"Legilimens," Raven intoned tiredly, his mind strained from exerting itself so often, but his will refusing to give up. Staring at the back of the general's head, he latched onto the projection of annoyance, only for the connection to be snapped before he could hope to make any progress tracing it back to the general's mind. The general flicked his hand, and one of the guards beside him hit Raven on the head with the butt of his rifle, causing Raven to see stars briefly.
Blinking, he regained his composure in time to hear the general bark, "Again!"
"Legilimens," Raven intoned once again, reaching out with his senses. Tentatively, he reached out for the General's mind, feeling the solid iron wall that surrounded the man's mind. Seemingly perfect, yet Raven knew better to comment such or give up trying. Prodding a particular section of the wall gently, he frowned when the General didn't react, and couldn't help a smile.
It seemed this section was a hollow illusion, a common tactic used by occlumens who didn't have enough mental capacity to fully shield their minds.
Gently prying open the section, he slithered inside the mind, to be greeted by several memories of the General. Prowling through them, he lingered on the memory he saw of the General's meeting at the Dursleys, yet restrained himself, knowing better than to indulge. Besides, compared to the harsh winter of Kolyma, the Dursleys could be considered a luxurious and fortuitous existence.
He continued to search through the General's memories, until finding himself at one glowing a light hue of pink. Touching it, he felt himself disappear into a whirl.
White, looking younger with a mane of black hair rather than the white Raven was accustomed to, stood proudly as a medal was pinned on his chest. The crowd assembled cheered, though White's eyes seemed to care only for the reaction of one particular young lady, who was the most enthusiastic clapper of them all.
The rest of the ceremony passed in a blur, filled with speeches, moments of silences and gifts, yet when the time to dance was announced, White couldn't help but feel excited, at a brisk pace stalking up to the woman who had clapped so enthusiastically. Her head turned from a conversation with another lady, and immediately brightened at the sight of him approaching. When he stopped two paces from her seated form, both merely stared at each other for a moment before he reached out with a hand, "Natalia, may I have this dance?"
"Of course, Colonel," she replied happily, allowing him to take her hand and lead her to the dance floor. "Congratulations are in order, it seems, hero."
"They can save the speeches, the only opinion I care for is yours," White replied amusedly. Natalia seemed briefly taken aback before a beaming smile split her face.
"You've quite the way with words yourself, Colonel."
The memory swirled, and the two were in a room, naked, basking in the afterglow of sex.
"I love you, Alexander."
"I love you too, Natalia."
"Marry me?"
"Of course."
The memory swirled once again, in the aftermath of a wedding. Natalia had left to her room to await him, and he was about to join her when the familiar face of Igor approached. Letting out a happy smile, he pulled the man in a hug. "Igor! I'm so glad you managed to get away from the tyranny of paperwork."
"How could I not for my best friend?" the man smiled genially before sobering. "Can we speak in private, Colonel?""Of course," White agreed, quickly following the intelligence officer to a side room. "What is it, Igor?"
"We've received...disturbing reports, Alex. Disturbing reports of Natalia's...indiscretions."
"She would never betray the Revolution! I've never met a more patriotic woman!" White exclaimed, causing Igor to raise his hands appeasingly.
"I told the others the same thing, but there are rumours circulating in the Kremlin. It's not a good look, especially given her...exposure to the West during the war."
"No, Natalia is stronger than that, I refuse to believe that she could be involved."
"I hope so, for all our sakes, Alex. Have a good night." White watched as his old friend departed the room soberly, and slumped into a chair, wishing dearly he had a bottle of Vodka.
The memory swirled once again, and this time it was of White nervously entering the bedchambers where his wife awaited him. Twisting open the door knob, he entered to see her sprawled eagle on the bed, head looking up at him with a seductive smile.
"Come, husband," she purred, "let's make this night an unforgettable one."
White nodded mutedly, shutting the door. Sensing something was off, she crawled off the bed, walking to his side tentatively. "Alex, what's wrong?"
"Just some...bad news from Igor," White explained with a grimace. "But let us not ruin this night with it."
"You're clearly not well," Natalia commented dryly, dragging him to bed before laying next to him and placing a hand on his chest. "Let's talk."
"Tell me of your time working with the British."
"I...well...I suppose it's nothing out of the…" seeing his pleading look, despite her visible confusion, she swallowed and answered, "I was sent to London to work as an attache. Mostly passing along documents, smiling and nodding along, recruiting allies where possible...the standard log."
"And London, what is it like?"
"It's a wonderful city. So large and grand...bustling in a way Soviet cities just can't compete with. Organised chaos, I heard one American describe. Lights flash everywhere, as though night never descends, while shops are bustling with goods of every type. It's a lovely place, I hope to take you there someday," she smiled wistfully, missing the sour look on White's face. "Why ask?"
"No reason," White forced out, climbing on top of her and causing Natalia to giggle. "Enough about my worries, it's time I fulfilled my duties as a husband."
Any quip she was about to make was surpassed by the moan she let out when he kissed down her neck.
The memory swirled once again, with the two walking down a deserted park avenue.
"How much do you love me, Alex?"
"As much as a good husband should," White replied amusedly, laughing at her slight pout. "More than life itself.""More than the revolution itself?" she teased, before frowning at the dark look that passed across his face. "Alex, you know I was joking.""These are serious matters, Natalia, you really shouldn't joke about them," he scowled. Natalia nodded mutedly
The memory swirled once again, of White waking up next to a sleeping Natalia. Delicately, he walked out of the bedroom, intent on fixing up the office he had ravished her in during a fit of lust.
Walking through the door, he began placing various pieces of furniture knocked on the floor back in their rightful place. Continuing for several minutes, the room looked acceptably tidy, and he was just about to retire when he noticed one of the cabinets on her desk sticking out. Frowning, he moved to close it, when he felt a slight indentation on the side.
It was a minor one, something that even a professional would have missed, but he had the very same model of desk for decades, having opened his variant of this drawer millions of times. His heart clenched, and gently, he tugged, pulling out a smaller, secret drawer.
He gasped at the sight, two fake British passports, a variety of maps and a stack of American dollars along with other artifacts. Shakily, he pulled out the passport, opening to see it had been forged in his name, with his photo printed on it. Taking the second one, he saw her face printed on it.
With an ashen face, he slammed the secret drawer shut, feeling tears well up in his eyes as he reached for the telephone, and dialed the number for Igor.
"Alex?" a groggy voice answered after several minutes of waiting.
"I need you to come over. Now," he replied distraught. Sensing this, the other man replied in the affirmative quickly before hanging up, allowing him to put down the phone.
"You betrayed me," a hurt voice sounded out, interrupting him as he looked up to see Natalia holding a pistol pointed at him. "You betrayed me!"
"You betrayed the revolution," he replied simply, as though that explained everything, for in his mind, it did. "Holding the gun doesn't make you right, Pomonov."
"We could have had something great!" she wailed, gesturing for him to move. With hands raised in the air, he walked to the corner, idly wondering if he was about to die. He heard the shuffling of the drawer, before her hurried footsteps left the building.
Turning his head, Alex slumped in the office chair, feeling tears finally fall freely. Pulling out a bottle of Vodka, he skipped the shot glass, downing half of it in five gulps before hurling the bottle across the room, causing it to smash against the wall.
"Bad time?" Igor asked nervously. Alex shook his hand, gesturing for the man to sit.""Where's Natalia? Still worn out in bed?" the man tried to joke, though seeing Alex's unmoving visage quickly assumed a seat.
"She's gone," he replied simply, causing a sympathetic face to appear on Igor's face.
"Don't worry, she'll be back soon, all lovers have spats an-"
"She betrayed the revolution," he replied simply, eyeing the drawer in the corner of his right eye. Yanking it open, he pulled out the fake passport she had left and tossed it into Igor's chest. The agent caught it, opening it before turning ashen.
"I'm...I'm so sorry, Alex, I don't kno-"
"Do what you will to her. She's dead to me, Igor." Sensing the dismissal, the intelligence officer offered one final sympathetic glance before leaving the room, barking orders to other officers waiting outside.
Suddenly, he was thrust violently out of the mind of the General, and he felt his own heavy breathing alongside the older man's as he turned around. "Finally, some progress. Tell me, Raven, what did you see?"
"Your wife, sir." The man had a flicker of surprise before nodding happily. "My condolences."
"I've accepted the facts years before you were born," the General sighed, waving off the two guards. "Do you understand why I did what I did?""She betrayed the Revolution," Raven answered simply. There was no need for anything else, and the older man nodded.
"We've made remarkable progress, Raven, you should be proud."
"Thank you, General.""Now off to physical training." Raven saluted before departing the room.
-Break-
"Fight!" the instructor barked. Raven raised a defensive stance against his opponent, a female roughly a head taller than him. She immediately went on the offensive, throwing several punches that Raven absorbed without complaint, even as his arms protested against the abuse.
Sensing this wouldn't work, she switched to a series of kicks that Raven ducked and dodged, though not without sustaining several impacts that caused his left side to protest whenever he tried to move.
As though having sensed the drawn blood, his opponent let out a cry before charging towards him, intent on finishing him off, but Raven still had a few tricks up his sleeve, waiting until the last minute to throw himself to the side, causing the girl to stumble out of the ring.
"End," the instructor barked. The girl glared at him, and the two stood side by side in the ring as the instructor addressed them. "Sparrow, what did you do wrong?"
"I underestimated him."
"Precisely. A wounded animal is the most dangerous one. Never presume that you are victorious."
"Raven, thoughts?"
"Sparrow held superior skill and strength. My initial plan to wear her out would not have worked, and my failure to predict this meant that my arms suffered unnecessary injury." Even now, his arms were beginning to swell and bruise a ugly purple.
"Good, you two may rest," the instructor barked. Both bowed before walking off to the benches, sitting next to each other.
"Your kicks were over-extended," Raven spoke. Sparrow looked at him strangely, cocking a head before her eyes narrow.
"What would you know?"
"Enough."
"You're in the bottom quartile, you won because of luck," she sneered. Raven merely shrugged.
"But I won nonetheless."
There was a pregnant pause for several minutes as they watched another pair of cadets spar in silence.
"Why tell me?" she finally asked. He merely quirked an eyebrow.
"Learn to amplify your strengths and minimise your weaknesses. It is the key to survival. Besides, we're on the same side, are we not?"
"I suppose we are," she mused wryly. "You hold your hands to close to your chest. If you hold it further out, you can brace more of the force, reducing damage."
"Thank you."
"Raven. Eagle. You two are up."
"Fight!" the instructor barked the moment the two had entered the ring. Both males circled each other wearily, Raven at Eagle's large size, and Eagle at Raven's surprise victory against Sparrow.
Raven was the first to strike, feinting a kick to his head and causing the boy to raise his hands in a guard position, allowing Raven to commit a sweep kick. While the momentum he spun on was insufficient to knock down the heavier boy, it was sufficient to cause him to tumble to the ground.
Undeterred, Raven quickly leapt back to his feet, charging towards a surprised Eagle, before leaping to the side moments before contact and tackling his right side. Eagle, having prepared to press forward to resist the charge, was taken completely off balance.
Before anyone could react, Raven stuck his two fingers into the eye sockets of Eagle, causing the boy to cry out, flailing about. But Raven's grip was absolute, and did not relent until the boy's struggles ceased and he fell unconscious.
Finally regaining his wits, the instructor yelled out a curse, barking for two medics to step forward while glaring at Raven. "What the hell was that?"
"Survival, colonel," the smooth voice of General White interrupted. All in the room immediately snapped to attention, even the medics who were treating the downed Eagle. "At ease."
"General...your visit is unexpected," the instructor mused.
"And miss a spectacular display from my prized student? I think not?" the general chuckled. Several other cadets gave heated glares to Raven, who remained unaffected.
"Spectacular, sir? Eagle is now out of commission for two weeks as we regrow his eyes!"
"And has no one to blame but himself," General White snapped. "But I'm not here for that, Raven, walk with me."
Obediently, Raven moved to the General's side and followed him out of the room. The two continued in silence, until White proffered, "You know what I did?"
"You made them hate me."
"Indeed," a faint smirk worked its way to the old man's face. "Why did I do that?"
"To make me stronger."
"Are you not afraid?"
"No sir."
"And why not?"
"The only thing to be feared is weakness," Raven answered confidently. The general stopped in his tracks, causing Raven to wonder if he misspoke.
"A...wonderful ideal to live by," White complimented, "and once again a testament to your will, Raven. Tell me, do you know how many of the cadets there survived what you did?"
"I'm sure all of them, sir."
"That's where you're wrong," White laughed bitterly. "I haven't sent a cadet to Kolyma for decades, all the ones I did died or were broken beyond repair. For while they are strong in physique, most do not possess what you have: will. For there are ways to enhance the body and the mind, but not one's will. But enough of my ramblings, we're here."
"Here, sir?"
"We've an experimental procedure that should enhance your body. You currently hold the form of a six year old, which while impressive for your peers is insufficient against those older. Get on the table."
Raven obeyed, laying down on the surgical table as several doctors scurried about. One of them strapped him in tightly, while others prepared various syringes containing liquids of various colours.
Patiently, he waited as the lights in the room dimmed. Looking up, he saw the silhouette of General White along with several other officers watching from the observation room. Retreating into his occlumency, he calmed himself as several large needles were inserted into his body.
Yet he could not hold back a scream at the pain that wracked his body as the fluids were slowly and forcibly pumped into his body, which tried in vain to resist. He could feel the foreign magic entering his blood stream, forcibly tearing apart his cells, while other healing potions forced the very same cells to heal a moment later. His entire body betrayed him, the pain being unbearable and causing his occlumency to crack.
Knowing he did not want to fracture his mind, he ceased his meditations, allowing his body to fully embrace the pain of complete destruction and rebirth second after second.
He could already feel his limbs grow longer, his muscles bulge, even his brain begin to grow, forcibly pressing against the inside of his skull as it tried to expand. The pain continued for several agonising hours, yet he refused to succumb to unconsciousness, rejecting such weaknesses.
When he felt the flow of magic injected begin to stem, he frowned, grounding out, "More! I can take it!"
"Give him more, doctor," White's voice instructed over the intercom.
"But sir, we're tethering near the maximum...he might die…"
"More!" Raven barked, causing the doctor to reluctantly pull out the needle and replace it with a new one. Raven felt a fresh bout of pain wrack his body. Copper filled his mouth, but he refused to scream, embracing the pain as he felt his body once again tear itself apart and rebuild again. Already, he could feel his core forcibly expand, and his body grow larger, stronger.
-Break-
Snapping off the restraints, Raven ignored the awed and frightened looks of the medical staff, who tried weakly to protest him getting off so soon. His entire body felt rejuvenated, and flexing his muscles, he could tell that much strength had been gifted to him. A feral grin worked its way to his face as several guardians entered the room, gesturing for him to return to the table. He obeyed, quirking an eyebrow when they began painting out several runes with blood. Seven infants were brought in, most asleep though one crying particularly loudly before he was gagged with a pacifier.
Laying down, he closed his eyes as the guardians began chanting.
"By the will of magic, we sacrifice these souls. By the will of magic, we sacrifice these bodies. By the will of magic, let our strength be channeled into the vessel. Let our gifts be his.!"
On and on, the chants repeated themselves, as Harry braved a new round of pain, with more foreign magic entering his body. He felt the darkness in his scar begin to protest, a faint glow clouding his vision as an unearthly shriek echoed in the room, surpassing even the volume of the chants.
Yet the power still channeled, and Raven willed himself to accept their power, their sacrifice, feeling more magic than ever pour into his body. His body felt as though it wished to tear itself apart and rip open like an overinflated balloon, but he refused to allow that, sucking in more and more.
When the chants finally ceased, he got up, feeling the magic coursing through his fingertips. Looking around, he saw that all seven infants and seven guardians had been reduced to horrific husks, drained of their magic and souls such that only the disgusting dregs of their mortal shells went in. The door opened, and General White entered, eyeing him with an impressed look.
"How do you feel?"
"Powerful."
"Good."
-Break-
He entered the training room, only to be immediately wrapped in a series of tight ropes that strangled him.
"Pathetic, this is the brat that White wants us to train?" one of the three guardians asked. He was wearing a full black robe and a black mask, the only hint of colour a red armband on their right shoulder. With another lazy flick of their wand, his bindings were cut, and he stood up, presenting himself to the three instructors.
"Well, what have you got?" Raven thrust his hand out, channeling his urge to banish them. The three guardians were pushed back several steps, but never lost their footing, and the lead guardian sneered. "That's all?"
Letting out a frustrated growl, Raven raised his hands, making a choking motion. The guardian to the left clawed at his throat before a snap caused the man to fall to the ground dead, though the lead guardian and the one on the right remained unaffected, their magical ambience too strong for him to penetrate.
"Better, but not good enough. Traumenta." Raven rolled out of the way of the jet black curse, causing a growl to emerge from the lead guardian as he fired off several more spells which Raven ducked and weaved between.
Positioning the guardian on the right in between, he was taken off guard when the lead guardian banished his comrade straight into Raven, causing the two to tumble to the ground. A flame spell jetted its way towards him, and Raven thrust the guardian on top of him outward with a push of his arms, causing the woman to scream in agony but buying Raven enough time to roll out of the way before he could be consumed by the flames.
Raven's chest rose up and down in exertion, while the lead guardian remained impassive, even if Raven sensed a newfound grudging respect for him. "Ventus!"
Raven dodged to the side of the wind spell, circling towards the lead guardian, who fired off several blasting curses on the ground near him and forced him to retreat. With a snarl, Raven thrust his hands to the floor, propelling himself into the air and pouncing on the lead guardian, who waited until the last minute to roll out of the way, striking his abdomen with a dagger.
Staggering, Raven struggled to his feet, feeling the loss of blood distinctly but unwilling to conceded. WIth a roar, he charged the knife and wand wielding foe, tanking a cutting curse to the guardian's surprise and pouncing on the man, snapping his wand in half before grabbing the dagger and slowly pressing it towards the man's neck.
His eyes widened when he was thrust by an invisible force off the man, landing painfully on his back. He heard a snap and felt his spine had cracked, causing him to groan. Lifting his head woozily, he saw the lead guardian dust himself off, holding a second wand.
"That will be all for today. You did well."
"Well?" a voice interrupted. "That was pathetic. If it were a real battle, Raven would be dead."
"General I must protest, he has no wand or training-surely you can't expect-"
"I expected Kolyma to have beaten in a greater desire for victory," White replied coldly, sneering down at Raven. "Take him to the dungeons."
-Break-
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Each lash hit his back painfully, but Raven refused to allow the jailer the satisfaction of a reaction, merely staring up impassively. Sensing the challenge, the next few strikes were even more brutal, but still he did not react.
However, he flinched when a nail was pressed against his right palm, and bit down on his tongue as it was hammered straight through. His left fist was yanked open and the motion repeated, before he was hoisted up on a cross held by four soldiers.
"With me," White ordered, leading the procession out of the fortress and into the bitter winter outside. "Mount him there."
"General...he'll freeze to death!" one of the guards protested.
"Then he will have proven too weak," White retorted. "Now did I stutter?"
The four soldiers shot Raven sympathetic glances as they placed his crucifix into the snow.
"Strip him of his clothes." One of the guards did so, exposing Raven completely to the winter. "Your blade, guardian."
Taking a dagger, he thrust it into Raven's abdomen, causing him to hunch over in pain. Wiping the blade of blood on Raven's cheek, he handed it back to the soldier, before leading them back inside the fortress. Raven sighed, retreating into his occlumency to weather this punishment
-Break-
"How am I supposed to beat you without magic?" Raven yelled in frustration. The three guardians in the room were unmoving, impassively hidden behind their black masks. Harry sighed, forcing himself up again in a fighting stance, only for one of them to flick their wands, banishing him against a wall.
He felt the blood oozing down the back of his neck, but forced himself up again. Thrusting himself to the left, he avoided another spell, charging forward, he leapt and twisted mid-air, allowing a blasting curse to strike at the handcuffs binding him, releasing his hands. Rolling to the side, he tried to tug the magic restraining collar off, to no avail, and instead charged forward, ducking underneath another spell and throwing himself towards the nearest guardian, intent on grappling the individual's neck.
With a lazy flick of their wand, another guardian banished him off to the side, the force of the battering ram causing his entire right side to ache. A snap suggested that his shoulder had dislocated.
"Enough of this...it's clear that-"
"No," Raven denied, deadly serious. White looked at him curiously. "I will win, or I will die trying. It is as simple as that."
The two locked gazes, in a battle of the wills before White nodded, conceding the point in bemusement. Raven turned back to the three guardians, instructing them, "Make me feel pain."
The lead guardian lifted his wand, and incanted, "Crucio."
Raven felt his entire bock wrack with pain, collapsing onto itself. Every nerve ending felt as though it were on fire, and he had to swallow the instinct to retreat behind his occlumency. He had never felt such pain, not even during the rituals and transformation, and his body spasmed on the floor.
"Through pain I gain strength," he forced himself to one knee, even as the spell was continuing. He heard several gasps.
"Through strength I gain power," he continued to ground out, now standing shakily on both legs.
"Through power I gain victory," he raised his hands, stretching them out towards the three guardians. The other two guardians raised their wants and cast their own cruciatus, momentarily causing red to colour his vision and him to fall back to his knees. But he forced himself up.
"Through victory," he raised his hands outward, as magic began to coalesce, "my chains are broken!"
The magical suppressors on his body violently fried themselves from overload, and the three guardians screamed as bolts of yellow lightning erupted from his fingertips, consuming their bodies in an instant until only a pile of ash remained.
Raven took a deep breath, turning to the audience of several dozen guardians all visibly shocked, and General White, who merely smiled approvingly, raised his hands and clapped. Soon the entire room was filled with applause, though it was meaningless to him. His accomplishments were his own, and that was enough for Raven.
"You told me it was impossible," White mused softly, causing the room to quieten. "You told me he could never succeed. Yet he did so, in mere fourteen hours. Evidently it is the guardians who need more training."
Many ducked their heads in shame, though Raven paid little attention, snapping to attention and following the general out of the room. Behind him, he heard several instructor guardians bark orders at the others, though his attention was solely focused on following the brisk pace of White.
Author Note:
Another chapter done! Unfortunately likely the last one I'll be able to do today. So Harry has survived Kolyma, and now is being trained, but for what? Thank you to the six lovely people who followed and a shoutout to the two readers who have favourited: .3781 and skyjadeprincess. Your support means the world to me! To the rest of y'all, please follow, favourite and leave a comment, even if it's just to say hi! Community is everything in fanfiction! Until next time, toodles! Here's a teaser for the next chapter:
"Hello, Francis."
"Kid? What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to help you, Francis."