Disclaimer: I am not Michael Reaves, Kevin J. Anderson, Alex Wheeler, J.K. Rowling, Timothy Zahn, or Steve Perry.
Enter Snape, the sole surviving Ministry loyalist, his broom spinning out of control.
In spite of himself, Snape smiles upon realizing that it was the work a magical pilot which brought down the Dark Mark.
Snape. [aside] One man has done what a fleet could not have managed. The Magic is indeed strong in this one. Who is he? Not an Auror. That much is clear. I did not feel the sense of the control that an Auror would possess. In the final analysis, however, it really doesn't matter. Be the mysterious stranger an Auror or not, I know that he and I will meet again. It is inevitable.
Snape reasserts control over his broom and prepares to enter Apparition.
I will have to report to the Dark Lord immediately, even though I am certain Lord Voldemort is already aware of what has happened to his pet project. I am certain o one thing . . . My Master will not be pleased.
Far off, on London, the Dark Lord Voldemort receives word of the Battle of Hogwarts personally by Lord Snape.
[to Voldemort] My Lord. The Dark Mark has been . . . destroyed.
Snape's Floo image flickers out, leaving the Dark Lord to fume over this loss.
Voldemort. [aside] It is a meaningless victory, of course. And only a fool would think differently. But then, only a fool would join this ridiculous battle against the Ministry. Only a fool challenges the inevitable. Dumbledore's Army is nothing but a nuisance, a lacewing fly to be swatted away. But even a meaningless victory is unacceptable. The DA will be punished . . . and soon.
Voldemort signals his Grand Vizier, Augustus Rookwood, via his intercom.
[to Rookwood] Send them in.
Enter Rookwood, Broderick Bode, Gellert Grindelwald, Bellatrix Lestrange, Lord Corvinus, and Thaddeus Thurkell, among the powerful Ministry officials.
The Dark Mark has been destroyed.
Voldemort observes each of their reactions, noting Grindelwald's implacable expression with approval while deriding Bode's inability to hide his doubts. One of the men present, Snickerton, is unable to disguise a hint of a smile, confirming the Dark Lord's suspicions of the latter's DA sympathies.
Voldemort raises his finger, and his guards draw their weapons on Snickerton.
Snickerton. No! You can't . . .
One of the guards, Teffington, kills Snickerton.
Bellatrix. How did it happen, sir? The Dark Mark was invincible.
Voldemort. So we were led to believe. The DA found a weakness. Wisely, they exploited it.
Thurkell. Were there any . . . survivors?
Voldemort. No survivors. Only Lord Snape escaped. Lord Snape is making his way back to London. And when he returns, we will make arrangements to eradicate the DA threat once and for all.
Grindelwald. But sir, why wait? We know the location of the DA base. Surely we can . . .
Even Grindelwald cowers before Voldemort's gaze.
Voldemort. We can do many things. We will bide our time. I will not risk generating sympathy for the Army. When it is crushed, it must be crushed completely. This does not, however, mean we will do nothing. [points his finger at them] You will identify the top DA leaders. You will use this knowledge to destroy them, thus ensuring that the Army begins to crumble from within. And you will discover the name of the pilot responsible for destroying the Dark Mark. The pilot will die . . . and whoever makes this possible will find himself richly rewarded.
Shortly after the officers have filed out, another man is dragged in by the guards: Mykew Gregorovitch, the infamous engineer.
Gregorovitch. My Lord. I trust you have received word by now that our Dark Mark has destroyed the secret DA base.
Voldemort. I have received word.
Voldemort raises his long finger, and a cage falls down over Gregorovitch.
Gregorovitch. Excuse me, Lord? Is there something further you wish to discuss with me? Another project perhaps? Anything else I can do for you?
Voldemort. Yes, my servant. You may die for me.
Gregorovitch. Uh . . . I was hoping for something else, actually.
Voldemort. [glares at him] I just received word that your Dark Mark was destroyed at Hogwarts. A puny band of rebels with outdated brooms found a weakness in your design — a thermal exhaust port that allowed a single Firebolt pilot to strike a fatal blow. One pilot obliterated an entire battle station.
Gregorovitch. [gulps] Thermal exhaust port, eh? I knew I must have forgotten something. I'll have to fix that in the next design.
Voldemort. Yes, you will. But first, you will die for me.
Voldemort sits back and watches as Gregorovitch starts to panic. A series of orifices slide open, and something begins to crawl out.
I am most displeased with your performance, Gregorovitch.
Enter the wrackspurts, which immediately advancing toward Gregorovitch.
Gregorovitch. O!
Voldemort. Those are wrackspurts. They are native to Hogwarts. And I considered them too precious for extinction when your Dark Mark was expected to destroy the island. So I rescued them.
The wrackspurts swarm around Gregorovitch.
Gregorovitch. Stop this.
Voldemort. Not yet.
The wrackspurts feast into Gregorovitch.
These fine insects are not in danger of becoming extinct after all, though . . . since your Dark Mark did not work. You have failed me, Mykew Gregorovitch. And now, I'm going to watch these wrackspurts devour you, bit by bit. They are very hungry, you see, and don't get satisfied easily. But if they gorge themselves and begin to slow down, don't worry. I have plenty more.
Voldemort cackles as Gregorovitch is gradually consumed by the wrackspurts. It is a slow and painful death.
Once Gregorovitch's body has expired, however, Voldemort uses his dark Horcrux powers to transfer Gregorovitch's soul into a new clone body.
You'll grow accustomed to your clone in a moment. I trust that all of your memories have been transferred properly? It is an uncertain skill at best, and the Auror I stole the technique from was reluctant to give me thorough instruction. But it seems to work.
Gregorovitch nods faintly.
Voldemort. Now don't fail me again, Gregorovitch. I'd hate to have to think of an even worse execution for next time.
Exit Gregorovitch.
Gregorovitch is not the only one to suffer for the Dark Mark's failure. When Snape at last arrives on London, he is forced to face his Master's displeasure. His earlier prediction proves to be correct. By the time the Death Eater leaves the Dark Lord's chamber, one of his prosthetic limbs―the original one, the one replacing the hand taken by Corban Yaxley―is missing.
Exit all.
