Hello All, welcome back to the story!
This is the last chapter of the second arc and boy has it been fun (and hard!) to write. This arc was noticeably darker than the first one and I hoped to show the ugly nature of war.
It's also in a way paralleled with Atticus' loss of naivety (he was never really innocent). He's accepted a huge responsibility, one that has far reaching consequences on a scale that he barely understands and the many problems he's often talked about now have to have actions made for.
Actions that will test his humanity in more ways than one, actions that will taint his soul.
Without further adieu, please enjoy the post and let me know what you think!
Note: If you would like to read ahead, the next three chapters are available on P^A^T^R^E^O^N / Boombox117 where we are now on the third final Arc of the story .
The discord channel is d^i^s^c^o^r^d^.^g^g^/^v^r^8^8^t^6^4^Y^e^7
-Break-
12th of July 1943 – Antarctica
Emily POV
Her arms rose steadily in the cold still air. Her wand hand twisted ninety degrees as the tip of her yew wand flicked upward slightly, a simple, near dismissive act that vastly undersold the strength and the fortitude needed for what was being done.
Grating, rumbling sounds filled the still air as the earth trembled, untold tonnes of mass were shaken free when the crystalline structure rose from where it rested.
The surface of the near transparent surface shimmered in the intense shine of the artificial light emitted by the huge orb that hung high in the sky, an orb that was a fifth the size of the sun that normally appeared in the night sky. It was necessary given that Antarctica only had two seasons…summer and winter.
It was at the height of winter, now, and so, there would be no sunset nor sunrise for many months, no light nor warmth that would touch these cold desert lands but for what they could make themselves.
The structure was finally at its full height, perpendicular to the hilly knobbled snow covered lands, hovering several hundred metres from the surface.
The bottom of the crystalline structure held a round silver grey device that was embedded within the structure, not unlike an inclusion. Though perhaps it was better to call it a shell that remained affixed to the very thing it grew.
Her eyes roved over the structure with inspective eyes. To transfigure something this size from rock and ice with differing structures with only atomic and molecular reconstruction transfiguration techniques and your magic…well it would leave you dead sooner than you could say Salazar.
It was where runes had come in, the same kind of runes – and newly created enchantments – that they would use to mass transfigure the asteroid to the material and shape they desired.
The universal runic bridge that allowed different runic languages to be used together was what allowed this to be possible, each language had its own expertise and specialities that coalesced into making this feat possible without needing to go into extremes.
Those small enchanted devices were planted at each end of the transfigured rock and ice, pre-shaped completely to minimise magical expenditure, and set about the transformation towards near permanence.
It was over four kilometres high, two ends that were flattened and nearly twenty metres in across yet in the mid-rift of the crystalline structure, they narrowed and converged into a point no larger than ten centimetres, the shape of the structure vaguely reminiscent of an hourglass.
The light from the orb caught the crystalline structure in a certain light and the deep grooves that lined and dotted the three of the sharp faces of the obelisk that were in her direct line of sight, were glittering like how she imagined golden hieroglyphs may have glittered under the sun on temple walls and pillars of the ancient world.
She tilted her head slightly, her mind conjuring an imagination that she thought was fitting, the distinct etching reminding her of a number of drawings she'd seen that recreated great temples and palaces of Athens and Thebes, the ornate pillars that drew the eyes towards the roofs and floors those same pillars held aloft.
It was an apt comparison considering what these structures were for.
Her eyes caught a glimmer in the distance, the shining triangular peak of another such obelisk. She looked further afield and saw another and then another, some of them only completed today by Atticus or by herself.
At first, they thought they needed only five such obelisks.
They hadn't been wrong but it changed when they realised that powering the massive suspension wards, illusionary wards, the environmental wards, wards that Atticus liked to call inversion-gravitational wards along with a dozen other, myriad but important wards…
Well, the sizes of the obelisks would have been humongous, more than they already were, and they hadn't been sure that they would have been able to sustain the suspension wards for the length of them they needed it for.
The worldship would take a long time to complete and would not be able to remain afloat under its power for at least several years. That meant these obelisks would have to keep it aloft, billions upon billions of tonnes of mass.
Unfortunately, creating a massive feather-light environmental ward had its own issues whereas suspension and inversion wards were easier to operate in so such ideas were abandoned despite being less complex and less taxing.
To put that level of strain on wards constrained by only five such obelisks was something neither of them were comfortable with. There was also the risk that the magical expenditure was higher than the rate by which these obelisks would be able to charge by.
And so, there would be forty-nine diamond obelisks that were near completely identical to another other, the only true differences being the variations between her own permanent transfigurations and Atticus'.
Where magicals transfigured one object into another, they changed the very atomic structure of objects.
Permanence or as near to it as possible was achieved.
He'd never published nor advertised this and it was simple to understand.
All for the simple fact that it was a feat that could shatter the economy, no…their entire society where wealth meant nothing when one could not discern true gold from false.
This form of permanent transfiguration was unchangeable and fixed.
And it was both infuriating in its simplicity and impressive in its cheating ingenuity.
She raised her wand arm and the thickness of magic around her began to grow, her eyes radiantly glowed an ominous hungering ocean deep blue.
Diamonds may be hard and scratch resistant but they were not difficult to break.
With a sharp jerk of her wand arm, the sounds of creaking and shattered crystals reverberated in the cold still air in haunting discordance.
The convergence in the middle of the crystalline structure was no more, the pull she subjected the former singular structure at both ends shattered the small section that held it together.
Atticus' Law of Permanence after Transfiguration, another law that had never been published, stated that an object retains its permanence once it is broken into two pieces if you completely understood the change one state to another.
The combination of Atticus' Atomic Restructuring and Permanence after Transfiguration allowed for an endless supply of everything once you knew what you were doing.
It allowed for permanence to settle once an object was broken into two or more pieces, as if its internal structures were jilted into staying affixed, possible only because of the nuclear transmutation that was visualised with painstakingly clear understanding that changed the atomic and molecular structure of one object into another.
And it could be done on a large scale with runes and enchantments, what they were and would be using now, the enchantment specifically created to work in tandem with runes to cause the same effect as his transfiguration spells, the enchantments adding the visualisation component that the runes lacked.
She twisted her wand slightly and the former top half of the structure, now an obelisk on its own, swivelled around hundred and eighty degrees in a slow fashion until it hovered above the ground next to the other obelisk.
*pop*
"Lady Slytherin" a high pitched voice called out and she glanced towards it.
An immaculately dressed elf stood there with its back straightened out, her hands entwined together on her stomach.
"Are the sites ready?" Emily asked, her tone brooking no pleasantries.
"They is, Lady Slytherin. The runic schemes are connected and all there is to go is for the o-bo-lisks to be placed" the elf said in a polite matter-of-factly tone.
She only nodded before she took her attentions back to the giant structures that were afloat only because of her. "Very well, I will take these there now" she said as she walked towards the designated locations of where these would be planted.
The obelisks floated after her, defiant of gravity under her will. After a little while of walking, the hilly mountainous lands gave way to more flat plains with hundreds of figures working in the distances.
They were laying down thin slabs of gold that would connect these obelisks while later there would be bridges connecting the peaks of the obelisks together which would anchor the wards that would permit the creation of a temperate environment.
She finally arrived at the first site and her gaze fell upon the deep hole, one that carved out of stone in a hexagonal shape with hundreds of thin golden lines that would connect to the grooves on the crystalline obelisk.
She swivelled around and her arms rose, the tip of her wand glowing as she moved her arms in careful precise motions.
The first obelisk moved down and she aligned the hexagonal bottom face with the hole. There was little clearance between the walls of the hole and the faces of the obelisk but it was enough.
The obelisk slotted in the hole with seamless precision and with a thud, the obelisk finally settled in its designated position without any further issues.
She glanced over her shoulder and saw eight figures headed her way. She moved away from the obelisk and watched the figures arrive.
They were human shaped yet that was where all other resemblance ended. They were faceless, featureless with only thousands of small runic script running down their surfaces, carved by the hands of elves.
Golems were not used in modern days, their use having fallen out around the same time spells, charms and wards had become more advanced and capable.
Ancient fortresses such as Hogwarts along with a number of ancestral manors and castles still had them but they were part of a last line of defence, a remnant of a time where golem knights and spearmen were able to defend against muggles who only wielded swords or spears.
What had been done was take the entire premise of golems and drive it into an entirely unheard of direction.
She'd seen what he meant by 'computers' and the notion of programming. In a way magicals had done that before the muggles had even conceived of such things. She didn't consider Ancient Humans as muggles.
Runes were all languages that were dead, binary in meaning – for the most part –, understood by all that their inferences were fixed which was key as runes depended on meaning and intent.
Magic was shaped in accordance to the intent and understanding of the magical, their magic imparting the effects the magical desired based on those aspects.
Runes were merely languages that allowed for such specific shaping to become reality…a reality that was shared as thousands, if not millions, living and dead, gave the same meanings to runes and thusly gave these symbols power and existence within magic itself.
Runes were a way to program reality itself.
These golems were programmed with runes and enchantments to a degree of complexity she had not seen or read about in the magical world. They were not sentient…far from it but the closest approximation she had for them were ant drones.
They were drones that were intricately and complicatedly linked to Alice, Atticus' artificial intelligence that has made more leaps and bounds in magical computing than either of them thought possible.
He'd already made a significant headway when it came to having these golems being able of completing complex tasks but with Alice…
She watched as the golems set about their work, inlaying gold in the runic grooves on the base of the crystalline obelisk and connecting to the rest of the circuit that would encapsulate a total area of over eleven thousand square kilometres, an area greater than Corsica.
With Alice, they operated on a scale that was reminiscent of ants that could carry out complex tasks as directed with minimal intervention. And they were thousands of these golems.
The Atlantean books she'd read from the catalogues kept by Moira hinted, though sparsely, at similar principles that were undertaken when it came to the creation of magical creatures.
It was rather a fascinating read and from what she had gleaned, the Atlantean were masters when it came to creation of new lifeforms and she had an inkling at how they done it.
Rituals, Blood Magic, Sacrifices and Runes were likely the most predominant arts they used to make creatures like centaurs, unicorns and even dragons.
It was made sense to her, that the Atlanteans were proficient in those arts, for it was nearly universal in every magical culture that those four facets of magic had deep rooting in those earlier magical societies, cultures that formed in the wake of the destruction of Atlantis by their surviving descendants.
It wasn't the only thing that interested her but she would have the time in the coming years to fully immerse herself in Atlantean magic.
Some of the things Grindelwald had found hinted at powerful magic and if the catalogues were as full as she thought it might be, well…
Her eyes gleamed with anticipation, the thoughts of casting magic that could shatter mountains with but a spoken word causing unbridled feelings of satisfaction and viciousness to reign triumph in her core.
After a while, she continued on to position the last obelisk out of the forty-nine, their tasks for the next month or so complete whilst they waited for the diamond ward-obelisks to be charged full by the several leylines, one major and several minor ones, that intersected in the exact centre point of the circle that was marked out by the positional locations of the ward-obelisks.
With their locations being the exact length of the radius of the circle, they would all be charged equally at the same rate once connected
Her final task complete, she apparated to a clearing on the tallest mountain that had large jagged ridged peaks, her eyes intently focused at the zenith where she knew he was.
Her eyes fell on the path before her, one that they'd carved a few days ago and began to walk towards it.
As she walked up the makeshift path that bent and twisted upwards, the bright light of the orb that hung above began to dim and faded away, as if to draw towards an epilogue as the shimmering, dazzling lights of Aurora Australis painted the night sky.
It was luminous enough that it did not fade the world into total blackness.
Knowing Atticus' love for theatrics, his ridiculous sense of grandiose gestures and meaning, it was likely done on purpose, to have her make her way towards him after they'd completed a significant milestone in their plans.
She glanced upward and as she walked, she couldn't take her eyes off of those mesmerising lights whose northern counterpart had inspired many cultures, muggle and magical alike, to create mythological legend of what they did not understand, for it was simple interactions between particles of the sun and the Earth's magnetic field.
Yet…in a strange way she understood why Ancient Celtic mages had once thought that these were the displays of merry ancestors in the afterlife.
The lights danced and dazzled in arrays of greens, golds and reds, woven together into threads of ever shifting roads of pure light, as if to beckon travellers towards the distant twinkling stars that dotted the unclouded night sky in their billions.
She got to the top of the ridged mountain and as her eyes fell upon the cliff's edge, she saw Atticus there, waiting, seated on the ground on a thick rug with food and wine by his side.
She rolled her eyes even if a bemused smile crept on her face. She walked in a sedate pace until she neared him.
"Having fun?" she drawled out as she stared down at him with a quirked brow.
He glanced at her and let a warm smile bloom on his face. "I am. How was the walk?"
She narrowed her eyes "Dark." She said in a humourless tone as she dropped down on the opposite side of the rug.
He flicked a finger and one of the bottles of wine rose in the air, as did two glasses. The bottle uncorked itself and poured into the glasses before one made its way to her.
"My apologies, perhaps I should have waited a little while longer" he said before he looked away from her, his glass of wine in his hand as his gaze fell to the front, a curious expression making its way on his face.
"I was a little impatient to see that" he said in a pleased tone as she plucked the floating glass of wine from the air and turned to where he was looking.
Past the cliff's edge, there was a large slope that gave off the appearance that it was perhaps a crater giving the numerous peaks that dotted in the distance but that was not what caught her…their attention.
The lights of Aurora Australis were mesmerising though what truly added to their brilliance and captivated their attentions now were the peaks of the diamond obelisks that seemed to feed on the lights, seemingly drawing it into themselves, drains that diverted and drank kaleidoscopic rivers that ran through black heavens.
It was not completely apparent…it was only faintly visible but she realised he was likely seeing more, courtesy of his strange mage sight that was orders of magnitude more capable than hers…for now.
She could see magic better now, her own understanding and studies in magic having been improved since she'd seen his memories of his battle with Grindelwald but it was an ongoing process.
"I didn't realise Auroras were magical" she said in a questioning fashion as she stared at the lights with an intense gaze.
"Aren't their effects meant to be only natural?" she asked.
She'd learnt that they were energised particles from the sun that slam into the Earth, the protection offered by Earth's magnetic field is what these lights were, simply the interaction of those charged particles with the Earth's atmosphere, the different atoms or molecules in it causing different colours to come into existence
For them to be able to be drawn in like that though…
"Supposedly" Atticus said with a frown, pausing for a moment. "But…those particles do come from the sun, a body that is deeply entwined with life and life on Earth"
"Did you suspect that this might happen after our trip to the Sun?" she asked with sharp eyes. Atticus had measured the magical concentration where they were and they'd found that it was several orders of magnitude higher than the concentration elsewhere such the Moon or in the deep space between Mars and Earth.
Only on Earth, which trounced the readings found near the Sun, showed any higher readings.
She wondered if that might be a reason why these Precursors had made Star Roads…that there was something about those huge balls of energy that allowed for such fantastical things to be made.
"Yes" he admitted as he glanced at her "I thought there might be a high possibility that Auroras had something magical about them…two bodies rooted in life interacting…" he shrugged.
"I didn't quite expect the obelisks to be able to draw on it so readily, even if it seems a little miniscule in comparison to the draw from the leylines in the Earth" he confided in her.
She remained quiet for a moment as she thought it over. "The magical energy created by the interaction likely supercharged the ambient magic in the atmosphere allowing it be in such a quantity that it can be drawn almost as readily as the magic that course through leylines."
Diamonds were perhaps the best kind of wardstone to use for holding magical energy and with as little amount of friction as possible – with the exception of Mithril – use that energy for wards and other uses.
It wasn't surprising, if the thought occurred, that wardstones could draw on ambient magic far more readily if it was available in higher quantities. Such things happened anyway albeit in much slower rates and in locations that had plentiful ambient magic elsewhere when there were no leylines available.
"That is possibly the case" he smiled at her before he glanced back at the lights "Just shows that there is still much to learn and find out" he said in a musing tone.
She hummed for a moment as she looked at him with a thought pressing at the forefront of her mind. "I wonder if it could be linked to universal leylines" he turned to her with a question apparent in his eyes and so she continued.
"We've already had it confirmed that Neurophysical Energy" she said, drawing out the last words in her sentence in a slight venomous tone "is something that permeates the entire universe." She glanced at the dancing waves of Aurora Australis
"A field of magic that encompasses the entire universe. We already know that magic is stronger in places where there is life…could it be that there is an element within the sun that enables this field of magic, like how stronger leylines on earth seem to run near or on top of heavy concentration of Basalt or Granite stone?" she said in a musing tone.
Basalt and Granite were amongst the most used wardstones in the magical world, their abundance and their fairly decent capability to store magic was what attracted magicals, human and otherwise, to use such elements.
It was not a coincidence that stronger leylines could be found in heavy concentrations of those materials.
Atticus seemed to be deep in thought with what she said. "Possibly…" he said in a low murmur as his mind seemed to be heavily fixed on the idea she presented. "Could it be the very reactions within the sun…fusion of hydrogen atoms into helium, that energy that is created by some of the mass being converted…" he trailed off into silence before he, after a little while, suddenly shook his head, as if to banish away those heavy thoughts and turned to her, a warm smile on his pale face with an expression that sung of new avenues he'd seek to explore of whatever conclusions he'd reached.
"I'm glad you remembered me" she said in an amused tone as her lips quirked up "I thought you might have gotten lost in that head of yours" For all of his attentiveness, he was rather absentminded whenever he got himself into a thinking frenzy, to the point he forgot with whom he was with and what he was doing.
He looked slightly abashed through it was clear that it was merely put on. He was getting good that, feigning emotions when he clearly did not feel it.
She'd seen it happen on a number of times, more so now since he'd been elevated to near Merlin levels by the public.
Had she not been able to feel his emotions due to their ever growing bond she might not have been able to pick up on some of those displays.
She was rather impressed by it.
"Even if I am lost, I do not think I could ever not remember" he said with a half twisted smile, one that was cultivated, measured and accompanied a certain gleam in his eyes that showed deepening interest.
She ignored it despite the reciprocating interest that was beginning to bloom and, instead, opted to sate another hunger, taking a pastry from one the straw baskets that sat between them and faced towards the lights, eating as she took on the sight before her.
It really was mesmerising, she mused. There was an ethereal quality to it, the way the points of the obelisks drew in the vibrant colours of Aurora Australis.
As she ate, musing on the magic that was at play, she could feel his eyes on her and she glanced at him from the corner of her eyes.
She let it pass for a little while longer until the intensity with which she could feel him stare did not abate and grew stronger.
A slight smile crept on her face.
"I can practically feel you boring a hole in my head from the way you're staring" she said with a playful lilt to her tone as she turned to him, her head slightly tilted to the side, her long hair falling silkily down the front of her robes.
"Can't help it" he said with a small smile, the corner of his lips curling as his eyes drew her in as they always did "I cannot help but stare at the most beautiful sight around" he whispered in a devilishly seductive tone.
Her lips twitched "Good but you can do better" she coyly said, her brow arched, her face expectant even though twitches of excitement crept within her.
It had been a little while since they'd had time alone without needing to complete one thing or another. There was much to do, much to set up and little time for pleasure. It even got to the point that she had thought of using the Time Room in that trunk of his.
His lips twisted to one side, conveying his acceptance of the challenge.
His movement was fluid, precise and measured as he got up from his seat, his eyes firmly fixed on her, hunger and lust storming in those vibrant eyes of his.
"The Algonquin people believed that" he tilted his head upward a little, towards the Southern Lights "they were the light from a fire built by their creator. A representation of their creator's ever presence in their lives." He spoke with a hint of reverence and solemnity until his gaze fell back on her, crystalized embers of lust shone within his eyes.
"It is a thought that resonates with me when I see you" he said the last word with a sibilant tinge to it, one that caused a tremor of pleasure to shoot through the central pathway of her body.
Feelings of rapture took told within her `Better...` she hissed with a curling smile, her countenance fracturing by the second.
He began to walk around, his magic beginning to unfurl around him in a dim glow as his eyes began to glow like two sets of galaxies, drawing her in with a punishing pull that she could not escape from.
"Every time I am near you, all the time I am with you, I remember how alive I feel and how much of a void you leave behind when you are not" he whispered, his voice a mesh of longing and unrestrained lust.
"There is beauty in those lights, in the magic that it seems to exude, just as there is beauty and wonder in this world, in this universe. Yet all of it, all of it, pales in comparison to what you are to me, their beauty will never measure up to you nor will the word itself ever do justice to how I see you, for it lacks the depth and the necessary meaning" he said with soft-spoken slithering words that made it past her gates, words armed with overflowing allure and enchanting seduction.
"All of this feels so much more real when you're by my side and as we stand at the precipice of great change, of true greatness, I cannot help but wonder how lucky I am to have met you..." His words tore open that fiery essence within her as ably as a snarling wolf tore away at a deer's throat, slick heat, slick fire rose within her.
He was in front of her outstretching his hand and she took it after a moment's pause, that abyssal hunger in his eyes having caught her astray for a mere moment.
He brought her up and he drew her closer, their bodies meshing together almost like braided steel "…and how lucky you are to be my wife in less than two weeks" he said in a jagged whisper, one that spoke of visceral joy as the corner of his lips began bend with silk soft creases.
A rumbling pleasure sunk in her stomach as her face began to light up with genuine happiness.
Her hands travelled to his near unblemished face, her thumbs caressing his cheeks as they fell into each other's eyes, fondness, lust and love shining through both sets of eyes.
"Perfect…" she said with half lidded lustful eyes that sparkled with a charmed glint, concession of her defeat and his victory apparent in her tone.
His eyes shone with a hint of triumph as his lips tightened, his head leaning down ever so slightly, his expression bore signs of assessment, of faltering patience for her reciprocation and after a single moment of letting him stew, she also leaned in until they both succumbed to their desires, their lips locking.
Manic and maddening lust took hold of her as that fiery essence ran loose and she clutched tightly on his hair, drawing him closer, deeper, robes and clothing seemingly pulled off, vanished as the next moment she knew her hands were digging into his bare chest.
The air seemed to be thick with magic, a cushion of air and magic made out of their unfurled, twisting magic as they fiercely lost into one another.
His hands began to glide towards her thigh, the tingling sensation of his fingers had her clutching him tighter.
She pushed slightly against his chest, the feel of his thrumming vibrations of his heart felt soothing under her touch, and they broke apart, their breathing heavy, their foreheads settling on the other's as their fingers, theirs hands traced the bare arms of the other, the soft touches seemingly leaving a glow of magic.
"My love…" she whispered in a soft melodious tone, one that seemed to chime in the still air. He twisted his head slightly against her forehead and their gaze met.
As they stood bare naked before each other, his arms wrapped around her and his hands resting on the bottom of her back, she couldn't help but draw parallels to the vulnerability that he invoked in her to how she was now, naked and with nothing to hide.
He knew nearly all there was to her and she knew that there was little he hid from her…two people who had found each other and who they allowed themselves to be vulnerable to in every way.
Something she once would have derided as weakness and foolish, she now found it to be a strength, her own strength adding to his and vice versa.
"My love, my equal, my other half" she said with silk soft seduction, a trailing whisper that carried hints of vulnerability, vulnerability that never saw the light of day except when she was with him.
His smile warmed her deeply as he kissed her gently on the nose with his soft lips, an act that showed more than words could convey and she felt him begin to lift her slowly, tenderly as he leaned back, his eyes shining with intent and she smiled in return, her eyes glistening with anticipation.
The endless night faded away as they lost into each other, the beginning of a night spent intimately reacquainting themselves with the other part of their being.
He was looking at her as she awoke to the same dim darkness in which she had fallen asleep into.
"Morning" he said with a soft rumble of a voice.
She let a small smile creep on her face. "Morning" she glanced around and saw they were atop the same bed that had been at some point conjured during one of their…coupling sessions by the cliffs edge.
She glanced back at him with a quirked brow "That was certainly one way to celebrate a significant milestone" her eyes drooped slightly as her lips curled upward, sly intent apparent in her smile "Is this going to be norm?"
He snorted uncharacteristically at that as he placed his hand on her cheek, stroking away errant hair that obscured some of her face. "I wouldn't be opposed to it" he said with a large wry smile, his eyes almost twinkling mischievously.
Her lips twitched and she couldn't stop a large smile from blooming on her face "Somehow I completely believe you" she said with a light drawl even as she smiled.
Hours later they were dressed and had eaten, sharing a final drink of wine before they'd soon depart.
She couldn't help but think on how this place would soon change and for years to come.
"Less than half a year until the asteroid is here" she mused aloud. It was being towed by a few of Moira's scout ships that were automated in a slow crawl from beyond Mars.
"Yes…" he said in a breathy voice "It will arrive by the Moon around the beginning of December at which point we'll be able to shrink it to more than a tenth of its size."
Her face soured "It's a good thing that it'll be much lighter than a tenth of its size."
Whilst they could have made it smaller, it had ever increasing penalising cost, to the point that it would drain the diamond batteries at a rate much faster than they were comfortable with. Whereas reducing the mass of the asteroid was not as penalising and more effective.
He chuckled "Yes, so am I" he said with a wry smile before he grew serious "Descending the asteroid will be the trickiest part…we could make it smaller despite its penalties but it wouldn't change how it would be descended."
The asteroid would be descended by hundred plus metre tall diamond wardstones embedded deeply within the rocky surface that would wrap up the asteroid in interlinked suspension wards and hefty use of feather light charms.
It had many other safeguards that made it nearly impossible to fail and it was a measure she agreed with wholeheartedly.
Going the way of dinosaurs all because of their own stupidity was an undignified way to die.
She glanced away from him and she looked onto the glittering peaks of the diamond obelisks
She never thought she'd be here…at the ends of the world bringing about the start of the beginnings of a new one.
At least in the form that it was taking.
They made a giant step in finalising the physical foundation for Illos to be created yet the people, the magical world…well that was going to take much longer than simply creating giant pillars.
"What are you thinking?" she heard him ask with a soft tone and she glanced at him from the corner of her eyes as her glass of wine travelled to her lips. She took a sip, tasting the rich red wine on her tongue before she swallowed.
"The future" she said in a tone that felt slightly strange to her.
"Our wedding?" he asked curiously and she shook her head.
Their wedding had not been on her mind overly, partly because she'd almost lost control with how…zealous the women of the Sayre family had been with the disorienting detail they were organising it with.
She had nearly nothing to do with it except for ensuring the influential individuals she wanted to entice into her corner would be seated nearby and the ceremony itself that she'd decided on with Atticus.
The wedding, beyond the ancient ceremony, the seating arrangements and the after party, was of little interest to her.
"No…the future" she said meaningfully as she turned to him, her dark hair swaying along. "Have you thought on my proposal?" she asked him, not so much as in a curtly manner but it was very nearly so.
His face lost all geniality and softness, his expression having turned almost stoic as he spoke "I have…Emily…it's a dangerous game" he said in a careful tone, warning clear in his voice.
The reactivated magical lines that would come as a result of the book she was writing regarding the truth about muggleborns were only the beginning of how she was going to use politics to seize control of Magical Britain.
The book would be her opening gambit to signify to the masses their kind was different from muggles and help promote ideas to shatter the remaining bonds with the muggle world, eventually making way for taking children from muggle families like how it was done in much of Asia and Africa.
The fallout from it would be severe, she knew but it was desirable.
She was well aware of the deaths that happened to muggleborns and their families who 'dared' to claim their rightful inheritance and she was banking on it.
She still believed purebloods were inherently better, their family magic and deep ties to the beliefs of magic was superior to that of the muggleborns but they needed to be broken down for them to be of use to the society they intended to create.
Magicals were stubborn, incredibly so…to the point she wondered how it was possible any advancement had been possible given how resistant they were to any kind of meaningful change.
That meant that the destabilisation that would come from the book, from the reactivated magical lines would only yield violent responses and the beginnings of radical movements when the purebloods began to feel threatened.
A phenomenon she was expecting would happen all across Europe at the very least.
Britain was not the most repressive country in Europe…far from it but it was the most powerful one. At least right now.
War in Europe has caused the barriers between blood statuses to lessen, somewhat, but she expected it to rear its ugly head again when movements would begin to sprout and with the ICW interference… oversight for the foreseeable future of several guilty nations, an organisation known to allow muggleborns and half bloods to advance, well…
She could see some of the old hatreds return to great strength.
And where chaos was…was opportunity.
Opportunities she would use to carefully fan the flames from a position of neutrality, her alliance being sought by camps from both sides that would form in the wake of the spark she'd lit.
She knew that she might well be aiding the occurrence of a blood war that she herself had led in an alternate timeline but it was necessary.
The magical world was better off with them as rulers even if it meant destroying the Old World.
Their plans for the future…one that heralded the foundation of an empire amongst the stars…the success of the empire dictated that they'd have to be a singular people under a singular rule if they wanted their kind to prosper as long as possible.
That meant the arrogance of their people needed to be broken down and she'd ensure that it happened.
Children were malleable and would be carefully moulded but the adults…
They would resist, ancient traditions and ignorant pride would prevent them from embracing the future they were creating, holding onto false sense of superiority and self-esteem.
And so, they would be led to the slaughter, the remnants of such people would end up shattered, demoralised and despairing, willingly seeking out any signs of hope and respite.
Broken pieces ready to be re-formed into a shining beacon in their image.
What she hoped to instigate was several orders of magnitude worse than the manipulations they had originally in mind, the news of House Black and the ICW arrayed against them meant that they needed to be operating on a much wider scale and more ruthless.
She'd shared her thinking beyond what they'd already discussed and he hadn't been happy about the lengths she'd go to secure their future and remained quiet on it…until now.
"But…" he continued "I will not oppose your schemes" he said with a sigh, looking away from her.
Her lips curled upwards as she looked at him with a pleased expression though what he said next dissipated a large part of her feelings of triumph.
"Whatever we do, I think conflict within the Magical World is bound to happen." He said with a sombre expression that spoke of acceptance.
"Your visions?" she asked with a frown, her eyes having turned calculative.
He nodded slowly as he looked to the lights of Aurora Australis. "I've been reading the texts of Moira's people…the texts that these…Perceivers left behind that explained how they managed to navigate through Living Time…" he said with tired sigh as he turned to her, a wan smile edging closer to fullness.
"I've never read anything like it…it's almost like I'm reading a tome on some unknown piece of esoteric magic" he shook his head "There are obvious similarities to Divinations but the way they approached it…" he trailed off before pulled himself up a little straighter.
"Nevertheless, I've managed to see further, I think but the images were far from clear. The only thing I could discern was war would happen, sooner or later." He explained, a disturbed frown on his face "I can't tell though if it is because of us or not" he said in a quieter tone.
A disquieting silence fell between them as she digested what he said.
In the end, she mused, it did not matter if they instigated a war or not.
Another war would happen, it was human nature and even if they had magic and were different from their unwanted cousins, they still fell to the same vices and idiocy.
There would be another Dark Lord, through their actions or not. It was just a matter of controlling how far things would go.
"And the muggles?" she asked, her expression dark.
He turned to her, his expression guarded "I can't tell. Not yet." He said, his words carrying hints of ominous undertones.
If the muggles advanced at the rate they've been, it was apparent even without Atticus' words of concern that eventually the muggles would know of them.
She wasn't sure if she was looking forward to it or not.
Her aims may be to break the magical world down so that they would willingly come under their rule, starting from Magical Britain, and the muggles finding out and hunting down the rest of the magical world that hadn't already come under their rule was advantageous but it galled her to think of muggles thinking they could hunt them down.
It was a response that would happen if they discovered the things their people had done to theirs and how they saw them.
Violent response was inevitable.
"All the more we ensure our control is never lessened" she said finally after several moments of silence.
"I find that when we play games of this magnitude, Emily, control is the very least in our grasp" Atticus said softly as he walked to the cliffs edge.
"Perhaps" she conceded as she watched him stop by the very edge.
He stood eerily still as he gazed into the distance and she decided after several minutes to go to him.
She walked up behind him, her arms snaking around his body as she rested her face onto his back. After a little while, she felt his hands placed onto her own in a gentle way, the feel of his calloused hands due to his forging felt tingling rather than scratching as he caressed the back of her hands in swirling motions.
He brought his arm behind his back and brought her around, her head finally resting on his chest, her eyes carefully glancing up at him.
"The closer we get to it, the more I realise how foolish I was" he said in a humourless tone.
"Foolish?" she asked curiously.
"Foolish in my naïve beliefs."
"Because of what it will actually take?" 'to achieve a unified magical world, a unified people?'
"And how much we will lose in the process" he responded.
'And how much they'll be like Grindelwald and Dumbledore' was left unsaid but understood by both.
She looked at him piercing eyes, her eyes assessing every inch of his face. He bore a blank expression as he stared on, one that hid the moral conflicts she knew would be raging in his mind.
Her mind went back to those long discussions they had about good and evil…right and wrong.
He once told her that his morality was fluid. She'd seen evidence of that yet she'd also seen his unwavering adherence to some of his long held convictions.
Much of what they're doing would be at the very least bend it to the point of fracturing.
Choice…
They were manipulating an entire world so that the avenues of choices would be closed to a singular few, one that led to a promised land and another that led to death and destruction.
A deep manipulation that would lead to the death of countless innocents, one of the core tenets that she knew he held great value to.
The notion that it was for a greater good, one that led to their species' survival and ascendancy was only a bitter consolation from the way she'd seen him accept his own decisions.
He'd always had a soft heart towards the innocent and she'd seen it with how he interacted with his elves who he treated more like family than he did servants.
She only hoped he'd be strong enough to remember that morality was nothing but a human construct.
That who they had to be for their kind's survival, the destiny that awaited them all, required them to be beyond mere humans.
The responsibility they'd taken on required that of them.
The responsibility they'd taken on for their kind dictated it so that, in the end, their kind could take on the guardianship of the universe itself.
All of it was clear to Emily.
She had never been anything else than a selfish being, her life experiences had seen to that but what she had learnt over the past few months had been eye opening.
She remembered the feelings that had been invoked within her after being introduced to the Magical World, a sense of wonder and belonging.
When she'd find out about the wider universe, the beings that could dwell in it, that could cause destruction in unfathomable ways, her sense of power, power that resided in her noble title and in her strength of magic, had all but been shattered.
What did it matter if she could destroy mountains when beings millions of years old could shatter stars and planets with technology that was beyond them?
Personal power began to mean nothing if it meant the world she chose as her own would be so easily destroyed at the whims of such beings.
Even now, muggles possessed enough strength to truly destroy a great part of their world and they were nothing compared to these beings that may lurk out there in the dark.
Yet…Moira's words of destiny had come as an unanticipated blessing.
She would never like Moira for she recognised the woman had her own games but she did not see the sense in lying about her people's sacrifice, the visions her daughter seen of her and Atticus and the ever tightening possibility of what their destiny could be.
A destiny that could see all of Mage Kind uplifted into greatness.
It was strange, this feeling of contentment in that notion. Sharing greatness with more than just Atticus.
She'd always been a selfish creature and she did not see that ever changing.
But…she found that she wanted their kind to rise to the greatness of Precursors and surpass them.
And in that, she knew that they would have to commit many crimes against their own kind to ensure what would rise from the fertile soil coated by the ashes of the Old World would be able to meet that growing expectation she had for their kind.
Her hand travelled to his cheek and carefully guide his face towards hers.
His wondrous eyes stared down at her own dark blue eyes. He leaned into her hand as he brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, a tender act that felt right in this vulnerable moment they shared together.
"Your worries will not fade Atticus" she whispered, her eyes meeting the soulful gaze of her chosen equal "But it does not have to eat you up." speaking the truth as she saw it.
He smiled tenderly at her "I know…" he brought his hand to her hand that rested on his cheek. "I only wish that what we're doing wasn't necessary." He said without answering her unasked question.
He kissed her hand before bringing it down, his fingers parting hers before they held tightly onto each other and stared away into the distance, his gaze fixed on the magnificent lights of Aurora Australis.
"I know that what we're doing is cruel…perhaps even seen as evil by many" his eyes darkened, the emerald greens in his eyes nearly faded away "Yet I also know human nature. Co-existence on this single world is impossible. Not when the shared history we have with them is one of strive and mistrust." The disappointment in his voice was clear for her to hear.
"Life in the universe is hostile to other life" she said, her voice sanguine. She meant it too. Those Forerunners had all but eradicated their enemies when they had already been defeated.
Even on their own world, life outcompeted other life and even their races, muggle and magical alike, had eradicated civilisations or even people in one time or another.
Methods changed but that irrevocable fact did not.
They saw each other as differently and thus as threats, something that would not change any time soon.
People feared what they did not understand, something she knew all too well.
He glanced at her, away from the lights and a small grim smile appeared on his face.
"It's all the same, then, that we will do what we must, all to ensure our kind is untouchable and among the stars" he said with a voice filled grim conviction.
She did not care for the muggles. If she had the choice, she would ensure they could never pose a problem but what they were doing was a compromise she could accept.
They'll find themselves a world, worlds free from muggles, worlds where they would set the rules, rule as they saw fit.
Worlds on which they would grow to heights unrivalled and unchallenged, with magic and technologies paving the way of their total dominance.
A destiny that would see them as the species that ruled the galaxy.
She pulled him in and kissing him hard on the lips and he wrapped his arms around her.
After a little while, she let him go, her eyes boring into him. "Keep that conviction, Atticus. For a future where we can rise to greatest of heights, we will need that conviction" she said with a whisper though the unyielding tone it took was apparent.
Every day that passed, his edges were growing ever more polished, sharper angles, crystal clear buffs…
He had been a prize from the moment she'd seen him, a prize she'd won and learned to love yet now…
Now would be the time he'd turn from boy Lord into King, hard decisions such as the ones that would have to be made would be his trials of fire, the fires that would shape him into what would be needed as she stood by his side, tempering him into becoming unbreakable just like herself.
He said nothing as he leaned forward and placed on her lips a tender kiss. One that sealed a promise made not by words but by actions.
Ever since he'd taken her up to space, she knew he had a driven side to him that believed nothing was impossible.
A belief that mirrored her own.
And in time…
In time…
The rest of their people would see the same.
Guided to a great destiny by their hands.
-Break-
16th of July 1943
Sara POV
"I can't believe those two" Sophia fumed to Sara as she paced the room with fury in her steps.
She watched her cousin pace like a demon, her footsteps mere moments of leaving a trail of burning marble in their wake.
"It's not that big of an iss-" she was silenced by the furious glare Sophia sent her cousin's way.
"Not that bi-" Sophia hissed out before she forcefully made herself calm down, her hand travelling to the bridge of her nose in clear frustration. "Their wedding is just over a week away and they don't seem to care"
Sara said nothing to that as she watched Sophia with a look of befuddlement on her face.
As far as she knew, all of the plans for the wedding were all concrete now. Did whatever slight adjustments really matter all that much?
Her sister if she was in the room right now probably would agree to that sentiment but Odette was overly dramatic with things like this.
It was hardly a problem.
She didn't voice it out though. She wasn't quite willing to bear the fury of this new physically stronger Sophia.
Whatever she did in her secret hideaway, it did wonders for her body. Her new physical look along with those highlights in her hair was a marked difference to when she'd last met up with her.
The mirror conversations they had during her isolation didn't show the changes quite like how it was here now, physically.
She got up from her chair and walked towards Sophia. "Sophia, calm down" she said carefully and was subjected to a frustrated glare.
Sara raised an eyebrow at her that screamed 'really' and Sophia sighed, her shoulders slumping.
Sara wrapped her arm around Sophia's and led her back to the sofa. She sat across from her, a concerning look adorned on her face. "What is this really about, Soph?" she said softly. "The wedding is fine and you know it too" she said, halting Sophia from interjecting.
Sara's eyes were searching and she saw then why Sophia was so agitated. "Oh Soph…" she whispered compassionately.
Sophia turned her head away, her eyes blinking rapidly, as if to prevent them from tearing up.
Her hand went out to hers and Sophia gripped tightly onto it.
"I…I just…" Sophia tried, her voice wavering as she spoke. "I see them and can't help just wonder…" she trailed off.
"Charles?" Sara added carefully and Sophia jerked her head tightly.
"They still haven't found his body you know" she turned to Sara, a saddened expression on her face.
She'd heard of what happened to Charles Etherington and then later to his granduncle Xavier Charleston.
Two members of influential families back home in MACUSA, killed personally by Grindelwald.
She hadn't known how Charles had died until Sophia had told her months ago through the mirror and it horrified her.
Grindelwald had been a monster and she honestly was incredibly surprised Atticus had managed to kill him, the images of the battle had been seared in her mind just like how she imagined it was for everyone else who had read that morning's paper.
And in truth, it meant more for their family too, especially given what that monster threatened to do them all.
To say she was immensely relieved that he was gone would be an understatement.
"Soph…" Sara said, unsure of what else to say.
Sophia sniffled and shook her head "It's fine" she said whilst she tapped Sara's hand, visibly gathering herself.
"I'll be fine…just my mind going places it shouldn't go anymore" she added before getting up, adjusting her robes. "I'll come to see you later, Sara. I've got a few things to do with the McDowell estate" she said as she flicked her wand and cast over her face, her face once more pristine before she walked away.
Sara watched her cousin go with saddened eyes. They'd met Charles during one of their jaunts in muggle New York.
It was kind of a daring thing to do, back then for young magicals. It was kind of like being defiant of the strict laws that were levied on them all when it came to interacting with muggles so it wasn't a surprise when they'd met other magicals randomly.
She'd seen their attraction they held for each other right away and it had been fun to watch her usually confident cousin act so shy in his presence.
She sighed as she shook her head.
It was a tragedy, to see what happened to them both.
This war was a tragedy in of itself…senseless and all because of one man's ambitions.
She knew quite a few people who had died in that terrible war.
Other than the Russians and the ICW forces, they'd suffered the highest casualties. It seemed Grindelwald's forces held no restraint against them…not like how they'd showed against the forces of other Ministries in Europe, with the exception of the Russians.
Probably to make sure he could recruit them in that insane scheme of his, one that would pit the muggle world against theirs.
To say her family back home was praised would be to understate it…severely.
She'd heard from her mother that over the past few decades the Sayre family had been losing influence in MACUSA, despite their status as a Founding House.
Now though…well Great Uncle Richard was a very popular man, as was her mother. According to her mother, half the time people talked to her, people seemed to clamour about any kind of news about Atticus.
People liked heroes especially handsome heroes and her cousin was certainly that.
Her father had joked that maybe it was time for their mother take advantage and run for President though she could see that he meant it.
It hadn't really been a thought that had ever crossed her mind despite knowing that her mother was a rather important figure in MACUSA as Head of Education.
It did kind of suit her.
She snorted.
It wasn't like it changed much in their lives, not really. They were already pretty influential these days, courtesy of Atticus, her mother being President of MACUSA would only formalise their influence.
She got up from her seat and made her way out of the room, in search of her wayward sister. She'd left to go see Atticus and badger – sorry question – about charms given that she was nearing the end of her apprenticeship in Charms with Charms Mistress Dietrich and seemed to desperately need some inspiration for her Mastery submission.
She walked by the library and her eyebrows rose momentarily as she saw the soon to be new addition to the family just sitting there, perusing a thick tome of some kind or another.
She hesitated for a moment before deciding and she walked into the library.
The woman – girl really – glanced up from her book and Sara felt a sense of unease wash over her as those dark blue eyes stared at her.
Sophia had told her and her sister much about the orphan girl – a brilliant girl who was every bit like how Sophia imagined a female Salazar Slytherin to be.
Though she hinted that at times she felt that the girl was only humouring her if only for the fact that she was Atticus' sister.
She had not yet spoken to the girl yet despite being here for over a week now.
Oh they'd been in conversations together, Auntie Anne made sure of that, she thought amusedly on those gatherings but other than that…there had little interaction between them despite her curiosity in the girl.
'Soph never said she could have such intense eyes' she thought to herself, momentarily regretting have them set on her.
"Sara Clito-Beauclerc, correct?" the dark haired beauty asked her, startling her out of her footing for a brief second before she'd caught herself.
She cleared her throat "Yes Lady Slytherin" she said with a slight curtsy out of almost instinct, something about the girl reminding her exactly why she had those bothersome etiquette lessons all those years ago.
Lady Slytherin closed the tome and settled it on the table, rising to her feet in perfect poise, armed with a charming smile on her blood red lips. "Please call me Emily" she said with a nod, her hair swaying like perfect slips of silk.
She'd seen enough of the girl to know that she was beautiful but really...she was beautiful.
"Sara" she blurted out and in response Lady Sly- Emily, only raised an eyebrow, her lips twisting into a light smirk. "I mean, you can call me Sara" she said a little hurriedly and a weak smile.
It only seemed to amuse her slightly from the way her eyes creased slightly.
She gestured towards the seat "Join me?" Emily asked and Sara agreed readily, hoping to get past the fumbling mess.
As they sat down, Emily began to speak "So how are you finding things this side of the pond?" she asked Sara
"Oh" Sara blinked "Well it isn't my first time so it's not like it's been something new" she paused for a moment "Though it's been a little while I have to admit. I didn't quite expect to see such changes to the Alleys" she tilted her head slightly "Or Godric's Hollow. That actually reminded me of back home"
She'd always found it a little strange that there were no Magical Towns like there were in MACUSA or in the other American countries she'd been to.
"Oh?" Emily said with what Sara thought seemed to have a musical lilt to it. "I didn't know that large villages were common in Colonies"
Sara bit her tongue at the word Colonies. It was rather something British folk tended to say quite often, never mind for the simple fact that they hadn't been a colony for over a century and a half.
Though given what she had seen of how they all behaved, she wasn't all that surprised. They were positively Victorian really and it was something that Sophia bemoaned quite a bit, often decrying stuffy purebloods and their boring nature.
Probably why she liked Charles so much.
"I wouldn't really say villages per se" Sara said a little slowly "But more like towns. What with Rappaport's Law and all" she shrugged.
For a moment she thought she'd seen Emily's eyes lighten up but it had been gone so far that she thought it must've been the lighting in the Library.
"Ah, yes the law that created absolute segregation between muggles and magicals." Emily said in a musing tone as she leaned forward, those intense dark blue eyes seemed to bore into her. "It's a fascinating one, one that hasn't really been established over here in Europe." Emily tilted her head in what seemed to be a calculating way
"Can't say I agree with needing a permit to bear a wand though" She pursed her lips for a moment "Don't know how that part passed into law"
Sara grimaced. "Yes, it's probably one of the worst parts of Rappaport's Law. Not fraternising with No-Maj's probably would have happened anyway given all that business with Scourers."
"The worst kind of blood traitors" Emily said with narrowed eyes and Sara, despite disapproving of the term couldn't help but agree at least with some of the sentiment behind her words.
Scourers had been witches and wizards in the 17th Century who banded together to form mercenary groups that hunted down bounties on, at the early beginning, rogue witches and wizards who were wanted criminals.
In time, they became corrupt to the point that they wreaking havoc in North America, deeply involved in the establishment of the darker elements of the continent to the point that they were actively involved in trafficking, betraying fellow magicals to the No-Maj witch hunters and more.
It was even said that they were personally involved in the Salem Witch Trials, historians at this point only argue the number of the judges being Scourers than there not being any.
When MACUSA had been formed, one of the first things they did was to bring these people to justice but not all were caught and many Scourers had evaded capture, disappearing into the No Maj masses, holding a deep grudge with the magical community that would later haunt them.
Even today, their legacy and surviving descendants have all but ensured that any positive relations with their No Maj counterparts would be tricky given how successful they've been in integrating in the higher classes of No Maj America.
Rapaport's Law had been a direct result of one these descendants managing to breach the Statute of Secrecy with high severity, to the point it being, at the time, the greatest breach since it had been established, only to be surpassed by descendant of that same Scourer family almost a century and a half later.
"It seemed like Magic punished them anyway" Emily said with a grim satisfaction, referring to the lack of those bloodlines bringing about magical children.
She wasn't too sure about that. She'd read some of the reports of her mother's a few year ago that seemed to suggest that a decent fraction of muggleborns were born from Scourer lines, most of them having needed to be rescued from their families.
"So I hear you're a new type of curse breaker?" Emily's diverging question made her blink in surprise though she was happy for the change. She wasn't at all interested in what they'd been discussing.
"Yes" she said with a bit of pride in her tone. "I search for ruins of old magical civilisations and excavate said ruins." She paused for a moment, a frown adorning her face "I've been to Colombia and Mexico and found a few hints but nothing solid yet" she admitted.
It was frustrating really and she really hoped she made a breakthrough. There were several ruins in those countries but they were already discovered and looted.
There were hardly any new insights to be gleaned there.
"Not to actually search for lost treasures like the kinds of curse breakers Gringotts hires?" Emily asked curiously.
"Well…yes" she admitted a little awkwardly "But it isn't actually the real goal."
She frowned for a moment "I've always been curious in history and I've found that we know very little about magical civilisations thousands of years ago. I mean…we know plenty about European civilisations but do we really know all that much about elsewhere? Even in places like Egypt and Sumeria, there is a lot that is lost!" she said as she straightened up a little
"I mean even now, there is still enough work for curse breakers to go and explore Egypt on a yearly basis! And that is in one region! Imagine what we could find everywhere else!" she said a little heatedly until she saw the little smirk on that pale face and she felt her cheeks heat up.
"Sorry…I-I get a little carried away at times" she said a little sheepishly.
"Don't be" Emily said with a quirk of the head "It is good to be passionate about something." Her lips curled "It is far more interesting" she said with an intense stare, one that seemed bear down on her very soul.
She looked away, her cheeks seeming to flush even more. "Th-thank you." She said a little smile.
Her parents may have accepted this life of hers but it didn't mean they were overly supportive. Even now, even after the war had ended, she still required to have escorts with her on expeditions.
The hints of her mother regarding 'settling down' were becoming ever more louder.
She really needed success and soon.
They wouldn't be able to quietly disapprove if she made major discoveries.
"I hope to one day make it into a respected profession, something different from curse breaking and more about bringing to light ancient civilisations that should be important to the magical world." She admitted to the dark haired girl with a shrug.
"Hopefully a profession that isn't associated with grave robbing" she added with a disapproving tone.
"Technically though, that perception wouldn't change no?" Emily asked with an amused tone, the corner of her lips sharpening "You are disturbing the resting place of long dead people, raiding their treasures, no matter how you dress it up?"
Sara almost retorted until she realised the younger girl must be teasing her and paused for a moment.
"I suppose not" Sara shrugged a little with a wry smile "And I suppose it at least would attract more people to it in the first place."
"What would you call this new…profession of yours?" Emily inquired.
"Well…Atticus had me look up archaeology so I'm thinking Magi Archaeologist" She said in a little bashfully.
"Creative" Emily said with a drawl that wasn't too hard to miss.
She only shrugged a little helplessly as she scratched her arm "I suppose not" she muttered before her eyes lit up "Although…" she said with a stretch.
"Treasure Raider…" she said with a tap on her chin "Probably would attract a lot more interest than the profession being called Magi Archaeologist" she said with a joking lilt to her voice and she looked at Emily with a conspiratorially smile
"It'll be like that profession…you know those they call dragon handlers that makes people think those people are wrestling or taming or doing both even! When in reality they are doing little more than peddling dragon dung" she joked though Emily seemed particularly unimpressed with her jokes.
"I mean I'd get far more interest if people that the profession was something cool like Raiding Treasures…and instead of being called grave robbers unofficially they'd be called Tomb Raiders" she said with a little spark in her eyes though it faded away when it seemed like it wasn't funny or amusing at all from the way Emily stared at her.
"So uhm…" she tried a little after the deafening silence became a teeny teetsie too uncomfortable "Any plans for your honeymoon?" she tried and from the very visibly darkening expression she received from the girl she knew she probably overstayed her welcome.
"Weeell…" Sara said, a little drawn out as she got from her seat "Nice speaking to you Lady Slytherin" she said with a sloppy curtsy and hurried out of the Library.
She was beautiful but damn if she wasn't scary.
-Break-
24th of July 1943
Dorea Black POV
She watched as the bride walked to the groom, the pristine white and dark green strapless gown she wore flowed effortlessly even as the dress hugged her figure with perfection, the silver gems that were embroidered into the gown glittered like starlight in the ample sun.
Her silkily dark hair swayed with every graceful step, the glittering gems made it seem like, at times, that one was staring night sky each time her swaying hair passed over the shining gems. With every step, she seemed as if she just glided on the castle stones, effortlessly and in complete control.
Her presence commanded silence, the music that played seemed to lull the entire audience into a mesmerised haze as they watched her arrive by the room, her porcelain skin only seeming to be ever more ethereal with the pristine white and the dark green sash like stripes that brought out her blood red lips.
Emily Slytherin looked like a million galleons and from the way Atticus stared at her, he thought so too and they were far from the only people who thought so.
She glanced around, familiar faces, new faces and faces she'd only seen the papers were all seated around her in this renovated Castle grounds in Kent, rumoured to be on the same lands that belonged to the great Salazar Slytherin's family…to Lady Slytherin.
It was a rumour that was left unanswered, deliberately she expected, by the pair of them but given that the wedding was being held on lands registered in her name…
It only added an additional reason for many of her family's peers to want to attend, despite the cautiousness they had to display in the wake of her brother's tightening of the Traditionalist Faction.
Yet not even her brother would levy the greatest of insult by refusing to come to this wedding and even if he could, he likely wouldn't. Not when even Ministers from Slovenia, France and elsewhere arrived. Even the Flamels were here, not to mention there were even noble houses from former Grindelwald supporting nations present.
It wasn't an event to miss if you were someone though the marked absence of the British Minister of Magic was glaring, one that would only sink further the man's Ministership given his growing irrelevance in the wake of the ever rising prominence of the Sayre family…and her own.
She looked at her distant right and saw the Potters there with the Bones and the Longbottoms and caught the attention of Charlus for a brief moment before they gazed away from each other.
Since they've been back they'd had little opportunity to meet with each other. She'd been busy with her promotion at St. Mungos, her experiences in the battlefield allowed her to skyrocket to Healer rather than a Junior Healer despite her young age.
It was a point of pride of her and one she earned and not because of the name she bore. Yet it did little to assuage the growing concerns she felt at the way he seemed to…avoid her.
Today was the first time in almost a month since they'd seen each other and she wanted to talk to him yet with her brother present, she wasn't sure it wouldn't end up in disaster.
It angered her, the way he seemed to go back on his word despite everything they promised to each other.
Thankfully the Priest spoke up, drawing her away from her spiralling negative emotions and she paid attention.
The Priest, one that was trained in Druidic rites, began the ceremony which was rooted in ancient Celtic traditions. Magical Celtic ceremonies were different from the muggles, whose hand-fasting ceremony was simple and much longer than theirs.
Instead, theirs was not a year long engagement but rather a small ritual that was done in preparation prior to the wedding, one which would culminate in them fasting for the three days leading up to the wedding and remain apart from one another during that time.
It was meant to strengthen the bond that had begun to form between them after the ceremony, one that would grow to a powerful bond that lasted a lifetime.
Many marriages between noble families rarely initiated such ceremonies as it required completely consent and inklings of a bond that already existed.
Her eyes widened as the silken fabric was tied around the wrists of their clasping hands, one that showed clear markings of runes etched onto the fabric.
"You realise it then" her brother said in a quiet tone next to her and she looked to her right and saw her brother staring intently at the scene.
"I didn't think they'd would do this version of it" she whispered to her brother.
Over the centuries, over the millennia, as was with all things, ancient Celtic ceremonies evolved and changed, one of them being the dynamic between the man and the woman.
A woman would become a part of her husband's family in totality and all she owned would be his, a marked difference to the ancient traditions of their forbearers.
This Ceremony however, the silken fabric that was wrapped around both of their wrists in an ouroboros symbol which meant that they were equal in their relationship, each owning their own lands and wealth yet committed to each other with the eternal bond they subjected themselves too.
She glanced around and saw many surprised expressions at this though in a way she wasn't, not really.
Emily Slytherin was far from being the submissive type and in time she suspected many of these men would get to see that.
After the ceremony, the celebrations began, one that showed off the wealth and nobility of both Slytherin and Sayre families, as smooth soothing music played in the background.
She found herself dancing with Atticus, somehow, and couldn't help but smile at the happiness he seemed to exude despite to whom he was married to now.
"Who would have thought you could smile so easily" she teased little as they waltzed and he chuckled heartily.
"Must be the occasion" he said easily enough with a wide smile. She rolled her eyes as he twirled her around.
"Congratulations Atticus" she said warmly as they drew back together and locked step in dance.
He nodded with a warm expression on his face and he glanced away, to where Lady Slytherin-Sayre was now speaking with who she recognised as the French Minister along with a few other nobles.
"Thank you. It's been hard to believe at times" he said with a fond smile, his eyes seemingly lost "Never thought I'd be happy getting married" he said with a humour filled tone but there was hints of seriousness in there.
She could understand really.
Though the Sayres had the option, options that other pureblood families rarely allowed their scions, to marry as he pleased as long as she was of decent standing, his family could have matched him if he found none by a certain time.
She sighed internally, her thoughts once more going to Charlus and she resolved to think of something else.
"What made you decide to go for this ancient bonding?" she asked curiously, drawing his eyes back at her.
He gazed down at her for a moment before responding "We are partners. Equals. In life and in marriage" he said simply spoken as though it was merely a fact to him.
Though she could not detect any hint of deception from him and she nodded understandingly "Many people will think otherwise though." Even if she thought it admirable.
His lips twitched "We cannot control what people think" he said with a smile though it seemed a little off "In the end we can only show them otherwise"
"I'm sure both of you will do plenty of that" she said with a laugh before she eyed him curiously "After all, you seem to be showing different side of yourself plenty these days."
He looked at her with a bemused expression on his face, one that a lot more carefree than she expected "I didn't know you were all that interested in politics" he said questioningly.
"Didn't know you were either" she shot back easily enough causing him to laugh before he looked at her again.
"I seem to have a lot more responsibility these days" he said with a heavier tone than she expected.
"It does seem so, Mr Hero-From-Britain" she said teasingly, making light of the hyphenating names they were giving him and he chuckled softly at that.
"Are you a secret fan Dorea?" he said with a mischievous glint in his eyes "I'm sure I can arrange for an autograph to be given to you"
"Arrange?" she asked a little disbelievingly.
"Of course. I have to converse with my advisors before I give out anything as important as an autograph" he said with a serious expression and a moment of silence reigned before they both laughed.
After it petered out she spoke up again "Seriously though…are you sure you're doing the right thing by getting involved in…all of that?" she asked a little concerned.
Despite the well attended wedding, it was obvious that many harboured wary feelings towards Atticus, much of it stemming from the noise he was making in the Wizengamot.
When someone like Atticus made comments as he has been, championing causes that neither side of the political spectrum wanted to be voiced out, it was bound to cause many issues.
Wary feelings would soon turn into hostile ones and Atticus seemed to be careless of that.
Talks of harmony, the disbanding of systemic discrimination against half bloods and muggleborns and not least in calls for better representation for the poor purebloods and hedge mages that were on the fringes of magical society were setting powerful people against him.
Atticus smiled fondly at her before he glanced away from her "I promised Charlus that I would stay and try to change this society into one to be proud of"
She said nothing to that as she waited on him to continue. She knew what he had said, she'd been there after all.
She still felt guilty at the deception they played even if she had not approved of it. She still participated in it.
Still…
She learned a lot about him from that meeting…his motivations, his ambitions and that he was a Seer, a talented one at that.
She hadn't told her family what she knew, unwilling to betray his secrets, not when she and Charlus had agreed that they'd like to join with Atticus if Britain didn't change.
The fact that her family would likely disown her in all but name if they married also played a factor in it.
He continued as a small frown grew on his face "If I don't speak up with all this…fame I gained from doing what I thought was right, then who will?" he turned to back to her, his intense eyes bearing down at her.
"It is a responsibility, a duty I won't shy away from, even if it seems to ruffle up some old dusty feathers" he said with a small grin.
She couldn't help but smile in return. Yes, Atticus was a great hope for change.
Before she could respond he spoke up again "Speaking of old dusty feathers, there's a particularly messy haired Griffin on his way" her eyes widened
"May I" the familiar voice called out from behind her. She turned around and saw it was Charlus, dressed immaculately in fine deep blue Acromantula silk robes.
Somehow it seemed like his hair, for once, wasn't the mess that it usually was, something she hadn't notice from afar.
"Of course" Atticus said easily enough, a mirthful expression on his face before he slinked away, leaving them behind.
They stood by each other a little awkwardly until he extended out his hand, one she looked at for a little while.
She glanced up at him, a tender expression on his face and triggered her from grasping his hand. His arm snaked around her back and brought her in gently into him.
"Hey" Charlus said softly, his lips barely moving, their eyes locked on each other.
"Hey" she said even softer, quieter.
"You look beautiful Dor" he said with a gentle smile.
She met his smile with one of her own until it faded away, remembering the distance he forced between them.
"They do say absence makes the heart grow fonder" she said with a calm tone "I suppose that's probably true after all" she said with a barbed smile and narrowed eyes.
He winced slightly at that "I deserve that" he muttered. The music shifted to a song with slow tempo and she felt him draw her a little closer.
"Why?" she said simply even as she let him draw her closer.
"I spoke with your brother" he said, startling her. She stared dumbfounded at him.
"Why?" she said a little more incredulously and…a little concerned. Had Arcturus scared him away.
A serious expression fell on his face "I spoke with him a few days or so ago about my…intentions towards you" she drew in a sharp breath as he continued, a grim smile on his face "It was a meeting I requested well over two months ago yet he only allowed me to see him then" her eyebrow twitched.
Her brother had said nothing about this. She'd have to speak with him about it.
"And…" she asked carefully, concerned and hope equally shining in her eyes.
His serious expression didn't change "I told him that I would marry you regardless if he approved or not and that he'd have to kill me to prevent you from making mine" Charlus' eyes hardened despite the grin he now bore and her eyes almost goggled at that.
"You said that?!" she whispered harshly.
Charlus' grin only widened "I did. It was the most scared I have ever felt, Dor" he laughed despite the seriousness of the conversation "I felt the wards tightening around me" her eyes darkened as she gripped tightly on him.
"But" he continued, his eyes rounding back to hers, fondness shining through "In the end, he accepted and let me go" he said with a whisper and she faltered in her steps though thankfully he held onto her.
"What?" she said with a tremulous voice.
He brought her closely, their face mere inches away from each other and everything just faded away in a hazy mist.
"Dor…will you marry me?" he whispered to her, his voice nearly breaking.
Her breath hitched, her throat tightening up.
Somehow, she just managed "Yes…" she said with a fractured voice and she fell into his arms, her arms wrapped around him, her eyes closed with delighted tears.
"Don't worry about others seeing us, I managed to put under a mild notice-me-not charm" Charlus said with a chuckle, seemingly picking up on her thoughts before she'd even thought it.
She broke away from the hug and she smiled at him, the urge to kiss him was high yet somehow she managed to keep her decency about her considering where they were.
Charlus seemed to pick up on her thoughts and smiled at her "Atticus and his new wife opened the wards for us in a part of the castle so we can apparate away freely."
"They knew?" she asked surprised.
Charlus grimaced slightly "Atticus put me to task a few weeks ago about not proposing to you and I mentioned that I was planning on it. He suspected it when he'd seen Arcturus glare at me grudgingly" he said with a laugh.
"Imagine the scandal though if people saw we left together" Dorea said with a sly smile.
Charlus winced at that "We'll have to be very discreet. I'd rather not want to face your brother in an honour duel"
She smiled at that despite shaking her head "Shall we then? In an hour?" she suggested to him, her eyes entreating.
Charlus looked down at her with a fond smile and nodded.
The hour was the longest hour she'd ever recalled she waited yet by the end of that night, it had been well worth it having spent it with her betrothed.
-Break-
13th of August 1943
He stared at the subtier levels of Illos, studying intently the areas where the primary and secondary systems that would be installed.
There was too much to know with regards to how everything functions and with time he would learn it as best he could but at the moment he was rather more focused on the adjustments he needed to make to the mass transfiguration array with regards to the shape and cavities within the superstructure of Illos.
The shape of Illos would be ovoid, 77km long but it would be wider by about another 20km at its most distant from the centre.
Its height would be about 25km once completed, given ample space within the superstructure for the technological systems to be embedded.
It was incredibly tricky, to create runic arrays and enchantments that would mass transfigure the asteroid to the desired shape, especially so when adjustments had to happen.
It was better in that instance to start again rather than add additions to the existing runic arrays. The way they worked was precise, the runic bridges that allowed for multiple languages to work in sync to cause the effect he wanted, the enchantments that combined with the runes to bring out the visualisation he had in mind, well…
A single deviation would set them back for months, at the very least.
And so, here he was staring at a hologram, intimately familiarising himself with the paths and the alignments needed within the superstructure, taking notes as he went along.
After a few hours, the double doors opened and he glanced up, his concentration broken and saw that it was Moira, his expression slowly shifting to one of neutrality.
"How is the adjustment going?" she asked calmly as she gazed at the same hologram.
"Slowly" he said irritated "I've noted what I need to change but to carry out that change with the mass transfiguration" he shook his head "It'll take me all week to sort that out. I'm only glad that we've not yet carved the runes on the wardstone batteries yet" That was the saving grace in all honesty.
They had been charging for months already and it would have delayed everything had the runes been carved on them.
Not by long given that the runes could be removed from the faces as they would not be activated until they were on the asteroid itself but nonetheless it would have added to this aggravating situation.
She nodded "I see." She said musingly. He turned back his eyes on the hologram, his thoughts far away from the asteroid and wardstones.
"It's not really why you're here though is it?" he questioned not in an entirely kind tone.
"No." she said after a moment's pause, the silence stretching uneasily.
"Have you decided?" she asked. Her words seemed light but they carried a weight that felt as heavy as chains around his ankles.
Atticus turned around and faced her. He met her dark eyes, this ancient ancestor of his that opened the entire universe for him.
The same ancestor who he'd come to asking for advice with regards to the future population of Illos, advice that had sent him into a deep turmoil within his core being.
It was funny, in a morbid way.
To get where he was today, no matter how much of it may have been ordained by vengeful Ancient Humans, had taken series of small decisions…decisions that now were becoming heavier and heavier and no longer fitted in on his compass of what he understood as right and wrong.
He pushed away the thought that banged in his mind that he knew where exactly all of it was pointing towards.
"I have" Atticus said as he gazed away from her, a troubled frown on his face.
Memories of his visions came to the forefront of his mind…children looking in awe as a small Chinese Serpent Dragon he conjured swam in the air around them, dipping and licking them on the cheeks, delighting them into raptures of joy.
He'd seen some glimpses of where this was.
He'd been encircled by scores of children, all eager eyed as he'd weaved a story with animate gestures and with animate creations, at a garden behind a school building that had Grecian influences within its architecture.
They were in a place that sat at the foot of a tall mountain that seemed stretched along a curvature almost endlessly…a curvature he recognised.
His fingers gestured towards the hologram, the subtiers fading away as the superstructure that would be Illos came into view. He zoomed into it, the view of the mountain that stood front of the curvature that encapsulated the lands of Illos become apparent.
It was a possible future...it did not have to happen. He knew that. It also did not have to be the outcome of what he and Moira had discussed…yet, he felt it in his bones that future would only come if he…
"I agree." He said finally, softly, another decision that he knew would condemn him began to settle into reality.
"There is a need for it if I wished for Illos and the ideals to last more than a generation. A foundation is needed and this will allow us to build one unimpeded." He added, words said that did not bring into light the disturbing reality it truly meant.
Those visions, however much it made him accept his decisions, did not make it any easier to process the discomfort he felt.
The way it would be done, was humane, perhaps, and that was a small solace in comparison to what could be done yet it remained a harsh violation of free will…
…and a theft that robbed much.
"It will allow the transition of your future citizens to become smoother if they share with a people who were raised in the culture and in the way of life you wish to instil in the rest of your kind. A group of people who will simultaneously reduce the problem and at the same time give you the strength and support you need in the future."
"Which are the main reasons I agree" Atticus turned to her, his eyes hard. "Doesn't mean what we will be doing to their parents isn't awful."
"Of course." Moira said agreeably "It is unseemly but it will not adversely impact any of the parties involved, safe for the biological mother's time. The biological father will not remember and the mother will be encouraged to not pay it any mind"
Moira looked at him meaningfully, her eyes silently chiding him "And the children will have a future greater than any they could have had, even if by some small chance their parents had met. You know this."
He turned away from those ancient dark eyes, his gaze fixed on the holographic image of Illos.
Sometimes he wondered if Moira had ever been a blessing to have discovered but rather a noose that wrapped around his neck.
He shook his head, banishing away those thoughts knowing that the decisions he was making were all on his own.
Not even Emily knew about this…this research in how to solve the grim problems that Illos would have from the onset including the troubling realisations of their population problems.
The population of witches and wizards was small, too small.
There were less than two million of them and a significant bulk of that was scattered around the world in isolated communities. The war in Europe didn't aid them in their numbers either, the final death toll was close to fifty thousand souls…
Fifty thousand souls that would take generations to replenish with the small population growth of magicals as whole, something that may not even happen with how aged the population truly was despite the constant influx of muggleborns into the Magical World, even keeping in mind of the constant doubling of population of muggles in the mid to late 20th century and 21st century.
Magicals had children at a relatively young age, on average around twenty five to thirty five years of age and could still have children well up to their eighties though it was rare.
But almost all stopped after two, an heir and a spare. A significant proportion of the population stopped at one. There were some exceptions…like the Cornfoot, the Smith and the Weasley families but they were exceedingly rare.
That meant that there was a real population problem, one where fertility rate was at sub replacement due to losses in war and in inane conflicts, each generation after the last less populous than the one which preceded it.
Even if they did not help instigate another conflict, that trend would only continue.
As an example, the population census in Magical Britain, one that had proven to be more difficult to get a hold of than he had expected, showed a steady rate of decline for centuries even as muggle births increased many folds thus increasing the chances of squib descendants meeting and giving birth to a magical child.
There were several factors responsible for that, of course.
A significant factor being that it was actually hard for purebloods to bear children to maturity, his own mother a prime example. Six pregnancies and only two children who had been born for longer than a week.
It was compounded by the fact that childbirth could be dangerous for witches even if it should not be so with modern healing capabilities, mostly because the mother's magic would do all it could to have their child survive if there were complications, even at the cost and detriment of the mother's health, all because of the mother's intent for their offspring to survive.
Though the most obvious cause of population decline, in Magical Britain at least, was the hostile environment to muggleborns who then moved abroad to the US, Canada or to Oceania – places who had a much stricter interaction policy with muggles and had their own pressures on family sizes.
Another was when it came to wealth and opportunity at both scales.
The children that went to Hogwarts were mostly either from wealthy families or they were muggleborn who attended at a reduced rate and often nearly free. The poor magical raised children who attended Hogwarts were mainly invited on scholarships but with a debt that had to be repaid to the school.
Those who attend Hogwarts were likely to obtain a greater paying job – as long as you weren't muggleborn – than those who did not and tended to become at the very least middle class which meant they followed social conventions set by the nobility.
Both parents if neither were from a noble or wealthy family worked, the relatively egalitarian nature of magical society allowed it and once the expected heir was born, both would continue to work and rarely planned to have an expanded family.
The children that were neither attended one of the smaller schools in Britain or were home schooled. Many of these children tended to be either too poor to afford Hogwarts or were not above the minimal magical strength threshold required to attend Hogwarts.
The children of these families had little prospects within Magical society unless they connected and driven, tending to drift in life. Some of his newly vassals came from such families and the family units always remained small.
Though even with the barest of knowledge of magic, life was easy enough as purebloods and half bloods were able to gain employment as help for a store or a farm easily enough earning the galleons they'd need for food for the small families they'd raise.
Then there were the children of the isolated fringes of Magical Britain. These children tended to be from families that were at the fringes of magical society, hedge witches and wizards, those who were predominantly farmers and who provided a significant amount of the food and potions ingredients to Magical Britain and Ireland. Kind of like Amish people.
Those people did not have large families either, despite being able to support it, suffering from the same ailments of wider Magical Society.
The Human Development Index was something he remembered reading in his old life as part of his lessons in History, one that combined to provide a value dependent on factors such as life expectancy, education and per capita income.
One that had an inverse relationship with fertility rates.
Magic was wonderful. Impossibly and inconvertibly so.
And as time marched, so did their understanding of magic…and made life easy, adding a factor to the Human Development Index for magicals.
Life for even half educated magicals was easy. Death rarely was expected before the age of hundred and twenty, even the most deadly of diseases could be fought off with potions with a high chance of survival.
Only conflict – war or familial – whittled down the population of magicals and in long peaceful times, knowing your great-great-great-grandparents was very common.
This meant there were very little pressures or advantages upon a family to raise more than one or two children, despite a large section of the population being relatively poor.
Most of Europe was like this whilst in the other places, there were similar factors – such as it being easier to protect one child against hostile neighbours, whether they may be magical or muggle – even if there was not a nobility class like there was in many places in Western Europe, Africa and Asia.
Yet wars happened at least once a century and a half, one that wiped out entire generations, the same constrictions that their people held themselves to becoming disastrous, continuing to whittle their population down.
And it had been like this for centuries if not millennia.
Most of the developed muggle nations wouldn't get to this stage until the 21st century and even then, there was still a fair amount growth even if it was minimal and their population sizes were great enough to allow for such small growths.
But not for witches and wizards. Growth rate was just over 0.5% a year across the entire world wizarding population with most of Europe dipping into the negatives.
Moira had access to the entire history of human development and Sparkly Dawn did not need long to filter out muggles growth rate over the last five centuries and focus on magicals.
Despite only being able to roughly measure the wizarding population due to the interference of magical energy (something he had only found she could do after Grindelwald had been found) to truly discern a perfect census, they'd found that population growth over the centuries was only 0.5% with an estimated current number of 1.7 million people.
That meant in 2062, the total wizarding population would only touch 2.2 million optimistically without a war or pandemic, a paltry increase over the course of more than a century.
And all of this culminated into a global problem that had to be tackled…
One that Illos would inherit if he was not careful. And it was not something that could be solved by forcing those who would make Illostheir home to pop three point five kids out.
It would not and could not happen like that, even with his fame…his legend.
People believed in legends and would follow them but to shed beliefs and their way of life that had been instilled in them from birth?
That was no easy feat and something that they were working on changing in a small scale to see how successful they could be before Emily's wider plans would be set into motion.
Both he and Emily were working in Magical Britain and Ireland to prepare the future generations of their home nation to ideals that would make merging into Illos easier.
The creation of schools for the ages four to eleven would allow them to influence the children to their way of thinking, exposing them to ideas and notions that would stick with them, making it easier for them to eventually conform to Illos.
From a business point of view, his companies and sectors would become a cornerstone in Magical Britain which would subtly promote certain aspects and beliefs, beliefs that he would repeat within the Wizengamot and in the media until his exile.
Already his M-Phones were a high success, the first enterprise that had been rolled out in Ireland, France and Britain. Similar creations existed but never this abundant or affordable even to the poor.
Chances of complete success were relatively high, his legend in Britain and Ireland was huge and she was rapidly becoming someone who was admired by the public.
But that was two nations of many, two that would be significantly easier to subtly change into societies that could adapt and merge with the society they planned to create because of their existing influence, familial history and heritage.
Things they would have significantly less of in other societies around the world and who would prove to be resistant.
It was a problem they were tackling already, Emily's plan of instigating a devastating dissolution of the threads and binds of Magical Society would see to that.
Magical Britain would be the epicentre but the rippling effects would devastate other nations far greater, if things worked out as they hoped, allowing them to pick up the pieces and remould them with time.
It was a monstrous act to plan to commit, he knew and it was one of many to come, and it left him no better than the many Dark Lords that sprang forth throughout history.
But it was necessary for a future where he aimed to build a harmonious magical world that could strive to the height of greatness he envisioned for his people and other magical creatures.
All that they were doing, all that they hoped for, would ensure Illos and everything that it would stand for would permeate through every single magical society, absorbing them all into its grasp.
Eventually that meant that Illos would need to be open to more than those he and Emily personally 'invited', even before it was time to move planets.
And he did not doubt Illos would seem like a beacon in a dark night…not when Illos would seem like Olympus or Asgard, a place of wonder and awe.
The problem was…
They would come with their own ideals, their own culture and their own way of doing things, making it harder for them to grow a society that would push Wizarding – all magical – kind to greatness.
One that would grow into a single great civilisation.
He did not have the centuries he would need to force them to unwillingly conform and even then, the likelihood that force would allow things to settle down enough to form a stable civilisation was low.
History proved that. Humans had long memories…Magicals even longer.
Emily's plans of breaking them down from the shadows was good but it wasn't enough.
Broken people they may become, but absent of long history and ancient culture they would not be.
It was a problem.
As a people, they needed more than to share land, share neighbouring homes.
Community was needed.
Shared ideals were needed.
Culture, morals, sports, principles…
A shared future…
Beliefs…
There were many factors that bound peoples together.
Something that could not be manufactured but could be grown.
Magicals may share magic but humans, no matter what branch, were tribalistic and would take time for differences to be reduced into nothingness, time that Illos and magical kind did not have, not on the timescale they were working on.
No…
What was needed, one that would help solve many of these pending societal issues from the influx of different peoples is to have a society already in place, one that would prove this society's and its peoples' superiority in everything, creating an environment that permeated through the newcomers…those ideals that placed value on larger family sizes, magical and scientific advancement, something that would be difficult to persuade everyone to do otherwise.
And this society…
This society would need to have an unbreakable foundation.
A foundation that he would have to grow and teach from birth.
Children who would grow into becoming the spine of the society from which it would shift and change with all the positive inputs other people who wished to make Illos their home would bring but always would ensure the survival of the tenets of the society he wished to call home.
They would help him slowly introduce the basics of technologies, science and the philosophies of Ancient Humanity to pace their civilisation into one that could mature without outpacing its cultural development.
And when it became time to move all away from Earth and all other forms of governance were disbanded, in time, all of these different societies would disappear even if some elements of their cultures were retained.
But time…time would take care of that.
However, that…that was a long time away…and many many crimes away.
"Has Sparkly Dawn finalised the numbers?" he asked her, his hands moved delicately, bringing into view the architecture of the nameless City, staring at the long smooth towers that meshed beautifully with the rest of the city.
"The Servitor has." Moira confirmed "I have catalogued three million six hundred thousand people who have the requisite genetic strands and necessary lower end of the social hierarchy that have the highest chance of birthing a magical child in the regions you had us sample. Of those numbers, two hundred thousand are within a hundred kilometre range to meet without interfering in a greater degree that might draw suspicion."
He had her checking DNA of people from regions that were nearly completely unmonitored by the ICW and other magical governments for genes associated with having magic.
To hear that there were that many people with the genes…
He turned to her with a frown on his face. "That is a relatively high number. When you consider that Sparkly Dawn only mapped the genome of several hundreds of millions in the world"
They had truly nanoscale nanites that were capable being dispersed into a region and perform their pre-programmed functions with a terrifying efficiency and speed.
The more he knew of The Facility and its capabilities, the more he understood that Moira's supposed duty far extended than what she had said it was.
The story of those Perceivers of her people made that abundantly clear. He doubted her mother had saved her from the genocide of their people simply because of a mother's love.
He suspected she had a far more active role in the development of humanity than she'd ever cared to admit.
Emily's distrust of the woman was well earned.
The problem was, her uses were too great and she was helping nearly completely, leaving him to make choices even if she led him to certain directions.
Directions that he may have thought about but never expected to truly head into…
"It is, statistically speaking. When you factor in that these people also reside in locations where there once were or still is a significant…Magi-" Moira said that word in a mildly disapproving manner.
She had classified witches and wizards with a name that he hadn't been pleased about. It was…bland. Nearly as bland as the name Ancient Humanity had for itself in their language.
The People.
No.
Magi might not be the best name though it was better than what the muggles had called them, but he'd figure out a way to get a respectful name by consensus by his people.
She continued "-it makes logical sense. Remnants of interactions, of abandonment…"
"Alright, I understand." He paused for a moment before he took a deep breath. "Let's begin the operation. My elves are ready to place the paired items with compulsion that will be keyed to them specifically once they are have been activated. We will begin with a thousand first"
A thousand children born out of their machinations to pair squib descendants until the women were pregnant and to take that child from them. The father would leave after the pregnancy was confirmed and forget over time, whilst the mother would be spelled to forget the child, associating it with pain.
It was an evil thing to do…to both parents yet he also knew that it was something that would hardly faze most magicals raised in magical society.
There were plenty of magical countries that took in magical children from squib descendants and made all who knew of the child forget.
What he was doing now was merely facilitating in them being born in the first place.
His hesitancy in doing this was strong.
Before he had been reborn, he would not have hesitated.
Not when he knew how damaging parents could be.
But then he was reborn to Anne and Markus Sayre.
Two parents from whom he came to understand love and what it meant to love.
A possibility he was robbing these children of.
He could not See the paths of these children, he did not have that power. His visions were what Magic allowed him to see, for now, and he could not direct it in a meaningful way.
How many would have had a happy childhood with parents that loved them? How many would not?
…How many would survive to adulthood?
Magical children born to muggles, especially in religious and/or poor communities rarely fared well there, many of them dying whilst those who lived to adulthood rarely even touched a tenth of their potential.
Was it right of him to play God and have these children be born only because of him and the need he had for them?
"Pluto was dim and grows brighter and stronger, Mars is bright, will become brighter before it dims, before it slumbers"
Words of the centaur from the Forbidden Forest said to him in what felt like a lifetime ago.
Pluto was associated with the underworld and with forces outside of the realm of man…forces such as Magic herself, forces such as the machinations of trillions of long dead humans…forces such as death and rebirth.
On a personal level Pluto meant a power struggle with oneself, or with others and was indicative of someone who is manipulative.
All things that was intimately tied to him.
All things that were growing brighter every moment that passed…
It was not a coincidence that struggle within himself would grow at the same time conflict, Mars, would grow brighter before it dimmed…before it slumbered.
The things they'd do within the Magical World, the conflicts they'd enflame…
He sighed as he dragged his hand across his face.
In the end, will it even matter?
These questions he posed to himself when he knew that they would not change the decisions he'd already settled on?
Their only purpose being that they were tearing up his conscience even more than it already was?
At times he wondered if being reborn was not a curse…the expectations that he had of himself…the expectations that was levied on him…
Yet…
Wasn't that what he wanted in the first place?
Purpose?
A destination that made sense as to why he had been reborn?
"Build the boat tall and high, sturdy and hard, for it will carry Her children." The centaur intones, with all the severity it could muster, as plainly as it could before it adds "All of her Children" with its eyes wide and unblinking as its gaze bore down on him
He smiled bitterly at the memory.
If only he knew what it truly meant for his soul…
"I will have them monitored" Moira said with a slight smile breaking him out of his turbulent thoughts.
He glanced at her with a grim look on his face.
No one will know beyond himself, Moira and Sparkly Dawn.
No one else needed this harrowing crime on their conscience though it was more because he felt ashamed he was doing this in the first place…
Sparkly Dawn had recently been keyed to him in the same way the AI was keyed to Moira and all of this was classified under the highest level secrecy.
Eventually he would ensure that he'd find a way to destroy all memories and knowledge of all this in the AI and in The Facility when Moira left in a few years' time.
"It is not easy, I understand" Moira's voice broke through his thoughts and he glanced at her, eyes unkind despite the soothing tone her voice took.
He smiled grimly, one that teetered on anger, borne out of self-loathing.
"Were these the kinds of decisions your people made? Decisions that destroyed all definitions of decency, morality and compassion?" His words were not said with what he felt but it was not difficult to read between the lines.
Moira's expression shifted, one that bore hints of compassion and grief before it became one of visible tiredness.
"All the time." Moira said, her eyes gazing at the ceiling, as if lost to memories "Perhaps that is what doomed us in the end, decisions that were taken, surgically…immorally."
He couldn't help himself laughed and despised how bitter it sounded "Yet you lead me to…this" he gestured with a lazy sweep of the arm. "This…path that I cannot help but believe is the right path to take if I wish for my greatest dream to come into fruition" he shook his head disgusted before he rounded up on her.
"Yes I know" he interjected her, breaking her from saying what he suspected she would say "It is my choice to deny the right of choice to others." He said in a shuddering breath, releasing the building frustration and loathing he felt.
"I will not ask why you're so interested in helping me do this for I know you would not answer it" he shook his head, his teeth clenched
"Or perhaps I don't ask because I fear your answer" he said with a meaningful glare at her.
Moira's expression didn't change even under his glare and he sighed, almost defeated.
"Yet when it comes down to it, it is my choice to do unthinkable things that make the very idea of Illos a joke to all that would ever find out what it took to build it." He said quietly, his eyes closing as he did so.
He hadn't even realised until that moment how much he had wanted to be a better person than the one he had threatened to once become in his first life.
How much he wanted to be the person the public thought he was when he was really the farthest from it.
Perhaps that was part why he felt so alive when he was with Emily…someone who had changed and continued to change, far from the hateful creature she threatened to turn into.
She'd never be compassionate but she was becoming a better person even if it was far from the normal level.
And, in the end, he had not changed from who he had been…someone who used others to achieve his ambitions and goals.
Wealth, family, magic did not change him.
The lives of future generations of magicals may end up bright, brighter and greater than the likely future that would end in possible extinction because of war with muggles…but it was borne out of the selfish desires of a single man.
He was no longer deluding himself that he was saving the magical world.
It would have always led to this road, his nature dictated it so.
Manipulation and control…
And…
And perhaps that was why he was reborn in this world…that facet of his existence helping to guarantee salvation for hundreds, thousands of magical species even if it doomed his very soul.
A touch on his shoulder startled him, his eyes snapping open, his head tilting upward and met her dark eyes.
"Civilisations are never built without pain, grief and strife." Moira said with pity in her eyes, conveying more than the words she said.
"And the responsibilities that one bears for their people rarely leave one lighter." She added, quieter and more solemn.
He couldn't help but close his eyes at that, his thoughts going back to what would happen.
These children, once born, will be left at local orphanages before they are taken by his elves who will masquerade as muggle couples. Some will be left there for a few years and picked up by his newly made vassals who will work in conjunction with Hale.
And he would be responsible for every child, whether they were born with magic or not.
It is the very least he could do after…this…is have them raised all the same.
"Perhaps, then, I should run from those responsibilities?" he said with a hesitant smile as he opened his eyes, his attempts at lightening the heavy weight on his heart far from successful.
There was desperation in it, one that he felt more and more keenly as the point of no return arrived.
One that warred with the conviction and belief he felt in what they were doing was necessary for optimal success.
Moira smiled at him understandingly "We both know the answer to that" her tone kind.
Yes…
They both knew the outcome.
He let out an inaudible sigh as he gazed passed her, focusing on the result rather than the actions that would yield said result.
Moira was right in the fact that these children would be part of a great future, he would ensure no less.
They had his loyalty and his care even now before they'd even been conceived.
They would be the cornerstone of their home.
What would make it all worth it.
Yet…
Despite it all…
He couldn't help but feel that, in the end…
In the end, he was no better than Grindelwald at all.
-Break-
22nd of August 1943
Lyra Silamontaine POV
She followed the oddly dressed elf as she walked passed the high ceiled corridors of this place she arrived in with a portkey with a frown on her face.
Lord Sayre had asked her personally to come regarding a matter that was relevant to her. She didn't have a clue as to what it was about.
Well, she did, kind of. Though they had not spoken personally since the Knights of Mimpost was disbanded, officially, she knew that the offer to work for him in some capacity was open without an end date.
It was something she was grateful for and she knew that in the time since many of her former comrades had taken him up on the offer but she wanted to first explore other options even if she didn't want to rejoin the Hit Wizards.
She wasn't keen on fighting in any capacity again…her nightmares were terrible enough as it is.
She knew there were other things she could do but she didn't want to be completely beholden to Lord Sayre as she knew she would be had she accepted any of his offers.
She respected him greatly, he even held her loyalty in some way but it scared her to see many of her comrades so…fervent.
To see herself so fervent…
She got caught up in the fervour that night in France, after he'd come to speak to them all and it had frightened her.
"We're here" the elf said, startling her out of her thoughts.
They arrived at the doors which opened with a snap of the elf's fingers. "Please go in, he is waiting" the elf said and popped away without another word.
She gulped a little and she walked in.
The room was a little bare though brightly illuminated with white lights, only a table where he stood by was present.
He turned around to her, his arms behind his back, his expressive eyes boring into her.
"Miss Silamontaine" he said smoothly.
She bowed from the waist "Lord Sayre" she said respectfully.
He smiled at her "You may call me Atticus if you wish" he said to her.
She hesitated, something he caught on "Lord Sayre is fine however" he said easily enough and he segued into answering the very question that wracked her mind this entire journey "If you're wondering why you are here, beyond the vague message that it is relevant to you, you may follow me to find out" he said calmly as he turned to his heel, heading towards the doors towards the far end.
Her eyes widened but she cautiously followed him.
She passed the double doors into a poor lit room and she felt a little tenser as a feeling of concern washed over. Her footsteps seemed to echo slightly on the hard cobbled stone.
She rounded around a corner and saw a hospital bed that seemed occupied from where she was approaching, and she glanced around, saw that it was almost as bare as the other room though there was a cabinet filled with books on its shelves not far from the bed.
He was standing in front of the bed, obscuring her from seeing who exactly might be in the bed and she made her way towards him, a frown on her face.
"Lord Sayre, I don't unders-" her words died on her lips as she finally saw who was on the bed.
She felt as if someone had knocked the air out of her lungs and hit with a cricket bat on the side of her head when she saw who was on the bed.
Her face was pale, paler than she'd ever remembered, no sign of her light olive skin and rosy cheeks she'd been enamoured with.
"A-Amelie" she gasped out in a shakily wobbly voice as she reached out to her with a trembling hand.
She felt a firm grip on her wrist and she snapped towards him and saw him looking at Amelie with a grim expression.
"When we went to deal with Drakul" he began, his voice solemn yet calm and her eyes widened.
"No…" she whispered, horror and disgust roared within her until shame filled her at the disgust she felt towards Amelia.
"Imagine my surprise when I came across someone I recognised from a few battles we fought together" she glanced back at him and saw him looking at her with knowing eyes "someone I recognised being close to someone who I have come to treasure"
She swallowed harshly and looked away from his gaze and back at the sleeping form of Amelie.
She seemed so peaceful, barely breathing.
"Is she…" she whispered almost inaudibly.
Fate was cruel…too cruel.
She had thought she'd perished in Belgium and she found herself wishing she had perished then.
She closed her eyes at the pain she felt, the shame and guilt that seemed to unfairly weigh heavy on her.
Amelie had been unexpected…to the say the least. She'd managed in a small amount of time to get through to the barriers that she'd trained herself to build up.
Amelie's sense of justice and firm position on what was right and wrong had felt like a breath of fresh air in an environment that was becoming ever more blurry.
All of their late night discussions had always ended up in Amelie standing headstrong on her principles and she had found so attractive and after that, she became more than just a comfort, more than a body she'd share a bed with.
Someone who she had been falling in love with…someone she loved.
"No." he said to her great surprise.
She looked at him confused "Then…"
"What was she doing there?" he completed her question and she nodded warily.
He pursed his lips for a moment "I'm not a hundred percent sure…we didn't exactly interrogate the vampires there" he sighed for a second "But I'm pretty sure that either De Galle or Grindelwald were responsible for it" she tensed up.
"She's not exactly human anymore" he finally said.
"What have they done to her?" she asked with clenched teeth.
"I'm not sure." He admitted to her "It seems like she's some kind of hybrid. She can eat normal food but blood seems to sate her more." He paused for a moment "It does seem though that her eyes are quite sensitive to light hence the darkly lit room."
"Have you…experimented with her?" Lyra asked, a little more heatedly.
He glanced at her and shook his head "No. Only did a few tests to see what her condition was…to understand what has been done to her." He hesitated for a moment before he continued.
"Whatever was done to her physically, wasn't the worst thing they did to her. Her mind is…fractured to the say the least"
She closed her eyes.
Amelie didn't deserve this. She shouldn't even have been there in truth.
She was a fine Auror but it would not have been what she would have become if not for the war…if not for the death of her family.
"Can she recover?" she asked quietly as she reopened her eyes, staring at the still form of her lover.
He remained silent for a little while. "…Possibly" he said with a sigh. "The one good thing in her favour is that she has a soul"
She snapped towards Atticus, her eyes wide. "What?" she asked disbelievingly. It was well known that Vampires were soulless creatures.
"It seems whatever they did to her, had the side effect of allowing her to keep her soul. She is not undead. She edges towards living more than she does being dead."
A flame of hope bloomed within her chest. "Then…" she said with a shuddering breath.
"I'll do whatever you want if you help her" she asked. It must be why she was here.
"No." he said shocking her and she turned to him dismay but was startled to see her smile at her.
"I won't hold treatment against you in return for servitude" he said with a frown. "I'm not…" he trailed off for a moment. "We have been comrades and you have fought with me." He turned back to Amelie. "It is only right that I help you with who you care for the most."
She swallowed harshly, touched by the sentiment and the gesture. She grabbed his forearm and squeezed tightly, knowing that she was breaking several social conventions.
"Thank you." She said gratefully and he only nodded gently at her before she glanced back at Amelie.
Fate was cruel, she decided. Only Fate would try to return the person she loved the most in this world as a Vampire hybrid, the near same thing that haunted her dreams.
Yet Fate would not defeat her in this. She'd do all she could to help Amelie. Not even returning as she did would prevent her from doing so.
-Break-
18th of September 1943 – Seshit Institute of Magic and Science
He watched Credence speak in front of the highly attended lecture hall, speaking on his experiences with Dark Magic and the duelling techniques that he'd witnessed over the years in the company of Gellert Grindelwald.
It seemed natural, the way he spoke and how he managed to capture the attendance of the audience.
He had a solemn way of speaking yet it was far from suffocating, drawing attention to himself with ease as he spoke.
Good for him.
He did mean what he had said to Credence, even if it was not completely without reason.
Second chances should be offered to those who were worthy of it.
"Impressive, isn't he?" he heard someone say next to him though he had known that he was approaching.
He glanced at the old man before fixing his eyes back at Credence.
"Yes." Atticus said, a small smile creeping on his face "One of my better decisions"
He could see Credence becoming a world class professor in no time.
Nicolas snorted "your decisions?" he said with a harrumph "I seem to recall that it was my decision to let him teach."
Atticus' lips twitched as he stood up from leaning against the wall and turned to Nicholas "If you say so" he said with a light grin as he stepped around.
"Children these days…no respect" Nicholas muttered from behind him.
Soon enough he exited through the tall oak doors and into the beautiful oval central courtyard, trees wedded into the background whilst lusciously green grass lined the cobble path that crisscrossed through the courtyard, each parting path leading towards a doorway of one of the buildings that surrounded it.
It was late afternoon and there were plenty of families with their children and young people conversing with each other in the spacious courtyard without an ounce of concern, an air of freedom and carefreeness was visibly discernible.
It brought a small smile on his face. Nicholas stood next to him, his arms behind his back. "It's growing, the student population – both the post NEWTS and the primary school. The end of the war and the invitation extended to the devastated families, orphans and others who just wanted a new start has been accepted by a large number of people" Nicholas informed him.
Atticus nodded "Good." He paused for a moment "Has the acceptance rate been high?"
Nicholas grimaced "Not quite" he admitted. The quality of students wanted at SIMS had to be high after all. Not just anyone could attend. They did not discriminate but they had academic standards.
They did not want to waste anyone's time if they were unable to keep up.
"But enough" Nicholas added before he continued "Those that have been rejected, especially the younger peoples, have however found their feet here in Ireland" Nicholas looked at him. "The initiative offered by the Irish Ministry has been too enticing for many too ignore."
"Good old Connor" Atticus said with a light grin at Nicholas who only chuckled.
The Irish Ministry, Connor Freyrie had been more than a little helpful with their endeavours and it seemed like it wouldn't end. The success of the M-Phones, the taxation it provided, the prestige of SIMS, all of it was something that had re-elected him this summer back into office.
When they'd approached him with housing and enrolling some of the younger people into the Irish Magical School whilst the older people could find employment in the growing enchanting industry spawned by his companies or the growing specialist greenhouses that he was funding, he was more than happy to accept it.
The public may not have accepted hundreds of muggleborn children but they would accept others like themselves, namely purebloods that came from the ravaged continent as a result of the war.
The orphans that were younger than sixteen would be housed in Britain with the promise that they could attend the Irish Magical School if Hogwarts didn't accept them.
His popularity was never higher and it benefited them all.
"The promise that they would be accepted should they meet our standards makes it quite obvious that we will see quite a few of them in the coming years" Nicholas said.
He nodded "As it should. After all, education should not be denied to anyone who sought it" Nicholas only inclined his head in agreement.
Nicholas checked his pocket watch "Perry will likely be waiting for us in the office"
"Lead on then, Mr Flamel" Atticus enthused.
Nicholas looked at him with amusement "Well then, please follow me Mr Tien" and so they went off, through the crowded courtyard, people nodding with respect to Nicholas whilst they only gazed at him curiously, an unfamiliar face.
He was under a particularly strong illusion spell, one that was very different to how he looked normally.
Dark skinned, thick curly hair with a prominent jawline and rich black eyes, how he remembered he had looked like in his first life though as time went by it seemed like he was remembering less and less clearly of his own former appearance.
Perhaps it was because time faded all, despite his Occlumency or perhaps it was a case that he no longer associated himself with that life.
It was a fascinating little exorcise if nothing else, on the topic of identity.
They arrived at the headmaster's office, cabinets lined the walls opposite the large window that overlooked the central courtyard of the campus.
Perry stood by that window and turned around as they walked further in, her eyes squinting "That is a particularly excellent illusionary spell" she commented appraisingly.
He chuckled as he dispelled it "It's a spell with its origin from the latter years of the Byzantines"
Her eyes lit up "Ah, the Byzantines did tend to be quite excellent in illusionary magic. Likely a result to improve on some of the techniques used by the Persian Immortals" she nodded understandingly.
She clapped and three cups of tea arrived as they sat down and conversed lightly about the status of SIMS and what the school needed.
It was in an excellent condition and he was proud of the school and its success and he knew it was done to the two people before him.
They talked about the state of Illos, something that all of them had been excited to discuss. In perhaps a few weeks he'd introduce them to Moira, bringing them fully into his confidence, something he knew he would need to do with several other close confidantes in the coming years given what he planned in the future regarding magic and technology.
The conversation turned towards the topics that he suspected were coming after they subtly made references to it until he was asked point blankly.
"So, you're making a mess of things politically" Perry said with a pointed look, hidden behind the cup of tea she was sipping on.
He leaned back in his chair "I wouldn't necessarily call it a mess of things" he said with a little smile.
"Really?" Perry said a little sceptically "From what it seems like you're antagonising both sides quite a bit, each faction having something hold against you."
Atticus inclined his head. He'd proposed that they employ measures similar to Rappaport's Law, fracture interaction with the muggle world nearly completely and to investigate signs of magic more thoroughly in children and to assess households accordingly.
The Progressives faction wasn't well pleased with that, particularly by Fleamont Potter who said that Rappaport's Law was an overreaction and that they didn't need to do that.
Accusations of prejudice and fear mongering had been made quite amply though he countered with carefully picked facts, namely the evidence provided by current Hogwarts students along with former students with regards how experiences were as a child with magic.
He argued that it was not unlike social services in the muggle world, that they had a responsibility to ensure every child of magic was well cared for and that it was not a drain on resources when it would only take at most a few days at a time to investigate.
One might wonder why he was aiming to sever contact with the muggles given his own interest in that world but he wasn't truly seeking to achieve it. He'd already been approached by several Lords who would be willing to whip up support in return for favours.
It was part of a long game, one that sought to ensure would keep a record of his words and proposals for when they would become something to be sought to be employed after his self exile.
Same goes for the traditionalists like when he advocated for standardized testing of positions in the Ministry to ensure the best candidate was picked, the implication clear in his words.
"Your fame will not insulate you forever" Nicholas warned and a frown grew on his face "What is the reason to it all?"
"Reform, even with my fame, will not be possible to the extent that will be needed in Britain, I recognise that" he said with a grim smile and they caught on.
"You don't actually aim to achieve what you're advocating for" Perry stated. Atticus inclined his head.
"No, I don't. But the public will know what I am for" he told them.
"And with your controlling interest in the major papers in Britain" Nicholas filled in and Atticus didn't bother correcting him. At this point claiming IMP was independent of his and Emily's will was pointless to these two "You can make sure it's not twisted in any way you don't like"
He inclined his head in confirmation "In the end, I don't wish to remain in Britain for the long term"
Nicholas' expression darkened for a moment "Tell me you're not instigating conflict all so that you can ferry people to Illos"
He shook his head "I'm not" he said honestly. He wasn't. "I have no interest in causing war or conflict." A lie. "But Illos will open its doors to people, eventually, that may wish for a future independent of Britain." He shrugged "They will remember my words when Illos becomes known to the world."
Nicholas gazed at him with inspecting eyes. Perry spoke up next "There are better ways of getting people to move rather than making enemies in the way that you are"
"Perhaps" Atticus acceded. There were. But this was the course that was set.
"It seems like we cannot dissuade you from this route" Nicholas said curiously and Atticus only smiled.
"No." he said softly "I do think that I need to shake things up and I've got the influence to do it"
Perry sighed as she eyed him for a long while "It seems you are fully aware of the consequences of your actions" she stated to him and he nodded, slower than he intended.
The conversation settled into other topics such as their findings about Nagini's blood curse, their current prognosis that it was a failed method of tying an animagus form to their bloodline was fascinating to consider and soon enough the cloud of his political games dissipated yet never completely.
-Break-
22nd of September 1943
Lysa Hardy POV
She knocked on the door.
"Come in" she heard. She opened the door and walked through and saw the husband of the patron of the orphanage standing by the window.
He turned around and she was reminded of how young they both really were. She'd seen him in passing a few times but they'd never talked.
"Ms Hardy" the young man said with a smooth cultured tone. He gestured towards the seat in front of the desk "Please take a seat"
She did as she was bid and she sat down, nervously waiting under his gaze as to why she'd been called here.
"Is Lady Slytherin going to join us?" she asked tentatively.
"No" he said, shaking his head. "She is currently occupied with House business" he told her.
She nodded. Lady Slytherin had been the person who had hired her after all as one of the first staff members.
The orphanage had been running fully a few weeks before the end of the academic year at Hogwarts and she'd been part of it since the very beginning.
Before, she'd been a governess for a number of noble pureblood houses over the decades, her ancestry as part of a minor noble pureblood house, even if she was a half blood, allowed her that much.
But, as the children aged, she'd always been let go without another thought. Most times it came as a blessing even as it tore at her heart, even if her heart had been torn away years before.
Children she'd practically raised from birth and had often called her mother in their adolescence would, without fail…pay nary a thought to her by the time they were seven or eight, understanding that she was not someone who should be important to them.
It was heart breaking each time and yet she'd take another governess role without fail again and again.
She knew it had been self-punishing, the way she'd long for what she would never have of her own body yet she could not help it, to try and build bonds that would never really be returned.
When this opportunity had been advertised, she'd almost agreed to another governess role but the uniqueness of a magical orphanage, one where she would not have to move from for years and decades to come as she might have in the muggle world given that she would age much slower than them, had been a little too enticing.
She never really cared about muggles or magicals – her father had been a muggle – and children were children, magic or not.
"How are you finding things?" he asked her with a curious tone in his voice.
In truth…it was different…caring for older children who she had no bond with and she found herself missing her governess role despite the heartaches she knew would come her way.
It was not as…fulfilling.
"Fine" she said with a practiced smile "It's been a learning experience caring for so many children" she paused for a little "But it is quieter now with them off to Hogwarts" There were only four children now, all of them squibs that had been abandoned by the side of the road, obliviated of all their connections to their family.
It was cruel what was done to them. She supposed it was better that then what she knew happened in…certain types of households.
For the moment, they would remain here for a year before sending them to a boarding school as they were being tutored to their required year group.
"I see" he said with a gaze that seemed to be able to see right through her. His lips tightened minutely before he tilted his head "You were more involved in caring for younger adolescents, were you not?"
She nodded "Yes. Families would hire me to care for their newborns and to tutor them as they aged." They hired her to do what they should have been doing.
He leaned back in his chair, his eyes seemingly unblinking "It must be a little unfulfilling caring for children only for a few months, extenuating circumstances notwithstanding" he said in a musing tone.
"I wouldn't say it like that" she hesitated for a moment "But somewhat" she admitted.
He said nothing for a little while until he broke the uneasy silence "There might be an opportunity to care for children at a younger age, orphans that will need governesses" he gestured with a flick of his hand "Mothers really…" he said with a piercing gaze.
She frowned a little confused at that "Mothers?" she asked, a weird feeling passing over her.
He nodded, leaning forward, their gaze remaining unbroken as she felt that strange feeling seemingly fading away and a longing bloomed within her. "Yes…mothers. Children that will need someone who will care for them...play with them…love them."
She remained poised as one like her should, despite the smile that threatened to bloom on her face.
"They don't have any parents?" she asked, still a little unsure despite the hope she felt.
He shook his head, a sad expression falling on his face "They don't" he said a little quietly "They are parentless, motherless and they are in need" his hypnotising eyes seem to draw her in with little resistance.
"I-I…I could be their mother?" she said with hopeful filled in her voice.
"You would do that for them?" he asked with surprised etched on his face.
Confidence and conviction filled her as she nodded primly "I would do that for them. Every child needs a mother"
"You will love them? As if they were of your own body?" He said with a voice that seemed to echo in her mind.
"I would love them as if they were my own" she said firmly, her expression breaking a little "I always wanted children of my own" she admitted in front of someone who practically was a stranger.
She wasn't sure why but she felt like she could tell him anything.
"Good." He said with a smile, one she could help but return. He really did have beautiful eyes.
Lady Slytherin was lucky. He seemed to smile wider as he spoke "It will be a little while and it will be a place far from here" he tilted his head "It won't be an issue, will it?"
She shook her head "No it won't." she was going to be a mother! It didn't matter where she'd be.
He nodded with a pleased expression on his face "Good. There will be a few things we'll need to go over in private over the next few months so we'll see each other enough then" he said and she nodded her acceptance, knowing a dismissal for what it was.
As their eyes broke contact, she blinked and she shook her head a little.
"Are you alright?" he asked a little concerned.
"I'm fine Lord Sayre. I think I stood up a little too fast" she said with a tired smile. She bowed to him and departed, missing the darkened eyes that belonged to a tight face.
No, her mind was far from able to register anything other than the persistent train of thought that she was going to be a mother, one that caused her to feel a sense of joy she only felt when she cared for children in moments she'd forgotten weren't her own.
This time…this time she believed things would be different.
-Break-
25th of September 1943 – ICW Headquarters Alexandria
Ramirez POV
He walked into the central office room after being escorted in. He'd never been in this part of the ICW.
In front of him was a single, round black table with three people seated next to each other with a sole chair marked out for him. He glanced around and his attentions seemed to falter from focusing on anything for longer than a second.
His eyes narrowed at the magic, knowing that it was incredibly intricate for it be able to do that. Notice-me-not charms were not as persistent as what that magic was.
The doors closed behind with an echoing thud and he spared the space behind a single glance over the shoulders before he walked forward towards the sole chair.
They said nothing as he approached, even as he stood a little longer and he realised he couldn't discern their features. They were under the same spell as the rest of the room was in.
"Who are you?" he asked sharply, his patience rupturing.
He'd been told by his superiors that he was wanted by their superiors' superior who he had not even known they had. He'd been under the impression that they answered to the Council of Mugwumps and the Supreme Mugwump but it seemed like that was far from the case.
"Mr Ramirez" the man in central seat spoke up "My name is Huntelaar. The names of my associates are irrelevant as to the purpose you are here."
He narrowed his eyes "I can't accept that. Huntelaar? I have never heard of that name before and I'm fairly high up in this organisation" he scoffed.
The hidden man seemed to tilt his head "Of course you wouldn't. It is simply an alias."
Ramirez looked at the man incredulously "And you expect me to keep up with this farce?" he shook his head "I will be speaking with Mr Prior about this." He said as he turned on his heels, heading towards the doors.
"We are Mos." The hidden man said, stilling Ramirez in an instant.
He turned around, slowly, tense and wary.
"Impossible" dripped out of his mouth. "You're just a myth. Something to haze newbies." He said sharply. A myth to dissuade from new members from ever even thinking off committing treason.
"Far from it, Mr Ramirez. We are very real. Myths always have a basis in truth in some degree" the hidden man said.
"And if you take a seat, you will be told exactly why we exist and what we do." The man added.
Ramirez thought it over for a moment and decided to at least listen. He sat down, eying the obscured men warily.
"What do you know of Mos. Humour us." The man on the right said, his voice distinctly unremarkable.
Ramirez waited for a moment as he collected all the information he knew on the organisation, sifting away the ridiculous rumours whilst keeping the gist of what he had been able to understand of what they were meant to be…supposedly.
"That Mos is an organisation within another organisation, the ones in the shadows of the ICW." Ramirez pursed his lips as he paused for a moment "That you to the Unspeakables with the Unspeakables are to the rest of us."
"Interesting. You've filtered useless information and extremes to get to a core." The man on the left said.
"Competent reasoning skills" the man on the right said. Ramirez' eye twitched at the condescension.
The man in the middle spoke up "Mos is not an organisation within an organisation. Mos is the organisation."
Ramirez looked at the man sceptically "What does that even mean?"
"It means that the International Council of Wizards is not represented by the Council of Mugwumps but by the three of us."
That surprised him "What? That can't be true. Any major decisions are made by the Council of Mugwumps and we have to carry it out, it is what is mandated."
"When it comes to matters of infringing the Statute of Secrecy and cooperation of governments. Not when it comes to the operation of the ICW itself" the man on the right said.
"Do you not wonder why there are so many departments of the ICW that only nominally relate to the upkeep of the Statute?" the man on the left said.
"The ICW is much larger than you know it to be and we are what direct it" the man in the middle said.
Ramirez remained quiet for a moment. He had many questions but the most prominent was what he wanted an answer to.
"Why am I here?" he finally asked.
"Mr Ramirez" Huntelaar said, his hand folded in front of him "You are here today because of this"
A folder was slid towards him.
Ramirez's gaze remained on the obscured figure of Huntelaar for a moment longer before his hands went towards the folder.
He opened it and saw a strange landmass in the middle of a frozen sea.
"And what is" he gestured towards the images "this?" he asked.
"That was where we have retrieved the remnants of Albus Dumbledore's body and that of Klaus De Galle." Huntelaar said.
He looked on with surprise "Alright…" he said slowly.
"Killed either by a spell that could wipe out an entire muggle city like New York or by a Thunderstorm the likes the world has not seen since elemental mages of the antiquities." The man on the left said.
"It took that much to kill Albus Dumbledore?" he asked disbelievingly.
"No, it was what it took to kill Gellert Grindelwald." Huntelaar said.
He straightened up "Impossible. I saw Sayre kill him."
"Sayre did kill him not at Mons." The man on the left said.
"He killed him weeks later, away from sight." The man on the right said.
"How do you know?" Ramirez demanded.
"Divination." Huntelaar responded.
Ramirez laughed "Divination?"
"What you know of Divination" the man on the left said
"What the world knows of Divination" the man on the right continued
"Is very little to what is possible." Huntelaar completed.
Ramirez stared at the three figures for as much as his attention allowed.
"I see." He said after a moment, the chair beneath him scraped against the floor.
"I've had enough of…whatever this is" he said shaking his head and twisted on his heel walking towards the doors.
"If you leave through those doors you will never find out who could be responsible for Magic dying out in the world" Huntelaar said stopping him from walking any further.
"No more wizards."
"No more witches"
"No more magic"
He clenched his teeth and he grindingly turned around, unable to resist seeking out an explanation. "Explain" he demanded.
-Break-
Months Later…
21st of December 1943, Antarctica
Abraxas Malfoy POV
"Cheer up Malfoy" Carrow said in a mocking tone as they trudged along in the deep snow.
Malfoy stared at him with disdain though Carrow only laughed at the sight before he began to pace faster to catch up with Dolohov and Nott.
A strong gust of wind kicked up some snow from around him and coated him somewhat, his warming charms briefly not protecting him from the cold touch that soon enough turned into water.
He allowed a sneer form on his face as he stopped and looked around with disdainful eyes.
Snow covered hills and mountains dominated the landscape with frozen and lifeless plains, if you could call it that, nestled in between those mountains.
The winds, though mild as they may be in strength, licked at his body uncomfortably even if he was covered to the brim with warming charms and thick robes that had been handed to them when they arrived at Riddle Manor.
He had no idea why she took them there when she now resided in the ancient Sayre Manor now as Lady Sayre.
Lady Sayre…
His nose wrinkled. It still made him uneasy to think of her such a way…a wife to someone…
Not when he'd seen her true face all too often. An image of her face illuminated with dim light as her lips curled into a razor sharp smile, Gubraithian flames dancing in her dark glowing eyes, came to the forefront of his mind.
He shuddered from the thought of her even performing her wifely duties. She was a Basilisk in human form, terrifying and utterly capable of destroying you but with the slightest of efforts.
Though…
Even Basilisks need a mate, he supposed dryly to himself.
What had been a surprise was how genuinely happy she looked at marrying Sayre at the wedding.
Even now he could not help but think it was all purposeful on her part but he had to concede now that it may actually be genuine.
He didn't know why they decided to marry so young, at only sixteen and eighteen years of age and he doubted they would tell him, if he dared to ask such a personal question.
The papers mentioned it not either, preferring to focus on the wedding itself and the history of both of them.
Britain's Golden-Son-Who-Prevailed and the Lost-Daughter-Of-The-Founders was what they had been called in the papers and the public had eaten up, in blissful cheer.
A wedding of the ages to celebrate Sayre's triumph over a Dark Lord who wanted to destroy them all.
And so not a day went by where they would not be mentioned…for months until the wedding and just as long after it.
Probably was an easy decision given how everyone wanted to know everything about it, to the point that even his mother pestered him about what he knew. She even wanted to know if he knew what dress the future Lady Sayre would be wearing!
Nowhere had been safe and even at Hogwarts as his fifth year concluded, rumours were rife and some had speculated that she might have been pregnant and they were marrying to make the child legal whilst other speculated that the near death fight against Grindelwald had made the two realise that life was short. Those two had been the prevailing theories at the time.
Time proved that the pregnancy rumour had been false and he had no doubt the second was likely just as false.
He'd seen her use the platform of her wedding to entreat with several high ranking officials, even several Ministers who came from countries that Sayre had liberated, so it wouldn't surprise him if she wanted to capitalise on the fame the Sayres had now.
The eerie silence that surrounded him broke him out of his thoughts and saw Dolohov, Carrow and Nott were far ahead of him.
He sneered for a brief moment before his legs carried him forward in the heavy snow. The snow crunched under his steps, their sounds carrying in the winds with ease. He stared forward, a bright red light that hung in the sky that they were being led to reach.
She'd gotten them here via portkey and once they arrived, she told them that they would have to walk the rest of the way, pointing towards the red light, telling them to reach it whilst she apparated away leaving them behind.
He regretted taking the offer she'd presented him. He could have been in Corsica enjoying the temperate sun instead of constantly reapplying warming charms to avoid freezing to death.
He gazed upward, the marvellous colours of the aurora borealis, blues, purples and greens, seemed to dance in the sky despite the high noon sun.
When she had told them that she was hosting a gathering of like-minded individuals during the Yule break, he had been excited.
His father had praised him quite often on his relationship with the Slytherin and by proxy the most famous and influential man in the Magical World, none more so when Sayre had defeated Grindelwald.
He shook his head. He still had difficulties wrapping his mind around that feat.
He remembered seeing his father's grim face when they'd met during Hogsmeade that week and told him that he had to do all he could to keep close to Lady Slytherin.
Not that it was difficult, after all, he was in her inner circle. His father had not demanded of him to tell him about Lady Slytherin's acts, not after he saw her in the Wizengamot chambers when she'd been summoned.
His father instead had told him that he trusted his judgement and that he knew what was expected of him as a Malfoy.
'To survive and thrive, wherever the coin fell'
Words that Malfoys knew and lived by.
He understood the game had changed.
Though…
He supposed it changed the moment Sayre and Ri-…Slytherin met.
He sighed. "How things changed…" he muttered to himself as he closed the gap between himself and his allies who chattered and chittered with each other, no doubt thinking this some kind of foolish adventure.
He remembered the notions he held when he'd seen her power in action during their first year…when she had been thought as little more than an upstart mudblood daring to enter Salazar's House and performing above her station.
He'd seen her exude her power and he had known then that she was no mere mudblood. Likely some offspring from a dalliance with a filthy muggle by one of the nobles who'd forgotten to kill their prey. No mudblood could be that powerful or dark without lineage.
They formed their group, one that had been for returning their society before the blood traitors had managed to suppress their traditions, their magic, the elevation of mudbloods and promotion of the idea that muggles were equals.
With the command she had over magic, the ruthlessness and how quickly she adopted the right ways, she'd been one of the leaders until with time she began to edge them all out. She may have been little better than a half blood bastard but it suited him.
Her strength would not come from politics but from her power and those who followed her and that made her controllable in a small way.
She hated the muggles all on her own and had embraced the ways of the Magical World, her anger was true when she'd learned the invasion of muggle ideals and worst of all, the muggle religion.
She'd called those who believed in a Christian God to be true blood traitors, the very people who despised them for what they are.
Ever since then, he thought brightly about their future and the elimination of blood traitors from position of power, returning mudbloods to a mere step higher than house elves.
Notions…notions that began to wither when he witnessed her growing interest in the Sayre heir and died completely when she came out as Slytherin's heir and took complete control of Slytherin House and all of their ambitions were nothing but dust in the wake of her own as all kneeled before her.
But it had not mattered truly…he was following a true Slytherin.
His doubts had been cast away after her acts and the reveal of her heritage that she was not growing soft because of her relationship with Sayre.
Even when she proclaimed that mudbloods and blood traitors were not enemies, he had not broken faith, not with Slytherin's Heir.
And he'd been right.
She seemed to be playing a game larger and wider than he had ever suspected, one that his father believed Sayre was deeply involved in.
They were nearing the red light now that shone even in the intense light of the sun, like a beacon beckoning them forward, calling them forth towards wherever Slytherin wanted to lead them to.
She posed the question to him, one that made him understand that mudbloods weren't the problem, only the way and where they were raised. Society did after all need lower classes.
By incorporating them into the Magical World as soon as they display the slightest bit of magic, any further infestation from the muggle world would die and that suited him just fine.
If it meant he had to tolerate mudbloods to ensure the greater evil of muggles and their filthy ideas remain out of the Magical World, he would do it just fine.
Malfoys knew compromise.
Sayre was no fan of muggles either, despite his nonsensical views about science, and is famously known to adhere to many of the ancient beliefs and rites.
His wedding that had been done in the Ancient Ways was proof enough.
And now…with the death of Dumbledore, wherever and whenever that had been, the so called Light Faction were left without a genuine leader and a reduced coalition with many defecting to Sayre's Grey Faction which was now the largest faction within the Wizengamot, especially with the allies that Slytherin pulled by moving into the Grey faction as well.
Not even his outrageous speeches that seem to inflame many people on the Wizengamot was able to halt this leakage.
They may call it the Neutral Faction or their official name Coalition for Magical Advancement, but it was most certainly a Grey Faction, resurgent and powerful under the stewardship of the Sayre-Slytherin leadership.
The game was changing and Malfoy's always made sure they changed accordingly.
His father remained allied with the Blacks who took on complete control of the Dark Faction with his acts in Scandinavia, earning him prestige and respect and permanently quelled any hints of disobedience from his allies.
Though no one had said it, everyone expected the Sayres and the Blacks to dominate the Wizengamot for decades to come.
His father was allied with the Blacks and he with the Sayres.
An arrangement that would protect the interests of the Malfoys and keep them close to power.
The trio before him stopped in front of him, gazing upward at the red light that began to descend down.
"Why have you stopped?" he asked in a mildly irritated tone, his unhappiness of the situation clear to see as he caught up to them. He stopped just a few steps behind them, his eyes now turning to the red light.
"We're unable to walk any further" Nott told him with a frown before he glanced up at the still descending red light.
He glanced at the others who seemed to struggle to move forward from where they stood. It took several steps before he too stopped in his tracks.
It felt like he was walking into a soft but firm wall with his feet stuck to the ground.
He almost lost balance before he took several steps back and regained his composure. He looked around and saw the reddening of the environment as the red light ever encroached closer albeit in its slow crawl of a descend.
"No don't" Nott snarled at Dolohov who stilled at Nott's shout at him and whose wand was pointing towards the wall that was stopping them.
"Why?" Carrow asked surprised at the vehement snarl that came from Nott's lips
"I have read from my family's library about barriers like this." He said to him, a pale expression on his face "They're the 'friendly' variants of death wards. There are many types of barriers but they all fell out of favour when easily maintained wards that didn't need very expensive wardstones became popular."
"So these are unusual wards" Dolohov said unimpressed as he eyed the space in front of him "And why is that important enough to almost scream at me?" Dolohov asked with a raised eyebrow.
Nott scowled "Because the friendly nature of the wards goes away as soon as you try to attack it and then you will understand why they're still called variants of death wards!" he shouted at Dolohov who looked wide eyed at the shout that echoed in the desolate air around them.
"Alright, Nott, calm yourself" Carrow tried to calm Nott with a hand to his shoulder. Nott almost shrug it off but he breathed out for a moment before he looked to Dolohov who looked peeved but it was clear to see that he was unsettled. None more so than the fact that he put his wand back in its holster.
"Apologies Dolohov" he inclined his head "I have read the things" he eyed the space before them warily "they can do to people. I'd rather not end up as a red paste on this white desert"
"Accepted" Dolohov said stiffly, no doubt still aggrieved at the tone he was spoken to.
"Let's just wait for that light to come down." Carrow paused for a moment before he brightened up and swivelled to Dolohov, his index finger waggling at the boy "You owe me a hundred galleons! I win the bet!" he laughed triumphantly.
Dolohov looked offended "How can you win when we don't know what's on the other side yet?"
"No one would use wards like these if it isn't some kind of treasure!" Carrow exclaimed, his eyes gleaming.
Dolohov's counter died on his tongue as they were bathed with red light that caused them all to stiffen.
They all turned to the red light which was now very close to them. They could not stare at it too long, its harsh glare though not as bad as the sun was bad enough that you could not stare it too directly for any large amount of time.
The light seemed to be just a light, no form or structure to it otherwise.
"What's hap-" Carrow's words stopped as the light blinked out into nothingness leaving them perplexed.
Before anyone else could speak, the space before them began to shimmer before a four by four square metre passageway opened up before them, revealing that whatever lay behind that passageway was far from what they had seen before.
The ground looked brown and patchy though with hints of green growth, with puddles of water whilst in the distance, he could see long thin structures that looked like they had no end.
At either side of the passageway, the same frozen desert they'd seen before was there.
"An illusionary ward" Nott murmured wide eyed.
"You know this magic?" Dolohov asked intently.
Nott glanced at Dolohov and shook his head "I don't, not really. Vinda Rosier's use of illusions made me interested in the branch of magic." He frowned "It's one of the trickiest branches to do right. It requires immense concentration to maintain and why most illusionary enchantments are little better than repelling wards. I have not read anything being possible of this scale." He paused for a moment before he smiled a little before a hint of amusement entered his eyes. "I borrowed this book from her last year"
They remained silent for a moment as they looked at the passageway a little warily.
Carrow stepped forward and began to walk towards the passageway.
"What are you doing?" He asked Carrow sharply who simply shouted over his shoulder,
"Can't let our esteemed leader wait too long. Hate to make her angry!" he shouted as he passed the boundary and kept on walking.
Malfoy scowled for a moment before Dolohov followed suit. "We're here now, might as well see it through" he said to them without looking back.
Nott looked at Malfoy "She made us swear an oath, Malfoy." Nott tossed Malfoy the two way portkey which he caught before he met Nott's eyes again. "Why do that if it's not going to be worth it?" Nott grinned slightly "You have to admit, the last time we were bound by secrecy, she surprised us in ways none of us ever expected" he shrugged and began to walk towards the passageway.
Malfoy stared at Nott's back before he looked at the portkey. He clenched the portkey in his hand and turned his gaze towards the passageway.
He began to walk towards the passageway having decided.
Nott was at least right in that she would not have made them swear oaths at Riddle Manor had it not been something worth protecting. If he turned back, he doubted he would ever know until everyone knew.
Was it another test of loyalty she was springing on them?
He walked through the passageway, an odd sensation to be sure and when he turned to his right, his eyes widened whilst his mouth was almost agape, an uncouth thing for him to do but he could do no other thing.
He saw a megalithic structure his right, a crystalline structure that seemed to be several metres across and many many times that high as he craned his neck upward.
Several hundred metres upward, he saw a connecting crystalline bridge like section that arced around towards other megalithic structures that were perhaps over a kilometre away from the one nearest to him and it seemed like it continued on and on.
He broke out of his daze when he heard his name shouted by Carrow who he turned towards and beckoned him over.
Malfoy walked forward and sidestepped a puddle of water and grimaced at the sight of muddy ground. He'd have to wash burn his shoes once he gets ba-…
Mud?
He only just realised how warm it was and he cancelled the warming charms and realised that there was very little difference. The warming charms kept the temperature at 20 degrees Celsius, just as it was in the open here.
How…
"Do you feel it?" Carrow asked excitedly and Malfoy narrowed his eyes.
"Feel what?" he asked as they began to walk forward. He wasn't sure if they were going the right direction but ahead of them was elevated, almost a mountain and it should give them a good vantage point.
"The magic!" Nott said with awe, his eyes closed even as they walked, a look of contentment on his face.
Malfoy looked between them all with a wary look before he frowned in concentration. It did feel different but he thought it was because of the temperature but there was something familiar to it…almost like…
"Hogwarts…" he whispered and Nott's eyes snapped open and turned sharply to Malfoy with gleaming, excited eyes.
"Yes!" he said as calmly as he could which wasn't very much.
"It feels as saturated as Hogwarts…if not even more so" he almost finished in a whisper as they began the climb towards the peak of the elevation.
"But that can't be" Dolohov shook his head "Hogwarts is old. It took centuries to feel like this"
"Who says that this…place isn't as old as Hogwarts?" Nott questioned.
They remained silent as they continued their walk, questions whirling in their minds.
They finally reached the peak and looked down at the sight before them with awe.
There was a huge inland lake before them, likely where all of the water had pooled when the snow had melted. They were on the rim of a long chain of mountains that almost encircled completely, given it an appearance that might have been a crater. But that wasn't what caught their attention…
What took their attention were the thousands of figures who stood silent and still in rows upon rows upon rows.
"Why are we here…?" Malfoy muttered, his eyes fixed on the figures before him.
"Perhaps we can ask them" Carrow told them and their eyes turned him before they fell on where he was pointing towards.
In the distance, standing on atop a peak of one the mountains that surrounded the lake were a group of people who were did not seem lifeless as the figures below them.
They looked at each other, all of them wary.
"She could be there" Nott mused aloud, voicing their hope as they'd like an explanation of what was going on.
They were used to her being…secretive and evasive but this was just several degrees beyond that.
"Let's go" Dolohov said aloud and began to journey there. He sighed with a deep long suffering exhale of air before he too began to walk towards the group.
Not much was said, their focus entirely towards treading the path towards the figures were who growing larger as they neared.
They transfigured the ridges into flat surfaces when they were too difficult or strenuous to pass, the pleasure of using their wands outside of their homes during break soon became lost as the tediousness nature of the act was wearing on all them.
"I wish I brought a broom" Carrow complained pitifully. He looked the most tired out of them.
"The scale of this…" Nott trailed off though not without drawing attention from the rest of them.
Nott saw them looking and answered. "The kinds of magic making a place like this is just unthinkable"
Abraxas looked at the huge crystalline structures that dotted all around them in a circle. They stretched high in to the sky.
"Who could have made it?" He finally asked.
"Who can tell?" Nott shook his head "I don't doubt that there probably several places like this around the world, hidden until someone finds them centuries later."
"El Dorado was like that too" Carrow supplied. "The muggles had heard of it from some locals in the Americas and that it was a regular muggle city which it wasn't. It needed someone with magic to breach the wards and eventually the Anopakalous family managed to pip everyone to it."
Malfoy looked around them. This place may not be as desolate as outside the wards but what could be hidden here to protect it under such wards?
The remaining part of the journey was largely done in silence and it was an hour later that they finally were close enough to the crowd of people that he began to recognise them.
"Is that…" Dolohov trailed off.
Carrow growled "Of course it is."
"Rockwood" Malfoy sighed.
Of course he'd be here already.
He'd thought that Rockwood hadn't been chosen when they'd arrived at Riddle Manor.
He knew they all liked that. It had meant that the number two position might be open to one of them.
"Who else is with them, I can't see her there" Dolohov said aloud.
They seemed to be seated next to each other towards the lake below them with several tables around them and a tent behind them.
"You recognise them as well?" Nott asked. Malfoy glanced him and nodded.
"Who are they?" Dolohov asked.
It wasn't a surprise Dolohov didn't know them. He wasn't all too involved in British nobility and their gatherings despite being of noble origin of Russian descent.
"They are our esteemed leader's in laws" Carrow supplied unhelpfully before he squinted his eyes "The old couple, I don't know. The others I don't either…wait, is that Melissa's second cousin?" he asked.
As they walked towards them, the old couple broke apart from the group of people.
As they neared, they were approached by the old couple, people who looked oddly familiar. "Ah you must be Emily's friends." The old man said jovially.
Malfoy glanced at Nott. Friends…?
Not likely.
"Yes, we're the best of friends" Carrow said with a grin with a glint in his eye as he bowed towards the couple "I am Alard Carrow Heir of the Most Noble House of Carrow" he stood straight back up and swivelled his arm towards them
"And this is Antonin Dolohov, Heir of the Ancient and Noble House of Dolohov, Abraxas Malfoy, Heir of the Noble House of Malfoy and Theodore Nott, Heir of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Nott"
The old man clapped, a mirthful glint in his eye "Welcome young Heirs. If you follow us, we can offer you some refreshments after what I'm sure was a long and tiresome journey here"
They perked up at the word 'refreshment', himself included.
"Did you also have to walk this much?" Carrow asked of the old man, at the same time Dolohov asked
"You haven't introduced yourself" Dolohov said flatly.
"No we came via portkey." The old man smiled at Carrow.
Abraxas' eye twitched.
"Forgive my husband's absentmindedness" the old woman smiled at them kindly and looked at Dolohov directly "I'm Perry and he is Nicky"
Malfoy eyed them suspiciously "Of House…"
They both turned around and smiled at him though it certainly did not reach their eyes. The old man spoke up "You'll find out soon enough dear boy." The old man gave him a pointed look "Names are not the only thing that matter, child. As a Malfoy, you should know that being amidst heirs of much older Houses" The old man extended his arm and his wife snaked her arm around the arm and they proceeded to walk back towards the group.
Carrow snickered slightly before he hummed as he followed them
He twisted his face in disdain but said nothing further as he followed them. The fact they were around the Sayres meant that it was likely they weren't nobodies.
He kept his tongue under control.
Soon enough they made it to the little camp.
He saw the women of House Sayre standing there with incredibly tall woman of some exotic origin, perhaps Indian. He saw the old man Sayre there too.
His eyes looked at the others and noticed that it was indeed Parelius Parkinson, Melissa Parkinson's cousin, someone who had joined the Knights of Mimpost from the beginning and fought alongside Atticus Sayre. Similarly, he recognised Gerold Dayton, the Sayre retainer.
Rockwood waved at them lazily as he sat in a recliner seat, a glass of pumpkin juice in his hand.
His right eye twitched at the sight. He had to slave to get here and no doubt Rockwood was given the same portkey as the old couple.
His eyes went towards the remaining two others and narrowed his eyes slightly. What were these mudbloods doing here?
He recognised them from Hogwarts and at the wedding too. Derek Saunders and Sandra Kilburn. Two mudbloods that had fallen off after Hogwarts just as most mudbloods did only to somehow resurface at the Sayre wedding.
None had said anything, lest they risk the ire of the Sayres but his mother had complained about it, just as he imagined many others had for sharing such an occasion with mudbloods.
He did not pay them any further attention as his eyes swivelled towards the ladies.
"My Ladies" Malfoy bowed from the waist.
"Heir Malfoy" Dowager Sayre acknowledged him before she did the same to the others.
Sophia Sayre curtsied "Heir Malfoy" her tone was neutral, just as it was when she repeated it for the others.
"This is Moira Yprikushma, a…relative of House Sayre" Dowager Sayre told them.
The mudbloods came forth, as did Parkinson and Dayton. Lord Benedict Sayre nodded to them afar but remained at a distance.
They were introduced to each other. He plastered his most polite smile as he nodded to the mudbloods, one that he practiced enough at Hogwarts…in line with Slytherin's demands.
Parkinson and Dayton nodded firmly at them but offered nothing else before they went into the tent that he presumed was expanded with spatial charms.
Rockwood came up to them, a grin on his face "About time you guys arrived! What took you so long?" he asked.
He resisted to strangle the boy in front of him and he could see a murderous intent in both Dolohov and Carrow.
Nott wisely was the one who spoke up, albeit in a neutral expression "We walked." He said flatly, staring pointedly at Rockwood. "For over three hours."
"Ah" Rockwood said a little awkwardly scratching the back of his head. "I didn't think she'd do that" he murmured to himself but loud enough for them to hear.
She talked about it with Rockwood?!
He glanced at Dowager Sayre who looked to be a close eye at them and he played his hand on Dolohov shoulder who turned sharply towards him and then followed his eyes and visibly calmed down.
The last thing they wanted to cause an incident. Dolohov gave Rockwood a last glare before he walked off towards the tables.
Malfoy's eyes finally glanced at the table and saw it stacked with all kinds of food.
"Please help yourself" Dowager Sayre said and no sooner as those words escaped from her lips, Carrow sped walked towards the table and began to eat. His groans of delight were embarrassing though it only seemed to bemuse their…hosts.
After satiating his hunger, he left the other three to their feast and sat next to Rockwood who was back in his recliner seat.
He stared at the odd group of people before him, the tall woman and Sophia Sayre in particular who seemed to be in deep conversation.
"Why are we here?" he asked finally.
Rockwood cringed before he glanced at Malfoy "Can't say"
Malfoy's right eye twitched.
"All I can say is that it'll be well worth it."
"Well worth walking for hours like a filthy muggle?" Malfoy's tone was low, laced with anger.
Rockwood looked helpless for a moment before he gave up and shrugged. "You can tell me in…" he whipped out his wand and frowned as he looked at the time "In 47 minutes"
"If it helps, I don't know much either…she only gave me hints" Rockwood told him.
He stared at Rockwood for a minute before finally deciding that he had waiting this long…waiting less than an hour was little matter.
After the others had finished eating, they all waited together until everyone other than themselves had begun to walk towards the edge of the mountain.
He followed suit as did the others and glanced at them before following where their eyes were looking at.
He began to feel slight tremors through his feet. He looked around and saw everyone else had felt it too.
The tremors increased in strength to the point that it was becoming difficult to remain standing until it simply vanished.
He looked around and saw the old man, who was next to him, had taken out his wand and seemed to have stabilised them all.
He winked at Abraxas before he looked back up.
The sudden arrival of a huge shadow made him sharply look up and he almost fell on his backside.
The wards in the distance were shimmering away as a huge thing began to descend downwards, the size of it growing and growing until it cleared the wards and a huge mountain sized rock was floating directly in front of them though at least a dozen miles away from them
"What is that?!" Carrow exclaimed in shock. "Is that a floating mountain?!"
"That my dear is an asteroid. One of many found beyond the orbit of Mars" the old woman told them.
They turned to her with disbelieving looks on their face. "Mars?" Nott was the one who asked. "But Mars can't be reached, let alone beyond it"
The old woman enigmatically at them before she turned her gaze upward again. "There are many things you think is impossible that are only targets for your friend Emily and her husband to reach"
Abraxas swallowed harshly.
She had to be lying.
But the sight before him was undeniable.
It was an oddly shaped bulbous rock that was somewhat oval shaped, likely more than several miles wide.
A deep glow began to emit from the crystalline structures that saturated the air even more with magic, so much so it felt like he was swimming in it.
"How…how is this possible" Nott asked with awe.
"Magic, my dear child" the old man said jovially, a glint of excitement in his eyes "Magic and ingenuity. Pay attention, you have seen little yet."
Abraxas took the moment to look at the Sayres who were looking on with concentration. He saw Dowager Sayre holding onto the hand of the old man Benedict who looked strangely emotional.
'Why was he here?'
He glanced to Nott who he managed to catch his eye and saw that he was thinking the same.
Was it to show how far beyond them all she and her…husband were?
He remained silent as he watched the remaining part of the asteroid descend.
Lights seem to pop into existence and he soon realised that it was in the shape of those huge crystal like structures he'd seen when he'd entered this place.
They began to glow, brightly, like the morning sun as the huge rock continued to descend until it seemed to settle, like it was lying on an invisible net in mid air.
"D-did…Did they make this place?" Nott's voice was trembling and he snapped his eyes at the boy. He was pale, paler than he'd ever seen him.
"They did" the old man confirmed with a smile.
"They can't have…" this place was just as magical as Hogwarts was.
Loud sounds of cracking, breaking reverberated in the air and he unconsciously took a step back, fearful at what he was seeing, what he thought was happening.
The old man chuckled, drawing his attention. "Do not be afraid" he said with a mirthful tone in his voice "It's only changing." The man said with a glint in his eyes.
Carrow's eyes seemed to goggle "Y-you're Nicholas Flamel" he said in exclamation.
Malfoy's eyes widened. Then that old woman…
He was here with THE Flamels?
Before he could think on it any further, the creaking sounds grew in volume drawing his attentions though not before catching Lady Sayre stepping forward next to that tall Indian woman and then he saw.
He saw the very surface of it changing, shifting like it was coated by a thin film of water.
The coat on the surface seemed to grow thicker, a rippling velvety glowing wave seem to encompass the entire piece of rock, leaving behind a shining silvery grey surface.
"Transfiguration…" Nott whispered awed. "They're transfiguring it." He said with a baffled, shocked laugh.
"But why? It won't be permanent." Malfoy protested.
"Won't it?" Lady Flamel interjected with what he could only interpret as a mischievous glint.
He swallowed harshly.
It was impossible.
Surely…
He'd known Sayre was a transfiguration master, one of the brightest in centuries but to think he cracked permanent transfiguration…
The shape of the rock – former rock – began to change, flattening, smoothing.
"Merlin…" he whispered, shaken to his core.
What he was witnessing today…
In what only seemed like moments, as he stood there transfixed, unable to move a single muscle, it began to split as it began to glow brighter and more blinding than before.
Malfoy had to shield his eyes to protect his gaze yet it was impossible to witness the shadows that were cast in the far distance, growing and growing as the intense light dimmed until they were all submerged in what seemed like dim darkness.
"They've done it" he heard whispered.
He looked to his right annoyed and his eyes widened at the sight. It left him speechless.
He saw a look of awe on Nicholas Flamel's face.
"Nicky, you're shocking the child" his wife said with humour as she glanced at them both before she looked at changing asteroid.
"Don't be so alarmed, child. Even those as old as us can be surprised and awed. Today is one such occasion"
"What does he mean with 'they've done it'?" he asked before he looked at the asteroid again and he was taken aback at what he was seeing.
"Impossible…" he whispered, his mouth agape, any thought of uncouthness lost as he stood on trembling knees at what he was seeing.
What had once been a mountain sized piece of rock was now a massive metallic structure that stretched into the distance to which he could see no end.
He couldn't even see above it, beyond it, it obscured the sun completely, even its light and the only source of light they had was the dim glow of the structure above them all.
It was incomprehensible…unfathomable the size of the creation that hung far above their heads.
Two small glowing orbs – figures – seemed to float beneath the impossible structure.
He didn't understand…
He couldn't understand…all of this.
He saw two small figures floating beneath the impossible structure
"You are here today to witness a new beginning" he heard Lady Flamel say, drawing his shocked eyes to her.
She seemed to smile widely before she gazed upward "A new era and you have been chosen to see it happening before your very eyes."
He followed her eyesight, towards the two figure who seemed to hang above, as if to symbolise how beyond them all they were.
And…
For the first time in his life…
Abraxas Malfoy felt small.
Anne POV
Anne stared at the wonder her son created.
She thought she could understand…she thought she'd seen images of Illos plenty of times to understand…
Yet…
As it happened before her, as she saw the beginnings of Illos, she realised she could never have understood at all.
She did not even understand it now…
It was beyond all that she had come to understand about magic and it was frightening yet…it was her son who managed to surpass barriers to magic that their entire world had understood were fixed.
'Markus…if only you could see what our son has achieved' she thought to herself.
She glanced back at Benedict, who, for the very first time since the next of the death of his son and daughter wore extremely deep emotions on his face, one mixed with pride and awe.
She looked around and saw similar expressions, even fear from Emily's friends but all wore awe on their faces.
"Inyiisha" she heard Moira whisper.
She turned to her and but was startled at her expression.
She bore a slight smile though her eyes…eyes exuded a level of coldness she had never seen from Moira.
Moira noticed her stare and turned to her, the cold look having gone.
"Inyiisha…" Anne began, her eyes meeting the tall woman's gaze.
"It means victory in my tongue" Moira said, her eyes returning to the floating…structure before them.
"Victory?" Anne asked, her eyebrows meeting in a frown, confused.
"A victory for many people" she told Anne "Victory for your son, your family, your people and the beings who carry your unique ability to use neurophysical energy."
Anne kept a careful gaze on her friend. Moira was many things…but she never said anything without meaning, to the point that it had taken some time for her to get used to it.
All of her high society events had her interact with people who said many things but without much substance or meaning. Those who did…they tended to want something, to pry a secret and feast upon it like a scavenger bird onto a rotten corpse.
Moira though…it almost seemed like it was easy to come to her…to speak with her or to seek her advice. When she had something to say…it was almost necessary to listen…and to ask the right questions.
"Victory for you?" Anne questioned.
At this Moira turned to her, a half smile on her face. She turned back towards the floating structure.
"In a sense. It was a one sided bet with an Old Librarian, whom I hate, whom I acrimoniously respect"
Anne looked at Moira puzzled.
Librarian?
She wasn't sure if they were talking about the same victory...and she wasn't sure if Moira would clear up the confusion either.
Anne looked back at the structure which began to change shape.
"It's odd…I can't really imagine you hating anyone…" she glanced at Moira "let alone a Librarian. What did the person do to earn your enmity? Be a better Librarian than you are?" Anne asked with light humour, her attentions split between Moira and the structure her son created.
The smile on Moira's face fell and Anne grew slightly worried at how cool her expression was.
"She committed the greatest crime any librarian can do."
"She decided to write her version of books in books already written, guiding stories towards a path that was not hers to decide." Moira's voice was soft though her words didn't fail to make Anne feel defensive.
Moira turned to her, that half smile returning even though her eyes were noticeably harsher "In many ways she preserved more than any other may have been permitted to…more of the truth and adherence exists due to her touch and yet, not even she could resist the failings of those like her."
Moira's eyes seemed lost for a moment. They looked ancient, weary and worn…a kind of tiredness that seemed tinged with melancholy.
They refocused on Anne after a few seconds, that same half smile creeping into her face.
"What was this one sided bet?" Anne finally asked, the question on the forefront of her mind could not be prevented from escaping her lips as she looked on with unbridled curiosity.
She knew she did not fully understand what Moira was saying, these riddled words that held more meaning than she could perceive. Moira was exceptionally capable in phrasing things in ways she could understand, in ways she could accept yet speak about things she at times had no complete comprehension about.
Moira's half smile grew slightly, almost so slight that it could have been missed. "That her versions could be unwritten, and rewritten in ways that were greater than either the author's intent or hers." Her black eyes were sharp in ways that raised the hairs on Anne's body.
"Stories that carry a greater inheritance."
Anne's eyes widened.
Inheritance?
"Rewritten by whom?" Anne asked, a deep frown growing on her face. She knew a little of what the ancient enemy of Humanity had done to them but much of Moira was saying eluded her.
Moira remained silent, saying nothing further on what she had talked about, gazing up at the structure that was continued to complete its shape, smoothing wider much like how clay shaped in the hands of men.
There was a strange sense of familiarity in that thought, one she could not get out of her head for the remainder of this day that belonged to her son and his wife…a day of beginnings…and of victories.
