Hello All! Hope you're all good on this fine summer's day!
So finally we're here! This chapter is dedicated to all of you readers who stuck by me as I got my writer's feet under me and got much better with my writing!
It's been rough to read back on my earlier chapters and I know I will have to rewrite a whole bunch of it to bring it to the level I am writing now (which I think we can agree is much much better!) so I know you guys are really wonderful for sticking around!
You guys have made writing enjoyable and I hope to (some day!) continue make you guys want to read my story!
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Atticus felt Dorea's presence leave him, eyes remained fixed on the cloudless night where billions of stars dotted the sky, their light remained visible despite the heavy presence the Moon had cast tonight.
Dorea's question of what he would do after this war was welcome, one that reminded him of what would lay before him, the next great adventure of his life, one that would see him put down the proverbial sword and simply build.
To once more focus on his creations…
Dorea represented a great many of those who he wished to include in his future home, a smart, kind but fierce individual who would be able to see the greater vision he had planned for their people, one that see them rise beyond the petty beliefs and irrationality that she would have seen in her own ancestral home.
The little piece of information he had given her was not done without thought. He did not trust many people, in any way, but Dorea was one of those who he could trust to understand what he intended to do.
He wasn't sure if it was simply because of how she felt, she had always had a feel of kindness and warmth with a hint of a fiery core, one that was starkly different from the rest of her family who felt colder, or simply because of their friendship…or because of her heritage. As much as he would have liked to say it was more the second than the other two, he knew himself better.
Dorea was beloved by her brother, there was no question about that. He would have a greater chance of swaying House Black, in the future, to his plans once they were ready if he already had a steadfast ally in Dorea than just relying on age old familial ties.
He was not deluded that friendship would be the only thing that bound people together. Friendship, at its core was as much a business proposition as it was sentimental. Just as loyalty was a give and take situation.
Perhaps that was why he was fond of her, the fact that Dorea was one who felt to him who gave as much as you gave.
He was not as good as Emily at sensing particularities to a person's personality, Emily who could sense flavours of people's magic, to the point she's able to discern much about an individual. It hadn't surprised him that Dumbledore had a sickly undertone to his magic and Emily's reaction to him.
Emily…
A rare soft smile appeared on his face as he thought of her, one that fell just as quickly that appeared, a melancholic frown replacing it. He had not seen her for some time, much to his own design.
They still spoke through letters but it was not the same. He knew she was unhappy with him, the excuses he had given her was something she would see through easily enough. Atticus grimaced. There would a reckoning at some point with her even if he did hide things from her for her own safety and life. He already gotten the impression that she was hiding things as much as he was from her.
He had used the excuse that they were constantly on the move that he was not able to visit her but it was only half the truth.
Some of the visions he had seen had shown a serpent bearing its fangs, in a defensive posture as it reared back, against a white raven and a blood red crow who both worked in tandem with their claws out. It had not taken him long to understand that the white raven was Grindelwald and he had more than a good idea of who the crow was.
That the serpent was alone only fitted his resolve to ensure that the vision would not come to pass even if it meant that he kept her in the dark, something he knew would not go well.
His dreams of tonight had always shown him to be alone, no matter how the visions changed when he had set himself on a slightly different plan. He did not know if it was because he distinctly refused to even tempt fate by considering her in the war, or because truly it would always be just him and Grindelwald, even if his dream visions never told him what the outcome would be…whether or not he would live past the battle.
If there was one thing that truly made him contemplative about the outcome was that he did not see clear paths beyond this battle, as if it cast a long shadow over his future, that it seemed as if until he won, the future would not reveal itself to him.
It was troubling, to say the least that he could not say for certain he would survive past tonight. The only solace he had was that the future was not fixed…merely a river that he could nudge from its path and Atticus…
Well…
In both lives he had been a survivor, he had survived an abusive home and thrived despite the disadvantages he'd been born into and the only thing that had killed him was an incurable form of cancer at a time where medicine was unable to help him.
Still…he had not appreciated the kind of…comfort his dreams gave him to be able to tell the general path of what is to come, relative to himself, until he well and truly lost it.
He knew that she would join the war, no matter what he said if he told her of the…uncertainty he faced. Any visions he had of…tonight…did not appear complete and seemed to shift and change more than any other vision.
It made him truly appreciate that destiny was not firm…that it could shift and change with but the merest of flaps of butterfly wings, and with his own hands, even if it meant that he would find no solace in his visions.
He would not lie to her…not again but he would keep things from her if it meant she was safe. For all of her power…she was not yet at the stage to truly contend with the kind of man Grindelwald was.
He remembered the conversations he had with Emer Sayre, one of his ancestors, through the resurrection stone, when he had needed advice with regards to his visions and Hyper-Percipience, of the potential mages held, of what the trinity – the soul, the body though more specifically blood and the consciousness – were, that it allowed for a magical core to manifest.
Each mage was born with the same kind of access and the same kind of potential but each individual had different capacities for magic and the Magical Core reflected this capacity. This capacity could be grown, through training and through rituals but there was a hard limit to what could be increased unnaturally, no matter how many sacrifices were given and only through unique combinations were those who had a greater attunement to magic and capacity for magic.
The Sayre ability, Hyper-Percipience increases this access to the potential substantially. The greater the access to your potential, the higher the access to magic, the more powerful you were and the easier magic would become for you. It was why rituals were an important facet to a Sayre, increasing the capabilities of the body to be able to handle greater stream of magic.
The Sayre ability increased the access to magic to the highest possibility without damaging the body. He had seen the top limit of his ability when mixed with Nature Magic and his lightning affinity when he had taken down Genelum Castle and that had left him bedridden for days, despite having a healing factor that would heal wounds within seconds.
Magic at that scale…magic at that level simply worked differently and Atticus had found Emer's words to be true. The kind of power that had coursed through him that day…
Emer had warned him that the Sayre ability limited the ability to access more magic than the body could handle, a genius implementation by the ancestors who had brought the ability to their bloodline. He was glad they had thought of it because otherwise…had he pulled even more at that stage…
If wishing to wining this war for the sake of his flying island, Illos and all that it entailed for his kind, his family…Emily…would not be enough, then certainly wishing to survive to explore the depths of magic like no other had since Atlantis would be reason enough, the academic in him demanded it.
A hard look came across his face. Emily was a prodigy but she would not be able to contend with the likes of Grindelwald.
His hands clenched before he realised, his ire rising like molten wrath, his introspective mood shattering like a plane of glass. He took a deep breath, forcing himself not to spiral.
He was not one to be blinded by hatred, to be so blind to ignore the challenge that lay in front of him, especially when it was so unclear to him.
There were those who could become truly more than just an archmage, those who had the luck of having the right combinations of an Archmage and had sought to slavishly and totally dedicate themselves to become greater than they were, for whatever reason.
And unfortunately…Grindelwald belonged to this class.
He felt Parkinson approaching with an ICW man whose name he had not cared to learn and applied his Occlumency to the full degree, his hard look shifting into one of neutrality.
He allowed himself to let off an inaudible sigh before he gazed down towards the distant ground from where he had perched, dangling his legs freely from the edge of the castle walls.
Dorea had been welcome company, a momentary pause in a night that he knew was one that would define much.
He leaned back and placed his hands on the cold stone floor before he bent his elbows and with an exertion of force, pushed himself into the air, so much so he was momentarily in the air, long enough for his feet to come back under him and catch him as he stood firmly on the parapet.
He turned towards the approaching men, their faces were grave and strode quietly towards them.
"Grindelwald" Atticus spoke out, causing them to halt in their attempt to inform him.
The ICW man looked wide eyed "How di-"
Atticus raised his hand "That doesn't matter." Even if he had not picked out the name from his loud thoughts, it was time.
Atticus turned to Parkinson "Gather all of the commanders to the base. We don't have much time" he told Parkinson who had not shown any reaction to his knowledge of Grindelwald.
Parkinson nodded slightly and Atticus with a silent pop, disapparated towards his chambers.
"Tweenie!" he called out as he went towards his wardrobes
*pop* "Master!" the elf said eloquently.
Atticus turned around, glancing over his shoulder. The elf was dressed in a black and white suit and stood at attention.
All of his elves now were dressed the same and could speak in clear English now and more than half could speak another language. The nature of how he used a great many of them, spying in foreign Ministry buildings, reconnaissance and more necessitated them being able to do so.
Not that he wouldn't have encouraged them anyway. He cherished them greatly and he let them know it and they loved him all the more for it.
"Have you found where they put the anchor?" he asked as he turned around, dropping his robes before he picked out the Basilisk combat robes.
Basilisk hide was highly resistant to magic and etching runes into the robes that would last was near impossible and so he had inlaid, within the insides of the robes, common leather hide that would absorb magic from him and power the runes that he inscribed.
The runes that he had inscribed in the robes, were a little overkill, most would say but it wasn't as if he wasn't going to need it.
He had inscribed several unique runic schemes, other than the typical protective schemes against the elements, one of which would protect him from bullets, even his unprotected head by halting projectiles greater than 90 m/s per second. It wouldn't protect him against the likes of arrows or spears but his own ritually enhanced reflexes would be able to counter such speeds anyway.
He wasn't ashamed to say that he was paranoid about the more…conventional weapons muggles had and the sheer ease they could just sniff out his life.
He was certain he would survive against a bullet anywhere against his body but a headshot?
He truly did not know if his healing capabilities would heal him from a well placed bullet in his head but he would not find out – after all, he had ensured all of his clothes had that particular runic scheme.
Having an army of elves who are capable of inscribing runes was useful like that.
Another was ability to withstand up to 1,000+ degrees and simultaneously against sub-zero temperatures beyond 50 degrees though that was a lot less capable as it could only protect him where he was covered by the robes.
"Yes master!" the elf chirped up. "The anchor they took from the Belgian Ministry is located not more than a kilometre from the Mons Base" the elf paused for a moment "It is well guarded master, and it is well hidden. It took great many elves to find it but we found it!" The elf said proudly.
Atticus crouched down and touched his index fingers together, a frown of focus and a slight exertion of will was all that happened before he separated them and his right index finger began to bleed. He brought his finger down to the small box that lied at the bottom of the wardrobe and after a small pulse, the runes having glowed for a second, it clicked open and Atticus lifted up the top of the box, his right index finger already having healed.
A silvery grey wristband with symbols that were alien to this world sat on a cushion and he took it with both hands, a stony expression on his face.
His visions were too…unclear for him not to take precautions, precautions that would get him out of a bind should he truly need it, as he suspected he might.
It ate at his pride that he might not be able to win purely on his magical skill but when he had so much to lose…so much to ride on his shoulders…he would never forgive himself if he left his mother and sister in dire straits as he would with his death.
His enemies…and allies would attempt to subsume or eradicate House Sayre should he die. He had his Great-great uncle Richard and Great grandfather and though they would be able to stem any attacks, the future of the House would all depend on Sophia and he could not do that to her.
Atticus smiled sadly as he stood up. She was not weak, no one in their family would have allowed that to happen but it would harden her just as much as it would break her. She already had something happen to her that she would take time to recover from…but a loss of a brother, so soon after their father?
The wristband clicked around his right wrist and he touched it with his left hand, a slow humming sound emitted from the device.
Alice, the AI he had created using the knowledge gained from the Ancient Humanity archives, had created this for him, applying spatial runic schemes and technology to create him a shield band connected to his mind that could withstand against the most destructive curses.
Unfortunately, spells that had organic components, spells that had matrices that intended to cause some kind of damage against flesh and bone, could not be shielded against. Ancient Humanity's shields were made with lasers, particle and energy beams in mind, energy yes, and not against Neurophysical energy or in other words, magic.
Magic worked on a different principle than to energy widely known. Magic, or Neurophysical Energy, permeates the cosmos and magicals were able to do draw on these exotic neurophysical energy to alter reality to their will. Neural Physics was the principle that the entire universe was living, on a scale and comprehension beyond current understanding – and past from what Moira had said with the exception of the Precursors
Alice had explained that entirely new subset of Physics would be required to understand the relationship between neurophysical energy and the cosmos, to truly understand why Ancient Humanity's shields did not work against spells that targeted flesh and bone.
He had theorised with her that it might because of the nature of the energy itself…that only magic itself – and physical boundaries made out of matter rather than energy – could shield against itself, a kind of relationship that they would need to explore anyway if they wanted to figure out how to generate magic itself.
After all…they intended to determine if one form of energy could be converted to magic, especially given that magic could be converted to other forms of energy through application of will, or whether magic was ever constant, something that had a fixed unchangeable infinite quantity that ebbed and flowed through chance rather than increased or decreased by some kind of influence…such as life.
What his ancestor Emer had said about magicals having the same kind of access to magic eerily reminded him of what Moira had told him about neurophysical energy, how they drew on the energy.
He shook his head as he inactivated the shield device. He would not use it until it became necessary. He might be taking safety precautions but he still had his pride.
With what Grindelwald had cost him…his father…his threats to his family…his sister…even his grandparents, no matter how accidental that was…
He wanted to defeat the man under his own power. Not because of nobility, not because of a misguided sense of honour no…
He wanted to see Grindelwald's face, impotent rage marring it as Atticus stood over him, defeated and broken, knowing that for all his efforts, a Sayre defeated him.
Death was not enough.
He would consign Grindelwald as the greatest Dark Lord defeated by the Greatest Mage of all time.
He knew different forms of magic, magic that was lost to the ages, some of which he had the opportunity to peruse from the salivating archive that Moira held but it would not be how he would defeat Grindelwald.
No…
That…he would never show to the wider world, the kind of magic that would belong to Illos alone.
The world would see him only through the lens he would allow them to, a Mage who used Transfiguration and Elemental Magic to an unrivalled degree.
Magic began to rise within him, a maelstrom of liquid power that yearned and begged to unleash within him as his face grew stormy, hateful glints shone in his violet eyes, the green flecks in his eyes burning brightly.
"…Master?" Tweenie's soft voice broke through the haze of anger. He glanced over his shoulder and saw the loyal elf's concerned face and his magic began to settle once more under tight control.
Atticus pulled slightly on the sleeves of his dark green Basilisk hide robes before he bent his arms a number of times, getting settled in his robes and cooling himself off.
He turned to Tweenie and smiled at the elf "Good work" despite the thoughts of Grindelwald gnawing at the back of his mind, as it had for so long.
The elf beamed and bowed before he once more was at attention, a concerned look on his face.
Atticus looked at the elf curiously "What is it?"
"Master, Edgies is saying the Fangies are attacking the French Ministry"
Atticus eyes slightly widened. "I see" he said calmly. He had known the bloodsuckers were going to attack but he hadn't been sure of when it would be. His visions had suggested it and when it seemed like the Vampires were no longer attacking in Eastern Europe, he had pushed his elves to find out their movements.
His visions hadn't been a first person perspective and the only thing he knew for certain was that several of his men would be there, namely Hirahito and Harfang.
"After we're done here, tell Edgie and the other elves to pull away from there and get somewhere safe" He told Tweenie.
"Yes master" Tweenie said dutifully as Atticus walked towards the elf and bend slightly, meeting the gaze of Tweenie.
"Ready?" he asked softly of his loyal friend. Tweenie's head rapidly bobbed up and down.
"I am master" he said fervently and Atticus smiled at him before he focused and dove into Tweenie's mind.
He was gentle, unwilling to harm his elf and took the memories of where the anchor stone was. His Legillimency was powerful, to the point that he used passive Legillimency unconsciously to a great degree but painless deep Legillimency penetration required a little focus.
He had known the attack was coming and any positive looking outcome, even if he did not know the true end, required him to let things play out as they did.
He exited his elf's mind and saw the exertion on the little guy's face. The minds of elves were truly different from humans. Their minds were…less clustered but far more…positive and emotive? He wanted to say.
It was difficult to describe but it always left the kind of impression that elves were far better beings than humans were from the way their minds felt. He wouldn't admit it, but he always felt more at ease after legillimising them from the way their minds just…exuded positivity, loyalty, adoration and…love.
He knew now where the anchor stone was and he had plans for it. He hadn't been sure why he'd been alone in his visions but when he had noticed the tell tale images of an anchor stone, he knew he had to ask his elves to observe the fortress base as soon as he had awoken.
"After we're done there" Atticus began "Make sure you keep an eye on the anchor stone" Atticus' eyes glinted. There was no way he was going to pass up the chance to have an Anchor stone. There were so few of them.
To replicate one of them…
The elf bobbed his head "Yes master, Tweenie already instructed Master's elves to make special Portisies Keys" Atticus smiled a little at the elf. Despite the fact that their vocabulary and speech pattern has drastically improved, some of them always slipped every once in a while.
"Thank you Tweenie, you may go and go about your duties" he told the elf and the elf, after a bow, left.
Less than five minutes later, Atticus walked towards the command tent which was guarded by half a dozen men.
"My Lord" the guards intoned respectfully as they bowed.
Atticus nodded absentmindedly to them as he walked through the entry of the command tent and he heard the arguments that were clear to hear even through the large entry hall that lead to the main meeting room, the door to it having been left open.
He paused for a moment as he got to the main door.
"And what do you want us to do?! Just rush there without any kind of plan?!" he heard Silas Merek's say, his tone full of sarcastic disbelief "That will work so well against Grindelwald!"
"And what else do you suggest?" Harfang's thundered. "That we leave them behind for fear of traps?"
"No!" Lockhart said in an annoyed voice "But we must be careful."
"I hate to agree with Lockhart" Albert Bones' calm voice interjected.
"Hey!" a few snorts rang around.
"But I agree with him. That Grindelwald attacked on the eve of when we're supposed to meet our allies is not a coincidence" Bones pointed out.
Parkinson's voice cut in "Of course it isn't. No matter how powerful Grindelwald is, his men are not and allowing hundreds of mages to join in a front that has been whittling down your manpower would only be a fool's gambit – just as it is a fool's gambit to storm in without any concrete plans"
"You're calling me a fool?!" Harfang's genuinely offended voice boomed.
"Only if you insist on your plan of action" Parkinson drawled.
Atticus decided to walk in at that point and their heads swivelled as he walked through the door, closing it behind him.
The room quieted down as he stepped forward, briefly before Harfang spoke up "Just in time, Lord Sayre"
"Lord Sayre, as you can probably see, we are…in disagreement as to what to do now." Silas Merek said with a frown, a hint of perspiration showing on his forehead.
"Yes" Atticus said quietly as his eyes surveyed the room, making some shift uneasily "I can see that." He said calmly before he continued "But we cannot leave them to their fate" Harfang looked triumphant but that expression was soon lost "nor can we blindly charge in. It would cause irreparable damage to our war effort if Grindelwald can obtain a victory there with us reinforcing the ICW contingent."
"Then what is the plan?" Potter asked with a frown.
"I know how he managed to entrap them at the fortress and what we can do to turn it against him" Atticus' eyes gleamed as a vicious smile grew on his face.
"How?" Bones asked wide eyed.
Atticus smiled thinly "Grindelwald, above else, knows how damaging the war effort has been for his cause, not least for himself. With the approaching collapse of the Eastern front, especially with Russia taking over Belarus, despite the efforts of his second in command, Vinda Rosier, he needs to victories that will last. With that in mind, I kept an eye out on places that he would certainly attack should he find it"
Atticus paused to let it sink in.
"Could your men have been caught, leading Grindelwald to the base?" Lockhart questioned with raised eyebrows.
They glanced at Lockhart in surprise but before anyone could speak, Atticus responded as he looked at him "It could be possible but no…the method I have used would not have left a trace for Grindelwald to find…no magic, apparation or port keys were used in the reconnaissance"
"So you spied on the fortress base in the expectation of an attack?" Potter questioned with a frown, the disapproval ringing in his voice.
Atticus nodded shortly "I did." He said unashamedly. Potter and several others might not think it honourable to spy on…allies, but it would be foolish not to make sure you knew if any dangers were heading your way. He continued "From the reports, the base was hard to find but there were individuals who left the base, frequently" Atticus said with thinned lips, his allusions clear to hear in his voice.
"Traitors?" Harfang spat out angrily.
Atticus glanced at Harfang "I'm not sure." He admitted to them "Their intent might not have been to betray but were made to."
"Imperius." Parkinson said flatly. Atticus inclined his head.
"Likely something of that nature…or it could be what they did last year in Godric's Hollow"
The room tensed at that.
None of them forgot the sheer violation that was done. It was an open secret that Grindelwald found a way to effectively strip someone of their personality and insert sleeper agents.
They had employed several ways of weeding out anyone who might have been…conditioned. Luckily, it seemed they had none amongst them.
In truth, he had no idea how Grindelwald had found the base but they didn't need to know that. And as to the…stretching of truth regarding how he knew…well…
Protecting his elves and other elves from exploitation – even if it was selfish in the way that he didn't want elves to be used as he used his own – was more important than them knowing the truth.
"We'll have to be careful when we meet with them" Carson said slowly and murmurs of agreement rang around.
"That goes without saying" Parkinson said dryly with amusement in his eyes.
"Especially when they knew we were coming" Bones said pointedly, drawing attention to the fact that Grindelwald had foreknowledge to their arrival.
Atticus nodded to Bones "It was one of my fears, that we would be blindsided if they knew we were coming – I already suspected that Grindelwald had eyes on our movement anyway considering that hundreds of mages moving towards Belgium would not be something any enemy would ensure they missed so I made sure we would be able to counteract any traps they set for us" Atticus thinned his lips. He may not have told the complete truth but it was true enough – in isolation.
"It wouldn't surprise me if he knew the moment we departed the Balkans" Bones mused aloud and earned a nod from Atticus. After all, he did not doubt others had known as well.
He knew that there were eyes on him – and them, whether they may be observers or enemies. The Black family certainly managed to incorporate some of their loyal men into his ranks and they weren't the only ones.
They might not have divulged the information to Grindelwald for he had them swear oaths that they were not agents of Grindelwald or had any loyalty to Grindelwald, his cause or any affiliated with him but that did not mean those they were sworn to had any compunctions of keeping silence if it suited them.
"And as such, if he knew that we were likely coming soon." Atticus glanced at them with calculating eyes "It was only logical to ensure that I keep eyes on the base to make sure we know what is happening as soon as it did, just as it was logical to make sure to look out any traps that they might have prepared for us one we arrive"
"Why didn't you warn them?" the ICW commander demanded sternly, a hint of accusation was in his voice, much to the annoyance of Merek and Carson amongst others.
"I was not sure" Atticus responded calmly to the man who radiated hostility despite knowing full well he did know. It might be callous of him but he would rather turn the trap against them than forcing Grindelwald into something more…drastic. The ICW representative wouldn't understand that, not if it came from his mouth. He was one of many ICW commanders who despised the…respect Atticus received from the men.
He wasn't sure how much of that…dislike was shared in the ICW but it was something he might need to deal with, in the future.
Especially once they understood the scope of his power, never mind his plans.
The door slammed open and over a dozen wands pointed towards the door and Delacour's eyes widened at the sight.
Harfang growled before he, and everyone else withdrew their wands. "You're late"
Delacour sent a poisonous glare at the man before he met the eyes of everyone "I have received news from France" he said stiffly, his posture made clear he was ill at ease.
Before anyone could talk, Delacour continued "Magical France is under attack from Vampires" he said quickly, his tone was sharp, anger clear to show on his face as the room descended into surprise and shock.
The vampires at this stage had not solely focused against Magicals in this war, their intent had been to cause trouble for the Statue of Secrecy and divert precious resources from the war front but now they were attacking…brazenly.
Many suspected that it had been an alliance of convenience but if they were genuinely aiding Grindelwald in the war effort…it made things a lot more difficult.
Vampires…
They were truly a dangerous foe, one that could kill you before you could even utter a spell. You could prepare for them easily enough but in a battle?
Casualties would be high.
Delacour raised his voice "We are closest force to France that are able to help and I have been told that France will withdraw from the ICW if we…" he hesitated for a moment "You don't come to their aid"
The room descended into anger but before it could get any worse, Parkinson shot off a cannon in the room, silencing everyone and pinning anyone who disagreed with a glare.
Atticus nodded gratefully to Parkinson and turned his eyes towards the rest. "We are wasting time, time we do not have. Mr Charleston will not last long against Grindelwald" Atticus spared a glance at Delacour "And it seems the French might well fall against the Vampires".
"Grindelwald seeks to split our attentions." Parkinson mused aloud.
"He does" Atticus responded as he stared at each man "It is clear that we must do, of what he has forced us to do as abandoning either effort is unacceptable" Atticus said with a hard look in his eyes.
Sobering looks were shared until Atticus divulged his plans of splitting the force in two, the larger contingent heading towards France.
The war would not end with who had the most men in their army and they all understood that even if none had said it.
Harfang, Lockhart, Prewitt and several others would go there whilst Parkinson, Potter, Dayton and others would go with him to Belgium.
It wasn't long after that they departed from them makeshift base, each group with their orders. He briefly spoke with Hirahito, asking him to go to France and he had accepted easily enough.
Atticus spoke with his commanders and explained the plan, amending it when others suggested something that could be more effective.
Once they took out the defences and imprisoned the guards around the anchor stone, Atticus entered the room that held the anchor stone. Atticus saw the swirl of colours that the anchor pulsed, the sheer magical power that the anchor stone held.
Anchor stones were used, typically, to hold the magical nets that spanned countries, they were the 'anchors' that all other ward stones were connected to within the boundaries of a nation, allowing the possibility of country wide wards to be erected with the wardstones as a sort of relaying station that strengthened the wards.
It was how underage magic, apparation and port keys were monitored – and of course could be used to selectively prevent apparation and port keys from working over a very large area.
The way Grindelwald had been using these stones had been unique and done in a way no one had used them before – it had been previously unthinkable to use them to trap entire locations and systematically take or wipe out the opposition, mostly because of how difficult they were to come by.
…And because Dark Lords never tended to be as strategic as Grindelwald has been.
Anchor stones were rare, exceptionally so as they were composed of a rare mineral stone, one that he had found no text on what the composition of it was, nor the structure, that sat convergent on several leylines for thousands of years, soaking up all of that magic in all that time.
All of that meant that these stones were exceptionally magical to the point that this eight foot anchor stone held more magic than a diamond of the same size.
He wasn't entirely whether it was because of the thousands of years of magic shaping the stone to be more capable of holding magic or whether there was something inherent within the stone that allowed for it to be the greatest material capable of holding magic bar none.
Charlus Potter whistled as he crouched and touched the base of the anchor stone "My skin is tingling at the magic it's pulsing" Charlus said with a little wonder in his tone.
Atticus looked at him surprised. He could sense that?
"Don't touch the stone" Bones hissed out as he pulled Potter away.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing" Potter said with a light glare as he shrugged off Bones' arm. "My father worked with the British anchor stone and taught me about them. They aren't much good for intricate ward layering or placing a curse on them." Potter said with a glance at Bones before he turned towards the Anchor stone, his fingers trailing across the runic schemes.
"I know" Bones said a little irritated "But we're not dealing with an amateur are we?" Bones said pointedly causing Potter to look up with raised eyebrows clearly indicated he hadn't thought of that.
He cleared his throat as he stood up, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly "True enough…But I haven't died yet have I?" He said with a slight rogue-ish grin.
"Merlin help us" Dayton muttered next to him, shaking his head.
"Merlin won't save us" Atticus muttered as he spied with a wary look at Charlus as he strode towards the anchor stone.
"Quite right" Charlus said with a mocking bow "My Potter luck will do the job just fine"
"Enough" Bones said warningly "We don't have much time" he looked back at the runic schemes with a frown "And this isn't simple" He turned towards Atticus "I could use your help here"
Atticus nodded. Normally he would have taken charge but the Bones family had an instinctual capability with regards to warding magic, something that he did not quite have.
He was exceptional in runes and wards were a subset of runes, charms and several other specialties of magic but Bones would be able to unravel the wards quicker than he could – at least without brute forcing it.
Bones unravelled the wards with utmost expertise, leaving on the trip wards that are connected to someone, likely Grindelwald or one of his commanders and Atticus set about putting on the warding schemes that were to be activated once the signal was given by the guards they would be leaving here with the exception of the change of port key authorisation, the ward that would specifically only allow keyed in port keys to escape and that change would render the emergency port keys that Grindelwald and his followers had obsolete.
He added the final scheme and Bones looked at it with a frown "A boundary ward?" he questioned as he looked over at the scheme Atticus was inscribing.
"Yes" Atticus said simply, keeping his focus on inscribing the final sets of runes.
Bones remained silent for a moment "You're planning o-"
"Bones" Atticus cut in sharply, sending a glare at the man. "It has to be this way" he told the man, pinning him with a hard look.
Bones met his gaze unflinchingly, something he respected about the man. "You don't have to do it alone" he said quietly, so quietly none others could hear it.
Atticus returned to his work "I know. But at least I will survive" he said without emotion.
"Are you sure?" Bones replied and Atticus didn't respond to that. He wasn't sure. But he saw himself fighting alone. Never with anyone else. Besides…it would be too chaotic and would cause far too many casualties should he not do this.
And in truth…
A blood debt was owed to him and he would never let it go should he not be the one to exact death on the bastard.
Bones sighed "I won't stop you, I don't even think I can" Bones said honestly as he got up "Just…don't be foolish just because it is what is expected of you" he paused for a moment "or because of revenge" Bones threw him an understanding look before he walked off, leaving Atticus to do his last runes.
After he was done, they port keyed towards a clearing nearby the fortress base and saw the unnatural influence on the world as the stars and the moon were almost completely blackened out.
Atticus could see the strands of magic that seemed to stretch in the sky, all leading from a single source, a grim countenance washed over him.
To think he was this powerful…
Was Dumbledore this powerful or did their shared love allow for Dumbledore to win?
Grindelwald's movement would have failed, with or without his help and the collapse of the Eastern Front would have happened anyway. Perhaps not so early but it would have. Just as the Western Front would have fallen.
Grindelwald was the true obstacle and it would not surprise him if they had whittled down his forces over years of conflict, claiming more and more lives and simply needed someone capable of defeating him.
Dumbledore was powerful, to be sure but was he truly capable of defeating Grindelwald based on magic alone or was there something else at play, something obscure and irritatingly possible?
He wasn't sure about Wand Lore…whether or not hesitancy within oneself would affect the capability of their spells.
Could one be defeated by another if one was so conflicted about the person they faced, their wand working against them?
It was a troublesome thought…one that he wondered if he would ever face such a thing. He shook his head and cast away those troubling thoughts and refocused on the task at hand.
He heard the murmurs of discontent and unease amongst the men which broke him out of his thoughts and he shared a look with several of his men. This wasn't good at all.
As they approached outskirts of the remnants of the fortress base, a bright display of destructive magic had shone, one that illuminated the smouldering ruin that was the fortress base, even at this distance and they also saw two distinct groups watching the battle from afar, both near each other, somehow not battling it out.
"Herberton!" Parkinson called out and the young man ran forth. "Yes sir?" the dark haired man asked.
"Go take several men and see what is going on" Parkinson ordered. The man left swiftly and took half a dozen men and took brooms with them.
One of the curious wards he had seen was that Grindelwald had powered a ward to disable the runic schemes that allowed brooms to fly. It was genius in truth. He'd taken advantage of the…idle way things were made, always building on other work rarely seeing if there were better options.
Nevertheless, he had ably removed that ward, even at the risk of enemies escaping on brooms.
Atticus glanced at Parkinson "What do you suspect?" Atticus asked curiously as they came to a halt.
"I think that it is likely some kind of agreement was struck between Charleston and Grindelwald." Parkinson said without emotion "One that would be to the death and the victor takes all, without any further bloodshed."
"He must have been desperate" Carson mused quietly.
"Yes…" Bones said with a sigh "I expect that Grindelwald must have truly dealt them a blow for him to resort to that" Bones peered at the smaller group "It wouldn't surprise me that if it was the only option available to him other than complete loss"
A massive explosion shook the earth as the world illuminated with bright, violent blue light.
"What was that?" Potter exclaimed shocked at the devastation.
Dayton spoke up "Power of that scale…" he sounded horrified before he spared a glance at Atticus, concern marring his face
Atticus narrowed his eyes as he heightened his ability, the world slowly began to show itself to him, the veins and currents of magic showed in his field of perception, just as the remnants of whatever that attack had been.
The scale of the magical diffusion of that attack was immense and he saw black strands stretching high in the air, swirling around an epicentre he could not see, not from this far.
He could see clearer the effect it was having on the world, darkening it.
Atticus face grew grim "I think we need to hasten our movement" Atticus glanced around, all the men were grim faced before he turned to Parkinson who simply nodded slightly.
Not long after, the scouts returned and reported to them that Charleston and another, one that looked like it might be Barebones had been fighting against Grindelwald.
"Go" Atticus told Bones who bowed his head slightly, a look of respect on his eyes before he left.
It hadn't been hard to see the looks of expectation and admiration his men were wearing on their faces, the hope they so exuded and thought when they nodded to him in respect.
"Dayton" Atticus called out and the loyal man stepped forward, a neutral expression on his face even if concern shone in his eyes.
Atticus handed his mirror to Dayton who looked it wide eyed "If I die…" Dayton's face twisted "Do not tell them immediately." Atticus said calmly, his eyes boring into Dayton.
"My Lord…" Dayton protested but the look in Atticus' face stilled him. He did not need his mother or sister doing something foolish to get themselves killed.
Emily…
He inwardly grimaced. She might just pull him from the afterlife so she could use him for target practice.
Dayton reluctantly nodded.
"Only inform my great grandfather if I die." Atticus paused for a moment before he turned away "He'll know what to do."
Dayton said nothing for a moment "I will…My Lord." Atticus felt him retreat and let off a small sigh.
"Planning for your death?" Parkinson questioned and Atticus glanced at him in the corner of his eyes.
"Planning for the worst" Atticus corrected. His House would be vulnerable for a time should he die. He would retreat if it seemed like he couldn't defeat him but unexpected things would always happen.
They parted ways after that, the plan they had set in motion, one where their forces would come towards Grindelwald's followers from the back whilst Atticus and Parkinson would go towards Grindelwald himself
Atticus began to be concerned that Barebones and Charleston were both dead until a large curtain of fire rose in the air.
Atticus shared a look with Parkinson and they sped up and they managed to get through undetected by the ward line and raised his hand, halting Parkinson from moving.
They walked around the perimeter until they got to a better position where they could see the battle.
The Belgian ICW force and Grindelwald's men were both at the other side of the former base, most of the immediate surroundings having been turned into flattened if not cratered and barren earth.
The anchor stone had stretched for several kilometres with its anti apparition and portkey wards and any attempt to battle out would invalidated whatever agreement they struck. Not that it would have mattered if they had run.
Grindelwald had tied it a wardstone, one that he wasn't sure where it was but it was certain that it was likely somewhere nearby, to create a boundary ward that would make escaping hard pressed as it kept them all penned in.
It wouldn't be long before it would be turned against him.
They settled behind some large rubble and he could see someone with dark hair, likely Barebones huddled over on the cracked earth though his attentions were grabbed by the magic that was being exuded.
Grindelwald was a storm, a maelstrom of oppressive magic that warped the world around him, bending it to his will. He felt the hairs of his skin rise.
His eyes bored into the man, a surge of hatred rose within him that proved hard to control. He felt a nudge on his shoulder and he swivelled around, a harsh look in his eyes and saw Parkinson raise his eyebrow. "Do not lose yourself to rage." Parkinson looked away "I'd hate to think less of you" he said calmly, staring at the scene before them.
Atticus clenched his teeth but said nothing further. He could not lose his cool because of hate. Not now and especially not in the battle.
"Nothing fazes you, does it Parkinson?" Atticus said after a moment.
Parkinson glanced at him from the corner of his eyes before he looked straight ahead, his expression neutral as silence reigned for several moments until he spoke "If I am still alive all that I have faced in my life, the possibility of death becomes little more than just an afterthought. Anger and fury are wasteful, something that detracts from your goals" He once more glanced at Atticus "Something you will learn" he turned away from Atticus "That is, of course, should you live to reach such an age where you'll come to the same conclusion"
Atticus stared at Parkinson for a little while. It was the first time he'd mentioned anything about his background, beyond his career as an Auror and then later a collector for Gringotts. And also giving life advice?
Truly a strange night.
Atticus spied the area around him and saw that there was a depression where Grindelwald and Barebones were, craters and deep sears in the smoking earth marred all around them.
Cries of agony and the cracks of bone echoed into the night.
Malicious laughter filled the air as Atticus sees the magic Grindelwald exuded torment the currents of magic that surrounded them all.
"You won't have much time" Atticus said quietly as they halted, Atticus having brought out his wand to bear, just as Parkinson had.
"of what the price of betrayal is, of what the cost of resistance will be" Grindelwald's voice amplified.
"I will take him from here" Parkinson glanced at him "I'm not sure why you're going into so much effort to rescue the man" Parkinson's eyes were calculating as he looked at Atticus.
"You thought you could turn your back towards the goal that all of your former comrades were fighting for, a world for magic, a world whereby there would NO. MORE. HIDING" Grindelwald roared out the last words, his men roaring in return.
Atticus turned to Parkinson "He knows more about Grindelwald than anyone else" he offered as reason. Parkinson stared at him for a moment before refocusing on the task at hand.
Atticus had chosen Parkinson because of his ability to remain unfazed under the most stressful circumstances and because he would not deviate from the plan, no matter if his personal desires were in conflict with duty.
Atticus reached out to his pocket at the opposite side of Parkinson and took out a small crystalline orb the size of a snitch and flicked it away, sending it flying away from him until it stopped floated in the air for a moment before it soared in the sky. He glanced at Parkinson and saw he didn't notice.
Good.
"Do not die so easily, dear Credence" Grindelwald's silky voice echoed in the air.
Barebones' cries echoed in the black night, the harrowing, agonised cries that spoke unspeakable pain.
Atticus closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, the tight control he held his magic under loosened, ever so slightly, just enough to channel magic through his body to get him across the field in blistering speed.
"Ready" Atticus whispered to Parkinson, his magic remaining under control despite the hatred that he could not hide in his eyes. It would not do to let Grindelwald know.
Atticus reopened his eyes, purple green orbs glowing slightly in the unnaturally dark night.
Parkinson simply inclined his head, his blue grey eyes letting nothing out.
Atticus palmed his wand tightly and grabbed Parkinson by the shoulder, his feather light weight caused him almost to float. He cast invisibility and silencing charms on them both before he walked around the rubble.
With a swift move, he raced across the battlefield, stepping over cracks and leaping over shattered rubble until he was half way across to Grindelwald who was a miasma, a veritable storm of dread inducing magic as he tortured Barebones into oblivion.
His arm cranked forward, the tip of his wand glowed a deep silvery hue, his magic was at his beck and call. Parkinson gripped the midsection of the back of his robes as he dragged him forward.
Grindelwald turned towards their direction, the mismatched eyes glowing eerily in the dark night and Atticus saw him begin to raise his wand faster than he thought Grindelwald would be able to but not before Atticus could unleash his curse.
"PELLEO" Atticus intoned.
A moment, a very brief moment passed as the tip of his wand grew to crackle with magic before a silver white mass of magic erupted from his wand, one that grew to thrice the size of Atticus and the bludgeoning curse rushed forward.
The bright silver white hue of the curse seemed to rip away the veil that Grindelwald had cast on the world as it tore through the sky.
Grindelwald's wand which had seemed to have prepared a curse dimmed before a shield formed in front of him. The bludgeoning curse crashed into him and sent him flying, the resultant clash between shield and curse brightly illuminating the world.
Barebones was thrown in the air from the mild shockwave.
Magic began to crackle around him, the hold he held on his magic completely unleashed and channelled more magic through his body and as soon as his feet touched the earth once more, he cracked the already dry and abused earth as he reached another speed.
Atticus eyes widen when he saw the ground shift and twist as a shadow of some kind and he threw Parkinson with the strength of an ox towards Barebones as Atticus refocused towards shadow structure.
As the distance closed, Atticus whipped his wand around "Lux Sanctus" a wide glowing beam of white light erupted from his wand that shattered the shadow structure.
Parkinson caught Barebones and Atticus twisted towards him, raising a curtain of stone against the curses that had been sent his way.
Atticus swivelled his head around, his eyes catching Barebones' tired and barely conscious eyes before he turned to Parkinson. "Parkinson, take him" Atticus ordered, the intent of his words clear as the stone curtain shattered and Atticus batted away some of the curses before he twisted his wand around and changed the rubble into a smoke screen before he raised a powerful wide shield.
He saw faintly through the smoke a stream of curses and he set himself. He gritted his teeth as the spells that crashed against his shield were far more powerful than he had been hit by before.
"Go now, I will keep him busy" Atticus said urgently keeping his eyes in front of him.
Atticus heard Parkinson stun Barebones before he disappeared by port key just before the smoke was turned into acid and raced towards him. He dropped his shield and with a wide arc vanished the acid and with a swift slash upward, blasted a spell upward that bloomed violet green, casting its light down at the battlefield.
He kept his wand raised as he straightened out of his stance into a nimbler one as he eyed the man who walked towards him, the man's magic rolled off him like an endless waterfall.
Atticus took a glance at the wards, a thin bubble of colours interlaced together shift into a more complex one, one of his design and breathed a little easier, a tension he didn't know he held relaxed.
There was no turning back now.
His eyes burned with a fire that nothing could douse as his eyes fell on the man who took much from and would take more with violent delight.
Faint shouts and screams in the distance could be heard, the trap he and his comrades having planned had sprung. Grindelwald turned his mismatched eyes towards the heavens before he turned towards the sounds of battle that was being fought.
From this distance, he couldn't quite say what came over him but the response in his magic was answer enough.
Atticus, for the first time saw truly someone whose person far exceeded any other's he's seen before.
And it didn't matter.
Hunger crowed in his eyes, his fingers twitched with angry anticipation even as Grindelwald's anger was felt through the dread inducing storm his magic was conjuring.
Ever since his ability activated, he could see the magic in people, how strong they were in magic. Those who barely used their magic seemed to have shrivelled banks of rivers with the barest of trickles of water flowing through them, circling around within them slowly and those who did, even if they were not blessed to be powerful, had river streams that were fast, their magic freely and quickly able to be called up.
And this man in front of him…
Thickness of streams represented their strength of magic, at least it was the way he thought of it, and Grindelwald…
It seemed as if he had oceans pouring all around within him, a raging black sea that was at his beck and call.
The streams of magic of the world that interlaced a connectivity that rarely anyone would truly understand buckled and trembled as it interacted with his magic, as he walked towards Atticus, the tendrils of his black aura stretched high and wide.
But that did not matter to him, not in this moment.
Atticus could not care for the power the man exuded, the age gap between the two enemies.
No…
All he could see when he stared at those mismatched eyes that glowed like twilight stars, full of magical power…
The man who ordered his father's death.
The wood of his wand creaked under the pressure of his hand, his magic wreathed and writhed under his skin.
The man who took the father who had loved him the moment his eyes had set on him, a love he had not known until he was reborn into this world.
His magic swirled across his skin, swelling within him until it seeped out of him, liquid power made manifest as his heart quickened, his magic ebbing and flowing with each beat of the heart, dancing to the drums of coming vengeance and the sweet allure of exacting unending cruelty.
The area grew thick with magic, swirling with thick arcane energy as wisps of purple green magic twisted around him.
Magic crackled as he walked, power roiled off of him in a swirling tempest as he strode forward towards Grindelwald, who reciprocated.
The memories of his father dying in front of him haunted him for so long, the weight of failure had torn him apart, the grief had hollowed him out.
He had never known pain as he had in that moment, the loss of a man who made the father of his first life seem like nothing more than an insignificant wretched cockroach of a person, a man who had instilled in him the value of duty and responsibility…of family.
The pressure of Grindelwald's magic grew to an immense level but Atticus lashed away at it, his magic growing to rise to meet the challenge that stood before him…them with eager abandon.
"Finally" Grindelwald's voice was dripping with malice as he came to a halt not more than forty metres away. His magic swirled around him a furious tempest even if he wore a neutral expression.
"Finally, we meet Sayre" Grindelwald's eyes bored into Atticus.
The hatred in Atticus' eyes dimmed as he viciously applied Occlumency.
'Not yet…' he thought even as his magic sung in his blood, eager to unleash itself against the man who took much and would take more.
"I didn't quite know you were so looking forward to it" Atticus flashed a maddening smile with, his contemptuous eyes bearing down on Grindelwald before he tilted his head in faux contemplation "Had I known, why I might have not taken so many of your hard worked territories from you and come to see you sooner" Atticus smile turned a sharp grin, one that bared all of his teeth.
Grindelwald's hand twitched even if his face remained impassive "Most people would seek to avoid my attentions" The corner of his lips curled as his eyes shone brightly with malice "You should know that"
Atticus clenched his teeth so tightly, even as he tried to keep his expression neutral, a wave of hatred washing over him. "Yes…I do know it" Atticus admitted, somehow forcing the words through his teeth "And you will pay for that, Grindelwald. Just as you will pay for all blood of thousands you have spilled" His magic tremored in hateful excitement.
Grindelwald's eyes widened momentarily until a dark chuckle that morphed into a laughter.
Grindelwald's laughter was malicious, black tendrils of his magic swirled around him as his eyes shone like the event horizon of a black hole, all-consuming and bottomless, his eyes turning towards Atticus, painful promise shining in his eyes should Atticus approach him too closely, should he near the edges of his unescapable and all-consuming nature.
"And you're going to make me pay?" Grindelwald's lips curled as his laughter petered out "Child…" the word was condescending, entirely intent on demeaning him "You have no idea what you have brought upon yourself" Grindelwald's eyes shone with promised cruelty.
Atticus' eyes shone just as brightly, hidden behind a veneer of civility "I do know what faces me, a monster such as yourself who has killed untold thousands, butchered entire magical families for little cause or prompt, all because they refused to kneel at the feet of a madman intent on destroying the magical world."
Grindelwald's eyes darkened "I'm trying to save the magical world" Grindelwald's tone was dangerous for the first time, the anger he exuded having been reflected in his tone. "But I do not expect a foolish boy driven by revenge to understand" a taunting quality entered his voice.
It was Atticus' turn to laugh as he ignored the jibe and it was one of mockery. "Truly?" Atticus face was derisive, loathing being projected from his entire being "Is that what you were trying to do in Denmark? Or Norway? Or Bulgaria? Or even your own homeland? Save the magical world?" Atticus spat out angrily, his voice rising all the time.
Grindelwald's hand tightened over his wand, his eyes narrowing "Sacrifices are to be made for The Greater Good. No civilisation ever achieved anything great without the necessary sacrifices and unfortunately whilst their deaths were unwanted, they were necessary in the great scheme of things"
Atticus scoffed, this time a genuine one "The Greater Good" Atticus shook his head. "The phrase you have adopted but one that tyrants have used for millennia, for ages untold…a phrase to use to excuse anything and everything and, in the end, it is used only to enrichen, to empower themselves" His tone was cold.
Grindelwald's magic bloomed as he straightened his back, his stance now made it seem as if he were a hulking Titan, one that loomed over Atticus as his magic turned into a furious maelstrom swept across the battlefield as the pressure he exerted grew. "What do you know…" Grindelwald's voice was low…nearly a whisper but Atticus did not doubt that it could be heard from scores away.
"The magical world is decadent, rotting from the inside" Grindelwald's passion rose before he continued, his left arm rising and sweeping across the dead field, which Atticus had found ironic given what it represented, and not what he meant, especially since Grindelwald himself sought tear the world apart "Progress is killed at the very onset, traditions and practices centuries old stymie any new way of thinking whilst at the same time cutting down millennia of history of magicals into one filled with lies, entitled Nobles who contribute nothing but corruption and failure and the hold the Ministries" Grindelwald practically sneered the word "have on what is allowed to be practiced and what is not has only regressed us a thousand years"
Atticus remained silent even if he agreed with some of his obvious assessment, assessment he knew Grindelwald would use to twist into fitting his own agenda.
Grindelwald continued "But that is not the main cause for this regression, this slow spiral into nothing more than muggles with wands, no…" Grindelwald's eyes flashed with fire shining in them "No, the Statute of Secrecy is the single greatest case of self sabotage, a way for superior beings to hide away from those inferior simply because of fear, fear of the threat muggles presented to the magical world and hidden itself away like a scared child hiding from the dark, unwilling to stand tall and be free as it is our right as inheritors of this Earth" Grindelwald's arms were aloft now, his magic a cacophony of power tormenting the world.
Atticus' breath hitched as he took in the sight, the darkening of the skies as Grindelwald's eyes bore down on him, threatening to engulf him in a bottomless pit of darkness.
"Any act I commit, any atrocity I will commit will see to our freedom as a people" Grindelwald's voice seem to shake the world, the sky seemed to rumble with every phrase he uttered. "That is what The Greater Good demands, and I…And I will GLADLY pay that price, even if the rivers flow with blood"
Silence reigned between them, both staring at each other, a devastating curse ready to rip away from both their wands as stars were shuttered away, the night sky having been turned into a blank black canvas and the Moon's face was absent.
Though…despite the darkness that the world had been plunged into, some, even though it was meagre, moonlight shone down at the world, preventing the world descending into total darkness.
"To push the magical world forward, to halt the stagnation that has grown over the centuries is an admirable goal" Atticus began slowly, breaking the tense silence that suffocated the last embers of life from their surroundings "It is what any Mage who has a love of the magical world should have as a goal – to push for the people who have magic running in their veins to live to their utmost potential" Atticus voice rose in strength "To offer a hand to others so that they can rise in excellence, to thrive not just for themselves but for the magical world, to leave a legacy that will last beyond any of our lifetimes…one that will strengthen the magical world in our shared and collective efforts…That is how one leaves an impact that will stave off stagnation and corruption, one that is focused on building a world that can meet any challenges that rise up to destroy it" Atticus' eyes hardened "But that is not your goal, is it Grindelwald, no matter how much you utter similar words to your followers. No…" Atticus trailed his eyes sweeping towards the deadened earth before they snapped back at the blackened magical storm that was Grindelwald.
"No…your goal has never been about the magical people. No champion would allow the wanton slaughter of his people, for no matter where we are born, may it be in China or in Brazil or in Germany, we are the same…we are Mages, those who carry Mother's Magic's gift in our very veins and no distance or language or colouring will ever change that fact and you…" Atticus' eyes hardened as his voice picked up, rising just as his own magic rose to meet the challenge that was in front of them "a monster who claims to do all he has done – and would do if you are not stopped – are no champion of our people. Neither are a great many of your followers. No…whilst you have rallied those who might truly believe they are fighting for a just cause…it is still only a cause where you have twisted the threat of the muggles to rally those people to your true cause, a war of conquest, for there is no doubt in my mind that your vaunted Greater Good is nothing but a façade, a veneer, one to hide your true ambitions of ruling over magicals you deem worthy and consign everyone else, may they be muggle or magical into nothing more than slaves and cattle, destroying everything that made our people good, everything that made Magic great into a horror." Atticus' voice snapped like a whip against a bull's rear as his eyes burned a hole into Grindelwald.
"Drop the pretences" Atticus' voice was quiet but unyielding "I am not a fool that cannot see the truth between your honeyed lies, lies that hide your true intent of this Wizarding War, one that mirrors the war that is happening in the muggle world"
Grindelwald's eyes narrowed almost minutely when Atticus made his assuages that Grindelwald had a wider goal than simply tearing down the Statute but he had caught it.
Atticus had always thought that Grindelwald had not been different from any other Dark Lord, completely intent on ruling but that final element to his assumptions was missing, something he had been coming to understand during the course of this war.
He had been hunted by the ICW for decades and still he managed to create a coup in Austria and Germany, bringing both of their strength to his table before he moved onto Denmark. The ICW had not acted against Grindelwald, not truly, having left the Ministries and special task forces to hunt him down until he began to truly break the Statute by allying with the Nazis in the open and shattering the Statute in the presence of the Nazi High Command and it only turned into open warfare when WWII had started with the invasion of Poland.
Grindelwald could have continued to work in the shadows, to work to bring more Ministries under his control until it was time to shatter the Statute but he hadn't and instead opted all out war with the ICW that sapped at both of their strengths.
In a war of attrition, Grindelwald would never win so why do this? He may not be defeated one on one – even if he knew Dumbledore would – but his cause would never win. So why follow this course of action?
Grindelwald's mask fell off, a brutal grin shone on his face even as his eyes seem to suck out air from the world with the way they seemed to darken.
"Very well" Grindelwald allowed, his voice causing the hairs on the back of his neck to rise.
"So you have understood my intent with this war then – or least somewhat" Grindelwald's brutal grin only sharpened into a deathly one "The ICW" Grindelwald said the organisation's name with utter disdain before he continued "fail to understand that the Statute is but merely paper thin, something that can be shattered beyond repair – They should know of this given what happened in New York" Grindelwald paused for a moment, his grin shifting into a curling smile "My condolences of course" Atticus gritted his teeth as he narrowed his eyes but he said nothing much to Grindelwald's disappointment.
Grindelwald let off a long suffering sigh before he continued, glancing at Atticus "It only takes one such event for the entire glass house they have built to shatter, no matter how many charms they may place on it. In today's world, the muggles would be able to inform others faster than the Statute can be maintained so why would I conduct this war in the shadows, mostly away from the eyes of the muggles when it is the very structure that I want to rip away?" Grindelwald's lips twisted in a cruel smile.
"You wouldn't conduct this war away from the eyes of the muggles until you were ready" Atticus picked up where Grindelwald left off, his eyes narrowing "The Nazis…" Atticus trailed off for a moment before they snapped to Grindelwald. "They are your Queen" Atticus flatly stated.
Grindelwald mockingly bowed his head. "Yes…the Nazis are a curious bunch of muggles, obsessed about the Aryan race and the Jewish scourge despite the fact that their differences are but superficial" Grindelwald's voice was rife with amusement before he turned serious "They are also competent, competent enough to rip away the boundaries that exist within nations, shattering armies and peoples until there are no more obstacles in Europe" Grindelwald's face darkened "Other than themselves and when they conveniently turn their eyes and weapons against the magical people after an incident that exposes Magic…" Grindelwald's eyes shone with unbridled calculation, his sentence not needing to be finished.
"…You never intended to win this war" Atticus said slowly his mind whirling as his words filled the silence that had descended on them.
Grindelwald's smile was anything but settling "Tearing down the Statute is a goal, naturally, but it is one that will be done in accident and completely eradicated as it will be because of necessity, of survival once the muggles know of our kind." Atticus eyes widened as understanding dawned on him, fury bubbling within him.
"You would play with the survival of our kind by thrusting us into a war of annihilation with the muggles?" Atticus words spilled out of him in genuine shock.
Grindelwald laughed and it was one of derision "Of course!" Grindelwald's arms were aloft, his smile turned predatory "It would head that direction anyway however this way it is controlled, it would fall in our favour." Grindelwald's glowing eyes darkened before he continued "This war between us all would stop and they would have no choice but to agree to let me lead them to survival against the muggles that would seek to destroy us"
Atticus nearly called out on Grindelwald's arrogance that the war would stop but he knew better. The war would stop and tens of thousands would flock to Grindelwald for protection, for vengeance no matter how heinous his crimes had been.
The man's arrogance though regarding the chances of Magicals winning…
He could see it being possible, how could he not? He had thought on it so often…so many times but always he had reached the conclusion that it was simply too monstrous on the souls of Magicals to do what would be necessary to ensure Muggles never threatened them on Earth and any victory would likely be incredibly pyrrhic and leave a monstrous legacy behind to those survivors.
Magic was entwined with life…to so willingly annihilate billions and then enslave the millions of survivors…
It stood everything against what he was coming to understand what magic truly was.
They were gifted by Mother Magic, they carried a Mantle of Responsibility…one that engulfed a responsibility to life, to ensure that the spark of life never went out.
…To ensure that life thrived wherever it may reside, so long as it did not infringe itself on others.
His conversations with Moira, his own understanding…the words of the Centaur that auspicious night…
"The Nazis would never get that powerful – the tide is already turning against them" Atticus said with narrowed eyes, hoping to eke out more of Grindelwald's plans.
"For the moment but the muggles will serve their purpose" Grindelwald said dismissively and mysteriously, shutting down that avenue with ease, his lips curling in amusement, his eyes were alight with some kind of hidden knowledge, something that alarmed Atticus even more.
Atticus knew the man played mind games but there was something about that made him truly concerned.
"Just as we magicals serve your purpose, until it is time for you to carve yourself a throne, one built on the bones and destruction of two worlds?" Atticus interjected with a disgusted tone.
Atticus wasn't sure if he was disgusted by the sheer callousness of his plans or whether he was disgusted with himself as he, in a small part within his mind admired the plan if only for its ruthless pragmatism and calculation.
Grindelwald tipped his head in acknowledged, smiling thinly "Of course. The ICW's time is at an end, a failed institution that provides little more than a corrupt basin filled with delusional weaklings and the muggles need a higher purpose than their pitiful existence, serving their superiors for a great cause" Grindelwald's eyes pierced into Atticus "Harmony between the worlds is impossible and this world can only achieve a semblance of harmony with me at the very top"
Atticus gripped his wand tighter "No matter how you dress up your goals, in the end, you are seeking power for your own selfish cause, one you have lied to the world about"
"Have I?" Grindewald's smile turned menacing "I have never shied away from the ideology of domination…simply omitted a few things, true but nonetheless I have not lied in truth"
"Most people did not follow your cause just to see you become emperor over us all" Atticus stated with narrowed eyes "They wished to be free, free from the Statute not to be your foot soldiers, ignorant of your plotting of the destruction of two worlds in your war of conquest"
"It is a war of conquest, you are not wrong about that" Grindelwald's brutal grin only sharpened into a deathly one "The threat of the muggles was and is a convenient agent, even if it is true, but it is convenient nonetheless" Grindelwald admitted without shame or care "After all…" Grindelwald's trailed and paused for a moment as he added weight his words."Why would it not be a war of conquest?" he posed to Atticus, his left hand rising the air, black wisps of magic swirled around it ominously.
"Power…Power is within our very fingertips, power that is yearning to be used, to be moulded by our own will, to alter the world as we wish" Grindelwald's voice was calm, far too deceptively calm, a calm that belied the way he was going with his words "And why would I not exact my own power onto the world, to grasp more so I can bend the very world to my will, shaping generations to come to my own designs, bringing about a vision of the world where my word is final?" Grindelwald's smirk was a self satisfied one that turned dark "No matter who stands in my way" He closed his fists, shattering the black wisps of magic, staring intently at Atticus.
"Just like any other Dark Lord" Atticus narrowed his eyes "You are drunk on power and intent to force yours on the world" Atticus eyes sharpened "Power does not have to mean cruelty, it does not have to mean domination or evil just because you could" Atticus shook his head "It is a weakness to believe simply because you have power that you have the right to do as you please to the world"
It was hypocritical of Atticus to say as such, knowing what he had been like…what he had strived for all of his life even if he had preferred the opposite, to let the world descend into oblivion rather than to conquer it.
Was it any better to let the world destroy itself because of hatred and fear than it was to conquer it with fear and hatred, when one had the power to avert both?
He had sought power to become stronger, to never have to depend on anyone and to be able to do as he pleased without being concerned for his life.
In his old life, he had blackmailed, coerced and manipulated his way into getting what he wanted, aiming to become one the most powerful businessmen in the world.
He had been born in an abusive family in poverty, and had lacked power all of his life until he understood what he would need to do to obtain it and had thrown himself into it.
He had died a teenager before he could have truly dived deep into the path of power but Atticus knew…he knew that there had been little difference between himself and Grindelwald when he'd been reborn.
He never had the sole intent of being cruel but Atticus knew he had the capacity for it and would not hesitate if it served his purposes…and despite what he might like think, the road to what he considered evil was a slippery slope, one that he would have walked on had he lived to adulthood in his old life…
And one he would have walked again had he not loved Magic and then later his family far more than he loved the idea of power and himself.
"You have been blessed by Mother Magic with great power and yet you throw away that blessing by warping her gift to descend the world into such horrors…" Atticus trailed off.
Grindelwald scoffed, derision clear in his eyes "How naïve…" Grindelwald mocked before his eyes turned hard.
"It is because of that blessing I know I am in the right and I have the Might to make it my right" Grindelwald continued, his tone cool "My right comes from my might given to me by her and I am her Herald to bring about change." Grindelwald's eyes shone even brighter "Who better than to be the shepherd of Mankind than her Herald?" Grindelwald's lips curled dangerous, his eyes fixed on Atticus.
Atticus gripped his wand tighter, slowly shifting his stance into a defensive one. Grindelwald remained in his relaxed stance though Atticus knew it was far from defenceless. Grindelwald was ready to begin the battle at any moment.
He had one question though…a question he knew the answer of but curiosity took hold of him.
"You're telling me a great deal, information that will turn a great deal of the world against you" Atticus finally said,
"You will not live past this night, child, no matter how much it disappoints me to waste one of such potential." Grindelwald's lips curled.
Atticus kept his expression as neutral as possible. That might be his intent but there was far greater ramifications than he would realise. Even if Aticus…lost…Grindelwald would lose.
The things Grindelwald admitted to…
Grindelwald continued "It is refreshing to be honest to someone I have gone to a lot of trouble in meeting, especially given that you failed to attend other invitations that should have been attractive enough for you to target"
Atticus eyes widened ever so slightly but Grindelwald caught it from the way his lips began to shape into a smile.
"Did you really think that I was unaware of your presence within my wards?" his smile sharpened.
Atticus' eyes narrowed. What was he trying to say?
Grindelwald continued "It was…commendable, the way you sprung this trap" he allowed magnanimously, as if Atticus wanted his praise "Even more so when I had not expected you to arrive as fast as you did nor as…effective"
"And yet you allowed the trap to be sprung" Atticus stated more than asked "…or so you say."
Grindelwald laughed and it wasn't a nice one before he turned his malice filled eyes to him "Do you know how…annoying it is when someone seems to be able to avoid all of the traps like a mosquito that you can't quite seem to find…no matter where you look, the buzzing of the creature just doesn't seem to relent?"
Atticus only smiled thinly though internally Atticus the feeling of unease only grew.
'NO! I will not let myself be pulled apart by his mind games'
"That is what you have been, child" Grindelwald's smile turned predatory "an insignificant insect playing the hero, a knight" Grindelwald mocked as he sought to bring a rise out of Atticus.
"And yet this child" Atticus' eyes gleamed "This child you so like to call me has torn apart your cause more than anyone else personally." Atticus smiled thinly, his avarice barely hidden "And what does that make you? A Dark Lord who is unable to deal with someone he's labelled a child?" Grindelwald's lips thinned.
"A minor setback" he dismissed "Something that will be rectified once I'm done here"
Silence stretched as they stared each other down, tension rising.
Atticus' eyes shone "If" he replied softly, the implication clear in his singular word.
Grindelwald's pale lips stretched slowly in a dark smile "Children…" his tone was derisive as he tilted his head skyward "You may have turned the wards against me, trapping me here unable to help my followers against the forces you've assembled" Grindelwald paused for a moment, his eyes turning towards the ensuing battle "For that, you have my praise"
Grindelwald slowly raised his Elder Wand, the tip crackling with near unrestrained power.
"It is a shame that you decided to oppose me" Grindelwald stated, a strange look was in his eyes, one that Atticus could not quite identify.
"All tyrants must be opposed, especially mad ones such as yourselves who seek to destroy the magical world" Atticus bit out, raising his own wand.
"Ah…" Grindelwald said softly, his magic rising as he shifted into a stance slowly.
"Curious you said nothing about my plans regarding the muggles" Grindelwald's eyes held a curious glint in them.
"I'm not a muggle" Atticus simply stated "My care is for the magical world and its people. My care for the muggles only extends to the point and opinion that we should have nothing to do with them"
"I see" Grindelwald drawled, his eyes losing the sheen of interest in them and turned into full of malice. "Your care should have been more for your family" his lips curled into a cruel smile "After all…I did promise your sister a great many things and I look forward meeting her once we are done here" Laughing eyes with unhidden cruelty shone and it was enough for Atticus to snap, his patience having been completely worn out.
Atticus' magic rose like a shockwave, as if a quake shook up the very being of him. A wave of magical power surged within him, his eyes showed the faint swirls of white mixed with radiant purples and greens as he raised his wand, magic crackling at the tip.
A shockwave ripped through the air, one that rippled the earth, waves of compressed and cracked earth adorned the path of the spell that unleashed from Atticus' wand towards Grindelwald.
Black tendrils sprouted from the shadow maelstrom that draped Grindelwald like a cloak, the pressure that his magic exuded on the world grew as his magic rose. His arms rose as the wave of overpowered concussive magic shot towards him, a hungry glint in his eyes on his impassive face that betrayed his excitement as he brought his wand to his throat.
Grindelwald opened his mouth and a bright byzantine glow shone in his gaping mouth that darkened into dark purple energy that grew until it reached the size of a beach ball and Grindelwald inhaled it, his normally pale throat glowed dark purple until he screamed, a sound so terrible that it would silence even Banshees into mutes.
A lance of dark purple energy tore through the air, the very air rippled under the wake of the spell as it pierced through the concussive curse with impetuous ease.
Atticus narrowed his eyes before he swept his wand in an arc, transforming the ground into a liquid stone sea and a stone pillar rose beneath him, pushing him high in the sky before the base of the pillar shifted into two legs, one that moulded into a pillar but with a gaping arch between the legs and the lance of dark magic passed through the legs harmlessly.
"Show me what the Sayres are capable off boy…Show me what the best of your family are able to do." Grindelwald's voice echoed in the dark night, the sound of his magic crackling reverberated in the air as dozens of spells spewed from Grindelwald's wand without any wand movement, a feat that he had seen none do. A kaleidoscope of deathly colours that tore towards Atticus and the pillar shifted form into a giant hawk with Atticus on its back evading the destructive curses that Grindelwald sent his way.
Atticus soared towards the sky, the hawk banking and twisting all the time until one of the curses tore through the large Hawk, nearly throwing him off even as it began to spiral down towards the earth. Before he could repair the construct, he saw vague glinting light in the corner of the bottom of his eyes and his eyes widened when he saw what was coming.
Atticus leapt off of the back of the Hawk, diving head first towards the ground before hundreds of spears peppered the hawk construct, shattering it into pieces. Atticus twisted in the air and faced towards the falling debris and swept his wand, changing the debris into thousands of mocking jays that dived towards him and engulfed him in a swarm formation, spiralling around him like a shield as he descended towards the earth. With a flick, he morphed them into living metal, their flaps whistled in the air as they covered him in a protective manner.
Grindelwald unleashed a hailstorm of spells that his mocking jays intercepted, explosions sounded all around him until he saw, through the gaps of the swarm formation, conjured weapons that began to race towards him.
The front of the formation opened up as the ground approached and with a jab, the earth rippled like the way ponds rippled when a stone was cast and with an upward flick, a dozen Serayas erupted from the earth, the large bulking forms of the stone Basilisks bared their sword sized teeth before they intercepted the conjurations with their large bulk, the weapons shattering against the thick hardened stone.
With a mental command, half a dozen of the Basilisks dove back into the liquid earth, disappearing from all sight before he sent five of the others towards Grindelwald, racing towards them with sword like teeth, hissing as they slithered with blistering speed towards him.
The last of the Basilisks rose towards him and he slid on the constructs back before an explosion shattered it and Atticus, before cushioning the earth, rolled back to his feet, raising a large, thick transparent aluminium square shield that rung after a spell collided with it and Atticus gritted his teeth as his bones rattled from the force itself, and his eyes travelled towards the centre of the shield where he spotted a great dent that showed cracks at the centre of the indent, showing that it very nearly punctured through reinforced aluminium alloy.
Grindelwald twirled his wand around him, a sheen of water began to form around him before Atticus saw Grindelwald, through the distorted pool, jab his wand forward and the pool of water quadrupled in size, swirling around him before Grindelwald's figure disappeared in swirling black shadows that changed the very water into an ominous colour, black blue water that grew into an icy storm.
The half dozen Basilisks crashed towards Grindelwald but before they could reach them, blades of water shot from the water, cleaving the hardened Basilisk constructs in half before ten, twenty, dozens of blades ripped through the air cleaving the constructs into hundreds of pieces.
The pieces did not fall however, they remained in the air, as if attached to puppet strings, as the storm the water shield conjured grew in intensity…in ferocity.
Atticus glanced at the sky and saw the dark clouds rumbling, the signs of a storm starting. He turned back to Grindelwald with clenched jaws.
His eyes observed the raging magic that was in front of him with clarity, the tremendous influence he was casting on the world around them.
Where Fila or himself dominated the world around them with their will, bending it to obey their commands, Grindelwald simply ruptured it, twisting it do as he bid.
"I can see why you are called a Transfiguration Master" Grindelwald's voice carried the air with ease despite being obscured behind a screen of black water ice.
The rubble that been lifted in the air began to sharpen, hundreds, then thousands until they changed form into daggers. The daggers began to follow the rotation of the storm, water and steel mixed together as the size of the storm grew even more.
Atticus inhaled deeply, tasting the magic he was exuding on his tongue as he sank deeper into his magic even though his eyes were fixed on Grindelwald. The world around him grew thicker with magic, a vortex of swirling arcane energy as he rubbed his thumb on his wand, raising it as he bends his arm in a riposte stance, his arm perfectly perpendicular to his body.
With a tap of the foot, the earth rippled and he could feel the slight echoes through the earth as his magic surrounds him and travels deep into the earth, the constructs he had waiting, pulsed with eagerness, waiting for his commands.
"But so far, I have seen nothing that impresses me" Grindelwald continued as the tempest that had been created turned into a cyclone of death. Atticus saw the magic that carved into the earth as the grating sounds reverberated into the world.
Grindelwald stepped through the storm, his wand by his side, looking no less ominous, and as he walked, a tempest of shadows writhed around him, a burning inferno of blackness that touched the very sky.
"Do not disappoint, child. I have heard far too great things about you for you to die so soon"
The black water ice storm split off into two, turning into facsimiles of tornados before they moved towards him with break neck speed towards him, approaching him from the left and right.
Atticus eyes' began to glow with greater intensity, the white swirls of his eyes growing stronger in intensity as his arms rose in the air.
The very earth sung as his magic fed into the earth, his intent clear in his magic. The earth drank it in and shifted before it ebbed and flowed like a strong tide, pulsing away from him as if he were the very Moon influencing it.
Those scything tornados would cut through any construct he would create and he could see the grip Grindelwald had on the magic that created them. He would not easily be able to counter his influence and in that time, he might well be cut to pieces.
And so…
He did what he did best.
Be creative.
His arms twisted in the air before he twisted his wand with a series of quick flicks before he stilled, his eyes shifting towards the approaching tornados before he flicked his wand upward.
Thousands of litres of strange brown copper liquid water rose from the liquid earth in tens of thousands blobs, all coated with a silvery bubble that protected it from the atmosphere.
Atticus brought down his arm, palm facing upward until he clenched it into a fist and the blobs blurred forward, crashing into one another until they coalesced in two large round balls and with Atticus with a jab with his wand, sent them dashing with blistering speed towards the encroaching, rampaging tornadoes.
They splattered against the tornados, almost harmlessly until they were subsumed into the greater forms of the tornadoes and Atticus face was one of no reaction, simply one of concentration.
Grindelwald narrowed his eyes "And what wa-" he stopped just as an explosion of tremendous heat and steam engulfed all around Atticus obscuring him, the deathly tornadoes having been shattered into oblivion.
Atticus raised his wand and stilled the still mainly intact daggers and took control of them, the links to Grindelwald's magic have been shattered in the explosion before he raised the strange brown liquid and coated the blades with it. He sent the daggers flying towards Grindelwald, thousands of daggers pierced the veil that obscured the battlefield with immense speed.
Grindelwald's eyes narrowed before he conjured a large, thick wooden plate, several times as wide and high as himself that absorbed the impacts of the daggers before Grindelwald dashed away the board and turned his eyes towards the strange stream that Atticus created.
He could see Grindelwald taking control of the steam and he, with a twirl of the wand above his head, created a strong gust of wind that scattered the Hydrogen Bromide gas, the product from the reaction between Boron Tribromide and water, revealing himself to Grindelwald who stared at him with intensity.
"What did you do to break my link" Grindelwald's voice was dangerous and demanding.
Atticus allowed a small smirk to grow on his face, his eyes shining with determination "Simple understanding" Atticus answered before he began his assault on Grindelwald and so the battle started in earnest.
The answer had not satisfied Grindelwald and it reflected in his spells, spells that shattered and cratered the battlefield in equal measure as Atticus deflected, weaved, countered and batted back every spell he could whilst returning with spells equally as destructive, mixing Battle Transfiguration with Battle Magic as the battle descended into one of great show of power.
The world was shown not a duel but a fight, a fight that would leave only one survivor if either had their way, one that was just as spectacular as it was terrifying, the kinds of spells that left kilometre wide gashes into the earth, grotesque spells that showed a callous disregard for life.
Atticus' Hyper-Percipience was dialled up to highest degree, in tune with the world, with the cosmic energy that flowed through life and the universe even as he combatted with a man who held such awe inspiring power.
Atticus ducked and weaved away from the spells in such a way it almost seemed…as if it almost seemed that he could predict when the spells were coming.
As they clashed, the world around them shifted, the great clash of magic disrupted the system of the world as all-consuming magic clashed with endless magic, a man whose ambitions sought to devour the world whole and the other who strove for beyond it and more.
The sky rumbled ominously as the colour of the sky changed from pitch black to grey clouds streaked with blacks, silvers, purples and greens. The air was thick with magic, so rife with magic that even the most dull, weakest of wizards could see the sheer magical power that was shed here tonight.
Atticus twisted out of the way from a nasty looking curse, Fervefacio, a melting curse that turned flesh and bone into puddle within a few seconds before he unleashed Secaremillus, his thousand cut spell that would cause a thousand bleeds and stop wounds from healing.
It tore through the sky, ripping through the ground as Atticus overpowered it and Grindelwald had no choice but to shield as all the other angles of quick escape had been cut.
Grindelwald twirled his wand upward, a brilliant golden shield sprang into existence just before his spell hit his shields.
Atticus had not remained idle and he swept his wand in an arc, lifting the large stones that had been cleaved from the earth, and with a series of blindingly fast twists of his wand, transfigured the shattered stones along with the remnants of his constructs that lay broken near him, even the speaks of dusts into purple green orbs that began to merge and elongate with a wave of the wand and then finally, they elongated into sea freighter esque thick chains that shone brightly with purple green veins that moved across the surface.
The chains smashed into the ground, the sheer force leaving a large indent into the ground and a minor tremor, and they moved entirely according his will before three twenty foot chains began circling around him with furious intent.
Grindelwald's eyes shone brightly with malice, eyes that Atticus met with eager zeal before Grindelwald unleashed a maddening, unrelenting spew of spells that collided against the chains, the destruction the collisions showed a stark reminder of the power and breadth of Grindelwald's abilities.
The chains held despite the cracks that began to form, cracks that he could do nothing to fix as Grindelwald had hit them with dark magic that made it impossible.
Atticus swung one of his chains towards Grindelwald who brandished his wand furiously and diverted the path of the chain with a powerful blasting curse though Atticus was not done and sent the other two towards Grindelwald with break neck speed whilst the other circled back towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald's extended both of his arms before turning them towards the ground and he rocketed upward, just before the chains smashed into the ground where he had stood. The chains almost burrowed ten feet into the ground with the force they had crashed and Grindelwald used the opportunity to send another series of devastating spells at Atticus if he descended down to Earth, his shadows writhing around him like the wings of a fallen angel.
Atticus tapped his foot on the earth and it rippled momentarily before hawks ripped from the liquid pool of earth and raced towards the spells, meeting them with abandon.
The air above them shone with brightly coloured explosions as the spells were intercepted and Grindelwald returned back to earth, continuing his assault.
Atticus had brought back his chains and added them to his defence, protecting him from the curses that would see him dead if a single one hit an unprotected part of his body.
Grindelwald stopped his assault and with blindingly fast wand movements, the tip of his wand glowed an ominous silver before he slashed his wand diagonally and turn slashed once more in the opposite direction, the spells raced towards him in an 'X' formation.
Atticus' eyes widened when he saw the discernible colours of the spells and he twisted his wand above his head before jabbing his wand forward in one smooth motion.
The three chains streamed forward, eating up the distance between it and the spell, Morse Falcus simply scythed through the chains as if they were nothing but butter.
Atticus ran to his left and saw the spell was following him and narrowed his eyes. He swiftly changed direction, using his ritually enhanced body to slow down how fast the spell was encroaching until Atticus changed direction again, and he dashed forward and jabbed his wand downward. He leapt and hit the area he changed and he was sent flying through the sky just before the spell could cut him to pieces towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald had not been idle and he conjured dozens of ice spears that raced towards him.
Atticus could feel Grindelwald infusing his magic into the ice spears, twisting it with malignant strands of magic.
Atticus did not break his stride once he had landed and swirled his wand around into a full circle, the tip of his wand crackling with magic before he snapped it off, unleashing a shattering spell that tore towards the ice spears.
The shattering spell caused cracks to appear in the ice spear but they remained intact and after wobbling slightly in their path of flight, they resumed their course towards him and Atticus decided to unleash a torrent of lightning that crashed into the spears, finally shattering them, overwhelming their resistance.
The ice spears broke into a thousand pieces but before they fell, Atticus took control of them and melted them, turning them into globs of water before he changed the properties of it at a fundamental level, turning it into scalding molten metal that he, with a slash of his wand sent careening towards Grindelwald.
Atticus was not done however. His arms rose in the air as if he were a conductor, his eyes bright and glowing with a maelstrom of colour matching the furious tempest of arcane energy that surrounded him.
Atticus cross his arms before pulling them apart and the pools of molten metal broke apart, his will changing the large glob of molten metal into thousands of miniature bullets thousands of degrees hot.
With an exertion of will, he increased the speed of the bullets as much as he could.
Grindelwald whipped his wand all around him, a golden hue surrounded him as he shielded against the incoming fire.
The bullets peppered against the shields and the area surrounded Grindelwald cracked as they hit with the equivalent of 20,000 Joules of kinetic energy each.
The shield that surrounded Grindelwald began to crack under the assault as Atticus began to create more and more of these molten bullets.
Atticus' eyes widened as he could see the shift in Grindelwald's magic and took on a defensive stance, his eyes narrowing in expectation.
Grindelwald's shout ripped through the air, just as his magic exploded out of him, sending out a wave of shadowy black energy in all directions and towards Atticus. The malignant energy ripped earth from the ground and uprooted the last remaining roots of plants and causing them to wither as it rushed towards Atticus.
Atticus brought his wand forward and raised Fortis Aegis, one of the strongest shield and set himself ready.
The malignant energy crashed into his shield and it began to crack, fast, shocking Atticus immensely and before he knew it, his shield was gone and the malignant magic crashed into him.
Atticus cried out, his voice was full of pain as he was thrown high and far in the air, the malignant magic attempting to corrupt his body but Atticus' magic swelled within him, fighting the influence of the corrupting magic and won, even if it took its toll on Atticus' body.
Atticus crashed into one of the ridges that had been gouged out by their fight and just about managed to grasp one of the stronger roots that stuck out stopping him from falling towards the bottom of the hole below him.
Atticus gritted his teeth, pain coursing through his body. He pushed through and jabbed his wand, creating a staircase from beneath his dangling feet and let go of the root before climbing back up to the top, a small but powerful shield raised in front of him which was a good thing too as a red hot whip smashed against the shield, struggling against it until Atticus dropped it and ducked under the whip, letting it sail past his head.
Atticus raised his right hand before opening it, his eyes glowing with power.
The ground rumbled as the half dozen basilisks ripped from the earth, one of them directly under him, carrying him on its great serpentine head.
He rode the Basilisk towards Grindelwald as the other five slithered with alarming speed.
Grindelwald's fire whip changed from red hot flames into white and blue, signalling the increased temperatures of the whip, and Atticus could see that the magic was condensed even further. Grindelwald raised his wand, slowly, his mismatched eyes were aglow and the bright white and blue fire whip glowed even more until it begun to separate into eight different whips, each seemingly moving in accordance with Grindelwald's will.
They snaked around Grindelwald as if they were alive and Atticus would never say it but he was impressed. He suspected Grindelwald was maintaining the whips with his mind splitting his concentration in eight different ways in order to control them as he was now.
Controlling charms and curses like he was, was different from controlling multiple transfiguration constructs as it required a kind of mastery of the mind and their own magic that was not needed with transfiguration.
Grindelwald whipped his wand around, the eight whips ominously twirled above his head before he slashed his wand forward, the deathly whips lashed forward towards him and the other Basilisks.
Atticus' eyes glowed brightly and the earth surrounding him rippled once more and the Basilisk Atticus was riding dove towards the liquid earth.
As the fire whips slashed a couple of the basilisks in pieces and turned his attentions to the others and Atticus himself, Atticus was submerged into the earth, as if he diving simply into water but that was far from the truth.
Magic was everywhere, from the tiniest seed, to the greatest of trees. In the deepest of oceans and in the most lifeless of rocks, there was always magic.
And it was this that allowed him to see even if no light entered his eyes. He could see the currents of magic that traversed through matter, infusing within it, with no resistance.
He turned his face upward and forward and could see Grindelwald's powerful magic lighting up like a blackened star, his magic extending far beyond most people.
He slowly raised his arms, the billions tonnes of earth offered but the merest of resistance, as if he were in a slightly higher viscous environment than water and with the slightest of trembles, radiated his magic outward, entwining his magic with the earth to a greater degree.
He rose through the liquid earth with blistering speed, heading towards Grindelwald from behind him and broke through the soil though not alone no…
A great maw opened and a terrifying roar erupted from it as it pierced through the earth with wings that had cast a great shadow all around it, the Moon having resurfaced somewhat and its rays illuminated the battlefield.
The wings of stone unleashed themselves as it rose into the sky with Atticus at its back.
Grindelwald had destroyed the last of the Basilisks moments before the roar and turned towards Atticus with narrowed eyes, the whips sizzling on the earth with a loud hiss.
Atticus smiled widely, his eyes glowing ever more white though there were strands of purple and green in them. "You wish to be impressed?" Atticus voice sounded all around them, his voice making him seem as if he was omnipresent.
Both of his arms were aloft, his wand tip pointing downward and his right hand open palmed, magic crackling around him as he glowed rich purples and greens.
The ground shook, enough that Grindelwald had to steady himself, and dozens of great Scottish Ridgeback Dragons rose from the earth, crawling out of the earth as if they had just awoken from their slumber, and climbed into the sky with great beats of their stone wings.
The dragons blotted out the sky, their great forms hovered in the air with a menace that would caution even the most fearless man.
Grindelwald was beset with dozens of massive dragons from all directions around him, his wand high in the air, the fire whips rotating around him in a protective manner.
Not that it would help him.
A cacophony of roars downed out the world, their roars shaking the very earth with its monstrous strength "THEN BY ALL MEANS" Atticus' voice boomed¸ somehow managing to thunder over their roars.
"BE IMPRESSED"
Just as his dragon opened its maw, its mouth extending far beyond the hinges of its jaw, so did the other dozens of dragons, and just as a torrent of magma spewed out of the mouth the dragon Atticus rode, dozens of red white magma poured towards Grindelwald with ferocity.
Thousands of tonnes of red hot liquid stone poured towards Grindelwald who stood his ground, a turbulent tempest of shadowy black magic swirled around him as his mismatched eyes glowed in the wake of the attack.
His wand rose in the air until it was perpendicular to his body, the tip pointing upwards and from the tip, a black silvery mist grew from it until it surrounded him completely.
Atticus narrowed his eyes, his focus on what he could see in the magic.
The first of the magic crashed into the shield until all the rest did, thousands of tonnes of magma began to bury Grindelwald under its weight. The shape of the magma took on a dome like shape, a small hill created by his dragons.
The Magma began to cool in the mild but slightly frigid weather until it turned black and red and it was at that point, Atticus narrowed his eyes.
He saw that Grindelwald was not dead, the shield that he had created remained intact. Somehow that shield was able to prevent him to see inside it but he knew when the shield had been taken down, the moment the shield dropped and Atticus saw Grindelwald's building magic and he willed the dragon he was on to climb up but it was nearly to no avail.
The dome structure shattered as dozens of red crackling discs of destruction tore towards every direction upward and half of his dragons were cut to pieces before the red discs of destruction circled around and tore through the remaining dragons and raced towards him.
Atticus whirled his wand around, magic crackling all round him, a furious expression on his face, and slashed his wand diagonally, a shockwave ripped through the air from the tip of his wand and cleaved some of the red destructive discs before he jabbed his wand at the dragon he rode, shifting its form into a replica of Fila and used the excess material to fashion artillery weaponry that hung in the sky and fired artillery at Grindelwald as he evaded the red destructive discs that seemed to be able to chase him.
He twisted around Fila back and snapped his wand towards the discs, a lance of crackling magic shattered the discs.
In the corner of his eyes he saw his artillery being destroyed but was too late to see the spell that threw him off of Fila.
He twisted in mid-air, bring his wand to bear as he halted the spiral he was in and created a thick triple length shield that fortunately was able to absorb the spells that almost hit him.
The thick shield began to dent in several places as he fell and with a swish of the wand sent it towards Grindelwald before he twisted around and fired a powerful gust of wind that sent him careening towards the Earth.
He turned back around and just about managed to deflect a nasty slicing curse though he only partially deflected the blasting curse that caused him to lose control over his flight.
He just about managed to cushion his fall but he felt the impact nonetheless. Hairs on his skin rose and he, by instinct, rolled over and pushed himself off the ground with his hands, rotating in the air before he got back to his feet, just in time to twist out of the away of the dark slicing curses that threatened to bisect him.
He weaved his way out of the flurry of dark slicing curses and an obscure piercing curse that he had only read about that Grindelwald sent his way, all of which were designed to cleave through magical shields and pierce through magical constructs like they were nothing.
Atticus slid half a step to the side before he bent his neck and ducked further to let the spells fly over his head and pirouetted on the spot, sweeping his downward pointed wand in the process before flicking it upward, creating a shield of compressed air that howled in the air.
Atticus clenched his teeth even as he continued to twirl around, drawing further magic from himself as he used his magic to compress the air even more and he felt and saw the rise of the pressure and temperature as he pushed even further.
The curses Grindelwald had pelted him with could not pass through the compressed air, but neither could Atticus do anything but maintain it though…it did not mean he was helpless.
Atticus bent his knees, the howling sound of the compressed storm he created fell into the background and the earth cratered as he shot off towards where he saw Grindelwald's magic through the haze of the compressed air.
Atticus gritted his teeth as he felt the explosions on the surface of the compressed sphere that engulfed him, steadily losing its energy but soon enough he was within distance to Grindelwald and with a twirl of his wand, four arms shot off the thousand degree compressed air and speared towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald raised a shield but it did not prevent him from being lifted off his feet and thrown off of his feet into the air.
Grindelwald right himself in the air before he fell back towards the earth.
Atticus' eyes gleamed as he saw an opening, dismissed the hot compressed air and he fired an unforgiving number of combat spells that would see Grindelwald dead.
Grindelwald ducked and weaved his way out of the spells, at times countering and deflected but Atticus did not relent as he simply raised his speed of casting to a level he had never done so before.
The sky rumbled as faint wisps of lightning began to surround Atticus, his eyes glowing ever stronger with a swirling kaleidoscope of whites, purples and greens.
One of Atticus' spells clipped Grindelwald's shoulder and sent forth a blistering spell that seemed to crack reality as its glowing blue hue crashed into Grindelwald and an explosion rippled through the air with luminescent blue light replaced where Grindelwald had been.
Atticus' breathing was a little quicker than he was used to. His eyes remained focused on the spot where there was a high magical saturation, magic that had his signature on it.
Was he successful?
Atticus doubted it even if he knew that particular spell, a spell that would anyone into ash was one of his deadliest spells that he created.
It was one borne out of his studies of nuclear science and then improved when he had been learning Energy Physics from the courses Moira's people took.
The haze of dusts and turbulent colours of blue were waved away, much to Atticus' grim dismay as eyes the brightness of twilight stars bore down at him, belonging to a face that was shadowed by malice and hatred.
Atticus gripped his wand tighter and an angry determination set within his bones even as Grindelwald walked towards him draped in darkness, exuding black wisps of magic that seemed to cover areas of his robes that seemed to have been ripped off.
The pressure he exuded was immense, the currents of magic seemed to buckle in his very presence.
"Impressive" Grindelwald's voice was silky despite the fury undertones to it and it teemed with power.
"Had you not let that one man escape" Grindelwald chuckle was dark, filled with contempt "I would not have known how to shield against that spell of yours"
Atticus gritted his teeth.
Fuck.
He had let that man escape during the assault in Slovenia who must have given his memory to Grindelwald.
Grindelwald's eyes held something other than mere malice, this time. "You've used rituals haven't you?" His tone full of curiosity.
Atticus simply smiled thinly "What makes you think that?" Atticus only offered, knowing that responding positively or negatively would cause him issues later.
Grindelwald scoffed "I will enjoy ripping your family's secrets from your mind" calculation clear in his eyes.
Atticus raised his wand in response, a daring glint in his eyes one that dismissed the curiosity that had occupied his eyes, a burning glint in his eyes having replaced it.
"You're far more dangerous than I believed" Grindelwald continued, his voice laced with malice as he stepped out of the small crater, the elderberry wand down by his side.
Atticus smiled grimly. "Only to those such as you"
Grindelwald laughed, one that was far from kind or joyous before it petered out into a haunting, stilting dark chuckle "No…child…Never against those like me"
The very world buckled as a wave of magical power soared within Grindelwald and he brandished his wand, beginning an assault of unrelenting spew of dark curses that caused all of Atticus' senses to cry out in alarm.
It was taking every bit of his concentration to deflect, to block, to counter the onslaught and not even his slowly improving ability to predict was able to process quickly enough with the way Grindelwald unleashed an impossible attack that seemed to be able to cast dozens of spells simultaneously.
Atticus' bones rattled under his strained skin, his bones were grinding against each other every time he deflected a curse rather than avoided it, his senses nearly drove him made from the way they alarmed incessantly in his mind.
This could not continue he thought with cold grimness.
"For all of your power, boy" Grindelwald's malice filled voice echoed in the dark night "You have never fought against someone who was greater than you are, better than you are"
Atticus gritted his teeth as he rolled out of the way from a flurry of curses before he darted to his right, twisting and leaping out of the way of curses.
"You had believed your prodigious talents and your false sense of righteousness would be enough to see to my defeat" Grindelwald's voice was mocking despite hatred being evident in his voice.
Atticus rushed forward and slid under a string of curses before his fingers twitched towards the earth and metallic vines grew from the earth that followed him as he closed the gap between himself and Grindelwald.
The metallic vines intercepted the curses before he, with a twirl with the wand, grew the thickness of the metallic vines the size of tree branches and sharpened the tip before he dashed them towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald destroyed the first vine with contemptuous ease before the swirling mass shadows seemed to lift him in the air, almost making it seem like it was unaided flight before he outstretched his arms and torrential black flames was unleashed that burnt through the metallic vines within seconds.
Atticus stilled his movement, his eyes widening in surprise. To be able to burn through that so fast…
Grindelwald's eyes glowed ominously, the writhing shadows that hugged his body almost seem to hiss even as equally haunting black fire twisted around him like a fiery tornado.
"I HAVE FORGOTTEN MORE MAGIC THAN YOU HAVE EVER LEARNT, BOY." Grindelwald's voice boomed and the sky thundered as if was in responds to Grindelwald's proclamation.
Trickles of rain began to pour out of the sky, the heavens seemed to weep.
"LET ME SHOW YOU HOW MUCH YOU HAVE ERRED"
A gust of wind sent some of the scorching heat his way as the black flames rushed towards, the earth blackening under the unforgiving heat. Atticus could see that it was all consuming fire, even more so than Fiendfyre.
Atticus' hand was a blur as he swept his wand around, transfiguring earth into massive slabs of diamonds that took a pentacle shape around him.
The malicious fire crashed into the diamond fortress, the diamond structure began to heat to tremendous temperatures and began to glow a little red. His body began to sweat despite his robes protecting him from the worst.
Atticus narrowed his eyes. Diamond had a melting point of 4,000 degrees Celsius…there was no way…
Atticus eyes widened in shock as he saw front of the diamond begin to soften and with blistering speed began to conjure a maddening storm of ice that halted the softening of the diamond structure before he jabbed his wand forward, shattering the diamond structure and flicked his wand towards the malicious black flames, sending the sub 100 degrees' Celsius ice storm crashing into the black flames, instantly creating superheated steam.
Atticus swivelled around and deflected a nasty curse but was too late when Grindelwald appeared next to him and smashed a powerful explosive curse into his mid-rift, one that send him flying.
Incredible pain clouded Atticus' mind, though he knew that he would be dead without the protective runes that his robes had. Atticus coughed out blood mid-flight before he was pulled back by his left ankle, a hiss of pain escaping his lips, and lashed into the sky before he was sent crashing into the earth, cratering it. A guttural cry ruptured from Atticus' mouth, not unlike what he felt like must have been at least one of his organs also rupturing.
He felt the tug of whatever was around his ankle and it was enough to pull him out of the haze the pain induced him into.
Just as he felt being pulled back, he drew his wand and sliced off the rope that had been wrapped around his ankle and fired a blasting curse beneath him, just about lifting him over a dark flame scything curse that seared through the spot where he had been.
He swivelled around mid-air, using his right hand to control his rotation before he spotted Grindelwald's dashing towards, his shadow like tendrils lashing forward as the tip of his wand crackled with yellow lightning esque energy.
As the energy on the tip of Grindelwald's wand grew in size, Atticus twisted his body and pointed his palm skyward, and with a push changed his path back to the earth, just in time to evade the sizzling and crackling energy that tore the space he had been.
Atticus landed back on his feet and once more his wand was a blur as he fired a dizzying flurry of spells that could level a building with a single hit.
Grindelwald showed his nimbleness from the way he evaded the spells, even using the momentum of some of the explosion to close the distance even more before extended his arm forward, his fingers glowing with eerie ethereal power.
Atticus twisted his wand around, his eyes burning with he transformed the ground once more into liquid puddle, and thousands of spikes ripped through the surface and went flying towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald shifted his direction and rushed to his left but it mattered not as Atticus, weaving his wand like a conductor controlled an orchestra, made the spikes follow Grindelwald all the way.
Grindelwald twisted around and came to a stop, his wand no longer drawn. He brought his hands to a draw and Atticus saw all ten finger tips were glowing. With elaborate motions, Grindelwald drew back his hands before turning towards the spikes, lances of silver grey magic shot forth from his fingers and towards the spikes.
They cleaved through the spikes with impetuous ease but that had not shocked Atticus, no…
Grindelwald raised his hands once more and the lances responded, moving akin as to how ropes or whips moved rather than a beam of energy and Grindelwald drew himself taller as he drew back his hands and twisted them around, his fingers moving as if the very world was his keyboard.
Atticus had no idea what that magic was, its matrix was far too different than what he had seen before…he had never heard of such a thing…
Wandless based spells from another culture?
He had seen some writings about it but that was…Atticus eyes widened.
So it was true…
Grindelwald walked sedately, languidly, towards Atticus, the lances of energy swirling around him, mixed with the shadowy tendrils of his magical manifestation. A look of smugness with eyes that showed only malice bore down at Atticus.
Atticus hands trembled in hate as he stared at the man who stood before him, liquid power within him rising, small crackles of lightning flashed around his knuckles.
Grindelwald raised his hand, lazily and it was all that was needed for Atticus to nearly snarl in anger at the man, a massive build up of magic welling from within him and Atticus began casting with a frenzy.
As his wand twisted, jabbed, whirled in his hand, sending a pure wave of destruction and carnage, an anger built inside him, one that was borne of frustration, concern and fear.
Grindelwald used his lances to bat away his spells, to shatter or bisect his constructs as if it was nothing but mild inconvenience.
The ground rumbled and groaned as explosive curses were batted away into the distance.
He wasn't going to win Atticus thought grimly. Not like this. Even with the world at his command, even as he changed the very reality of the world around him to smash his opponent with constructs and weaponry, Grindelwald just knew too much to defeat him with power alone.
Atticus ducked under two of those lances and swivelled around and unleashed a swarm of furious hornets before he decided to change the way things were going.
Grindelwald halted the lances on his wand hand and burnt them away.
Atticus raised both his hands with a wave of magic, the world shifted, a kaleidoscope of colour surrounded him. Shifting colours and flares made it seem as if he were the product of solar radiation hitting the magnetosphere, an luminescent aurora.
With a wide slash of the wand, Atticus created a bright blue wave of energy that whined with energy and in his free hand, in the centre of his palm, a small light flickered.
Atticus whirled his wand and a large podium formed beneath and began to shoot him into the sky and Atticus breathed in deeply, his eyes fixed on the wave of destructive energy that he threw towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald abandoned the lances of energy completely and brought about his wand. A shield of shadows seemed to writhe around him, one that Atticus did not recognise at all.
Atticus glanced at his hand, the small light that had flickered now was the size of a tennis ball and still growing, a luminous light that had flames sprouting off in every direction.
His wave of destructive energy smashed into the wave of energy and seemed to have been able to cut through some of the shield but it seemed to have stopped and Atticus knew he had to hurry up. Atticus breathed in and out deeply, his magic swirling around him as he fuelled the spell.
The ball of light in his hand grew larger and larger, until it could no longer by contained in his hand and rose in the air, its light providing great illumination to the world.
Atticus closed his eyes briefly, momentarily, his concentration entirely focused on ensuring that the field was stable. He reopened his eyes and stared at the large ball
The very air twisted around the ball, the world was warped under its strength as it continued to grow beyond the size of a wrecking ball.
Light bent around the sphere, crackles of intense energy sounded ominous.
The wave of destructive energy was snuffed out of existence and before Grindelwald could bring his wand to bear, Atticus raised his wand high in the air and with a flourish, sent it towards Grindelwald.
Grindelwald dashed away, recognising the threat of the ball immediately but it would be to no avail. The large ball of energy followed his path and ate up the distance between them.
Atticus twisted his wand around him, a bubble forming around his head before twisting it around his entire body before he jabbed his wand in front of him and a shield materialised.
Atticus extended out his hands, his hands were closed and as he watched deep concentration, the miniature sun closely approached Grindelwald and with a deep exhalation, opened up his hands and the bubble around his head darkened to pitch black.
Twilight rays of kaleidoscopic light shone in every direction, with every colour until a massive shockwave exploded, the aftershock wave crashed into Atticus and only because of the shield was he not ravaged by the shockwave.
The force of the wave shattered the boundary ward that had kept both of them in and Atticus saw the wave extending far and wide. He turned his eyes back at the epicentre, the massive mushroom cloud that stood where Grindelwald had been with a grim look in his face.
The podium he stood on crumbled under the wave and Atticus was left levitating in the air thanks to charms he placed on himself.
The heat wave that followed Atticus felt, even if it was but a fortieth of the searing heat that his attack yielded.
He had not wanted to use these kinds of magic, having had faith in his Transfiguration but Grindelwald was just too powerful and skilled to hold back on some of his more destructive magic.
He had never thought he'd use it but it seemed it had to be that or he would have combine his Hyper-Percipience with nature magic to the full extent, something he had not done since Genelum.
It was a much weaker nuclear attack, one that had little environmental impact. He had discovered how to replicate the effects of creating the product of a nuclear attack, the intense heat and radiation that turned people into ash and at that point…
…Well, if you went that far, why not go even further?
There would be repercussions for this, he knew.
He raised both of his hands and descended down to the earth, slowly.
As he landed, he looked at the red hot smoke that rose high into the sky before they travelled to the base. He could not see much beyond the…wound, he internally grimaced, he caused. The magical density of his attack was far too high.
Atticus raised his wand, almost solemnly, and slowly twirled his wand. A small gust of wind came into existence, then a mild wind devil before a tornado sprouted.
The tornado howled and Atticus sent it forth towards the centre of the attack, hoping to dispel some of the smoke so he could verify Grindelwald was dead. He did not expect a body, nothing could survive that but he might be able to te-…
Atticus gasped.
The tornado lost its strength, withering like a water starved plant.
His right hand travelled to his right side and flesh blood leaked. How…
Atticus' senses went haywire and he threw himself onto the floor and where he had stood, sickly feeling black spears pierced through. He took a glance and saw a third spear sticking out of the ravaged earth.
"Impossible" Atticus said through clenched teeth as he attempted to heal his wound but it barely worked, the magic of whatever that thing was worse than most dark curses he knew. He grunted and he seared pure magic into the wound and cut off the necrotic skin before it healed somewhat.
He stood back up, wincing as he did and stared at the location where the spears had come from…and it was at the base of the mushroom cloud.
Through the hazy smoke, he could see a black figure with tentacle like structures sprouting from its back and Atticus gritted his teeth as a wave of fear washed over him.
How the fuck did he survive THAT?! He wondered with ever growing concern.
Grindelwald broke through the hazy smoke and what Atticus saw surprised him…greatly.
He no longer looked the perfect German pureblood, no longer looked like the infamous pictures showed him as.
Grindelwald had been clad in black robes with golden accents running down the sides of his robes, his hair freely falling from his head, the symbol of the Peverells unashamedly shown on his left side of the robes.
Not now.
His robes were torn apart, the sleeves of his robes were gone, exposing red raw arms and half of the robes on his shoulders was missing.
But that was not what surprised him.
No…
It was his face and his hair. He had blonde silvery hair but now…It was starch white now, as if someone had leeched the colour out of it but the starkest change was his face.
Grindelwald had always looked slightly gaunt but had never looked a day over forty.
Now…
Grindelwald's face was etched with wrinkles, his skin was paler than ever and it looked thinner too. It seemed he aged ten years in but a moment.
Atticus stiffened involuntarily as their eyes met.
If Grindelwald had despised him before, he truly hated him from the way his eyes bored into Atticus, the sheer hatred and malevolence his eyes radiated…
"…That…hurt" Grindelwald uttered, his voice taking on a demonic quality that rumbled all around them.
Atticus smiled grimly but said nothing but raised his wand.
"You have cost me more than you know…" Grindelwald's voice was a like a withered leaf in the wind, carrying through the air with simple ease despite being well over four hundred metre away from him.
Atticus narrowed his eyes at that. From the way he looked…
Atticus eyes gleamed in calculation. Of course.
He used his life force to survive that. But to do that…
Atticus gripped his wand tighter. Grindelwald was far more dangerous than he imagined. To know how to do that meant that he for certain knew far more dangerous magic of that ilk.
Hundreds of silver black circles came into existence behind Grindelwald, following him as he walked and Atticus eyes widened when he realised what they were.
They were runic circles and to be more specific Battle Runes, an ancient art that had been consigned to history thousands of years ago.
The Ancient Mesopotamians had been experts at it, to the point that the Ancient Egyptians had noted them for their strength in combat and their ability to counter their rituals and evocation.
Atticus amplified his voice "I can see that" Atticus said with a thin smile "You don't look so good, Grindelwald. Perhaps you could do with a nap?"
Atticus knew it was a terrible fucking idea to provoke a very pissed off Dark Lord, even if he hated the man, especially when whatever this was, was likely something that did not bode well for him.
But he couldn't help himself.
Grindelwald's eyes shone even brighter, the glowing silvery black runic circles had white light rotating around the circumference of the circles in ever faster pace.
"Your suffering will last an age" Grindelwald growled out and it was Atticus queue to dash forward.
Silver miniature cannon balls blasted out of those runic circles and Atticus rushed towards Grindelwald, aiming to evade them and to get close.
Whatever Grindelwald did to survive that attack, he knew that he had to get closer to deliver a final blow.
Or so he had thought.
When the first cannon ball had hit behind him, after Atticus had slid beneath it, he had expected an powerful explosion but one that he could ride out and even use to increase his moment.
He had been wrong.
The explosion that happened was several magnitude worse than he had thought.
Before he knew it, he was thrashed and thrown like a rag doll through the sky. He raised a powerful shield that shattered not seconds later after being hit with three of those cannon balls and he was sent careening towards the ground.
He crashed with a massive thud, cratering the earth and he coughed up blood as he wheezed in pain.
Several dozen more of those cannon balls came streaming towards him and Atticus panicked before cold logic took over and let himself sink into the earth before he twisted around and dove even further.
Not that it helped beyond allowing his healing abilities the time it needed.
The ground was torn asunder, the very earth was blown apart even as deep as he was.
He was blasted out of the ripped up rock that he was in and tumbled with a harsh fall onto the ground, his mind clear enough to roll himself back to his feet.
Atticus twisted on the spot and disapparated with a loud crack, moments before another explosion cratered where he had stood.
He reappeared to Grindelwald's left, twisting his wand and dozens of spears materialised in a tenth of a second before he slashed his wand, all of them streaming towards Grindelwald, targeting the runic circles as well as the man himself.
Grindelwald swivelled around and created a scythe of wind, splitting the spears in half before he took control of them and a created discs with sharpened ends.
Atticus clenched his teeth as he disapparated again and they played this game again and again, Grindelwald firing those absurdly powerful Runic Circles, some managing to clip him but Atticus managed to destroy some of them.
Atticus dashed forward, a spear in his right hand. He leapt in the air and disapparated before one of the silver cannon balls could blast him apart and reappeared behind Grindelwald but Grindelwald had already turned around, his eyes ablaze, his spear ready to strike.
Grindelwald fired a killing curse, a marked difference from what he had done before and Atticus with a swift motion of the right hand, he created a gush of wind which changed his direction and just about managed to evade it before he threw his spear towards Grindelwald who deflected the spear with a cushioned pocket of air in front of his wand, tilting its angle enough that it passed over Grindelwald's shoulder.
Just as he was to swivel around and curse Grindelwald, a blasting curses smashed into Atticus, and he winced as he was send flying like a rag doll through the air before he softened the ground.
Atticus fell to the ground in awkward position and twisted around, his wand tip crackling with magic. His eyes widened at the approaching danger. He could not disapparate not when he saw a silver cannon ball about to smash into him. He did not want to find out what would happen if some of that thing followed him into the disapparation wake.
With desperate action, Atticus activated his Ancient Humanity wrist shield, a brilliant hexagonal shield sprang into life. The shield held even as the ground around him cratered by the sheer power of the cannon ball.
It was not long after that he was beset but dozens of silver blasts, ripping the ground apart as the crater grew to monstrous size.
His eyes travelled to his shield and he could see strength of the shield quickly approaching sub thirty percent.
Atticus grimaced. This thing probably saved his life. Atticus shook his head. He had thought to use apparation to close the distance between himself and Grindelwald to avoid being hit by these things but Grindelwald's reflexes were better than Atticus' and he managed to gain distance between them by simply blasting him away rather than try to rip him apart by dark curses.
Time ticked, seconds turned into long minutes that soon began to tick over to nearly six minutes and Atticus could only grimly think about the absurdity of that spell.
What in Morgana's name was that damned spell?
The rate of the cannon balls stopped and Atticus spied a moment and looked at the wrist shield. 14%.
That was his signal to push forth. Atticus raised his arms, magic swirled around him within the shield and with a crack, Atticus rocketed upward, through the dusty smoke that was around him. Atticus twisted around, sweeping his wand as he did so and a purple orange shield materialised around him.
With but a mere of the thought, his wrist shield went inactive. Atticus broke through the dusty smoke and his eyes immediately latched onto Grindelwald, who now no longer had the Battles Runes flying behind his back.
I definitely need to learn what that magic is Atticus thought with envy.
Atticus banished the thoughts as a stream of dark curses tore towards him. Atticus' eyes gleamed as he manipulated the structure of the shield charm to create little tendrils that extended out and they swatted away the spells as if they were some weak nuisance.
Atticus descended down, quickly even as he used the tendrils of his shield to bat and deflect away the spells Grindelwald sent his way.
Shields could be changed, the strength, their form even how far they extended.
That had made him wonder if you could simply just change the very structure of the shield like what he was doing.
As he found out, you could if you had high skill and understanding of the shield charm.
Sickly crackling acid green killing curses were fired towards him and Atticus dropped the shield before he conjured dozens of mocking jays that offered him protection as he landed onto the earth.
Atticus twisted around and attempted to disapparate but found himself unable to and he just about managed to rotate his head to avoid a piercing cursing tearing through his head.
How the hell did Grindelwald managed to get a damn Anti-Apparation ward on so quickly, repairing the damage on the wardstone?
Atticus face shifted to a grimace.
It seemed that they were equally set out to trap one another. The boundary ward may have been shattered but it did not mean that either of them could leave this desolate place easily.
"I do not how you survived that attack" Grindelwald's cold voice echoed "I will enjoy ripping that knowledge from your mind"
Atticus slid past and managed to get a few spells out before he was forced back into defence, once more.
"You can longer run, child" Grindelwald's menacing voice rang as Atticus ducked and weaved out of the way.
Grindelwald's magic was building Atticus noticed as he weaved out of the way from the unrelenting spew of dark curses.
"Death will follow you wherever you go" Grindelwald's voice was foreboding and a frown settled on Atticus face as he swept up his wand and created a large domed shield of titanium that clanged as curses hit it.
Atticus leapt back and dashed around, channelling magic in his legs and his eyes widened when he saw Grindelwald's extending his arms, his palms glowing with necromantic energy.
Atticus twisted his face in distaste before he fired off a crackling bolt of lightning at Grindelwald.
Grindelwald disapparated from the spot and Atticus gritted his teeth before he relaxed, his breathing evened out. He sank into his ability, dialling it up as much as he could, hoping to be able to feel even the slightest tremor of magic.
Atticus swivelled around and fired off Consesco, a grey dismemberment curse.
Grindelwald disapparated again and again, the necromantic energy he was gathering grew stronger all the time until Atticus in a fit of anger and a swell of magic, raised the earth, a small mountain rose in the earth and he threw it towards where he suspected Grindelwald to be and Grindelwald apparated directly beneath it.
Atticus wand moved like a blur, making it seem as if there were half a dozen hands instead of just the one.
Vines grew around Grindelwald's ankles with blinding speed as Atticus flicked his wand to the side, tightening the vines around Grindelwald's ankles before he, with a single smooth motion, brought up his wand and pointed the tip of the wand downward, a single, half second passed before he jabbed downward.
Grindelwald burned away the vines though a single last vine wrapped itself around Grindelwald's wrist before that too burned away but it was too late and the small mountain crashed into Grindelwald.
The resultant crash wreaked the shattered battlefield, and the undulating wave rippled through the earth, an earthquake rumbled as a massive blast kicked up tonnes of debris.
Atticus used the opportunity to dash away, riding the earthquake with fleetest of feet as he searched for the wardstone that allowed Grindelwald to apparate around. A minute passed but it was just enough to find it. It was half buried, the area that it had been had been torn asunder like most other places.
Before Atticus set out to work on the wardstone, his wand twisted and whirled in a blinding fashion, the ground around him morphing into a dozen constructs that slowly took form.
Atticus spared a glance at what he created, a morbid curiosity of his that he always wanted to do.
The skeletal appearance of the creatures was grotesque, their muted shade of green did little to assuage the monstrosity of the creatures. The skull was Alien, an elongated cylindrical skull that screamed predator despite the strange carapace like structure that covered its skeletal form. Its segmented, blade tipped tail lashed against the earth, the scorpion like barbed tip ominously pointed towards Grindelwald. Its arms were bulky, the three fingers on its hands showed a kind of dexterity that made it seem like it could run on all four limbs despite the fact that its hind legs were more akin to human legs than they were of four legged mammals.
They hissed at Atticus in a menacing way, one that caused his eyes to narrow. Transfigurations relied on the person's ability to know what the creatures you were conjuring were and the way they stared at him made him question whether or not his psyche was messed up enough to create things that would happily gobble him up.
The sounds of shattering stone broke him out of his introspective moment and he willed the creatures to do what they did best and they, after clicking and hissing, disappeared as they were never there.
Atticus twisted his wand around, the earth rippled as he and the wardstone sunk into the earth, deeper and deeper until he felt comfortable enough to create a cavernous hole just large enough.
Atticus grimaced as he bent down, digging out the bottom of the wardstone as his wand moving like a blur whilst he analysed the runes on the wardstone.
He could already tell that he wouldn't be able to take down the anti apparation wards without destroying the wardstone itself and it was something he was unwilling to do but he could level out the battlefield and set out to add a runic scheme that would make it impossible for anyone to apparate or port key out.
A grim glint entered his eyes.
Atticus jabbed his wand as he stood, upward, and with a small crack, jumped into the liquid stone above until he was out.
A sickening roar ripped through the air and what he saw was horrific.
A sickening mass of flesh and bone masquerading as a giant stood before his Xenomorphs, a huge bone club in its arms.
Atticus' senses went into overdrive and he conjured a titanium shield with his right hand whilst he raised Protego Maxima with his wand.
The sound of crunching metal reverberated in the air as the tip of the sword clanged against his shield.
Grindelwald stood not far from him, his shadows swirling around him as he began to fire devastating curses at him.
Atticus leapt back and twisted around the curses before a searing curse hit him on the side of his right arm, causing Atticus to hiss out in pain.
"Throwing a mountain at me?" Grindelwald's voice was hateful, one that spoke of the cauldron of rage he felt.
Atticus evaded towards his left, his eyes glancing at the damage he sustained and saw the Basilisk robes sported a melted gash that was a few millimetres thick.
"You did disparage my skills" Atticus said with a mocking smile as he darted away from the spells that were progressively worse than even the darkest of curses of before.
Grindelwald's face contorted into a snarl and stepped up his attacks.
Grindelwald's attacks were now interspersed with black wisps of magic and he was using necromantic spells that seemed to consist of the same structure as the sick mass of bones and flesh.
Atticus knew one of those hits could sap his strength and channelled more magic through his legs and ran towards the necromantic giant with blistering speed.
Spears of ice and fire was fired at him and Atticus cried out as one of the spears shattered against his back, the force of it sending throbs of pain through his spine. Atticus crashed into the earth before he twisted himself back to his feet and fired out a series of Expulsos that shattered the ice spears before he followed up with a slash of his wand, a rampaging whirlwind came into existence that smashed against the spears of fire.
Grindelwald had his arms encased in fire and ice, his shadow tendrils of his magic swirled around him, giving him a truly menacing look.
Atticus raised both of his hands, twisting the whirlwind he created to capture the dying licks of flames and turned it into an inferno that he, with a jab of the wand sent towards Grindelwald.
Atticus ducked under necromantic spears that almost made him shudder from the awful feeling they gave off before he resumed his dash towards the necromantic giant.
His Xenomorphs had done well from the way the flesh and bone giant sported gashes though he definitely wasn't making them again.
Atticus extended his wand, the tip of it crackling with nearly blinding white light "Lux Sanctus" and the white beam erupted from his wand, moments before Atticus swerved right and into the air, evading chain like whips that smashed into the ground where he was.
Atticus with a swift flick of the wand, carried one of the Xenomorphs into the air and threw it towards Grindelwald before he quickly wrapped up the Xenomorph with thin unbreakable metal wires.
Atticus returned his attentions to the necromantic giant and saw Lux Sanctus has some effect but not nearly enough and the tip of his wand sizzled with bright red flames.
The creature turned towards Atticus, its right arm sizzling from being literally dissolved as a consequence of destroying his Xenomorphs and it raised its club, aiming to swing just as Atticus would come into its range.
Atticus leapt into the air and a torrent of dragon fire ripped from his wand, the destructive fire spewed and set ablaze to the necromantic construct.
The necromantic giant roared, whether it was through pain or not Atticus did not know and he could not care less.
Before Atticus could destroy the giant even further, Atticus' hair rose stout and he twisted in the air with incredible acrobatics, just about avoided harpoons made of necromantic magic that nearly eviscerated him.
A pillar of stone rose from the earth and Atticus used it as a jumping point, shattering the stone pillar with a powerful leap as he rose high above the necromantic giant and twisted around, his wand arcing around him before the tip of his wand whined with a shudder before an explosion of arctic freezing wind ruptured from his wand, encasing the necromantic giant with greater than arctic cold as the very air seemed to freeze around it.
Roots shot up in the air towards Atticus, their form shifting from plants into shadowy roots with a razor sharp tip and Atticus conjured a titanium shield before he created a gust of smoke in the same motion of his wand before he twisted around and shot himself towards his target.
Clanging rang as the sharp tips hit the titanium shield though not before one of the vines cut him on his right calf causing Atticus to wince at the pain before Atticus exited the smokescreen, his eyes fixed on slowing near frozen necromantic giant.
Its slumbering form slowed to crawl until it stilled, the sounds of crackling ice reverberating in the air. The insides of its mouth showed frost bite growth, skin blackened and Atticus with a jab of the wand, created a powerful blasting curse, one that shattered the great hulking necromantic creation.
Atticus eyes widened as Grindelwald rocketed towards Atticus, having emerged from behind the shattered pieces of the Necromantic giant, his eyes radiated glowing malice as the tip of his wand glowed an eerie blue colour, a small ball of crackling energy that Grindelwald jabbed towards Atticus.
Atticus had nowhere and no time to evade the curse and just about managed to form a half shield that shattered as Atticus' world exploded in a world of pain, his right arm felt numb.
Atticus had still had the presence of mind to conjure a swarm of mocking jays and snapped off his wand and directed him in the path between him and Grindelwald.
Grindelwald brought his wand to bear, an ominous sphere of black energy crackled in the frigid air, causing Atticus' eyes to widen as he stopped his spiral and banished himself towards the ground, keeping the swarm of mocking jays between himself and Grindelwald.
Grindelwald's ominous sphere of black energy grew the size of a wrecking ball and as it fired towards Atticus, it ate through the swarm of mocking jays like they were nothing but air.
Atticus' eyes widened at the sight and as he landed back on the earth, he dashed his right, zig zagging as he leapt over the long and deep gashes their battle left on the world.
The ominous black energy seemed to follow him, likely something that Grindelwald was maintaining control over and slid to a halt, the tip of his wand aglow.
Atticus' eyes were luminous, a swirl of magic as he twirled his wand in a slower than normal fashion, as if he weaving into the fabric of reality.
Gold glowing spears of pure magic shone into the world, the nearest currents of magic around the world almost sang joyously as they felt the existence of the spears come into being.
The black ominous sphere of magic approached and Atticus drew back his wand and with a snarl on his face threw the spears towards the ominous black energy.
The black sphere of energy and the spears of pure magic collided and a huge magical shockwave that painted the world with grim beauty took place, nearly blinding Atticus as his perception turned haywire.
It caused him to miss the crackling yellow black lightning that blasted into him, a cry of agony as malicious lightning sunk into him.
Atticus was lifted off his feet and into the ground, incredible pain ran through him but one thing kept running through his mind…
Lightning was his and Atticus, in almost a war cry radiated lightning and clashed against the yellow black lightning, enough to alleviate him of the pain but just as he seemed to be able to get up, Atticus was hit by a siege curse, one that smashed into him in a way that cracked the ground he was on by sheer force only.
Just as the ground cracked, his ribs cracked and Atticus in a wave of desperation, rolled away to his knees and with a swift act, smashed his fists into the earth, intent and his emotions drove the act rather than a conscious effort, shattering it before a shockwave rippled through the earth and dozens of spikes flew towards Grindelwald, giving Atticus a moment of reprieve.
Atticus breathed heavily as he got to his feet, feeling his body heal slower than usual but enough to make sure he could continue on in this mad battle.
He saw a pillar of black shadowy smoke pulsing with ominous intent past the screen of unsettled dust and began to climb out of the shallow crater he was in and strode towards it, a grim look on his face.
Atticus broke though the dust and smoke and saw Grindelwald…almost waiting on him.
They eyes met, feelings of despise and eagerness to destroy the other was obvious to see in either set of eyes.
Moments passed as neither moved.
It seemed as if time took a pause, halting as if the weight of their non movement caused the world to stop its unrepenting march through the cosmos.
Until it began again, just as easily as it stopped.
Great and terrible magic ripped from Grindelwald's wand, the kinds of magic that churned the stomachs of the vast majority of people. Atticus' own spells were not for the faint of heart, so intent was he at eviscerating Grindelwald with transfigurations, with conjurations that it resembled more an ancient battlefield with the number of weapons he created.
Their clash saturated the world around them, the very air shimmered with streams of blacks, of purples and of greens, the world having become an unwilling canvas to great and terrible magic, both of them intent to impose their wills and their power on the world.
Though…
Atticus saw the torment their clash had on the world, the sheer way it seemed to tremble and nearly wither as Grindelwald extended his magic.
Atticus managed to send Grindelwald crashing into the ground and followed up with a massive bolt of lightning, one that seemed to have torn the fabric of reality from the way the world seemed to have been blinded by the immense white light.
Atticus is thrown from his feet through a blasting curse in the chest, halting his spell as he skidded on the ground before he dug his right hand into the ground, slowing his speed before he raised his wand again, a curse on the tip of his tongue.
Grindelwald dashed from the crater, his robes were smoking. Rubble began to float and swirl around him as he seemed to pulse with malice.
Grindelwald twisted his wand around, and the ground rumbled as humongous roots rose from the ground, cracking the unstable earth even more.
The massive roots dove towards Atticus and he sprang into a sprint, twisting and leaping out of the roots that chased him.
A smaller root, more like a vine in truth managed to snag around his left ankle and before Atticus could burn it off, one of the roots nearly took off his head but Atticus managed to twist his body around just enough that it smashed into his right shoulder, dislocating it just as much as it nearly shattered it, his strengthening rituals having saved him from broken bones.
Atticus was lifted in the air and smashed into the ground but before he could be smeared by the converging roots, a massive gust of scything wind blades ripped from his wand, targeting the vine first before he snapped his wand right above and ripped apart the roots.
Atticus leapt into the air and swirled his wand, dozens of constructs of animals and knights were conjured and with a jab he sent them towards Grindelwald as he leapt out of the way of a spell that could have obliterated half a building in power alone.
Grindelwald smashed away the constructs with contemptuous ease before he levied his wand towards him but Atticus had already began his assault, one that was far more Battle magic than transfiguration.
Grindelwald was being pushed back even as he danced away from the salvo of deadly curses that were sent his way.
A whip with serrated edges crashed into Grindelwald, tearing through the thick black hide of Grindelwald's robes and a delightful scream of pain tore through Grindelwald's lips.
Grindelwald roared, his malevolent eyes shone with a rage, a contorted face adorned his face, one that showed the ugliness that was within him just as the tip of his wand glowed with malignant evil magic that had him stiffen from his assault.
A wave of superheated air rushed forth and nearly blew Atticus away but Atticus had dug his feet into his earth before snapping off his wand, crackling lightning streamed forth.
Grindelwald moved his wand into the path of the lightning and it fizzled out, all of its energy simply sapped away from the tremendous hot waves the spell seemed to create, despite not even having yet cast.
Grindelwald's rage only seemed to grow to uncontrollable levels and the hot waves of superheated air seemed to grow in intensity, in temperature.
Atticus swept his wand and distorted the earth that Grindelwald stood on, aiming to sink him into the Earth before he raised spikes from behind Grindelwald.
Grindelwald simply thrown himself into the air, several dozen feet high before he twirled his wand around him, the ominous feeling that Atticus had felt only grew.
The wave of superheated gas changed and fledgling back flames, flames as black as the darkest of blacks ruptured from Grindelwald's wand and eviscerated his spikes and shocked Atticus when it managed to disconnect Atticus from his liquid transfiguration.
It wasn't impossible to disrupt his liquid transfigurations, after all, it was maintained by focus, creativity and understanding but for a spell to simply wink out his control…
"Congratulations" Grindelwald began as the writhing black flames engulfed him, the magic he surrounded himself with simply felt horrific, his voice containing no levity "You have done what no other has done. You have driven me to the limit" Grindelwald's eyes showed pure hatred.
Grindelwald raised his wand and with an elaborate arc, point his wand towards Atticus and Atticus leapt several feet in the air backwards.
"BASK IN YOUR ACHIEVEMENT!"
Chills descended through Atticus' spine as he forced himself to stand upright, despite the shaking earth.
Magic herself seemed to howl in agony, world's systems having been set ablaze, as if her nerves were put under excruciating pain, jagged glass being dragged across their very surface.
The formless flame grew in size and it unleashed a howl so haunting, a howl so evil filled the air with its monstrous intent, one that spoke of devouring, an endless devouring that cared not what or whom it ate.
A fire so black that it seemed as if no light could escape it, for even the speed of light could not outrun the predator's jaws, ruptured into existence, as if it tore through the boundaries of Hell and Earth itself.
The black flames took form and at its centre, the flames seemed to make way for two slits, two slits that opened and revealed the most blood red eyes Atticus had ever seen, eyes that matched the very craving its magic pulsed relentlessly.
Atticus felt sickened at what he saw. The earth was turning white, every tenuous link to life the blackened earth had was ripped from the earth, to such an extent that it stretched dozens of metres deep into the ground.
Its fires were fuelled by life itself, magic itself was not needed to fuel it even though it enhanced its strength.
It was an abomination
It was the kind of necromantic magic that untold societies and then later on Ministries had sought for so long to destroy all evidence of, to ensure that such horrifying magic could never see the day of light.
But…
Knowledge cannot be bottled up, not as long a single trace of evidence remained. Families could be wiped out but their libraries may yet remain hidden for centuries, millennia until it was found. Entire estates could be destroyed, an entire legacy destroyed but a single child who remembered a single such spell was enough to ensure the survival of this kinds of magic.
Atticus had read of such magic…the kinds of magic that the Peverells, the Grims and other Ancient Egyptian clans who had worshiped Anubis or Osiris had created.
It had been sacrificial magic, life to pay for life…A willing sacrifice to save the life of another or to return life to soil long since decayed, withered and died.
But it had never been…this…
The black flames took the shape of a massive wolf, one that loomed over Atticus, its menacing blood red eyes seemed the only physical thing about it.
Could he out run it?
Atticus attempted to apparate just to see if he could puncture through the anti apparation ward Grindelwald had thrown up earlier but it was to no avail.
He could still run, he still could create any kind of flying construct and he could escape…this.
Grindelwald's mismatched eyes bored into Atticus, his hateful eyes shining with malice as ever.
This was likely a mistake, a mistake he may not live through.
Atticus' eyes set in determination, his course set.
Atticus brought up both of his hands, the tip of his wand crackling with magic whilst his right hand had dancing lightning all over it and with a yell, a thundering web of crackling lightning raced towards the abomination.
The wolf snarled, the manifestation of hatred and endless hunger trotted forth, its lumbering form picked up speed even as it was hit with millions of voltage.
Atticus gritted his teeth, desperation threatening to break out on his face. His feet began to sink into the ground even as the fiery Black Wolf approached him. He could feel his magic being drawn into the abomination, his magic being leeched from him.
With immense strain Atticus broke of the lightning and his wand moved like a blur, a turquoise shield manifested into existence. It was much a physical shield as it was a magical one and it was his most powerful shield, the one he made when he had found no complete headway with the creation of a shield that could withstand a Killing Curse.
The fiery Black Wolf picked up speed and crashed into Atticus' shields, his bones rattled under the sheer force.
His body shook, his face twisted into one that spoke of great struggle. Sweat poured out of him, from exertion, from the heat that seemed to suck the life out of him.
Atticus growled as he tried pull more magic from his core and through clenched teeth attempted to step forward, pushing against the abomination.
The fiery Black Wolf only seemed to snarl even harsher, the maw of the creature opening to reveal fiery flames that seemed to serve as its teeth, and Atticus nearly stumbled, his footing almost lost as he let of a throaty growl of frustration, of weakening…of fear.
"You must be wondering" Grindelwald's voice seemed to echo around his head "What this might be"
Atticus breathed raggedly, he could feel his magic dwindling as time passed, his arms trembled.
"I'm sure you do not know" Grindelwald's snide tone carried over the snarling Wolf "But ancient Javanese tribe of mystics, extinct now of course, the NGalahake, worshipped Batara Kala, the God of the Underworld in their culture"
If Atticus was not in dry straits, he would have laughed at the absurdity of the…lesson that Grindelwald was imparting him.
No doubt the bastard enjoyed stretching it out.
"He was their creator of Light and the Earth but he was also the God of Destruction and it is said that he devoured those who he deemed unworthy, no matter if you were the simplest of plants or the greatest of animals." Grindelwald's voice turned from lecturing into one of simmering malice "They believed that to cleanse the earth once every few decades, a physical act to represent the metaphysical cleansing of ones life, was one of the highest tribute to Batara Kala"
Cracks appeared to show on his shield, the pressure that was being exerted on him was beyond anything he had been put on.
"Naturally they knew of the incredible magic their people had created and they had not been keen to part with it, of course" Grindelwald's laughter was one of cruelty, of savagery "But, in the end…" Grindelwald's voice twisted into a low quiet menacing tone "I got it and managed to truly pay respect to their deity in ways their people never could and you…child of the Sayres, you…"
A strangled cry was cut off as Atticus nearly bit through his tongue. His knee fell to the earth as he struggled to maintain the shield, tiny fissures seemed to form on it.
His wand began to smoke, the amount of magic he was channelling through the wand was burning it out at an incredible rate.
Atticus rapidly moved his right hand, latching onto the magic of the shield as he dropped his burnt out wand, a tinge of sadness tore through him before he refocused and outstretched both hands to maintain the shield.
He was in a dire situation…
Atticus breathing was becoming more and more irregular, his jaw was clenched so hard that it seemed that they were on the precipice of cracking, his eyes tiredly fixed at the hulking form of the Black Wolf that seemed to be mere moments from devouring him.
"You will be the first to be cleansed from this world I will have" Grindelwald's voice was filled with blinding hatred.
A pained dry chuckle escaped his lips.
He went through all of this trouble, all of this staging…
Only to end up like this…
Mother Magic…what a fool he was…
He felt his magic dwindling, the inferno it was once was seemed to be little more than an ember desperate to keep itself from dying out into a husk.
Atticus felt himself steadily losing the ground, his remaining standing leg trembled. Tiredness began to seep in his bones.
"And when I am done with you…your name, your family name, your mother, your sister even your damned cousins will be torn from this world by my hands, this I promise you Atticus Sayre"
Atticus' eyes widened in a jolt as if lightning had run through his nerves, awareness came back to him.
Atticus swallowed deeply as his mind whirled with what Grindelwald said.
Guilt wracked up in him, the monumental failure he was with the way he approached this.
Ego and self belief tarnished what could have been a victory that he could have taken but with the merest of use of the Ancient repository of technology.
Atticus' father's face flashed before him, his serene face when their eyes had met when he had accepted his death.
The eyes that had looked at him with pride and satisfaction so often…
Atticus' mind twisted when saw those eyes replaced by the agonised and terror filled eyes on his mother's and sister's faces, their hands reaching out to him…
The familiar wave of failure, of helplessness burrowed into his soul, the accusing eyes of his family that held him responsible for the destruction, the fate that he had caused to befall them.
Loathing of himself buried itself into him, the strength of it having surpassed the hatred he felt for Grindelwald.
Was this how he was going to leave his family…
Atticus closed his eyes, all of his efforts going into sustaining the shield, desperation was in the air and despite his efforts, despite his not so insignificant power, the cracks grew in his turquoise shield, the shield that could withstand even the magic draining Fiendfyre with ease.
"And when they scream for you, when they cry for you, I will tell them that you begged as much as they did when I erased your existence" Grindelwald's laugher was haunting, it was one of pure madness and glee, one that spoke of his eagerness to do exactly as he was promising.
That eagerness…that promise…
Again and again he was shown the death of his family in gruesome fashion, killed without mercy and with agonising death, violated beyond the degree of monstrosity…
Something cracked within him.
The self destructive guilt he had penned up with his father's death reared its head and turned into a black hole, crushing him from within and the despair he felt at once more causing his family to die because of his schemes…
An anguished cry tore through his throat, a desperate ode to Mother Magic, a plea radiated from his body, a rare begging that Atticus had never allowed himself to do, pride and determination would never have allowed him to do so.
But not tonight…
Not now.
Something strange happened, something that he had not done since he was but a toddler.
Out of the desperation, perhaps even a higher power nudging things his way, accidental magic latched onto the dying magic of the world around him instinctively.
The tortured magic that the abomination and Grindelwald unleashed on the world reciprocated with a kind of eagerness that Atticus had never felt before.
He felt the taint that Grindelwald seeped into nature and Nature's magic hungered for anything other than what had tormented it.
A vortex of energy, even it if was but miniscule of what it could truly be, drained into his bones, his muscles, his very blood as his magic interacted with Nature magic on a level he had never had before, not even during his assault of Genelum.
This…this…
This was truly symbiotic, one that encapsulated the beauty of how the universe was connected.
Where before he had to force nature magic to obey, it merely needed to the slightest exertion of will to do as he bid.
The cracks of his shield grew even more, the shield was mere moments away from shattering.
Atticus trembled as he stood up, nature magic invigorating him at a rate that seemed to strengthen and even fill his depleted core.
Atticus slowly raised his head, his flickering white eyes met the snarling gaze of the abominable fiery Black Wolf, meeting the blood red eyes with tortured eyes, one that spoke of the guilt he carried so deep within him, a guilt that he ensure would never extend beyond the death of his father.
SNNAAAAAAPPPP
His scream of harrowing pain, unknowable and unforgivable turned to one of anguish and despair.
Something came unshackled, the last tendrils of what he had been afraid to unleash had come loose.
It burned under his skin and an unhinged electric storm broke lose, one unfettered and unbound.
His world exploded into blinding light, the sounds of crackling of immense proportions drowned out all noise.
The nerves of his body no longer felt like they had been set on fire, no longer felt like millions of knives piercing his bones in every possible location.
Instead…instead they felt like liquid power had been poured into them, supercharged in a way he had only felt a few times but this time…
Magic surrounded him with a menace, a primal rage that quivered with every beat of the heart.
Atticus opened his eyes and saw. He saw, with perfect clarity all the intricate interactions magic had on the world.
…And he saw the consequence of the abominable magic on the world surrounding them with an understanding that he had not had before.
The lands surrounded them were nothing but a husk, no life touched the surface and the barest of magic not belonging either to him or Grindelwald ran through it.
He looked down at himself, his eyes focusing on streaks of lightning surrounded him, brilliant whites mixed with vivid purples and greens until he swivelled his head, towards the man who stood on dried out white husks of earth.
Wrath filled his heart, the desecration of life and the threats of desecration of his family shattered his understanding of mercy.
The streaks of lightning danced with him with a beat that sounded relentless, the fabric of the universe seemed to crack with the merest step.
Thunder boomed.
Atticus tipped his head skyward.
Lightning flashed, the glowing white cracks seemed to shatter the hold the dark clouds had onto the world. He reached out with his crackling magic and the cracks widened, deepened, and part of the Moon had shone through, as if it were the light at the end of the tunnel.
It was only right…
Thunder boomed louder, the rate of the thunder seemed to increase to match the relentless beat.
…It was only right that the Moon would be allowed to stand witness.
He felt a malignant curse streaking towards him and he turned his head towards the direction. His eyes caught the structure of the spell and his mouth opened slightly in recognition.
Exosso…a Bone Eating curse, one that without a counter, would leave a victim dead in less than an hour.
Atticus raised his hand, his eyes glowed brighter than the Moon itself, a luminous white. The curse stilled, mid-flight.
Atticus glanced at the man who had fired it and his muscles tightened as he stared at the man who caused him so much pain in so many ways.
Shadows and blackness draped over him like a thick winter's coat, one that would leave a great many people uncomfortable and on the brink of insanity but not him…
No…he had not that excuse.
He wore it with pride, with exultation, the things he had done to get to that stage, the uncaring nature of the way he had perverted Magic herself in order to grant him the power he wielded.
He glanced at Grindelwald's wand.
The power he stole.
"What are you?!" Grindelwald snarled, his face contorting with rage as the tip of his wand crackled with magic.
"I am Her judgement" Atticus voice shattered into the world, the sheer heaviness of his words were reflected onto reality itself.
"Your time…" Atticus' voice thundered and the sky reciprocated. Atticus' eyes saw through Grindelwald's soul, in ways he had never seen before. He saw nothing but near pitch black with blood red cracks that seemed to hold together a shattered soul.
This man…was every bit a monster.
Atticus flicked his wrist, dispelling the spell with ease. "…is at an end"
Scal Slea materialised in his left hand, the absence of his trustee wand no longer so keenly felt as the connection deepened between himself and his spear.
Grindelwald snarled and leaped back before he let off a siege engine curse, one that obliterates an expanse of space.
"Coracis!" Grindelwald snarled out before he followed up with Oblido and a blinding fast spell chain designed to obstruct and rip Atticus apart.
Atticus watched the spells sear towards him with dispassionate glowing white orbs before he shifted slightly and lowered his spear tilting it horizontally with almost a lazy quality to it.
As the spells almost were in touching distance, the ground cracked as he shot forward, leaving a wave of shattered earth behind as he seemed to almost fly across the ground, the tip of his trident spear shattering away the spells as if they were nothing but dried leaves before an elephant.
Grindelwald's eyes widened larger than Atticus had seen before a snarl of rage twisted on his face and he brandished his Elder Wand with a furious intent, a relentless stream of dark curses ripped from his wand though it was in vain.
Lightning crackled around Atticus, its colour taking on a sheen of purple and green as it began to almost form a bubble of magical power that seemed to make the very world quiver at its strength and the dark spells simply glanced away from it.
Atticus brought his left foot back to the ground as he lost some of his momentum and with but the smallest exertion, rocketed forward, the tip of his spears whined with barely, poorly restrained power.
Grindelwald twisted around and attempted to run but Atticus merely waved his hand just enough and adjusted his flight towards Grindelwald, again and again and again until Atticus leapt in the air and had cast a momentous shadow over Grindelwald, his spear levelled towards Grindelwald's chest.
Grindelwald twirled around, an angry ugly snarl on his face "AVADA KEDAVRA!" he roared and the sickly green curse ripped through the air.
Time slowed as Atticus seemed to leap into the killing curse with no possible way out.
Death seemed to be imminent…
Until…
Until the fabric of reality gave way to his will, not unlike how red theatre blinds rippled as they drew to a close at the end of a play, signalling the end of un-reality.
The world bent around him, gravity having been warped to a degree that was alien outside of black holes where not even magic herself could escape from its ever grasping reach…
…Just as the killing curse could not escape its grasp.
The streaking sickly green curse changed direction towards the singularity that came into existence just off its right and was sucked right into it, the singularity, for a moment glowed sickly green before a shattering explosion happened between them, all in the space of a couple of mere seconds.
Atticus sphere of lightning energy shielded him though he still felt some of its effect but Grindelwald was not as lucky.
Grindelwald was crushed against the ground as a result of the magical explosion and Atticus, knowing better now, brought his spear to bear with seamless and fluid movement, luminous green purple orbs that danced with lightning around its surface materialised at each of the trident heads.
The sky turned crackling blue for a moment, lightning dancing to a furious beat as the thrumming power reached a crescendo.
Atticus rose in the air, lightning lanced around him as if they were his wings. His white orbs glanced down, his eyes focused on one thing and one thing only.
Grindelwald's terrible soul still shone with power even after all this time battling in that crater and just as it pulsed with maddening intent, intent to continue his madness and torment, Atticus let go of the magic.
A detonation of magic spewed from his spear, the sheer destructive power rippled the air.
His bones rattled from the pure power he felt but he only tightened his hold as he maintained control of the spell.
The three purple green beams hit the exact place where Grindelwald was and a violent explosion tore at the world, deep cracks formed around them, the cracks in the ground shone with purple green light.
The world was alight with his magic, the great, terrible terrifying magic…
His mind whirled to his early days, the days of seeking out magic, of his desire to devour magic in whatever form it existed, plucking it from the world as easily as one would pluck vegetables from the soil.
His eyes focused at dimming green purple cracks that ran through the crevices of the earth, a solemn expression fell upon him. As the thrum of power that had cycled in his veins being to a slow, he questioned the power that he held in his hands.
He did not know if it was something that would last even if it seemed…different from the way he had felt during Genelum…or when he had snapped when he'd seen his father…
His eyes swivelled towards the sight of where Grindelwald was and his eyes shone with deep surprise. Grindelwald was still alive.
…Barely but still alive. He could see the slowing of his life, the magic he held finally seemed to trickle to the merest ember, all being used to keep his body alive.
Attics brought himself down and landed with a soft thud and strode towards Grindelwald, his mind cycling towards the best options. His eyes flickered towards the sky and caught the shimmer of the crystal.
It would have been better for Grindelwald to have died in the attack. To kill him now like this...
There were already going to be conse-…
Atticus swivelled around as the sounds of hooves suddenly came into existence and was greeted with huge hulking shadow with an outstretched claw, a claw attempting to rip his head off. A clang rung as Atticus brought his spear to bear and he struggled, even with the power he held, to physically contend with this…creature.
It was a hunchbacked creature, one that stood over ten feet tall with arms that seemed to be barely contained as strands of muscles seemed to wish to rip through skin.
A snarl ripped from the creature's lipless mouth, its strange near human face was brought closer to Atticus' face before it swang it's other arm.
Atticus ducked underneath it and unleashed a tremendous stream of lightning that sent it flying in the air.
Atticus once more rose in the air, his hand tightening around the shaft of the spear as magic crackled around him, the streaks of lightning growing to great intensity.
The creature skidded onto the ground before it rotated itself back to its feet and stared with its blood red eyes at Atticus before it roared into the world, a roar that seemed to wish to signal its dominance.
Well…
Atticus raised his arms, his white orbs bored down at the creature. The creature smashed its arms into the ground, a heavy thud sounded out before it began to stream forward, its powerful arms and legs causing it to almost blur with speed.
Atticus stared at the thing, following it with clear eyes, power swirling around him until, with a single utterance, he brought doom to it and he did so with an impassive, uncaring look.
The ground shook, causing the creature to lose its footing, almost. The ground began to ebb and flow much like a turbulent sea, rigidity and solidness having become more concepts as Atticus changed the fabric of reality.
A huge towering structure tore from the ground, right in the path of the creature and Atticus twisted his arms and a torrential stream of transfigurations was unleashed from the towering structure, hundreds, thousands of lances were thrown at the creature, the creature that felt like a void.
The creature cried out in an agonised roar as hundreds, thousands of lances ripped through it with ease but it didn't seem to kill it and Atticus with a twist of the right hand, created a flickering blue flame in his hand before it turned into a blue white flame. It left the palm of his hand and floated in front him and Atticus before his spear horizontally, touching the centre of the trident head with it.
A blazing fire grew within moments and with a wave of the hand, Atticus shattered the towering structure and reconstructed it into a half dome, the face facing Atticus was left open whilst the other side was solid.
Atticus levelled the spear and jabbed towards the creature, the blue inferno raged towards the creature that was pinned down into the earth and a agonised shriek echoed into the night as the flames consumed it. The screaming withered and died and Atticus cut off the flames before creating a gust of wind that cleared the area completely of fire and debris.
The charred husk of the creature remained as Atticus levitated closer, his eyes intently studying the remnants of the creature before waved his hand at it, cutting it into dozens of pieces, making sure the thing truly was dead.
He had felt nothing of the creature which was absurd. Was it not alive?
Atticus shook his head at the question.
His eyes caught hundreds of figures at the edge of the battlefield, the bright lights that they shone into the world making it easy for him to see.
He would have to see what happened with them…but before that…
He turned towards where Grindelwald was. It seemed Grindelwald was dead as he could not see any more of his magic in the world.
He flew towards the site and landed near where he knew Grindelwald's body was. Atticus stilled when he saw hooves markings.
And, for the first time since he snapped, he was felt powerful emotions wash over him.
He snapped his hand around the area, dust, debris and ash levitated in the air, except for the trail…
The trail that lead into one of the crevices on the far size of the crater, one that snaked all the way through battlefield to the very edges of the boundary ward.
Atticus climbed in the air with incredible speed, his head swivelling as his eyes scanned for the merest trace of magic.
Atticus clenched his spear with trembling emotion.
It seemed…
Perhaps…
It was not over.