Not My Magical World
Chapter 20
Twisting his body so he landed on a ledge inside the sewer, Harry bent his knees with the impact, swaying slightly as his toes tipped over the edge. Shifting so that he stood on the ledge, Harry grimaced at the greasy feeling of the wall and the thick, rancid air filling his lungs with each breath.
Doing his best to ignore the scent of methane and decay, Harry focused on finding the psychic thread left behind by Callisto's attacker.
The world shifted, becoming made of yellowish-brown energy. Water tinged with a green aura flowed through the trench in the sewer as Harry searched for the gray wisps of his prey.
He was surprised at the number of auras down here. They clung to the walls in a rainbow of color, each whispering about different events as Harry turned his head to the side.
Taking a deep breath, Harry grimaced as the smell around him intensified. Coughing to clear his lungs, he closed his eyes. The whispers slowly faded as he pushed the events in Callisto's home to the forefront of his mind.
Opening his eyes, he found a wisp of gray energy floating above the water and leading further down the tunnel.
"I am not stepping in that!"
Crouching low, Harry focused power into his legs. Shifting his feet, he blurred down the tunnel, his head angled forward as he strained his hearing to pick up any sign of distress or combat over the rushing water.
As he moved down the tunnel, Harry began to plan how to deal with his target. Before fighting Callisto, it seemed to rely on its strength and durability. Afterward, it moved with more grace, so obviously, it took more from Callisto than just the location of the Morlocks.
From what he'd seen, it needed physical contact to absorb memories, which meant he needed to stay at a distance, which would be hard to do down here, so he needed to get it outside, but getting it outside would give it a chance to escape.
About 5 miles into the sewer, Harry came to an intersection. It was a large circular chamber with holes in the wall that fed water into a central basin. As the sound of rushing water filled his ears, Harry stared into the churning water, catching a faint glimmer of gray.
"Still not doing it," with a wave of his hand, pale purple energy split the water in half. Jumping down onto the wet concrete, Harry peered into the hole, wrinkling his nose.
Glancing at the two translucent pale purple walls holding back the water, his eyes flashed the same color, and an outline of purple energy surrounded his body. Stepping into the hole, he dropped out of sight, the water crashing together behind him as he disappeared.
Harry slid down the concrete tube, trying not to think about the sludge lining the walls. Water pushed from behind him, moving him at incredible speed.
Seeing the aura trail curve ahead, Harry closed his eyes, fixing it in his mind. As he drew closer, his hand shot out, grabbing the lip of another tunnel. Gritting his teeth as the water slowly jerked him this way and that, he slowly pulled himself into the tunnel.
For a moment, he just lay on his back, enjoying the clean air brought to him by the aura surrounding his body. With an exhale, he rolled onto his knees and slowly rose to his feet, wincing as pain flared through his left shoulder.
He needed to do something about that. It seemed like each day; he bled more and more energy weakening his body.
Shaking those thoughts from his mind, Harry looked around. He was in a tall long tunnel made of weathered concrete. Cracks sporadically littered its surface as far as the eye could see. Broken lamps hung from above; their fixtures rusted with age.
Reaching up with his right hand, Harry tapped the metal that once surrounded a light bulb, frowning as it crumbled. "I know the Morlocks live in this place and that they don't have jobs, but you would think they would at least try to light the tunnel," he shrugged, "then again, maybe most of them can see in the dark."
Taking a step, he sent a power pulse through his foot, watching as it washed down the tunnel and formed an image in his mind. While it was disconcerting to use his eyes and mind simultaneously, at least it would warn him of anything ahead.
Rounding a corner up ahead, he froze, his power pulse outlining a body lying on the ground a short distance away. Increasing his pace, he knelt beside the boy.
He was 5'8" tall with green skin and solid yellow eyes. Moisture shined on his skin in the tunnel's light, drawing attention to his bald head.
Glancing at the bloody hole in the boy's yellow sweater, Harry pressed two fingers to his neck, his eyes widening as he found a pulse.
Raising his left hand, he began making symbols with his fingers. After each character, a white rune burst to life above his palm. With a force of will, he directed the runes to hover over the kid's body.
In less than a minute, a line of runes hovered over his chest, arms, and legs, creating something reminiscent of a stick figure. As a white glow began to shine from his body, Harry stood to his feet and reached out with his mind.
'Amelia, are you there?'
'Yeah, what is it?'
'I have a wounded here, I've used the runes you taught me to bind his soul to his body, but he's going to need medical attention. Bring your Valkyries, and be prepared to collect souls for resurrection.'
'The Valkyries haven't completed their training.'
Harry's eyes narrowed as he caught the scent of fresh blood. 'I'm sorry, but we no longer have a choice.' Cutting the connection, Harry blurred down in the tunnel, following the scent of blood that grew stronger with each step.
–XX –
Carver's 6'3" frame heaved as he stared at his opponent. Rivulets of blood ran down his broad, muscular body, and sweat matted his thinning Brown hair to his head. He glanced around the ample circular space, taking in the Morlocks that formed a ring around him and the intruder.
The gray-skinned man shot forward, his red eyes blazing as he closed the distance.
Carver crossed his arms, blocking the incoming punch, his bones shook, and his booted feet skidded across the floor from the force of the impact.
Regaining his balance, Carver jabbed forward, curved claws emerging from his wrist.
With surprising grace, the man danced backward, his gray form swaying from side to side.
As one, they began circling each other.
Carver glanced at the bodies lying on the floor around the chamber, and his teeth ground together.
It was his job to protect these people, which was why he dethroned Callisto all those years ago, but in the past six years, nothing had changed except for their lives getting harder.
Callisto may have been right; trying to gain rights by force was the wrong choice. Is that why they were being attacked now, had his actions brought them to the attention of those in power? He shook his head; he would take this guy down either way.
With renewed determination, Carver shot forward, launching quick jabs at the intruder.
In a blur, the figure's right hand shot forward, intercepting each of Carver's blows with embarrassing ease. With a gentle push, Carver was off balance. A slight twist of his hips slammed a kick into his jaw, sending Carver staggering sideways as blood dripped onto the floor from his newly split lip.
The gray-skinned man moved forward, his stance changing to mirror what Carver's had been a moment before.
Carver wiped his lip, the minor cut healing before the onlooker's eyes.
Gray fists flew forward in quick jabs, snapping Carver's head back as they slammed into flesh.
Carver staggered backward, his world spinning. Breath exploded from his body as a knee slammed into his sternum.
Drunkenly, Carver raised his left hand to intercept the next blow, but it was callously slapped to the side.
Carver gasped and gagged as a hand closed around his throat.
"Why?" He gasped as he was hoisted into the air.
The man's red eyes bore into his own as black spots filled Carver's vision. Just as his world began to fade to black, he saw white streaks fly into the room.
The sudden change caused his attacker to loosen his grip, and Carver took a deep breath, watching white symbols settle over the downed Morlocks, spreading out to form a stick-like figure that hovered over them.
"Hey," an unfamiliar voice called from the side, "Stop toying with Carver. Your fight is with me now."
With extreme effort, Carver turned his head, his muscles straining as he stared at the newcomer.
A young man in his mid-20s stood in the center of the tunnel leading out of the bunker, his Emerald eyes shone with an inner glow, and his dark hair seemed to absorb the light.
He stepped forward, his broad 6'3" frame tense and his lean muscles twitching as he prepared for a fight.
Carver took in his faded T-shirt, worn jeans, and stained shoes. Who was this kid? Why was he so confident? Did he come here to join the Morlocks? He glanced around at the fallen bodies. If he did, it's a horrible time to do so.
'Harry,' Amelia said through their connection, 'we're ready.'
Suddenly, Carver felt weightless.
He stumbled as he appeared beside Harry, swaying as the world spun.
"Listen to me very carefully," Harry said, his eyes scanning over the downed Morlocks, "In a moment, I'm going to open a portal, and people are going to come through to grab the injured. It would be best if you got everyone else through the portal."
Carver straightened, his shadow looming over Harry as his eyes narrowed, "Who are you? How can we trust what you say?"
Harry moved in front of Carver as the gray-skinned humanoid that attacked Callisto turned to face them, "I'm a friend of Callisto's, and despite everything you did to her, there are still people in this group she cares about. She would be very disappointed if I allowed you to come to harm," he glanced over his shoulder, "Besides, I have a score to settle with this thing."
Harry raised his hand as the creature stepped forward. With a snap of his fingers, a pale purple portal opened at the room's far end.
Before the sound faded, people flew from the portal, a redheaded woman in black robes leading them.
Her blue eyes scanned the room without pausing, and her bones staff rose. Slamming it onto the concrete floor, the white runes around the fallen Morlocks condensed, transforming into a crystal-like cocoon.
"All right, people, this is not a drill. Grab the wounded and move."
Carver's eyes widened as the people behind the redhead floated into the air and began blurring into motion. Each time he blinked, a wounded Morlock disappeared.
The gray-skinned man stepped toward Amelia, and the redhead spun her staff around her body. Jabbing it forward, the curled fingers atop her staff released a blast of black light. The force of the energy sent her red hair whipping behind her.
The Brown-haired, gray skin, red-eyed humanoid raised his hand.
The blast slammed into his hand with enough force to make him step back.
Carver watched his eyes still wide as the skin on the man's hand began to wither and flake away, revealing an advanced metal skeleton beneath.
"What is that thing?"
"I think it's a new type of Sentinel." Harry looked around the room, "are you going with your wounded, or will you stay here? That portal will close once your wounded are through."
Carver glanced between the redhead, Harry, and the Morlocks scattered around the room, "You promise they'll be safe?"
"As long as your people don't attack anyone, you'll be fine."
"Morlocks," Carver called, his voice booming around the room, "move through the portal if you want to live."
As if breaking from a trance, every able-bodied Morlock sprinted towards the purple portal.
Seeing its prey escaping, the Sentinel moved behind Amelia's blast.
Reaching forward, Harry clenched his hand into a fist. The ground beneath the Sentinel softened.
The Sentinel shifted unsteadily as its feet disappeared beneath the earth, the beam eating away at its skin shifted, carving up the right half of its torso.
Skin disappeared, revealing metal ribs, part of a spine, one arm, a shoulder, and half of a metal skull.
Amelia glanced behind her as the last Morlocks disappeared through the portal, sweat running down her face from the effort of sustaining the blast.
"Go," Harry called, "your job is done; I'll take it from here."
Nodding, Amelia began backing towards the portal, keeping her beam of decay locked on the creature.
Harry turned to Carver, "That means you too."
Carver looked him up and down, "You sure you're going to be able to fight that thing?"
"I'll be fine."
"Thank you," Carver called as he sprinted toward the portal.
Amelia's death beam vanished as she and Carver passed through the portal.
The Sentinel sagged when the beam vanished.
Capitalizing on this, Harry lunged forward, slamming into the Sentinel's spine. Pushing against the floor, the concrete cracked as Harry launched himself and the Sentinel through the bunker ceiling. Concrete and dust rained down around them as they flew through the ground.
Soil and gravel exploded upward as they emerged into a construction site.
Feeling a squirming sensation against his skin, Harry looked down to see the sentinel's flesh regenerating over its skeleton. Spinning, he threw it away, a psychic chain wrapped around its waist and lengthened as it drew further from his body.
"Come here," Harry shouted, pulling on the chain. As the Sentinel flew towards him, the chain arced through the air, and Harry drew back his fist.
The lights in nearby buildings flickered as Harry drew in their energy.
With a thought, the energy shifted from electrical to a bright green radioactive. With a yell, Harry drove his fist toward the Sentinel skull, releasing the power he had built up in a bright green beam upon impact.
Harry twisted his body as the chain went slack, throwing the Sentinel into the girders of a building under construction.
The Sentinel impacted the thick metal with a loud bang, bending it in half and causing the structure to groan.
Chest heaving and sweat dripping from his body, Harry allowed his chain to disappear.
Keeping his gaze locked on the Sentinel, Harry watched as it rose to its feet, revealing the partially melted half of its skull.
"I'll give you this," Harry released a tired breath, "you are durable." Drawing in a breath, the buildings in the distance went dark as he drew in all their energy. His eyes glowed with pale purple light as his veins lit up from within. "Now, let's see how durable."
Suddenly, as the Sentinel's face regenerated, leaving behind scar tissue from the blast of radiation, its body flew through the building, breaking girders in half as some invisible force pulled it into the sky.
Hovering over the construction site, Harry floated up to meet it.
Slowly, he brought his hands together. Ripples distorted the air as gravity increased around the Sentinel.
Veins bulged out on its body, straining against its gray skin as it fought against the increasing force.
Harry's eyebrows rose at the Sentinel's strength as it strained against 20 times Earth's normal gravity in the small field he was producing.
Harry increased the pressure. The ripples worsened, distorting the air and crushing things below in a perfect circle beneath the Sentinel.
With the sound of grinding metal, the Sentinel raised its head, its red eyes boring into Harry's Emerald green.
Realizing spreading out the gravitational force wasn't working, Harry changed tactics. He released the Sentinel from his gravity and allowed it to fall to the ground.
As the Sentinel fell, Harry condensed the gravity he generated into a small orb the size of a golf ball. As the Sentinel impacted the Earth, he released the ball.
The gravity ball shot through the air, wind twisting around it as it closed the distance to its target.
Just as the Sentinel rose, the gravity ball slammed into his head and expanded, pulling its entire body inside.
The ground shook with a boom as the air was sucked into the sphere.
Metal girders creaked as the skeleton of a building began to lean toward the sphere.
Gravel was compressed and fused in a perfect circle around the sphere.
Harry reached forward with his will and contained the sphere's energy to keep it from growing.
As the last of its energy faded, a bright flash lit up the night as it expunged the matter inside.
Harry drifted towards the ground, staring at the blood and bits of metal strewn across the gravel.
Steam began to rise from the remains as his feet touched the ground. Before he could take a step, it evaporated, leaving nothing behind.
"Well, that's interesting and worrying."
–XX –
A dark figure knelt on a rooftop a mile from Harry's battle with the Sentinel. Slowly, they lowered a white telescope from their eye.
The telescope changed in a flash of light, transforming into a crystal ball. Blue eyes were reflected in the glass before it filled with smoke, and a shadowed figure appeared.
"It's done, mistress," the figure said in a feminine voice, "I have what you needed to meet them."
"Well done, Ariana," a cultured feminine voice praised, "return to my side, and then will head to Trask Industries."
The woman bowed her head, a strand of blonde hair falling from beneath her hood, "Yes, Lady Morgan."