Chapter 41 – The Dragon Warrior
Previously - Harry reached down and picked up Wormtail's discarded wand, "Please H-Harry", Wormtail pleaded through the pain from his broken leg, "you won't kill me, would you?"
The red ranger thought about that for a couple of moments before snapping the wand between his fingers. Wormtail looked relieved but his hope was soon extinguished when Harry punched him hard across the jaw, "That's for my parents", he hissed at the unconscious body of the traitor, "come on", he said to the others, "let's go rescue Ginny". The ranger had to hope there was enough of the white ranger left to save but they had a race against time to save their friend.
The lower level of Malfoy Manor was a maze of narrow passageways and suspiciously locked doors. There was only one other guard on duty but he was swiftly immobilised. Trying to find their way up to the entrance hall took longer than they hoped but eventually they succeeded. Harry peaked around the corner and could see Bellatrix pacing around the prone body of Ginny. The red ranger had to summon up all of his restrain to charge into the room when he noticed the state of his girlfriend's arms. Bellatrix had sliced her skin down the length of both arms until they were a mess of criss-crossing lines. When the dark witch's back was to him, Harry leaned out a little further until he was sure that the white ranger could see him. He was pleased to see that she was conscious and the sight of Harry reignited the dimming fire in her eyes.
"Alright we're going in", Harry began, "but brace yourselves it's not a pretty sight". The Red Ranger handed over the wand they stolen from the fallen guard to Luna, "Take this, just in case".
"Stay out of sight until we signal", Cho added to Luna before Harry led the group across the marble floor.
"Bellatrix", Harry roared, "we want our white ranger back".
Bellatrix spun around and was shocked to see the five remaining rangers marching towards her. She quickly suppressed this emotion, "I see Wormtail has been as useful as always", she began, "I knew we should've killed him and used his body as a coat rack instead".
"For once we agree on something", Ron half mumbled to himself, "now let my sister go", he added with conviction.
"Aww and we were having so much fun", she reached down and pulled Ginny up by the hair. The rangers gasped as blood dripped down the white ranger's arm and landed in a pool on the floor. The dark witch positioned herself behind the white ranger and held her dagger to her neck, "Now I have a better idea, why don't I slice her from ear to ear?" She looked down and Ginny, "That'll be fun won't it", she forcefully moved the white ranger's neck to make her nod.
"You're one sick bitch", Dean spat.
"Thank you", she smiled in response, "now what's it going to be", she forced the dagger a little closer to Ginny's neck, "tick tock".
Harry looked around to see what his options were and it was then he spied the bag with his team's morphers in a glass case to Bellatrix's immediate right. Inside the case were several glasses and small golden cup and something he wasn't expecting to see, "Gryffindor's sword", he gasped.
"Like it", Bellatrix chuckled, "what better trophy of our Lord's victory than to keep the sword of Slytherin's greatest rival in the home of one of the Dark Lord's greatest followers". She turned her head slightly, "Isn't that right Cissy?"
The rangers hadn't noticed until now but the Malfoy family were standing in a nearby doorway. Lucius looked terrible, his long hair was dishevelled and his clothes bore none of their usually aristocratic flair. Narcissa and Draco looked genuinely terrified for their lives but none of them said anything in response.
"Wow tough crowd", Harry said and moved slightly to his left, Bellatrix's right, "they seem a little bit Loony if you ask me". That was the signal for Luna to come to their assistance and she forced herself into a small gap between a cabinet and the wall. Harry extravagantly pointed to the case, "I used that sword once, not sure if you knew that", he added.
"I don't need your life story Potter", Bellatrix replied, "and stop stalling".
Harry turned around and winked to his team and they tried their best to cover Luna's movements. Bellatrix didn't notice her but when the red ranger turned around, she saw that Narcissa's eyes had widened at the sight of the blonde. Lucius looked ready to shout a warning but his wife elbowed him in the ribs to silence him. "Alright Bellatrix, we'll come quietly", Harry sighed.
The dark witch tensed slightly, "Really?"
The red ranger sighed and gave a subtle nod to Luna, "Nope", he dropped to the ground and Luna fired a blasting curse at the cabinet. Glass exploded everywhere and the cloth bag tumbled to the ground, "And they fall for it again", Harry chuckled under his breath.
At the same time Ginny kicked her captor hard in the knees and knocked the dagger out of her hand. She rolled across the ground and desperately tried to reach the bag, "Oh no you don't", Bellatrix called a sickly yellow ball of energy into her hand and was about to fire it in the direction of the white ranger. Seeing the danger, Ron charged the witch and lowered his shoulder into her stomach. She was knocked to the ground and the shot missed its target. The cabinet exploded, taking the golden cup with it.
The force of the blast knocked Ginny to the ground and she struggled to get to her feet again. The ordeal she had gone through and the blood loss had sapped her energy, "Hey I got you", Harry whispered when he reached the white ranger.
"My hero", she gasped, "again", Harry held her for a couple of moments but Bellatrix was still conscious so they weren't out of the woods yet.
Harry grabbed the Sword of Gryffindor and sliced the cloth bag open. He grabbed his and Ginny's wand, morpher and communicator before sliding the bag across the floor to the others. The block on their Chi was still in effect so they still weren't able to morph, "Potter", Bellatrix roared and when Harry turned around, she had fully changed into her battle form. A black ball of energy had formed in her hand and she was preparing to fire.
"Bella, no", Narcissa shouted, "the Dark Lord wants Potter for himself".
"I don't care", and Bellatrix launched the ball towards the red ranger. Numerous thoughts went through Harry's head at the black ball of death flew towards him. He was surprised that Bellatrix was so openly defying Voldemort's orders and shocked that Narcissa Malfoy had technically tried to save his life, although that was probably more in self preservation than anything. The energy ball was metres from Harry when the Sword of Gryffindor leapt into his hands. Almost on instinct he sliced through the ball and crashed into the wall, sending stone and bricks flying into the entranceway.
The dust was still settling and there was no sight of Harry or the fallen Ginny and it looked like the pair of them were gone. Suddenly a red suited figure walked out the cloud, they knew it was Harry but his suit looked different. There was golden armour on his lower legs, arms and his shoulders. The upper body armour extended to a black chest plate similar to the one on Ginny's suit except there was a dragon's symbol on his chest. Finally his helmet extended slightly to give the dragon's face more of golden flourish, "Harry?" Hermione asked.
"The one and only", he replied before walking Ginny over to the other, "look after her and stand back", he pulled the Sword of Gryffindor out of a scabbard on his back, "this is going to get ugly".
"But that's not possible", Bellatrix spluttered, "I blocked your powers".
"You forget who you're talking to", Harry began, "Harry James Potter, doing the impossible for over sixteen years". The dark witch extended her arm bladed and launched herself at the red ranger. Harry easily deflected her attack and pushed her away like she was insignificant. The others gasped, his new suit wasn't just for show, Harry had gotten a serious power upgrade.
Bellatrix wasn't going to give up easily and went on the attack again. Harry's defence was impeccable and he blocked everything the dark witch could throw at him. Growing tired of just defending, he stepped forward with some blows of his own. The Sword of Gryffindor sliced across Bellatrix's chest and the impact areas on her body like she had been struck with acid. The dark witch backed up slightly and grasped her chest, "Pretty impressive", she gasped.
"Was that a compliment", Harry smirked under his helmet.
There was silence from his opponent for a couple of moments but finally she said, "A statement but you're not as good as me". Another Chi blast flew out of her hands but it sailed past Harry and in the direction of his unprotected friends at the far side of the room. Acting again on instinct, Harry threw out his hand and a wall of fire appeared in front of his team. The blast struck the shield and dissolved harmlessly, "No!" the dark witch shrieked.
"Complete control over fire", Harry replied and placed the sword back in its holder, "time for a little bit of revenge", his hands burned brightly with his own fire Chi power, "Meteor Strike", he called. He ran at his opponent and hit her with a couple of extremely powerful punches. Cracks immediately formed in her steel armour but Harry wasn't stopping there. His hands moved quicker than lightning and blow after blow rained down on the prone witch. Eventually he stepped back but not before slamming his fist into the ground. The shockwave threw Bellatrix up to the ceiling before she crashed back to the solid floor.
Harry was sure that his opponent was beaten but to his surprise, a loud cough was emitted by the fallen Bellatrix Lestrange, "I don't want to admit it but I admire your strength", he called out. The dark witch slowly got to her feet and turned in his direction. Her armour form was severely cracked in places and he wasn't sure how it was staying together. It could only be the strong will of the woman that stopped it from falling apart.
"P-Potter", she spluttered out, "you won't leave this place alive", she slowly began to walk towards him.
"Give up Bella", he replied, "don't make me destroy you in front of your family", but the dark witch wasn't listening. She began to speed up until she was sprinting towards the red ranger. Reluctantly Harry pulled out his sword and it began to glow with an ominous red glow. He remained motionless until Bellatrix was almost on top of him. With lightning reactions, she swung his blade straight through the dark witch.
For a moment no one moved until both opponents turned toward each other. Bellatrix's armour disintegrated into dust and she had a pained look on her face. Harry was stunned as the skin on her face began to tighten until it too began to crumble. Seconds later her body collapsed until there was nothing left except a pile of dust and a pile of clothes. The most feared dark witch in several generations was gone.
Harry said nothing for a moment until he walked slowly towards the rest of his team. She said nothing to the Malfoys, leaving them standing in shock at the remains of Bellatrix Lestrange, "Harry we're going to take Ginny to Bill and Fleur's place", Ron began, "it's an Order safe house so we can get someone to patch Ginny up". Harry silently nodded and grabbed his communicator from the blue ranger. With the death of Bellatrix the block on their power had been lifted and they were able to teleport away.
The teens landed inside the wards which immediately alerted the residents of Shell Cottage to intruders. Bill and Fleur immediately charged outside with their and wands ready but they didn't need them. They were greeted by the sight of the rangers plus a very distressed looking Luna Lovegood. Before they could greet the rangers, Bill noticed his youngest sibling, "Ginny", he gasped. Her arms were wrapped in Dean's green shirt but there was blood seeping through. Bill pulled the shirt back and paled at the sight of her arms, "What the bloody hell happened to her?" he growled.
"Bellatrix Lestrange", Cho replied simply.
"I don't care about her power", Bill hissed, "I'm going to kill her".
"Too late", Dean stated, "Harry beat you too it".
Bill Weasley looked over at the still morphed red ranger who had remained silent during the brief exchange. He patted the younger man on the shoulder in thanks, "Come on", Fleur beckoned them into their home, "we can get Andromeda to look at those wounds".
The group began to walk into the cottage but Harry hadn't moved from the spot he was standing in. "Harry?" Hermione looked him in the yes as best as she could, "are you alr-" her sentence was cut off when Harry suddenly demorphed. His scar was bright red and a black tar like substance was pouring down his face. He let out an unearthly scream of pain before collapsing in a dead faint.
"Harry!" everyone cried and gathered around the red ranger. Fleur waived her wand over his fallen body, "I'm not a healer but his life signs are weak", she said.
"Quickly get him inside", Bill ordered the younger men. Ron grabbed the red ranger under the arms and Dean took hold of his legs and they gently carried inside Shell Cottage.