Chapter 11: Dark Lord vs. Dark Lord
"King Undertaker, I presume?"
"So," Aku said suavely as Undertaker, "you are the one everyone is talking about."
The stranger chuckled. "You flatter me. You seem to be the popular one lately here at Hogwarts." They both shared a good laugh, then the stranger said, "Thank you for taking care of that Muggle-lover Dumbledore and his circle of friends."
"It was no trouble," Aku answered. He took Harry by the hand and offered him to the stranger. "I believe this is what you came for."
"It is, as a matter of fact."
"A real, crying shame, it is. It's a loss of an excellent Quidditch player. Have you ever seen him play?"
"There are more important things than Quidditch, Undertaker. Now, surrender him to me."
"All right." He knelt down to Harry and whispered something to him. Jack really couldn't tell what he was doing.
"Stand back," the stranger said. "This could be messy." Aku took a couple of steps back. The stranger looked down at the young man with a twisted smile. "Are you ready to die, Harry?"
"Yes," Harry answered. Jack thought he saw a purple light flicker around Harry as he waited for the stranger to cast the spell.
"Good. It will make this all the more easy. Perhaps not as fun, but still easy. Avada Kevaaaaaaaaaaaaa-MORPHIO!"
The stranger pointed his wand beyond Harry to the false governor. A blue- white light surrounded Aku. It set him into convulsions, and in a brilliant flash of life he changed back into his true form.
"Wormtail, open the doors. Let them in."
Peter quickly opened the Great Hall doors, and dozens of wizards walked in single file. They wore black robes with hoods and masks. Each one swiftly bowed before the stranger and then took their places in a large circle. To Jack, it looked like some grotesque religious ceremony. The room was full of silence.
"My dear Death Eaters," the stranger announced, "many times you have asked me what has inspired me to become what I am today. What has made me so terrifying? Why did I choose this rout? And I have told you that I could go on for hours to explain all the reasons. Yet tonight, you are in luck, for many of my chief reasons can be found in the being before you. This is Aku."
The Death Eaters muttered amongst themselves. Jack couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, but he caught several whispering, "Who's that?"
"I believe I have heard of him through the Ministry," one of the Death Eaters spoke up. "Master, is he not a Muggle Asian dictator?"
"Look at him, MacNair!" the stranger replied. "Does he look like a Muggle to you?"
"No, Master, forgive me."
"But you are partially right. He is a dictator. He controls several powerful nations. Yet, he is the greatest Animagus in the world. He needs no potions, no wands, no Latin incantations. He simply thinks what he wants to be, and he is. He has several other powers that make him feared by all in his domain. But greatest of all, he has within him a deep, dark secret that I still seek. Aku is immortal. He has seen many centuries, and he will see many more. He has only been challenged and defeated once, and even then he was only detained for a short season."
The stranger turned to Aku. "Aku, it is our greatest honor to be in your glorious presence." He bowed face down on the floor. The Death Eaters followed his lead.
Aku knelt to the stranger's level and whispered something. The stranger answered back in a low voice. Jack only the words, " . . . always knows." The stranger stood and turned to the Death Eaters. "But not all of us have that blessing. Lucius, my friend, did you not realize that royalty dwelt under your roof all summer?"
"My lord, no. Forgive me. I was skeptical."
"Not at all, Lucius. I taught you that skepticism, didn't I? And Aku's disguise was quite good. He even fooled my servant, Wormtail. He never trusted the governor since Fudge appointed him. I tried to drop hints as to his true identity, but Wormtail never caught on. In fact, he did not want me to come tonight, did you Wormtail? He kept telling me that Undertaker would be sure to catch us. I knew better, of course. Yes, Aku's disguise is certainly applaud worthy." The stranger applauded, and once again the Death Eaters followed his lead. It was rather spooky, though, because their applause was exactly in sync with the stranger's.
"But this is not all that I know," the stranger continued. "I have some distressing news, Lucius. Your tutor did not teach your son what you hired him for."
"My lord, he has learned the Dark Arts. I have seen him practice spells. They are wonderful and terrifying."
"Oh, he has learned Dark Arts, but that's not the point. I believe you have hired a tutor to prepare your fine, young man for service to me. Instead, he and Aku have together planned for my destruction!"
"No! My lord, it can not be so!"
"It is. If you do not believe me, ask your son. He is standing behind you."
The Death Eater broke out of the circle and threw off his hood and mask. He grasped Draco around the shoulders. "Is this true, Draco?"
Draco did not answer but looked at him with a glazed-over expression.
Lucius slapped him across the face. "Snap out of it, son!"
Draco blinked. "Sorry father. The Dark Lord just isn't as great as he appears. Undertaker promised a new and better leader, and we got it. Aku is so much cooler."
"Oh," Aku mock whined. "The loss of a future servant. Is that really so lamentable?"
"That is not that worries me," the stranger replied. "You want to destroy me? Is this how you treat your apprentice, your protégé, your--"
"SILENCE TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE!"
All the Death Easters gasped. The stranger raised his wand as if he was about to cast a spell.
"I SAID SILENCE!" Aku caused a force of wind to knock the stranger's wand out of his hand. "I know your name causes terror among your race. You must feel proud whenever you hear wizards avoid your name, or when they speak it in a low whisper with a shake in their voices. I refuse to give you that pride! The only name that deserves that fear and respect is the name of Aku! However, I know the name that makes you squirm, your real name. I will only address you this way so that you will cower before me."
The Death Eaters all spoke at once and rose their wands, but Aku once again screamed, "SILENCE, ALL OF YOU! Pay no more allegiance to this worm. Hear the words of your new master.
"You call yourself my protégé, Riddle? You have a strange way of showing it. When I first walked the earth, I swore to myself that I would rule it all. You know that much of the world is already within my almighty grasp. Do you not know why you wizards are not already mine? I have tried long ago. I could not directly attack your kind, for your abilities almost match my own. You always seemed to be one step ahead of me. I had to do it in some underhanded way. So, I made an alliance with the lovely queen of the otherworld, Morgan le Fay. Together, we trapped Merlin. Together, we caused Camelot to crumble. But when I tried to lay hold of her kingdom, she put a curse on me. She said I could never control your kind until those who you now call Muggles learn to control their own magic. We were both certain that this would never come to pass.
"Yet at the beginning of this century, I could feel the curse lifted. The Muggles learned how to fly and how to travel without horses. They could even touch the stars. They had mastered the magic of electricity and the atom. I had planned a new strategy to lead your kind to me. When I was ready, I found a promising witch to lead astray, only to find that she was already in your control! I as continued to gain wizards to my side, I saw it was no good. The most promising, most powerful of the litter, YOU MURDERED THEM ALL!"
The stranger did seem to grow rather frightened to hear this. He tried to speak up, but Aku continued.
"And that's not the half of it. I had learned more about you, of course. I was flattered to hear that you were studying my ways, but it disappointed me that you were not interested in entering my service. It first appeared that you only wanted to know my secrets of immortality. But I soon found out that there was more to it than that. You wanted to learn the way around it. You wanted to know how to destroy me so that YOU could become the next Aku! Some protégé you are, Riddle!"
The stranger tried to argue, "I was young and idealistic, great Aku. Besides, you must know that I was also learning your great ways of leadership!"
"There is no kissing up to me, Riddle! When I heard that you had returned, I made sure that this time I get my choice servant first. Potter is mine! You can not have him! And now, I will see you destroyed."
"Not so fast, Aku. I know you Japanese respect a vow. Even someone as you fears to break the oath of a man. I vowed to kill the boy standing before you. Therefore, you must let me--"
"Forget it, Riddle. Vows me nothing to me."
"Well, I was going to suggest that we duel for Potter."
The Death Eaters cheered and really applauded this time. They urged Aku to accept.
"Why not?" Aku finally answered. "It sounds entertaining."
The Death Eaters exploded into hollers. "Wonderful!" the stranger said. "Now, since I can't compete on your level, you need to sink to mine. I am not dueling a god-like giant."
Aku sighed and shrunk into a humanoid appearance. "Happy?"
"No. You also need a wand."
"I do NOT need a wand!"
"Too bad. I thought this would be a great duel."
"RAVENCLAW! Hand me your wand!" Cho came through the Death Eaters' circle, whimpering and cowering as she presented Aku her wand. Aku smiled. "Yes, this will do nicely."
"Do you know how we duel, Aku? It is polite for the opponents first to bow to each other."
"You've done it already."
"But you have yet to bow to me."
"I BOW TO NO ONE!"
The Death Eaters mumbled amongst each other. Finally, the stranger shrugged. "Fine. I would normally be offended, but since you are Aku--"
"ENOUGH TALKING! LET'S DUEL!"
They held their wands out like swords. Neither of them moved at first. Then, slowly, they started circling each other, like two vultures. They had deadly looks in their eyes.
"What's wrong your majesty? Are you too much of a coward to attack me?"
"Nonsense. I want to see for myself what everybody is so afraid of."
"You'll be sorry you asked. Crucio!"
Aku howled with pain. His whole body crawled, looking as though it was boiling. Then he raised Cho's wand and shouted, "GEKITSUU!"
The stranger was hit with a similar pain. "That's Japanese! No fair, then I won't see what's coming!"
"Who says I'm fair?"
"Wait, how can that even be possible?"
"That is why I chose her wand. I know her lineage. Don't stall, Riddle. Give me another shot."
"Sure. Two can play at this game." He spoke in a high-pitched hissing voice. Whatever it was, Aku dodged it.
"That's where you're wrong, Riddle. I can understand everything, even Parseltongue. It's a perk of being a world leader. HIZEME!" Fire surrounded the stranger. That managed to break up the Death Eaters' circle. "JOUKI!" The stranger became disoriented and almost walked into the flames several times.
One of those near misses must have brought the stranger back to his senses. He made his way through the flames and shouted, "Imperio!" Aku transformed into a hippogriff. "Ha! It worked. Imperio!" Aku transformed again. The stranger uttered the curse over and over, elated that he actually had power over Aku.
Meanwhile, Jack was trying to wriggle free from the web. He thought again of the sibyl's prophecy, and he was sure that if he did not act soon the horrors she spoke of would come true. Unfortunately, the more he moved, the more stuck he seemed to become.
Finally, it looked like part of the bundle was beginning to give. He was able to get his wrist free. Yet it did not help his struggle. Suddenly, he was splashed with water from out of nowhere. The sticky string started to dissolve. Only then did Jack realize that it was a long way down. Perhaps he could grab one strand and make his way down like a real spi--
The bundle gave way, and he was falling. He was about to get himself in a stance that would ease his tumble when things changed. He was turned around in the air, and he fell more slowly. He felt like someone was carrying him, but he could not see anyone.
"My goodness, you're heavy," a voice whispered in his ear.
Jack recognized that voice. "Myrtle?"
"Shh! I'm not supposed to be here."
"Oh. I didn't think you would do this."
"Well, I really shouldn't after how mean you were last time, but I can't resist that face. So, maybe you'll forgive me?"
"It is a hard thing to forgive, Myrtle. You do not realize how important that was to me, but it's not the end of the world. I forgive--"
Myrtle screamed and dropped him, but he only had a few feet to fall. Jack couldn't see what scared her so. He didn't have time. As soon as the stranger saw him, he yelled, "NOW, DEATH EATERS! THE MUGGLE IS FREE!"
All of the Death Eaters ran toward Jack. They surrounded him and began shouting spells. Sparks flew everywhere. Jack managed to deflect the magic just like last time. Most of the spells hit the Death Eaters. Since they were wearing masks, Jack couldn't quite see what happened, but none of the Death Eaters reacted as though the spells were really serious. Certainly nobody uttered the two words of death.
Why were they trying to get him with harmless spells? After a few minutes, Jack got a bit of a clue. His sword stopped deflecting the magic. Instead, the magic was starting to build around the blade, and the sword started to hum and shake. Jack started to feel power like he had never felt before. But then, he remembered Professor Adams' words, "When a magic weapon encounters wand magic, it starts behaving like a wand. Often, it can drive a Muggle insane."
That's what they were trying to do! They want to make Jack mad, so they could kill him while he wasn't in a right frame of mind. How could Jack avoid that? He somehow felt a spell work a few minutes ago. Maybe he could do it again. What was that spell he kept hearing that knocked him off of his feet? That would be useful. Yet when Jack tried to say the spell, the sword exploded on its own. All of the Death Eaters were knocked back in a bright blast, and it seemed that they were all knocked out. Jack still had his mind, but the feat took a lot of strength out of him. He made his way stealthily toward Aku and the stranger.
Meanwhile, the stranger had practically turned Aku to pudding by his duel. "AVADA KEVADRA!" his cold voice screamed.
Aku howled as he transformed into his original state. The bright green light sizzled around him, and he hit the floor. His flaming eyebrows were put out. Cho's wand rolled on the floor. Jack looked on in shock. Was Aku dead?
"Not so immortal now, eh Aku?" the stranger chuckled. "It's a shame I had to put someone as great as you into the jaws of death, but what's done is done. And now, back to what I was going to do."
The stranger turned to Harry and raised his wand.
"NINJOUZATA!"
The stranger turned around to find Aku leaping upon him. The demon pressed him against the wall and choked him. He pressed him in so hard, Aku couldn't move. "You were saying, Riddle?" The stranger answered in a choked gasp. "That's what I thought!"
Jack began stalking around Aku. He had to find just the right spot.
"I know you worked so hard to find immortality. It will be a shame to destroy all that hard work." Aku threw his head back and laughed. "FOOL! Do you not know that you must be born into immortality? Speaking of which, do you really think that two fancy words would kill the all-powerful Aku? I knew you would! Nothing can kill Aku!"
But Jack leapt into the air and struck Aku in the back.
Aku screamed. "The sword!"
The stranger was let free. "You were saying, Aku!" He reached for his wand to point defensively back at the demon, but it was not there. It was on the wall, held by Jack's sword. The wand was broken in half. Jack could see a vibrantly red feather sticking out of one end. "My wand, my beautiful wand. YOU BROKE MY WAND!"
"Aku is not yours to kill," Jack answered as he removed the sword. "I made the oath to destroy him."
"What do I care about your oaths, Muggle?"
"For once, I thank you, Samurai," Aku said. "You have left my enemy completely defenseless."
"Completely? I don't think so."
"You have no wand. You have no friends to support you. You have nothing. Face it, you are mine."
"Oh no, I still have some tricks up my sleeve."
"Can they stand what I have planned for you?" Aku pressed the stranger against the wall again. "You see, Riddle, I staged this because I know the prophecies concerning you, prophecies stating that your ultimate demise will be found in your chief prize, a certain fifteen-year-old boy."
Aku turned around and beckoned to one of the guards. "Harry. Come here, Harry. I need your power." His voice seemed to be mixed with the suave voice of Undertaker.
Harry stepped forward, and his scar began to glow. Just like in Jack's vision, a brilliant, purple lightning bolt issued from the scar. Jack immediately jumped before it and divided it with his sword. It was strong. Jack held on as hard as he could.
"Hufflepuff! Ravenclaw! Slytherin! STOP HIM!"
Colored beams of light came from all around. Jack saw green, blue, and yell, and they all came toward him, but they all centered on the sword. Harry's lightning bolt seemed to be orbiting around the blade. The sword shook again and began to feel hot in Jack's hands. He knew he couldn't keep his sanity without help.
"Great ancestors," he mumbled, "hear my plea. Let me keep my mind." He took a deep breath. This was so hard. "Save these children. They have been in Aku's bonds for too long, and I do not know how to free them. Show Ernie that this is not the way. Reveal to Draco that Aku's promises are empty. Help Cho fight the demon within her. But be especially with Harry. Drive the demon far away from him. I care about him! We have both been hurt by evil. Help Harry to never become part of evil's plan!"
The sword continued to shake and hum. Jack began seeing things constantly shift from the real world scenes from his dream world. He thought he saw Dumbledore, Sirius, the Weasleys, and all those people from the last dream. He even saw people he did not know who looked as ghosts to him.
"Ancestors, I honor you. Give me strength. Let me be your arm of justice, if I find favor in your eyes. May the Scarred Ones never come to pass!"
Jack fell to his knees. He felt he could do this no longer. A black, misty smoke enveloped the room. Jack could hear someone crying and someone coughing. He felt he was almost done for when Harry's urgent, strained voice came through the mist. It hit him like a bolt of lightning.
"JACK!"
Harry had never called him by his name before.
A large, oozy pool of Aku's essence slithered before Jack. In great anger, Jack brought his sword down and struck the mess. It sank into the floor.
"YOW!" Aku cried. He looked around the room for help. "Well, don't just stand there Draco, get him!" Nothing. He reached his finger to touch Harry's scar, but when he just came near the boy he was shocked. The same happened when he approached all his former helpers and the Death Eaters.
"What is this? The curse can not be renewed!" Yet as he looked at his hands, they were becoming as grains of sand, and an imperceptible wind blew them away.
The stranger, now free, walked toward Harry and shook what remained of his sword threateningly. "Don't you dare count this as a victory, Potter. I'll be back. I'll have a new sword, and you will die. And as for you," he said turning back to Jack, "I don't know who you are, but I will get you one day. I don't know how, where, or when, but I will destroy you. No one, especially a Muggle, escapes Lord Voldemort!"
Jack tried hard to reply, but he just not have the strength. He fell to the ground, and his whole world was plunged into darkness.
"King Undertaker, I presume?"
"So," Aku said suavely as Undertaker, "you are the one everyone is talking about."
The stranger chuckled. "You flatter me. You seem to be the popular one lately here at Hogwarts." They both shared a good laugh, then the stranger said, "Thank you for taking care of that Muggle-lover Dumbledore and his circle of friends."
"It was no trouble," Aku answered. He took Harry by the hand and offered him to the stranger. "I believe this is what you came for."
"It is, as a matter of fact."
"A real, crying shame, it is. It's a loss of an excellent Quidditch player. Have you ever seen him play?"
"There are more important things than Quidditch, Undertaker. Now, surrender him to me."
"All right." He knelt down to Harry and whispered something to him. Jack really couldn't tell what he was doing.
"Stand back," the stranger said. "This could be messy." Aku took a couple of steps back. The stranger looked down at the young man with a twisted smile. "Are you ready to die, Harry?"
"Yes," Harry answered. Jack thought he saw a purple light flicker around Harry as he waited for the stranger to cast the spell.
"Good. It will make this all the more easy. Perhaps not as fun, but still easy. Avada Kevaaaaaaaaaaaaa-MORPHIO!"
The stranger pointed his wand beyond Harry to the false governor. A blue- white light surrounded Aku. It set him into convulsions, and in a brilliant flash of life he changed back into his true form.
"Wormtail, open the doors. Let them in."
Peter quickly opened the Great Hall doors, and dozens of wizards walked in single file. They wore black robes with hoods and masks. Each one swiftly bowed before the stranger and then took their places in a large circle. To Jack, it looked like some grotesque religious ceremony. The room was full of silence.
"My dear Death Eaters," the stranger announced, "many times you have asked me what has inspired me to become what I am today. What has made me so terrifying? Why did I choose this rout? And I have told you that I could go on for hours to explain all the reasons. Yet tonight, you are in luck, for many of my chief reasons can be found in the being before you. This is Aku."
The Death Eaters muttered amongst themselves. Jack couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, but he caught several whispering, "Who's that?"
"I believe I have heard of him through the Ministry," one of the Death Eaters spoke up. "Master, is he not a Muggle Asian dictator?"
"Look at him, MacNair!" the stranger replied. "Does he look like a Muggle to you?"
"No, Master, forgive me."
"But you are partially right. He is a dictator. He controls several powerful nations. Yet, he is the greatest Animagus in the world. He needs no potions, no wands, no Latin incantations. He simply thinks what he wants to be, and he is. He has several other powers that make him feared by all in his domain. But greatest of all, he has within him a deep, dark secret that I still seek. Aku is immortal. He has seen many centuries, and he will see many more. He has only been challenged and defeated once, and even then he was only detained for a short season."
The stranger turned to Aku. "Aku, it is our greatest honor to be in your glorious presence." He bowed face down on the floor. The Death Eaters followed his lead.
Aku knelt to the stranger's level and whispered something. The stranger answered back in a low voice. Jack only the words, " . . . always knows." The stranger stood and turned to the Death Eaters. "But not all of us have that blessing. Lucius, my friend, did you not realize that royalty dwelt under your roof all summer?"
"My lord, no. Forgive me. I was skeptical."
"Not at all, Lucius. I taught you that skepticism, didn't I? And Aku's disguise was quite good. He even fooled my servant, Wormtail. He never trusted the governor since Fudge appointed him. I tried to drop hints as to his true identity, but Wormtail never caught on. In fact, he did not want me to come tonight, did you Wormtail? He kept telling me that Undertaker would be sure to catch us. I knew better, of course. Yes, Aku's disguise is certainly applaud worthy." The stranger applauded, and once again the Death Eaters followed his lead. It was rather spooky, though, because their applause was exactly in sync with the stranger's.
"But this is not all that I know," the stranger continued. "I have some distressing news, Lucius. Your tutor did not teach your son what you hired him for."
"My lord, he has learned the Dark Arts. I have seen him practice spells. They are wonderful and terrifying."
"Oh, he has learned Dark Arts, but that's not the point. I believe you have hired a tutor to prepare your fine, young man for service to me. Instead, he and Aku have together planned for my destruction!"
"No! My lord, it can not be so!"
"It is. If you do not believe me, ask your son. He is standing behind you."
The Death Eater broke out of the circle and threw off his hood and mask. He grasped Draco around the shoulders. "Is this true, Draco?"
Draco did not answer but looked at him with a glazed-over expression.
Lucius slapped him across the face. "Snap out of it, son!"
Draco blinked. "Sorry father. The Dark Lord just isn't as great as he appears. Undertaker promised a new and better leader, and we got it. Aku is so much cooler."
"Oh," Aku mock whined. "The loss of a future servant. Is that really so lamentable?"
"That is not that worries me," the stranger replied. "You want to destroy me? Is this how you treat your apprentice, your protégé, your--"
"SILENCE TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE!"
All the Death Easters gasped. The stranger raised his wand as if he was about to cast a spell.
"I SAID SILENCE!" Aku caused a force of wind to knock the stranger's wand out of his hand. "I know your name causes terror among your race. You must feel proud whenever you hear wizards avoid your name, or when they speak it in a low whisper with a shake in their voices. I refuse to give you that pride! The only name that deserves that fear and respect is the name of Aku! However, I know the name that makes you squirm, your real name. I will only address you this way so that you will cower before me."
The Death Eaters all spoke at once and rose their wands, but Aku once again screamed, "SILENCE, ALL OF YOU! Pay no more allegiance to this worm. Hear the words of your new master.
"You call yourself my protégé, Riddle? You have a strange way of showing it. When I first walked the earth, I swore to myself that I would rule it all. You know that much of the world is already within my almighty grasp. Do you not know why you wizards are not already mine? I have tried long ago. I could not directly attack your kind, for your abilities almost match my own. You always seemed to be one step ahead of me. I had to do it in some underhanded way. So, I made an alliance with the lovely queen of the otherworld, Morgan le Fay. Together, we trapped Merlin. Together, we caused Camelot to crumble. But when I tried to lay hold of her kingdom, she put a curse on me. She said I could never control your kind until those who you now call Muggles learn to control their own magic. We were both certain that this would never come to pass.
"Yet at the beginning of this century, I could feel the curse lifted. The Muggles learned how to fly and how to travel without horses. They could even touch the stars. They had mastered the magic of electricity and the atom. I had planned a new strategy to lead your kind to me. When I was ready, I found a promising witch to lead astray, only to find that she was already in your control! I as continued to gain wizards to my side, I saw it was no good. The most promising, most powerful of the litter, YOU MURDERED THEM ALL!"
The stranger did seem to grow rather frightened to hear this. He tried to speak up, but Aku continued.
"And that's not the half of it. I had learned more about you, of course. I was flattered to hear that you were studying my ways, but it disappointed me that you were not interested in entering my service. It first appeared that you only wanted to know my secrets of immortality. But I soon found out that there was more to it than that. You wanted to learn the way around it. You wanted to know how to destroy me so that YOU could become the next Aku! Some protégé you are, Riddle!"
The stranger tried to argue, "I was young and idealistic, great Aku. Besides, you must know that I was also learning your great ways of leadership!"
"There is no kissing up to me, Riddle! When I heard that you had returned, I made sure that this time I get my choice servant first. Potter is mine! You can not have him! And now, I will see you destroyed."
"Not so fast, Aku. I know you Japanese respect a vow. Even someone as you fears to break the oath of a man. I vowed to kill the boy standing before you. Therefore, you must let me--"
"Forget it, Riddle. Vows me nothing to me."
"Well, I was going to suggest that we duel for Potter."
The Death Eaters cheered and really applauded this time. They urged Aku to accept.
"Why not?" Aku finally answered. "It sounds entertaining."
The Death Eaters exploded into hollers. "Wonderful!" the stranger said. "Now, since I can't compete on your level, you need to sink to mine. I am not dueling a god-like giant."
Aku sighed and shrunk into a humanoid appearance. "Happy?"
"No. You also need a wand."
"I do NOT need a wand!"
"Too bad. I thought this would be a great duel."
"RAVENCLAW! Hand me your wand!" Cho came through the Death Eaters' circle, whimpering and cowering as she presented Aku her wand. Aku smiled. "Yes, this will do nicely."
"Do you know how we duel, Aku? It is polite for the opponents first to bow to each other."
"You've done it already."
"But you have yet to bow to me."
"I BOW TO NO ONE!"
The Death Eaters mumbled amongst each other. Finally, the stranger shrugged. "Fine. I would normally be offended, but since you are Aku--"
"ENOUGH TALKING! LET'S DUEL!"
They held their wands out like swords. Neither of them moved at first. Then, slowly, they started circling each other, like two vultures. They had deadly looks in their eyes.
"What's wrong your majesty? Are you too much of a coward to attack me?"
"Nonsense. I want to see for myself what everybody is so afraid of."
"You'll be sorry you asked. Crucio!"
Aku howled with pain. His whole body crawled, looking as though it was boiling. Then he raised Cho's wand and shouted, "GEKITSUU!"
The stranger was hit with a similar pain. "That's Japanese! No fair, then I won't see what's coming!"
"Who says I'm fair?"
"Wait, how can that even be possible?"
"That is why I chose her wand. I know her lineage. Don't stall, Riddle. Give me another shot."
"Sure. Two can play at this game." He spoke in a high-pitched hissing voice. Whatever it was, Aku dodged it.
"That's where you're wrong, Riddle. I can understand everything, even Parseltongue. It's a perk of being a world leader. HIZEME!" Fire surrounded the stranger. That managed to break up the Death Eaters' circle. "JOUKI!" The stranger became disoriented and almost walked into the flames several times.
One of those near misses must have brought the stranger back to his senses. He made his way through the flames and shouted, "Imperio!" Aku transformed into a hippogriff. "Ha! It worked. Imperio!" Aku transformed again. The stranger uttered the curse over and over, elated that he actually had power over Aku.
Meanwhile, Jack was trying to wriggle free from the web. He thought again of the sibyl's prophecy, and he was sure that if he did not act soon the horrors she spoke of would come true. Unfortunately, the more he moved, the more stuck he seemed to become.
Finally, it looked like part of the bundle was beginning to give. He was able to get his wrist free. Yet it did not help his struggle. Suddenly, he was splashed with water from out of nowhere. The sticky string started to dissolve. Only then did Jack realize that it was a long way down. Perhaps he could grab one strand and make his way down like a real spi--
The bundle gave way, and he was falling. He was about to get himself in a stance that would ease his tumble when things changed. He was turned around in the air, and he fell more slowly. He felt like someone was carrying him, but he could not see anyone.
"My goodness, you're heavy," a voice whispered in his ear.
Jack recognized that voice. "Myrtle?"
"Shh! I'm not supposed to be here."
"Oh. I didn't think you would do this."
"Well, I really shouldn't after how mean you were last time, but I can't resist that face. So, maybe you'll forgive me?"
"It is a hard thing to forgive, Myrtle. You do not realize how important that was to me, but it's not the end of the world. I forgive--"
Myrtle screamed and dropped him, but he only had a few feet to fall. Jack couldn't see what scared her so. He didn't have time. As soon as the stranger saw him, he yelled, "NOW, DEATH EATERS! THE MUGGLE IS FREE!"
All of the Death Eaters ran toward Jack. They surrounded him and began shouting spells. Sparks flew everywhere. Jack managed to deflect the magic just like last time. Most of the spells hit the Death Eaters. Since they were wearing masks, Jack couldn't quite see what happened, but none of the Death Eaters reacted as though the spells were really serious. Certainly nobody uttered the two words of death.
Why were they trying to get him with harmless spells? After a few minutes, Jack got a bit of a clue. His sword stopped deflecting the magic. Instead, the magic was starting to build around the blade, and the sword started to hum and shake. Jack started to feel power like he had never felt before. But then, he remembered Professor Adams' words, "When a magic weapon encounters wand magic, it starts behaving like a wand. Often, it can drive a Muggle insane."
That's what they were trying to do! They want to make Jack mad, so they could kill him while he wasn't in a right frame of mind. How could Jack avoid that? He somehow felt a spell work a few minutes ago. Maybe he could do it again. What was that spell he kept hearing that knocked him off of his feet? That would be useful. Yet when Jack tried to say the spell, the sword exploded on its own. All of the Death Eaters were knocked back in a bright blast, and it seemed that they were all knocked out. Jack still had his mind, but the feat took a lot of strength out of him. He made his way stealthily toward Aku and the stranger.
Meanwhile, the stranger had practically turned Aku to pudding by his duel. "AVADA KEVADRA!" his cold voice screamed.
Aku howled as he transformed into his original state. The bright green light sizzled around him, and he hit the floor. His flaming eyebrows were put out. Cho's wand rolled on the floor. Jack looked on in shock. Was Aku dead?
"Not so immortal now, eh Aku?" the stranger chuckled. "It's a shame I had to put someone as great as you into the jaws of death, but what's done is done. And now, back to what I was going to do."
The stranger turned to Harry and raised his wand.
"NINJOUZATA!"
The stranger turned around to find Aku leaping upon him. The demon pressed him against the wall and choked him. He pressed him in so hard, Aku couldn't move. "You were saying, Riddle?" The stranger answered in a choked gasp. "That's what I thought!"
Jack began stalking around Aku. He had to find just the right spot.
"I know you worked so hard to find immortality. It will be a shame to destroy all that hard work." Aku threw his head back and laughed. "FOOL! Do you not know that you must be born into immortality? Speaking of which, do you really think that two fancy words would kill the all-powerful Aku? I knew you would! Nothing can kill Aku!"
But Jack leapt into the air and struck Aku in the back.
Aku screamed. "The sword!"
The stranger was let free. "You were saying, Aku!" He reached for his wand to point defensively back at the demon, but it was not there. It was on the wall, held by Jack's sword. The wand was broken in half. Jack could see a vibrantly red feather sticking out of one end. "My wand, my beautiful wand. YOU BROKE MY WAND!"
"Aku is not yours to kill," Jack answered as he removed the sword. "I made the oath to destroy him."
"What do I care about your oaths, Muggle?"
"For once, I thank you, Samurai," Aku said. "You have left my enemy completely defenseless."
"Completely? I don't think so."
"You have no wand. You have no friends to support you. You have nothing. Face it, you are mine."
"Oh no, I still have some tricks up my sleeve."
"Can they stand what I have planned for you?" Aku pressed the stranger against the wall again. "You see, Riddle, I staged this because I know the prophecies concerning you, prophecies stating that your ultimate demise will be found in your chief prize, a certain fifteen-year-old boy."
Aku turned around and beckoned to one of the guards. "Harry. Come here, Harry. I need your power." His voice seemed to be mixed with the suave voice of Undertaker.
Harry stepped forward, and his scar began to glow. Just like in Jack's vision, a brilliant, purple lightning bolt issued from the scar. Jack immediately jumped before it and divided it with his sword. It was strong. Jack held on as hard as he could.
"Hufflepuff! Ravenclaw! Slytherin! STOP HIM!"
Colored beams of light came from all around. Jack saw green, blue, and yell, and they all came toward him, but they all centered on the sword. Harry's lightning bolt seemed to be orbiting around the blade. The sword shook again and began to feel hot in Jack's hands. He knew he couldn't keep his sanity without help.
"Great ancestors," he mumbled, "hear my plea. Let me keep my mind." He took a deep breath. This was so hard. "Save these children. They have been in Aku's bonds for too long, and I do not know how to free them. Show Ernie that this is not the way. Reveal to Draco that Aku's promises are empty. Help Cho fight the demon within her. But be especially with Harry. Drive the demon far away from him. I care about him! We have both been hurt by evil. Help Harry to never become part of evil's plan!"
The sword continued to shake and hum. Jack began seeing things constantly shift from the real world scenes from his dream world. He thought he saw Dumbledore, Sirius, the Weasleys, and all those people from the last dream. He even saw people he did not know who looked as ghosts to him.
"Ancestors, I honor you. Give me strength. Let me be your arm of justice, if I find favor in your eyes. May the Scarred Ones never come to pass!"
Jack fell to his knees. He felt he could do this no longer. A black, misty smoke enveloped the room. Jack could hear someone crying and someone coughing. He felt he was almost done for when Harry's urgent, strained voice came through the mist. It hit him like a bolt of lightning.
"JACK!"
Harry had never called him by his name before.
A large, oozy pool of Aku's essence slithered before Jack. In great anger, Jack brought his sword down and struck the mess. It sank into the floor.
"YOW!" Aku cried. He looked around the room for help. "Well, don't just stand there Draco, get him!" Nothing. He reached his finger to touch Harry's scar, but when he just came near the boy he was shocked. The same happened when he approached all his former helpers and the Death Eaters.
"What is this? The curse can not be renewed!" Yet as he looked at his hands, they were becoming as grains of sand, and an imperceptible wind blew them away.
The stranger, now free, walked toward Harry and shook what remained of his sword threateningly. "Don't you dare count this as a victory, Potter. I'll be back. I'll have a new sword, and you will die. And as for you," he said turning back to Jack, "I don't know who you are, but I will get you one day. I don't know how, where, or when, but I will destroy you. No one, especially a Muggle, escapes Lord Voldemort!"
Jack tried hard to reply, but he just not have the strength. He fell to the ground, and his whole world was plunged into darkness.
