(Howdy all! Here's the next chapter so hope you enjoy!)
The Ball went on without a hitch or so, after Mira and Michael dealt with the Horcrux they left behind a beacon so that some of the soldier's from the Balance Forces and Angels from Mira's White City could move the artefact, some of the artifacts they noticed were of Angel and Demon origin and although Fear's demons could get the Demon artifacts it was better to have Paragon's Forces to get them instead since the hostility between Angel and Demon is still intense and the tension would escalate to the point a Faction war would be conducted in the middle of Hogwarts and the surrounding area, it was estimated it would destroy the entire planet in a matter of a week.
Once they returned to the escort party they returned to the main hall though Dumbledore was looking at them with suspicion behind his twinkly eyes, as the Ball progressed some of the cocky or arrogant Purebloods had walked up to Mira in a stride while Michael was mingling with the muggleborn students who were more friendlier and sociable than the Purebloods and tried to court Mira or convince her to dance with them instead to which she flatly and politely declined which made the Purebloods go red in the face and threaten her with their families name to which she merely looked at them coldly as if they didn't have the power to hurt her, one of them got mad enough he tried to hex her but one of her own Guard's acted far more swifter and faster and knocked him to the ground and his weapon inches away from his neck with a threatening aura, they scampered away when the "Golem" they thought was more faster and swifter and never bothered her for the rest of the Ball.
Michael was having a nice chat with the Muggleborns who were in awe at what Michael was discussing in terms of technology and the life he previously had on here before Paragon had rescued him making them pepper him with questions such as how strong Paragon and his Forces are or how far developed is their technology to which he calmly responded but he kept many military details secret, though Hermione Granger tried to pry much from him to which he gives her a cold glare and asked if she would like a visit from Paragon if she is going to be very nosy and demanding much like she was at the camp, she shut up after that….
His Ex-brother and his friend Ron Weasley did strut up and arrogantly demanded the power Michael had but he casually said that it isn't a power he can willingly give and said that it was given by Paragon when the man assisted in getting him adopted by his parents which made Ron go red in the face and ready to hex him, but a nearby Balance Force soldier whirred his weapon but not raising it which made even the idiotic Ron Weasley stop his action despite the fact he is unaware of how powerful they are, though Ginny Weasley tried to act flirty with him using her figure but Michael didn't act or budge at such an attempt and merely replied saying the Succubi of Fear's Demon Forces are more compelling and beautiful than her, he has heard stories of them in the forces and from Fear himself when the Demon stopped by the base, their magic is strong enough to even seduce and murder a god which gave them the title of "Goddesses of Seduction" and he did admit he almost fainted at the sight of their looks despite it being on a photo of em, though Ginny didn't take that fact lightly and screeched at him saying she is the most beautiful but he just ignored her and continued his conversation with the Muggleborns ignoring the steaming girl who was dragged away by a nearby soldier since she was causing a disruption.
Eventually the Ball ended and everyone was leaving the Great Hall while Michael and Mira returned to the transport where a squad of Aurors with Fudge were situated and he started spewing that he will be arrested in connection to killing his Undersecretary to which he responded that this business needs to be taken up with Fear and not him, however he didn't listen and ordered the Aurors to arrest him to which they were greatly reluctant knowing that Michael has connections with Paragon who helped fund the Department, if they arrest him they would bet any galleons that Paragon would raid the Ministry personally and depending on his mood either kill or incapacitate anyone he sees to find Michael, they seen first hand his speed and strength and they sure as hell didn't want to go through that again. However the moment was stopped when Dumbledore came and asked Fudge to let them be despite his feelings on the pair he doesn't want a battle to occur inside the castle and risk injuring anyone or destroying the castle to which Fudge reluctantly let them go and leave the castle grounds.
When they returned to the camp they briefed Paragon who merely frowned and decided to enact a plan that would ruin Fudge since the man is the most stubborn and stupidest person ever, he went back to his tent and prepared a folder of incriminating evidence that his spies have acquired very easily, once it was sorted he tasked one of his men to deliver it to the Daily Prophet who eagerly did it.
A few days went by and then a shocking revelation hit and given what it was Paragon bought a lot of Daily Prophet newspapers despite his dislike of the place he wanted to merely see the one story on it.
Minister Background investigated! Bribes have been found! How Corrupt is the Ministry!?
In the article it described in graphic detail that over the years the Ministry has been accepting large amounts of bribes and blackmail material it has received with Fudge receiving many benefits such as the deposits from Lucius Malfoy and other Dark Families, it then went into exclusive detail that the DMLE had serious budget cuts thanks to the "Suggestion" of Lucius Malfoy which weakened the Auror force considerably and forced Amelia Bones to fire Aurors when she couldn't afford to pay them but it was fixed easily when the DMLE was funded thanks to very large donations made by a third party who didn't wish to see such a department fall on hard times due to corruptions. It went into the Minister's Background showing that the man had bribed his way to the Minister position and had even taken credit for other people's accomplishments, another part was that Cornelius Fudge had several Muggle Warrant's for his arrest in various countries for bribery and theft along with a report stating Fudge was in actuality a Half-Blood instead of being a Pure-Blood.
Smirking at this Paragon could hear much laughter from outside, the loudest being Fear who laughed heavily at such a scandal and the way Paragon pulled it off, when Fear came into the tent to ask why he didn't go for the direct approach he merely replied stating that it's better to ruin one's reputation and slander him than killing him to which the Demon Lord grinned and told him to let the soldier's celebrate at that small victory to which he went to do just that, he does have some very fine drink in the Dark Spire.
As expected all of Magical Britain was in complete shock at the length of Corruption the Ministry had and their Minister's real blood heritage which made many Purebloods demand he be sacked for such a scandal, Fudge frightened for this merely tried to escape but couldn't due to the fact Fear arrived with his sickening sweet smile who came by to ensure the Ex-Minister didn't try to escape and when the Auror's tried to stun or attack him he merely knocked em out of oblivion to which he grabbed the shaken Minister and hurled him out of the Ministry into the mob of Wizards who proceeded to give their own justice to him despite Dumbledore trying to rescue him.
Amelia Bones was shocked at this when the scandal broke out and using her now new legion of Auror's with their new training started to arrest the corrupt Ministry Employee's and they were placed in special cells for criminals until a trial can commence, ofcourse the Ministry was now lacking a good chunk of Employee's and a Minister to which she decided to go to Paragon to assist in helping reform the Ministry to which he merely gave her a list of people in this world and the profile's of them, how he got all of this baffled her but she didn't question his tactics and merely went on the hunt for these people with some being outside of Britain to which he merely gave her a orb that would take her to the various locations instead of a International Portkey but expects it back when she is done.
It took a while but the Ministry had new Employee's but a new Minister HAD to be chosen, Amelia did consider being one but thought on the cons of that being twice as much paperwork and many of the "Dark" families either attempting to bribe her or kill her, a emergency Election was called for and she had to ensure that all of the votes were legit and not manufactured by the opportunist's.
While everyone was dealing with the Fudge and Ministry scandal it was back to Michael's tough training regiment for the second task, he did admit that the story was a stroke of genius to Paragon who merely replied "Sometimes when one is pushing you, you need to hit them very hard and on their ego which Fudge had." He replied to which he nodded in understanding, though the camp was barraged by reporters from many location's who demanded interviews with Paragon asking if he was the one that exposed the corruption, all of them except Xeno Lovegood were kicked out very roughly with broken cameras and bones. Paragon did enjoy Xeno's "The Quibbler" since it was interesting to read and the man did occasionally come by to hear interesting stories from him, though he did get some from Mira and Fear but he rarely went near Fear since the stories consisted of his grotesque tortures and nightmarish creatures that exist in the Dark Spire.
However when it was nearing the second task, Paragon received information from his spies as to what else the second task consisted of and what the "Real" goal of it was which did infuriate him about what or rather who was being used.
Flashback - 3 days being the Second Task
"Excuse me Spymaster Grisnom but could you repeat what you told me about the REAL goal of the second task?" Paragon asks with a twitch from his eye, in the room is also Michael, Fear and Mira who want to hear this as well.
"It is as i said Commander, the real goal isn't to defeat the enemy in the Task but to rescue someone, we investigated it thoroughly and it turns out it's someone close to each champion, for the French Champion's her little sister, the Durmstrang one is Hermione Granger, the Hogwarts one is a girl named Cho Chang, the Potter boy is to rescue his "Best Mate" Ron Weasley while Michael here is to rescue someone from this camp, though it is no clue who it is because the camp is locked down tighter than the castle." Grisnom says from his kneeling position.
"They must be real cocky to try and kidnap someone from the camp, and we haven't sensed ANYONE that isn't part of the camp here and even a Polyjuiced wizard wouldn't even set foot in here." Fear remarks.
"Indeed and the runes and wards the camp has can even fend off portkey's and invisible people." Mira chimes with a frown.
"Hmm, Grisnom inform the men of the camp to do a headcount of the current population in the camp, I want three report's on this in the form of a triple check, if someone's missing I want to know immediately." Paragon demands, to which the Spymaster nods.
"Yes Commander." Grisnom says with a salute to which he leaves the tent in a hurry.
"So I am to try and rescue someone while trying to survive an Elemental Titan at the same time? Talk about the odds being against me….." Michael says.
"I've been in that situation many times Michael, even Fear has, though the guy doesn't care about any hostages and just fights the enemy while causing untold destruction." Paragon says, sending a glare at Fear.
"Pheh! If they weren't weak they wouldn't be captured! A liability like that makes the fight less interesting and prevents one from going all out!" Fear says.
"And that incident years ago when you "Volunteered" to rescue an outlying Angel Village from a leviathan pack?" Mira asks with a sneer.
"I only did it because that was a pack of Leviathans that had crystal growth that were very valuable! It's not my fault you placed the village in a piss poor position!" Fear growls out glaring at her.
Mira merely steps forward with a glare while Fear doesn't back down with both of them looking ready for a throwdown, to which Paragon separates the two with a shove.
"Enough! If you want a squabble like this do it on Neutral ground and NOT on this camp, planet and universe!" Paragon shouts.
"Sir, do you have a plan for this?" Michael asks.
"Yea, since the Hostage is the real goal i will have to add Portal Walking to your schedule of training but at a rapid pace." Paragon says, to which Michael widens his eyes at that.
"Portal Walking…? I was told it was a very highly advanced skill and is difficult to use." He says.
"It can be done for making short leaps from your area but it takes a long time to warp from one area to another at long distance, even travelling from say Europe to America would be draining, i can teach you it until you can make small warps from a short distance which can help you avoid the Titan's attacks and rescue the hostage." He says, making Michael nod.
"What if Dumbledore and his cronies try to take a "Volunteer" for the test?" Fear asks.
"Well you have permission to permanently maim them if they try to, it's clear words and a bit of physical violence won't get through to him, so a more permanent message is needed, the fossil won't come do it himself given how his magic power diminished severely due to the destruction of the Elder Wand." He says making Fear smile in glee at enacting violence on Dumbledore's people.
"I doubt they'll try to breach the camp, he may use a obscene ritual we wouldn't know about or something akin to it to try and kidnap someone, the closest people Michael knows is you Paragon and his Parent's and trying to subdue you or them is a death sentence considering how your not one to be subdued easily while The Vendrils are masters of the mind and can shatter Dumbledore's mind easily to the point of making him a vegetable." Mira says.
"And i doubt he is stupid to try and capture one of Paragon's men, they are trained to fight and they do have magical warding that will merely block those "Stupefy" spells of theirs and even if spellwork doesn't work they will go for more physical means and given their weapons it will end badly." Fear says.
"Hmmm, i need to think on who he is using for the Task, my orders if he tries to capture someone still stand, Michael i will begin the Portal Walking with you today so please stay." Paragon says, getting an eager nod from him.
At that both Fear and Mira leave Paragon and Michael to do their next training season.
Flashback end
After the planning the Spymaster came back and gave him the reports stating no-one was missing from the camp at all and he triple checked as a precaution too, it seems that Dumbledore didn't want to risk at taking someone from the camp and incurring Paragon's wrath, though it didn't stop Sirius Black from making a attempt to which the unfortunate Marauder was the victim of Fear who caught him trying to bypass the magic shielding and he was maimed with one arm sliced off, he was then deposited infront of St Mungo's brutally beaten after Fear was done with him and a note stabbed onto his gut with a spike.
He Got off Easy, next try i will make this look like a beating.
The Daily Prophet went ballistic after the news of Sirius Black was brutally beaten was found out and many of Dumbledore's people wanted Fear arrested as Sirius Black was the last heir of the Black Family, though Dumbledore did want to arrest him he still recalled the warning Fear gave him and decided to not tempt a Demon like Fear and had to placate his followers who shouted in disapproval and thinking he is going lenient and complying with the so-called "Demon Lord's" actions, though they are unaware that pissing said Demon Lord off is a one-way ticket to death despite the fact the ICW and many other's had wanted to have him killed and trying to bribe Bounty Hunter's who didn't have a deathwish denied trying to do it.
The Second Task was coming up very soon despite the minor occurrence with reporter's and the like trying to make their way inside, however 3 days before the task a distraught Xeno Lovegood came into the camp out of breath and haggard which brought the camp's attention as to what made him come into the camp completely distraught and crying, however they did manage to understand one sentence.
"They took her! My Daughter was taken!"
At that sentence Paragon tasked some healer's to assist Xeno and get him together in order to get the proper story while he decided to see where his daughter Luna Lovegood is, by the sounds of it someone kidnapped his daughter and the Commander had to immediately locate her in order to send a team to rescue her from whoever it is, there's a 50/50 chance it's either Dumbledore or Death Eaters or a 3rd party, though he doubts it's a 3rd party outside the universe since He, Fear or even Mira would detect anyone entering and would immediately deal with it.
Eventually the healer's managed to calm down Xeno and make him relax to which he calmly explains that he hasn't heard from his daughter Luna in a while and decided to send a House Elf to see why she hasn't responded and was thinking her bullies were attacking her again despite the fact that they were warned and even threatened by Mira with castration, she caught em one time while she was near Hogwart's and saw them beating her up and casting nasty prank's on her to which using her agility and power she took em down but left em conscious and took her back to camp to get her healed. When Xeno said that not even the house Elf can locate Luna, Xeno was getting panicky since Luna was all he had left and he was almost desperate to ask Dumbledore for help but decided not to since he would've asked for a favor in return and once he was finished talking Paragon quickly put his thoughts together and made the answer being that Luna is the "Unwillingly'' Hostage for the second Task which made Xeno almost have a breakdown from that to which the Medic's helped calm him down while Paragon ordered Michael to follow him, stating he is going to up his training since with the Task on the horizon and the Hostage being Luna he is going to have to give him permission to use the "Battle Wizard'' armour set, the "Battle Wizard" armour set is mainly used for wizard's on the field giving them more maneuverability and durability with integrated Rune's and Ward's on them, it also increases the rate of which his magic recharges, normally someone like Michael can't use it until he has Graduated but times like this call for it and such a time demands it to which he will have him get used to the armour even if he has to do it 24/7 till he gets it right which Michael is determined to go along with it.
Fear did offer to train the boy in physical ways but a quick remark from Paragon told him that anyone he trains never lasts 5 minutes because a majority of the physical ways consists of fighting him in a duel and none even get out alive but come out as nothing but mangled messes, Mira woulda offered too but her's is more focused on agility and defence and Michael wouldn't have the dexterity to perform such complex maneuvers, especially when some of em require the use of flight or wings while he doesn't have the magical capacity yet to even perform one of the spells either, he can perform a fair amount of spells due to his Academics and the Balance Forces but Demon and Angel magic is a whole different category that requires one to study at the respective regions to master the spells.
After some grueling training with Paragon to get used to the "Battle Wizard" armour and his intensified training regime the Second task had arrived at last and moment's before they were to depart he ordered all his soldiers to be on guard and had asked Fear and Mira to be on guard on Dumbledore and his minion's incase they pull any dirty tricks, if they suspect and notice such things they can deal with them in their own way, though in Fear's case it would be to horribly maim them to make a great point.
Day of the Second Task
Michael is currently in his tent where some circles for the Second Task are, the description in it was vague but Paragon filled in all the blanks. The description of this was simple, the circles will lead to that Champion's chosen monster and hostage, once the hostage is recovered they are to make their way back to the circle they came from and it'll take them back, he continuously looks over his strategy in his head as he re-aligns the protective padding on his armour, he must admit that it is rather comfortable despite being made for battle, he can assume the designers for it wanted the soldier's to be a bit comfortable during a fight.
"Michael, you ready to get this show on the road?" Paragon asks as he steps in through the tent flap.
"Yes Sir." He says with a nod as he adjusts his Gauntlet which hums a bit more, he has gotten stronger due to the training so he is confident he can get through the Second task easily especially since he was given a thorough briefing on how to tango with a Elemental Titan, just be calm and watch all the attacks and hit the core as hard as possible or try to distract it and go for the Hostage and get outta there which is simple if he is kept on the move.
"Good, the other Champion's are ready but that spoiled brat is whining of taking your time, i had to physically stop Fear from goring him on the spot while Dumbledore kept trying to start a conversation with me, i merely kept silent." He says.
"Alright, well shall we head sir?" Michael says.
"Indeed let's go before Fear bloodies the ground red." Paragon says to which he steps aside to which Michael exits through the tent followed by Paragon.
Once he leaves he notices an abundance of people around the entire area, he can tell some are foreigner's and VIP's with the way they carry themselves, though a snobbish British Pureblood is easily identifiable such as Lucius Malfoy, there also appears to be surprisingly some Demon's, it seems that the progress Michael is doing has emitted some respect from Fear's soldiers to the point some came to see how he does though he can't tell whether that's a good or bad thing but the bright side is their in a isolated part away from normal humans.
"Well well kid, looks like you are finally ready!" The voice of Fear says as the Demon Lord steps forward, his footsteps thudding to the ground.
"Yes, I am Lord Fear." Michael says trying to not waver.
"As you clearly noticed word back at the Dark Spire has spread and some of the lower soldier's have came to see how your doing, it has spread due to the fact you took on a Dragon AND Killed one alone, it wasn't a Demon Dragon mind you but a dragon none-the-less!" Fear bellows as he pats Michael's shoulder making him wince; despite the protective plating the armour has, Fear does have one heck of a strength regardless.
"I appreciate the praise Lord Fear, I hope to not disappoint you in this Test." Michael says.
"You better! I bet 10000 Multiverse Flicks on you stating you'll rescue the hostage AND kill the Elemental Titan!" Fear makes Michael gulp at that.
"It would be quite the challenge sir, protecting the hostage and defeating such a foe." Michael admits making Fear grin.
"If you weren't part of Paragon's forces i would have you added to my ranks….after a Demon Reborn ritual ofcourse, can't have a normal human like you in my ranks." Fear admits making Michael question what he meant but he would ask Paragon about it later.
As the others prepare for the second task Michael notices a strange man with a cloak and leaning on a cane eyeing him, by the looks of it, he is eyeing him with interest but he seems to have some very strong magic on him, his time on researching various spells and a few rituals has made him notice it appears to be one that helps to sustain life, granted it is illegal to try and prolong life as it disrupt the cycle of Life and Death but he is a bit curious on why the man has them and why he is looking at him.
"Sir, have you noticed?" Michael asks Paragon.
"Yea, i noticed the second you showed but haven't gave it away, i doubt it's the old coot as he doesn't wear those gaudy robes of his, doesn't seem to be a Death Eater at all but he does have some strong magic on him but i can't discern what he is, whether he is a threat or not is a mystery but the second he tries to disrupt this trial or attack you then he will be put down regardless." Paragon sternly says as he senses the man shuffling away, most likely after he had a good look at Michael and wanted to find a better spot to watch the Task.
"Is there any advice I should have before I begin shortly?" Michael ask's both Fear and Paragon, Mira isn't here because she had to deal with a White Council Meeting back in her city.
"Stay on your toes and watch your surroundings, Elemental Titan's of this quality can manipulate everything including the ground but keep up a strong defence as well as agility." Paragon advises.
"Hit the thing in the core as hard as you can, destroy it and it'll collapse like a house of cards provided you can escape the falling rubble it will emit since all that magic in it helps keep it together." Fear says.
Both of em have sound advice on how to deal with this given their battle experience so he will have to watch this carefully, the Elemental Titan isn't like the dragon which are intellectual but a Elemental Titan is a construct which acts upon orders from it's creator.
"Understood." Michael nods.
"Is everyone prepared for their opponent!?" Bagman shouts, making everyone go silent to which they all stand on their own pedestals that will act as Portkeys to their assigned destination.
"Now then, the goal of this entire Task is simple: You will be rescuing someone very close to you and your task is to merely rescue them, once you reach them you need to return to where you came from and then touch the Portkey, it will take you back here along with your Hostage, is there any questions?" He asks.
"Yea, what will happen if they escape with the hostage and their opponent is there? Wild animals or beings tend to go on a rampage and can cause untold destruction." Paragon asks, making Bagman sweat lightly.
"Not to worry! The second both the Champion and Hostage leave, a special spell will kick in that knocks them out cold or disables them entirely!" Bagman responds, though he cowers slightly from the glare of Paragon.
"I See…." He mutters while he gestures for a soldier to come forward, once done he whisper's something into his ear to which he salutes and walks off intending to carry out his orders.
"What did you tell him sir?" Michael asks.
"An aerial scan of the location's where the Champion's will arrive, when they arrive at the location's they will scan the spot and see if there's any civilian towns." He responds without missing a beat.
"Everyone! Touch the Pedestal and it will Teleport you away!" Bagman says to which each of them do.
"Knock em dead kid!" Fear says to which Michael nods and places his hand on the Pedestal to which he feels getting pulled through a pipe and vanishes.
"What did you really tell the soldier?" Fear asks once Michael disappeared.
"I told him to prepare "The Wardens", I have a funny feeling Michael is going to be in a lot of trouble." Paragon responds, making Fear smirk.
"I feel sorry for whatever bastard has to face The Wardens." Fear says knowing full well how strong and equipped a single warden is.
Ravine - Michael's Task
A bright light emit in a ravine to which a platform with a pedestal arrives and a dazed Michael gets his bearings, the first thing he notices is he is in a deep ravine, judging by the looks of it, it was caused naturally by a earthquake though the region this is in he is unsure, looking at the Pedestal it seems to be glowing along with the platform.
"Alright, get to the location, rescue Luna and get the heck outta here, this isn't a good place for a damn fight…" Michael mutters as he powers up his gauntlet and start's to cautiously walk down the ravine unaware of being watched by a powerful entity.
As Michael walks along the ravine some rumbling is heard while some rocks fall, judging by that it seems this ravine appears to be a bit unstable and has been recently made too, he just hopes another Earthquake doesn't hit otherwise the Ravine will close itself up or open up wider. Going ahead he comes across a split, deciding to act tactically he uses a life sensing spell to which a small green orb appears on the tip of his gauntlet, once it is summoned it goes down the left path to which Michael quickly follows the small trail it leaves, he is thankful that it only detects human life than artificial life such as the Golem. Eventually after some turns and following the paths the orb goes down, he comes across a large open area that looks to be carved by magic as it doesn't appear to be natural.
"Most likely carved out for the Golem given the size, guess they didn't want me fighting it in a close space." Michael mutters as he looks around and he spots his target on a pole tied up and unconscious, normally he would run over to assist but a good soldier must know how to read his surroundings as that looks far too easy.
Suddenly he ducks as a large fist made of earth barrels over his head slamming into the wall, a boom emits from the impact and before he can get his bearings the sound of fire is heard and he rolls forward avoiding a scorching blaze of fire and by the looks of it, the heat of it is intense as he can feel it even within his armour, the sound of wind is heard to which he summons a shield above and winces when a strong gust of wind hits the shield and leaves deep gouges in the ground around him, once he notices the attacks stop he disperses his shield but quickly gets back into a defensive stance as stomping is heard behind him making to which he slowly turns around and his eyes widen.
"By the Multiverse…." He mutters as he takes in the sight of what his opponent is.
Infront of him is a gigantic titan on two lumbering legs, the titan's body is mostly made out of earth but he notices fire in various areas around it while a barrier of wind surrounds it as if its a second layer of armour, by the looks of it the speed and strength of the wind would cut him to ribbons if he tried to get close to it in order to land a hit and seeing it's chest it seems very well protected, he can sense layers of magic around it so attacking it wouldn't be a wise move and it seems to be drawing magic from all around it putting off the idea of waiting it out off his head, his only option is to calculate and avoid it's attacks and then rescue the hostage and bring them back, attacking such a foe with the size it has and defences would be crazy and although it isn't as big as a OLYMPUS it does dwarf a dragon and he can estimate its almost the same size as Hogwarts so he could use its speed as an advantage, though the wind will be faster if it decides to use it against him.
"Time to move…" He mutters to which he bolts forward to which the Elemental Titan responds by summoning boulders and hurling them towards Michael to which he applies magic to his body and maneuvers around and over them narrowly avoiding them, those lessons in avoiding large objects with Paragon has done wonders, though he hasnt been taught how to avoid very fast attacks but he was told that there wasn't enough time to be taught. Feeling a scorching heat he stops narrowly avoiding getting crisped by a jet of fire from the Titan to which he shoots a burst of magic making a passage through it to which he continues forward while avoiding more storms of rocks but some are now covered in fire making it more of a meteor shower than a rock fall. A sharp whip of wind is heard from his ears to which he ducks feeling that a whip of wind nearly decapitated him from his head to which he notices that its still sharp and see that the Titan has lost its Air Shield to which it is reapplied indicating that it can't use Air as both a Defence and a Offense at the same time, he merely files that away if the outcome demands him to fight.
He notices he still has a bit of a trek to reach Luna but with this thing hammering at him he wouldn't be able to reach her and he is pretty sure it has no restraints and would crush him and Luna if he tries to untie her, the only option would be to create a smoke screen that would engulf this crater long enough for him to do what has to be done. Looking around after avoiding large spikes it created from the ground he notices a small waterfall near the wall, judging by the looks of it, its part of a lake or river and has a fair amount of water, enough to create steam if he uses the Titan's Fire Attacks, although Lava would be more suitable he isn't eager to dig a tunnel till he hits a pool of Lava it's his best chance. Glancing up at it he changes direction and heads for the waterfall lake while avoiding small meteors the Titan hurls, though one hits him dead on the shielding it has negated a majority of the damage but he couldn't help but wince at that, he is sure he has a bruise from the impact given the force behind it.
Arriving at the waterfall lake he turns to the Titan with his back to the lake, he needs to goad it into using fire at him, usually Elemental Constructs are emotionless but a lesson from Fear of all beings told him that a hint of his "Weakness" would force the enemy to use a specific element or skill.
"Guess that rock didn't do much, glad he isn't using a fire attack and hit me dead on, my shielding wouldn't handle it." He mutters but is loud enough for even the Titan to hear to which it's Fire inside burns and it comes out like a whip and a jet of fire heads towards Michael who merely smirks to which he dodges at the last second and the jet of fire hits the water creating a large instantaneous smokescreen that quickly fills the crater given how much fire the Titan used to try and cook him.
With the new cover made he quickly heads towards Luna while trying to avoid making any noise, its vision may be impared but it's hearing may be sharp and he'd rather not face it in this smokescreen. Once he reaches Luna he takes out a small knife from his belt and start's to cut away at the ropes binding her while mentally glad they aren't magical binds, the second the last rope falls the Titan roars and a blast of Wind destroys the smokescreen instantly making him widen his eyes, he was hoping it wasn't smart enough to do that but he was wrong, quickly he picks up Luna in both his arms, since he can't fight back with someone in his arms he will have to pump alot of Magic to make him agile to avoid the attacks, however by the looks of it the Titan looks enraged given how he has Luna and appears to be sucking in larger amounts of loose magic at a fast rate, he has to reach the exit before this thing gets ridiculously strong to the point Paragon would be forced to intervene given how its acting like a beacon now and is a threat to the surroundings, how the hell does Bagman think a mere spell can make this thing shutdown anyway?
Looking up he frowns before he bolts forward with magic enveloping him to which the Titan roars and sends rocks flying with fire engulfing them to which using his magic-enhanced agility he performs maneuvers to avoid the attacks narrowly avoiding them, though some debris hits him the runic shielding holds against them, as he dodges the fiery rocks the ground rumbles before two giant slabs of rock appear on his sides and go forward intending on crushing him to which he counters by pushing much more power to his legs and kicking from his spot narrowly avoiding being crushed by it, he winces when he lands given what he did, he was well warned that if you push too much magic into a certain part of your body itll start to hurt you without the proper training, seeing where he came from is close he gets up with Luna still in his arms and runs for it while avoiding more rocks and wind slashes from the Titan and eventually he enters the narrow crevice to which the Titan roars in anger at it's prey escaping while at the top of the crater 5 sets of eyes from 5 unknown large beings surveyed the confrontation to which they depart with large thumping.
After some time Michael manages to reach the area where the pedestal that took him here is as he pants heavily while sweating, he ran quite alot during training but he was constantly using his power to get as far away from the Titan as possible, he is hoping it isn't smart enough to pursue him given the narrow crevice but it might try to shrink itself or break through it, gulping more air and steadying his heart he walks towards the Pedestal with Luna in his arms to which he moves her to his left arm while his right hand touches the Pedestal expecting to be brought back to where he was with his task done.
He frowns as he feels nothing, he tries again with his hand but nothing seems to occur to which he pushes a small amount of magic into his hand thinking that it ran out or it needed his magic signature to teleport him, it still didn't work making him frown thinking that the magic on this thing could be a bit broken to which he looks around and notices a small rock, scanning the area for threats he gently places Luna against it, the rock and her are very close to him so he can get to her quickly. With her placed down and both his hands free he inspect's the Pedestal, from what he learned this Pedestal acts as a Portkey which is like a teleportation spell but uses objects instead and anyone can make it if they have the knowledge and magic they can make one to pretty much anywhere if they have the knowledge of that location. After a careful inspection he notices that the part of the Portkey that should take him back appears to be….Disconnected somehow, he doesn't know how a Portkey can be Disconnected but they only lose their power if their destroyed but by the looks of it fixing this Disconnection can take him and Luna back, his mistake came here.
The second he finds it the pedestal glows red before he senses magic in it build up, but not in a good way but rather in a deadly way and noticing that the shrapnel and the magic explosion can hurt Luna he runs over and shields her with his back facing the Pedestal which explodes making his shields crack before breaking as he grits his teeth as he feels nasty burns and injuries on his back, once the explosion clears he collapses to his knee's panting heavily while he questions how the hell the Pedestal exploded, Portkey's usually don't explode like that…..unless it was tampered with BEFORE the task even began, the question who would even do this but his mind quickly comes to a culprit: Dumbledore.
"That Fucking Bastard laid a trap to kill me…" Michael snarls as he stands up slowly wincing from the pain, he coulda probably buried it under the rug if he died from the Titan but Paragon would cleverly look into it and find out the true cause of this, he wonders if it was truly to kill him or mortally wound him. With his way out reduced to rubble his only option is to send out a Magical Distress, it should be able to catch Paragon and his Force's attention, looking to his Gauntlet he frowns and snarls as the Gauntlet is off with some damage done to it, without access to it he can't do the Magical Distress, he could repair it but Gauntlet's are rather delicate and complex Magical devices and he has had to maintain it himself but without the right tools it would be hopeless.
As he thinks on his dilemma the ground rumbles making him stagger slightly but his instinct's go into a frenzy to which he grabs Luna and jumps outta the way ignoring the screams from his injured body as the ground explodes covering the area in dust, once it clears Michael looks but he pales when in front of him is the Titan, the thing seems to have either merged with the ground or dug a tunnel underground towards him and was hoping to kill him with that attack but his instinct's saved him, however he is at a tremendous disadvantage, he could try to stall it by dodging but the injuries he has limit's his maneuverability and he can't access any of his attacks, granted he can use some without his Gauntlet but they wouldn't be enough to take on such a gargantuan foe. A roar is heard as the Golem raises a bulky arm and brings it down to which Michael dodges to the right with Luna in his arms narrowly avoiding the attack, wearing it down wouldn't work because the thing's a walking Magical being that feeds on the surrounding magic, as he orientates himself he suddenly falls and gives out a cry of pain letting Luna fall to the side, looking down he notices his foot got caught in a small crevice and it's wedged in trapping him there, he grips his ankle and tugs at it trying to free it but all he gets is merely pain, as he looks up the Golem has it's arm raised and is bringing it down to which he closes his eyes expecting pain before death.
What he wasn't expecting or rather to hear was the sound of a rifle before an explosion happens followed by the Titan roaring, opening his eyes he is greeted by the silhouette of a bulky figure standing in front of him, he can easily make out that its made of a metal and has blue lights over it. His sight clears a bit more but his eyes widen when he notices it being a large massive mech, but what's more shocking is not what it is but rather who it is.
"A Warden…." Michael mutters in astonishment. He knows all about the Wardens thanks to being in the Military, the Warden's are a specialized unit of people who lost a limb during fights and the only way to get in is if you had a outstanding record with no criminal records, the Wardens are used to take down priority enemies such as hazardous foes or even critical locations such as Arms Factories or even supply lines, they are basically a Guerilla Division but instead of stealth and tactics they answer with explosions and bullets and are capable of hacking into secure areas, though if they have a lost limb they are given a prosthetic metal limb that fits well with the Warden Mech, their extremely durable and fast despite their looks and can be very tricky to take on alone but they always act in squads of 5 which makes them a devastating trio.
"The Commander sent us, said he had a hunch something would go wrong. Warden Rover to provide tactical cover and advantage." Rover states as he turns around his mech, the ground rumbling from its feet, he does recall they were based on the mech's from the TitanFall universe but were more adapted to the military due to extensive upgrades and research. In Rover's hands he can easily see he is holding a large assault rifle using Energized Shells which can punch through tanks like paper.
"Guess I can thank him for this later." Michael says as he winces from his pain.
"Easy there, I can assist you." A Female voice says as another Warden appears but has white plating with a red + on it while dual SMGs are holstered on it's hips and a large object is on it's back hooked to a backpack of sorts.
"Warden Miska will help you out and assist your injuries." Rover states as Miska carefully helps Michael out of the small hole to which she opens up a small compartment with a field medical kit to which Michael immediately uses given how the Warden's hands would break it and Medic Wardens are more used to restore other Warden's than the normal ground troops but they always keep a small medical kit just in case.
"What's your objective?" Michael asks as he applies the Morphine to himself and bandages his leg.
"Extraction, you have your target and judging by the way your exit is it didn't go well, we will have to exfil you via Teleportation Beacon." Rover says as he opens up a small compartment showing a small tube.
"No, i may have rescued Luna but i do not want this Titan running amok after i rescued her, i am staying." Michael states.
"Listen kid yo-"
"Look out!" Miska yells to which Rover looks behind as the Titan is already in the process of bringing down a gigantic fist of rock to which Rover braces his arms, yet before it can impact something hits the arm with a large explosion turning the entire fist into nothing but dust.
"Sorry for the delay Rover, I was waiting for an opportunity." A Deep and rough voice says to which a third Warden shows and Michael notices this one is incredibly armored with two mounted rocket pads on it's shoulders and a large LMG using the same shells and very very thick armour.
"Or you were busy inspecting your weapons Vlad." Rover says while Michael seeing this opportunity, grabs the small tube, presses a button and attaches it to Luna to which she vanishes in a light.
"I told you, I am staying whether you like it or not." He firmly states to which Vlad laughs.
"This kid got some balls Rover, let him stay and help out." Vlad says.
"And get reprimanded by the Commander? He hasn't forgotten the incident with the Hostage Train when we kept them around thinking it was safer." Rover states.
"Gentlemen, I think we should bicker about this when we aren't in a fight with a damn Titan." A New voice says but has a smooth British accent.
"God damnit, Deadeye is correct." Rover states.
"Who's Deadeye?" Michael asks curiously.
"Long Range Sniper and Support, since your firm then take the small arms Vlad has, I assume you got some training with rifles correct?" He asks as a compartment on Vlad's armour opens up revealing a couple of grenades, a sidearm and a rifle to which Michael quickly takes.
"Yes, even if I am a mage it is required that I get basic firearm training." Michael says as the Titan re-assembles it's arm.
"Durable fucker ain't ya? Guess Vlad has to get all Bomber-Man on you!" Vlad yells as the Rocket Pad's on his shoulders glow to which rockets shoot out towards the titan emitting explosions over it making it shield itself.
"We will lure it's attention and damage it, watch for stray attacks and see if you can destroy that thing's core, scanners are indicating it's sucking in ambient magic at a rapid rate." Rover says as he cocks the rifle and charges into battle, with Miska following.
Michael decides to watch the battle to gauge on how the attacks from the Titan work, despite attacks and spells being powerful all of them have a gap and a gap is what he is hoping for. As he observes the Titan he notices that when it uses any Air attacks the shield around it falters while any earth attacks make the body of it less durable and he can see a few weak points due to this. With a determined look he runs into the fight between The Warden's and The Titan.
Crouching behind a rock he feels the earth rocking fight as explosion's emit while the Titan tries to smash Rover using it's fists, yet the Warden Captain is one step ahead and uses small jets in the armour to push him to the side or even up avoiding any attacks while any stray attacks that hit him are immediately fixed by Miska's Repair tool. Catching sight of the Titan using both Earth and Wind he peeks over the boulder and aims at the core and with controlled breathing he unleashes a barrage of rounds into the core making it ping before it emits a strong pulse of magic with the Titan roaring at that as if in agony while the Warden's back up.
"Nice shot kid, figured out how to harm it?" Rover asks over the field as small bits of the Titan hit the ground.
"The Titan's defences drop when it uses specific element's, if it uses Wind then it's Windshield is gone and if it uses Earth then the rocks making it's body up are less durable." He responds while the Titan stomps the ground as it's entire body moves about with most of the rocks shielding the core now.
"Seems to have changed tactics and is forgoing Wind." Rover states.
"I got an idea, Vlad how strong are those missiles?" Michael asks the Demolition's Warden.
"Enough to blow apart a dozen building's." He states.
"Good, when it uses an earth attack i want you to fire a full barrage at the area where the core is which would tear down the earth shield it has, once it's done i can fire at it." Michael says, with Vlad nodding
"Good plan, problem is that it only uses Earth when we get too close, those spikes of earth are sharp enough to pierce through the skeleton of the Warden." Rover states. Pointing to some glancing blows on his Warden mech.
"Bait and attack it, if you can kite it a bit and retreat at the right moment I think Vlad can have a clear shot." Michael states.
"Hate to break your strategy talk but the big fella's back up and is ready for Round 2." Deadeye speaks up on the comm's making the group turn to see he was right, the Titan is fully functional and ready for it's next fight.
"It is also bigger." Vlad point's out.
"Must've pulled in alot of magic after we damaged the core." Rover states.
"Let's roll!" Vlad yells as he charges towards the Titan firing at it with Rover following close behind, providing cover fire while Miska supports them with repairs from afar as the two exchange fighting with the now bigger and enhanced Titan.
Michael vaults over his cover and avoids any stray bullets or debris from the fight, though judging how it took such a blow the first time it may be on it's last legs so he would need to empty everything into it.
"Wish my Gauntlet was working, I am so gonna get a scolding for damaging this." Michael mutters while looking at the damaged and ruined Gauntlet, while the Balance Forces can repair any equipment given how organised they are, the ones who make such Magical Devices do get angry when such equipment is damaged.
The ground erupts as a torrent of earth spikes up and manages to land several times on Rover.
"Fuck! Vlad hit the damn thing!" Rover shouts as alarms bellow in his mech, normally the shields can block such attacks or even mitigate most of the damage, but they are completely down due to the fact this Titan and the surrounding area are a giant cesspool of magic, their just lucky it's only affecting the shield modules.
"Time to get some Explosive Medicine Rubble!" Vlad yells as his rocket pods open up and all the missiles fire out in full droves.
Hearing this Michael peeks over and checks the magazine of his gun so he can execute his own part of the plan, the second the missiles hit the Titan's chest the entire area shakes from the shock of the missiles to which the Titan roars as it stomps back as it's entire chest collapse revealing it's cracked core.
"Now Kid!" Rover yells as he smashes most of the spikes and hauls the mech away knowing the explosion from the Titan at this range would obliterate him and the mech.
Getting that cue he pokes out and with controlled breathing and quick execution he fires the full round directly at the Titan's core to which they smash into the core making more cracks appear and with a final roar the core ruptures as raw magic engulf's it.
"Everyone down!" Deadeye yells on the comms.
Michael ducks into a nearby crater while Vlad bunkers down with Rover hiding behind him and Miska bracing for the impact as the magical shockwave hits everyone with full force, in fact the push of it is almost equivalent to a Nuclear Missile.
A few minutes of silence pass by as the dust slowly starts to dissipate while a small cough is heard as Michael gets out of the crater he hid in covered in dust with some tear's over his clothing, looking around he frowns as he can barely see due to the entire dust cloud in the area, but he can't sense the energy or magic of the Titan anymore and the ambient magic is also dissipating now that the Titan has been dispatched.
"Anyone there!?" He yells.
"Deadeye here, i'm still good, i was at the edge of the ravine but no damage." Deadeye reports.
"Miska here, Rover and Vlad are OK but Rover's mech was heavily damaged from the fight with the Titan, according to him the hydraulics and the fuel systems are badly ruined." Miska responds as Michael turns to some stomping to see them coming over with Vlad supporting Rover's mech.
"Fucking thing, those earth spikes tips were enhanced to pretty much pierce strong metal." Rover says from his mech as some fuel leaks out.
"How are we going to get outta here? I don't have a Warp Core to create a portal." Michael states.
"Damn if I know, hopefully the Commander detected that abrupt explosion and has se-" Rover gets cut off as the sound of a tear is heard to which all four look to the right and spot a blue portal glowing and it looks big enough for them.
"I guess the Commander decided to open a portal for us." Vlad states a loud crash is heard to which Deadeye appear's, like the other's he has a large mech but his head has a single eye and a large sniper rifle in his arms.
"I got a reply stating this is our exit, medic's and a transport team are on standby." Deadeye says as he holster's his gun on his back with it folding up while he helps Vlad with Rover's mech.
"Good, I can't wait to get away from here, and that explosion is bound to catch the government's attention." Michael says.
"Indeed, we will go first." Miska says to which Michael steps aside, allowing Rover and his company to enter the portal, once they are in, Michael follows them to which the portal closes leaving an empty ravine with the smoldering remains of a Titan.
Second Task Camp
The first thing Michael hears is the sound of a ruckus as he exits the portal as he sees multiple people running about, though it's mostly Paragon's forces who are tending to Rover and his Squad with some engineer's helping Rover out of his mech while a nearby transport helps to haul his damaged mech onto it, around Reporter's seem to be trying to get a interview with Paragon who folds his arms with a neutral look but he smiles when he spots Michael and walks over to him.
"Looks like you had it rough with the Titan judging by your gauntlet's damaged state." Paragon points out.
"Yes sir, I was surprised you sent in a Warden squad to assist me, if you hadn't I would be dead." Michael says as a soldier comes over and unclips the damaged Gauntlet from Michael and takes it away to assess the damage.
"Mhm, Rover and his squad are used to dealing with such threats but judging by the damage on his mech it was one tough Titan since it managed to pierce several vital points of it." He states.
"What of Miss Lovegood?" Michael asks.
"She is safe, a bit drained but she is in perfect health, we were a bit surprised when she showed up suddenly, Dumbledore wanted to take her away to see if she is fine but i had my men take her away into our care, he wasn't a happy man but i didn't give a crap." He states.
"And the other Champions?" Michael asks, looking around.
"They all came back but with a few cuts and some magic exhaustion, they must've had some easy enemies." Paragon states.
"Wait…where is Miss Fleur? I don't see her." Michael points out noticing that the French witch isn't here, nor is her rescue target.
"Good question, what's weird is that Fear disappeared a few minutes ago, he had the grin of a lifetime so my guess is he sensed something and decided to go investigate it." Paragon says with a frown knowing the Demon's unpredictable, worse case is that he blew or gutted an entire town.
"If he did something bad sir, wouldn't you sense a sudden spike in his power or felt the large scale explosions?" Michael asks.
"Good point, i suppose i sh-" He stops in the middle of his sentence as a blood red portal suddenly opens up to which the soldier's get into combat formation with their guns powered up while the rest of Rover's squad do the same powering up their mech's.
As they tense for anything coming out a large metal boot steps out followed by the rest of what's attached to it and the viewers are stunned and shocked at what they witness, standing in front of the portal is none other than Demon Lord Fear, covered in blood and seems to be soaking wet, but what's more shocking is he is carrying two people with him, one of them is unhurt while the other has severe cuts and injuries on her.
"Are you moron's going to stand there or are you going to take these sacks of flesh off me?" He snarls out as the portal behind him closes. That statement snaps the medic's out of their state as they wheel a stretcher over and carefully take the injured person off him while another group help the uninjured one, immediately they recognise the both of the people Fear had with him.
"It's Miss Fleur and her Sister!" A Medic shouts out, making the wizard's gasp at this.
"Take them to the Critical Unit at base." Paragon orders while he locks Fear with a glare demanding he tell the truth and hope it's not what he thinks.
"If you must know, i sensed that the French one here was in critical danger, she was facing a very pissed off Water Nymph Queen and she was at a drastic disadvantage given how her kind can't take water for too long, when i arrived that Nymph was thrashing her and killing her slowly and since i couldn't take that given how it was a disadvantage in what was suppose to be a "Fair fight" i intervened and slaughtered the Nymph, though not before i found out WHO chose the Nymph as her foe." Fear says with a smirk making Paragon sigh, Fear may be truly evil but the Demon has honor and when he sees a non-fair fight like what he described he can't help but intervene regardless of the consequences, he has seen this numerous times and it's always led to chaos and complications.
"Just…Tell me next time you are doing such a stunt…." He asks with a sigh while rubbing his nose.
"Noted." Fear says with a grin.
"I am afraid Mr Paragon is that due to the intervention for Mr Vendril and Miss Delaclour's tasks they are automatically forfeited." Dumbledore states walking over.
"You are wrong Dumbledore, if they were forfeited from the Tournament then their magic would be gone, Michael do you feel powerless?" Paragon asks the young man.
"No sir, drained and exhausted from the fight but i can still feel all my magic." Michael states as a medic examines him.
"Fear?" Paragon merely looks to him.
"The Veela was unconscious and i sensed her magic, i did detect a very strong magic presence but it backed off when i sensed it, my guess it was Magic itself and she chose the smart option to leave me be." Fear says with a shrug.
"There's your answer Dumbledore, both Fleur Delacour and Michael Vendril are still capable of using magic so therefore they are still in the tournament." Paragon states.
"But the tournament rules-" He gets cut off as a stomp from Fear shakes the area.
"Rules Schmules! Now get before i drench myself in your blood or was me breaking your arm not capable of getting through to you? Perhaps I should disembowel you!" Fear snarls out as his eyes glow slightly in anger.
Getting the hint and the small rise in Fear's power, Dumbledore stumbles away, leaving the group.
"That old Bastard got a really thick skull." Paragon mutters.
"Indeed, well then kid i think you deserve a reward for defeating such a creature!" Fear says with a grin and looks to Michael.
"U…Um and what is that Lord Fear?" Michael asks, a bit terrified.
"Simple! I'm going to treat you to a Demon's Drink at the nearest tavern!" Fear says as he wraps his arm around Michael who flinches since some of the spikes of Fear's armour are poking his skin.
"How about you let the kid get healed and rested first before you take him out for a celebration?" Paragon states.
"Nah! The kid can take a Titan, surely he can ta-" He stops when he notices the glare from Paragon. "Tch fine, i'll be by the camp in 2 hours to get you." He snarls out as he stomps away.
"Sir, what is a Demon's Drink anyway?" Michael asks, rubbing his neck.
"Normally it's a special concoction made by Demonic Bartender's with some twisted magic that is used to bolster a Demon's strength and power but since he's going to the Hogsmeade tavern he would probably buy alot of this world's alcoholic beverages until they start passing out, you'll be in for a long night too and if he offers to lead you to a "Succubi'' then flat out deny it, with your power they will drain you rather quickly and kill you since a Succubi drains your life energy." Paragon warns, making Michael gulp nervously.
"I will take that into great warning sir…" Michael says while he looks to the right seeing the Demons that were watching cheer in triumph when Fear stated a celebration.
Hours later - Balance Force Camp
Back in his Tent Paragon is currently working on some paperwork detailing of what is going on, so far he just finished up reading on the damages and injuries Rover accumulated along with a report of the area they fought in, the Ambient Magic Control division managed to drain the place dry of excess magic that was hiding there along with taking away the remains of the Titan, right now he is reviewing a report on the Third Task and what his forces managed to accumulate, so far the Third Task is still going to be The Maze which is where all of them must reach the end and grab the cup signaling the winner, though in reality it'll teleport whoever grabs it to Voldemort to perform his ritual to revive himself, by the time that happens Michael will have learned some strong spells that can defeat a Resurrected Dark Lord along with killing Nagini, the final Horcrux that is still alive, although he knows where Nagini resided which was either the Malfoy Estate or Riddle Manor, he coulda easily stormed the locations and killed Nagini but he halted that thought when he decided to let Michael end the Dark Lord, it would be a test for him to see if he's strong enough to banish such a Dark One, it would also allow him to pass the "Light" segment of his classes. His thoughts are interrupted when the front flap is opened revealing a Soldier.
"Sorry to interrupt Commander but you have a visitor." The soldier states with a salute.
"If it's Dumbledore or even Malfoy kick em the fuck out, i am in no mood to deal with them." He states, not looking up from his desk.
"It's not Dumbledore or Malfoy sir, he merely stated he wishes to speak with you of something of utmost importance and it's related to Michael Vendril." He responds to which Paragon looks up with a frown.
"Send him in but relieve him of any wands or weapons." He orders to which the soldier salutes and exits the tent.
A few minutes later some guard's come with a figure in a black cloak that has seen better days, at this proximity Paragon can sense an old magic from him.
"I dunno if you're an assassin or some sort of off-world god but you better tell me why you specifically asked for me and i don't let any wizard into my tent unless it's important." Paragon sternly says,
"I am not here to waste time with you Commander, rather I have been hoping to meet you, especially when I found out about young Michael Vendril." They say with a rough croaky voice that he judges the person to be a very old male.
"You know who i am, but i am unaware of what your identity is, care to take off your hood and reveal your name?" He asks to which he chuckles lightly, making his soldier's tense slightly as he raises his hands to his hood.
"I suppose I should." He says to which he removes his hood revealing a very old man with wrinkles all over his face and hands with gray hair that's long, yet he seems to still be strong, however Paragon immediately recognises him.
"Arcturus Black, how in the Multiverse are you still alive? Last I heard you died from old age." Paragon admits making Arcturus smirk.
"You must be aware that the Black Family dabbles in Dark Arts, I merely have a tether that keeps me here with the ritual that has the tether in a secure and hidden place that only I know off." Arcturus admits.
"You must have a reason to have such a complex ritual, unless you plan to become the next Dark Lord." Paragon states, making Arcturus give off a small chuckle.
"No, i don't plan to become a new Dark Lord, i find it to be a frivolous task to do such a thing, no i did it to ensure the Black Family wealth is in more trusting hands." He states making Paragon raise an eyebrow at that.
"What do you mean?" He asks with a frown gesturing him to take a seat.
"You know about the whole family Inheritance with Magicals?" Arcturus asks.
"Ofcourse, though if i recall the Black Family only allows MALE heirs and when the current head of the house the Heir Status moves to the next Male Black Member, if none exist then itll go down the line of who has black blood in them." He says getting a nod from Arcturus.
"As you can see i am very much alive and despite what the Ministry has said, if i die then Sirius becomes the heir." Arcturus says.
"Then how does he still have a lot of money?" Paragon asks.
"Orion black, his father left him his money after his death, however he is not the one next in line should I die." Arcturus states.
"Then who is? Certainly it's not that brat of a kid, John Potter." Paragon says with a scowl, making Arcturus chuckle lightly.
"No, it isn't him, Sirius is disinherited and I barred the Potter's and even the Malfoy's from inheriting the Black Family wealth." Arcturus states.
"Then who is th- Wait, you can't mean." Paragon sits up wide eyed at the sudden revelation.
"Indeed, i wish to make Michael Vendril my heir, the boy has every promising aspect of being a House Head." Arcturus says.
"Even if you want to blood adopt Michael you can't do it in this world since Magic herself seems keen to try and disrupt some operations here." He says, It's true since a few incidents have happened such as a pack of Manticore's and even a Hydra tried to destroy the camp but were quickly dispatched by Himself, Fear and Mira.
"Then do you have a suggestion?" Arcturus asks as his shoulders lower at the mention of Magic itself, denying this.
Minutes do tick by as Paragon thinks on that conundrum, although Michael is still young it would be quite the burden if he suddenly became the head and if Magic impedes the Heir Ritual it could be catastrophic if she decides to use it as a chance to kill Michael. As he digs into his mind a solution comes to the front of his head making his eyes widen.
"The Nexumium." Paragon says, making Arcturus look at him questionably.
"The Nexumium? What is that?" He asks.
"The Birthplace of all magic in the Multiverse, when it comes to Multiverse Magic it practically dwarves all aspects of magic, The Nexumium is literally a sentient being made of magic and would fit the requirement for the Heir Ritual." He says making Arcturus drop his jaw at that.
"Then is it possible to do it here and summon The Nexumium here to do it?" He asks but gets a shake from Paragon's head.
"Summoning The Nexumium here would be a catastrophe as i would need to use a large majority of my power to summon it here and it would tear apart both the planet and universe, the only solution would be to go to The Nexumium itself and perform the ritual there, the only requirement is the ritual as i mentioned and a fragment of this universe's magic in order to do it, once it's done then Michael can be identified as the heir of the Black Estate." Paragon says making Arcturus smile.
"And Dumbledore can't protest at this!" Arcturus says with a big grin.
"The Nexumium is capable of detecting honeyed words and im on good terms with it, though if we head to it you will have to come along and bring any wealth you can get." Paragon says to which Arcturus frowns.
"I can come with you away from this place, the Magical World is slowly collapsing due to politics but i can't get the leftover Black Wealth due to the goblins of Gringotts being bribed to keep an eye on the Black Vaults." Arcturus states.
"I'll think of something for that, maybe when an incident has me brought back here, for now i need to discuss this with Michael and his parents, i suggest you stay in the camp Lord Black, the wards and runes here can put your own castle's spells to shame." Paragon suggests getting a nod from Arcturus.
"Very well, i am a bit keen to try some of the food your men have, it smells scrumptious, especially those hunters of yours, i saw one of them bring a Manticore back." Arcturus states.
"That would be the Yautja, just don't bother em and you'll be fine, my men will show you to a private tent." Paragon says to which Arcturus gets up and follows the soldier's out of the tent.
With that out of the way, Paragon returns to work but with a new task in mind: Contact the Nexumium and have the ritual ready once their work here is done.
Thank GOD! I never thought I would get this chapter out! Sorry for the long Hiatus people but this year has been a haggering, especially for me since im struggling financially and i'm moving to a new house with my sister so hopefully a change of environment will help me out a bit.