Author's note: Okay, my patience is spent! This chap is not beta-read and this time you can blame me for all mistakes (I'm sure there're enough for everybody). Some reviewers (thanks a lot to everyone who reviewed) mentioned I should get a new beta-reader, so everyone interested in this job can mail me, jauweiler(at)web.de in German or English, please. Warning, you should be familiar with the RPG Dungeons & Dragons, for many of my ideas are from there. Thank you.
Alternatively you can point at my mistakes in a review and I'll try to elude them in the next chapter, promised.
By the way sentences written in italics are thoughts or Thestral-language from now on.
Chapter 6: Soulbonded
While the Council discussed, Harry reached Osiris. He was boiling with anger and was not able to think clearly nor speak. Osiris, sensing the current state of mind of his companion, was to clever to say something and brought them both to Hogwarts.
When they reached the grounds of it, Harry's fury had nearly vanished, momentarily. They bade each other farewell and departed to their respective homes. It was late and all students should be asleep. Harry, deep in thoughts, jumped in surprise as he heard a cough.
He summoned light out of his hand and searched his surrounding. On his left side he found the heap of a human, resting against the wall. It took him three steps to reach the person and he recognized it immediately.
Snape.
The robe was almost torn apart, the red-spotted eyes looked haunted and he was sweating freely. Between the coughs and the rattling breathe, Harry heard a weak "Potter" as the potion master saw him.
Without wasting a thought about their hate-full past, Harry cast several healing-spells at the wreck of a man.
The physical condition improved instantly, while the haunted look was there still. Carefully Harry helped Snape to raise and finally to stand up.
"Everything alright?", Harry inquired concerned. Now, since Snape was not his teacher anymore, Harry saw him in a completely different light. Harry, who had felt the power of conviction of his own, admired Snape for his devotion to his task as spy.
After Amelia had told him that the strength of a Templar depends on his confidence in himself and in God, Harry had thought her wrong, but the course of events had proved himself mistaken. With every success in his training, his self-confidence had grown and with it his power and with his power his faith in God had deepened.
And this very thought enlarged Harry's power without his awareness.
He wondered how much self-control Snape must be able to muster to act as spy in Voldemort's ranks. While Harry thought, Snape gathered his wits and answered, "Not everything, but it's a start. Thank you, Potter."
"What happened? Did Voldemort reveal where your true loyalty lay?", Harry asked. "No, no. I'd not be alive if he had found out. The Dark Lord summoned us this afternoon." Snape had to stop in order to regain some strength. "His mood was murderous. He lost half of his followers including Bellatrix the last days."
Snape paused again and Harry seized the opportunity to inform Snape about his activities in general. All the time they walked in the general direction of the hospital wing, but when Harry told Snape how he had killed the Deatheaters at the 'Outpost' Snape stopped dead. He glanced at Harry with undefined emotions. Hope, despair, delight, horror.
Harry ushered him further and asked Snape, "What else?" Snape took a deep breathe and spoke, "He tortured us with unlimited cruelty.
At first he spared me, because I had to brew potions to prevent the death of more Deatheaters. I've seen much victims of dark magic, but this surpassed everything. The first was barely alive. He had been hit by the full force of the Lord's curses. I managed to save him.
The next had luck too. The following were in a quite good condition. Then came Peter. I got the impression that he wanted to tell something and the Dark Lord too. But something prevented him doing so. He was tortured beyond reason, but didn't spill his secret.
I'm not sure how he survived, but he did. The next guy wasn't that lucky. The Dark Lord used everything on him you can imagine to cause pain in most agonizing way. After two hours or so he ordered me to make sure that the Deatheater survived. It was hopeless. There was no whole organ and his skin was gone.
This mad-man of Dark Lord had skinned him alive. The poor guy was young. I could do nothing. Then he tortured me. His power was spend. My luck. You. Found. Me. ..." Snape's voice failed and Harry had seen pity in the man's face for the first time in his life.
He could see the horror etched in his face and how weak Snape was. Just in time they reached the hospital wing. With his last strength Snape laid himself on a bed, sweating freely again. Harry looked for Madame Pomfrey and explained her what had happened. She promised him to care for Snape and Harry allowed himself reluctantly to visit his room for a night rest.
A twitching scar woke Harry the next day. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and looked around. Everything appeared to be on the right spot. The cross at the wall. The desk, the chairs. Okay, his clothes were spread all over the floor, but that was not unusual. He checked the ceiling, the bare walls.
Nothing.
Something is wrong, no matter how correct everything seems to be
He jumped out of the bed and peered under his bed.
Surprisingly, nothing.
He stood up and scratched his head.
He was about to cast a revelation spell when Dobby entered the room with a tray hovering in front of him. "Good morn, Dobby. Tell me, is something wrong in here." Dobby gazed around. "No, Harry Potter, everything is fine. Is something disturbing Harry Potter?", the house-elf asked concerned.
"No, no. It was just a feeling. Just a feeling, really", Harry assured more himself than Dobby. After the breakfast Harry went to the Forbidden Forest to meet Osiris, who waited already.
Heya, ready to bring God's rage to the heretics
Always, especially with you, answered his friend.
Harry put an invisibility charm on himself, mounted the Thestral and became aware of a little problem.
Shit, hmm, Osiris?
Yes?
We have a problem. I've no clue where you should take me.
Osiris uttered the mental equal of a sigh and turned his head to look at Harry. What do you think I'm. Your standard horse. Come on, tell me everything you know. I will find them no matter where they are.
And so Harry retold every single word that had been spoken at the previous evening. Again the fury overwhelmed him.
Osiris listened carefully, but much more suspicious. When Harry had finished he thought for a while. Then he shook his head, Yes, yes. I believe I know where they are.
You're sure. How do you know?, inquired Harry.
It's not that difficult. They are in Wales, probably, next they need shelter, a cave or something like that, with water and something to eat. I don't now the exact hole in which they hide, but I know the region. Trust me I will smell them one mile against the wind, Osiris said with a great deal of conviction.
Harry didn't argue and let Osiris take off.
Their flight was swift and the cold wind blew against Harry's face, but the fire of anger did not vanish. After a few hours Osiris hinted that they were nearly there. Harry looked down.
Hills, woods, lakes, towns, but no sign of a cave, you old show-off
Keep your thoughts in check, youngster. I can smell them. Humans, few, open fireplace … no toilet. Harry heard how Osiris pulled air in his nostrils. They flew lower. At first Harry saw a small brook that streamed from a hill.
Then he saw a small pillar of smoke. At last he discovered the black mouth of a cave between some trees and bushes. Osiris landed at the top of the hill and Harry dismounted. Just in time for the invisibility spell was spent.
Be careful, warned Osiris as Harry started to descent.
Don't worry, they won't hurt me… not too much at least, Harry replied with a smile.
I didn't mean that. Be careful whom you kill.
Harry's smile vanished and he frowned while he got deeper.
After a couple of minutes he was over the opening and the smoke stung in his eyes and lungs. He prepared himself to jump down when his eyes caught a movement in a bush besides the entrance.
A guard
He peered closer.
He was right, it was a human, crouching under the bush and watching the valley. Discarding his plan to cast a spell, he climbed further down, around the way in till he reached the ground.
Slowly he approached the guard, who was disregarding its back.
Eventually he reached the shrub, the sentinel still unsuspecting.
With a sharp sound Harry drew his weapon.
The sentry turned around, eyes wide with shock, desperately trying to get hold of his sword, but too late.
Harry's blade came down at his head. Out of an instinct Harry turned his wrist. The broad part of the blade collided with the forehead of the man.
The eyes rolled upwards and the body convulsed and relaxed. Harry watched the chest go up and down rhythmically.
He shook his head in disbelief. This man wasn't a murderer of innocent muggles. Harry noticed that he was young, barely twenty. His robe told Harry that he was a knight, the sword that magic wasn't his favoured weapon.
Harry squatted himself next to the body and turned it around. With his dagger he severed the elbow and knee sinews, nothing he couldn't heal afterwards, but it would stop further interference of this Templar.
Still Harry wondered what had prevent him to kill this person. Even if it was a good thing it disturbed him greatly. Absently he cast a spell in order to renew his physical strength and another to block evil curses and one to deflect arrows just in case.
Harry shook his head again and dismissed the problem. There were more important matters at hand. With a last deep breath he entered the grotto. It was pitch black and so he crawled along the tunnel totally relying on his sense of touch. Soon after he heard a male voice, gentle and comforting.
But the devil has many faces
The voice was to distant to figure out words but after a corner Harry came into a cavern, which undermined the whole hill. Suddenly he stood in bright flame light. At the first moment he was blinded and when his vision cleared, he jumped behind a boulder for cover like a greased lightning.
Luckily, every pair of eyes were fixed on the speaker, Harry had heard. Harry peeked over his cover and counted fourteen persons. He ducked himself again. The adrenaline pumped in his ears still, so he didn't hear the speaker.
Then he risked a closer look. The fallen Templars formed a half-cycle around the spokesman, their backs towards Harry. A fire crackled in their centre and emitted strange blue light. The smoke gathered at the ceiling and floated in thin streams over Harry's head. Finally Harry understood the words and recognized them.
It was a powerful spell to reveal the future. He had read about it. You had to burn something valuable, he didn't remembered what, but it created a blue flame, obviously, and then you built up a connection to heaven. With a bit of luck you got some pieces of information. But it didn't make sense.
A cleric must serve God or Lucifer, good or evil, at least in so far he knew. This Templar ought to be fallen ergo evil. But a evil cleric lost the ability to cast good spells ergo those cleric was supposed to be good.
Something is wrong here, greatly wrong
The tone of the voice changed and became dreamy. Harry's attention focused on the voice. He couldn't see the speaker because the others blocked his view.
"I see war", said the man, "a great war like the revolution of Lucifer."
Suddenly Harry burst with curiosity and the voice lured him out of his hiding place and he stood up, unnoticed. The man paused for a moment before he continued, "But this time neither the angels nor God will be able to defeat the Fallen One."
He stopped again. The people moved uneasily on their seats and someone exclaimed, "Will that be the end, the apocalypse!"
"Shh, keep quiet. Don't disturb Nathaniel", ordered another.
"We have a role in this magnificent game…", stated the dreamy voice of Nathaniel, who seemed oblivious to his surrounding, "A great enemy will come…" A cry pierced the relative silence.
The watch, Harry cursed himself for forgetting to gag his captive.
All people present turned around and saw him, standing erected in the bright light holding his weapon loosely in one hand.
All but one were stunned for the moment exactly like Harry. Not so a woman. She launched her magic at him in an instant. Her gestures were so quick, quicker than Harry had ever seen by someone else before, that Harry barely realized that it was a healing spell she aimed at him. Too surprised and confused he didn't avoid the spell.
To his astonishment the spell penetrated his shields and hit his shoulder.
To his ultimate shock the spell wasn't a healing spell but quite the opposite. He saw in slow-motion how his left arm started to split apart from his body.
This is impossible, this is not right
His gaze got a red touch and pain washed through his mind. Blood speeded through his veins and through his wound. He felt the blood running down his side. He turned his head back to the woman when he heard her scream, "Die, bastard!"
This was the last thing he heard then something else took over his mind.
He closed his eyes, while Nathaniel called to the woman, "Marisa, in God's name, stop!" But the woman ignored the leader of the rebels and stormed towards Harry with her battle-staff in both hands.
Incredible fast she was on Harry and rose her weapon to smash Harry's head. Out of sudden Harry spread his angelic wings and a wave of concentrated magic radiated from him, that threw Marisa back and to the ground.
Everyone had to shield his eyes from the blinding light. When they opened them again they saw a spectacular, but intimidate scene.
Harry's arm was attached to his body again, the wings wide spread and in the hand that had held his staff-sword mix was now a white glowing long-sword made of crystal.
Instead of his eyes he had two emerald green blazing lights that were dead-fixed on Marisa. For a few seconds the whole scene was frozen.
All of a sudden Harry's arm came forward and Marisa was lifted in the air, then she began to flew backwards slowly.
Harry stepped forward with the same speed as Marisa flew, eyes and arm focused on her. When she was near the wall, Marisa began to struggle, but she was inexorable levitated towards the backside of the cave.
The other Templars were unable to move, too, but for different reasons, although it had the same source. Eventually Marisa reached the wall and was pressed against it, despite all her efforts.
Harry was ten steps away and still he went for Marisa with same pace, without any expression in his face. He made another step.
Some Templars gasped as they realized what was about to happen and the others followed, while Harry took two more steps.
Nathaniel shook off the paralyzing ban and charged Harry with drawn weapon. A hopeless attempt. Harry didn't even look at him as he threw him back with a wing-beat. Five steps remained. Four steps.
Marisa screamed at Harry to stop and prayed to God, but nothing worked, Harry's hand still kept her in place.
Three steps.
Harry rise his long-sword, his intentions clear.
Marisa screamed again.
Two steps.
The Templars gasped in horror.
Nothing could stop the mighty being now.
One step.
The sword came down.
Marisa screamed a final time.
Harry, no!
Some Templars shrieked. The sword had entered Marisa's head, but barely a half inch. Harry released the sword and it vanished just as well as the aura of domination, the green lights and the wings. A single drop of blood escaped the scratch and mingled with the tears.
Within a second the apparition was over.
Still the Templars didn't move a muscle while Marisa slid down the wall into a sitting position because the fear had numbed her whole body, weeping openly.
Harry turned around to face Osiris. He bridged the distance between them and rested his forehead against the Thestral's head.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Oh, I see that they weren't evil, but I couldn't stop myself. I wasn't myself. Thank you so much. If you had not come I had taken her life and then…, Harry mumbled till his voice failed.
During this he felt a strange and simultaneously so familiar sensation.
He felt the comforting nearness and the strong band of friendship but there was something else, something welcomed. While he scanned this unknown connection it grew stronger and stronger.
It affected him in someway.
Osiris, what's going on here?, he asked his friend.
Something that didn't happened for a very long time. So long that it is only a legend among the Thestrals, replied a marveled Osiris.
What?, Harry asked, nearly bursting for excitement.
Our souls are bonded.
What does that mean?
I wish I'd an answer to this question, but I know this bond is for a lifetime, that's for sure.
A murmured healing spell reminded Harry of the other persons present.
He turned again, deliberately. "I'm sorry", was everything he could say, but it was enough, apparently.
The man called Nathaniel came to him and fell to his knees.
"We're sorry, too, because we welcomed you so badly. Please, excuse Marisa, she has a hot temper. I saw you in my vision, you know. Please forgive us our sins and take us in your service."
Harry was flat-footed. He took a closer look at all persons in the cave.
Now where all faced him he could see their insignias. Nathaniel was a Paladin, Marisa a Knight, then there were five other Knights and eight adepts. He had to correct his count, it where fifteen Templars plus the guard.
While he observed the scene, Nathaniel rose and invited him to sit by the fire, while two knights left to look after the guard. To mask his confusion Harry complied and took a seat.
"Your name is Harry, right?" Harry nodded. "We heard of you." Harry nodded. Everyone on this planet has heard of me.
"In fact your are the reason for our betrayal." Harry nodded before he understand what the Paladin told him.
"Wait?", Harry exclaimed, "did you just say I'm the reason for your betrayal. Explain yourself!" "Do you have a little time. This will take a bit longer to tell", offered Nathaniel.
"Take all the time you need."
P.S: Thanks for reading. Please review and make suggestions. See ya
