Ch 11: Slaughter
Privet Drive, One Day Ago (Day 3)
Midday at Privet Drive usually saw the residents proudly fawning over their gardens. But today, there wasn't a soul in sight. No children playing on the streets, no stray dogs hunting for scraps and no sound of televisions from the open windows. Everything was quiet, quite like the beginning of one of the horror movies Muggles were so fond of.
Presently, a cloaked man appeared on the street with a soft pop.
The gentle breeze ruffled tufts of graying hair from his balding head and swayed his emerald cloak. He had to be six feet tall and was slightly obese. Old age was gradually taking over him; sunken cheekbones, wrinkles surrounding his eyes and his unkempt gray stubble were proof of this. But one could sense intelligence in the gaze of his blue eyes as he keenly observed his vicinity.
Just half a minute or so after his appearance; three more men appeared with pops. They were in similar attire save for brown, hats pulled low over their faces. However, it was clear that they were his subordinates. The trio was much younger than him. One of them stepped closer to the older man and spoke formally;
"Apologies for the delay Chief Blake. Obliviators Waller, Jackson and Crawford reporting for duty."
Blake nodded curtly in acknowledgement.
"Waller, was it? I can't seem to recall which house we were assigned to. Do you remember the address?"
"Yes sir. We have gotten reports of Muggles seeing strange things in the neighborhood which could only be explained through the use of magic. The events seemed to be stemming from one home in particular. That is the house we have been sent to investigate. Number Four."
Still surveying the houses, Blake enquired;
"Hmm. And the Muggles? Where are they? The place seems strangely quiet."
Waller hesitated a little before speaking;
"I don't know sir. That was not part of our briefing."
Blake said nothing but began walking towards Number Four with the other three in tow.
§§§
Five hours had passed since their arrival. Blake currently stood in the driveway of Number Four waiting for the rest to return. So far, their investigation had yielded no results.
After they had found the house completely empty with no signs of Muggle burglary or magic; Blake had asked the trio to check all the houses in the vicinity and look for signs of traps or illusions. Presently, they returned to him. It was clear that they had found nothing of the sort. Now even Blake felt puzzled. In his decades of service to the Ministry as an Obliviator, he had never once come across anything like this. He could make neither head nor tail of the matter. Maybe there was some mistake with the address.
But for some reason, his gut was telling him that something was horribly wrong. He couldn't help feeling that something was coming and that it was nothing good. His experience said that there was only one possible course of action right now.
"Boys, I have no idea what is going on but I have a feeling staying here will not do us any good. For now let's report back to the Ministry and, if necessary, return with a plan."
His words were met by swift nods of the other men. Perhaps, their instincts were saying something similar. Blake was just about to Disapparate when a soft pop and a puff of displaced air on his face made him open his eyes. Surely enough, Simmons; another senior Obliviator was now standing in front of him. Blake was perplexed; he distinctly remembered that Simmons was supposed to be on another location right now. Waller and the rest also looked equally confused. But before they could say anything, another Obliviator appeared with a soft pop.
And another, and another. All around them dozens of people kept appearing until the street was filled with wizards in white clothes gawking blankly at one another.
If he had been confused before, Blake was astonished now. He counted the heads.
"72, 73, 74 and 75" he gulped nervously.
"What is the entire Department doing here?" he thought.
Behind him, Waller seemed to have found his voice again;
"Sir Simmons, what is your squad here for?"
Simmons; who was equally surprised at, uttered;
"We received direct orders via owl post from the Minister saying that something unusual had taken place here and your squad needed back-up."
Waller was about to ask another squad when Blake stopped him.
"They are all here for the same reason."
Blake's mind was in over-drive. There was no possible reason he could think of for the Minister to ask the entire Department to converge at one spot. There was only one possible conclusion;
"The orders were somehow faked to get us all in one place. That much was clear."
He stated to the dumbfounded people around him. No one said anything.
"But why?" Blake thought.
Getting so many trained Ministry personnel in one place was foolhardy. This had to a distraction. But, what could be the goal? They would still receive news if anything else happened at the Ministry. Besides, there are more than enough Aurors to fend off an attack.
So, what could it be? He didn't want to consider it but there was only one other possibility.
Could it really be? A Dark Wizard powerful enough to…?
It seemed impossible. But right now, Blake didn't want to know the answer.
"Everyone" he shrieked "DISAPPARATE! Get back to the Ministry right now!"
Saying these words, he pictured the Ministry clearly in his mind and turned on the spot.
But nothing happened.
When he opened his eyes, he was still in Privet Drive along with everyone else.
"An Anti-Apparition Charm?" he heard Waller squeak from behind him.
"Indeed."
Blake felt like a cold blade had just pierced his mind. Such was the voice he had heard right now. Apparently, the others had felt it too; the voice of a man, but barely. Moreover, the voice was in their heads. No one was speaking; it was just…..present. A feeling of foreboding filled Blake. Adrenaline flushed through his system; his chest constricted and his heart pumped rapidly. He clutched his wand tighter than he had ever done and readied himself.
As if on cue, a figure appeared on the corner of the street in front of them. As tall, if not taller than Blake and much thinner. Clad in a hooded black cloak falling to the ground giving the impression that he was levitating rather than walking. With the man's appearance, the air started raging furiously. It cut easily through their robes and seemed to pierce their hearts.
As the man walked; two objects materialized behind him in mid-air. A few of the officials took a step back, horrified.
The man was now followed by two enormous wooden crucifixes with live Muggle bodies bound to them!
Vernon and Petunia Dursley were barely conscious; kept in that state through the use of magic. Their limbs and midriff were impaled on the cross by dark, pointed metal shards glistening with fresh blood. Having lost all motor functions due to sever blood loss long ago, all they could do was cry out because of unbearable pain. Their blood dripped on the ground; forming a trail flanking the man walking in front of them.
A sickening feeling filled Blake. This was like nothing he had even thought of. He tried to lift his wand but felt like his arm had been stabbed with an ice shard. The hooded figure stopped and looked directly at him.
"Do you find this disturbing?" he heard the voice in his head again.
He found that his lips refused to move either. Everyone else appeared to be in the same state as well.
A Legilimens strong enough to paralyze such a huge number of people at once was unheard of. Although, he couldn't see beneath the hood, he could feel the man's glee in his mind. The monster was smiling.
Blake felt angry and helpless at the same time.
"What are you doing? Is this some ritual?" he thought.
Cold laughter echoed in Blake's mind.
"Ritual? You think this is Necromancy? No, this is just…how do you say it? Aah yes, fun."
Hearing that made Blake's blood run cold. Once again, the man seemed to take pleasure in Blake's fear.
"Do you wish to see?"
Blake's eyes opened wider against his will. By now, every other Obliviator was trembling in terror.
Presently, the man casually flicked the wand clasped in his long pale fingers and two more dark metal shards emerged in mid-air. The man moved his hand forward and the metal pieces moved followed it. He stopped them right in between the Muggles' eyes and then; went on.
The pieces easily tore through flesh and proceeded to dig into their skulls. All the while, the victims screamed helplessly and the Obliviators could do nothing but watch. After the torture seemed to stretch on for days; a time came when the screaming stopped and the bodies hung on the crucifixes, limp and lifeless. All the while, multiple fresh streams of blood dripped on the ground.
Once more, Blake's head was filled with gut-wrenching laughter. Like they had appeared; the crucifixes faded back into thin air.
"See?" the man turned to face all of them now.
"Fun, right?"
"As a reward for sharing in my joy, I'll let you in on a little secret."
"You're all next!"