The Crossroads of Fate
Chapter 20: The Unseen Lands
Daily Quibble- West End Liberated, Wider Assault Halted
In the early hours of yesterday morning to the late hours of the evening, the battle for West End took place, writes Lysander Scamander, special freelance writer. The victory for stopping them is thanks to an unseen group the Daily Prophet claims were defected students. Very little information was given, leading your editor to claim that there is far more to it. "There's a basic rule," says Lorcan Scamander. "Whenever the Daily Prophet fails to elaborate on anything, whoever is running it, always assume there is far more to it. The Reservation is not being beaten by defected students, that's crazy-talk. It just fails to admit that the true heroes in stopping them were the Muggle Army. If any Wizards were there, all they did was stop any Muggle-repellant Charms." The fact that the Muggle Army is even putting a fair fight up suggests that some in the Reservation are secretly breaking the Muggle Repellant Charms on any given area. This gives rise to more speculation that Harry Potter is indeed acting from within. For whatever reason, the Reservation focused all their fire on a single school and paid for it later when the army bombarded the position bringing about the deaths of the brunt of Goblin's forces and set the ship into a period of recovery. It is unknown what happens later, just that the wider assault around the country has been halted and in other areas faced setbacks as the Arsenal and the DA leads the offensive against them.
The Astronomy Tower…
"Very interesting," Incommodo said quietly as he put the Quibbler article aside.
"The Scamander twins were humbled since being expelled. I think one is scared you'll kill him," a hooded student said with an artificial voice.
"As he should be," Incommodo said. "What is it you're really after?"
"Well, simple," the student said. He lowered his hood and there, standing there, looking a tad underfed but confident this time was Mark Wallader. "I've given up. I want to join you."
Incommodo actually laughed and sent a spell at Mark. Mark parried it easily, causing a dent in the wall and the air to grow significantly warmer. "You expect me to believe the fiancée of the Enchanter's Princess will join me?"
"Aries means to kill you herself."
"And you hope to beat her to it."
"No," Mark insisted, aware Incommodo was attempting to read his mind. He kept it blocked. Maria had helped him to master this so it came almost naturally to him. "I- look, you need a talented student, I need safety. I don't want to die. All those students, they're running head first into danger, they have a death wish! I want to live. I've lived with the fear of death hanging over my head since I was eleven, since Soto killed my parents!"
"That is exactly where you fail to impress," Incommodo told him. "You are too weak to kill. Too weak to do anything of benefit to the Arsenal. In fact, the real benefit to us would be your death. I will win this war, and then you may join me once all your friends have been killed."
Mark smirked, "I have an offer. I may not be able to kill, but I have killed Soto. He was your enemy and I killed him. I have information, information I- I can't reveal all of due to a Silencing Charm, but I can help to break some aspects of it. I know Aries and I know how to break her Charms. And- and if you let me join you, my sister will too. She chases immortality and she knows Alchemy. Alchemy, a dying art that her family has mastered. An art that has granted her power that- if your army had- you'd be invincible. You'll never lose another battle again. Trust me, you want that."
Mark allowed Incommodo in this time, allowed him to see the truth, to read it. Mark's heart was beating in fear, a small tremor but it had to be done. He'd given up. There was no other choice for him to make except this. A choice where- if everyone else died- at least he would live to fight another day.
The Room of Requirement…
Proxima would be damned before she left her brother in anyone's hands but her own. Albus had to hand it to her, even she, the most self preserving Slytherin he knew, could be courageous if she had to. If given her way, she might have even left the school, but she could not leave her brother nor reveal what happened to him. She would not even agree to tell the DA for all the good they would do. No student in Hogwarts, not even Seth, knew how to do the magic Rojer had performed on Alpha. It seemed very unusual and there were times when Alpha was just not himself before falling unconscious again. Proxima carried on with her life with a retained high, proper expression enough to put even Lucius Malfoy to shame.
Proxima also fixed Scorpius with a look of pure loathing, pure hatred. She looked like she wanted to kill him but did not. She gave him a withering look and turned away without a backward glance. Scorpius looked, if anything, a little fearful. Ever since Proxima called him out on their past, he'd been silent. He did not even talk to Albus as much as he used to. Two days after their return, Proxima took Scorpius aside to tell him something and Scorpius left their talk a little disturbed. Albus tried asking him what she said to him but he just shook his head and disappeared.
Simon disappeared and was not seen in the main school since the battle. Even Sophie disappeared. As Incommodo had no idea what had truly happened in West End, he put out a warrant for Simon purely for questioning, disliking the fact that the boy was skipping school. Simon was not expelled by the end of his session at least. Apparently, he evaded expulsion by explaining that he left due to clinical depression and proved he was still up to date with his year level. Needless to say, Incommodo seemed satisfied. Still, if he was not mistaken, he thought he heard Proxima crying her eyes out over Simon's shoulder in a corner of Room of Requirement. The only reason Albus did not assume Alpha had died was because he had seen the boy awake and kicking that same day. He still seemed very destroyed.
Alpha was said to be awake but unable of speech. His mind was destroyed and when someone's mind was destroyed, only they could repair it. The problem was, Alpha had shown himself to be incapable of repairing his damaged mind. He did not dare speak, as if afraid speaking might bring about more unwanted events. When he did speak, it was to himself, quietly, as a whisper, that nobody could hear. When pushed, he would snap, lash back with such vulgar words Albus would never have thought him capable of. Even Lily was noted to have tried talking to him but- for a wonder- Alpha either did not recognize her, or did not care anymore. After a particularly harsh tirade, Albus actually could've sworn that the look Alpha gave Lily was not one of longing or regret like it used to be, but pure loathing.
The best that could be said of him was he was capable of speech. And the only ones who seemed to understand exactly what Alpha was going through was Proxima and Lily and the only one allowed to try talking to him was Proxima after Lily's failure. Proxima lashed at Lily for not trying the right way, knowing nothing of her brother, and faulted her for even trying, seemingly taking Alpha's side. Proxima assumed the worse in people and worried that anyone else might mess things up. Lily left the corner and made for Nate's corner instead.
Alpha's condition summoned a lot of fellow Guard members to the Room of Requirement. The only member who never showed up was Rose Weasley who was barely in the room to begin with, and the few times she was, she barely even showed herself. Albus was beginning to get sick and tired of her and her carelessness towards their movement. They were the only thing standing between Incommodo and the school and she- didn't care. It irritated him. The rest of the Guard, from Hugo to Simon, showed a lot of sympathy regardless of the vulgarities Alpha lashed back with. It just went to show how the Guard had evolved from a mere resistance to a social group of friends sticking together.
Even Maria Prince had shown up and let him rest on her lap. She looked sympathetic and asked Seth a couple of questions. She did not seem to answer but as Seth told the story with a neutral voice, Albus noticed that she blushed a little.
"What's with your face?" Seth asked.
"My face?"
"It's red."
"It is?"
"No, just turned back now," Seth stated.
Maria didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest, like she truly did not realize that her face had changed color briefly. Lily stared with a mixture of shock and wonder at Alpha. She seemed to want to do something but Hugo told her, "Don't. You saw what happened last time. He seems to have it out for you in particular." Hugo was right, and it made Albus think there was a part of Alpha that was still there, but that part was withdrawn, bitter and angry. Alpha was no longer a student at Hogwarts but a miserable wreck of his former self, and his condition seemed to have affected Simon especially.
Proxima did seem to hold some blame for Simon but did not lash out at him. Not yet anyway. Simon was sobbing hard, even yelled for Seth to stay away from him. The loss of what he called his home had hit him really hard. "I just- we've been protecting education for witches and wizards, we've protected it from Incommodo's bloody Arsenal. But- but it's all at the expense of them. We're forgetting them. The Reservation, their war on the Muggles, on anything even relatively different from them. What's the point in living if every faction wants you dead?"
"Because, it's not worth it to die," Mark said miserably.
"No," Simon said quietly. "You're wrong. It is worth it. How could you possibly enjoy a life where you live under complete control under someone else? You're not even human that way. I just- I just wanted it to end. My dad would've been proud if I went down fighting them."
"For once he admits he's suicidal," Proxima muttered.
"Shut it, just SHUT IT!" Simon screamed through his tears.
"Seth, Sierra, your sister and even Albus ran to save your ungrateful life!" she told him frankly. "And you're throwing it away! What right do you have?"
Simon did not answer. He already knew that if he had not gone, Alpha himself would not have been so destroyed. He knew that too and it only made him worst. Proxima seemed to be in agreement but she did not voice it. Alexis went on, "Others went off too, and they suffered injuries too. You did exactly what I'd have done."
Seth was there too, but he alone seemed like he cared very little over what happened. As far as he was concerned, the boy was happier dead and keeping him alive was doing him a disservice. A view that angered Proxima and even Simon very much and it took every fiber of Proxima's being not to leap at him and force him out and into the main school to get himself killed.
"He needs a way to remember, a way to bring just a sliver of his memories back," Proxima said lowly. "To remember something besides what his father spoke."
"Give him dreams," Sierra suggested to a rolling of Seth's eyes. "The magic is really simple and"-
"It would only hurt him more," Scorpius disagreed. "Dreams come from the subconscious. The magic is too dark to be rectified by dreams which would hurt him more if his subconscious can't pick anything from the pieces up." He turned to Seth and said, "Come on, mate. Help me out here. If we can save Mark, we can save this guy. Did his Caster die?"
"No, but it won't work," Seth said simply. "Mind spells don't work like that, we all know that. Or Memory Charms on Muggles would've broken ten times over as Wizards die."
"What about cancelling it out with the same Curse?" Scorpius asked.
"Impossible, the curse has come and gone," Seth said. "Doing it again will only kill him. Feel free to try though, the boy is better off dead, trust me. And the Law of Sacrifice can't work either because there's nothing to sacrifice."
"Then let's go by Farrell's Law of Fallen Might," Scorpius said, bringing a familiar theory to Albus. He had read about it in the book previously. The more severe the curse, the harder it will fall. One crack in its armor would destroy the curse and bring things back to normal.
"Which basically means that he needs at least a sliver of his old memories back before we can bring the rest," Albus put in to Scorpius' surprise.
"Al's been studying the Dark Arts I see," Seth observed.
"Just something I picked up," Albus sighed.
"We can't bring his memories back, only he can do that," Seth told Scorpius.
"So, try an external factor that would elicit a memory," Scorpius proposed.
"Like…"
Scorpius' loss for words ended the conversation there. Like what? Albus had no idea. Each idea his mind tried coming up with was crazier than the last one. Scorpius nonetheless remained thoughtful and Proxima just kept holding her brother, as if afraid that letting go might kill him. Simon suggested a Potion to force a dream during an induced sleep but Proxima refused to risk the possible pain involved if it did not work. Poor Alpha looked as helpless as his father accused him of being. Rojer had proven himself right only by inflicting it on him to begin with. Albus hated Rojer.
"Alright, look, I don't mean to interrupt the tender moment but we still have a job to do," Seth said with an annoyed look. "We're supposed to get the Orb, remember. Now is the best chance we have."
Nobody responded. Laura gazed at Alpha with a sorrowful expression and Hugo and Lily were talking quietly in a corner. Hugo seemed to be gesturing intensely towards Alpha but Lily was trying to calm him down about something. Albus had no idea what that was about and Seth only went red and shook his head. Albus looked around. Seth wanted to get the Orb and it so happened that the ones needed to venture through the forest happened to be there. Aries was lecturing Alex and Eric on what sort of memories would need to be recalled to help Alpha, (apparently, because the Scottish Curse of Depression was one of the curses, he needed a happy memory,) Laura was trying to comfort an apathetic Mark but failing miserably. Nonetheless, all of them seemed too invested in Alpha to want to leave. Albus could not blame them.
The Guard, with the exception of Rose who had disappeared, had grown to be friends and one of their number was inflicted by a terrible curse. No one could exactly pick up and leave. Was this the only time? Seth could ask the Reservation to turn on itself whenever he wanted, as of that moment they had a more important matter to attend to. At least, that was until Lancet dropped out from the portrait. With him was a small cart of what looked like light armor. Cherry showed up behind him, carrying another cart and they dumped them in the room. This certainly got their attention.
"Body armor," Lancet said to Albus' familiar wide eyes. "I showed them to you before the year started. You bought them but… I'll gift them… for saving my sister. I… sort of owe you guys and I promised a reward."
"That's my brother being the brilliant little person that he is," Cherry said in a falsely cheery voice. "Angelina left us in charge temporarily once Diagon was taken so we're running things."
"You- you ventured outside?" Lorcan asked interestedly. Lorcan seemed a little down about Lycah but he did seem interested in Lancet now. He was her younger brother after all.
"Yes, I- had to give it a try," Lancet said. Just then, he clutched his heart and head with his hands and went to his knees.
"Lance, what's wrong?"
"Let me see," Maria said quickly. She rushed forward with Mark and Seth beside her.
The little girl gazed at Lancet interestedly, Lysander was also looking in interest. Just then, Seth spoke up, "Can you- when was the last time you performed underage magic?"
"Erm… few months ago?"
"How old are you?"
"Eight."
Cherry looked from Lancet to Seth worriedly, wonderingly. Seth shrugged, "You can't use magic anymore. Congratulations."
"What?"
"Yup, your condition is suppressing your magic," Seth said simply, ignorant to Maria staring at him. "Underage magic occurs often at your age, for months to pass between one time and another is unusual. Therefore, suppression, hence, you can't use it."
"Oh…" Lancet did not seem to know whether to be disappointed or not. "Well… I still got armor."
"You're gonna die."
The mood changed from curiosity to horror. Cherry did not seem to be registering it. Lancet just seemed rather shocked. "Die?"
"Your magic can't build up like that," Seth told him. "It's bad for a Wizard's health. You'll die."
"Isn't there- a way to save me?" Lancet asked quietly, looking from Seth to Maria.
Seth answered 'no' at the same time Maria answered 'maybe.' Seth looked, "No, he can't."
"Depends on something," Maria said quietly. "Maybe the Alchemical flavoring I eat sometimes can help, since its side effect increases the magical power. Maybe it can break past the suppression and make his real condition be known to us."
"It'll reduce his lifespan," Mark told her.
"Big deal!" she yelled. "Besides, if there's any vampirism in him, he might just be immortal for all we know."
"Guys!" Seth said loudly. "The armor. Get to saving him later. We're worried about the armor now."
The Guard was silent. Nobody seemed to want to ask the question hanging over them about the armor when Lancet's life was on the line. Finally, Sierra cleared her throat, "What can they block?"
"All minor curses, most moderate curses and some major ones if you're lucky," Lancet answered glumly, not sure how to take what Seth, Mark and Maria had said.
"And… for free? Just because we saved your sister?" Morpheus asked in wonder.
"Brothers and sisters should stick together these days," Melvin shrugged with a calm voice. "Saving a sibling is a pretty big deal, Morph. Look at Alpha, now."
"Guys!" Sierra spoke up. "Look, we have a chance to do something major. We need to get that orb and Seth just put us in the best position for it. So, can we plan this out?"
"I'm sort of more worried about Alpha right now," Mark said honestly to a nudge from Aries. "And Lancet."
"Actually, we should probably get a move on," Maria said. "We're on borrowed time. I'm sure Alpha would understand. You don't mind, do you, Lancet? It's not like you're dropping dead."
"G-Go ahead," he said shakily.
It seemed to be sinking in now but then, Maria put a hand on his shoulder. "You'll be fine. I'm sure. You should've seen my outbursts when I had Alchemical flavoring. Practically destroyed the house when I was five."
Mark blinked at her. "What happened to fighting the Arsenal?" Mark asked curiously. "Now you're sending the students who went before, including me, into the forest to fetch the Black Orb?"
"We both know Potter won't manage," Aries said frankly. "And you all set a lot of things in motion that day when you went. So, it's only fair to see these things through. Besides, we're only taking the Orb and using it to destroy their ship and the accursed Necram. The rest can be dealt with by the Arsenal and the DA and while that war is going, we will deal with the Arsenal. We still need to help."
"Like I said, we're the Underworld," Seth said frankly. "So, get these armor pieces on, and get to the forest, and act like the shades that we are and steal the Orb already."
"And how're we supposed to do that?" Mark asked miserably. "Two of our number are threatened. You might not care, but we do."
"Even if I did care, if you intend on exacting justice on the people who did this to him, you're going to do what I said," Seth told him frankly. "I'm telling you, this is your best chance. There's actually a chance for you to do this without suffering any casualties because of my status among them."
"Guys," Proxima said in a small voice. "Just go, ok? Alpha's my brother and he's not going anywhere. Do your jobs."
"We should," Lorcan sighed beside Lysander. "There's really very little we can do other than cry over him."
"So… who was it that went?" Maria asked curiously.
It was Mark who answered, to the best of his memory, "Myself, Alex, Eric, Albus, Laura, Rose, Scorpius, Lorcan, Lysander, Hugo and Lily. It'll have to be us all over again if we want to take the same route."
"Rose isn't here," Hugo said angrily.
"Then we'll have to go without her," Alex shrugged. "She's safe where she is and she'd probably refuse anyway."
"I'll go…" Maria offered.
"Fine," Mark said before anyone could object. Albus blinked at Mark, surprised he accepted Maria going to begin with. As Mark mentioned their names, they gathered by the portrait, some putting the pads, helmet, and armor on. Albus took a deep breath, remembering how curiosity had driven them to the forest, and how a drive to end it would drive them again. Albus put the armor on too. It added no weight to him, in fact it was invisible once it was on. As far as anyone else was concerned, Albus was still wearing plainclothes.
"We bring the Orb untouched, you hear," Maria told Mark frankly. "No kidding."
"What for?"
"We need to use it, you need to use it and I know what it can do," Maria informed him.
"The Orb is Dark Magic"-
"Well, suck it up and prepare yourself because if you want the Reservation destroyed, you're gonna use it whether you like it or not," Seth rolled his eyes.
"And be prepared for a sacrifice in order to use it because the Dark Arts require sacrifice," Maria added.
"Let's go, guys," Albus said. He threw one final look at Alpha who was now sleeping quietly before climbing through the portrait first, feeling Scorpius follow him after. He and Albus were getting tight hugs from Alexis and Lucy. This was it. Their final go against the Reservation before letting the Arsenal or the DA take it down. Albus hoped Seth knew what he was doing. The last he saw of Seth, the boy was writing something hurriedly on a piece of parchment and handing it to a student who was not expelled, Aries, to send it off. Aries threw Mark a last worried look before they parted.
No one said anything as they ventured through the tunnel. The truth was, nobody felt like saying anything. They had a chance to achieve this with minimal casualties but they still had a feeling that the ramifications of this journey would mean somebody's death. Maria's words rang in all their heads, especially Mark's. Be prepared for a sacrifice in order to use it because the Dark Arts require sacrifice. How much Maria knew about the Dark Arts remained to be seen but she certainly knew how to use the Orb and she would need to direct Mark in using it. Would Mark even be willing, especially if it required an unknown sacrifice? The ramifications of this were still unknown.
As they reached the hut which was empty due, Lysander sighed. Even he seemed rather forlorn now they entered into the home of his friend. He gave Timber a soft pat before opening the door and sneaking out to the forest as quickly as possible. They stopped once they reached a point inside. Alex and Eric looked nervous. When they first entered, they were all thirteen, and had all ventured in for the curiosity of where the silver line led. Now they were in once more, Lysander alone seemed able to see it. Albus could see the silver line reflected in his misty eyes even if Albus himself could not see it.
"Why only you?" Albus asked.
"I remember it," Lysander said quietly. "I remember the exact path we took."
Lysander, Albus remembered, did say he had remembered it before. They followed Lysander, Lorcan walking beside him. The two were muttering, pulling aside branches and bushes for the others to pass. Mark actually cast some spells to burn some out of the way. "Wait," Albus heard Lorcan say. "This is where we got the Unicorn hair and Acromantula venom from. Not the Snorkle Fairy. You see? Do you admit it now, that the fairy does not exist?"
"Oh, yeah," Lysander said with a smile on his face flickering in the dim light shining through the trees. "It does feel quite strange, being wrong, doesn't it?" he said casually.
"If it feels strange, that probably explains why you are the epitome of strange," Lorcan said with a smirk.
"Thanks, Lorcan," Lysander said. "If I die, you can rest easy knowing that the last thing I heard from you was that I was strange."
Silence. "Sorry," Lorcan muttered.
"Don't be, I like being strange," Lysander said happily. Albus had to admit, considering the mood of tension and apprehension, Lysander's soft voice was certainly helping to lighten it, especially in the forest.
They continued walking on, Lysander taking enough twists and turns, Albus felt his heart beating more heavily. A river seemed to be running nearby, and Albus remembered running into a Sphinx by the river bank. Would they meet the sphinx again? Would the griffin still be there?
"Maybe not," Mark muttered as if reading his mind. "I know what you're thinking. Honestly, the river running reminds me too. The Reservation was secret so they were heavily guarded. They let us get there. As of now, there will be far worse things than sphinxes to worry about."
"Remember how it all went about?" Eric asked Alex half an hour later as they continued walking through the path.
"I remember being dragged in here because Al wanted an adventure," Lorcan muttered. "And Lysander was nuts. Why I listen to him, I'll never know."
"Because you know it's right," Lysander said with folded arms.
"I'm sorry, in what universe is venturing through a deep, dark forest right?" Lorcan asked.
"Oh, have a sense of fun," Laura told Lorcan, going a little red with an almost-giggle. "I quite liked the adventure, it's a shame I had to forget about all of it."
"And remember why we took this excursion?" Alex asked Albus with a smirk. Albus smiled as Alex recounted the tale, "Get rid of the Scorpion. Get re-sorted. And we'd venture into the forest with you."
"Wait- what?" Scorpius asked.
"Oh, yeah, remember how much we hated you back then?" Eric asked with a smirk, nudging Scorpius slightly.
"I remember asking Al why he wanted to come in so badly," Scorpius recalled. "Beginning to think curiosity isn't a good reason."
"We wanted to prove to him a certain point," Mark remembered. "That he's still a Gryffindor. Even in Slytherin."
"Well, you got that part right, I could've told you that any old time," Scorpius shrugged casually. "He dragged us into the forest out of curiosity. Like some obsessed child."
"Wanna drop it?" Albus asked him.
"Well, quite frankly, Al, it's all your fault if I die and I'm haunting you," Scorpius said.
Albus hoped they were almost there. The running river could still be heard and Albus actually recognized the clearing where they met Acromantula and vampires. It was eerily empty. At least, until a familiar voice spoke from amongst the trees. "You're drawing closer." Albus jumped and gasped but Mark gaped. Lorcan and Lysander halted. The speaker was Apollo L. Kimble. Maria looked interestedly at him. The boy was standing on his own two feet but he was surrounded by Centaurs acting as guards. Their bows were out and they looked very threatening indeed.
The trees rustled on the other side and next, a familiar face showed itself to Albus. It was Riley and Nate and they were at the head of a vampire clan headed by Fargus. Albus never thought he would meet those vampires again. "Once again, the adventure is taken, I see," an emotionless voice said from amongst the vampires. "Teenagers truly are a reckless species."
"You've forgotten how awesome it is to be a teenager," Nate grinned. "But they're adults. Well, most of them anyways."
"Thanks for reminding me," Riley muttered. "Rose isn't here?"
"Burrow," Hugo sighed. "As usual."
"Once again, the Centaurs act," Lysander said with a respectful bow.
"The Centaurs go by the stars," a strong, powerful growl said. "They foretold an adventure once and again by eleven foals. It is our job to see the divine commands through. We shall hold the forest upon your return."
Apollo's silvery eyes glinted in the darkness. "Eleven shall venture, one will be sacrificed. One of you have chosen a road, it will mean a lot of good but also a lot of grief and ill. It will take a path through darkness to find the light. Only after a journey through a tunnel do you find light, only after the dark forest do you find the beaches, and only after death do you find life. Darkness came first in the world, and so it ends with light."
"Go, and remember these words," Firenze said.
"The battle is coming soon," Fargus spoke. "We will be present when it does."
"The river is shallow at this end," Riley directed them to a specific point of the river which actually had stepping stones. "They were placed here by the Centaurs after the Acromantula were driven out of the Unseen Lands. I don't want to think about the outcome… just make sure you all survive."
Laura was trembling from Apollo's words, however, and Nate gave them an encouraging look. Apollo looked at all of them through his misty silver eyes, giving one of them a sad, sorrowful look but Albus could not catch who it was. They filed, one by one, across the stones placed specially for them, foreseen by Apollo perhaps, and closer to their destination. Albus had a truly bad feeling about this and once again, as they stepped across the river and journeyed further, following Lysander, who was also trembling now, across the forest, white met their eyes once more.
Albus did not know what was happening. He did not feel like he was falling unconscious like he did almost four years ago, but he did meet a strange apparition. Soto was standing there in the whiteness, smirking. He did not have the half black-half blonde hair as he sported in life, but pure black hair. Nonetheless, he sported a mean look but for the first time, Albus could see Seth's likeness in him. Soto was a sociopath. A true one with no redeeming qualities. He stood as he was. A liar, a thief, and a murderer. Albus had thought Soto did not commit murder, even by third year but as the truth went, he committed murder a long time ago, and left Mors Incommodo to take the blame. He may have told the truth when promising Lily had never been in danger, but that was solely because Seth reigned him in.
Always Seth. Albus swore to himself he would do everything in his power to help the boy, give him a friend, a life, even a love. Give him what his father and mother denied him. They had destroyed him. Albus had grown up with a family to shelter and protect him and as he was growing up, people like Seth and Neil were being tortured. One of them realized he was being tortured and the other- the other remained blissfully unaware.
"We- we"-
"You…" Soto pressed.
"We beat you!" Albus blurted out angrily.
"You did," Soto agreed with a horrible smirk. Now in the open, with nothing to hide, Soto revealed everything. "I murdered the Walladers, stayed in the shadows for five years, much longer than I thought, and even acquired the Black Orb for the Reservation. If not for me, they would have lost by now. And yet… my creed would have saved your world, would have moderated the Reservation, but you chose death. You will not defeat them, Potter, and if you do, you will never defeat their creed. More people with likeminded ideologies will come and they will fight, and they will get more and more vicious, until your accursed kind finally fall. And fall you will."
Albus was moving past him this time. The last time he faced an enemy like this, he had fallen. He would ignore him. "You're dead, Mark did it. Your wife is dead, your son did it. To be honest, they might have managed if they hadn't been so ignorant. Might have managed if Mark let you get away and give them the information they so desperately needed. But we stopped you. Even Seth proved himself better than you"-
Once again, at the mention of his son, Soto put a hand up, "You don't know my son. He is not different from I."
"I disagree," Albus said pleasantly. "Sure he's sociopathic, sure he's apathetic, but… there's something different in him. Something that sets him apart from you. Something that makes him human. The illness your grandparents suffered is cured, will be cured in his own children."
"Oh, you think he'll have children, do you?" Soto laughed. "Naivety. Go on, get yourself killed. I've seen the future, my son will end up killing you and only then will you realize how wrong you were. The Black Orb shows the present, the future, and even adds to the power you possess tenfold. I know you will die and I know by whose hand you will die and Potter, this future is not uncertain. You will be killed and that is the end of it. The only way you can impress me is your manner of death. So, go on, prove me right, I'll wait for you where I am and we'll discuss your naivety then. Go!"
Once again, Albus' vision went white and he stepped through to the other side. Once again, the lands were clear. Japanese style houses, sleeping bags, and at the very end of the large, vast lands, was a beach of white sands and children playing. It was like an afterlife. But it was deceptive. The true afterlife would not be attained until true death, this was but an illusion. A ploy to gain followers. No one seemed to have noticed their presence. None of the eleven seemed to be there except Laura. "What took you?" she asked.
"You're already here?" he asked curiously, heart beating.
"I just stepped through, it was easy," Laura said casually. "Last time, I cried over my own dead body before realizing it was an illusion. But… it's peaceful now. I have nothing to fear because I know I'll be ok."
As Laura spoke, Mark, Alex, Eric, Lorcan, Lysander, Maria, Hugo, Lily and Scorpius appeared, all of them looking rather shaken like Albus. Laura alone seemed able to face whatever defense the Unseen Lands threw.
"Ok, ready?" Albus asked. "Armor on? Wands ready? Strategy in mind?"
"We split into two groups," Alex said smartly. "Laura, Eric and I go with Lorcan and Lysander and distract the kids and Reservation members with a diversion. Mark, Al, Scorpius, Hugo, Lily and Maria find the Orb. Be prepared for a fight. Don't rely on Seth fighting anyone, just find what we need. The Black Orb. Mark, do you know where it could be?"
"No idea, these lands are huge," Mark grumbled. "We'll just have to look."
As Mark said those words, spells started firing from different places. The group of eleven scattered into the two groups Alex advised and Mark grabbed Albus and dragged him down from a jet of green light. Not that it would've meant much. Even if it hit Albus, apparently just another scar would be in it for him. Scorpius started firing off spells in quick succession. Albus did not see what spells were fired but they did seem to hit their marks. Lily and Hugo worked together to floor a single Reservation member but they were overrun by three others and rolled off before a jet of green light could hit. It killed the one they floored instead and Lily leapt up, firing a Bat-bogey Hex before taking Albus' side.
Albus did hope the others were faring better. They were under very heavy fire and many times, they were hit by spells which just seemed to be absorbed or else ricochet off. Still, any Killing Curse would end their lives. This was a crazy errand indeed. Mark called for them to fortify one of the small homes and they bounded in quickly, a jet of green light barely missing Maria's ear. Mark slid the door shut and started performing spells rapidly, even Scorpius performed bodily mutation curses similar to Proxima's so whoever stepped in the doorway would be effected. Since they already knew where the house was and where they disappeared into, Mark had to keep reinforcing the protections.
Scorpius and Albus took to firing from windows. Even then, Scorpius seemed to want to avoid killing. As they fought from the windows, Albus had a sudden flashback of Lucius Malfoy firing the Killing Curse at invading Goblins from the Malfoy Manor. His grandson did not seem able or willing to cast the Killing Curse even if it was at an enemy. Knowledgeable on the Dark Arts he may have been, he even put drastic protections on the house to repel any invaders. The widow shattered and Scorpius ducked but not in time. His face was cut by a glass shard. Mark actually bent down and healed the injury, costing him precious seconds in reinforcing protections the Reservation were breaking through.
"God, Mark, he was fine, we're sitting ducks here!" Maria screeched as the doorway was blasted off its hinges.
She tried casting her own protective Charms but Mark limped in front and put up a shield charm. Just as some white-robed members stepped in, the curses started taking effect and Scorpius sat up. In unison with Maria, he swiped his wand in a horizontal motion to send the infiltrators down. Just as the Reservation members backed away, Mark flicked his wand to repair the doorway, and restarted casting defensive Charms. This time, Maria joined him while Scorpius recovered on the floor. "Big mistake," he muttered as Albus stood over him. "Where the hell is Seth's"-
Silence. Of all things to interrupt Scorpius' tirade, it was silence. Spells stopped coming, more protections were being thrown, and a low rumbling sounded from the air. It was the ship. The ship had arrived. Even Mark's Charms were useless before it. A great blast of fire erupted from its cannon holes, the great mast glowed white and a blast of white fire erupted from it topmost point. When the kids dared a look outside, they saw exactly what Seth promised. Reservation members were firing uselessly at the ship, many at each other. The ship remained airborne but unlike other times, Dubium did not seem to be present on the ship.
"Time to prove the Quibbler right, I suppose?" Mark suggested.
Albus led Mark, Scorpius, Maria, Hugo, and Lily out. Their injuries seemed to have been healed. Having escaped the worse of the Reservation's attack, they ran through the lands, looking for the other half of the group. The Reservation members put no fight up. They were fighting each other, jets of green light flying everywhere, hitting everyone in the vicinity. Very few seemed to miss. The ship itself stopped firing, the air growing quiet while the battle still raged on the ground. Flying snakes came in too and attacked and Albus knew Seth was probably standing at the entrance to the forest, sending them.
It did not take long to find them. Lysander was holding a small boy in a headlock and Scorpius gaped. It was Aramaster Ruse. Eric seemed to be levitating the unconscious bodies of two kids and someone who looked like Aramaster's miniature version was also captured. "These are the kids we found. The rest were killed in the Reservation's attack on itself."
"They're going to lose this," Scorpius said.
"Tell us where the Orb is," Mark demanded of Aramaster.
Aramaster looked terrified, "I can't tell you that! He'll kill me! I'll die!"
"And I don't understand, how is your fate any different if you don't tell us?" Scorpius asked bemusedly.
"YOU TRAITOR!" Aramaster screamed at him. "YOU SWORE YOUR LOYALTY YOU TWO-TIMING"-
"Oh, please, you're the one who gave in to greed and wanted my money," Scorpius scoffed. "Your master would've never fallen for that. You were an idiot."
"Hand us the Orb," Mark demanded.
"Crucio!" Scorpius muttered.
Albus almost felt sorry for Aramaster. The boy was on the ground, twitching and screaming from pain. He just had the breath to give in, to scream that he'd tell through tear-strained eyes. Even Mark did not stop Scorpius. He looked away though. Albus thought that was pretty strange. Mark watched Albus used an Unforgivable Curse, even used one himself and neither helped him, he just shut down when Scorpius used one.
Once Aramaster gave in, he was allowed up and Mark bound his hands behind his back for him to hurry them on. He took them to a patch of palm trees just off the beach, just a little off the main fight. Aramaster stopped in the center of the clump of trees and said, "It's here."
"Show us!"
"I CAN'T!" he screamed. "I'LL DIE!"
"How is staying silent going to stop you from d"-
Aramaster actually kicked Mark in the shins and folded his arms, "If I die either way, I'm going down with my beliefs. I'm staying."
"Cru"-
Aramaster leapt on Scorpius so suddenly and physically, and Scorpius dropped his wand in surprise. Aramaster whipped his own small wand out. Albus forgot he had a wand to begin with. The sudden weight forced them both to the ground and Scorpius had a ten year-old kid over him, wand on his neck. "One move, one move against me and he dies, I swear."
"You're mad," Mark whispered.
"YEAH, I'M MAD!" Aramaster yelled. "Back away, all of you. Back off or"-
A nonverbal spell from Lorcan tied him up, sending his wand expelling a burst of green light as it flew up. For a dark second, Albus thought Scorpius had died but he stirred just as the jet hit the ground by him. Aramaster would've been yelling but Laura silenced him and Maria levitated him up as well. Four of the original ten kids who Dubium had sent to cause trouble and raise the New Roots in Hogwarts were still alive, the other six were dead.
Meanwhile, Maria raised her wand, "Obiecti Revelio."
Her wand flew out of her hand and landed, point down, against a tree with a particularly wide bark. Lorcan and Lysander used their wands together and cut it down, stripping it of its wood little by little until they reached a large hole, within which looked like the Black Orb. Mark moaned in wonder. He reached his hand out to take it before Maria slapped his hand. "Don't. Things are bad enough. You'll only end up dead."
"It's my"-
Alex seemed to guess what she was talking about though. He conjured up what looked like a cloth and cast "Protego Totalum." It had no effect. When she threw it over the orb, it was supposed to glow with a light to signal that it worked, that touching it was safe.
"Wait a sec…" Scorpius said as Aramaster gaped in fear. He truly looked like he knew death was his only option. "Maledicti Protego. Corpus Protego. Semper Protego. What do you think would've happened if we tried that charm now?"
Alex shot him a look, and tried again, "Protego Totalum!"
This time, it worked. Mark was able to tie the cloth around the orb, being careful not to touch it before tucking it inside his robes. Their mission accomplished, Albus was beginning to plan out with Lorcan how to get back to the forest when Aramaster laughed, "You can't get out unless someone belonging to those lands lets you out! You're trapped!"