CHAPTER 46: REVELATION
(Multi-person POV)
"CALI-"
The giant swung down its club…
"-BURN!"
September seventeen would be a day to remember for the ones who had seen what happened. Indeed, the sight they bore witness to was incredible, as a girl, young and frail-looking in comparison to what she faced at the start, confronted a monstrous giant, armed with a huge weapon, and had great magical resistance, as well as being protected by powerful enchantments. Yet all these advantages were rendered useless, as the girl charged in, and destroyed the beast.
The giant, with the force of two hundred men, swung down its mighty club at the small figure on the ground, with every intent to destroy. The ones who were watching wanted to shout at the girl,to tell her to run away, and indeed it was what they thought the girl would do. Instead, however, the silver-haired female stood her ground, as she seemed to prepare herself to meet the force of the oncoming doom head-on. For a fraction of a second, the ones witnessing it thought it was the end. They thought it was over, that the girl was going to die. Instead, what happened next was not only unexpected… it was awestriking…
The moment the huge club was upon the girl, they expected her to be crushed, to be pulverized by the force. Instead…
"ROOOOAAAARRRR!"
"HYAAAAAAAAAAA!"
CRACK!
The giant's powerful weapon, which they expected would crush the girl, was destroyed, as the girl's golden sword pierced through it. Indeed, it was a most unexpected and amazing spectacle. However, it does not end there…
With momentum on her side, the girl continued to charge forward, almost flying, jumping an impossible height, as she lunged with the golden blade in her hand, running it through the giant's chest, impaling the monstrosity through its heart…
A moment of silent tenseness passed, before the giant roared one last time, as a majestic golden light engulfed the area, everyone watching temporarily blinded by the bright light…
In a short while, the light from the sword finally dissippated, as the people watching slowly regained their vision…
And the sight they beheld was one which they would never forget…
There was the girl, her silver-hair flowing gently in the breeze, her face illuminated by the rising sun, the sunlight reflected by the majestic sword she held in her hands. She was facing a large pile of dark ash and sand, which was undoubtedly the remains of the monstrosity she had been fighting just moments before.
She had a hardened and determined look on her face, fitting of a warrior, of a knight who fights courageously in battle. Yet, her pose was elegant, and somewhat regal, her fierce expression, rather than marring her face, only seemed to add to her beauty…
Everyone who had seen it, everyone who had witnessed it, students and teachers alike, stood stiff as statues, as if Petrified, the events that unfolded before them still playing in their minds, in a state of awed disbelief…
-BREAK-
(Severus POV)
"Sev," smiled the silver-haired girl, as she approached her friends, the sword disappearing from her hands.
It was just… too much. Severus Snape had been together with Ilya for quite some time now, having lived together with her, and they were now in a relationship, their feelings of love for each other mutual.
She was, as she declared, no witch. She was a magus, one who walks with death, and a highly skilled one at that. She knew a lot of powerful spells, some of which she had already shown, such as the Gandr, powerful gunshot like orbs of light, which she used in her battle against the Death Eaters, as well as Rho Aius, an immensely powerful shield which can deflect even a powerful barrage of Killing Curses, which were not only deadly, but supposed to be unblockable.
And she was also a master of Projection, Tracing, which was similar in a way to Transfiguration, yet different. And her specialty was in Tracing swords…
The silver-haired girl had already shown the raven-haired young man her Reality Marble, one of the highest forms of magecraft, and hers was known as Unlimited Blade Works, infinite creation of swords, and it was indeed a fitting name. It was Ilya's inner world, where all the swords and blades she had ever encountered were stored and recorded for later use. Yes, Severus knew it was really powerful magic. The silver-haired girl had already shown him one of the pinnacles of her power, an inner world, which can be brought out into the real world for a certain amount of time…
Yet seeing Ilya in action, who was apparently using just a small fraction of her powers, still shook the raven-haired young man to his core.
Caliburn… thought the raven-haired young man inwardly.
He knew what it was. There was only one sword in history with that name… and there was only one wielder… King Arthur.
Yes, it was a famous sword in England, known in both in the magical and nonmagical community as a great legend. It was a holy, sentinient blade, which belonged to the one and true king of England, said to surpass all the rest in power and greatness. Yes, it was called Caliburn in some legends while Excalibur in others, though they practically referred to the same weapon. Severus was sure, that the blade Ilya had used was undoubtedly that particular Holy Sword. If Ilya had seen it before, with her abilities, her origin and her element being 'Sword,' there was no doubt that she could make a perfect copy of the weapon, and have it stored in her Reality Marble. Still, the raven-haired young man could not help but feel uneasy. And it was for the very reason, that whether one was living in either the Muggle or even the magical world…
The sword was just a myth! A legend! Or maybe not. But the point was, It wasn't even supposed to exist anymore! Arthur and Merlin may have been real, but the sword's existence itself, as a sword of power, more than just an ornamental blade, was doubtful.
Yet here she was, wielding the very weapon that was once wielded by the great King Arthur. Even if Ilya's Reality Marble could copy any sword or blade, how exactly did she even manage to get a glimpse of that particular sword, when said sword, even by magical records, as far as Severus knew, had never actually existed, or had been lost for centuries?
Perhaps it was a fake that she saw and copied, not the real sword. But somehow, Severus' gut feeling was screaming at him, that the Caliburn Ilya used… was definitely the real thing. The sword's presence was so surreal and majestic, that there was no possible way for it to have been just a mere imitation. Well… even if it was just a copy, the Caliburn Ilya used, was definitely based on, and extremely close to the original… which means that she did indeed see the sword close-hand…
Now that he remembered the hill of swords that Ilya had shown him, the raven-haired young man recalled some of the assortment of blades, swords and spears that was there… and indeed he had felt immense pressure and aura coming from some of the weapons. How he wished he had paid further attention to the details rather than just focused on the fact that they were swords…
"You know… it's not good to keep your mouth hanging open like that… flies might enter it you know…" said a familiar female voice cheerfully. "Guess you must've forgotten to brush your teeth last night."
Instead of reacting to the joke, however, the raven-haired young man simply continued to stare quietly, his thought processes still at a standstill.
"Ilya," inquired Rose quietly, the blue-haired girl with a seriously awed expression on her face. "What was that?"
"Caliburn," replied the silver-haired girl nonchalantly. "The Sword of Promised Victory…why?"
"That was the, 'Sword of Promised Victory?'" said Alice incredulously. "But that's impossi…"
"I'll tell you about it later," Ilya cut her off, frowning slightly, apparently displeased with the strange looks they seem to be wearing on their faces. "For now, why don't we go get something to eat… hunger is the enemy…"
Noticing that his silver-haired girlfriend was now walking back towards the castle, Severus and their other two female companions followed, unmindful of the stares they (mostly Ilya) were receiving, their minds too focused on what they had just witnessed…
-BREAK-
(Dumbledore POV)
The old Headmaster was in shock. He had been worried. The moment he realized that he had been tricked into leaving Hogwarts, Dumbledore knew that some kind of plot was being initiated at his school in his absence. Realizing this, the Headmaster hurried and hastened his pace, as fast as he could, to return to Hogwarts….
"CALI-"
"-BURN!"
Just in time to see the threat eliminated… but it was not the giant, nor the fact that it was vanquished, and it wasn't even the fact that he had been tricked into leaving Hogwarts, that got Dumbledore's attention the most…
In all his long life, despite all his delvings with magic, Dumbledore had still never seen anything like it…
It was an excellent blade, forged to such a level of magnificence. And it had been imbued with a lot of power, meant to strike down powerful foes in a single strike. Yet, it was not really these excelling factors that made the old man gape in wonder. No, the real reason why his heart almost stopped beating, was due to the fact…
That the light that came from the sword was that of justice and righteousness…
Yes, the sword shone with a bright golden light, yet like any other weapon, it reflected the heart of its wielder… and that, as far as Dumbledore was concerned, said everything about the Emiya girl.
It did not really matter to the old man if the sword itself was the real deal or not, nor did it matter to him what kind of connection the girl could possibly have with King Arthur. Well, it did have some relevance, but it was trivial to what Dumbledore had confirmed, as far as the old Headmaster was concerned at least.
Ilyasveil von Einzbern-Emiya had been an enigma, someone who had been hard to understand. Yes, she was undoubtedly a prodigous witch, and, by magical standards, possessed a great amount of talent. Indeed, she was undoubtedly powerful…yet, she was unreadable.
For despite everything that he had discovered so far, including what he learned from the Sorting Hat, the old Headmaster had still been unsure of her stand, whether she was with the light or with the dark. He was uneasy, very much so. Even though he had already conversed with her, and had even sought her assistance in protecting the castle… overall the Headmaster still did not know what to make of the silver-haired female…
Yet, what he had witnessed on this day was enough. The girl, Emiya… while she may act like she had a somewhat different view of things to the Headmaster… deep down, she was a good person… and it may have been the reason why she had been destined for the phoenix wand made of Holly…
Kill one to save ten… kill ten to save a hundred… kill a hundred to save a thousand… even if she had lived by that principle, even she had indeed killed in the past, and was willing to do so if necessary, her recent action, assaulting the giant and rescuing the young blonde female had just proven her true nature…
For even if her objective was only to minimize the damage… if it was possible for there to be no casualties, she would immediately jump at the opportunity, though she would still choose the latter if the possibility is too slim…
But more importantly, she was not afraid of putting her own life on the line to protect other people.
The Headmaster, having earlier cast on himself a powerful Invisibility Spell, watched as the silver-haired female enter the castle with her friends, while the other teachers checked on the condition of the rescued young girl.
In truth, while Dumbledore had been going around telling the world that love was stronger than any magic in the world, he had personally, in the past, studied magic deeply, including some forms and branches, which many would actually consider as Dark Arts. While he had not gotten so far as to sacrifice innocent lives for his experiments or mutilate his own soul, he had actually come close to that point. He had been afraid, afraid to go any further, for fear of becoming evil, for fear of becoming corrupted. He had a near miss, almost becoming a hypocrite, by doing evil under the banner "For the Greater Good," when in fact all he would have ever cared about were his own personal interests…
Yet here was a girl, who has, by all means, already surpassed him in many aspects, not as a witch or wizard, but as a person. She was brave, courageous, and held a fierce and unwavering resolve. Overall, she actually seemed like the typical Gryffindor… minus the prejudice that comes along with it, for she, like Dumbledore, seemed to be betting on the goodness in people's hearts, and her bet had actually succeeded with a certain raven-haired former Slytherin.
While it was not her motto, Dumbledore realized that Emiya's principles were actually, (unlike his own and Grindelwald's hypocritical ways in the past), what "For the Greater Good" truly meant, by the letter…
In all his years of experience, Dumbledore had never thought it possible. He was a powerful wizard, and had become a good and righteous person by choice. Afraid of becoming what he did not want to become, the Headmaster had dedicated his life to Hogwarts, and to the betterment of the Wizarding Society as whole, while avoiding holding any position of absolute power (Being the Chief Mugwump simply makes him the presiding officer, or speaker, and he was still just equal in rank to the other members, his opinion only counting as one vote). And as for the vast learnings of magic he had accumulated through the years, Dumbledore intended to keep it all to himself, to take it with him to the grave. It was a waste, but the headmaster knew it was for the best. For his vast knowledge of magic, if passed on to others, could have dire consequences. It was, after all, power, and power normally corrupts. Dumbledore might inadvertedly end up giving rise to another Dark Lord, who might even become more cruel and evil than the current one, Voldemort himself… The very thought of teaching what he had accumulated throughout the decades had never crossed Dumbledore's mind…
Until now, that is…
This girl, thought the Headmaster, as he entered his office, awaiting the angry outburst of Minerva McGonagall, who was probably now on her way to ask him as to where in Merlin's name he had been (And the informant could only be the portrait of one Phineas Black, who had informed him that the Headmistress now knew of his return.).
Dumbledore mused to himself, as he realized. For the very first time in his life, he had found someone… someone who he could probably share all his knowledge with… someone who he could trust with and pass on the magical research and learnings he had acquired through the decades, without fear of it being used for evil…
The Headmaster knew that he needed to get his priorities in order. The school and the safety of its students naturally come first, as well as trying to find the culprits (well, evidence on the culprits, as he already knew who some of the suspects were, glaringly obvious suspects), so that he will have solid grounds to have them removed from Hogwarts, and thus prevent them from causing further harm.
Still, the Headmaster could not help but feel a bit of joy… For finally, after a very, very long time…
It seems like I've finally found my successor…
-BREAK-
(Ilya POV)
I knew I shouldn't have used that sword, thought a silver-haired girl, as she sighed inwardly.
Ilya was not having a good day. Somehow, someone had managed to sneak in a giant (a giant, by the Root, a giant!) into the castle, and it almost succeeded in kidnapping one of the students, had Ilya not stopped it. She had successfully prevented its escape, and the blonde female was safe, as was everyone else in the castle. Yes, that problem has been resolved. And now all she had to deal with…
Were the numerous unpleasant stares that the entire student population was now giving her…
Apparently, unfortunately, all the commotion on the grounds had somehow awakened everyone in the entire castle (Privacy Wards be damned), and as Ilya remembered, many students were already awake when she and her friends arrived. Which meant that most of the people in the castle were no longer asleep at the time, and it also means…
That her little display was more or less witnessed by almost the entire Hogwarts population.
After the battle she had fought, as well as the fact that she used a large amount of magical energy, Ilya was exhausted and starving. Unfortunately, she had not prepared any meals for them that day in advance…
Which meant that she had no choice but to eat her breakfast in the Great Hall. She knew that she could have simply taken food from the kitchens, or from the table and then leave quickly for the safety of the fourth floor, yet she found this option unavailable at the moment.
She was already famished. No matter how much she would have wanted to, she needed to replenish her energy as soon as humanly possible, and carrying the food would only delay the process, not to mention the fact that it was more comfortable eating while resting than while walking (which would make eating useless, as it would be burned up immediately anyway)…
And while the price to pay for staying in the Great Hall was a most irritating one (the annoying stares), it also gave her time to organize her thoughts, on the best way to explain things to Sev, Alice, and Rose. Had they gone immediately to the fourth floor, the three would undoubtedly immediately corner her with their questions. By staying in a rather public place, the three were sensible enough not to start open discussion on the issue, which they wordlessly understood to be on sensitive information, for which Ilya was thankful for.
Her companions were considerate and understanding, yet she knew that it would be best not to hide too much from them, especially on the issue at hand. She would just tell the three of them later, (though if they decide that they would rather not know, it would fine as well), meanwhile ignoring the rest of the school, as she sipped some coffee. Yes, this was indeed the best course of action…
"OUR KING!"
Or not…
Now what? sighed Ilya inwardly.
Some people screamed, as ghosts, about thirty of them, entered the Great Hall, as their echoing voices cried out in unison…
"OUR KING! HIS LINE IS STILL ALIVE! HIS DESCENDANTS STILL LIVE ON! LONG LIVE THE KING!"
Amidst the cries of the ghosts, gasps and murmurings can be heard from the students around them…
Calm down, Ilya, thought the silver-haired girl to herself. Don't let it get to you. Restrain yourself… restrain yourself…
"King Arthur?"
"Her?"
"A descendant?"
"Impossible…"
"But even the ghosts…"
Yes, even the ghosts. Unfortunately, they were indeed the main problem. For some reason, these dearly departed wizards (knights, probably, based from their armored attire) were the ones who were breathing more fire to the already furiously burning circulating rumor (which took less than an hour to spread throughout the whole school and intensify). Yes, they were already dead, which means that some of them could have more or less been around for over a thousand years, and may have in fact, been alive to see the real King Arthur and his sword, however the legends went in this universe… and this very possibility made their speculations even more ridiculous…
Ilyasveil von Einzbern-Emiya was now truly regretting her decision of using the sword which belonged to the Once and Future King of England, who, unknown to anyone but her, was actually one of the few people Ilya had considered family…
And now, by using Caliburn in plain view, some people, living and formerly living alike, seemed to have begun to believe that there was some sort of link between Ilya and the King of Knights. They seemed to be starting to think that the silver-haired girl was somehow related to him… and from Ilya's perspective, it was not a good thing…
The silver-haired girl tried her hardest to control her patience, which was already at the brink of snapping. Unfortunately, after all the early morning stress, as well as the fact that she had not yet had a single bite to eat, save for a bit of coffee… with all the muttering and whispering around her… it was just impossible…
Ilya calmly stood up, filled her lungs with air, and then…
"THE ROOT BE DAMNED! PLEASE STOP WITH THIS NONSENSE!"
The silver-haired girl had finally lost to her temper, as she continued…
"Let me make this clear… I AM NOT A RELATIVE OF KING ARTHUR! I AM NOT RELATED TO HER IN ANY WAY! I MOST CERTAINLY AM NOT ARTURIA'S DESCENDANT!"
The Great Hall suddenly fell silent, as the voice of the silver-haired surpassed even the ghost's rants in volume, as they also became quiet.
"Sev, Rose, Alice… let's go…"
"Ily… whoa… wait!"
Ilya, unable to take anymore, stood up, headed for the door with her friends, then…
SLAM!
Without another word, the silver-haired girl decided that getting some peace and quiet would be nice, and had now begun heading towards their favorite spot on the fourth floor, when…
"How did you know that?" demanded an echoing voice suddenly, which, while not in shouting fashion, as a transparent ghost glided through the air, stopping just in front of the silver-haired female and her companions, who were now beginning to climb up the Grand Staircase. It was the ghost of a tall and rather handsome-looking man, wearing a silver armor, with long white-blonde hair and steely grey eyes, which were somewhat still noticeable, despite being semi-transparent. "Who are you? How is it that you posses my King's prized weapon? But more importantly… how did you know that my King was a woman?"
Ilya was shocked. After all the gossip, rumors and inquiries she had endured at Hogwarts so far, she thought she had had the worst of it… yet now… with a few simple questions… this particular apparition had just shaken her far more than all the other rumors put together… Still…
"Is it not rude to first ask a lady her name?" inquired the silver-haired girl, as she tried to regain her composure. "Is it not the knight who introduces himself first?"
"Forgive me for my earlier behavior," replied the man, apparently trying to redeem himself from his sudden outburst, yet a fire of yearning and curiosity can be seen in his eyes. "I am Sir Bedwyr Bedrydant, former Duke of Normandy, and former member of the Knights of the Round Table… now do pray tell, why does thou wield Caliburn, when as far as I remember, it has been broken... yet now I find that it is whole again… and how does thou know of my King's true gender?"
Bedivere, thought the silver-haired girl, as the memory of a conversation with a certain blonde haired female with cold green eyes surfaced in Ilya's mind…
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Alright, another chapter out. Well, I must admit I've been a bit slow on updates in the past few days, due to my flu, my school work, my work, and um… other distractions… not to mention the fact that I've also been reading other fanfics and hell are they good… really wish I could write in that level, but oh well, I'm just human after all… once I get this story finished and get a decent beta reader I'm sure I can get my own to that level… hopefully, though it's still unlikely.
Anyway, like always, I hope you enjoy this chapter…
Later then, people…