Chapter 10 - Harbaxen
Harry was awoken by Murdo who was shaking his arm and telling him he had a visitor. Harry sat up and looked out through the bars. There stood two large trolls, each carrying a whip, and a smaller figure wearing a cloak. The figure had white hair and his eyes glowed with a dim red light. He stared at Harry for a moment and said, 'Harry Potter I presume. I've heard great things about you Mr Potter. They say your are a very powerful wizard and of course, by overcoming Voldemort when you were but a baby you showed a certain potential. You have your wand I see. Why haven't you used it to free yourself from the cell I wonder.'
There was a pause. Harry sensed that he was being tested and he decided to keep the fact that he had lost his magical power to himself.
The figure in the cloak laughed 'I know what you are thinking Harry. Better not let on that you can't do magic at the moment - eh? Do you want to know why you can't cast spells anymore?'
Harry saw no point in pretending otherwise so he simply said 'yes please.'
'Good! Well, why don't we go for a walk. Cragheart, please be kind enough to let Mr Potter out of his cage.'
Cragheart produced a heavy iron key, unlocked the door and pulled it wide open. Harry got up and stepped out of the cage. He looked up at Cragheart and said 'haven't we met?' Cragheart grunted aggressively and took a step towards Harry recalling the fight in the toilets at Hogwarts when Harry had stuck his wand up his nose. Cragheart had some unfinished business.
'Stop!' ordered the figure in the cloak and Cragheart stepped back.
'He's not to be harmed for the moment. Do you understand?'
Cragheart nodded and slammed the door shut before Murdo could follow.
Harry looked about him and noted that the tunnel that his cave opened onto headed towards and open cavern at one end and at the other end there was a pair of heavy wooden doors.
'First I should introduce myself - my name is Harbaxen. Magician and descendent of the Gorsedd. Come along Mr Potter let me take you on a tour of my little enterprise.'
With that, Harbaxen ushered Harry towards the cavern where the trolls were working. Harry had not seen any of this before and so he gazed about him in awe at the scale of the cavern. He felt fear of course - he was a prisoner of a wizard of very ill repute and the site of the dragons perched about the cavern did little to put his mind at rest but he also wondered at the enormity of the cavern. You could drop the whole of Hogwarts into this cave and it would only fill one of the corners.
He was appalled to see the trolls treated so badly and he noticed the marks left by whips across the backs of many of them. He saw one troll sat on top of a high column of rock and he could see several caves leading off of the cavern, all of which were barred. He had no way of knowing that at that very moment Hagrid and Block were watching from the darkness of one of those caves.
'You will have noticed the barrels Harry,' said Harbaxen. 'Their contents are unique - the remnants of a final battle in which the Gorsedd were robbed of victory by the use of long forgotten and terrible magic. What wouldn't I sacrifice to be able to harness such power,' said Harbaxen with an intensity in his voice that sent a shiver through Harry. It occurred to Harry that he had best not mention his mysterious dream in which he actually heard the spell cast to bring about the downfall of the Gorsedd.
'What do you want with the barrels?' asked Harry trying to sound only half interested.
Harbaxen pondered this question for a moment and answered with another question 'have you worked out the particular property of these barrel yet Harry?'
Harry answered guardedly 'they make me very tired.' Harry was already feeling a little better now that he was not imprisoned next to the stacked barrels but he knew that there was more to them than that.
Harbaxen elaborated 'the ash contained in those barrels is a condensed and fused mix of two opposite forms of magic. The magic that you know is something you are born with but there is another kind, which was developed by the Gorsedd based on rituals and sacrifices. The great all consuming fire in the final battle between the Gorsedd and the wizards created a substance that is a fusion of both. As such, it is in itself inert - it has no magical properties other than that it interferes with magic of any kind. Anything or anyone near those barrels will lose any magical power but only temporarily. However, should a wizard come into direct contact with the ash, for example if they were to breathe in the dust, then they would forever lose their magical powers. That presents interesting possibilities don't you think Harry?'
Harry followed what Harbaxen was saying but he didn't understand what use Harbaxen could put the barrels to. To try to find out more Harry made a suggestion; 'so if you sent the barrels by translocation to anywhere where there were wizards you would have the potential to erase their magical powers.'
Harbaxen sneered down at Harry, 'you are not thinking. There is nothing that you can do to the barrels by magic. Magic doesn't work near them. The wizards and witches of this world would love to be rid of them but they cannot do anything to destroy them. Instead, they had to be satisfied with hiding them in this cavern deep in the mountains. Over the centuries, the barrels were forgotten and none of your kind thought it necessary to continue to watch over them. They simply assumed that the task of digging them up again was too great for anyone. That is where they were wrong and that is where my dear trolls have come in so handy.'
Harry realized that Harbaxen's plan must include some non-magic means of transporting the barrels away. He wanted to keep Harbaxen talking to discover more of his plans. 'You were at Hogwarts so aren't you are a wizard rather than a Gorsedd' said Harry speculatively.
'No!' shouted Harbaxen turning towards Harry with a furious scowl on his face 'I am a Gorsedd. The ways of the Gorsedd had been long forgotten since they were wiped out at the battle of Stonehenge. Somehow I developed their powers - a fluke perhaps and much of what I learned as a child was by accident and trial and error. I used to enjoy torturing small creatures as a child. Doing so gave me a thrill and gave me a power that at first I could not comprehend. But over time I found that I could harness that power and perform magic just as you can Harry. However, my power would soon diminish with time after each sacrifice. I was discovered by you wizards and taken to Hogwarts. I believe that those fools at the Ministry of Magic thought that they could channel my capabilities and control me - they didn't understand me but they did give me time and access to old scriptures that allowed me to fully harness my powers. Eventually they realized that they couldn't control me any more and so expelled me from Hogwarts. They cast me out into the world. They rejected me now they must pay.'
Harbaxen was becoming more drawn into himself - he wasn't really talking to Harry anymore. He was talking to himself and becoming increasingly animated. He was clenching his fists and pacing back and forth. Harry sensed a great and malicious fury inside of Harbaxen.
Harbaxen paused so Harry tried to change the subject.
'Where did you find the dragons?'
Harbaxen turned and starred at Harry for a moment his eyes blazing red and then the glow faded and he let out a sigh.
'The dragons....' he seemed to take a moment to regain his composure, 'the dragons - my little pets. You did well to defeat one of them back on the mountain Harry. They are from the wastelands of Siberia in northern Russia. I found them on my journeys and we struck up an arrangement - they brought me live creatures to sacrifice and I gave them a god to worship. These particular dragons were in part the creation of the Gorsedd and traditionally this species has kept allegiance to my ancestors. They recognised me for what I was and they do my bidding. They do make wonderful guard dogs Harry. They were more than happy to follow me here and help me in my work.' There was a pause, 'and what is that then' said Harry tentatively.
Harbaxen leaned close to Harry 'I am seeking vengeance Harry. Vengeance for my people, the Gorsedd who were robbed of their rightful place in the world and I am seeking vengeance for me. The Ministry of Magic cast me out - I was expelled. Now they will be expelled.'
Harry stood staring at him in disbelief. 'You..you're going to do something to the Ministry of Magic?'
Suddenly Harry thought of the terrible effect that the ash contained in the barrels would have on the Ministry. The place and anyone inside would no longer be magical - wizard society would be dealt a terrible blow.
'I think I have told you enough Harry. All I wanted to know was whether the barrels still had the power to destroy magic and clearly they do. Boulder please escort Mr Potter back to his cell. Make yourself comfortable when you get there - you are going to be there for...an eternity.'
Harbaxen turned his attention to Cragheart. 'These lazy fools need motivating - they are not working fast enough. Get one who has been giving less than their all and organize a little demonstration.'
Hagrid and Block watched Harry escorted away and then looked on as Harbaxen summoned one of the mighty dragons from its resting place. It swooped down to the base of the cavern and trolls nearby scrambled for cover. Harbaxen however waited patiently as the beast landed softly beside him and bowed its head. Harbaxen leapt on to the base of the beast's neck and with a kick from him the dragon launched itself back up into the air. It flapped its enormous wings ever faster and under Harbaxen's coaxing it sailed the full length of the cavern soaring away through the hole in the roof.
Hagrid turned to Block and said 'well, there isn't much that we can do here. Those iron bars are too strong for us to get past and I can't see any other way into the cavern.' Block nodded but he was reluctant to leave as from here he could watch his clan at work and occasionally catch a glimpse of his family.
'Where next?' he said sullenly to Hagrid.
'Well, I was thinking that the easiest way to sort all of this out is to deal direct with that Harbaxen fella. You don't know this Block but Harbaxen was at school the same time as me and let's just say that we never really hit it off. He was sort of the opposite to me when it came to creatures - I would look after 'em and he'd try his best to kill'em in as nasty a way as he could think up.' Block thought for a moment and nodded saying 'I don't think I like him one bit either' and he slapped his club into the palm of his hand.
They crawled away back up the passage until the roof was high enough for them to walk. They lit a torch each and then made their way back up to the junction that opened out in to the larger cave system. 'Now then, Block it seems as if he's living up in the higher chambers. Do you think you can find your way up there?' Block nodded and closed his eyes. He spent a moment visualizing the route in his mind's eye making direction movements with his hand before snapping his eyes open. 'This way,' he said pointing at an upward sloping cave. Together they set off at a brisk pace.
They climbed rapidly and Hagrid, who was soon out of breath, was also feeling the tension of being confined below ground as much as he had when he first entered the caves. The passages twisted, turned, at each junction Block would pause, take a few deep breaths, and then stand perfectly still and silent. He would listen for a few moments before selecting the next passage. Hagrid was completely baffled by all of this and had no idea where he was going. They passed through several larger chambers that had been formed into meeting halls or workshops by the previous occupants; the dwarves. Sometimes when sections of the roof had collapsed, they had to scramble up over steep piles of rock to get to the next section of cave. A few times they had to double back after they came to an impassable section of tunnel but on the whole they made their way steadily upwards.
They had been on the move for about a half an hour and Block was stopping to decide on the way forwards more and more often. Hagrid was beginning to have grave doubts when finally they came to a length of tunnel, which opened out onto a lit chamber. They extinguished their torches and crept forward as silently as a mountain troll and a giant can. They crept up to the end of their cave, which this time was not barred, and gazed out in to another large chamber. This area was lit by several large iron braziers of burning coals and in the centre of the floor was a large hole. Through the hole, noises could be heard from the cavern below - this must where the dragons flew in and out of the cavern. There was a wooden stairway leading down through the hole.
They immediately realized there was something very strange about the cavern. Around the hole in the floor were two concentric circles of standing stones. Spanning between the standing stones were further monoliths of rock.
'It looks like Stonehenge except all the stones are in place on this version' said Hagrid.
Inside the inner circle of stones and to one side of the gaping hole in the floor there was a crude stone altar with ancient runes painted around its sides. The whole place looked extremely eerie and Hagrid gripped his crossbow tightly.
'It looks like Harbaxen has been dabbling in a bit of the old black magic,' whispered Hagrid, 'this setup looks like the Gorsedd religious sites of old.'
Block looked around and shook his head with a disapproving look on his face.
Once they were as sure as they could be that the place was deserted they stole out from their hiding place. They skirted round the edge of the cavern passing a part of the wall that appeared to be a damn. There were huge wooden boards braced across the entrance to a passage leading off. Water was leaking through the boards in fine jets.
'It looks like this place normally has a river running through it,' Block observed.
Hagrid and Block moved on quickly. At the far side of the chamber where the altar sat amongst the standing stones, they noted a pile of skulls and bones that appeared to belong to cows and sheep. There was a sickly smell and flies were zipping all around them. Then they came across a large level cave heading away from the chamber.
They set off down the passage, which was wide with a flat base and an arched roof. There were several small doorways off this central passage but these were all covered in dust and cobwebs hence they knew that there could not have been anyone using these doors for many years. The tunnel seemed to go on for a great distance.
Suddenly there was a gust of wind and in the distance they noticed something moving in the gloom. Block was first to react, 'come on,' he said grabbing Hagrid's sleeve and hauling him sideways to one of the rooms. They shoved open the door and squeezed through the small opening. Then they waited for a few moments behind the partially closed door and they both jumped when a loud screech of a dragon rent the air. The enormous beast was flying down the tunnel and as it passed there were thumping vibrations in the rock.
After the beast had passed, Hagrid and Block took a moment to examine their surroundings. They lit one of the torches and were amazed to find that they were in an alehouse. Around them were tables and stools, a bar and an old fireplace. Above the fireplace was a picture of two men. One was large and bald with a large grey beard and the other was a handsome clean- man with a square jaw and smiling eyes. Hagrid looked curiously at the picture.
'I wonder who these two are?' he muttered to himself. There was a signature in one corner of the painting and the date, "10th Dec 1605".
Hagrid looked around the rest of the alehouse 'dwarves! - they really do like their ale.'
Block knew a little about ale - the older trolls in his clan would gather in the evenings, drink, sing, and fight. He was too young though for such things.
'This must have been the town centre along this tunnel for their underground world. It looks like they've been gone a long while though.'
They checked that the main passage was clear and they resumed their journey. After a few minutes walking, they came to steps leading off the main tunnel up to a more substantial entrance with ornate columns standing either side of a large doorway. The door was wide open and there was a reddish glow coming from inside.
'This looks like the place,' muttered Hagrid.
They were both now feeling very nervous but they were determined after what they had seen in the cavern below. They exchanged a look, nodded and continued forwards.
They approached cautiously but all was silent. They eased up to the doorway and peered through.
The room inside was full of ornately carved statues depicting ancient warriors and wild creatures. The floor was fine smooth marble. There was however a foul smell about the place and flies buzzed all around. At the far end of the anteroom a staircase arced upwards to a landing. There were iron chandeliers hanging from the ceiling holding brightly burning candles.
They entered the room cautiously. There appeared to be no other way forwards other than via the staircase. Hagrid gripped his hunting crossbow and Block had his club at the ready as they crossed the room. As they moved forwards there were faint noises, perhaps of scuttling feet seemingly all around them and they looked into the shadows nervously.
They reached the far side of the hall and set off up the stairs. Suddenly they sensed movement on the floor behind them all around the base of the stairs. From among the statues suddenly twelve young dragons appeared. They were small compared to the fully grown Infernos that Hagrid and Block had already encountered but they were still taller than Hagrid and they snarled and hissed malevolently.
'Quick Block we'd better run fer it,' said Hagrid.
As they turned to run up the stairs the young dragons surged forwards after them.
Hagrid and Block bounded up the stairs as the dragons crowded after then. At one point Block turned and swiped at one of the dragons who was getting too close. He caught the dragon square across the side of the head sending it crashing down the stairs rolling and tripping the other pursuing dragons. Hagrid also turned and used the butt of his crossbow to smash the jaw of one of the creatures. Amidst the confusion Hagrid and Block turned back up the stairs and ran for their lives.
At the top of the stairs they burst through a large doorway and slammed the door shut behind them. Out of breath they stood with their backs against the door as the furious creatures rammed the door, making it rattled in its frame.
They had had no time to assess their surroundings when a voice from the shadows greeted them, 'good afternoon Hagrid. Well, this is a pleasant surprise. I should have guessed that once Potter turned up others wouldn't be far behind. I must say I'm a little disappointed in my pets outside. By rights you two should be lumps of fat and gristle by now. Perhaps I need to toughen them up a bit. Ah well - now that you're here I suppose you should make yourselves at home. Come over and make yourselves at home.'
It was Harbaxen, he was sat at a large desk reading from scrolls and ancient leather bound tomes. Above him there was an enormous dragon skull suspended from the roof of the cave by ropes.
Meanwhile back in the main cavern Cragheart looked grim and gazed around at the slaving trolls.
'You there, Dolomic - you lazy oaf. Get over here now!' he bellowed.
Dolomic looked up from where he was working with alarm on his face. He obeyed and scurried up to where Cragheart stood.
Cragheart growled, 'stand facing that column over there.' Dolomic obeyed, as Harry was being lead back to his cell by Boulder. Cragheart bound Dolomic's wrists tightly so that his chest was hard against the column.
Dolomic, now unable to move, looked back over his shoulder fearfully.
'Let this demonstration be a lesson to all of you,' bellowed Cragheart 'you must work harder or suffer the consequences.'
The trolls stopped working and looked on.
'I did not tell you to stop!' Cragheart howled at them and they immediately continued their work.
'Dolomic, how many barrels are left to be found?' asked Cragheart.
'Three,' replied Dolomic.
Cragheart shouted aloud 'I am going to whip this pathetic troll and continue whipping him until the last barrel is found.'
Cragheart raised his whip and lashed out - Dolomic screamed.
The dragons looked down from their perches and were clearly excited by the violence. Several of the dragons blasted jets of flame and let out high- pitched screeches. Their yellow eyes followed the activity avidly.
There were murmurs from the trolls all around the cavern but with the dragons watching from above there was nothing they could do to rescue Dolomic. Instead they did the only thing they could - they worked as quickly as they could so that the torture would end. Every few moments there was a snap of Cragheart's whip and a loud scream from poor Dolomic. The dragons on their perches around the cavern stared down on the scene hissing in excitement. Harry was locked back in his cell with Murdo and they stood at the bars listening to the sickening sound.
Cragheart continued raising and lowering his whip arm in a steady beat on Dolomic's back which was already bloodied and tattered.
Harry was awoken by Murdo who was shaking his arm and telling him he had a visitor. Harry sat up and looked out through the bars. There stood two large trolls, each carrying a whip, and a smaller figure wearing a cloak. The figure had white hair and his eyes glowed with a dim red light. He stared at Harry for a moment and said, 'Harry Potter I presume. I've heard great things about you Mr Potter. They say your are a very powerful wizard and of course, by overcoming Voldemort when you were but a baby you showed a certain potential. You have your wand I see. Why haven't you used it to free yourself from the cell I wonder.'
There was a pause. Harry sensed that he was being tested and he decided to keep the fact that he had lost his magical power to himself.
The figure in the cloak laughed 'I know what you are thinking Harry. Better not let on that you can't do magic at the moment - eh? Do you want to know why you can't cast spells anymore?'
Harry saw no point in pretending otherwise so he simply said 'yes please.'
'Good! Well, why don't we go for a walk. Cragheart, please be kind enough to let Mr Potter out of his cage.'
Cragheart produced a heavy iron key, unlocked the door and pulled it wide open. Harry got up and stepped out of the cage. He looked up at Cragheart and said 'haven't we met?' Cragheart grunted aggressively and took a step towards Harry recalling the fight in the toilets at Hogwarts when Harry had stuck his wand up his nose. Cragheart had some unfinished business.
'Stop!' ordered the figure in the cloak and Cragheart stepped back.
'He's not to be harmed for the moment. Do you understand?'
Cragheart nodded and slammed the door shut before Murdo could follow.
Harry looked about him and noted that the tunnel that his cave opened onto headed towards and open cavern at one end and at the other end there was a pair of heavy wooden doors.
'First I should introduce myself - my name is Harbaxen. Magician and descendent of the Gorsedd. Come along Mr Potter let me take you on a tour of my little enterprise.'
With that, Harbaxen ushered Harry towards the cavern where the trolls were working. Harry had not seen any of this before and so he gazed about him in awe at the scale of the cavern. He felt fear of course - he was a prisoner of a wizard of very ill repute and the site of the dragons perched about the cavern did little to put his mind at rest but he also wondered at the enormity of the cavern. You could drop the whole of Hogwarts into this cave and it would only fill one of the corners.
He was appalled to see the trolls treated so badly and he noticed the marks left by whips across the backs of many of them. He saw one troll sat on top of a high column of rock and he could see several caves leading off of the cavern, all of which were barred. He had no way of knowing that at that very moment Hagrid and Block were watching from the darkness of one of those caves.
'You will have noticed the barrels Harry,' said Harbaxen. 'Their contents are unique - the remnants of a final battle in which the Gorsedd were robbed of victory by the use of long forgotten and terrible magic. What wouldn't I sacrifice to be able to harness such power,' said Harbaxen with an intensity in his voice that sent a shiver through Harry. It occurred to Harry that he had best not mention his mysterious dream in which he actually heard the spell cast to bring about the downfall of the Gorsedd.
'What do you want with the barrels?' asked Harry trying to sound only half interested.
Harbaxen pondered this question for a moment and answered with another question 'have you worked out the particular property of these barrel yet Harry?'
Harry answered guardedly 'they make me very tired.' Harry was already feeling a little better now that he was not imprisoned next to the stacked barrels but he knew that there was more to them than that.
Harbaxen elaborated 'the ash contained in those barrels is a condensed and fused mix of two opposite forms of magic. The magic that you know is something you are born with but there is another kind, which was developed by the Gorsedd based on rituals and sacrifices. The great all consuming fire in the final battle between the Gorsedd and the wizards created a substance that is a fusion of both. As such, it is in itself inert - it has no magical properties other than that it interferes with magic of any kind. Anything or anyone near those barrels will lose any magical power but only temporarily. However, should a wizard come into direct contact with the ash, for example if they were to breathe in the dust, then they would forever lose their magical powers. That presents interesting possibilities don't you think Harry?'
Harry followed what Harbaxen was saying but he didn't understand what use Harbaxen could put the barrels to. To try to find out more Harry made a suggestion; 'so if you sent the barrels by translocation to anywhere where there were wizards you would have the potential to erase their magical powers.'
Harbaxen sneered down at Harry, 'you are not thinking. There is nothing that you can do to the barrels by magic. Magic doesn't work near them. The wizards and witches of this world would love to be rid of them but they cannot do anything to destroy them. Instead, they had to be satisfied with hiding them in this cavern deep in the mountains. Over the centuries, the barrels were forgotten and none of your kind thought it necessary to continue to watch over them. They simply assumed that the task of digging them up again was too great for anyone. That is where they were wrong and that is where my dear trolls have come in so handy.'
Harry realized that Harbaxen's plan must include some non-magic means of transporting the barrels away. He wanted to keep Harbaxen talking to discover more of his plans. 'You were at Hogwarts so aren't you are a wizard rather than a Gorsedd' said Harry speculatively.
'No!' shouted Harbaxen turning towards Harry with a furious scowl on his face 'I am a Gorsedd. The ways of the Gorsedd had been long forgotten since they were wiped out at the battle of Stonehenge. Somehow I developed their powers - a fluke perhaps and much of what I learned as a child was by accident and trial and error. I used to enjoy torturing small creatures as a child. Doing so gave me a thrill and gave me a power that at first I could not comprehend. But over time I found that I could harness that power and perform magic just as you can Harry. However, my power would soon diminish with time after each sacrifice. I was discovered by you wizards and taken to Hogwarts. I believe that those fools at the Ministry of Magic thought that they could channel my capabilities and control me - they didn't understand me but they did give me time and access to old scriptures that allowed me to fully harness my powers. Eventually they realized that they couldn't control me any more and so expelled me from Hogwarts. They cast me out into the world. They rejected me now they must pay.'
Harbaxen was becoming more drawn into himself - he wasn't really talking to Harry anymore. He was talking to himself and becoming increasingly animated. He was clenching his fists and pacing back and forth. Harry sensed a great and malicious fury inside of Harbaxen.
Harbaxen paused so Harry tried to change the subject.
'Where did you find the dragons?'
Harbaxen turned and starred at Harry for a moment his eyes blazing red and then the glow faded and he let out a sigh.
'The dragons....' he seemed to take a moment to regain his composure, 'the dragons - my little pets. You did well to defeat one of them back on the mountain Harry. They are from the wastelands of Siberia in northern Russia. I found them on my journeys and we struck up an arrangement - they brought me live creatures to sacrifice and I gave them a god to worship. These particular dragons were in part the creation of the Gorsedd and traditionally this species has kept allegiance to my ancestors. They recognised me for what I was and they do my bidding. They do make wonderful guard dogs Harry. They were more than happy to follow me here and help me in my work.' There was a pause, 'and what is that then' said Harry tentatively.
Harbaxen leaned close to Harry 'I am seeking vengeance Harry. Vengeance for my people, the Gorsedd who were robbed of their rightful place in the world and I am seeking vengeance for me. The Ministry of Magic cast me out - I was expelled. Now they will be expelled.'
Harry stood staring at him in disbelief. 'You..you're going to do something to the Ministry of Magic?'
Suddenly Harry thought of the terrible effect that the ash contained in the barrels would have on the Ministry. The place and anyone inside would no longer be magical - wizard society would be dealt a terrible blow.
'I think I have told you enough Harry. All I wanted to know was whether the barrels still had the power to destroy magic and clearly they do. Boulder please escort Mr Potter back to his cell. Make yourself comfortable when you get there - you are going to be there for...an eternity.'
Harbaxen turned his attention to Cragheart. 'These lazy fools need motivating - they are not working fast enough. Get one who has been giving less than their all and organize a little demonstration.'
Hagrid and Block watched Harry escorted away and then looked on as Harbaxen summoned one of the mighty dragons from its resting place. It swooped down to the base of the cavern and trolls nearby scrambled for cover. Harbaxen however waited patiently as the beast landed softly beside him and bowed its head. Harbaxen leapt on to the base of the beast's neck and with a kick from him the dragon launched itself back up into the air. It flapped its enormous wings ever faster and under Harbaxen's coaxing it sailed the full length of the cavern soaring away through the hole in the roof.
Hagrid turned to Block and said 'well, there isn't much that we can do here. Those iron bars are too strong for us to get past and I can't see any other way into the cavern.' Block nodded but he was reluctant to leave as from here he could watch his clan at work and occasionally catch a glimpse of his family.
'Where next?' he said sullenly to Hagrid.
'Well, I was thinking that the easiest way to sort all of this out is to deal direct with that Harbaxen fella. You don't know this Block but Harbaxen was at school the same time as me and let's just say that we never really hit it off. He was sort of the opposite to me when it came to creatures - I would look after 'em and he'd try his best to kill'em in as nasty a way as he could think up.' Block thought for a moment and nodded saying 'I don't think I like him one bit either' and he slapped his club into the palm of his hand.
They crawled away back up the passage until the roof was high enough for them to walk. They lit a torch each and then made their way back up to the junction that opened out in to the larger cave system. 'Now then, Block it seems as if he's living up in the higher chambers. Do you think you can find your way up there?' Block nodded and closed his eyes. He spent a moment visualizing the route in his mind's eye making direction movements with his hand before snapping his eyes open. 'This way,' he said pointing at an upward sloping cave. Together they set off at a brisk pace.
They climbed rapidly and Hagrid, who was soon out of breath, was also feeling the tension of being confined below ground as much as he had when he first entered the caves. The passages twisted, turned, at each junction Block would pause, take a few deep breaths, and then stand perfectly still and silent. He would listen for a few moments before selecting the next passage. Hagrid was completely baffled by all of this and had no idea where he was going. They passed through several larger chambers that had been formed into meeting halls or workshops by the previous occupants; the dwarves. Sometimes when sections of the roof had collapsed, they had to scramble up over steep piles of rock to get to the next section of cave. A few times they had to double back after they came to an impassable section of tunnel but on the whole they made their way steadily upwards.
They had been on the move for about a half an hour and Block was stopping to decide on the way forwards more and more often. Hagrid was beginning to have grave doubts when finally they came to a length of tunnel, which opened out onto a lit chamber. They extinguished their torches and crept forward as silently as a mountain troll and a giant can. They crept up to the end of their cave, which this time was not barred, and gazed out in to another large chamber. This area was lit by several large iron braziers of burning coals and in the centre of the floor was a large hole. Through the hole, noises could be heard from the cavern below - this must where the dragons flew in and out of the cavern. There was a wooden stairway leading down through the hole.
They immediately realized there was something very strange about the cavern. Around the hole in the floor were two concentric circles of standing stones. Spanning between the standing stones were further monoliths of rock.
'It looks like Stonehenge except all the stones are in place on this version' said Hagrid.
Inside the inner circle of stones and to one side of the gaping hole in the floor there was a crude stone altar with ancient runes painted around its sides. The whole place looked extremely eerie and Hagrid gripped his crossbow tightly.
'It looks like Harbaxen has been dabbling in a bit of the old black magic,' whispered Hagrid, 'this setup looks like the Gorsedd religious sites of old.'
Block looked around and shook his head with a disapproving look on his face.
Once they were as sure as they could be that the place was deserted they stole out from their hiding place. They skirted round the edge of the cavern passing a part of the wall that appeared to be a damn. There were huge wooden boards braced across the entrance to a passage leading off. Water was leaking through the boards in fine jets.
'It looks like this place normally has a river running through it,' Block observed.
Hagrid and Block moved on quickly. At the far side of the chamber where the altar sat amongst the standing stones, they noted a pile of skulls and bones that appeared to belong to cows and sheep. There was a sickly smell and flies were zipping all around them. Then they came across a large level cave heading away from the chamber.
They set off down the passage, which was wide with a flat base and an arched roof. There were several small doorways off this central passage but these were all covered in dust and cobwebs hence they knew that there could not have been anyone using these doors for many years. The tunnel seemed to go on for a great distance.
Suddenly there was a gust of wind and in the distance they noticed something moving in the gloom. Block was first to react, 'come on,' he said grabbing Hagrid's sleeve and hauling him sideways to one of the rooms. They shoved open the door and squeezed through the small opening. Then they waited for a few moments behind the partially closed door and they both jumped when a loud screech of a dragon rent the air. The enormous beast was flying down the tunnel and as it passed there were thumping vibrations in the rock.
After the beast had passed, Hagrid and Block took a moment to examine their surroundings. They lit one of the torches and were amazed to find that they were in an alehouse. Around them were tables and stools, a bar and an old fireplace. Above the fireplace was a picture of two men. One was large and bald with a large grey beard and the other was a handsome clean- man with a square jaw and smiling eyes. Hagrid looked curiously at the picture.
'I wonder who these two are?' he muttered to himself. There was a signature in one corner of the painting and the date, "10th Dec 1605".
Hagrid looked around the rest of the alehouse 'dwarves! - they really do like their ale.'
Block knew a little about ale - the older trolls in his clan would gather in the evenings, drink, sing, and fight. He was too young though for such things.
'This must have been the town centre along this tunnel for their underground world. It looks like they've been gone a long while though.'
They checked that the main passage was clear and they resumed their journey. After a few minutes walking, they came to steps leading off the main tunnel up to a more substantial entrance with ornate columns standing either side of a large doorway. The door was wide open and there was a reddish glow coming from inside.
'This looks like the place,' muttered Hagrid.
They were both now feeling very nervous but they were determined after what they had seen in the cavern below. They exchanged a look, nodded and continued forwards.
They approached cautiously but all was silent. They eased up to the doorway and peered through.
The room inside was full of ornately carved statues depicting ancient warriors and wild creatures. The floor was fine smooth marble. There was however a foul smell about the place and flies buzzed all around. At the far end of the anteroom a staircase arced upwards to a landing. There were iron chandeliers hanging from the ceiling holding brightly burning candles.
They entered the room cautiously. There appeared to be no other way forwards other than via the staircase. Hagrid gripped his hunting crossbow and Block had his club at the ready as they crossed the room. As they moved forwards there were faint noises, perhaps of scuttling feet seemingly all around them and they looked into the shadows nervously.
They reached the far side of the hall and set off up the stairs. Suddenly they sensed movement on the floor behind them all around the base of the stairs. From among the statues suddenly twelve young dragons appeared. They were small compared to the fully grown Infernos that Hagrid and Block had already encountered but they were still taller than Hagrid and they snarled and hissed malevolently.
'Quick Block we'd better run fer it,' said Hagrid.
As they turned to run up the stairs the young dragons surged forwards after them.
Hagrid and Block bounded up the stairs as the dragons crowded after then. At one point Block turned and swiped at one of the dragons who was getting too close. He caught the dragon square across the side of the head sending it crashing down the stairs rolling and tripping the other pursuing dragons. Hagrid also turned and used the butt of his crossbow to smash the jaw of one of the creatures. Amidst the confusion Hagrid and Block turned back up the stairs and ran for their lives.
At the top of the stairs they burst through a large doorway and slammed the door shut behind them. Out of breath they stood with their backs against the door as the furious creatures rammed the door, making it rattled in its frame.
They had had no time to assess their surroundings when a voice from the shadows greeted them, 'good afternoon Hagrid. Well, this is a pleasant surprise. I should have guessed that once Potter turned up others wouldn't be far behind. I must say I'm a little disappointed in my pets outside. By rights you two should be lumps of fat and gristle by now. Perhaps I need to toughen them up a bit. Ah well - now that you're here I suppose you should make yourselves at home. Come over and make yourselves at home.'
It was Harbaxen, he was sat at a large desk reading from scrolls and ancient leather bound tomes. Above him there was an enormous dragon skull suspended from the roof of the cave by ropes.
Meanwhile back in the main cavern Cragheart looked grim and gazed around at the slaving trolls.
'You there, Dolomic - you lazy oaf. Get over here now!' he bellowed.
Dolomic looked up from where he was working with alarm on his face. He obeyed and scurried up to where Cragheart stood.
Cragheart growled, 'stand facing that column over there.' Dolomic obeyed, as Harry was being lead back to his cell by Boulder. Cragheart bound Dolomic's wrists tightly so that his chest was hard against the column.
Dolomic, now unable to move, looked back over his shoulder fearfully.
'Let this demonstration be a lesson to all of you,' bellowed Cragheart 'you must work harder or suffer the consequences.'
The trolls stopped working and looked on.
'I did not tell you to stop!' Cragheart howled at them and they immediately continued their work.
'Dolomic, how many barrels are left to be found?' asked Cragheart.
'Three,' replied Dolomic.
Cragheart shouted aloud 'I am going to whip this pathetic troll and continue whipping him until the last barrel is found.'
Cragheart raised his whip and lashed out - Dolomic screamed.
The dragons looked down from their perches and were clearly excited by the violence. Several of the dragons blasted jets of flame and let out high- pitched screeches. Their yellow eyes followed the activity avidly.
There were murmurs from the trolls all around the cavern but with the dragons watching from above there was nothing they could do to rescue Dolomic. Instead they did the only thing they could - they worked as quickly as they could so that the torture would end. Every few moments there was a snap of Cragheart's whip and a loud scream from poor Dolomic. The dragons on their perches around the cavern stared down on the scene hissing in excitement. Harry was locked back in his cell with Murdo and they stood at the bars listening to the sickening sound.
Cragheart continued raising and lowering his whip arm in a steady beat on Dolomic's back which was already bloodied and tattered.