
Samus slowly advanced down the maintenance shaft, arm cannon at the ready. The apprehension and anxiety she clearly felt was a tangible thing, radiating off of her, mirroring Harry's feelings perfectly. "I don't like this, Adam. We haven't encountered anything in the way of internal security systems, or Inferno personnel. Now I'm starting to think Valkyrie really is leading us into some sort of cheap trap," she said testily.
"As for the lack of her Inferno comrades, that's easily explained away. This entire lunar instillation seems to be built for the sole purpose of harnessing dark energy and dark matter, a task Valkyrie would want to oversee personally in the end stages," said Adam. "Regardless, trap or not, you two must press on. The entire mission depends on it. Ron and Hermione's safe return and Valkyrie's defeat cannot be carried out by anyone else."
"Sure, Adam. No pressure, right?" spat Harry tersely.
Samus sighed, then said. "Can your sensors penetrate any deeper into the lunar surface? Any life signs that could be Ron and Hermione, or a concentration of dark energy that could be Kor-Zor?"
"I'm afraid that's a negative, Lady," replied Adam. "On top of that, it looks like our communications will be knocked out quicker than I calculated. Soon, you could very well be on your own."
Samus looked back over to Harry, a strange glimmer in the eyes behind that visor. "Somehow, I think we'll manage," was all she said.
And so, the pair pressed on, ducking down yet another dark, foreboding hallway. The walls themselves were almost always long stretches of lunar rock, with occassional arrays of pipes, wires, and support beams. As they ran down, they came across a lone hatch on their left side. Before Harry could say anything, Samus was prying the door apart with her left hand. Within seconds, she had forced herself in. Harry caught a glimpse behind her visor, that glimmer now replaced with an icy hardness.
Following her in, Harry realized this room was some sort of workstation, with computer terminals everywhere. As he approached one, wondering if he could get anything out of it, he noticed Samus was apparently staring at it. He backed off sheepishly, realizing she'd get work done faster by scanning and hacking these computers. "Find anything useful, Samus?"
A moment later, Samus shook her head. "Nothing about Ron and Hermione or this 'code black' that Myrtle mentioned," she said in a defeated voice. "It did give me the basic layout of this upper level, the methods Valkyrie's using to harness Kor-Zor's power and, most importantly, where it's all originating from."
Harry caught on right away. "So, if we trace the dark power to its source...we find Kor-Zor. And hopefully Valkyrie."
Samus nodded in approval. "You sure you're ready for this, Harry?"
"D'you even have to ask at this point?" Harry asked defiantly.
Harry could tell Samus was smirking at him. "I suppose not." With that, Samus blew apart the door at the adjacent side of the workstation, and the pair promptly ran through. Using the schematics that Samus had just downloaded, navigating the maze of corridors got a whole lot easier. Many minutes passed with dreadful silence hanging over them, darting down one long, dark, abandoned walkway after another. Their path took them through what looked like a sort of warehouse, full of crates packed with all sorts of strange machines and magical artifacts that Harry couldn't begin to describe. But four items in particular caught their attention.
"Samus, those statues. Some sort of ceramic, but...please, use your scan visor. There's something dodgy, just LOOK at them," Harry croaked, staring apprehensively at four amber-colored, glassy statues. The craftsmanship was impeccable, recreating to scale perfectly the four recently-defeated Reformers.
Again, Samus just stood there, seemingly staring at their objects of interest. At length, she said, "My visor hasn't picked up anything unusual about these things, magical or otherwise."
"Then nothing dodgy should happen if I do this," said Harry flatly, aiming his wand at the one modeled after Ped. A Reductor Curse instantly smashed it into powder, and soon the other three were blasted into oblivion as well.
A moment passed, and the shattered remains did nothing whatsoever. Samus glared blankly at Harry, then motioned for him to keep following her. Eventually, they reached a hallway that was essentially a huge ring, with a huge column of pipes in the center. As Harry approached them, he could sense some terrible, wrathful energy flowing through them. Samus later confirmed his suspicions after scanning them, saying, "Dark energy and dark matter are being siphoned through sonme of these pipe relays, with the rest housing wiring and supplying things like coolants. If we can trace the darkness back to its source, we'll find Kor-Zor for sure. Adam, can you hear me? Any chance you can find where the dark energy and dark matter's being shunted, and if you can destroy it from the surface?"
For a moment, nothing but static blared through the mic attached to Harry's ear. Then, Adam's voice weakly came through. "My apologies, Lady, but it looks like the energy was further shunted far below the surface once it goes up out of that room. Too far down, can't even give you an estimate on HOW MUCH Valkyrie's harnessed so far," he said apologetically. "However, I think I'm detecting a spike of Phazon radiation, somewhere fifty meters below your current location. If so, Valkyrie must be nearby."
Harry glanced around, hoping to find a ladder, a service elevator, anything that would lead down. Samus, rather, was looking over the pipes and wires forming the column in the center of the ring-like hallway. All of a sudden, she went into morph ball mode and rolled into the mass of pipes, eventually falling somewhere, out of sight.
"Of course," Harry thought aloud, kicking himself for overlooking what should have been an obvious shortcut. He went into morph ball mode himself and tailed behind Samus. He rolled through tunnel-like spaces and soon caught up to Samus, as she was stymied by huge vertical slopes upward that required skilled use of bombs and the spring ball, as the pipes weren't affected by magnetism. Eventually, both made it up, but Harry couldn't help but mull over how their bombs hadn't damaged the pipes at all. He doubted even power bombs would do anything. More and more, it looked like the only way to stop the flow of dark power was to annilihate Kor-Zor for good.
But if Ron and Hermione weren't here...
The two soon dropped down into a wide-open space, which made Harry nervous, as the sonar range his ball form afforded didn't extend too far. After they unrolled, Harry and Samus found that they were indeed in a very spacious machine chamber, this one with another column in the center. Only this column was thin, glass tube, and Harry's insides froze when he got a look at what was inside.
There was Kor-Zor, howling and flailing as hysterically as when Valkyrie came for him. Looking around, Harry didn't need his own scan visor to see how this entire chamber was built solely for harnessing dark power directly from Kor-Zor. Just the ominous pulsations from under the floorboards the hairs on the back of Harry's neck stand on end. Looking back up to the banished, despised Chozo spirit, Harry's mind went blank, completely at a loss for what to do. One quick glance over at Samus told him she was just as clueless, and infinitely more terrified.
But just as suddenly as numb terror took hold of them, a series of interconnected metal plating slid up the length of the glass tube, effectively sealing it off. Then, a jarring voice rang out behind them. "You were right to be in awe of such a dangerous beast. But do forgive me for taking precautions, in case you get over your awe and try something stupid."
Harry steeled himself as he and Samus whirled around, hoping they were ready for anything. Sure enough, Valkyrie was slowly levitating herself down to the floor, her expression one of labored, stony calmness. But the pernicious glow of those pink and indigo eyes gave away her true feelings.
"Some would say we've already tried something stupid, venturing down here in the first place," Samus shot back. "You deactivated whatever security measures you built into this place. You clearly wanted us to follow you down here, and we've played right into your hands again, haven't we?"
Valkyrie smirked defiantly at them. "You can read me like a piece of parchment, can't you?" she asked dryly. "Too bad I couldn't read you two just as well."
"Give yourself some credit. You must've known we'd follow you anywhere after you showed you were willing to blow Ron and Hermione away. And here we are," snarled Harry, his venomous animosity finally boiling to the surface.
"So let's get right to it, Asara," Samus chimed in. "This 'code black' you ordered, which supposedly means that Ron and Hermione would be brought here if they were found floating in space. Come clean, Asara. Do you have them here or not?"
The fierce glow in Valkyrie's eyes seemed to fizzle for a moment as he cocked her head to the side, sizing up the two of them. At length, she said. "Don't know how you found out about that little detail, but it's true that those two would've been delivered here. And though I'm happy to say the code black was successfully carried out, your friends, unfortunately, were nowhere to be found."
Harry couldn't contain himself. In a flash, he lobbed a missile and a Cruciatus Curse at Valkyrie. But with equally swift swipes from her wand and bionic arm, she batted away both. "YOU LIAR!" he roared, ready to jump at Valkyrie and tear her apart.
"Well, perhaps you should talk to the one who helped me carry out the code black's end phase," said Valkyrie, calmly but sternly. Valkyrie's gaze drifted upward, behind them. Risking a glance over his shoulder, he saw Snape lowering himself down with conjured winds. The Polyjuice Potion had long since worn off, his wounds from Hufflepuff's tunnels healed, but he still had an armored breastplate, those odd mechanical boots, and a submachine gun. And, of course, a face as stony and unreadable as ever.
"George called it right. Everyone's here," Harry muttered under his breath. "Fine by me." Terrible rage flowed through Harry again. If it wasn't for Snape, Valkyrie could never have duped Samus into freeing Kor-Zor, giving her the means to make her virus work. Ron and Hermione never would have had to infiltrate that orbital platform...
"Tell me something, Sev. Did you ever explain to Harry how his father would never dare bully you unless Lily and I were never around, unless the rest of those so-called Marauders had his back?" Valkyrie asked smoothly.
Snape's lip curled as his cold, black eyes narrowed at Harry. "Indeed I have."
"Well, if things get out of hand here, he may soon find out why," Valkyrie said dangerously.
"The prince and his beloved angel, together again," Samus spat sardonically. "Good for you, back with an old friend from your Hogwarts days, boasting about it, just as you told Harry that his are gone forever..."
"We never wanted it to come to that," said Valkyrie, shaking her head. "You know full well I wanted all four of you with me this whole time, and still held out hope..."
"Spare us, Valkyrie!" howled Harry, cutting her off. "Adam heard the orders you bellowed onto that platform! You wanted them cooped up there as it blew!"
At last, Valkyrie's composure was shaken. The glow in her eyes dimmed again, and her head fell a little. "I lost my temper and acted rashly, I won't deny it," she said at length. "But can you really blame me? I tried offering all four of you everything you dared dream of, and instead, you've been hellbent on undoing my life's work."
"Too bad your life's work involves mucking up the fabric of time and space itself," snapped Samus.
"Yeah. For someone who's obviously an atheist, you have a curious obsession with playing God," added Harry.
Whatever shame Valkyrie was feeling evaporated in an instant, and her surly, self-assured demeanor returned. "You really think I haven't heard lines like that before, Harry?" she asked delicately, smirking at him. "Ever since I was three, people tried to drill that into my head. That everyone who simply accepts evolution as a reality simply want to be gods themselves. Does that really apply here? It's not power for myself I'm after, but giving away a power our kind has squandered for too damn long."
"Even if your virus won't wind up killing millions of Muggles, d'you honest;y think we'd go along with this war you stirred up?" demanded Harry. "How can all this chaos possibly change the course of humanity's evolution for the better?"
"It's like I tried to tell you before, it's simply retooling the two components driving the engine of evolution," said Valkyrie. "With the virus I created thanks to your Metroid DNA, triggering desired mutations was taken care of. Natural selection, though...for humans nowadays, that's the tricky part. It should be obvious, though. Our kind has become too soft and content, hiding away from the rest of the world, as evidenced by Voldemort accomplishing so much through fear alone. Well, isolation will no longer be possible, will it?
"As for the Muggles...look at the ones living under oppression, poverty and terror in the so-called Third World right now. Utterly powerless, too afraid to make a stand. That's why I was so proud of Kago. Like me, he would've been cast out, treated like garbage. But I raised him into a prime example of how the right education and motivation can give anyone the strength to fight back, given the chance. Just like all the other Reformers. That's my specialty, y'see. Taking in those the rest of the world callously toss away, and forging them into a force to be reckoned with. Not to mention I made Kago a promise, doing everything I could early on to spark that same metamorphosis in the rest of his old country."
"Like what?" asked Harry.
Valkyrie smirked again. "You really think Nelson Mandela got that far without a little help from moi?" she asked smugly. "Anyway, once the Day of Reckoning comes, all our hopes'll be realized in one fell swoop. All of a sudden, frightened, oppressed people the world over will wake up and realize they have the power to take matters into their own hands. Slowly but surely, entirely new societies will emerge, doing what they can to adapt and survive in a brand new world. Even I can't predict how things'll progress, but I always planned to be around, nudging things along here and there.
"And finally, the sticky issue of the global superpowers like England, China, Russia and, of course, the so-called greatest nation on Earth, America. How long have they ALL used fear as political weapons, too? Keeping their people in line, making sure they go along with pointless wars and arms races that cost trillions of dollars, money that could be better spent elsewhere? Well, now the Muggles in those countries've seen their governments can't always protect them, and let's see how much longerthe status quo'll last after the Day of Reckoning. And of course, there's the added bonus of watching billions of Muggles squirm, coming to grips with a power they don't understand, and sometimes raised to think as evil. Well, come to grips they will, as they try to bring order to the chaotic world I've left them."
"And you still think you're doing this all for Lily Potter's memory, that this is what she really wanted?" demanded Samus. "That she would've wanted her dream realized at any cost, destroying before you could create?"
Valkyrie's smugness faded as her eyes narrowed, glowering at Samus, but it was Snape who spoke up. "We knew Potter's mother better than anyone, Aran. She completed us, stabilized our lousy lives in ways you couldn't ever imagine. There was both a strength and a profound vulnerability to Lily, an ocean's depth of empathy. Her heart bled for this world, Aran, more than you two will ever know."
"And when she was gone, no one felt the loss more deeply than us," added Valkyrie with a venomous bite. "And it wasn't just Voldemort responsible, but a world that tolerated him and others like him. We won't quit until we know we've got a world that won't see repeat performances of what happened to her and us," she continued, pointing at Samus.
"There've been plenty of repeat performances, family and friends lost because of what you've done!" cried Harry, refusing to buy into Valkyrie's manipulativeness any more. He kept the argument going, though, watching and waiting for any opening, any slim chance at striking back. "You're right, I never knew my mother. But I know in my heart that if she could see both of you now, she'd think she'd be better off dead!"
Valkyrie gasped a little, but quickly regained her composure. "You think I enjoy doing all this, being driven to these extremes?" she demanded. "Are you so determined to see me as pure darkness and evil? Fine. Be that way. But maybe you're right. Maybe Lily and I were like everyone always said: yin and yang, light and dark. When Lily was taken away, the balance was gone, and only darkness was left for me. But if embracing that darkness means I can do whatever it takes to change a world that let Lily's light be snuffed out, bring about a world she dreamed of, so be it!"
"And yet, while they claim they know and understand Lily better than her two best friends, perhaps there's another reason for their obstinance," said Snape smoothly. "Perhaps they fear a world where there's no need of Harry Potters and Samus Arans."
"What's THAT supposed to mean?" demanded Harry. As usual, Snape's words infuriated him to no end, but Valkyrie's ranting still rankled more. She talked as if the Day of Reckoning was still coming, even with her virus gone and Inferno sealed off...
"Please, Sev, you should know better by now," chided Valkyrie. "As confusing as some of their decisions still are, I have no doubt they're tired of everyone in the universe being so weak and spineless, dumping all their burdens on their shoulders. No, they'd gladly give up their roles as saviors if they could. At least, I thought they would. I offered them exactly that..."
"And now we know we made the right call, watching everything you did from that point on! You only dueled Voldemort so you could take his place, and cause devastation on an even greater scale!" roared Samus. "And you ordering Ron and Hermione to be left to die clinched it!"
"Just as you offing all the Reformers, including my son, clinched it!" Valkyrie shot back, the pink and indigo glow of her eyes now back in full force.
"So there's no way out, is there? Both sides are convinced they know what Lily Evans stood for, and won't let the other side get away with the losses they've incurred," said Samus dryly, as if resigning to fate. Harry looked over to her anxiously. The gauntlet was about to be thrown, he knew it...
"I suppose there isn't," said Snape flatly.
"Then let's not waste any more time," said Samus with a tone of finality. No doubt she was eager to start pounding Valkyrie's face in, but at that moment, Harry felt his resolve ebb. He still couldn't see any way to take Valkyrie head-on and expect to win, and he had a nagging feeling that even if he could, she'd have one last trump card to play...
"Let's not," Valkyrie repeated darkly, in an icy tone that belied her burning, glowing eyes. In an eyeblink, she flung her wand forward as her bionic arm shifted into her arm cannon. A double blast of Phazon energy grazed across the collection chamber's floor plating, which Samus and Harry dodged desperately. Even when anticipating such a sudden move, they barely ducked aside in time. Even so, Harry felt the intense heat of the radiation through his suit, making him sweat nervously. Turning that power back onto Valkyrie would be tougher than he thought.
Valkyrie's barrage ceased suddenly, and Harry instantly knew she was on the move. Before he could get set, Valkyrie flew right at him, tackling him to the ground. They skidded along the floor for a moment as Harry struggled to shake Valkyrie off. After slamming into the wall, Valkyrie drew back her left fist. With blinding swiftness, she brought it down, and Harry barely jerked his head aside. Her metal fist plunged into the floor instead, giving Harry a chance to land a Cruciatus Curse, blasting her away. Her scream let him know Bellatrix was right all along. WANTING to cause pain was the key.
Putting herself back together in record time, Valkyrie started floating around the collection chamber, keeping her distance while firing down at Harry with beam shots. For good measure, she levitated metal tiles they just upturned and transfigured them into massive, crushing hammers. Harry ran around as he ducked and dodged the beams and flying, spinning hammers, firing back with charged shots of his own. He fired a few missiles for good measure. Some shots got through, but the ones that did hardly fazed Valkyrie, even with the plasma beam effect. On top of that, it was getting harder and harder to evade everything she threw at him. At one point, stray beams clipped his side, draining nearly a whole tank. This gave Valkyrie an opening, chucking a hammer that caught him square in the chest.
Harry went flying across the chamber again. Not only that, Valkyrie played it so he slammed right into Samus. He caught a brief glimpse of Snape, with whom she'd been fighting. Both of them crashed into the far wall. Harry looked up to see Snape skating on air, coming right for them, his black cloak billowing behind him. In despeation, Harry swept the chamber using Aguavenenumenti, but Snape gracefully leaped up and out of the way, then sent down a hail of enchanted lead and magical, freezing mist.
"Move Harry, scatter!" Samus thundered as she shoved Harry aside. Harry ignored the stinging pain from the bullets, more worried about the blast of Glacius as he sprinted away. Turning back, he was ready with a charged shot, but instead of keeping his distance, Snape was coming right for them. Not only that, Valkyrie was swooping in, levitating more hammers while her arm cannon crackled with Phazon energy.
Samus fired up at Valkyrie while extending her fins, no doubt to slash at Snape as he skated past. Unfortunately, he ducked and blasted her with Avada Kedavra at point-blank range, firing his submachine gun at Harry at the same time. Harry threw up a Shield Charm, deflecting his fire, but Valkyrie had closed in, firing blasts of Phazon down at him both him and Samus.
Harry kept dodging both their attacks as best he could while firing back with any magic he could think of. But then, Valkyrie levitated the hammers so they were almost right above him. Then, in a flash, they were transfigured into some sort of drilling missile angled straight down. Being too focused on Harry, Samus had an opening, and fired a fully-charged blast that ripped right through Valkyrie, following up with a volley of missiles.
Still, whatever magic Valkyrie put in place was done, and her drill missiles dropped. Harry ducked and rolled, barely avoiding them as they bore into the floor. Just when the last one dropped and Harry thought he could breathe easily, he heard the missiles hum. Suddenly, they cracked open, sending up spinning disks, which burst open to send out smaller disks, blazing with white-hot flame. Harry had been dumbfounded for a second, and was too late to avoid them completely as the razor-sharp disks rained down, detonating and searing his suit on contact, the pain nearly overwhelming.
Even over the explosive din, Harry heard the crackle of Valkyrie's pent-up Phazon. Waving his wand, he blew away the lingering haze, just in time to see Valkyrie had landed a few yards away, bionic arm reared back. A purple aura washed over her as Phazon energy arced all around her. Then, in a blinding flash, she surged forward with impossible speed, meaning to drive a Phazon-charged metal fist through Harry.
Only Samus ensured that didn't happen, tackling him to the ground as Valkyrie rushed past. As they untangled, Valkyrie plowed into the wall which such force, the whole collection chamber was rocked. Samus sat up, immediately firing as Valkyrie pulled herself free from the metal plating that was now little more than slag. It took a second to get over his shock, but Harry joined in, letting her have it with curses and missiles. They had to break off, however, when Snape skated toward them, cutting loose with Glacius and a hail of enchanted bullets again.
Gritting his teeth in frustration, Harry targeted Snape and fired his missiles. Samus did the same. Unfortunately, he Banished them right back at them as he moved in to cover Valkyrie. As they ducked and dodged, Harry aimed and shouted, "Expelliarmus!" But Snape effortlessly flicked that aside as well.
"Still haven't gotten a handle on nonverbal spells, eh Potter?" Snape taunted. "Get with it, Potter. This isn't training or Defense class...this is FOR REAL!" He had to shout that last sentence of the whining roar of Phazon energy fired from both Valkyrie's wand and arm cannon. She levitated above Snape, firing wildly and forcing Samus and Harry to scatter. Then, she started using continuous, lancing beams, sweeping the chamber. It was all Harry and Samus could do stay one step ahead of those wide beams. On top of that, every time they tried to fire at Valkyrie, Snape flicked their attacks aside.
It wasn't long before a sweeping beam of Phazon clipped Samus's leg as he jumped. She fell back down with a scream, just as the other one started coming for her. Harry ducked and rolled under it, grabbing up Samus just in time and jumping away. "Go limp, Samus! I've got you!" he hollered in her ear over the roar of crackling Phazon.
As he carried her and kept on ducking the sweeping beams, Harry looked back over at Snape and Valkyrie. Even at this distance, Harry could see the unhinged fury in Valkyrie's face, thrown into sharp relief by the purple glow of Phazon. Every other time they fought, Valkyrie had held back, but not any more.
Just when Harry was convinced Valkyrie had endless reserves to tap into, her sweeping beams began to lose intensity, and then faded completely. Snape then skated toward them again, Valkyrie flying closely behind him. Even though she had to cut her sweeping beams and already took quite a pounding, she hardly looked winded at all. No no no, it's just like all the other times. Even with her Metroids dead, she can shake off everything we heap on her...unless it's her own power. He jumped away a bit more, then landed and steadied Samus onto her feet. "Samus, we're not doing too good. Don't think we've got any choice. Let's hope those last-minute modifications Adam made on your suit's weapon systems worked."
"It was gleamed from what data he could recover from Dr. Kasumi Hinada, her own genius involving radiation and physics. It should," said Samus resolutely, though Harry picked up the shakiness in her voice.
"What about Snape? He'll catch on fast," Harry reminded her.
"True, but we can't focus too much on Snape, remember that. Valkyrie's our top priority," said Samus.
"No taking either of them one-on-one, Severus. Let's keep on smashing them both down, together!" cried Valkyrie hatefully. Harry carefully watched as they closed in, seeing the cold determination in their eyes. That 'yin and yang' analogy was righter than anyone knew. It went beyond just Valkyrie and his mother. It was both his parents that were all about utter and total abhorrence of the darkness, while these two, their counterparts, embraced it entirely, let it consume them...
"That'll make it harder. Try to keep Valkyrie occupied, draw her fire. Hopefully Snape won't catch on until it's too late," Harry whispered into his mic, hoping only Samus heard.
And then, Snape and Valkyrie were finally on top of them. Valkyrie hovered high overhead, lashing out with Phazon from both barrels. Samus deftly ducked through them, shoulder-charging Snape to knock him back before firing at Valkyrie. Harry quickly joined in, but again, most of their beams and missiles missed their mark, what with Valkyrie darting around too fast. The shots that got through, Valkyrie barely seemed to feel, and she kept cutting loose with pure Phazon energy.
On top of that, Snape recovered in record time, sending out another burst of frigid mist as he skated around them. Knowing Snape had to be out of the way for his plan to work, Harry switched everything off but the spazer and charged up. Jumping over the mist as Samus kept the heat on Valkyrie, Harry unleashed a trio of Cruciatus Curses, one homing in on Valkyrie, the other two veering toward Snape. Snape batted away one of them, but the other two found their mark. This let Samus unload on Valkyrie with impunity for a few seconds, and let Harry run right at Snape.
This is it. Time to see if I can out-Slytherin the head of Slytherin, Harry thought. He waved his wand as he ran, concentrating hard on casting the one spell he made sure he could cast nonverbally. Snape regathered his wits just as Harry moved in with an uppercut. With stupifying swiftness, Snape grabbed his arm and chucked Harry over his shoulder. Once he was floored, Snape tried bringing his armored, clawed foot down on Harry, but he rolled aside, focusing more on Valkyrie as he kept weaving his charm. As he hoped, Valkyrie was focusing more on Samus, who wasn't even firing back anymore, simply charging a shot...
"A wizard's duel against me is hopeless enough, Potter, but a Muggle's duel? Even moreso," Snape said smoothly. He came right at Harry with a series of kicks, his armored legs lashing out with deadly speed, nearly impossible to block with his left arm alone. Snape nearly toppled him, and each hit drained considerable energy. Harry had hoped it was the smallness of Susan Bones's body that had made Snape so fast and deadly, but back in his own skin, he was more lethal than ever.
But it didn't matter. Harry kept surreptitiously weaving his web of charms. The Half-Blood Prince had already played right into his hands, something that was just dawning on him.
"Hold it. Those wand movements..." Snape began, breaking off his attack, staring at Harry. It was then that he noticed a telltale rippling in the very air in certain spaces, which became more pronounced as Valkyrie's Phazon blasts passed through them. Eyes widening, Snape turned around to look at Samus...and how her charged blast now radiated with crackling, purple energy.
"You wanted nonverbal magic from me, Snape? There you go," spat Harry. While Snape was distracted, he aimed up at Valkyrie. "Incarcerous!" he shouted, instantly ensnaring Valkyrie in a tangle of thick cords. She would burn them off in seconds, but it gave Samus the opening she needed. With one explosive burst, she released the pent-up Phazon energy right at Valkyrie, and with a shriek, she tumbled to the floor, hacking and wheezing.
Snape, still dumbfounded, was easily shoved aside by Harry, who joined Samus in piling everything they could on Valkyrie while she was on the ground, hunched over, weak and helpless. But it wasn't long before Phazon arced all around her once more, and she hovered again. "PHAZON ENERGY?" she roared in disbelief. "How in...how did you harness Phazon again, with no infected suit or P.E.D.?"
Snape quickly skated back under her. "Is was Bangsasunis Chapaprotego, Val," he sneered. "I don't know how, but Potter somehow cast it all over the place. Setting up several charms like mirrors, all angled so ambient radiation was bounced at Aran, who absorbed it all in a charged shot."
If Valkyrie was impressed by their cleverness, she did not show it. All that showed in her face was rage akin to Snape's reaction when Harry used his invented spells against him. But also in those glowing eyes, finally, a hint of real fear...
Valkyrie landed beside Snape, sneering evilly at them. "You see what I've tried to tell you about Harry, Sev? To master such a complex charm in so short a time. But let's see him bounce this next attack around." Valkyrie raised her wand up, angling her arm slightly to her right. Then, Snape crossed his wand with hers, and as he shouted the Glacius incantation, Valkyrie yelled, "Torrentus!"
In an eyeblink, what looked like a cyclone of frigid air appeared in the collection chamber. Snape's clawed boots anchored him to the floor, while Valkyrie stood her ground with the same anti-gravity power that let her fly. Their coats fluttered violently as the icy cyclone drew closer to Harry and Samus, and by now, huge chunks of ice were swirling around the chamber as well. Then, Harry felt the cyclone's suction, drawing the two of them into the deadly vortex.
"Samus, the speed boosters! They have to kick in! RUN!" Harry pleaded, yelling into the mic since the cyclone's howl was drowning out everything. Facing away from the cyclone, they desperately broke into a run. At first, their feet useless scraped against the plating as the cyclone drew them in, but eventually, their speed boosters kicked in. Valkyrie obviously anticipated this, though, as the cyclone's power suddenly became dozens of times more intense. Even at full speed, they were only inching away from it.
To make matters worse, ice chunks were constantly conjured up, swirling around. Harry and Samus narrowly managed to shoot them down before they were slammed by them. Eventually, though, a block of ice slipped by and smashed into Harry, draining a whole tank. But that was the least of his troubles. Losing his footing and speed, Harry was sucked backward, but Samus fired her grapple beam back at him just in time. Pulling him back toward her, Samus held him against her chest as she kept running and shooting down ice chunks.
Looking up, Harry caught that pained, hardened look behind the visor. Don't worry, Samus. You didn't lose anyone. No one'll lose anyone else today. It's going to end here, he thought defiantly. Seeing his opportunity, realizing that Valkyrie and Snape probably couldn't even see him, Harry began erecting the Bangsasunis Chapaprotego charms again...
"This is ridiculous! If Valkyrie couldn't keep up those sweeping Phazon rays, than this tornado sure as fuck can't last forever!" came Samus's exasperated voice over Harry's mic. And then, as if to prove her point, the icy cyclone died away as suddenly as it had come. Even before it dissipated, Snape and Valkyrie charged again. Killing Curses lanced out across the chamber from Snape, while Valkyrie cut loose with Phazon, clearly not expecting that Harry could have set up Bangsasunis Chapaprotego again.
One of the Killing Curses clipped Harry's shoulder, overwhelming him with dizziness, but still, he refused to break his concentration. As he jumped away from Snape, he manipulated the still-standing charms on the fly, so that all the stray radiation was reflected right at Samus. Again, Snape caught on first. "Val, he's got the charms up again! Stop with the Phazon before..."
It was too late. Samus already had another pent-up blast of Phazon energy ready. After finally landing a Disarming Charm on Snape, Harry soared over him as he hit the floor, his submachine gun and wand flying in opposite directions. Valkyrie turned her attention away from Samus an eyeblink too late, and took Harry's screw attack full in the face. Dazed for a moment, it gave Samus the opening she needed, unleashing a second burst of Phazon and flooring Valkyrie.
This time, however, they had no opportunity to unload on Valkyrie. Snape quickly regathered his weapons, widly spraying magical, freezing air and bullets everywhere as he skated around. As he looped back around, he came at Samus with a flying kick, sending them both careening across the collection chamber. Shocked by how suddenly Snape recovered, Harry was distracted for a second, and when he turned back to Valkyrie, she was dashing at him, bionic arm drawn back. She bludgeoned him with it, sending him flying, until he crashed into the shielded tube housing Kor-Zor.
His head was a gaggle of clanging bells, but Harry forced himself to get it together. And just in time, for as he rolled aside, he narrowly avoided a crushing kick from Valkyrie as she slid across the floor. She rebounded off of the shielded tube, floating in midair again. "You got me twice back there, Harry," she said, her voice cracking. "No way around it, you suckered me twice in a row, fair and square. No excuses for it. All that lecturing I gave Voldemort early on about so readily dismissing you, and what do I do? Break my own cardinal rule again and again, letting you blindside me..."
"Then I'll go for what Captain Granger calls a 'hat trick'. Lumosolis!" The wide beam of focused solar energy cut a swath through the air. Valkyrie effortlessly swerved around it, but the blinding glare was enough to let Harry jump up and strike with the screw attack again. He tried firing some missiles after landing, hoping Valkyrie would still be dizzy, but she swatted them away. Her bionic arm converted back into an arm cannon, but she held back, no doubt wary of whatever tricks Harry still might have. "You were right. Easily blindsided again. You're more like Voldemort than you can possibly know..."
"HOW DARE YOU?" Valkyrie roared, lashing out with a sweeping burst of Phazon. With no Bangsasunis barriers up, Harry had to leap aside, barely making it in time. "How can you still be so dead-set on seeing me in the same light as Tom Marvolo Riddle? He does nothing but grab power for himself to launch a campaign of genocide! Me, I've made it my life's mission to take in and empower Muggles and wizards, house-elves and goblins, centaurs and merpeople..."
"Partly because of this sick, egotistical need you have to always be worshipped, to constantly have people praise you!" Harry shot back as he kept dodging Phazon blasts. Maybe, if he could rile Valkyrie up some more, she wouldn't catch on to more Bangsasunis barriers going up. "You're the brainiest witch of our time, no one can deny that. But you've become so conceited, you need to constantly have people fawning over you, so you can keep on convincing yourself you're actually doing the right thing! That's how I knew the Malfoys could sucker you. I made sure they told you everything you wanted to hear!"
A sweeping blast of Phazon punctuated the retort that came next. "So you conned the Malfoys into backstabbing me. Big whoop!" Valkyrie shot back defiantly. As she kept cutting loose with Phazon from her arm cannon, she placed a hand over the Inferno insignia on her shirt. "Look at this, Harry. Call it a perversion of the Order of the Phoenix's symbol if you must, but it's given millions and millions who had absolutely nothing something to believe in, to fight for!"
"More like you brainwashed them into fighting your private wars for you, infecting them with your hatred!" cried Harry. Soon, he hoped, Valkyrie would be enraged enough. "Face it, it's not just Voldemort you were out to punish. North Korea, the United States, the Ministry of Magic, every religion that ever demonized magic, the Order of the Phoenix. You tried to pretty it up with all this talk about my mum's secret dream, but it's just your cover to keep venting your hatred at the entire world! I'm ashamed I was ever tempted by someone like that, someone that's the EXACT OPPOSITE of my mother! I'll NEVER join up with someone that full of hate! NEVER!"
Before Valkyrie could snap back at him, Harry made a leap toward the shielded pillar, dodging all her shots. He kicked off of it, rocketing toward her with the screw attack again, taking her completely by surprise. It stunned Valkyrie for a long as Harry needed to reach the ground, where she spun around and shouted, "Fumoraestus!" Blinding, billowing steam rose up and around him, eventually reaching and burning Valkyrie, fueling her rage even more. She blindly fired Phazon blasts down into the steam, too enraged to think straight and blow it away. And under that cover, Harry wove more barriers with Bangsasunis Chapaprotego. "Samus, more's on the way," he whispered into his mic.
Once it finally occured to Valkyrie to conjure a gust to drive away the steam, there was a loud crack, and Snape sailed past them. He was dazed, bleeding from his nose and mouth. The sight of her husband in such a state distracted Valkyrie for a moment, long enough for Samus to fire another burst of collected Phazon radiation that brought her to her knees.
Obviously, Samus was worked up into a right state herself, for instead of firing on Valkyrie some more, she pulled her up and bashed her skull with her helmet. She let Valkyrie groggily land on her feet, only so Samus could plant some satisfying punches and kicks. Just as Valkyrie got herself back together, swiftly lashing out with a Phazon-charged karate chop, Harry blinded her and beat her back with Lumosolis. He then rushed in, grabbed Valkyrie by the throat, and planted a few satisfying punches right into her gut.
But as Harry unloaded, he heard Snape cry out with, "Avada Kedavra!" As his suit's systems were overwhelmed, forcing Harry to let go, he heard his gunfire, and instantly knew Samus just went down. Once the vertigo abated, he whirled around to see Snape skating at him. With one swift motion, Snape waved his wand, blasting Harry backward into Samus as she got up. They skidded along the ground, trying to untangle themselves. Once they did and wheeled back around, shots charging, they saw Snape and Valkyrie standing side-by-side again, wands crossed.
"Aw, not again," Harry groaned as another icy cyclone burst into existence between them. They tried firing their shots through the cyclone, but had no way of knowing if they connected. The fact that the cyclone was still building up power pretty much told them they didn't. Icy dread clawed at Harry's heart and he and Samus turned and ran, their speed boosters barely kicking in in time.
It wasn't long before chunks of ice were whirling around the collection chamber with deadly speed. At first, Harry quickly took them out with Reductor Curses, and Samus was as good a shot as ever, but more and more were forming. Some got dangerously close before one of them blasted them away. But then, just as Harry expected an ice chunk to knock them back into that cyclone any second, a faint, staticy voice shrilled in his earpiece. "Mate, just hang on for a few more seconds! Reinforcements are on the way!"
Harry's eyes widened as they kept running, utterly bewildered. Who was that? He desperately hoped no one back on the ship was crazy enough to try and have a go at Valkyrie. Then, out the corner of his eye, Harry thought he got a glimpse of two icy swirls high up along the collection chamber's walls. Harry braced himself, expecting a new trick from Valkyrie and Snape. Instead, he heard shouts of "Glacius!" and "Bombarda Maxima!"
One bomb-like, explosive burst of icy power and a tightly-focused beam of ice lanced out and struck something behind the cyclone. At once, the icy winds died. Samus and Harry shot forward, now that nothing was pulling them back. They clumsily skidded to a halt, looking back. There was a thick stalagmite of ice where Valkyrie and Snape stood. Seconds later, it cracked open, revealing a livid but frazzled Valkyrie, but Snape was nowhere to be seen.
"What in the...where'd Snape go?" Samus demanded. "And who, wait...the Glacius and Bombarda Maxima combos? It can't be..."
"You and Harry aren't the only ones who're nearly impossible to kill," came Hermione's sharp, forceful voice from high above. Looking up, confusion and elated swelled within Harry, as Ron and Hermione were dropping down. They touched down as gracefully as they could and looked up. "As for your first question...believe it or not, Snape's the reason we're here."
"SNAPE saved you two?" Harry cried with disbelief.
"All we know is he carried out this 'code black' thing, involving salvaging stuff from that wrecked weapon platform," said Ron. "We figure he must've found us, dragged us here to the moon. We only came to a few minutes ago. Left us a message, told us where we'd find you two fighting him and his wife, told us to ambush the bitch at just the right time. That's all we know, mate."
Harry kept looking from one to the other, beyond confused, yet at the same time overwhelmed with humbling relief. Seeing his confusion, Hermione spoke up. "Harry, I know you've got loads of questions, and even I'm flummoxed about all this. But we've got a job to do, and...we're low on missiles and suit power. Judging from Samus's suit, you got through Gryffindor's sanctuary. Please tell us you got all the gear in there."
"Did we ever!" cried Harry, reaching out to grab Hermione's shoulders, just as Samus touched Ron's.
A blinding glow instantly engulfed both of them, and Harry reached over to touch Ron before it abated. When it faded, Ron's armor had changed from a dull navy blue due a sparkling bronze, while the snakes wrapped around Hermione's torso looked an even more poisonous green, seeming to slither over lusterous silver plating.
"Now THAT'S more like it!" shouted Ron, his eyes excitedly taking in his HUD readouts. His eyes then turned to Valkyrie, losing none of their fire as Phazon crackled around her.
xxxxxx
Samus stared blankly at the trio gathered around her. She was always a woman of few words, but still, no words of hers could possibly express the swelling of relief and joy she left. Even if it was because of a lucky chance that Snape, or all people, turned on Valkyrie like Dr. Hinada had, it didn't matter. Ron and Hermione had survived. The group of young hunters she had surrounded herself with, who trusted her, was whole again. Whether it was due to dumb luck or skill as a leader, it didn't matter. The four of them were together again, and now, with all the pieces of the Founders' weapon, they had a chance to claim victory...
But the sound of Phazon energy insidiously arcing over Valkyrie as she collected herself snapped her back to their grave reality. "Ron, Hermione, keep back. She's getting desperate, she'll be slinging around more radiation than ever..."
"No worries there, Samus. Snape said he injected us with that potion that gives her mates immunity to Phazon," said Ron.
"Yeah. We can't absorb and harness it like you and Harry've done, but...at least we can get close enough to pound her face in!" Hermione added wickedly.
Samus smiled to herself. Their voices made it plain: these two were ready to fight alongside Harry, and now her, to the very end. Still, even alone against the four of them, Valkyrie had proven to be a deadly force, and Samus was determined to bring everyone out of this alive. "Then let's get to work. Fan out, approach her from all sides, give Harry a chance to use Bangsasunis Chapaprotego again..."
Valkyrie just stood there, Phazon crackling all around her as the foursome slowly drew closer, trying to surround her. Even with all the energy Valkyrie was giving off, her eyes glowed the brightest of all as she leered at all of them. "So, the two of you survived after all," she said evenly, eyeing Ron and Hermione as they came up on her left.
"No thanks to you, but thanks to Snape," spat Ron derisively, obviously not liking that idea.
"Severus?" Valkyrie screamed, looking about in a panic. "I...where'd he go? What'd you four do with him?" she demanded.
"Slithered away, like he always does," snapped Samus. "Whatever his reasons, he secretly brought Ron and Hermione onto your lunar base, making sure they'd revive in time so the four of us could smash you down together."
"Again resorting to lies!" Valkyrie shot back. "Sure he must still be sour after I left him alone all these years, but I came back, gave him everything he needed!"
"You just don't get it, do you Valkyrie? Some people just can't be bought, no matter what you offer," said Samus. "You never had a chance of winning the four of us over, and we've got news for you: Snape wasn't the only one to stab you in the back."
"Yeah, and it wasn't just the Malfoys that let us blow through Inferno and squash your Metroids. Believe it or not, Dr. Kasumi Hinada turned on you, too," Harry added spitefully. "She faked her death and let her consciousness linger in Inferno's servers, just so she could shephard us to your Metroids when we finally got there. Turns out she'll fulfill the duty the time travel charm put on her after all."
Valkyrie looked over to Harry, agape, completely nonplussed by the notion that Dr. Hinada, of all people, would switch sides. Ron took that opportunity to jump in. "So much for being the Wizarding world's ultimate genius, smart enough to unite us with all the Muggles! You thought you were so damn smart, as if only you could fix all the world's problems! It never occured to you that the people you thought you were closest to wouldn't let you go through with it!"
"And let's not forget Professor Dumbledore and Harry's mother," added Hermione. "If Snape and the Malfoys couldn't even stomach your Day of Reckoning, d'you honestly think those two would be happy you did all this in their names?"
For a moment, that dumbfounded look seemed to be plastered on Valkyrie's face, but soon, it twisted into a chilling, hideous snarl. "Still determined to see me as a monster," she growled softly. "Very well, if it's a monster you four want, it's a monster you'll get. You're about to see why I always used protective wards to chop down my body's power. It's not just the excruciating pain..."
Valkyrie clamped her teeth down on her wand and suddenly hunched over. Seeing an opportunity to strike, Samus charged forward and fired her missiles. But Valkyrie's bionic arm shifted back into a cannon, sweeping the floor with a beam of Phazon energy, driving them all back.
Samus jumped back a little, keeping her missiles armed as she looked back over to Valkyrie. She gasped as what looked like purple fire flared up around her hunched body, as if consuming her. Instead, that intense flame was incinerating her clothes, which were supposedly fireproof. Her coat, shirt and pants burned away, and her armored boots crumbled into nothingness. There was a blinding purple glow as Valkyrie stood back up, but when it abated, Samus could make out her skeleton and most of her internal organs, her skin now transparent, her muscles like translucent, violet glass. Her eyes were like pink, pulsating orbs within her visible skull, and her five hair braids whipped about like living serpents. But most ominously, intense, purple fire still swirled about her, caressing her like a lover. As was as if Valkyrie was embracing her hate-fueled power, now that even the man she loved could no longer side with her.
Her wand was still intact, and within an eyeblink, Valkyrie pulled it out of her mouth and fired off a Phazon blast, one more deadly and concentrated than ever before. Ron and Hermione dove aside just in time. Still, the Phazon scorched their suits, their flickering shielding visible. Valkyrie then whirled around and took aim at Harry, firing a continuous burst with both her wand and arm cannon. In desperation, Harry had shouted, "Bangsasunis Chapaprotego!" and threw up a barrier. But the instant the Phazon smashed into it, Samus knew it would soon give way. "SAMUS! The radiation's too intense! I can't hold it all back anymore!" he screamed. With a sound like shattering glass, Valkyrie punched through his barrier, sending Harry flying clear across the chamber as Phazon coarsed through him.
Now it was Samus's turn to be livid beyond all reason. She let her missiles fly as he darted right for Valkyrie, extending her fins. Valkyrie's attention still elsewhere, some missiles found their mark, stunning her for a few seconds. Samus moved in and slashed at Valkyrie with her fins. Valkyrie ducked and tried an uppercut with her bionic arm, but Samus ducked backward, driving her foot up into Valkyrie's face. She followed up by bludgeoning Valkyrie with her arm cannon, then reared back her left arm to slash at her again.
But suddenly, Samus felt something coil around her wrist. Looking down, Samus saw that two of Valkyrie's hair braids had snared it. In a flash, Valkyrie jerked her head around, flipping Samus over her and smashing her down against the floor. She did this again and again as Phazon energy overwhelmed her suit's systems, leeching energy away. Helpless, Samus could only watch as those pink orbs fixated on her, radiating inhuman fury. After slamming Samus down so hard that she was practically embedded into the floor plating, Valkyrie turned both her wand and arm cannon on her, and fired. Samus still had half her tanks full at this point, but now, even that was dwindling away by the second...
But as Phazon racked her suit, arcing all over her, Samus could make out a high-pitched whine, one that steadily grew louder. She looked up just as Harry rammed into Valkyrie with the speed booster, pinning her against the shielded pillar. Harry wasted no time, punching every inch of Valkyrie that he could reach while she was dazed, but soon her hair braids ensnared him too. Samus struggled to get up, doing her best to ward off the vertigo and ringing in her ears, but Ron and Hermione were already on it. Ron planted three Blasting Curses on Valkyrie, forcing her to let go, then Hermione used the Glacius Beam to pin her against the pillar.
Finally, Samus got back on her feet, though her legs were still wobbly, just as the ice trapping Valkyrie began to melt and crack. Even after blasting her with her own Phazon, Valkyrie just seemed to keep getting stronger, a fear mirrored by Harry as he looked over to her. "Samus, what do we do? I can't make Bangsasunis strong enough to hold her radiation back anymore!"
Ron looked over to Valkyrie, who just freed herself. "Maybe one of us can't, but there's three blokes with wands out now..."
Ron's idea instantly got Samus thinking of a plan, or at least half a plan. "Everyone, let me go in again, keep Valkyrie occupied. Then, once you three think you've got a clear field, all three of you weave the Bangsasunis charm around her. Completely surround her with it!"
With that, Samus ran right at Valkyrie, rapidly firing beam shots. Valkyrie flinched and teetered backwards, but then flung her arm cannon forward. Multiple missiles rocketed out at her, forcing Samus to roll and duck as they dug into the floor all around her, all the while charging a shot. Seeing Valkyrie was still groggy, Samus unleashed it, driving her back further, while everyone else pitched in with curses. Keeping her on the defensive with a missile volley, Samus kept marching forward, until they were practically face-to-face again. With a furious snarl, Samus unloaded on her again, mercilessly bludgeoning Valkyrie with her arm cannon. The hair braids suddenly whipped out at her, but Samus jumped and planted a spinning jump kick to Valkyrie's face, slamming her against the shielded pillar.
"NOW! Everyone, do it now!" Samus cried out vehemently. The collection chamber echoed with three cries of "Bangsasunis Chapaprotego!" and three seperate, flittering barriers completely surrounded Valkyrie. She picked herself up, readying her arm cannon and wand for more Phazon blasts. She tried punching through the charms, but the triple-reinforced charm held her back. Still, the pained looks on Harry, Ron and Hermione's faces told Samus Valkyrie was pushing them to their limits. Those pink orbs glowed even more fiercely, her inhuman snarling loud and clear through the charms. But then, that furious glow became softer, as if something made Valkyrie panic.
"It's working! It's like a greenhouse effect! She's putting out so much Phazon radiation that it's feeding back onto her, completely destabilizing her!" Samus shouted. Indeed, Valkyrie was on her hands and knees, quivering and shrieking, the Phazon energies of her own body growing dangerously unstable. Unfortunately, the three of them couldn't keep their charms up forever, and eventually sagged on wobbly legs, their wand arms hanging limply at their sides.
Wanting to give them time to recover, Samus slowly approached Valkyrie with a diffusion missile charged up. Valkyrie was just picking herself up, on wobbly legs herself as she glared over at Samus. "Impossible...all three of them..."
"You admitted you keep underestimating us, yet you keep right on doing it," spat Harry. "You honestly think you and your lot in Inferno are the only ones who can use a little scientific know-how with their sorcery?"
"That's your real problem, Valkyrie. You keep thinking you're the only one who can take the best of both worlds. It's not just your radiation shielding charm, don't forget. Harry's the one who figured out how to turn your own virus against you, sealing off Inferno," Samus added.
"Give it up, Asara. There's no way to win this time," said Ron. "It's four against one, and we know how to send your own Phazon right back at you!"
Her face little more than a resplendent skull, it was hard to tell, but Samus thought she saw the muscles in Valkyrie's face twist into a devilish sneer. "Then maybe I should even the odds some," she jeered. Valkyrie made one broad slash with her wand. Samus braced herself, but nothing happened. Valkyrie kept looking from one to the other, as if daring them to strike. Then, up above, Samus saw four separate streams of amber-colored particles swirling down into the collection chamber. They struck the ground...and reformed into the four statues Harry had reduced to dust earlier.
"Oh no. Just...oh no," Harry groaned. With a shrill laugh, Valkyrie raised her bionic arm, and out flew what looked like four small, glowing eggs. One was fused into each of the four Reformer statues, and suddenly, their amber sheen faded. Now, they looked like exact replicas of the vanquished Reformers.
"No, don't tell me these things can..." Hermione began, but she got her answer when the Tesla double unleashed a huge stream of electricity right at her. Hermione jumped backwards, but the Ped double leaped after her, tackling her to the ground. Harry and Ron turned on the Wildflower double, but just like the original, it swung her staff around so fast, all their curses were batted away. Meanwhile, the Faction double dove down where much of the metal plating was upturned, digging into the exposed lunar rock.
Samus sidestepped an electrical bolt from Tesla, who was now flying around, and went straight for Valkyrie. Her diffusion missile still charged up, she fired it at the shielded pillar behind Valkyrie. The swirl of mist dazed Valkyrie for a second, letting Samus blast her at point-blank range.
But it wasn't long before Valkyrie rushed at her, planting a Phazon-charged punch that immediately overwhelmed Samus's systems. A blast of freezing mist from her wand and Phazon from her arm cannon drove Samus back further. A quick glance at her HUD revealed only five tanks out of twenty were left. Undaunted, Samus charged a shot and moved in again. But before she could fire, Ped bounded in from out of nowhere, delivering a drop kick that knocked Samus senseless. Ped then blasted Samus with Glacius at point-blank range. Blocking out the numbing pain, Samus rushed ahead to avoid another Phazon stream from Valkyrie, swiping at at Ped with her wisp whip. Ped merely backflipped out of the way, lashing out with her tongue while doing so and flooring Samus again.
On top of that, balls of lunar rock were exploding out of the ground, breaking up into chunks that flew everywhere. Samus easily shot down any chunks coming for her, but now Ped was leaping at her again, her wand already billowing with icy mist. Luckily, at that moment, Ron cried out with, "Aguavenenumenti!" A stream of putrid water hit Ped dead-center, making her clatter to the ground unceremoniously, coughing and sputtering. "HEY EVERYONE! Whatever these things are, they've got the same weak points as the originals! LET 'EM HAVE IT!" Ron shouted out.
Ron then used Incendio to create a ring of fire around the Ped double while she was still down. Her hacking got worse, no doubt because the flames were dehydrating her. Valkyrie fired blasts of Phazon Ron's way, forcing him to break off the flames. As they died away, Ped was back on her feet, but her frog skin has lost its luster, looking horribly dry. Samus fired a missile at her. Ped sent out a Reductor Curse, but the missile was too close and blasted her onto her back. Samus rushed in, fins extended, and drove them down into Ped's chest. The double immediately crumbled apart, like a stone statue weathered by age.
Looking around, Samus saw the others were making short work of Tesla's double. Ron was jumping around, drawing Tesla's fire as she flew about while waiting for a clear shot at her back. Suddenly, Tesla began manipulating the floor plating, firing them at Ron like shuriken. One clipped Ron's shoulder, making him drop down. Tesla swooped down, crackling with electricity, but Hermione jumped up behind her, firing missile after missile into her back. Tesla dropped like a rock, her entire containment suit sparking. Ron had a ice beam blast charged, and cut loose with the Bombarda Maxima combo, blasting the Tesla double to pieces.
Meanwhile, Valkyrie was flying around again, cutting loose with sweeping beams of Phazon. The Wildflower and Faction doubles now filled in for Snape, deflecting everything Harry and Samus sent Valkyrie's way. And between the two of them, they had plenty of opportunities to fire back with curses to trip them up, espeically Faction with his two wands.
At one point, Harry found an opening, pointing at a small shard from a metal tile and saying, "Ferruseullo!" It shot forward, right into Faction's right eye. Now, with only one working wand, they had even more openings. Samus ducked and rolled under one of the sweeping Phazon beams and, seeing an opening, firing a charged diffusion missile. Again, it got too close before a Reductor Curse took it out, and the icy swirl it released engulfed Faction, and the edges even washed over Wildflower. Three simultaneous Blasting Curses from Harry shattered the Faction double, and Samus fired quick shots with the plasma beam alone, finally scoring some hits on Wildflower. Eventually, the last double crumbled away into nothingness along with the others.
"So much for her backup. Now let's end this once and for all!" cried Harry, running toward Valkyrie. But that soon proved easier said than done. Valkyrie suddenly turned toward Hermione and Ron, who were approaching from her left, and fired down at them. She turned so swiftly, fired off her Phazon so quickly, they had no time to react, and were swept up by the crushing beams. "NO!" Harry cried, but then, Valkyrie swooped down and grappled Harry, carrying him back up with her. Harry screamed as Phazon energy flooded his suit's systems. Then, with a vicious punch from her bionic arm, Harry rocketed back down to the floor, leaving a creater in the exposed lunar rock.
"Just you and me now, Samus Aran!" Valkyrie roared as she flew straight for Samus. Samus desperately fired up at her, but Valkyrie merely shrugged off her shots, and swiftly delivered another Phazon-charged punch that had Samus skidding across the floor.
In a flash, Valkyrie was all over her again, hoisting Samus back up. "How could you, of all people, be such a fool, Samus Aran? Such a thankless, senseless fool?" Valkyrie demanded as she cocked back her metal fist. Samus found the strength to parry her blow, but then Valkyrie drove her knee into her midsection. Just the Phazon delivered by her blow was nearly enough to make Samus black out. "You were just like me, superior to everyone in your time and you knew it, infinitely smarter and tougher! THAT'S why you're an outcast! You should've been running things in your time, giving the orders instead of taking them, and you know it!"
Valkyrie still held fast onto Samus, and she extended her fins and wisp whip, ready to strike while she hung on. Unfortunately, Valkyrie caught on, backhanding Samus with her bionic arm and sending her flying toward the shielded pillar. "But I offered you a chance to set everything right, stop every blight those soft, cowardly people were content to let you fight...CENTURIES in advance. Create a new future where people aren't so weak and fragile, and stand up for themselves! One of peace and prosperity, while staying in an era with the only people you could truly call friends! And how did you repay me? By trying to take away EVERYTHING I EVER WORKED FOR!" Another punch knocked Samus into the pillar, leaving Samus with less than a tank. Still, Samus refused to let herself black out. There was still one, last chance...
"Well, I could go on and on about how I'd refuse to be a conqueror like the Space Pirates, or how the Chozo taught me to put the needs of others over my own desires. But really, there's only four words I need to say to you," Samus shot back defiantly.
Samus could tell Valkyrie was sneering as she stood over her. "Oh, and those are?"she asked, sounding amused.
With one fluid motion, Samus ripped off her helmet and grabbed the wand behind her ear. It now crackled with pent-up Phazon energy, and she pointed it at Valkyrie. "Right back at ya," she sneered.
"What in...the Lambasplendolio spell? How..." Valkyrie began, but was cut off as Samus fired her spell at Valkyrie. She had cast Lambasplendolio, the same custom spell Harry used on Wildflower, before venturing down into the moon base. Every single Phazon blast Samus's suit took...some of the energy was absorbed into her wand. She let it build up power during the whole fight, waiting for the right time to use it.
And that time was now. The concentrated beam of Phazon radiation bore into Valkyrie's energized body. Valkyrie shrieked as Samus poured more and more of her own power back into her, destabilizing her worse than ever. Samus concentrated with all her might, making sure every last bit of radiation was drained out of her wand and back into Valkyrie.
When, at last, her wand was out of power, Valkyrie looked ready to collapse, her legs weak and wobbly. Still, she didn't fall, and actually looked about ready to regather her wits. Knowing she had to act fast, Samus flung her wisp whip and ensnared her. With one forceful yank, Samus flung Valkyrie over at the shielded pillar, smashing her against it. Then, glaring back defiantly at Valkyrie, Samus aimed her wand again, charged it up, and cried, "Diabolexura!"
First came the flaming snake, which wrapped itself around the pillar, pinning Valkyrie against it. Then, the badger, lion and eagle were conjured up, and immediately dove at Valkyrie, clawing and gnawing away at her, digging in with their fiery power. Samus's missile barrel was open, humming violently as steam poured out, but Samus ignored it, focusing solely on willing the fiery beasts to tear into Valkyrie.
At last, all of Samus's missiles were used up, and the four flaming animals faded away. Valkyrie slid down from the pillar, but somehow landed on her feet. The purple flame that had surrounded her body returned, and she brought up her arm cannon. Thought it trembled, she was still capable of channeling her Phazon. Samus stared back at her in disbelief, refusing to believe Valkyrie could still be standing after everything she just threw at her. But then, just as Valkyrie fired, three separare cries of "Bangsasunis Chapaprotego!" rang out. The protective charms made Valkyrie's shot ricochet right back at her, instantly flooring her.
Harry, Ron and Hermione kept their charms up for as long as they could, letting more of Valkyrie's radiation feed back onto herself. At last, Valkyrie collapsed into a crumpled heap in front of the pillar, just as the three of them released their charms, unable to take any more. As the three of them tried to recover their strength, Samus warily watched the unconscious Valkyrie, her Phazon-fueled flame having fizzled to practically nothing. They all slowly crowded around Samus, looking shaky themselves. "I...it's too good to be true," Harry said breathlessly. "It's...finally over! Samus, you put her down for good!"
"Not without help. A LOT of help," Samus said, grinning as she put her wand back behind her ear. Here was her most dangerous mission of all, and in the end, Samus finally did what she feared she could never do with her toughest jobs: come out on top while leading a team.
"Hate to break it to you, but it's not over yet. Not until we find Kor-Zor and figure out how to work this weapon," Ron reminded everyone.
"Well, Kor-Zor's inside that pillar, isn't he? All the stuff collecting dark matter and dark energy led back here," said Hermione. "We'll have to find a way to deactivate that plating, then, of course, figure out how to combine our weapon pieces, then..."
A soft groan from Valkyrie made the four of them look down. Valkyrie was slowly propping herself up on her arms and legs. "No...not yet...won't...let you destroy my life's work."
"If you just had Inferno keep to itself, it'd never have come to this," Hermione shot back. "Just give it up, Valkyrie. Inferno's bottled up, the virus is gone, you're barely holding yourself together, and even Snape's abandoned you. You can't even stand up, and there's no one left to help you. Face it, Valkyrie, it's over."
Valkyrie chuckld to herself softly, and it was enough to unnerve Samus all over again. "Wrong. There's...one left..." With that, Valkyrie pushed a button on her wrist. The shield plating that covered the pillar folded away, once again revealing the thrashing, enraged spirit form of Kor-Zor. "Didn't want it to come to this. Say whatever you want about me. But...I made a promise to Lily. And. I. Always. Keep. My. PROMISES!"
With her last ounce of strength, Valkyrie stood up and rushed toward the pillar, her bionic arm drawn back. Samus aimed her arm cannon while her friends brought up their wands, but they were a second too late. Valkyrie planted her fist through the glass...and at once, Kor-Zor's spirit form poured out and latched onto Valkyrie, as if trying to consume her.
Samus stood rooted to the spot, numb with cold terror. The monster that once caused no end of suffering for both her peoples, human and Chozo alike, was on the loose again. "Oh no no no no NO!" Samus shrieked as Valkyrie stood up, the dark, flaming head of Kor-Zor's spirit form hanging right above hers as black mist billowed around her. Black, shadowy wings formed as Valkyrie spread her arms. "It can't be...THEY'RE MERGING TOGETHER!"
xxxxxx
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! IT'S NOT OVER YET!
So long,
Grey-X
