I just want to state this early on. The story is going to center primarily around where Scott leads them. Scott is the smarter of the two brothers. Nate is very intelligent but likes to have more fun. He is not much of a reader and a bit of a hard liner in his personality. To classify them: Nate is the better warrior with a bright mind, Scott is the better thinker with good fighting experience. There will be Nate centered stories in the future, but have no doubt Scott leads the pair.
Chapter Five: Knockturn Alley
Knockturn Alley was far worse than the dark descriptions Scott remembered from the books. The entrance to the evil street was hidden yet in plain sight. A dirty archway with crooked lettering told the wandering pair exactly where they needed to go. Scott's first step into the entrance, took hm out of the white and clean streets of Diagon into a murky and dingy realm. An oppressive weight shifted onto the brother's shoulders as they made their way towards the different shops.
Dozens of salesmen and beggars lined the street, each with their own interest in Scott's coin purse. The products for sale were also far darker in appearance than their cousins in Diagon. Here you could by flesh eating potions, poison daggers, magical opiates, books of the dark arts, harvested human organs and even whores, all from the street's myriad shops and stalls. Scott almost felt at home in Knockturn, if it wasn't for the grotesque and mutated forms of the hags, wizards, and other unidentifiable creatures that had taken up residence. The atmosphere was much like a middle eastern black market bazaar or weapons dealership. Nate seemed to be of the same mind.
"This reminds me of The Rhino back home," Nate said loudly. Scott winced and glanced around. The street up till that point had been rather quiet.
"Rhino?" Scott asked, his voice low and hoping the other brother would take the hint. Nate did but ignored it instead.
"Yeah, it's a titty bar outside of Houston. Cagey place, but the women are good looking and the beer's cheap. You could find anything out behind it in a back alley. There were so many bad dudes back there the cops wouldn't raid the place without a SWAT team and national guard backup." Nate's echoing voice petered off to silence in the alley.
Scott groaned internally as he saw fifty pairs of eyes stare back at them.
"Oh sorry, did you want me to be discreet?" Nate asked, a sardonic grin to his face. Scott ignored him and instead focused on a particular hag far to the left corner of the Alley. Her face was pockmarked with scars and moles, and almost well hidden beneath gray stringy hair. The black cloak, tattered yet serviceable did well to hide her amongst the rest of Knockturn's vagabonds.
The two foot spider hat on her head made her stick out painfully.
"There's our girl," Scott said nodding in the Spider Hag's direction. Nate gave a small shrug and the two made their way over. The Spider Hag watched them approach, a sinister smile ever widening on her ugly face.
Scott opened his mouth to speak but the Hag cut him off.
"You're looking for Zane's?" She said. Her voice rasped out yet held a firm undertone. Scott instantly tensed and reevaluated her for threats. He felt more than saw Nate do the same.
"That's right," Nate boomed. The Spider Hag nodded once and moved aside. Behind her was a tiny door in the wall of the Alley, maybe a foot tall. The Spider Hag pulled a short wand from within her tattered cloak. Unnoticed Both Scott and Nate gripped their sidearms tightly. The Spider Hag tapped the small door three times with her wand and muttered a few words under her breath.
Both brother's took a startled step back as the door quickly expanded to it's original size. They glanced at each other and a silent message passed between them. The Spider Hag kept her wand out and motioned that they go inside.
"Zane's is before you. Go quickly, the door is not open to Knockturn, only customers." The Spider Hag rasped at them. Both brothers nodded and Nate stepped through first, hand on his pistol the whole way. Scott waited a beat, heard a comforting whistle, and followed through.
The inside of the shop was … interesting. That was the best way Scott could describe it. A large counter separated the entrance from the rest of the store. Behind the counter were tall rows of odd trinkets, devices, and books. The store was well lit, but the lighting seemed to sprout from the ceiling with no discernible point of origin.
Nate stood to the left side of the shop, is empty ALICE pack lay on the floor beside him. After scanning the shop for threats, he had unpacked the large military duffel from inside of the ALICE. Scott proceeded to do the same with his own packs.
"More humans," A gruff voice said. Both Scott and Nate's gaze snapped to the middle of the counter where and short slim goblin sat dangling his feet off the edge. Scott picked out at least two dagger sheaths on the goblin's belt. He looked to be palming something else in his right hand.
"Seen more humans this month than I wanna see in the next thirty years. Who sent ye? The Goblin asked.
"Bank teller at Gringotts. Said you could fill a special order for us." Scott told him sticking to the truth. The goblin snorted and shook his pig face.
"Sharpclaw sent ye to me then? Well, maybe I can assist. But don't expect me to happy about it. I'm Zane, what do ye want?" The goblin's voice and words were hostile, yet his posture was smooth and relaxed. Scott figured the goblin almost wanted them to start trouble.
"We need these four bags enchanted. They need to be bottomless, or as close to it as you can get. We want them weightless as well, with an organizational charm that will allow us to pull out what we need without digging too much." Scott laid it out.
"That's all?" The goblin asked. Scott however got the distinct feeling the goblin was mildly impressed.
"If you're work is good and meets our expectations, we'll have a lot more."
Zane stared at them for a long moment.
"You're not wizards are you?" He asked. Scott shook his head. "Muggles then? Hah! No wizard would ever ask for a bottomless bag. Those arrogant bastard know nothing more than their multi-compartment trunks. TRUNKS! Big bulky, and hard to retrieve what you want. Yet the bankers hand out weightless bags and them wizards don't think to try it themselves. Hah!"
"You can do it then?" Scott asked, slightly surprised at the outburst.
"Not for free," Zane snapped. "Four hundred for the trouble." Scott snorted.
"One fifty." His voice was firm and his stance tense as if he was ready for a fight. Zane grunted out a laugh. He planted his feet on top of the counter and stood tall. His head would barely brush Nate's chest.
"Now it's four twenty five, ye sorry excuse for life." Zane snarled.
"One seventy five." Scott spat at him. His Glock came halfway out of its holster.
"Five hundred then, fer threatening me!" A dagger slipped into the Goblin's hand.
"Two fifty or I splatter your brains over this counter and pillage your store!" Scott's Glock was now leveled at the goblin's head. Nate had him covered with his own .45. The stand off lasted for a long minute. Zane slipped his daggers away and let out a short chuckle. He eased himself down to a sitting position again and dangled his legs off of the counter. Ever so slowly, Scott and Nate holstered their sidearms.
"Ye haggle like a goblin. Two hundred it is. Hand me the bags and I'll have the work completed by the end of the day." Zane held out a small yet strong hand.
"I thought we settled on two fifty?" Scott asked. He made no move to hand the bags over. Zane gave him a look of disgust, his first.
"What do you take me for? A thief? Ye haggle me like my own brother, treat me with respect and expect me to skin ye? Insulting!"
Scott grinned at him. The two brother's handed over their bags and Zane disappeared into his shop. With time to spare, the men made their way out. With a polite nod to the ugly Spider Hag then left Knockturn for cleaner surrounds.
Once in Diagon, Scott led the way through the stores. The two brother's immediately realized that a galleon went a long way in the wizarding world. With their twelve fifty left over they could buy nearly anything in the alley. The first stop on their shopping leg was the Quidditch Supply store. Once there, for a hundred and fifty galleons a pop, Nate and Scott bought themselves matching Firebolt racing brooms. The storekeeper looked to be overwhelmed at the double purchase, and at the pile of gold on his counter.
The next shop was Madam Malkins where Scott inquired about armored suits and clothing that carried magical enchantments. Malkin presented them with dragon hide armor, crafted from leftover scales from a recently harvested Norwegian Ridgeback. The armor was fashioned much like muggle body armor, yet it was lighter and more form fitting. The armor provided protection against moderate magical attacks, and was nearly impervious to physical strikes. Scott wondered if it could take a .45 slug and bounce back but he didn't voice these questions to the shop owner. Such a thing would bring a little too much attention to their backs.
Each suit of armor protected their torso, upper and lower arms, and upper thighs. The joints were protected with dragon skin which was strong but far weaker than the scales. The skin allowed for easy mobility in the suits. Both Nate mentioned to Scott, he thought they could get their combat vests and web gear over the armor and not appear too bulky. Sadly, each suit came out to be ten thousand galleons in price. One of the few items either brother could purchase in Diagon.
The final shop on Scott's mental list was the local apothecary. Here he found several capped potions for very reasonable prices. For just ten galleons a piece, they could purchase potions that restored strength and endurance, grew bones, healed minor bruises and moderate lacerations, increase speed, hardened their skin to punishment, and numbed pain. The prices were directly effected by the rarity of potions ingredients.
Scott and Nate filled their pockets with promises to return later. They reduced their money stock to just under five hundred galleons, and had much to store away when they would return to Zane. Not having much more to accomplish with their limited funds, the two went back to the Leaky Cauldron and ordered a dinner. Nate got sidetracked by the massive building with the WWW across the front. A dozen different fireworks seemed to be spewing from the sides with a drape over the door that read: "Coming Soon". Scott immediately yanked Nate away, recognizing the store for what it was.
"We can use those nut jobs later, not now." He told his brother. Nate, not really understanding allowed himself to be led away. When the two were settled in the wizarding pub, Tom brought them each a platter of hot chicken stew, warm soft bread, and bottles of butterbeer. One sip of the rich sweet brew, and Scott knew exactly what would give him diabetes.
Over dinner they discussed their future plans.
"When are we going to fuck things up?" Nate asked around a mouthful of stew. He wiped grease off his mouth with a junk of bread.
"Soon. There are a few things we need to get first. Those suits of dragon hide armor will do us nicely." Scott explained.
"We need more gold for that. I don't plan on getting a job or robbing a bank. Not much back at the safe house except our weapons and gear." Nate said. Scott nodded.
"I have a plan of where we can get more funds, but a few things have to happen first. We need our modified packs. After that we shift over to home and load up all the weapons, ammo, food, and equipment in the safe house. We shift back here and then check out Sharpclaw at the bank. I have a few questions to ask him. Then we can blow some stuff up and have a bit of fun." Scott laid out all of his ideas for their current universe.
"Just a bit of fun?" Nate asked. His disappointment was easy to pick up. Scott quickly reassured him.
"At first. Remember Darth Vader? We need to build ourselves up. We need that armor, and those bags. Maybe a few more things to keep us on top. Then we need to fill those bags with all the ammo and weapons we can find in this world."
"From what I see, the tech is outdated." Nate grumbled.
"Only by a few years. Besides ammunition hasn't changed much in the last twenty years. You can still make those motherfuckers of yours right?" Scott asked. Nate took a moment to think about his supply at the safe house. He considered what tools he had on hand before giving his brother a hesitant nod.
"What do you need?" Scott picked up on Nate's hesitation.
"A couple tools like a press, and access to phosphorous and impact explosives. I have about a thousand rounds completed back home, with the materials to make five hundred more. Long as I get the right tools I should be okay."
They took their time, enjoying the meal and laying out a lot of future plans for the HP universe. Scott spent much of their time filling in his brother on the current book and story line of which they inhabited. After paying a measly galleon and a half for their meal, the Craig brothers made their way back through Diagon to Knockturn.
After a polite nod a request of the Spider Hag, Scott and Nate found their modified duffels and packs resting on the counter. Zane's pig head popped up from behind the counter and broke out into a wide grin.
"What have we got?" Scott asked immediately.
"Blunt humans to boot! I'm hating ye less and less. Yer enchantments we're easy to apply. I increased the internal size by a factor of three. Ye can slide in anything that'll fit into the opening, and them packs won't weigh a ton. If the size limit inside the packs are full, total weight should equalize under twenty five pounds."
Scott let out a soft whistle. That last bit sounded good to them. Scott routinely carried a sixty five pound assault pack on missions. Nate's loads were usually double that when he went on deployment. Twenty-five pounds was featherlight in comparison. And a triple space factor meant seventy-two hundred cubic feet of space, far exceeding Scott's low ball guess of twenty-four hundred.
"I'm not finished yet!" Zane cackled as he took in their impressed stares. The little goblin hopped up onto the counter and picked up one of the duffel bags. He stuck his arm in the opening, and a soft white light emanated from within and lit up his face.
"Display contents," Zane said. He tilted the bag so both brothers could have a look. A tan, tattered scroll was suspended just inside of the bag's opening. The scroll had a list of objects within by name. Zane touched a short finger to one of the names on the list and reached into the bag. He pulled out a bright red apple and started munching.
"Ye can access this and say: loading before giving the name of the object. The enchantment will record that into the list and automatically count the number of objects. To retrieve simply select the item from the list, reach into the bag, and grab what ye want. All of this will react to yer voice as well in case ye need it."
Scott and Nate looked over their packs, both extremely impressed with the work. Scott immediately unloaded the Samsonite case containing the world-shifter, the exact one he'd been lugging around with him all day long. The brothers emptied the results of their shopping spree into the backs, and hefted the light packs. Both wore large grins on their faces when they were finished.
"Two fifty as we agreed," Scott said as he deposited the number onto the counter. Zane glared at him and pulled off a small chunk of coins to give back. He stopped the goblin by dumping the rest of his coins on to the counter, save a few.
"Two fifty for excellent services. The rest is for some other stuff we need your help with."
Zane gave each man a long calculating look. He swiftly carved out two hundred galleons and deposited the money under his counter. He did not touch the other coins.
"I am just a simple enchanter, what could I do for ye?" Zane asked. Scott barked a harsh laugh.
"Getting to this shop ain't simple. Which makes me think you're more of a black market dealer. There are some questionable items we need, and you can possibly get them for us. We'll pay top galleon for the work. Extra if you're fast." Scott explained. He handed over a list he had scrawled out over dinner.
Zane snatched the list from him an quickly glanced over it.
"You don't have the gold to pay for these items." Zane muttered immediately.
"I know, but we can get you the gold in the next few days. We'll pay double if need be."
"And where would you, a muggle, find the gold for this," Zane held up the list.
"Put a little more faith in us. We'll get it done." Scott told him. He gestured to Nate and the two men left the store, heads held high, and pockets almost empty.
"You better be right about this," Nate said to Scott. The other brother grinned slightly.
"Lets find a quiet place and shift back to home. We need to get the rest of our stuff."
The brother's found their spot in a cross street of Diagon alley, in between two shops. The little hole was small, but perfect for their needs. As Scott retrieved the world-shifter from his pack, Nate stood watch and blocked the looks of inquisitive eyes. Scott gritted his teeth and minimized the transportation radius to include the two of them and nothing more. His thumb hesitated briefly over the yellow button before he gave it a press.
Pain, agony, torment, all packed together in the most beautiful of searing lights. Then it was over and strength pooled into Scott's muscles. He staggered to his feet and lurched over groaning all the while. Nate gave him a sympathetic eye from across the room.
"It get's easier I promise. That last one was a short shock before it was over for me. Third jump won't be as bad." He said. Scott nodded and sucked in a breath of air. He glanced around and smiled slightly at the surroundings. They were back in the safe house just like before. Everything looked to be as they left it.
"The gear works." Nate told him. Scott glanced over to see Nate lovingly slide his REPR sniper rifle into his ALICE pack. Scott watched mesmerized as the fifty inch long rifle system slid easily into the forty inch tall back pack with ease.
"Good, least we know this fairytale is real." Scott said. He unlimbered his own pack and began organizing his gear. He stuffed his FAL battle rifle with spare magazines and cleaning kits into the pack and whistled appreciatively at the ability. After the rifle came a box of spare thirty and twenty round magazines followed closely by all the remaining 7.62 ammo in the safe house. Beside him Nate, smiling all the way, loaded up their MRE supply.
The two brothers took everything in sight. All the medical supplies, spare food, water, cots, radios, flashlights, blankets, pillows, and assorted accessories went into the bags. The non essentials went into the duffel bags for mass storage while all the food, weapons, ammo, medical supplies, and communications gear went into the ALICE packs.
"Better not expect to come back to this place. If Barker survived you can bet your ass he'll figure out a way to track this thing." Nate told Scott as they took in the bare shelves and empty remains of the safe house. Scott pinned his brother with a questioning gaze.
"DARPA is scary shit. If Barker survived that nuke, then he's probably doing exactly what we are: gathering weapons and tech. He's smart enough to figure out a way to detect whatever energy signature this world-shifter has. Probably working on that right now." Nate elaborated.
"Alright, that might throw a wrench into our plans for this universe." Scott told him. He set up the world-shifter once again and took a deep breath before mashing his thumb down on the button.