It may as well had been any other day when the tall smartly dressed man stepped into Gringotts, the usual hustle and bustle outside mingled with the sharp morning air seemed like any other morning. Vlagueis slowed his walk as he reached the front doors, he was dressed in dark purple dress robes and had his hair sleeked back behind his ears, a simple concealment spell obstructing the scars and distortions on his youthly face. Even with his mutilated appearance Vlagueis considered himself handsome, and it was with this over confidence that he strides inside. The familiar smell of old parchment and candles reached his nose, it brought Vlagueis back to an earlier time in his life, a time almost... content? He had been quite young the first time he had visited Gringotts, his Father had taken him here many times even before he attended Hogwarts. A disgusted grimace etched across his face at the thought of his father, no.. he must remain focused, in control, if he is to achieve what needs to be done.
Behind the desk sits an elderly Goblin, so focused on his ledgers and scales it's almost as if hes pretending the world around him isn't there. Vlagueis cleared his throat. Nothing.
"Excuse me, I'd like to have access to my vault"
"Key?" The goblin doesnt even look up.
"Right here, I think you're find everything in order"
Vlagueis removes a very old key from beneath his sleeve, it is more detailed than most Gringotts keys, with green emeralds around the handle, engraved on the side are the numbers "815".
The Goblin looks up from his stack of work, his eyes widen at the sight of the key and he snatches it from Vlagueis before giving him a scrutinizing look. Vlagueis expected this and immediatly projects himself outwards from within, reaching out to the furthest corners of the room like smoke filling an empty chamber, and in his minds eye he whispers "Imperio". It's almost instant, he can feel them all, attached to him via invisible twisted strings. The air in the room changes, it feels stretched thin, empty. The elderly Goblin looks up and produces what Vlagueis is sure is his best smile,
"Mr .."
"Names wont be necessary, Im sure you understand I would like to keep a low profile"
"Of course sir, please take a seat Garbrone will be with you shortly"
Vlagueis sits and glances around, once he struggled using Imperio on just one being, now thanks to his research and devotion to his craft a room full of Goblins is.. effortless. He holds them there, like puppets at his command, after a few short minutes a much younger Goblin appears.
"If you'd like to follow me sir, I shall take you to your vault"
They leave the majesty of the main atrium and descent into a more dark and dingy interior, Vlagueis releases the main hall from his grasp and focuses solely on Garbrone.
"Vault 815 please, and if you could take a less direct route, I would like to sustain my privacy"
"No problems sir, hold on tight, here we go"
As the cart descends around the unpredictable seemingly random track, Vlagueis grows restless, after all soon there would be no more shadows for him, a luxury he could no longer afford. As they approached the enchated waterfall, he reflected on how alive he felt, like a wild beast, stalking his prey for the first time, he felt almost euphoric. They pass under the water and Vlagueis feels his concealment charm lifting, along with his Imperious curse. Garbrone blinks a few times then turns to look at Vlagueis. His eyes widen and a look of pure terror enters his tiny eyes. Vlagueis acts quickly "Filacitus" a liquid string of intense fire shoots from the tip of his wand, wrapping itself around the small goblin. Garbrone screams, screams louder than all of Vlagueis experiments put together as the fire warps itself across the goblins rough skin, charring everything in its path.
"If you do anything other than take me to Vault 815 Goblin, i will melt down your body and plaster the walls with your remains, understand?"
"Yesss"
"Excellent"
The reach Vault 815, surprisingly it's a low security vault, but one of the deepest oldest vaults in Gringotts. Garbrone slowly exits the trolley, struggling to walk, too distracted by the irreversable damage to his body. Vlagueis on the other hand almost glides out, like the very ground was made solely to bear his weight.
"You know you wont make it out of here dont you? And besides this vault hasnt been used in years, its just old thats all with a fancy trinklet key, one of the first vaults ever to be used. But trust me when I say theres nothing valuable in here"
Vlageuis almost spits at him "Do not speak unless spoken to Goblin! Now kneel, kneel before your master!"
As the goblin reluctantly gets to his knees, Vlageuis steps into the light, and for the first time Garbrone truly sees his wicked face, the twisted modifications, almost surgical scars, sickening disfigurement. Vlageuis was only 30 however, the greying hair and almost gargoyle like appearance made him look much older.
"You're face, you're, you're a monster!"
Vlagueis steps back, as if to realise this for the first time, he chuckles
"Oh... So I am"
"Filacitus" Flames shoot out from his wand again, wrapping themselves around the now frail Goblin, the screams are so loud, Vlagueis is sure they will hear them in the streets above. Garbrone thrashes on the floor as parts of him melt away to almost nothing, his flesh and hair bubbling up like butterbeer. Vlagueis steps closer and with a motion of his wand, the fire like net engulfing the Goblin slowly gets smaller. The screams have stopped now and as whats left of the innocent gets shredded to a watery mess, it's replaced with a new sound... Laughter.
The lock turns and into the shadows steps a Man, a Man with purpose, a Man like no other. Vlagueis turns to observe the Goblin remains then enters the Vault.
"Lumos"
A smile streches across his face, brighter than the tip of his wand. Cobwebs line the walls, dust and debris its floor, combined with the soft light of the room, it almost makes the vault look silver. But its not the walls or floor that concerns Vlagueis, it's what stands in the middle.
Covered in a few centimetres of dust and decay lies a stone coffin.
Vlagueis approaches, letting his very skin soak in the Magic in the room, he takes his gloved hand and carefully wipes away the years of neglect. Whats revealed is a wooden plaque, and in dark bold letters, a name. Vlagueis stares down at the coffin, he feels almost childish within, after 11 years of searching, he is finally here. He takes in the name on the coffin, tears of greed in his eyes. There is much work to be done and not much time, turning away from the stone structure the light from the tip of Vlagueis's wand catches the wooden plaque, and there in dark letttering it reads "Tom Marvolo Riddle".