Still not a fan of Albus 'ten dark years' Dumbledore. Next chapter we catch up with Harry and what he's been up to.
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Just Add Water
Chapter Three: Imperial Justice
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After being released from the prison's infirmary a groggy Sirius was given a drab brown shirt, pants, and shoes and escorted to his cell. To his surprise he had a cell-mate, a face he recognized from his time among the Order of the Phoenix and that fateful night in Godric's Hollow. The other man towered over him as he rose from his bunk, and Sirius had to pause to really examine the man's jaw. What the hell hit him that Rubeus Hagrid's face is one big bruise? Out loud, Sirius spoke to a man who had once been a loyal friend. "Hagrid, Harry is safe, right? They told me he's alive but won't share anything else until they know for sure I'm innocent."
Over the next hour, the two talked and caught up. Hagrid's first reaction when he saw Sirius was to punch him into a smear on the wall, but that brought to light the fact they'd both been fitted with something capable of powerful electric shocks to prevent fights or (presumably) escape attempts. That led Sirius to examine himself in a mirror where he discovered the seven beads in his chest around his neck, as well as the small strip of silver around the back of his left ear. (Though this one didn't seem very large, Sirius assumed it went deeper than he could see.) By the end of the hour together, Hagrid was at least willing to speak to him though was reserving judgment on his innocence until the trial. "The last thing I saw before I woke up here was the aliens destroying Azkaban down to bedrock, what are you doing here?"
Hagrid was quiet for a moment before he spoke up. "These 'aliens' took the Ministry building a few days after they announced er'yone was now part of their Empire. Headmaster Dumbledore put a Fidelius up and brought everyone from Hogsmeade into th'castle, but one o 'em got in anyway. Somhow. I got sennanced to six weeks fer attacking one o' the Empire's soldiers. Would'a been worse, but they went easy on me since I was defend'n a school'n the students."
Sirius cut in. "They must have been huge to do that to you."
Hagrid blushed, obviously embarrassed. "Actually it was one woman, shorter'n you. But she was powerfully magical and must'a been using magic to make her stronger 'cause she had a mean right hook." Sirius was listening quietly as Hagrid went on. "Dumbledore called her a demon, but I ain't so sure that's what she was. I know fer a fact calling her one made her mighty angry."
Sirius replied. "I don't think they're demons Hagrid, but they are creatures from other worlds. I saw a creature that could have been a cousin of Earth's extinct Lamia in this place's Infirmary, and at least six other species when they were emptying Azkaban, even a dragon that was healing with magical flames. Do you have any idea where we are? I was just told it was 'Astria Prison,' nothing else."
When Hagrid had no idea either, (the large man had been unconscious when he was brought in) the two decided to turn in for the night. The next morning they were served food Hagrid told him was called 'ration bars' through the cell's bars. They didn't taste great, but compared to Azkaban's menu they were delightful. After being given time to eat, with water from the cell's sink (glasses had been provided, charmed indestructible and self-cleaning) the cell's doors opened and a guard informed them they were to make their way to the prison's exterior. Both men were confused but did as they were told, Sirius desperate not to lose his chance for a trial. As they walked, he saw many of those sentenced to Azkaban walking with them, along with others he'd never seen before. The disparate nationalities of the prisoners made him suspect that more than one prison had been closed and moved to this place; Sirius still had no idea where they were, the only clue so far was that the walls were metal and obviously brand-new.
They were obviously being herded to an assembly area, and soon enough they entered a large room with guards lining the walls. On a scaffolding along one wall, a human-shaped man that looked like he had dragons in his family tree came out and spoke when the room was full. "I am Tarenic, Warden of this prison. You are prisoners here for however long your sentences last. While you are here you will work every day. Rewards for labor include better meals and access to information from beyond the prison walls. Each of you will now be given a wand. Compared to others you may have used in the past these will be a poor fit until they adapt to you, but will be a superior fit once they have. Some of you have discovered what happens when you try to fight another prisoner, let me assure you the same thing happens in any escape attempt. Not that escape from Astria is even possible." With that, the massive doors that formed an entire wall of the room rumbled as they unlocked and slid open. "Welcome to Astria Prison. Every day of your stay you will be working to conjure water, rock, and air. Get your wand and get to work."
Looking out the doors, Sirius and Hagrid felt their jaws drop. Their prison wasn't anywhere on Earth, it was in space. Neither man had ever seen so many stars before, so it took them a moment to notice the asteroid floating nearby, partly under the prison. It wasn't small, in fact it was easily five miles long, the oblong shape slowly turning as it floated. As they numbly joined the queue to receive a wand, the warden spoke again. "Unlike your prisons on Earth, here you will be accomplishing something useful. Astria is currently nothing but an asteroid we hauled into a stable orbit around the local star. You will permanently conjure material until it becomes a planet, at which point the prison will be moved and the process will repeat. While permanently conjuring air or rock is beyond most of you right now, conjuring water is not so you will start there. There is a barrier around the asteroid to hold air in, as material is added this barrier will expand. Magical travel of any kind is impossible within the barrier, and the vacuum will kill you if you leave it."
It turned out that most of the wands were exactly the same, like they were mass-produced. Hagrid received one several sizes larger than the other prisoners and marveled briefly at the gray composite material as they followed other prisoners into the 'yard,' which turned out to be a metal platform which had gravity and many large holes through which one could see the asteroid floating freely underfoot. Hagrid and Sirius stuck together, if for no other reason than they knew each other and the other former Azkaban inmates were not giving either of them friendly looks. Sirius was tempted to start throwing curses when he recognized the Lestrange brothers, but they responded quicker, attempting to send a Killing Curse at him. Both men fell to the ground screaming as they were electrocuted by their implants. Only a moment later a guard walked over and confiscated their wands before he grabbed both men by their ankles and drug them off to solitary confinement. There was no further announcement, but most of the prisoners got the message. Hagrid looked at Sirius contemplatively, and spoke in a low voice. "They were'n aiming at me. I remember those two, they tortured the Longbottoms into insanity with a few others."
"If this Empire can repair most of what Azkaban did to my body in a few days, maybe they can do something for Frank and Alice? I wasn't really close with them but I know they didn't deserve that."
Instructions for a simple water-conjuring charm were suddenly projected in front of their eyes, where the translations had been appearing. As the prisoners began to cast water-summoning charms, the two former friends walked over to a hole of their own. Sirius started with the charm he'd learned at Hogwarts, then tried the spell being shown, which turned out to be easier and produced a little more water. Seeing Hagrid struggling, Sirius remembered that he'd had his wand snapped in the forties. So, without any motive other than helping someone who'd once been a friend, Sirius walked Hagrid through the spell. As time passed, both noticed but said nothing about the other wizards who began to hover around them, listening in to Sirius explaining the spell. Several hours later, they were escorted back into Astria Prison for lunch. Hagrid had asked how the conjured material had been flowing down, if there really shouldn't have been any strict sense of 'down' where they were. The asteroid was obviously floating and slowly spinning, after all. Sirius answered him. "You know those fancy expanded trunks? The good ones have a charm where if you tip them on their side or upside down everything inside stays put, it keeps the same 'pull' down. They must have enchanted that big rock the same way. The prisoners are probably powering some kind of charm until it gets enough material for things to stay put on their own."
~/*\~
Hermione Granger was anxiously waiting for her first lesson in magic to begin. Both her parents had driven her, just as they had for the visit to the medical pyramid a town over. That hadn't exactly been fun, and her hand strayed to the beads around her neck as she remembered. 'Doing her part' at least made it sound like she was helping, and there were a lot of benefits to the three implants she'd been given, though her mother and the nurse had explained that it would be a while before the third one was useful. While Hermione had gotten used to the standard interface and quickly gotten lost in reading anything she could get her hands on, (to an eleven year old girl with a love of books, there seemed to be an endless amount of science and history texts to read) her parents had gotten a 'check-up' as well. Hermione was sad to learn that her parents had wanted more children but hadn't been able to have more after she was born. But apparently thanks to the nice Imperial doctor (Who looked like a scaly woman with a tail and wings!) her parents could have as many children as they wanted now.
As she eagerly waited for the class to begin, Hermione bounced in the car they were waiting in since it looked like it could rain any moment. She glanced at her parents and smiled. She knew they'd been worried, but in the last few days her mom seemed happier while her dad had seemed more tired than usual. About half an hour before the class was supposed to begin, it began to rain; they were early because Hermione learning to control her magic was mandatory and the family didn't want to get dragged to the park. Hermione groaned, but luckily her parents decided to wait and see what happened. Ten minutes before the class was supposed to begin, a massive glowing rectangle snapped into being above the entire park, and in the moment before water started to pour over the edges, Hermione saw a number of imperial soldiers wearing the fancier armor they used when interacting with the public. There was a sudden light show when one of the figures formed a ball of glowing orange light between her hands and threw it into the barrier floating above the park. Somehow, the barrier absorbed the light and became hot enough that every drop of rain hitting it instantly boiled away instead.
Both of her parents were impressed, and that was when they decided to get out of their car. They moved towards the soldier who had commandeered one of the outdoor grills set in cement to build a small fire with deadwood from one of the park's massive oak trees. Despite his best efforts at using a laser tool of some sort to ignite the pile of wood, he was making no progress until one of the others in armor walked over and conjured a ball of fire, dropping it onto the wood. As they looked around, more and more families were entering the park with nervous expressions. Hermione's jaw dropped when a stern-looking woman with a monocle wearing a robe seemed to twist into existence with two little girls, one blonde and one with strawberry blonde hair. Several more families twisted into existence, most of them looking very unhappy to be here. But that was as much attention as she could spare, because then a familiar voice was calling for the children to gather together near a space where some kind of magic was making the grass steam and simple desks of orange glowing light were flickering into being. Hermione led her parents over as she recognized Ferisa from her visit the week before.
"Good morning everyone. Students, please have a seat at a desk and we'll get started shortly. Parents, please remain off to the side, we'll provide you seating in a few moments." True to Ferisa's word, one of the guards, the same one that had created the barrier keeping the rain away, walked over as Ferisa was handing out slim boxes to the students. While most of the magicals refused to join the mundane parents and transfigured their own crude furniture on the other side of the students, Amelia Bones decided to join the muggle side. Sitting down on a large and cushy conjured couch with a small ball of orange fire at a safe distance (but still appreciated for the warmth it gave) the mundane families observed the woman as she joined them. None of them said much, simply observing the class as Ferisa handed out boxes containing wands, and began speaking once the last was handed out. "These are a little different from what are produced on Earth, but they will serve you well. We'll get to know each other after lunch, but for now please listen and I will teach you your first spell."
Amelia, seated on the edge of the group of muggle parents, spoke up as she watched. "She's not a bad teacher. I don't recognize that spell but it's similar to the first one I learned."
Amelia drew her wand and lit the tip silently. She answered questions from the group as they watched the children make their first attempts at magic. After a half-dozen tries, Hermione cheered when she was the first to create a small ball of light that floated in the air briefly before it winked out, and her parents chuckled warmly at her excitement. Ferisa only encouraged Hermione to keep practicing, explaining that this was a very versatile spell that could be made to do all sorts of things. By the time the students broke for a lunch of cold sandwiches and hot soup that had been ordered from a nearby restaurant by the watching soldiers, Hermione had made her little ball of light move and turn blue. It was a very excited little girl that ate lunch next to her new friend, Susan Bones.
For the most part, the rest of the day went well as fifteen children got to know each other, their instructor, and began perfecting their first spell. As the day dragged on, other people had noticed the obvious spectacle and came to watch. The soldiers had informed those watching the park that it was closed until three that afternoon, but they were free to watch as long as they remained unobtrusive. After lunch, while the students got to know each other, a protest against magicals began to form, some of the quickly forming mob even waving signs that said 'burn the witch.' The soldier who had created the barrier over the park and conjured furniture for the families conjured a wall to keep the students from seeing the mob, and walked to a few feet in front of them calmly while his fellows prevented anyone from entering the park. "Disperse or you will be arrested. Stupidity and blind hatred is unbecoming of citizens of the Golden Star Empire."
The mob did not disperse, and attempted to rush the speaker in a blind rage. They did not know the alien was a Class Five magical, commonly referred to as 'Space Class.' They realized the man they attacked was probably a magical himself, and not a weak example, when he raised glowing hands for a moment and the entire mob was teleported to a detention facility in the North American desert near Phoenix, Arizona. Most of them fainted from heat stroke as they were taken into custody thanks to the wildly different climate, but received treatment once in custody.
While this event would be aired on all of Earth's news networks, the Golden Star's representatives explained it simply: The outdoor lessons are being used to get the public more comfortable with the existence of magic. The public is free to watch as long as they do not harass the children. Screaming and waving signs that read 'burn the witch' is not an appropriate way to act around children. With this and other similar events, the Empire quickly gained a reputation as strongly protective of children of every species, and that turned out to be a position most people could respect.
~/*\~
Sirius ended up waiting three weeks for his first meeting with a representative of the Golden Star's law enforcement division. He was tempted to complain loudly, but his first thought on meeting the man was that he desperately needed a few days off and more sleep. As they sat down in a conference room together Sirius thought to himself that it was odd how the man looked entirely human, except for his strange golden eyes. The other man spoke first. "Normally we try to rush cases like yours where an innocent man might have been imprisoned falsely, but your world's Ministries were an enormous mess. The good news is that we've already paroled four people who were falsely imprisoned in the lower-security wings of Azkaban. Now, this," Here, the man tapped a perfectly symmetrical golden crystal he'd removed from a case. "is an enchanted item that forces those nearby to speak only the Truth. Note the emphasis, if you try to deceive me in any way the crystal will hurt you until you speak the Truth. That includes trying to deceive me with the use of statements that are individually truthful but spoken in an attempt to deceive."
Sirius chuckled. These last weeks with good (if not especially tasty) food, clean air, and a friend to talk to had him feeling better than he had in years. "Politicians must hate it, if the Ministry had the choice it would be declared a Dark Artifact and destroyed to protect themselves."
"Quite. Now, Sirius: Tell me in your own words about the events of October 31st 1981, the events leading up to it, and the events that led to that street in London where thirteen people died. Do that in whatever order makes the most sense to you."
Sirius spent the next hour telling his story, how he'd been best friends with James, Remus, and Peter in school and the events of the war that they joined when they graduated. The crystal did inflict pain on him several times, when he attempted to embellish or accept blame that wasn't his. By the end he'd broken down in tears twice and was exhausted enough to just climb into bed and sleep. He was asked questions to clarify more than once; but by the time the interrogator was finished packing up the crystal and his notes, he seemed to believe Sirius. "Mr. Black, going forward I will be gathering information to verify your story, but I believe that will be a formality. According to the Law I need to verify your story because criminals sometimes convince themselves they're innocent when they are most definitely not. My first stop will be Remus Lupin, then I will be questioning the Ministry officials who sent you to Azkaban without a trial. Based on your testimony I will also put out an alert for law enforcement to find Peter Pettigrew if he is still alive."
Sirius couldn't help but shake the man's hand, trying to thank him but unable to get the words out. With a kind smile, the man spoke in a comforting tone. "I'm also going to request you begin extensive mind-healing sessions. Are you comfortable with your cell-mate or would you like to be moved into a private cell?"
Sirius shook his head. "Hagrid's a good man, he's just not the smartest guy; a born follower."
Sirius made it back to his cell and collapsed, utterly exhausted. The last thing he said before collapsing was a few words to Hagrid. "They believed me. They're going to investigate and start a manhunt for Peter."
~/*\~
It was another three weeks before Sirius finally got a trial. He was assigned a defender, given a sharply tailored silver robe with black accents, and was escorted to a courtroom inside the prison itself. He might have been upset at the wait, but over the last week he'd seen old enemies, Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, and even Crouch Jr., who he'd heard died in Azkaban, given cells and forced to work like everyone else. (Astria's asteroid had gained a lake easily twenty feet deep now, and the prisoners had watched amused prison guards dump dozens of aquatic plants into the water below. Sirius thought the water lilies were a nice touch.) His defender led him to one of the tables in front of the judge, an alien with gleaming golden horns and pale skin.
Sirius was confused at the number of people being led in and seated across from him. Crouch Senior, he could understand, since he was probably the man who'd thrown him into Azkaban without a trial. Cornelius Fudge had apparently been one of the responders when Peter had blown up a muggle gas line. Sirius had no idea why Lucius Malfoy was present, wearing his drab prison clothing, nor did he know why Albus Dumbledore was present, also wearing prisoner's clothing. Hagrid and Remus Lupin, a man he hadn't seen in far too long, were the only people to sit on Sirius' side of the courtroom. While he dearly wished to talk to Remus to find out how Harry was doing, there was a silencing charm in effect to prevent the witnesses from discussing the trial before they were up on the stands. Finally the last person was escorted in and Sirius felt a rush of hot, burning hatred well up in his chest as he saw Peter Pettigrew, looking more rat-like than he remembered, for the first time since the night the little rat bastard had faked his death. As he tried to stand to at least administer a beating, his defender firmly grabbed his shoulder and kept him seated.
Soon, the courtroom was called to order, and the Judge spoke to the small orbs that Sirius's defender whispered were cameras, apparently this trial was being broadcast to huge screens in Hogsmeade, Hogwarts, and Diagon Alley, in addition to anyone else who wanted to 'tune in.' "When the Golden Star Empire integrates a new world, all prisoners have the right to request a new trial that will be judged under Imperial Law. During the cleansing of Azkaban Prison, Sirius Black requested to be given a trial. He claimed that he had never received one before and would have been released if he had. Our investigation proved Sirius had indeed never been given a trial, so we are here now to rectify that oversight. Three weeks ago, Sirius Black met with an investigator, and his claims have been examined in depth. We are here today to determine the Truth and enact Justice. The case of the Golden Star Empire versus Sirius Black begins now."
Sirius had no idea how trials in the 'Empire' usually went, but today the defense went first and Remus was called to the stand. Sirius smirked at the golden crystal embedded into the table in front of the witness' chair, that should make things interesting. Remus answered questions, giving everyone a clear picture of how the four Marauders had met and become inseparable. The last part of Remus' testimony caused quite a stir. "Remus, given what you knew about your friends at the time, if you had incontrovertible proof that one of the three others was a traitor but did not know which one, who would your first suspect be?"
Remus fought with the truth-stone for a moment before answering. "Peter! I trusted him and never wanted to admit it, but he was a coward who always liked having strong friends."
"Given the facts of the case, with the only physical remains of Pettigrew being a cleanly-severed finger and being intimately familiar with his ability to turn into a rat, did you ever suspect Sirius of being innocent?"
What happened next was painful for Sirius to watch. Remus replied quickly. "No." At which point the golden enchanted crystal glowed red, and Remus began to sweat and shake his head. "No… I never did, but I should have… why didn't I?"
Still, the truth-stone glowed red and began to cause the werewolf significant pain. The judge called for a pause and the artifact was removed while several mind-healers entered the room. After a short delay, the more experienced one sat in the witness' chair himself with the truth-stone active once more. "Remus Lupin appears to have, at least, had his memory altered. It is unlikely the memory in question can be retrieved and I would recommend he not be questioned under a Truth-Stone further until after extensive treatment has taken place."
It only took the judge a moment to make a decision. "Remus Lupin, you are excused from further testimony, though what you have already given remains on the record. You may remain to observe the trial if you so wish."
Sirius was glad his fellow Marauder stayed. Then again the fact that Peter Pettigrew was sitting across the room, still missing the finger he'd cut off, may have spoken towards Sirius' innocence. The trial got underway once more. Crouch Sr. was questioned about the night Sirius had been arrested. Did he check the mundane witnesses for a Confounding Charm? No. Did he find any evidence that Peter was dead other than the single, cleanly severed finger? No. Why did he refuse to investigate when the crime scene could have been staged with a handful of spells that could easily be learned at Hogwarts? It took him a moment to answer, since he chose to fight the Truth-Stone. "I hate the Blacks! All that wealth and prestige when they're nothing but inbred trash! I hated Sirius even more than the others because he worked with the Aurors during the war and he kept showing us up, throwing himself into danger and doing more to fight the Death Eaters than we ever managed! I never cared if he was guilty or innocent, I just wanted him to suffer!"
When neither side of the trial had anything else to ask, the Judge spoke. "You are dismissed Bartholomew Crouch. Be aware your upcoming trial for illegally removing a dangerous criminal from Azkaban Prison is hereby expanded to include your actions in the case of Sirius Black."
Cornelius Fudge was the next one on the stand, and answered many of the same questions regarding what he saw the night Sirius Black was arrested. He too sweated when asked the question of why he said nothing about the miscarriage of justice. Finally he blurted out: "I was paid! Lucius Malfoy wanted his son to inherit the Black Estate and Sirius was in the way! My first report, where I questioned the legality and thin evidence in the case got leaked and Lucius offered me a lot of money to change my story and bury any exonerating evidence that came to light!"
Fudge was also informed that his upcoming trial for bribery in regards to his efforts to ensure the many 'Imperious victims' never received questioning under Veritaserum now included charges for false witness and illegal incarceration. Lucius Malfoy went next, and with the air of a man who knew he'd been beaten, calmly admitted he had bribed the Minister of a government that no longer existed to keep Sirius in prison for financial and political gain, among several other politicians. Albus Dumbledore was next, and Sirius was surprised when a technician replaced the Truth-Stone with an identical crystal three times the size. The Judge spoke up as the former Headmaster was escorted to the witness' chair. "To those watching, the following testimony will air after a ten minute delay. Albus Dumbledore has proven himself to have the mental fortitude to resist the standard Truth-Stone's push to speak truthfully without obfuscation, double-speak, or lying by speaking the truth to the point where the stone had to be deactivated before it killed him. This crystal is a more powerful version which will get the truth without permanently injuring him, but it may be unpleasant to watch. Albus Dumbledore, we will get the truth out of you today, but you will experience great discomfort if you continue to attempt your deceptions."
For Sirius, watching the headmaster's testimony was painful. He had the urge to comfort Remus when the prosecutor made an off-hand question about why he'd allowed a werewolf to attend Hogwarts. Albus' answer about giving Remus an honest chance stopped halfway with a choking sound. It took ten long, agonizing minutes of torture before Albus collapsed, his head hitting the table in front of him and admitted that the only reason Remus had been admitted was that Albus wanted to mold the boy into a useful tool, a spy to go where his other agents could not. That set the tone for most of Albus' interrogation as the man slowly fought the Truth-Stone less and less. He did fight extremely hard when the defense asked its last question of him. "Albus, in the Golden Star's armed forces loyalty, to both the Empire and to your fellow soldiers, is regarded as the most important value. Despite any doubts you may have had, it cannot be denied that Sirius fought, bled, and risked his life for your 'Order of the Phoenix' in defense of the innocent. Please tell the court why you did not do him the courtesy of at least ensuring he had a fair trial."
This time, Albus Dumbledore endured ten minutes of torture both physical and mental before he gave in and answered. "I always suspected Sirius wasn't the secret keeper! The night I cast the Fidelius I knew the man who took the secret had used polyjuice potion and so had the man who looked like Peter. I said nothing because I was insulted that the Potters felt they couldn't trust me and was glad I'd kept my silence when James and Lily died." Even now that he was spilling his secrets, Albus Dumbledore tried to rally and fight the truth-seeking artifact once more, but it wasn't a fight he could win. "I let Sirius rot in Azkaban when I suspected he was innocent because he would never have allowed my plans for young Harry to go forward!"
Sirius jumped to his feet at that and bellowed: "What the hell have you done to my godson, you senile old fool!"
A guard had to step forward to restrain Sirius, who kept trying to claw his way towards the Headmaster. His defender spoke again. "Sirius, your godson is safe now, but he recently spent eight days at an Imperial medical center being treated for abuse and malnutrition. Albus, this question may be irrelevant to today's case, but what were your plans for young Harry Potter, who was only eighteen months old when he came into your care?"
Albus Dumbledore fought even harder this time, thrashing where he was chained to the witness chair, frothing at the mouth, and bleeding from the nose. When he spoke, every word was choked out, pried from unwilling lips. "Harry Potter had to be raised in a very specific way. If I'd let Sirius, or any magical family raise him, he might have grown into a confident, assertive young man. If he had enough to eat and a loving family behind him, he could have grown too strong, he could have become far too dangerous. There was a great darkness inside the boy, a terrible potential for death and destruction. He needed to be molded, he had to be shaped very carefully so I could guide him to his destiny, to die at the proper time in the proper way! It had to be done! The fact that your empire has undone all my careful work to guide the boy towards his fate reveals your true nature!"
The last words were spoken as a curse, as if Dumbledore had wanted to call the Empire evil but hadn't been allowed to. Sirius again flung himself at the Headmaster, dragging the significantly larger guard with him as he instinctively used magic to bolster his body in his rage. Hagrid, a gentle man and one who had been utterly loyal to Dumbledore since the man had ensured he had a home when his wand had been snapped, had been right behind Sirius. People around the world, and especially in England, saw a godfather who'd been betrayed by a man he'd trusted completely break down in tears screaming at the Headmaster even as he moved a small pile of guards towards Albus. His shouts of 'We trusted you! I trusted you!' and 'You hurt my godson, I'll kill you!' were heard and made just as much of an impact as Dumbledore's admission of knowingly placing a defenseless toddler in an abusive home to break the boy's spirit.
~/*\~
It was some time before the court was brought back to order after Dumbledore's testimony. Compared to that, Hagrid's testimony of the night he found Sirius Black carrying a child out of a ruined house and convinced Sirius to let him bring the child to Dumbledore and even Peter Pettigrew's testimony that he had chosen to serve Voldemort, betray the Potters, and fake his own death, thus landing Sirius in Azkaban, were not nearly as dramatic. (The fact that Peter had the Dark Lord's wand in a pocket when he was captured spoke for itself.) The Judge spoke again after Pettigrew was taken out of the witness chair. "Usually we would have the defendant take the stand now, however Mr. Black is still suffering from a decade of torture at the hands of the monstrous creatures the defunct Ministry of Magic employed at their prison to reduce costs. Instead, the defense has provided a recording of Sirius' initial interview, which made use of a Truth-Stone."
With the facts of the case uncovered and the truth uncovered, Sirius was exonerated completely, and save for Remus and Hagrid, all the others who gave testimony had incriminated themselves further. Remus was escorted out of the prison with a promise to speak soon. The judge's ruling was that Sirius was to be released immediately and receive mandatory sessions with a mind healer as the only condition of his freedom. Sirius could have argued, but even he could tell that a decade with the Dementors had left their mark. As Sirius and Hagrid walked out of the courtroom, the prison's Warden met them and told both men to join him. "Hagrid, you're being released as well. I trust you're going to think carefully before assaulting members of the Imperial military again?"
Hagrid answered him quickly. "Yes. I don't know why but lately it's been easier to think."
The warden replied with a light tone. "Your initial medical report showed your brain's development was a little stunted. Between a relatively simple treatment and your implants guiding your own magic to help, your brain is working better. Before you two catch the next transport to Earth, I thought you might want to see something."
Waiting in the hall outside the cell they'd shared for weeks, Sirius watched as four burly guards muscled Crouch Sr. and Peter Pettigrew into the same cell he'd called home since being released from the prison's Infirmary. While Peter's animagus form could easily slip through the cell's bars, Sirius had first-hand experience that the implants used to control prisoners did not disappear when he turned into a dog, they simply changed shape with him. Sirius and Hagrid were then escorted to a small cargo ship that ferried both prisoners and supplies to and from Astria Prison. Sirius chucked at seeing the tank of fish being carefully unloaded as the two waited to board. The warden noticed and spoke. "These are supposed to be the hardiest edible fish on Earth, and should eat the algae and plants starting to choke the water below us. When we build up a bigger ocean and more fish we'll be moving mundane prisoners onto a floating prison on the surface so they can harvest the fish to feed both prisons as the magicals continue building a planet, stone by stone. Nice and efficient, nothing wasted. Just the way it should be."
Hagrid's attempt to return the wand he'd been issued was rebuffed as they waited for their ride to finish offloading cargo. "Those wands have bonded to you now so they're yours to keep. Make good use of them."
Sirius shrugged, now that he was out, he really didn't know what to say or do, other than contact his godson as soon as he was back on Earth. (Outgoing communications from the prison were heavily restricted.) It turned out Remus had been loaded onto an earlier transport that had brought in prisoners from Australia. The Warden's final words let him know that he was being given an apartment for the next six months while he completed the mandatory counseling and mind-healing sessions. At least he wouldn't have to pay for them.
~/*\~
By the time Sirius made it to his new apartment somewhere in London (it was either this or showing up at Number 12 Grimmauld Place, which he apparently owned now) it was late enough to be early and he was exhausted by his day. During the flight in an honest to god spaceship he'd started to learn how to use the computer interface that every free citizen of the Empire had access to and he'd been stuck on the 'help' screen for a rather long time. Now though, he was finally alone and could sink down into a comfortable couch. "Interface! Contact Harry James Potter. With a video call please."
First the words 'Searching' were projected in front of Sirius, then 'Querying Network,' and finally Sirius spent ten minutes staring at 'Seeking Authorization from Guardian.' When Sirius was almost ready to start shouting, the displayed words changed again to 'Connecting.' After just a few more moments, a projection that took up the entire wall Sirius was facing sprang into being and Sirius found himself looking at a dimly lit child's bedroom. It wasn't personalized much, but there were a few plants that even he thought looked interesting resting on shelves, decorative tables and a desk. At first Sirius wondered if Harry wasn't in right now, but then a lump on the bed moved, and Sirius saw a groggy little boy with a truly impressive case of bed-hair literally roll out of bed and turn towards a digital clock with squinted eyes. "It isn't time for class yet, what's going on?"
Sirius waited until his godson turned to look at him before speaking. "Hello Harry, my name is Sirius Black. Your parents wanted me to look after you if they weren't able to. I was thrown into prison without a trial or even a chance to tell anyone I was innocent, but the Empire just gave me a trial earlier today."
Sirius spent the next hour speaking to his godson, laughing and crying together. He told Harry as much about his parents as he could, and promised Harry that he would do everything he could to help him. By the time Harry said he had to get ready for class, Sirius had just explained he wasn't allowed to take custody of him until healers decided he was healthy and 'stable.' Harry's response to that was enough to shock a drowsy Sirius back to full alertness. "You're where?!"
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Newsreel: Breaking New Ground
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"Good evening and welcome to the nightly news. I'm Shia Runsocris, and today I'm happy to introduce my new co-host. Kodiak Antonov is a native of this reality's Earth and I'm looking forward to working with him."
Kodiak was a solidly built young man wearing a traditional blazer and sports jacket; his blue eyes were sharp and intelligent. His brown hair was short and precisely trimmed, just like his beard. With a smile and a surprisingly soft Russian accent, Kodiak replied. "I am glad to be here as well. For our first story tonight, let's start with something from my homeland. Chernobyl, the site of Earth's worst nuclear accident to date, was quarantined when the Empire took control of our world. Today that blight on our world is no more. After isolating the area and meticulously ensuring no sapient life was inside the exclusion zone, the entire area was encased in an energy field and pulled into orbit." Kodiak gestured and images flickered onto the wall behind him, showing a huge piece of land floating into the air, leaving behind a large crater. "The irradiated material is due to be processed at the Material Processing Station under construction in orbit, where it will become part of the Blue Shield, the first Undaunted class battleship our world provides to the war effort. The crater left behind is already filling with water and will be filled with conjured rock and soil created by local magicals. As a reminder, the Undaunted class is the largest ship the Imperial navy currently builds, is approximately three kilometers long, one wide, and carries enough armaments to reduce a solar system to ash in hours."
Shia smiled at her co-host and spoke next. "Another restoration effort is now underway in the Pacific Ocean, where a massive patch of floating garbage has been building for years. Two skimmer ships, four water filtration ships, twenty-five barges, and five multipurpose submersibles have been launched from the coastal cities where they were produced by local fabricators. Over the next ten years, this growing fleet will travel Earth's waterways, leaving nothing but pristine water and sand in their wake. All refuse removed from Earth's oceans will be delivered to the nearest processing facility where it will be processed into useful materials, then those materials will either be turned into consumer goods or military hardware."
Kodiak spoke next. "In local news beyond Earth, Ahn'tamet's administration has released the approved plans for local star systems, with initial construction efforts already underway. The star known as Wolf-359 is unsuitable for habitation due to the star's instability and radiation, so the barren worlds orbiting the star have been assigned orbital processing facilities which will collect all matter from the planets and use that material to begin construction of a Solar Harvesting Sphere, a space station similar to the theoretical structure known as a Dyson Sphere. Construction will begin with a single Solar Collection Array, which when complete will use the star's energy to turn material from the barren planets as well as the gathered energy and matter emissions of Wolf-359 into a second collection array. Then in time two will become four, four will become eight, and so on until the growing grid encompasses the entire star. Once the project is complete in forty-five years, the integrated shipyards on the Solar Harvesting Sphere are expected to produce two to three thousand Voidbreaker class battleships, depending on the star's output, every year until Wolf-359 is consumed entirely in approximately 2,500 years. Voidbreaker ships are smaller than the Undaunted class at about 1.5 kilometers long and serve as battleship/carrier hybrids. In addition to the industrial facilities, the Sphere will also contain work and housing for one trillion Imperial citizens when complete. Once Wolf-359 has been entirely converted to useful material, magicals living in the Sphere will begin work on conjuring a new star."
Shia chuckled and began to speak. "Construction projects on that scale are difficult to imagine. Until the star is encased efforts will be entirely focused on the industrial areas, but once the sphere is complete it will contain habitation domes with space for every career and amenity you could find on any planet in the Empire will be constructed. This is why the Empire provides so many incentives to have a large family, across every reality these structures are being built faster faster than population growth can keep up. The Wolf-359 Sphere has been designated as an Earth population center, meaning that Imperial Demographics will keep the station's population to at least seventy-five percent Earth-native species."
Kodiak nodded at her and began speaking. "Speaking of population needs, artificial magnetic fields have gone up around five planets in the Alpha Centauri system and will remain in place until the planets can produce their own protective fields. Utility ships will arrive in Centauri in two months and begin harvesting asteroids and moons from the system's gas giant to construct moons to create internal dynamos to power future magnetic fields. Due to the immediate need for more magicals to draw matter and energy from our enemy's holding dimensions, these planets are slated as reserves for all of Earth's magical species. Colonization is open to anyone who is either magical themselves, is in a committed relationship with a magical, or is willing to commit to a relationship and start a family. Three million magical colonists from human-compatible species, most of them single females, are expected to arrive from three different realities in the next two weeks as part of the incentives program the Empire uses to build up new worlds.
"Climate blueprints for these five worlds are mostly jungle, grassland, and shallow oceans. They will be dry to start, at least until the new colonists can conjure enough water to get a rain cycle started. However the standard habitation dome provides a comfortable and climate controlled working environment. If you are interested in living and working on either Wolf 359 or Alpha Centauri, you may apply for residence from any interface."
Shia spoke up, closing out the news broadcast. "This has been the day's news. Be sure to check your nearest interface tomorrow, as the initial plans for Earth's new transit network will be released, as well as planned locations for new towns in domes under the Pacific ocean."
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A/N: And we're done with the last of the introduction chapters. Next chapter is Harry centric and has a time skip. Hope everyone's enjoying the fic. Please leave a review, every one motivates me to keep writing!