And here we are at last, the penultimate chapter of Book 6. (Epilogues technically don't count as chapters, and despite mine being longer than is assumed by such a thing, I will continue to treat it as such) Please R&R and as always, enjoy! ~F
Chapter Sixteen
The Sleeper Awakens
Hermione charged from the Room of Requirement the moment she heard the Horn of Gondor first sound out, loud and long, and Ron dashed behind her at a full sprint. A tap of her wand to the communication coin ordered all members of the D.A. to converge at the Astronomy Tower, which according to the Marauder's Map was where the fiercest skirmish was occurring.
As the neared the final corner, Hermione steeled herself as she strung her elven bow and fitted an arrow. Beside her, Ron had brought forth Aeglos as a small handful of frightened students arrived from below, and together the pair of sixth year Gryffindors led their attack, hurtling themselves around the corner as the horn sounded a second time.
There, in the center of the chaos, Hermione quickly spied Draco, Andúril flaming bright in his hand, the sword flashing and singing as it claimed the life of many orcs or Death Eaters. From the opposite corridor, some of the Professors had arrived as well with another contingent of students and constructs. Professor McGonagall launched into the fray, sending up a cloud of shrapnel from fallen orc's weapons or armor. Tiny Professor Flitwick evidently charmed himself, as he went hurtling through the air, raining down hexes and curses like the Dueling Champion that he once was.
Ron acted instantly at the sound of Gondor's Horn, charging the first enemy he saw, stabbing with the spear of the elven lord, blue white tip impaling the foul beast with a roar of pain. Hermione laid a suppressive barrage of steel and magic to open the way for their group to the heart of the main conflict. Draco smiled slightly as he saw the fresh reinforcements, but in an instant he was away again, dodging and counterattacking as though he had grown up with this style of combat all his life.
A massive blast from above shook the castle, and a figure appeared at the entrance to the tower. Hermione recognized it as Professor Snape, dragging Theodore Nott roughly by the arm, and the crowd immediate near the tower entrance parted to allow him passage.
"It's over, time to go!" he shouted to no one in particular, and he and the sixth year Slytherin sprinted through the chaos, let through instantly by the defenders of the castle. However, following behind him was more Death Eaters, including Bellatrix herself, and they gleefully launched back into the fray, fighting to pursue the Potion's Master.
Without pausing to think, Hermione fired an arrow at the dark witch, but it was blocked effortlessly, and the brightest witch of her generation had to dodge the retaliatory curse. Only then, as she staggered out of the way, did Hermione realize that the ground had not stopped shaking from the moment before the Death Eaters had appeared.
That thought led Hermione to quickly realize that Severus, along with Nott, Bellatrix and the other two Death Eaters weren't coming to aid either side of the battle, but they were fleeing something else entirely.
As they passed by her, Hermione caught the look of grim determination on the Potions Master turned Defense Professor's face, as well as the fear in the others, just as a blinding flash appeared from the tower they had just vacated.
All eyes were drawn to the two figures that appeared in the entryway, robes billowing around them on the magical wind that was supporting them several inches off the ground. One of the twain stretched forth his hand toward the combatants, crying out in a voice that rang with both a lofty highness and a resounding deepness as he commanded, "Up and arise ye defenders of Hogwarts! Strike down the darkness of this evil!"
The ground jolted as the figure spoke, and Hermione, near the rear of the crowd, heard the voice of Professor McGonagall say in awe, "Merlin… Faykan Undol's alive? How can this be?"
The light around the pair of figures dimmed slightly, and Hermione was able to make out that it was indeed Faykan, as well as Harry. Their features were contorted with great pain and concentration, but the most frightful part was their eyes. Gone were the green and blue that was so familiar, replaced with a near blinding whiteness that seemed to threaten all to the great power that lay behind them.
Harry raised a hand, and the spell he cast spew forth like a ray of sunlight, immolating the nearest orc until it was burned to ashes. That was the signal for the battle to recommence in earnest. Hermione leapt to her feet, feeling newly energized somehow as she watched as Faykan and Harry literally flew over the heads of the fighters, diving like bullets past them and into the halls of the castle.
An orc charged toward her, and Hermione was forced to turn away from the sight of near angered gods, and slash the beast with the blade-like edge of her elven bow. As she followed up by shooting another nearby foe, Hermione chanced a glance at the fleeing pair of wizards. Only then did she recognize that they were not assisting in the battle either, but rather that they were pursuing Bellatrix and the others with fixated determination.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Severus sprinted down the many flights of stairs from the top of the castle as fast as he could; still dragging Nott in his wake with all the strength he could muster to keep the boy in line. Trusted by the boy or not, he was not about to allow a child, not even this monster of a lad, be slain in the Dark Lords vile plan. Tightening his Occlumency shields again over the stray thought, he hurtled down the next flight of the grand staircase, just in time to hear the resounding crash from above.
Momentarily turning back, with Nott's fearful panting ringing in his ears, Severus had no problems spotting Harry and Faykan, their bodies brimming with magical power and literally burning with a blinding magical light, flying on the air after their group of Death Eaters and other retreating creatures, righteous fury carved in their faces as they spotted specifically Theodore and Bellatrix.
Staff and wand rose in a split second, and only by throwing Nott and diving to the side, pinning the boy to the floor did Severus save them both from a quick and probably very painful death as the blasts of pure power annihilated the landing they had been standing on moments before.
Quickly readjusting their escape plan to avoid the wide open staircases, Severus hauled Nott to his feet, throwing the boy in front of him and pushing their group along with all the fervor he could muster. Appropriately, the teenager looked ready to wet himself or even collapse in fright at the twin forces of nature that were hunting them so relentlessly.
Severus did not even dare to look back to see if Bellatrix and the Carrows had fallen by the magical blast. Their deaths did not matter to him, and it was only the mercy of an adult for a child that forced Severus to continue attempting to keep Nott safe. Inwardly, Severus plead with whatever forces above or below that there was hope that someone or something could make the boy see the error of his ways in following the Dark Lord with such diabolic loyalty.
Dashing through secret passages and even at one point leaping off a high landing to dodge another powerful attack, Severus finally shoved Nott through the main doors of Hogwarts castle and out onto the darkened grounds.
"Run fool, run if you know what's good for you," he half shouted, and thankfully the boy bowed his stiffened neck and obeyed without question, sprinting for the ward line, with Severus hot on his heels. Two projectiles exploded out of the castle walls, and Severus knew that the wrath of the ancient Istari was focused directly upon the pair of them.
There was little he could do in the situation. He was best served as their spy in Voldemort's circles, and even if that wasn't the case, he felt certain that in their current state, neither boy would be capable of seeing past their goal of justice, even if they struck him down along the way.
Spinning momentarily in his run, Severus shot several dark spells at the pair, knowing full well he would not, and could never hope to, hit them, but by making them dodge the spells it gave Nott, Severus and whoever else survived precious seconds to make it outside the wards of Hogwarts so they could apparate back to the Dark Lord's base at Malfoy Manor. The frightening part, Severus thought as he ran for his life, was that perhaps they would not be safe even there.
Severus paused with a massive stitch in his chest at the gate to Hogsmeade to glance back, and Nott pulled on his sleeve in desperation for them to escape, while Bellatrix and the Carrows charged to them. Severus kept up a covering fire, trying to delay the inevitable as long as he could. Bodies of orcs and fellow Death Eaters littered the grounds from those who were too slow or foolish to escape the wrath of the beings that flew overhead like angels of vengeance and death.
Harry suddenly swerved out of the path of one of Severus' curses, plummeting to the ground just as the three remaining Death Eaters reached the gate. "Snape, we need to go!" Nott shouted, wrenching at Severus' arm. Lunging the last few feet to escape the anti-apparition wards, Severus tackled into Nott and spun on his heel in midair just as he saw the massive pulse of magic barreling down on them.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
A blinding flash of green light, someone screamed, and Harry saw only blinding whiteness. For several long moments he wondered what happened, or where he was, until eventually his vision cleared.
Harry was surprised to find himself standing by a dazzling shoreline, listening to the crystal clear waves washing upon a near endless beach of white sand, and the calls of seabirds overhead. He was dressed in a very simple white robe, with no shoes, which allowed him to feel the fine and soft sand beneath him. His glasses where nowhere to be found, and yet he could see clearly.
Time seemed for a while to simply stand still as Harry stood there watching the sea lap against the sands. Everything was perfectly at peace, and Harry could just keep right on standing there watching the water forever. Still, there was some small nagging in the back of Harry's mind, like he was forgetting about something very important.
"Harry."
He turned, and smiled as he saw Faykan approaching across the sands, wearing much similar robes as Harry had, along with the lack of shoes. But even more eye catching was that Harry's best friend was in the company of a magnificently beautiful woman. From the elongated ears and the perfectly graceful stride, Harry could tell immediately that she was an elf, and a noble one at that. The elf's brilliant golden hair was shot with streaks of silver, and flowed upon a small sea breeze like a tiny stream. She was tall, towering well over Harry, and even Faykan.
Glancing back at his best friend to ask who she was, Harry paused in surprise as he saw the lines of weariness and pain completely removed from Faykan's face. It was absolutely astounding to see the amount light and cheer that radiated from Faykan in this state, which was far above and beyond the norm that Harry was used to seeing before.
Recovering his senses and manners, Harry bowed respectfully to the elven lady and Faykan approached, and she bestowed a sun warming smile upon him in return. "Harry Potter," she said, and her voice sounded like the flowing of a soft river of water, "it is indeed a pleasure to meet with you at last…"
"The pleasure is all mine, my lady," Harry replied instantly, knowing that by her mannerisms that she was definitely deserving of any and all praise that he could give to her. Faykan gave him a small nod of approval for Harry's response, and immediately began the introduction of his companion.
"Harry, may I have the pleasure of introducing to you the wise and fair Alatáriel, more commonly remembered as The Lady of Lórien, Galadriel."
Harry's eyes shown with delight as he stole another glance at her. He knew the name well, as the Lady of the Golden Wood had been a prominent figure in many of the stories and tales that he had learned from Faykan over the years.
Yet, there was still something nagging at the back of his mind that he couldn't quite place, and Harry frowned as he tried to understand what he was actually doing here in this peaceful place, meeting one of the most powerful beings that had ever walked on the land of Arda.
"Are we dead?" he asked, wondering if the worst had finally happened, and worry starting to inch into his heart for his friends.
The bright blue eyes of the Lady of Light pierced his as she spoke, answering the subtle doubts of his heart, "Do not be troubled, young Harry, for you are quite alive, indeed you have been given a marvelous gift."
"I… what?" Harry said, feeling foolish for being so speechless in front of such a respectable elven lady, but Galadriel gave no indication of his lack of grace.
"A gift, one that was present for you to receive from the beginning of your life; one that was to come with much duty and responsibility if you were to ever see it in its fullness. And now… now there is a precious choice to make whether to accept it or not."
Harry had to be honest with himself and admit that he hadn't a clue what the Lady was speaking of, but he felt out of place to ask for more explanation.
"You, Harry," Faykan added, picking up the flow of thought as Galadriel fell silent, "were born with great magical power; greater than any for decades; power such as to rival that of either Albus Dumbledore or Tom Riddle. Yet, due to actions of those who had claim over your wellbeing that fateful night, your power was locked away out of fear and misunderstanding of prophecy."
"This action, in preventing you from declaring as a Lord so young," Galadriel spoke, transitioning perfectly from Faykan, "prompted the Valar of the West to send forth Alatar to you, and prepare the way for your task, and by extension his own as well. Precious time was bought and paid for in the lives of those dear ones who you tragically lost throughout your life, all working toward leading you to this very moment, and this gravely important choice you must make."
"I don't understand my Lady," Harry replied, feeling the slight sadness in Galadriel and Faykan as they spoke of his past. It felt wrong to see such emotion on their faces here.
"Terrible things were done to you, dear Kentano. Things that I was sent to make as right as possible, and to give you the option for great things to come to pass," Faykan explained gently, "You are a Lord, and therefore have the right to call upon the allegiance of the natural world and its magic, for good or ill. Many have had this calling before, and none had understood its meaning in the fullest until now."
"What meaning?" Harry prompted, and Galadriel smiled slightly as she answered.
"When the Valar first sent the Istari to Middle Earth so long ago, five of their servants were called and chosen, and throughout all of the ages leading up to the War of the Ring five walked among those of the children of Ilúvatar," She explained gently, "but the balance that was set for them was disrupted, when Curumo fell to the dark desire for a ring of power, and was cast out of their order and slain."
A momentary darkness flashed across the lady's face, and Harry sensed the sorrow that she felt in that instant before it was swept away and she continued, "Since that time, from the dawn of the Ages of Men, a void has been present in that order, a duty and task left unfinished, and the magic of the world and those who watch over it continued to work in attempting to right that flaw. From the lines of those men in which ran the blood of Arwen Undómiel, many were born over the centuries that, like you, possessed the potential to transcend their mortality and birthright by taking up the mighty role of an Istari."
"But alas," Faykan continued, "none would commit the selfless and purest of acts required in declaring their power to be in the service of those who governed the world. Many would come close, and declare that they would serve the peoples of the world, much as Albus Dumbledore had, and still others fell by the blackness of their own hearts, and chose to horde their power for themselves, like Tom Riddle so chose."
Harry mulled this information for a few moments, connecting quickly what implications were laid out before him. "So, all the great wizards and Dark Lords of the past... they all were given the choice to become like Fay?"
"Most," Faykan admitted, "those of the remaining Istari after the departure of the bearers of the rings of power were charged with locating and guiding the untold future generations of the house of Telcontar to the destiny that would benefit Arda the most, while keeping a look out for the one that the Valar would deem pure and selfless enough to voluntarily take on the role of a guardian of Arda."
"And that one, is me?" Harry asked, knowing the answer already.
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord, and all that... Did you honestly think that it was as simple as to merely be about you defeating Voldemort?" Faykan said, smiling softly
Harry fell silent at that, his mind starting to hurt from all the information and cascading connections that spiraled off of them. "Our time is short," Galadriel said, "and you must make your choice soon, Harry. Will you declare in the name of the mortals of the earth, for the power and glory of yourself, or will you give the honor of your actions back to the Valar who allowed it to be bestowed in the beginning, and continue striving to keep everything from collapsing upon itself."
Harry knew what decision he would make in a heartbeat, but he still had one question remaining, "How am I to learn everything I need to know to guide the races of Arda?"
"I will still be here to help you Harry, and we will seek council with the representatives of the Valar from time to time." Faykan answered, smiling as he recognized his friend's determination to help and serve the wizarding world, as well as protect his friends.
Harry's mind drifted to what he knew he had to accomplish, and how he was destined to do so on his own. "I glad that I mustn't need to do this all alone." He said, smiling at Faykan.
"You are a ring bearer, Harry Potter," Galadriel said sagely, "to bear a ring of power is to be alone. This task was appointed to you. If you do not find a way, no one will..."
Harry understood the meaning of the words quite well. It was his calling to destroy Voldemort, and stop the darkness from destroying the world. But that did not mean that he had to go the way alone, merely that no one else could finish the task for him. He must bear the burden, but others could help to strengthen him to be able to bear it, and he knew of many who would do so gladly.
"All right, I'm ready," Harry said confidently, "I've made my choice..."
And suddenly he remembered everything that had happened just minutes earlier on the Astronomy Tower, and the vision around him darkened as a powerful flare of pain shot through his head.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Draco charged through the third floor corridors at the head of a small contingent of students and teachers, clearing out every knot of Death Eaters and orcs that they found on their way through the castle. The battle outside the Astronomy Tower had quickly broken up when Bellatrix fled, and now they were clearing downward, searching desperately for how the Voldemort's servants had gained entrance.
There seemed to be a never ending tide of the black armored orcs swarming upward from somewhere far beneath them, and Draco leaned next to a blown out window to recoup his energy and try to see if the orcs were entered from the grounds. Out in the darkness, flashes of light and massive explosions by the gates to the grounds illuminated Faykan and Harry flying through the air as they chased out Bellatrix and the other main leaders of the Death Eaters, carving through pockets of other retreating figures, who were too far away to make out.
Some of the figures may have been speaking, as Draco could hear shouts and spells being from the distance he was, but couldn't make out any of the words. Suddenly, Harry (Draco could only tell from the shorter hair from this distance,) dove steeply downward and slammed into the ground just as the black cloaked people in the very lead vanished. Another explosion rocked the castle, and Draco staggered, watching wide eyed as a pillar of light erupted from his friend out on the grounds.
A powerful voice rang through the castle, sending the dark creatures running for safety, and Draco felt a boost of strength as he heard the resounding words, "Ten' i' alkar en' i' valar onen i-Estel Edain!"
Surging back to his feet, Draco called out the command to attack, leaping at the nearest reeling orc warrior. The black iron armor was no match for the enchanted blade of Andúril, and Draco sliced through the metal easily, quickly moving on to the next enemy. Unfortunately, not all of the foes were in an uproar from the blast of magic from outside.
From the lines of orcs a shadow leapt out at Draco, barreling into him and tackling Draco heavily to the ground. Andúril was knocked from his hand, and Draco felt the rank breath that could only belong to the werewolf, Fenrir Greyback.
Quick as a flash Draco withdrew the small dagger he had kept hidden away and stabbed the werewolf in the side, causing him to howl in agony and rage, before he slammed Draco against the stone floor, knocking the boy's head painfully against the stones.
"Hogwarts is threatened!" McGonagall shouted just then, her voice magically amplified to reach every part of the castle. "Piertotum Locomotor!"
The nearby suit of armor immediately leapt to life, bringing its spiked mace hard over Fenrir's back, knocking the werewolf aside. With a massive effort, Draco dragged himself back to his feet, quickly reclaiming both Andúril and his dagger. A jet of green light lanced toward him, and he had to quickly dodge, slipping in the blood of two nearby bodies. There was no time to see who it was, student, orc or, adult, as Draco was focused on the flash of red hair shortly ahead of him.
Ginny was locked in combat with one of the more boisterous of the Death Eaters, trading hex for hex with the far older opponent. The Death Eater was growing more and more incensed that the fiery girl was able to keep up so well, and the level of spells quickly breached into the Unforgivable.
Rage such as Draco had never felt swelled in him with a heartbeat, and he raised his wand. His cutting curse was so strong that it severed the Death Eater's hand from the rest of his body, sending the limb flying while it still clutched the dark wizard's wand.
Racing up to cut down the remainder of the threat to his girlfriend, Draco positioned himself between Ginny as a new oncoming line of orcs began their advance. Just then, the nearby windows shattered inward. Several people mounted on brooms soared overhead, sending jets of light crashing on the heads of the advancing line.
To Draco's right, Professor Lupin landing heavily, "I hope we're not too late for the party?" he said pleasantly, and Draco could not help but smile at the man's levity regarding their plight.
"You are most welcome Professor," he replied respectfully, and nodded toward the blocking forces.
"Remus, please," the man requested as he fired a spell at a charging orc, banishing the foul creature backward into a mob of its fellows, "As I no long hold that title, and you are far more of a man than even you might care to admit, Lord Telcontar, I hope you could consider me at the most your equal."
The onslaught continued, with the main force of the Light pressing steadily onward. Round the next corner they found the rest of the Order of the Phoenix desperately fighting to disrupt the enemy reinforcements. Draco was more than eager to join in routing the remaining forces, sending the last stragglers fleeing out onto the grand staircase, which looked as though it had been hit by a hurricane.
As Draco watched the fleeing dark wizards from his vantage point, trying to see where they retreated to, when a familiar stomping gait approached him from behind. Spinning on the spot, sword and wand raised to meet Mad-Eye Moody.
"Easy boy," the scarred Auror said, "the buggers are in full retreat, and we've swept the third and second floors. It seems that their coming up from somewhere in the dungeons, it'll be a long, bloody push to get there, but whatever it is need to be sealed."
"True," Draco said, surprised slightly at the deference that the far older man was giving to him, but he wasn't in the spirit to question anything that was going on at the moment, "But I feel we may need to only push to the Entrance Hall."
Moody looked somewhat confused, but his vibrant blue eye swiveled to face downward, and he smiled crookedly as he saw what Draco had spied from the windows. "Ah, reinforcements…"
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Harry walked slowly from the edge of the grounds back toward the castle. If not for Faykan he wouldn't have been moving at all, because of what felt like innumerable torrents of questions and other information pouring through his mind.
"Harry, I know that this is a lot to take in, but I need you to focus, there's still a battle to win." Fay said, nudging Harry along faster.
Head pounding, Harry obeyed, quickening to a sprint. Slowly he was working out some of the finer details of connecting what had occurred while he was communing with Galadriel. While there were yet many unanswered questions, Harry forced them from his mind for the moment with great effort, reminding himself of their friends that were still trapped in the castle with their foes attacking from parts yet unknown.
Orcs were scattering out from the front doors of the castle, backed up by several Death Eaters, all trying to form a barricade to prevent the two of them from reentering the castle. A massive roar sounded from the direction of the forest, and Harry saw the Beornings charged into wall of bodies blocking the front steps, axes and claws cleaving hole in the orcish ranks. Where they had been until this point, Harry didn't have time to question, as he was being dragged along by Faykan toward the fray.
Spying the long blond hair of Lucius Malfoy, Harry raised his wand and cast a massively overpowered blasting hex at the man. The coward ducked inside the castle, dodging the spell that tore a large chunk of stone from the wall, spraying the lines of orcs with shrapnel.
Reaching the front doors as the remaining dark minions were scattered by the Beornings, the pair of powerful wizards burst into a mad influx of orcs waiting in the Entrance Hall. More keep climbing up from the direction of the dungeons, and momentarily Harry worried that the students in Slytherin might have been overrun and killed. Faykan leapt into action, barreling into the largest knot of orcs, Glamdring and staff transforming him into a whirlwind of destruction.
Harry followed quickly behind, slashing the first orc that approached him with Hadhafang, and felt a surge of unfiltered anger toward the vile creatures. Driven by the rage flowing through him at the monsters that dared to assault his home on the orders of the madman Tom Riddle, Harry lost control. Pent up anger of his own flared up, merging with the foreign emotions that in a tiny moment of clarity Harry understood as a connection to Faykan, shortly before surrendering to the near madness of bloodlust for the vile creations of Morgoth.
Time seemed to blur around him as he dove and darted between the swarming orcs, blade gleaming with blue fire at it sought out and shed the black blood of the beasts across the flagstones of Hogwart's Entrance Hall.
Soon enough Harry found himself and Faykan surrounded by broken and torn bodies and the retreating survivors fleeing both upward to the first floor and downward to the dungeon levels. Harry began to wonder which direction they ought to go in pursuit of the servants of Voldemort, when a screech from the stairs up to the upper floors drew their attention.
The orcs that had only just reached the doors to the first floor corridors fell back as a blast of magic from the other side and knocked them flying. Harry smiled immediately to find Draco, Ron, Ginny, Hermione, Luna and Neville charging through, bloody and bruised, but very much alive.
"Harry!" Hermione yelled, and the group started fighting desperately down the stairs to reach them. Behind them members of the Order of the Phoenix, Professors, older D.A. members and enchanted statues and suits of armor started pouring out as backup, just as fresh orcs ascended from the dungeons to replace those who fled from Faykan and Harry.
With his friends surrounding him, and more allies from the school flooding in to fight by their side, Harry felt more than confident at their chances. The constructs led the charge into the ranks of dark creatures, followed closely by the rest of the witches and wizards.
From the doorway, the Skin Changers, in both man and bear forms, charged in on the left flank, slamming into the seemingly endless ranks of orcs like a tidal wave.
Piercing the few guards to the downward steps, Faykan slammed his hand against a torch bracket, activated a secret passage and pulling Harry in before the orcs could react to their presence. As the wall slid back into position, Harry heard the screech of the front lines of orcs as they were hit by the defender's new counter-offensive.
Turning back, Harry saw that Faykan was already darting down the passage, "Fay!" he called, hurrying to catch up, "why aren't we back helping the others?"
"We can't help them out there," Faykan said, aiming his staff ahead to light the way, "So long as whatever is allowing the hordes inside is active we will lose far more people that we care about. Trust me, even with you newly awakened we're not strong enough to take them all on."
The massive avalanche of questions stirred in Harry's mind, but with another great effort he focused on the matter at hand. There were just so many thoughts flying through his mind, it felt like he was burning. Suddenly, he stumbled, crying out at he struck a painfully placed section of the wall and floor.
Faykan was there in a heartbeat, "I know it hurts Harry, to have so much magical power suddenly unleashed all at once, as well as the massive information dump in your case, including all the things you're only starting to recognize and process. It took me over a week to recover from the magic depletion alone, but I need… we need you to tough it out, just for this night."
Shaking himself roughly, Harry staggered to his feet with help from Faykan, and carefully they approached the end of the secret dungeon tunnel. Faykan poked his head out momentarily, before ducking back in as several orcs tromped past, their armor clanging off the stones.
As the sound faded, Faykan peeked out again, and motioned for Harry to follow as he sneaked out into the corridor. The torches were far dimmer here than along the main corridor where the grunts and snarls of the flow of enemies could be easily heard.
Harry recognized that they were near the Slytherin common room, and he and Faykan started in that direction, working around through the passages that Faykan had memorized over years of living in the house of snakes.
Finally they arrived at a corner, where just around Harry could peek and see orcs pouring out of a storage room, the door completely torn from its hinges. "Ah, there…" Faykan whispered, "Ready?"
Together they threw themselves around the corner, blasting the newest orcs that appeared out of the room, and Faykan impaled the last guard with Glamdring, opening the way for them both to barge into the room.
"Oh Valar above…" Harry heard Faykan declare as they finally discovered how the enemy had gotten inside the castle's wards.
"It's brilliant!" Faykan yelled, dispatching an orc as it leapt from the doorway sized portal that stood in the corner of the storage room. He darted back and forth, examining the complex rune work that had been etched carefully on the walls and floor around the shimmering portal.
Harry felt himself draw toward examining the portal as well, but the feeling was completely foreign to him, and he shook it off. There wasn't time for such idle curiosity. "What do we need to do to close it?" Harry said urgently, stabbing with his weapon as another orc attempted to cross over from the opposite end of the portal.
"Well, these runes are the sort that easily overload, so I suppose pouring a massive amount of magical energy into them would do the trick… but…"
But Harry acted on an impulse upon learning what to do. Leveling his wand at the portal, he unleashed a blast of his pent up emotions that had been building over the last few hours. Confusion, rage, pain, horror, everything pouring through the holly and phoenix feather wand and burning marks into the stone around the runes, which began to glow brilliantly red as they absorbed the energy.
"Harry, no… we're too close, the portal!" Faykan said, rushing to Harry side, but he didn't listen. The far too many thoughts returned, overflowing out of him as he poured every painful feeling of the night into his magical reserves, burning the runes from existence one by one.
Several orcs leapt through, snarling as they drew weapons and charged at the pair. Faykan threw himself in front of Harry, shielding him as he continued to assault the portal. With a mighty effort, Harry's wand grew red hot and with a concussive explosion, the portal imploded upon itself, sending out a shockwave that threw Harry, Faykan and the orcs across the room, sending them all crashing into the far wall and fracturing the stones heavily.
~~Sina tea kirma : This is a line break~~
Hermione was growing weary from drawing back the bowstring of her weapon, yet her need for her own survival and the protection of her friends demanded that she continue. Very little progress was made in their attempts to follow Faykan and Harry into the dungeons.
If anything, the orcs had increased their resistance, while the remaining Death Eaters had all been slain or retreated some time ago. Many had fallen on the defenders side as well, including students from several years. Even the enchanted objects had been greatly reduced. It seemed that the only faction of the battle that had suffered little to no casualties were the bear-men called Beornings.
The downright massive men and their shape-changed fellows had fanned out in an attempt to intercept and cleave down every monstrous creature that showed at the top of the dungeon stairs. Despite the effective phalanx, many of the encroaching creatures still spilled through to continue battering the exhausted lines of teachers and students.
One of these orcs charged straight at Luna, who had fired her last arrow to protect Draco from the several orcs he contended with. "Luna!" Neville shouted from nearby as the orc swung its cruel scimitar, knocking the bow from the blond's hands and sending her to the ground.
"No!" Neville shouted, and the Gryffindor boy launched himself at the orc. Hermione was transfixed for a moment as Neville shift midair, transforming into an enormous grizzly bear as he landed heavily upon the orc. Teeth and claws flashed, and black blood splattered across the stones.
Hermione only had seconds to process this new information, before an explosion rocked the castle from below. The orcs started, and Hermione could only guess that their way inside the castle had just been destroyed.
Everyone else on their side clearly guessed the same outcome and, rallying with their moral restored, Draco and Ron organized a new offensive on the dungeons. The battle seemed all but won, yet Hermione wondered what the terrible cost was as they plunged into the dungeon corridors to root out the last stragglers of the invasion force.
Ten' i' alkar en' i' valar onen i-Estel Edain: For the glory of the Valar I give hope to the Dúnedain
Potential Spoilers Ahead: You Have Been Warned!
I felt no need for this chapter to have any great overhaul, everything flows naturally from the previous chapter, and into the next just as I desired, and the focus is squarely on the characters that matter, the main team as it were, Harry starts to enter a much larger role and power, and although it is rather mysterious and strange to wrap around, I feel the logic behind it works for the universes that I employed. Until next time! ~F