It's Friday, and that means it's time for another chapter. I must tell you that I am incredibly proud of this chapter, so for those of you who don't review, if ever there was a time to start, I'd appreciate it if now were the time. In this chapter, we find out exactly how good the guardians of Azkaban really are.

My thanks to those of you who have read and even more thanks to those of you who have reviewed:

To the ever faithful KRP - Katie glows mortal just like everyone else; the Dementor soul portion is overshadowed by the mortal soul majority. As for Dementor ages, I considered Esdras' statement to be more an attempt to protect his goddaughter from a Marauder. Besides, Esdras has no room to talk since he is almost 315 and Katie is 16. And Calla is 12 and Jacob is 37, which I figure in mortal ages to be about 2 and 5, respectively. However, you're looking at a 2 year old with 12 years of life experience so some questions like that are to be expected.

To the ever faithful Snood – Dementors do have color vision, but they see the world as though it were perpetually night time with a full moon out. The colors are there, just a whole lot darker. I'm glad you appreciated the irony of the Christmas shopping scene. I enjoyed writing it. And as for the DA, I feel bad about not putting more of it in, but all Esdras would be doing is standing guard, and that's just not exciting to write or read about.

All the rest of y'all who haven't reviewed really should. If nothing else then for this chapter, since I'd like to hear what people think about it. So if you have a free moment, go ahead and press the blue button at the bottom. Thanks.

And something special this chapter, all the dialogue is in Azkabaaner. That's right, not a word of spoken English in the entire chapter. And as always, I don't own HP.

Chapter 13 – Prison Break

To say that the trip back to Hogwarts was anything other than routine would be an overstatement. The usual compliment of Dementor guards flew alongside the Hogwarts Express to Hogsmeade, a completely uneventful and routine mission. And for the next few weeks, the students of Hogwarts continued their lessons under their professors, with everyone settling back into the daily routine of life at school. And, naturally, the return of the daily school routine meant the invariable return of gossip.

Esdras was thankful that Harry still hadn't bothered to learn Azkabaaner, as he was discussing the scarred mortal while sitting directly beside him. Katie was listening with a frown on her face. "And Cho has just been going on and on about the fact that she and Harry are going out on Valentine's Day. That is, she goes on and on about it when she's not crying piteously over Cedric."

Katie sighed sadly. "She's still not over him?" At the Dementor's sad shake of his head, the mortal looked nervous. "This is not going to end well for either of them. We have to stop it."

The Dementor huffed slightly and looked over the dinner table to Hermione, who was looking disinterestedly at her plate. "What do you think? I know you can understand us."

The bushy haired mortal looked up. "I think this is a lesson he has to learn himself. Same goes for Cho."

Katie arched an eyebrow. "Harsh…"

Esdras nodded, but was interrupted when he noticed a black cloaked figure entering the Great Hall. He looked on curiously as the figure looked around, spotted him, and glided forward. "That looks like Veras, but he's supposed to be on Azkaban."

The Dementor captain glided down the aisle and it was, indeed, Veras. He saluted sharply. "Good evening, Lord Admiral. We came as fast as we could."

The admiral merely cocked his head to the side in confusion. "Who told you to come?"

Veras Maul held out a sheet of parchment. "Umm…you did, sir."

Esdras accepted the sheet of parchment and read over it quickly. It contained official orders for the transfer of the Eighth Infantry from Azkaban to New Demnin. It was in perfect order and even bore a perfect replica of his signature, just like official Azkaban orders would. However, Esdras shook his head quickly. "Veras, I didn't write these orders."

The captain scratched his hood in confusion. "Then how did I get them? I brought the entire division down just like it said."

The sound of Dementor afterburners interrupted their conversation as Aaron Reaping flew through the door of the Great Hall and quickly found Esdras. He came to rest beside Veras and began speaking as fast as he could. "Esdras, we got trouble. No one at the fortress is answering over the Floo connections and all we can hear is shouting and weapons fire. Worse still, the shouting is in English." He then turned to the other Dementor and cocked his head to the side in surprise. "Veras, what are you doing here?"

Esdras rose up from his seat and looked from one Dementor to the other. "Weapons fire?" At Aaron's nod of assent, Esdras glared. "If Veras was sent here under false orders and all that we can get from Azkaban is mortal shouting, we need to assume the worst." He looked to Aaron. "Reaping, get all the troops into Assault cloaks and ready to fly in five minutes."

Aaron saluted, but before he could fly off, Malachi DeCay flew into the Great Hall under full afterburners. He joined the three Dementors and spoke just as quickly. "My Lord, we've reestablished contact with the prison. The guards have lost control of the maximum security wings and the damage is progressing towards the super maximum security cells. It's a jailbreak."

In the halls of the command bunker, red lights glared and klaxons blared. A calm, recorded voice sounded throughout the halls, alerting everyone to the current situation. "Level One Security Alert. Azkaban Fortress has been breached. This is not a drill. All personnel report to your duty commander for orders and prepare for immediate transport to Azkaban."

Esdras glided through the controlled chaos with Aaron and the Thirteenth Infantry behind him. "Transom dispatched medics to all divisions, correct? Veras, Micah, and their divisions got out alright?"

Malachi nodded sharply. "Yes, my Lord. All divisions are now outfitted with medics. The 8th and 91st Infantries Apparated out one minute ago and are currently in position, waiting for our signal to attack."

The admiral nodded. "When can we expect reinforcements?"

The commander sighed. "A response force is already assembled at South Mountain, but they won't be able to deploy for another ten minutes. The Ministry is preventing them from moving in without their presence."

Esdras growled. "Screw that." He touched the side of his hood, opening a communications link to all his troops, both in the bunker and over Azkaban. "All troops, switch Assault cloaks to Riot mode." Esdras and all the Dementors around him cast the proper spells and the thick padded vest of the Assault cloak became rigid armor, the hood became a rigid helmet, and a mirrored face shield dropped down, leaving only the circular mouth exposed. "Eighth and Ninety First Infantries, prepare for attack."

Esdras approached the bank of five Dementor-Only fireplaces installed in the command bunker. He took the middle one and grabbed a handful of Floo powder as the rest of the Thirteenth Infantry lined up in front of the fireplaces. "All troops, attack!" Casting his powder into the grate, he called out. "Azkaban Supermaximum Security Wizarding Prison, Main Transport Platform!"

The green fire swirled about him and after a few dizzying seconds, he found himself just inside the front gate of the prison. Immediately as he appeared, a Reductor curse flew overhead, shattering the mantle of the fireplace. Esdras raised his wand and fired back, dropping a mortal dressed in rags with a well placed Stupefy charm.

He cleared the fireplace as the next Dementor came through the portal. It was a few minutes before the entire division was through. Advancing through the chaos with wand drawn, Esdras called into his hood. "Report!"

Micah Redoubt was the first to reply. "We're taking heavy fire over the maximum security wing. It looks like alpha, beta, and epsilon cell blocks are compromised. Where the hell are the aurors?"

Esdras took a defensive position behind a wall and paused to turn over a mortal body that didn't glow. The badge on his chest was the answer he had been looking for. "Looks like most of them are dead. We're on our own until we can contact the guard units that were on duty. Utilize containment plan beta for the compromised blocks. Remember to follow Ministry protocols. Subdue the prisoners only; avoid lethal actions unless otherwise ordered." He scanned his surroundings again. "Reaping, report."

Aaron appeared beside him, cradling the stump of his severed left arm. "We made it through just fine and the transport platform is secured, no one's going to be getting out this way. But ten of our men are incapacitated, another five wounded, myself included. Transom is working on them now. How the hell did they get their hands on wands?"

Veras Maul called out over the communication charm. "I think I've got your answer, Aaron. Personal Effects has been raided, it looks like the mortal guards were overpowered." His voice took on a sickened quality. "And Lord Admiral? I think the prisoners have managed to take out a few Dementors as well. There are empty cloaks here, and a lot of spilt ichor."

Esdras and Aaron shared a tense glance before the admiral replied. "Understood, captain. Proceed towards the maximum security wings and help Micah there. Aaron and I will proceed to the supermax wing. Who was scheduled for guard duty tonight?"

The captain of the 8th Infantry replied quickly. "The 45th Marines, 313th Training Division, and us. I don't know who we were replaced by, or even if."

As Esdras advanced the Thirteenth Infantry through the entrance hall of the prison, he called out through the communication charm. "All Azkaban personnel, please respond. What is your status? Any Azkaban personnel, this is Admiral Esdras Demnin, please respond."

There was a momentary pause before a quiet, scared voice came through. It obviously belonged to a Dementress. "It's Lord Admiral Demnin, he's come for us." The voice immediately sounded relieved. "Lord Admiral Demnin, this is Cadet Lieutenant Aurora Corinth. We've managed to secure the secondary transport platform by the supermax wing, but we're under attack by the inmates. We can't hold out for much longer."

Esdras nodded and motioned for his men to move faster. "Understood, cadet. We're on our way. Who's in charge over there?"

The cadet replied shakily. "I am, sir. I'm the most senior member of my unit still alive. They…they killed our instructor." Finally, she broke into tears. "The Marines…they killed our instructor."

The admiral and captain shared an incredulous glance before moving even faster down the dark hallways of the prison. Esdras softened the tone of his voice. "Aurora, I need you to calm down. Tell me what happened."

The sound of an explosion came through the hood, followed by panicked chatter. "Get it over the door! I don't care how; just get it over the door! Good, just like that." Finally, the cadet spoke clearly again. "Admiral, are you still there?"

"Yes, cadet. What happened?"

Aurora Corinth spoke quickly. "We were in Personal Effects learning how to secure inmate belongings when Marine Captain Bradley came in with five men and shot our instructor in the supersolenoid. Lieutenant Retlin just collapsed and imploded. Bradley told us we had five seconds to escape, so we flew. Not all of us got out in time but we couldn't go back for them. Once we got out into the prison we saw the rest of the Marines releasing the prisoners. I took my unit to the secondary transport platform and we barricaded the door, we don't know how to secure the fireplaces, though."

The sound of a horrifying explosion and Dementor screams filled the communications link. Esdras turned the final corner and saw the last hallway running down to the secondary transport platform, it was filled with inmates. More than that, the prisoners that filled the hall were the worst of the worst. Esdras glared and spoke calmly. "Death Eaters. All personnel, use of lethal force is approved."

The first prisoner to turn around didn't have time to scream. All he saw was a black figure towering over him, and then there was nothing but pain. Esdras held the prisoner's still beating heart in front of his eyes before pulling him forward by the neck and applying the Kiss. As the lifeless body fell to the floor, Esdras cast a powerful Reductor, exploding the nearest mortal into a cloud of blood that coated everything in a ten foot radius. "I don't care if you Kiss them or not, if they don't surrender, kill them!"

The Dementor force quickly pushed their way through the inmates, attacking them both from the ground and the air. Some resisted and were promptly and permanently silenced; others cowered on the ground and were promptly subdued. Esdras and Aaron advanced quickly down the long hallway, Kissing when they could, casting Reductors and Avada Kedavras when they couldn't. Those who did not die by magical means found their death to be insanely painful as the Dementors ripped away heads, limbs, and major organs before leaving the bodies to fall where they may. The prisoners fell before them until, finally, the pair made it to the doorway leading to the transport platform. They were just in time to see a final mortal disappear in the flash of the Floo network. Aaron sighed slowly. "That was Gamma Beta 769, wasn't it?"

Esdras nodded. "Bellatrix Lestrange. We won't know how many others escaped until we run a headcount." He looked around the room and choked back the bile that rose in his throat. Some of the cadets were still alive, but there were more empty cloaks in the room than bodies. Esdras pushed through the remains of the makeshift barricade they had created and glided from body to body. "Cadet Corinth?"

He paused overtop of a badly wounded Dementress, no more than one hundred ten years old. She was missing her entire lower torso and had a neat round hole through her left shoulder. She had long since stopped bleeding. She raised her arms up to the admiral and actually laughed. Her voice was but a shadow of the one he had heard before. "Look…it's…it's Admiral Demnin. He…he came…to save us."

Esdras took the young cadet's hands and motioned for a stasis cloak from a nearby medic. As he quickly wrapped her up, he spoke brightly to her. "Of course I came. I told you I'd be here. Now, you've been badly injured and you're going to take a little nap. When you wake up, you'll be in hospital and everything will be just fine." He paused before initializing the sealing charm. "You're a hero, Aurora."

The Dementress tried to nod, but couldn't gather the energy before the stasis cloak closed up about her, placing her into suspended animation. Esdras sighed and stood up, turning to face Aaron. The captain sighed grimly. "Judging from the cloaks, there were about thirty cadets holed up in here, only seven survived."

Esdras nodded sadly and leaned against a nearby wall. He observed his cloak and shuddered softly. He was completely covered in dark red mortal blood that was slowly crusting over the fabric. "Where are the 45th Marines?"

Aaron shook his head and regarded the stump of his left arm. "No one knows. There's no sign of them at all in the prison." The captain sighed and looked at his old friend. "Esdras, they were on our watch list of divisions that could seek an allegiance with Voldemort. I wouldn't be surprised if this were an act of open revolt."

Nodding slowly, the admiral raised the face shield of his helmet and rubbed his face slowly, trying to get the blood off but only managing to spread it around. "We'll deal with the repercussions of that later. How are the rest of the troops faring?"

The captain looked to the fireplaces, which the 13th Infantry had just secured. "Veras and Micah finally have the maximum security wings under control. The Oracle herself led the First Infantry in to assist them."

Esdras looked surprised, but not impressed. "She does hold the honorary rank of captain. It's very rare for her to actually use it, though."

Aaron nodded and continued. "The 3rd and 29th Infantries have just now arrived. They're helping us with prisoner containment and inventory."

Esdras nodded grimly. He had one last question. "Where is Sidara?"

A silky voice replied from the doorway. "Right behind you, Rear Admiral Demnin."

The pair turned and snapped to attention, saluting their superior. Esdras spoke quickly. "Ma'am, we have reason to believe that the 45th Marines may be AWOL and, more importantly, guilty of treason."

The Dementress nodded smoothly. "Of course you would think that, you heard the story that that poor cadet had to make up."

Esdras looked at the vice admiral in total shock. "You're saying she made it up?"

Lara narrowed her hood at Esdras and spoke slowly. "Cadet Corinth will take responsibility for her actions, which ultimately led to the death of her instructor, the decimation of her division, and the death and escape of an as yet unknown number of prisoners."

Aaron shook his head in disbelief. "What actions? She's the hero! She's the only reason we didn't lose more prisoners!"

The vice admiral shrugged. "Perhaps. We will determine what actions were taken on her part that led to this escape. And we will also deal with her lying about the status of the 45th Marines."

Esdras glared calmly. "Then where, pray tell, are the 45th Marines, vice admiral?"

The Dementress turned and glided out of the room. "They will be found."