Disclaimer: All places and characters belong to JK Rowling and WB and various publishers. No money is being made off of this piece of fiction.
Chapter 4: The Source
Their footsteps echoed off the walls of the narrow hallway. 'This way Mr. Malfoy.' A short witch dressed in Unspeakable robes spoke. She was around his age, black hair cut close to the chin and a clipped way of speaking.
Another two Unspeakables walked in front of them, leading him deeper into the Ministries "training facilities". Draco breathed shallowly, he never liked being underground. The air was damp and stale. The whole place was disorienting, no windows, no doors, just an endless hallway.
'In here, is where we "charge" the vassels.' The short woman stopped abruptly next to the blank cement wall. The two Unspeakable wizards flanked the wall. She quickly rapped her wand in short succession and whispered something in Gaelic. The wall wordless and seamlessly split leaving a narrow opening that glowed green with a shielding spell. The short woman stepped through quickly, the spell shone white as the witch passed through.
The lanky Unspeakable stared emotionless at Draco, 'After you.'
Draco stepped through the shield, magic buzzing uncomfortably across his skin and entered a small doorless room, where a single elderly witch was seated at a small table.
'Veela 42%-097; identification?', she listed off and demanded.
Draco wordlessly rolled up his right sleeve and flashed his Ministry issued tattoo. It flashed green under the witches wand. 'Clear.' She droned, already turning her attention back to the files on her desk.
'Thank you.' Contempt rolled off his tongue. The lanky wizard pressed his wand lightly between Draco's shoulder blades, 'Keep walking Veela.'
Lifting his chin Draco continued forward ignoring the wizard behind him as the Unspeakable witch opened another seamlessly hidden door.
The following room was brightly lit and looked more like a potion's lab than anything else. There were a dozen or more Unspeakables working silently on a range of different weapons.
'This way Mr. Malfoy.' The short witch directed. Draco noticed she had green eyes.
'Lead the way.' Draco took careful note that the other two Unspeakable still followed them.
'The Stòr is stored in each vassel through an organic core.' She stopped next to a glass windowed room inside which Unspeakables were stretching and cutting long threads. Apparently sizing them for different uses.
'Organic?' Draco gave her a sideways glance, 'As in living matter or from living matter?'
The witch stared through the glass. 'Both technically.' She turned to face Draco, her eyes piercing him. They were the lightest green, almost grey.
'Is it a symbiont organism? Like Snarls fungus?'
She gave a wiry smile that did not reach her eyes. 'No.'
'So, it's biopsied from a living organism?'
Her eyes dropped to his left cheek, 'How do you feel about the Creature Conscription Act Mr. Malfoy?' She spoke quietly, her eyes drifting back up to bore into Draco's.
Jaw tightening he turned back to the glass. An Unspeakable was using some sort of razor thin knife to splice a thread lengthwise.
'All for the Nation's Light and Might.' He stated. For a tense moment she continued to stare wordlessly at him. Draco turned back to her and tried to keep the hate out of his eyes. He must have passed as she eventually turned and headed further down the hall. 'I'll show you the harvesting room.'
'Are they grown then? Like a plant?' Draco picked up his pace to walk abreast with the witch. 'Not quite.' Her tone was odd.
They entered a large chamber with a flat table containing restraints. Multiple restraints. A collection of surgical knives and utensils was laid out on a neighbouring table. Vassles and crystal glassware lined the far wall. It was clear what took place in this room.
'So, it is from a creature.' It was hard to not look at the restraints. They looked to be made of the same metal as the vassles. Thick and unyielding.
'What creature is being used and what exactly do you take?' Despite his best efforts his voice came out sounding strained. The table was large, much too large for most Fae-like creatures and there were more than 4 restraints, more than enough for a humanoid creature.
'Scorpian based?' Draco thought of the Australian native humanoid creatures that contained large tails.
'You're observant .'
Draco was suddenly very aware of how alone they were. The other two Unspeakables had not followed them into the harvesting room. At least they appeared to be quite alone.
He was a foot taller than her, could easily take her in a physical fight. But she still held her wand in her hand. If he got close enough and moved fast enough…then he'd be trapped in this underground prison, possibly end up strapped to a table and harvested. The thought made him shiver and scratch momentarily at his left cheek.
Draco stepped away from the Unspeakable, 'I'd be very interested in understanding where the Stòr is harvested from.' He stepped widely round the witch, placing her between him and the table. 'After all, if we are to graciously host the Ministries forces, I imagine we'll need to also host the source.' He stepped behind her. She remained still.
'We know the vassels aren't stable long-term. Our best estimate is they only last 2 days.' Her shoulders gave nothing away. 'Less if being actively used in battle.'
She tilted her head and whispered, 'I'll show you the source Mr. Malfoy.'
Without turning to face him, she strode across the room, passing the maniacal table as if she were showing a living space. Another door appeared in the wall, this one much larger in size.
With the feeling of standing upon a precipice, Draco walked forward passing through the door into the dark room on the other side. Low lights illuminated a door and window to a room on the far side similar to the one they just exited.
Most of the room contained what could only be called a large cage. Thick Bars made of the metal ore from earlier. The tonge-stone?
The room was dimly lit, but Draco could tell it was much larger than the previous ones. The ground was hard packed dirt and the air smelled of sweat and the sharp tang Draco associated with the earlier demonstration of the Stòr staff.
'What is this?' Draco's voice echoed strangely in the empty room.
'It's the source….a Chimaeram.' the witch spoke softly, almost reverently, her eyes focused on a distant spot. Draco focused his eyes and realized the lump on the floor in the middle of the cage must be this Chimaeram? The word was unfamiliar to him.
The creature lay curled on its side. It's skin was dark and scaly, unnaturally long, and thin limbs were folded underneath it. Its face was obscured. There was something furtive, grotesque about it, laying so still it could have been made of stone.
And this sickly being was the grand weapon meant to be their salvation?
It didn't look like any creature he had ever seen. It looked like it was from a different world. It didn't look like it could stand.
A sharp clanging sound broke the silence, coming from an item held in the hands of a pair of Unspeakables walking into the room from the far side room. The creature on the floor began to move, a twitching, irregular motion. A second pair of Unspeakables emerged, a similar sound coming from the contraption in their hands, the creature began to writhe, an inhuman moan coming from it.
Draco averted his eyes. There was something so primal and shameful in that sound.
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