Showdown at Lake Superior
Chapter 34
"Potter."
Harry had been about to sit down on the bench set against the inner hull of the Cruiser, when Faust beckoned him over. He had a feeling why he was to join the captain on the upper deck. Faust probably wanted to make sure he knew what he had to do when the time came.
He joined Faust on the levitation surface, which took them to the upper level in the blink of an eye. It was as if a Portkey were taking them somewhere, and if it hadn't had special charms to keep its two occupants on, Harry and Faust would have been plastered all over the ceiling. Though Harry knew that they levitation surfaces had never failed yet, he was still uneasy about it.
Faust immediately headed for the monitoring station behind the two pilots' seats. "Janos, have you established the up-link to the Orbital Eyes?"
Gaal nodded. "I have three of them keeping a geo-synchronous orbit with their lenses on the Laketown Islands. I think they've set up a few of those anti-magic field generators."
"Why do you think so?"
"I'm getting some odd readings that could possibly be a teleportation block, and I just saw footage of a wizard waving his wand with no effect. That gives it away, wouldn't you think?"
"But they'll be slaughtered!" Rachel Esklove said anxiously. Unlike Ginny, who would be down on the ground in the thick of the fighting, she'd be staying on the Cruiser, and with good reason. Of the trainees who weren't in the Martial Division, Ginny was the best fighter. Rachel, on the other hand, would obviously require some more training for her to have a fighting chance against the Dark Trolls. That's why she'd been posted on the Cruiser, where she'd be more effective due to her considerable skill as a pilot.
Gaal nodded. "And from what Donovan told me, I thought this fellow had something against unfair fights."
"But does he see it as such?" Faust grumbled. "The telemetry here shows about sixty Dark Trolls and an assortment of monstrous foot-soldiers, about four hundred of them. I'm guessing they're flesh golems."
"They are," Gaal confirmed. "What's your point?"
"No one can do magic with a wand now. He levelled the playing field…perfectly fair."
"Well, since you put it that way," Gaal said wryly.
"Did you find out how that army got from Agua Caliente to Laketown without us detecting them?"
"No. The orbital eyes didn't pick up any residual teleportation magic, so we can rule out Portkeys. I know Yamato can make very stealthy Portkeys, but a mass usage would have left some traces."
"Any chance the anti-magic field generators are covering those traces?"
"There is a chance. If that's the case, the generators have to be a new kind. The ones we captured couldn't do that."
"They can block magic, but not traces of magic?" Harry frowned.
"That's right," Gaal said. "Magic binding runes essentially trap residual magic and keep it sharp and usable for as long as the runes last. Given the fact that the generators use these runes for power, distorting their function would effectively shut the gadget down. But maybe Yamato found a way around that. Or maybe they sent a small team on ahead to set up a portal, like the one they used to invade Caer Sidi, although I have no idea how they'd have succeeded in doing so without anyone on the island noticing."
"At the moment it doesn't matter how they got there," Faust said. "We have to concentrate on making them leave."
The communications mirror signalled an incoming transmission. Lieutenant Riyadi's face appeared on the screen.
"Aceng, so you'll co-ordinate things with da Silva from the Zephyrus?" Faust asked, clearly surprised that one of his best fighters wouldn't be at ground zero with the rest of them.
Riyadi looked unhappy. "I'd rather be in the thick of things, captain."
"We all do what we must," Faust sighed. "Is the fleet ready?"
"We are ready to leave. The Eurus isn't, but the orders to move out still stand."
"Then we leave," Faust said. "The co-ordination will be in your hands until Ironheart arrives. The Zephyrus is in the lead."
Riyadi nodded in acknowledgement, and the connection was broken. At least, the connection on the screen was broken. Rachel and Lieutenant Gaal were getting instructions through their headsets, and Rachel relayed the information to Faust.
"Ranger da Silva recommends that the Cruisers Portkey a few miles shy of the islands instead of right on top of them, since Dark Trolls can see through invisibility."
Faust seemed to agree, and Harry did too. Perhaps the trolls would have a weapon powerful enough to knock the Cruisers out of the sky. He knew his double had succeeded in doing so with a series of powerful curses. If his double had been strong enough, the dark general could also potentially be. Thankfully the anti-magic generators worked to their advantage that way, and he wouldn't be able to use his wand.
However, this still left Wolfe…Harry bit his lip. He couldn't regard Wolfe as his friend anymore. The prophecy had to be taken seriously. The parasite—though altered owing to Wolfe's efforts—was still in charge and would stop at nothing to do Harry in. For all practical purposes, Wolfe wasn't there anymore.
Harry returned to his former train of thought. Though the parasite wouldn't be able to use his wand, there were still some ways to threaten the Cruisers if they flew low enough. In fact, the enemy would probably be prepared to do just that, since the Cruisers were the Rangers' only means to reach Laketown.
He blinked, surprised to find that they were no longer underground. He'd been so lost in thought that he'd been oblivious to their takeoff. The other Cruisers were forming up around the Notus. Then they faded from sight, though Harry could still see their representations on the console in front of him.
"Portkey mode in three seconds," Rachel reported. "Two…one…transport!"
The outside world spun around them, and the next thing Harry saw was a column of smoke rising from the northern island. Lots of tiny boats were crossing the narrow gap of lake separating the island from the southern island. Harry also saw lots of broomsticks, and even large carpets in the air, loaded with frightened wizards. Unable to Apparate, the wizards were fleeing any way they could.
"I can use the Cruiser's own detectors now that we're close enough," Gaal said. "Complete teleportation block on each island confirmed. The other Cruisers are reporting the same thing."
"And Captain, Clara recommends that your team should be deployed first to form a buffer-zone between the fleeing townsfolk and the aggressors at the marina, and to be the bridgehead for further landings."
"I expect Clara will have difficulty communicating with the troops on the ground," Faust said. He walked over to a mirror and quickly tapped a few buttons on the console. Tarana Oliseh's face stared back at them seconds later.
"Captain Faust?"
"Put me through to da Silva."
"At once, sir," Oliseh nodded, and the image soon shifted to a dark-skinned likeness of Petunia Dursley.
"Sir," Clara da Silva said gravely.
"It just occurred to me that our communication will likely be a problem," Faust said.
"The same thing occurred to me, sir," she answered nervously. "I have already used the Orbital Eyes to capture images from the surface of both islands, but there are no signs of anything resembling the known designs of anti-magic devices. They must be under some sort of camouflage. Or perhaps they have been moved into the vacated buildings. A solution would be to have a small team disembark in the village and conduct the search. However, there is considerable danger to that plan due to the presence of Dark Trolls. A slower but safer solution would be to drop everyone off first. Then we could use the Typhoon and the Hurricane to clear a path through the enemy ranks and allow for a larger force to enter the village."
"Will the Cruisers still be able to communicate with each other?" Faust asked.
"Yes, but the quality will be poor. Our detectors suggest that the anti-magic influence isn't diminishing farther away from the surface. However, the Cruisers' communications devices are strong enough to pierce the interference." Clara paused and briefly looked away from the screen before she continued. "Lieutenant Riyadi wants to know if he ought to join you."
Faust smiled and shook his head. "Once the generators are out of commission, you'll still need someone to validate your recommendations and turn them into orders. I'll send up a blue smoke plume once we've consolidated our position on the ground. Then the Typhoon and the Hurricane can make their runs."
"Yes, sir."
"Notus out," Faust said, and ended the transmission. Then he pressed another button on the console. "Did you hear the new game plan, Vassily?"
"We did," Lieutenant Poliakoff's voice came back through a speaker.
"Good, I was afraid I hadn't correctly linked the transmission to the speakers down there. I never quite got the hang of all these odd gadgets. I'm coming down," Faust said, and beckoned for Harry to follow him again.
Harry followed, but when he stepped onto the surface it didn't lower itself to the deck below.
"I have some last minute tips for you," Faust said. "Find the dark general as soon as you can. If he's out of the fight, the trolls will lose their focus and they'll be easier to deal with. Best case scenario, you'll be the trolls' new leader and we can turn them against the flesh golems. We're outnumbered, and the shorter the battle, the better it is for us.
"And when you're fighting the general, try not to think for too long about what you're going to do next. According to Ironheart's source, the parasite couldn't gain access to Wolfe's Mind Reading ability or his memory, but that information is about a week old so it may not be accurate any longer. Don't take any unnecessary chances. You've sparred against Wolfe, so you know how his gift can help him anticipate your actions."
Harry nodded. It was like being the Seeker of the weaker Quidditch team. If the game lasted too long, the other team would build up an insurmountable lead. "I understand."
Faust nodded solemnly, and Harry's stomach lurched as the levitation surface dropped to the lower deck in the blink of an eye. He blinked into the red light that lit up the deck. It was the signal for the crew to get ready to disembark in a hurry, and Harry saw his colleagues doing some last-minute equipment checks.
Harry quickly examined his own equipment. He tied the pouch contained four pre-charmed Curse Capsules to his belt. One was a Dementor repellent filled with positive energy. It wouldn't destroy the Dementor but it would keep the area clear for a few minutes. The other three contained explosive magic that could be used against anything solid.
Then he went over his crossbow and made sure all the mechanisms were working properly. The numbers behind a little window on the extra-dimensional casing clipped onto the underside of the crossbow indicated it contained a full load of fifty bolts. It would tick down to zero as Harry spent his arrows. Unfortunately most of them contained a stunning charge, which would be useless against their enemies. The trolls were simply too strong to be affected, and the flesh golems consisted of dead-body parts, making them impervious to stunners also. There were only ten bolts tipped with Erumpment fluid and Harry knew he couldn't afford to miss too many shots.
Harry went over his other equipment, and when he was satisfied in his knowledge that everything was in order, he joined Faust near the ramp. The red light overhead began to blink, telling them that the ramp was about to be lowered. Faust donned the helm, somewhat resembling an ancient Corinthian design. The largest gem, a sapphire located on the metal strip covering part of the nose, briefly lit up.
The captain spoke. "All right people, you know what you have to do. Protect the townsfolk for the time being, until we can find and destroy the anti-magic field generators so we can use our wands and communicate with the Cruisers again."
The murmured acknowledgements were drowned out by the hum of the ramp going down and were replaced by horrified gasps as they were presented with the outside situation. Dozens of bodies littered the ground, and Harry saw a witch who'd desperately been trying to keep ahead of a troll being cut down. Blood sprayed from her back as her pursuer's weapon connected. She collapsed, her spine having been severed, and she lost her grip on a bundle she'd been cradling. It slid out of her reach as she fell on her side. She feebly reached out to it, though it was painfully clear that she would never reach it. Then the troll dealt the finishing blow, not savagely as one might expect, but with calm precision. It focussed its attention on the bundle next, and raised its heavily reinforced boot, intending to crush the bundle.
Harry saw a tiny arm stick out of the bundle…a baby's arm! He reacted almost without conscious thought. What little conscious thought he'd been entertaining had been awash in his white-hot fury and Harry felt his power boil within himself, seeking release. He drew the Phoenix Clan katana with inhuman speed and had it level and aiming at the troll in the blink of an eye. The runes on the blade had already been glowing an angry orange hue when the sword was being drawn, and now the whole blade was alight, resembling a rigid flame. A narrow gout of fire roared out at the troll, slamming against the troll's chest-plate, upsetting its precarious one-legged balance and sending it flying backwards. Without waiting for Faust's signal, Harry ran down the ramp and headed straight towards the troll.
The sheer force of the magical flame's impact onto its armour had thrown the troll back ten feet. Upon its landing it had slid back a further twenty feet in the gravel-strewn soil, drawing a furrow that led to where it was roaring in pain and rage, struggling to pull off its chest-plate which was glowing like something in the process of being forged. Harry saw that it wasn't entirely solid anymore. The metal gave way like jelly when the troll's fingers tried to grab it. Undeterred by the incredibly foul stench of burning troll skin filling his nostrils, Harry continued to advance on his foe. All he could think of was to make the troll pay.
Sprinting towards the troll, Harry reached out and channelled his magic through his splayed fingers. With a clutching gesture he summoned the troll's helm, ripping it off its ugly head. Moments later he was beside the startled troll with his sword held in an inverted grasp. There had been no blood when the troll's head was separated from its shoulders. The blade had cauterised the wound.
Then the battle really erupted all around Harry. Led by Faust, the other Rangers surged past his position in a semicircle, quickly dispatching a handful of flesh golems that must have been part of the trolls' advance guard. A large shadow flitted over the battlefield. It looked nothing like a Cruiser's, so believing it could be a threat, Harry briefly diverted his attention from the events unfolding around him. It was Matt, standing on the back of a huge mechanical griffin, steering it with a pair of reigns.
The griffin landed some one hundred and fifty feet in front of Harry, and Matt slid onto its back. The griffin seemed to transform upon touching the ground, its transformation partially accommodated by its design, and partially accomplished by transfiguration. The familiar form of Anzu emerged, and the giant suit of armour drew its massive sword and began to clear a path through the incoming surge of flesh golems, each one looking more grotesque that the other, many with four arms and wicked looking weapons built into their bodies.
More Rangers now sprinted past Harry, moving to join the ones that had already landed. They had to be from the Zephyrus. He caught glances of several pale-looking Intel Analysts who had intellectually been aware of the possibility that this day would come and had trained for it, but hadn't really been expecting it. Heidi and Ginny ran side by side, their crossbows at the ready but pointed at the ground. They too looked frightened in the face of these overwhelming odds, no doubt aware that only ten or so of their arrows would be effective against the type of enemy they were facing. With no more than sixty Rangers fighting on the ground, each having ten useful arrows, the margin of error wasn't too big.
Harry felt marginally better when he saw Chin and Gaitan, two Fifth Class Combat Rangers, right on Ginny and Heidi's heels and headed in the same direction. They had their fair share of experience and would look after Ginny and Heidi, who weren't really in their element here.
His eyes scanned the hordes of approaching golem foot soldiers, trying to see if the dark general was among them. All he saw was a mass of ill-proportioned creatures, steadily trudging towards the Rangers' positions. Then their ranks suddenly opened up allowing about seven creations resembling humanoid upper bodies on ostrich legs to dart through the formation. They occasionally leapt from side to side as they ran, proving to be very hard targets. Several precious arrows tipped with Erumpment fluid were fired at them, all falling wide of the mark.
"Just standing around, Potter?" a voice screamed over the crackle of Khan's Elemental War Fork as it spit bolts of lighting that cut down three of the monsters, leaving harmlessly twitching and blackened carcasses. Coming in low over the battlefield, the Typhoon raced towards them and opened up with two large cannons that resembled Muggle machine-guns with spinning barrels. Tiny explosions followed as the ammunition hit the ground, hurling clouds of smoke and chunks of debris in the air all around the 'ostrich-men.' When the dust cleared, only bits and pieces of them were left.
"You have to love air support," the same voice said, now much closer.
Harry turned around. Carlos Montalban, Nassir al-Hasan and Rashid Farouk skidded to a halt in front of him, sending some pebbles clattering against Harry's armour.
"I have my own mission objective," Harry said, answering Montalban's earlier question. "Problem is, there's no sign of him."
"You won't be able to see anything from here. This is the lowest lying ground. The islands are small, so you might be able to spot him through your V.E.G.'s if you find one of the higher spots. Odds are the general will be directing his troops from such a location too," Montalban said.
"Or we can fly," Farouk proposed.
"Got a broomstick handy?"
Farouk unclasped a belt that had kept a long tube strapped to his back. "No, but I have a carpet. I can help you look for him."
Harry quickly ran the scenario through his head. Taking to the air would certainly help a lot, but carpets were less manoeuvrable than broomsticks and provided a larger target profile for their enemies on the ground. The village on the island was burning, which meant that the enemy had means of setting things alight—possibly flaming arrow. If they were hit by one of those while they were far away from the frontline, they'd go down amidst a sea of enemies. "It'll be dangerous. If we get hit—"
"We won't win this if we don't take any risks," al-Hassan said. He too carried a flying carpet, and unrolled it in the air with a mighty heave.
"Montalban and I will try to dissuade the enemy from taking shots at us," Farouk said.
"All right, let's go." Harry jumped onto the carpet after al-Hassan had settled in near the front, where the carpet was steered. They immediately took off, and the other two Rangers followed them, flying at a slightly lower altitude. He dug into a pouch strapped to his thigh and extracted his Vision Enhancement Goggles and quickly pulled them over his eyes. He refrained from setting magnification, since a magnified view would rob him of his panoramic view. Wolfe's shape would be easy enough to spot amidst the trolls and monstrous golems.
Bobbing and weaving as much as possible to prevent them from becoming too tempting a target, al-Hassan cruised over the marching golems, which paid them no attention. All the while, Harry frantically scanned the higher ground for signs of anyone directing the troops. He even tried to pick out Wolfe's form amidst the marching golems, but to no avail. At one point, they passed a cluster of trolls wielding oversized crossbows, but an explosion behind them a few seconds later told Harry that Montalban had lobbed an explosive capsule in their midst.
Harry spared a moment to see how the battle was going. The Rangers were pinned down where they had started. Captain Faust obviously was too hard pressed to attempt a drive into the ruined buildings of the village to destroy the anti-magic field generators. But otherwise they seemed to be doing all right, and he saw lots of unmoving golems on the ground. Harry estimated that about two hundred or so had been destroyed, and he could see the last few golems at the end of the formation, and soon those too were destroyed when the Hurricane fell upon them in an opportunistic strafing run. Gudrun was giving them hell.
Seconds later, the grim sense of satisfaction he'd felt from the Cruiser's actions turned to horror when a luminous red projectile slammed into the side of the Hurricane, tearing through the shielding-charm as if it were a soap bubble. It tumbled end over end three times before it landed on its back with a deafening smack, bleeding off its momentum as it skidded over the grassy ground, flattening a squad of golems that had been in its path.
Harry whipped his head around, tracing the path of the projectile until his gaze rested on a large ship sitting on a low cloud, maybe at some fifteen hundred feet. The ship's design was different from the Cruisers. It looked like an old Muggle sailing ship, with some important differences that characterised its magical origins. It had no visible masts, its hull was a glossy black, and along the entirety of the hull long legs stuck out, giving it a vague resemblance to a centipede. The legs actually moved. They weren't just swaying in the wind. Some merely twitched, but others curled up and unfurled themselves like fingers on the impatient hand of an ancient and decidedly malevolent sky-god. Also, it was huge, much longer than any Muggle sailing ship. It had to be over a thousand feet long, though it was hard to tell exactly how big it was from this vantage point.
"Where did that thing come from? How come the Cruisers didn't detect it?"
"Something is coming out of the ship." Al-Hassan pointed to two cage-like contraptions, each carried by two strange-looking dragons. They resembled Ukrainian Ironbellies, but something was very wrong with them. The creatures were descending to the surface rapidly.
"They are not living dragons," Montalban yelled over from the other carpet.
Harry saw he was right. They had been turned into flesh golems too. About six months ago there had been some reports about dragon poaching and the mysterious disappearance of ten dragons in the Ukraine. Ten dragons in one go had been a serious blow to dragon conservation efforts, and the news had made front-pages all over the world. "Nassir, get me closer. Whatever those dragons are flying down there doesn't deserve a soft landing."
They shot off in the dragons' direction. The first pair was too close to the ground, and Harry knew they could no longer do any significant damage there. But the other pair of dragons was still fairly high in the air and a drop would likely do lots of damage. Harry drew an explosive capsule out of his pouch and screamed over for Montalban to do the same. He signalled that he'd take out the first dragon, leaving it up to Farouk and Montalban to deal with the second. Taking no chances, they approached the dragons diagonally from behind. It had to be timed perfectly. Harry signalled for Farouk to swoop down towards the dragon at the back. It had to be hit first, since it could potentially harm Harry and al-Hassan.
"Go," he said, a second after the other two had departed, hoping that Montalban wouldn't miss. He gave the halves of the capsule a half-twist to activate it and hurled it where the dragon's right wing joined its rump. Al-Hassan veered away, and just in time too. There was an explosion behind Harry that threw him onto his hands and knees—the effects of Montalban's grenade. Then his own capsule exploded, and a quick glance over the edge of the carpet showed the dragon plummeting to the ground, ineffectually flapping one wing. If al-Hassan had lingered a bit longer, they'd have been caught between the shock waves of both explosions.
The dragons and their cargo continued to fall. The other dragon still had both wings, though the right one had a gaping hole. Between the resulting loss of lift, the added weight of the other dragon and the original weight it had been carrying, it didn't stand a chance. That container ended up hitting the ground at the same moment as the other one landed safely. The two dragons, each weighing about six tonnes, landed on top of their cargo, crushing it and trapping whatever had been inside. The other one fell open, exposing fifty or so flesh golems. They were reserve troops.
Montalban shouted and pointed upwards. Three more pairs of dragons, each carrying a container between them, were rapidly descending.
"Go up!" Harry shouted. "We'll go for another pass." Yet he knew that three at once was impossible. They had more time in this instance, but he knew that despite their best efforts, at least one would make it down safely.
They gained altitude rapidly, and Montalban pointed to the highest pair of dragons on the left of the formation. Then he pointed to the wreck below. Harry understood. It was to be the same drill. Farouk and Montalban first, and al-Hassan and himself a second later. At least, assuming that they wouldn't be torn to shreds before they got a chance to do so. Harry saw the dragons that had landed safely winging their way towards them and gaining fast.
"Evasive climb to the left, fast!" Harry shouted to al-Hassan, who complied at once, and Harry realised he had made a terrible mistake. The other two Rangers were still unaware of their danger, and al-Hassan's climb was carrying them out of earshot. He screamed a warning at Montalban, who gave him a puzzled look and took precious seconds to look down.
When the finally saw the dragon coming, greenish fire had already erupted from the creature's mouth. Moments later it washed across the underside of the carpet, the sheer amount of fiery plasma causing the carpet to buck and throw off its occupants.
Harry could only watch on in horror as they plummeted towards their doom. Diving after them was useless, because the carpet could hold three at most, and because he still had his own foe to deal with. Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to look away from his falling friends and turned his attention to the dragons chasing him. The one that had killed Montalban and Farouk had turned to chase him too, but was too far away to be a direct threat. The one closest to them, however, was threatening enough.
"Swerve left," he shouted, when he saw green fire fill the creature's mouth. His pilot reacted promptly and the gout of fire fell wide of the mark, heating up the air and creating some turbulence. It was only a temporary reprieve, and Harry knew he had to do something quickly. His instinct told him that his sword might not hold the answer this time. Dragon hide was very resistant to fire and heat, so a flame attack would do very little damage.
An idea sneaked into his brain. It would be insane, but if he could throw an explosive capsule into the creature's mouth, guiding it with a wand-less Banishing Charm…it was worth a try. He took his second capsule from his pouch and waited for the right moment. He saw the smoke beginning to seep through the dragon's jagged teeth and nostrils. It would happen any minute now…
When the dragon reared back its head, Harry twisted the two halves of the capsule. When it lowered its jaw, he threw it at the monster, concentrating on letting it float straight into the dragon's mouth. A feeling of grim triumph briefly filled him when the capsule disappeared into the flames of the creature's mouth. The creature's head exploded and it dropped from the sky.
Harry noticed that the other dragon was nowhere to be seen. Frantically, he searched the sky. Then he remembered that the dragon liked to come up from below, exploiting a blind spot. He leaned over the edge of the carpet so he could look straight down and saw that it was too late. Its jaws were already open, revealing the green fire lighting up the oral cavity.
"Hard—" he'd begun to yell, when something black slammed into the dragon from above. Its rider's golden locks whipping behind him furiously. Matt and Anzu, Harry realised with relief.
The dragon's aim had been thrown off by the collision and the pillar of fire missed al-Hassan's carpet completely. When Anzu pulled back, the dragon fell to the Earth. Harry saw its wings were missing.
Matt looked up at them, but the cocky smile Harry had expected to see wasn't there. Matt's eyes were red and puffy, and tears were leaking out of them. He just gave Harry a grim nod before Anzu swerved away.
Harry's stomach churned unpleasantly. Of course, Gudrun had been on the Hurricane. He looked down at the smoking wreck, hoping that she had somehow survived it. Harry had wanted to call out to Matt and tell him to wait, thinking that he could help them prevent the other landings. However, when he looked for the dragons he saw that it was much too late. They were only a few dozen feet away from the ground now. One hundred and fifty more troops would march on the Rangers' position.
He gazed over to the site. They were still okay, but with only the Typhoon providing support they were under more strain, not to mention the fact that they would begin to run out of effective ammunition soon. Now there was no chance at all that they'd ever reach the anti-magic generators in time.
Harry briefly contemplated going down and looking for them himself, but as he thought about the dangers more and more, he began to wonder whether they were indeed somewhere down there. What if they were in the large ship and their influence was somehow projected to the surface. Clara had said that the quality of the connection between the Cruisers would be poor even at higher altitudes. What if that meant that the interference in fact came from above?
"Nassir, I think I need to be on that ship. That's where the anti-magic generators are."
"Are you sure?"
"I have a hunch."
"All right, then we'll—" Al-Hassan stopped in mid sentence, making Harry wonder if anything was wrong. His question was answered when he saw some the ship's 'legs' grow and extend fifteen hundred feet down to the island. Shadows were gliding down along the legs like firemen.
"Dementors!" Harry groaned. "Damn, we have to get on that ship."
"With the Dementors?" al-Hassan asked uncertainly.
"I'm willing to take that risk. If you don't, that's fine. Just give me your explosives."
"We're both going!" al-Hassan said resolutely, and directed the carpet into a steep climb, away from the ship.
Harry was about to ask what he was doing when he realised that al-Hassan was going to use cloud cover. If this ship had detectors like the Cruisers did, the manoeuvre wouldn't do them any good. But at least it would conceal them from anyone on deck.
They were in luck when they spotted a hatch near the stern of the ship, and al-Hassan quickly steered them through while Harry held his sword at the ready to deal with any welcoming committee. Harry hoped that the ship's bridge was close, though since there was no rudder for the helm to be connected to, this wouldn't necessarily be the case.
Harry kept a watchful eye out while al-Hassan rolled up his carpet. Then they carefully proceeded deeper into the ship, communicating with hand-signals only. After less than a minute, they heard someone coming. The run-in was solved quickly and silently with a blowgun al-Hassan carried. The toxin inside knocked the witch out before she even felt the sting of the dart.
"We need to tie her up with something."
"Her shoelaces," Harry suggested, and when the witch was safely bound, al-Hassan drew two vials from his pouch.
He smirked when he noticed Harry's inquisitive look. "The dart's counter agent and Veritaserum!"
"Why d'you carry Veritaserum around?" Harry asked.
"Force of habit, I suppose. I used to be an Intel Field Operative before I transferred to the Martial Division."
"Let's hope she speaks English," Harry said.
He suspected that English would likely be the common language on the ship, but there was no way to be certain. He thought the witch looked Caribbean, and he was proven right when they interrogated her. She was from Cuba; she spoke with a heavy Hispanic accent. Harry made a silent prayer of thanks to Lady Luck when the witch revealed the location of the generators. Apparently there were four of them. It was also fortunate that the witch revealed herself to be someone who had voluntarily joined Anastasiou's organisation. If she'd been an unwilling slave, it would have complicated matters tremendously. The revelation also reassured Harry that she wasn't immune to Veritaserum, like the woman in Japan.
After knocking out the witch and hiding her in the first dark corner they came upon, Harry and al-Hassan continued onwards, following the directions she had given them. They were forced to dispatch another wizard who stumbled upon them, and having learnt from the mistakes made in Japan, Harry decided to interrogate the wizard too to see if the stories added up.
Harry kept hoping that the wizards weren't on too tight a schedule. If they were, they'd be missed and others would come looking for them. Of course, given the situation on the ground, Harry knew that it was probably idle hope.
Then, all of the sudden, the ship shuddered and lurched, slamming Harry and al-Hassan into the wall.
*
They'd finished loading the special weapon into the hold of the Eurus, though it had taken much longer than they'd planned. Ron knew, as all those present did, that ten minutes were an eternity in the heat of battle. He hoped that the others were all right, and that there weren't any Dementors.
"Move it, Akbar," Dario Valiente said.
"We have to be careful with this thing," Akbar Wirawan replied.
"Be quiet, both of you," Bo Hwang snapped, giving his Indonesian and Bolivian counterparts reproving looks.
"Are you artificers always this cranky?" Ron asked
"You're not helping, Weasley," Hwang said, not looking at him. "Slide it a little to the left and hold it steady…that's right. Weasley, can you pull the lever next to you?"
There was only one lever there, something Ron hadn't seen at the same spot in the other Cruisers. He guessed it was the mechanism of the large clamps that hung from the ceiling. He pulled the lever, and the clamps came down, grabbing onto the drum and hoisting it off the hovering surface it had been lying on.
"Okay, now press the green button in the top left corner."
Ron pressed it, and several joints along the arms of the clamps locked up. "Is it secure now?"
"It'll have some give for any inertia that isn't absorbed by our compensators. Other than that, we're good to go."
"Are you sure that other weapon you've installed works properly?" Ron was a bit worried, because he'd seen them still working on the gattling cannons less half an hour ago.
"The charms are intact," Dario said rolling his eyes. "There's no way to verify it, though. We can hardly test them in here, can we?"
"I suppose it is a good idea if we test it outside before we launch into Portkey mode," Akbar said.
Ron heard the clattering of boots on the stone floor. Quist and Commander Ironheart were running over to the Cruiser.
"Quickly, start her up. We have to go!" Ironheart shouted.
Hwang and Akbar quickly ran to the levitation surface, which hoisted them up to the upper deck in the blink of an eye. Before Commander Ironheart and Quist clambered onto the ramp, the Cruiser had already hummed to life. The ramp began to close the moment Ironheart and Quist stepped into the Cruiser and Ron saw that the Cruiser was beginning to take off. Quist drew his wand and quickly summoned the cowboy hat that had blown off his head during his sprint. It zipped through an aperture just before the ramp closed completely.
Quist heaved a sigh of relief as he jammed the hat onto his head. Then they all crowded onto the levitation surface and found themselves on the upper deck a heartbeat later. Ron caught a glimpse of the rocky ceiling continuing to open up as they rose through it. Hwang hadn't even waited for the ceiling to open up completely.
"Very good," Ironheart praised. "Prepare for Portkey mode."
"Already done," Akbar said. Then he turned to Dario Valiente, who had plopped down into a seat behind Ron and Commander Ironheart. It had recently been installed in this Cruiser. The Hurricane and Typhoon already had the fourth seat, which was where the weapons were ideally operated. "Well?"
"Any minute now…yes, it's activated. Lowering the cannons..."
Dario loosed a short salvo, and a cloud of glowing pellets shot towards the sea, exploding on impact and sending pillars of water spattering up.
"I hope there aren't any merfolk down there," Ron said.
"There weren't. I'd have seen them in my sights. Our detectors extend sixty feet under the surface and the damage range of the ammunition I used was no deeper than twenty feet."
"Have you got more powerful ammunition?" Ironheart asked.
"No sir, this is the strongest we've got. Only the Typhoon and Hurricane have magic missile launchers."
"Of course, I forgot." Ironheart sighed. "I wish I'd listened to Nehanda. She suggested a full armament of the normal Cruisers last year. I reckon she saw this mess coming before I did."
"Why the extra haste for takeoff, sir?" Ron asked.
"This is why," Quist said. He'd take the seat at the main detection and communications console. He leaned back, allowing Ron to see the mirror screen. "There's also an anti-magic field in place. Our people can't use their wands."
The images were from the Orbital Eyes. A big flying ship dominated the largest the image. A second screen showed the fighting on the ground. There were many monstrous things making their way over to the Rangers, and small groups of Dark Trolls moved among their formations.
"Transporting!" Hwang said. The image on the screen in front of Ron flickered a little, before returning to normal.
"Never mind the mirror," Quist said. "Look, it's right there!"
Meanwhile, chatter from the various Cruisers reached their sensors. Ron thought he recognised Gaal's voice in "…too many golems…" The panicky voice of Cirilo Roverano rang over the static filled speakers next. "…repeat, the Hurricane is down!"
"That's thing's got some serious teeth! It took down the Hurricane with one shot," Ron said, amazed.
"Our Cruisers can't repel firepower of that magnitude," Akbar said.
"Its hull is organic, or covered in some organic material," Hwang frowned. "At least, that's what the detectors are telling me. They could be malfunctioning because of the interference."
"They aren't," Ironheart said. "I've seen that before on Tebos. They have a gland that secretes a mucous which perfectly bends light around its body. Usually the mucous can't be seen when the Tebo isn't using it, because of its fur. But when the fur is pulled off, you can see it."
"Where'd you learn that?" Ron asked.
"School. I imagine the Magical Beast Defense League wouldn't allow such treatment of Tebos in this day and age, but in my day such traumatic experiments on animals was quite common." The commander's gaze had never left the scene of the battle as he casually talked about his schooldays. His eyes narrowed. "The ship is manoeuvring. It may be trying to get its weapons to bear on us."
"Damn, the ship's sending down Dementors!" Quist reported.
"Incoming!" Akbar warned. A large, red ball was headed their way.
Dario roared, and the comparatively small pellets that made up their own ammunition shot out to meet the incoming projectile. It was effective. The large red ball exploded, buffeting the Eurus in a mighty shock wave, but doing little else.
"What the hell is that?" Quist asked, pointing at a noxious black cloud that was being formed by about half of the ship's legs spitting out black fumes. "Poisoned cloud?"
Ron shook his head. The Dark Trolls probably were the enemy's best troops, and unlike the golems, they too needed to breathe. "No. I don't think the enemy would sacrifice his trolls like that. The cloud probably serves to block out the sun and make things more pleasant for the Dementors."
Ironheart nodded. "I agree."
"Should we get ready to deploy our Patronus Bomb?"
"Not yet," Ron and Ironheart said in unison.
"I'd like to wait until we're certain they're all on the ground so we can catch them all in the blast," Ironheart said.
"Once the black cloud spreads enough we won't be able to see what's going on down there," Quist said. "We won't know how close the lead Dementors are to our people."
Ron glanced at the enemy ship. Some Dementors were still sliding down its legs, though their numbers seemed to be lessening. However, the cloud was now blocking their view of the ground. "Quist, get me the Zephyrus."
"Uh…" Quist glanced around his console and hesitantly pressed a few keys. "Got 'em."
Clara's face appeared on the flickering mirror screen. She was coughing. The Zephyrus' bridge seemed to be filled with smoke. "It's good to see you people. You got here just in time. Look out for that ship."
"Are you—" Ron stopped, having to brace himself against the console to stay on his feet. Dario had intercepted another attack from the ship. "Yeah, we'll watch out. Are you hit?"
"We only took a graze, not a direct hit like the Hurricane. But we're still messed up. It seems to be leaving us alone now. I bet it's because the ship is now concentrating on you."
"Climb and roll to starboard!" Dario ordered. The ship shook with under the shock of another close by explosion.
"Close calls these shock waves may be, but they're still nibbling away at our shields," Akbar warned. "We can't take much more of this."
Ron took it to heart and decided to get to the point. "Clara, we need you to be our eyes and call for the drop when you feel the Dementors are in the optimal strike range."
"If we have to keep dodging, you won't be able to drop anything," Hwang said.
"Clara, can you get someone to keep them busy for us?" Ron asked.
"One second," Clara's face vanished for a second or two. When she returned, her image only occupied half the screen, while Captain Yee's appeared on the other half.
"If I may," Ironheart stepped in front of Ron. "Li-Mei, when we give you the signal, I want you to make a run against that ship."
Ron was beginning to feel sick to his stomach. Though Captain Yee didn't complain, he could see that she wasn't thrilled about attacking that ship head on. Another shock to the Eurus reminded Ron why. But what worried him most was that Hermione was on the Typhoon.
"I'm not seeing any new Dementors coming through the clouds," Clara said.
Ron looked out if the main viewport, but saw nothing. They were facing away from the ship. He glanced at the console instead, hoping to see what was happening with the help of the images from the Orbital Eyes. Clara was right. The last of the Dementors had gone down.
"Right, it looks as though we can—" Ironheart couldn't finish his sentence. Another shock, much more violent than the previous ones, rocked the ship. Ron fell flat on his behind, and only Quist's reflexes saved Ironheart from a similar fate. They heard an ominous metallic bang on the lower deck.
"You let that one get too close!" Akbar yelled.
"Do you think you can do better?" Dario replied heatedly.
"Ranger Valiente, concentrate. You're all that stands between us and a direct hit!" Ironheart bellowed. "Hwang, what was that sound?"
"That last shock could have broken the clamps holding the Positive Energy Pulse Emitter…Patronus Bomb," Hwang clarified, seeing the clueless look Ron gave him. "Someone had better go down to see if it's still intact. The trigger is very fragile."
"I'd say it's still intact, since we didn't blow up," Quist remarked.
"Not fragile as is blowing up easily. We're not stupid. It just breaks easily because the trigger mechanism is a strip of foil that detects the proximity of negative energy. It's pretty flimsy."
"Then it isn't a very good design, is it?" Ron frowned.
"Well, given the fact that we've conceived the theory only two weeks ago, I think it's quite impressive that we have a working weapon. We didn't have any time to improve upon it," Akbar said acidly. "I'll need help moving the bomb. Everyone who isn't needed should come down with me."
Ironheart began to issue orders. "Quist, I'll take over from you. Weasley, go with him. Activate the comm downstairs to report how things are going. Hwang, take us away from the island. We need a breather from this pounding. Ranger da Silva, Li-Mei, stay in contact and keep your eyes peeled for further attacks. You might be targets again once we move out of the area."
"We'll need to devise an alternative for dropping the bomb," Hwang reported. "The ventral access hatch through which the bomb's supposed to be dropped is malfunctioning."
Ron, Akbar and Quist hurried to the levitation surface. They found the Patronus Bomb rolling around aimlessly. The clamps, as well as the arms they'd been attached to, were broken. Ron pressed a button to allow for communication with the upper deck. Akbar cursed in his own language.
"Get a grip, man," Quist admonished, running towards the bomb to steady it and keep it from getting damaged any further. "Tell us what to do."
Akbar settled down and hurried over to help Quist. "Roll it over. I need to open this panel, so make sure it is faced upwards…"
"Were working on it," Ron spoke, looking on as Akbar pried open a panel on the bomb. The artificer's horrified expression worsened Ron's anxiety. "What's wrong?"
"The negative energy detector has torn. I don't have a replacement!"
Ron's knees were just about ready to give out when he heard that news. "Uh…sir—"
"I heard it," Ironheart's voice came warily. "It's over. We have to go down and pick up as many people as possible before the Dementors get—"
The rest of Ironheart's sentence was drowned out by Akbar's panicked yelp, following Quist's slamming his fist into the Patronus Bomb's exposed innards.
"What did you do that for?" Akbar screamed. "We all would have blown up if you'd pulled the yellow wire."
Quist gave Akbar an odd look. "You mean to tell me that this thing can still work?"
"Well, yes. The negative energy detection foil would have contracted upon detecting enough negative energy. The contraction would tug at the yellow wire. But—"
"Commander Ironheart," Quist said. "Open the ramp and get us over the island. We still have a chance."
"Understood," Ironheart replied. His voice sounded subdued.
"What are you talking about?" Akbar protested. "Didn't you hear what I said? Without the proximity detonator—"
Ron swallowed hard. Quist couldn't mean…
"I'll just have to do it by hand!" Quist said. "Shut the hell up and help me get this thing to the edge."
"Wait!" Ironheart shouted, stepping off the levitation surface. "That's my duty."
Quist glared at Ironheart. "With all due respect, that's a bad idea. Commander Nomvete would slit her wrists if something were to happen to you, and then we'd be without leadership." Then he struck at the commander, nearly faster than the eye could follow. Ironheart slumped down to the deck. Then Quist turned to Ron. "When he wakes up, tell him I'm sorry."
Ron nodded mutely.
"We'll approach the drop-zone in thirty seconds," Hwang's voice came over the speakers.
"Pull the nose of the ship up at the end of the countdown," Ron said.
"Understood. And you'd best grab a hold of something, because I'll have to turn off the gravity charms."
Ron adjusted the volume of the sound so Hwang's countdown rang over the howling of the wind. First he tangled Commander Ironheart's arms in the netting that lined the walls. With about fifteen seconds to spare, he ran over to Quist and Akbar and helped them pull the bomb on the edge of the ramp. With only a few seconds to spare, Quist straddled the weapon, clamping it between his legs and grabbed a protrusion in the open panel.
Unsure whether Akbar had heard about Hwang's climb and the absence of magical gravity, Ron pulled him along and grabbed onto some netting. Akbar got the idea and followed his example.
The Cruiser began a steep climb, and Quist slid along the final inches of the ramp. The climb grew even steeper.
"Aaaaahoooo! Waaaahoooo!" Quist yelled, as the bomb tipped over the edge.
Ron caught his last glimpse of Quist, riding the bomb in its falling arc waving his hat over his head, celebrating in ecstatic rodeo style, before he disappeared into the black cloud. A handful of seconds later, the clouds were blown away, an intense silvery light filling the sky. The Eurus shuddered as it was hit by the sudden gust of wind.
The long enemy ship, which was far less aerodynamic than the Cruisers, nearly capsized as it caught the gust all along its length.
*
"Are you okay?" Harry asked, pulling al-Hassan to his feet.
"Yes. What was that?"
"I'm not sure."
"Come on, let's—" al-Hassan began, but fell silent for some reason. At the far end of the corridor, a black-clad figure blocked the way, holding a large bastard sword that was glowing red with the light of its runes. His breathing echoed through the corridor.
"There must be an alternative route on the lower deck," al-Hassan whispered. "We double back and—"
"If we both run, he'll pursue." Harry unstrapped the pouch containing his last explosive capsule. "I'll hold him off."
"But—"
"If I'm meant to win, I'll get away. It's no use waiting around for me. Go!" Harry said urgently.
"Good luck," al-Hassan said solemnly. Then he sprinted away.
Harry removed his crossbow and made like he was throwing it on the ground. But at the last instant he snapped it up, took aim, and fired as fast as the crossbow's rate of fire would allow. He unloaded fifty arrows in thirty seconds, but the dark general proved to be as able as Harry suspected he'd be, dodging the majority of the arrows with superhuman speed and deflecting a few with his sword.
Harry cast the crossbow aside and drew the Phoenix Clan katana. It was glowing again, though it was a pure and bright golden glow instead of the earlier angry orange glow. Harry suspected this was because he felt calm and collected. There was no fear, just resignation.
He mentally triggered his code word, and all the memories of the fighting techniques he'd learned in the immersion pool flooded to the forefront of his mind. Concentration, that was the way. Harry took deep, even breaths, allowing the magic to flow through him and take over his awareness.
His opponent had more reach. His sword was longer, as were his limbs. However, that wasn't necessarily an advantage in that corridor. Overhead swipes were impossible for the general's straight blade, whereas Harry's curved blade gave him more room to manoeuvre. Still, it would be difficult to execute grand, sweeping blows, even for Harry.
His opponent seemed to know this and kept his blade in close, with the hilt covering his navel. This inner ring of defense involved quick parries instead of powerful blocks. By angling the blade's tip and picking up attacks on the lower part of the blade, attacks could be shunted aside and a riposte to the opponent's chest or stomach became a very real possibility. Though those parts of him were covered by the Graphorn hide, which was tougher that dragon's hide, he suspected that the demonic blade his opponent was wielding might be able to overcome that obstacle.
Harry set his jaw and advanced on the dark general, who had just shed his cloak. He opened the attack with a quick jab to the general's chin, who slapped the katana aside. Back and forth it went, though it went much faster that Muggles were capable of. If Harry hadn't known any better, he would've sworn he was fighting an ancient vampire. The fluidity of the general's moves was simply astounding. The swords hummed as they sliced through the air and crackled as the energies they emitted collided when the blades did.
Despite the disadvantage Wolfe's size brought, it was clear to Harry that he couldn't win in the tight confines of the corridor. A new tactic was needed. Harry inverted the grip on his sword, his left hand riding the pommel. It was simple physics. The straight sword wasn't designed to be used like that, and even more importantly, there was no way for the general to block those quick underhanded swipes effectively in the limited space. All he could do was step back and give ground. Soon they reached the end of the corridor and stepped into a rectangular shaft with stairs lining the walls.
Harry reversed his grip on the katana again and brought it into the outer guard which would enable him to block powerful slashes.
Taking advantage of the room, the general aimed a slash at Harry that would have bisected him from the right shoulder to the left hip. It came so hard and so fast that it would have been impossible for Harry to stop it with a power block. Instead, Harry let the attack come though his outer and middle rings of defense, before slightly dodging and partially knocking the blade wide of his right shoulder at the last moment. Then Harry stepped forward and slammed his shoulder into the general's chin, knocking the mask askew and limiting his vision. On pure instinct, the general reacted with a well-placed slash that would have trimmed Harry's hair at roughly the level of his earlobes had he not ducked it in time. Harry continued his downward movement by dropping into a crouch. He whipped his left leg out and scythed it through the general's legs, bashing his ankles together and dropping him onto his back.
A quick follow-up attack by bringing his blade down on the general's throat would have ended things right there. But Harry couldn't go through with it. His feelings got in the way. Wolfe was under that mask. His friend to whom he owed his own life as well as Ginny's.
That brief hesitation was all the general needed, and he rolled backwards over his shoulder. Harry decided to put some distance between them. He gathered his magic into a leap that carried him over two dozen steps on the stairs. Knowing that the general would pursue, he continued to skip up the stairs until he could go no further. Only then did he spare a glance downwards and noticed that the general would catch up in a dozen rapid heartbeats. He kicked in the door, revealing three surprised wizards in what looked like the bridge.
Noticing his combat attire, they put two and two together. Harry charged and kicked the first one out through the windscreen before they got over their shock of seeing a Ranger on the doorstep. The other two managed to grab weapons of opportunity.
The first one snatched a long piece of shattered windscreen that had landed on his console. He charged first, intending to stab Harry in the stomach, which was quite a ludicrous attempt given the fact that it would never penetrate Harry's armour. Spinning with the assault, Harry threw the wizard headfirst through the open door, where he crashed into the arriving general, knocking him back and nearly over the railing of the stairs, buying Harry another precious handful of seconds.
The second one threw his stool at Harry, who caught it, spun around and flung it back at the wizard, nailing him in the side of the head. The stool cracked into several pieces and the wizard slumped forward over his console, shoving forward a lever. Harry could feel the whole ship lurch forward in a burst of acceleration. He shoved the wizard off the console quickly slashed his sword over it, trimming the lever down to nothing. Now they'd keep heading away from Laketown.
Harry sensed an approach from behind and dove over the console. There was a cracking sound followed by a small explosion and a shower of fragments. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the console had partially been cleaved, and small flames were spreading over its surface now. The ruined console began spitting sparks in all the colours of the rainbow, as if it was filled with fireworks. The high pitched wail of a siren filled the air along with the smoke from the fire. Harry's eyes pricked and his lungs protested as the smoke began to fill them.
The quickest way out was through the broken window and Harry leapt through it without a second thought, slowing down his fall with a controlled levitation charm at the last moment. He landed next to the broken body of the wizard he'd kicked through it, and he couldn't help but feel a tinge of remorse. But knowing that he had to remain on the move and keep his wits about him, Harry darted over the windswept deck and vaulted into an open hatch that led to the lower decks.
Harry landed in what appeared to be a corridor that ran along the whole length of the ship. He ran towards the bow of the ship and darted into the first side corridor he could find. The heavy footsteps echoing behind him told Harry that the dark general was in hot pursuit. Yet he wasn't taunting Harry and trying to draw him out, like Voldemort would have done. He seemed quite content with playing Harry's game for the time being, silently stalking him like a seasoned predator would.
Time was forgotten as Harry led the dark general through the maze-like superstructure of the ship. He blinked away the sweat that poured from his forehead into his eyes. He hadn't even known he'd been sweating. His breaths sounded like they could wake up an entire neighbourhood despite his attempts to keep them as silent as possible. But he knew that was an illusion caused by the surrounding silence.
That silence was suddenly disrupted by the clanking of something on one of the metal grates that covered up shafts which led to other areas deeper in the ship. He whipped around and saw the general's helmet rolling towards him. He immediately realised that he'd been tricked, but it was still too late. Pain blossomed in the left side of his jaw and he was lifted off his feet by the sheer force of the impact. He tasted blood in his mouth.
Harry barely managed to twist his fall into a roll and ended up on one knee. He blindly brought his sword into a diagonal overhead guard, just in time to intercept a devastating stroke that would have made a real mess. His muscles trembled as they tried to sustain the block, but Harry's blade and the general's angry red blade inched closer and closer to his face.
Four explosions in quick succession rocked the ship, making the general lose his balance and giving Harry the opportunity to shunt the attack aside and kick the general in the gut, making him tumble backward. Al-Hassan must have succeeded in his mission, and Harry drew his wand to verify his assumption. He waved it through the air as he ran, and it trailed its familiar golden sparks. Harry sheathed his sword in the scabbard on his back.
The general, now unmasked, was shaking and sweating profusely. His irises glowed purple. "You can't win!" he snarled. "Give it up, Wolfe!" the general roared. The glow faded from his eyes, and he flipped his sword over in a reverse grip. It looked as though he was going to impale himself, but at the last moment he thrust the sword halfway into the floor, putting all his weight behind it.
"W-Wolfe?" Harry stammered.
"Kill…me!" Harry saw the man's expression. It was no longer the general. It was Wolfe. He was breathing heavily, and blood had begun to seep out of his nose. "Hurry up, damn it!" Wolfe roared. He won't let me kill myself. You have to end it! I can't control him much longer. He's too strong."
Harry shook his head. There had to be another way. Wolfe was still in there. "But we've found a way to trap parasitic personalities. We can help you!"
"I'm using my last…reserves to…talk to you," Wolfe forced out the pieces of his sentence. "I'll be gone in a minute…and then he'll possess all my…m-memories and…my Mind Reading ability. I won't…be able to fight…him off anymore. Kill me!"
Harry couldn't reply. His throat was too constricted. He blinked away the tears blurring his vision.
Wolfe rapidly drew his wand. "Avada Kedavra!"
Harry had immediately seen that Wolfe's aim had been off. The green beam passed inches to the left of his head. Wolfe had been trying to startle him into reacting.
"Kill me!" Wolfe pleaded once more. "You've seen how many people died already today. It was only a sample of how terrible things will become. You have to stop this monster."
Harry shook his head.
"We are Rangers!" Wolfe's pleading tone had turned to one of anger. "We walk in dark places others dare not go. We swore to fight evil, wherever it dwells, wherever it breeds. We live protecting the good and we die protecting the good. Evil dwells inside me now. I intend to keep my oath, and I am holding you to yours, Ranger!"
Another violent explosion rocked the ship and flames erupted through the metal grates on the floor. Harry's ears popped with the pressure change, and he realised they had to be falling pretty quickly. The hull buckled and the floor cracked underneath their feet. A sharp metal shard that had made up the frame of the outer hull protruded through the inner hull.
Wolfe's gaze was fastened on its jagged tip while he undid the straps of his chest-plate with trembling fingers. Then he pulled something out of his shirt and kissed it. Harry recognised the golden pendant, the twin of the pendant he was wearing. Suddenly he felt it burning against his chest as Wolfe tensed in preparation to launch himself at the protruding shard.
"Noooo!" Harry screamed, running towards Wolfe. He couldn't let Wolfe die. The prophecy had to be averted. There had to be another way!
He tackled Wolfe with inches to spare. Then he largest explosion yet occurred, and a ball of flames came rushing through the corridor, bathing everything in a golden light.
***
Author's Note
I'm really sorry for the cliffie, people, but I had to cut the chapter off somewhere. This seemed as good a place as any. And for those of you who know your classical film comedy, yes, Quist's action was a reference to Dr Strangelove. :-)
Gogirl: The first to review again. Please don't take the review I left for 'Rage' badly. I was only trying to help.
Jona: Actually, Serafina's forgetfulness is only a character quirk to add colour to her character. And what does squeeness mean?
CatatonicReaction: That's okay. I know your name, so a signature wasn't really necessary.
Mn'M incorperated: I'm afraid you'll have to wait for the next chapter to see the prophecy unfold.
Lady Reaper of the Shadows: Ouch, broken collarbone, painful.
Yak-Cool: It would seem I now have you waiting for the next chapter?
Angel of the Flames: Why would I be mad? And yeah, I have lots of plans for side stories. Whether I'll have the time to execute them is another matter.
Jake:
Petals: I have no idea why the Queens decided to close GT. I didn't press my beta for details, nor would she have given them if I had. By the way, I did answer your question, though I answered another reviewer. Sorry about that. I assumed your eyes would skim that review as well. So I didn't avoid the answer. As long as Ginny is holding back, Harry can't access his full power.
bane: I'm don't do MSN, that's all. So it's nothing personal. The time takes to write a chapter is dependent on variables like the length of the chapter and my inspiration. Also, sometimes my betas suggest a re-write to improve bits of the chapter, so I can't really give you a good answer on that.
nycgal: That's okay. Your life comes first.
LadySiri: Thanks for the suggestions, but I have other plans.
Whitetiger: is it really too much bother to include capitals and punctuation because it makes it easier for me to read the review and thanks for the review
SaBoTaGe3p3: Am I spoiling the story? Why don't you wait for chapter 35 before making up your mind about that? :-) And Holly isn't a little girl. She's travelled through time in the Mirror Realm, and she's about 17 or 18 years old. She is rather innocent, yet wise enough to realise why Ginny might feel threatened.
Julephenia: Yeah, Anastasiou's plot is out in the open for most people, so the Rangers aren't outcasts any more.
Casual Reader: So you understand.
Bri: This is exactly what I tried to explain about Ginny's behaviour. Thanks.
OHGinnyfan: I might stories that centre around the OC's.