He opened his eyes and found himself inside the white museum from the last time. Towering pillars and intricate architectural designs were still the same as last time. The only difference was the large sculpture, which replaced the scythe's podium. It was a sculpture of a hooded deity holding a scythe with a bell attached to it. Harry could immediately guess who the deity was—it was the God of Death, his sponsor.
[
-Door of Trials-
Objective: - - -
Conditions: - - -
Time Limit: - - -
]
[Welcome back Harry! (≧▽≦)]
Harry's eyebrows furrowed at the weird system and asked what was happening. "Shouldn't there be an objective or prompt for me to know what's going on? Why am I back here?"
['Reaper' had made this trial specially for you to answer any of your questions to the best of their abilities.]
Harry was quite surprised that the god would actually initiate to answer the question themselves since the last time they had a hard time communicating with him. Though, why go through all the trouble when they could've just appeared in the real world and answered them? Bah, forget it—what's done is done. Hedwig landed on the statue's head, awaiting her orders. It seemed like the owl had started recording the moment they entered, so Harry motioned her to stay where she was.
"Alright, are there rules I should know about, or should I start asking questions?"
[It is not definite that all of the player's questions will be answered for there are restrictions on how much a player can know. This is to avoid melting the player's brain from data overload.] Harry was quite dejected at that but didn't complain. He'd rather preserve his life than kill himself over some information.
[Generating prompt from Reaper…]
[Eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, everything requires an equivalent exchange to maintain the order of balance. For the curious to be satisfied, one must first struggle. Only then will the questions be answered. Ask, and it will be given; decipher it to the best of your abilities, player.]
"What?"
[State your first question.]
Harry read through the prompt over and over again. If he understood it correctly, he'd have to pay the price in exchange for knowledge. Is this why the others haven't given him information related to these doors of trials? Or are they simply not allowed to share what they know with new players? Harry will have to ask Snape or someone from Black Cosmos to confirm this theory of his.
Going back to the task at hand, Harry brought a hand to his chin and pondered what he should ask. Right after he left the first door of trial, he had drafted multiple questions he wanted answers to. However, 'for equivalent exchange, he needs to struggle,' meaning that he'll face a life-and-death scenario if he wants his questions answered. Due to this prompt, Harry will be restricted to how many questions he can ask.
'It's best that I keep my questions to a minimum…if so, then I should ask those.'
"Can the system provide me hints as to what's in store for my following doors? Be it the door category, summary, phrase, or such." This is something that Harry specifically needs to know so that he can make better preparations. Snape hinted that other players know what to prepare for their doors, which means either the system or the sponsor informed the player, or there are other means of knowing it.
[State your second question.]
Guess he won't be getting his answers anytime soon, then. He proceeded to ask his second question. "Who made the Door of Trials?"
[State your third question.]
"How do the 'Players' prevent the end of this world, what exactly is our role here? And what will happen if we fail our duty?"
[Those are two questions. Should I register them as your third and fourth questions?]
"Yes."
[State your fifth question.]
"What will happen if a 'Player' dies inside the door while undergoing a trial?"
[State your sixth question.]
"What is the grand reward after accomplishing all twelve doors?"
[State your seventh question.]
Harry released a shaky breath. He doesn't know if he's asking the right questions, nor does he trust himself to pay for all of these. That could be his last question, but there's one thing he was curious about.
"Can a player ascend to godhood or divinity?"
Normally, this would be impossible since it's beyond human concept. Yet, standing before the statue of Death and meeting the god himself, he wondered.
"That's all."
[Registering questions]
[Are you sure that's all? Once you confirm, you can no longer ask questions!]
"Yes, stog egging me for more, you darn system."
[Okay, please wait a moment while the Reaper generates your stage (๑ᗜºั)]
He sighed and extended his arm for Hedwig to land on. The gem continued its recording with no interference or technical difficulties so far. Harry hoped that whatever came next, he'd be able to handle. He turned to look at the statue before him and silently prayed for his survival. He hated his sponsor, but his sponsor was still a god worthy of respect, so he prayed.
[Teleporting player to the 'First Timeline'...]
'First timeline? What does that mean?' Harry's thoughts were interrupted when he felt himself get sucked in by a vacuum. One moment, he was inside a museum, the next, he was outside in a seemingly familiar landscape.
Harry's first reaction was to inspect his surroundings for any threats. It was crowded, like how the place usually is, and nothing felt off as of now. Diagon Alley was filled with busting noises from laughter, advertisements, or random chatters. Varying stores were all wide open, accepting customers and selling their products. Two children bumped into him, apologizing before running off. He could see their faces clearly. It wasn't blurred or distorted.
There seemed to be new stores, replacing the ones he knew, and the one that stood out from the rest was 'Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes'. Not only that, everything looked new and renovated, as if the place had gone through war. A screech interrupted his observation. Hedwig came flying to him with a copy of the Daily Prophecy newspaper, most likely stolen from someone.
Harry reached out for the newspaper and was shocked to see the length of his arms. The once teen hurriedly checked on his body and found that he wasn't in his twelve-year-old body. He saw the reflection of himself through the shop windows and was amazed. He was tall, mature looking, and quite the looker if he said so himself. Despite the change in his body, he still retained his clothes and equipment, which was a bonus. Taking the newspaper from Hedwig's beak, he immediately checked the date and saw that it was January 1, 2000. He was eight years into the future! No wonder he looked older.
He did a quick run through of the paper, which talked a lot about recovery from war and his victory against the dark lord. A lot of it was praising him and his friends for apparently bringing glory to the wizarding world. There are also a lot of political discussions and movements that he couldn't understand. Harry couldn't comprehend most of it but made sure to remember the important details. Someone called him from behind before he could move on and read more.
"There you are, Harry! We've been looking everywhere for you." Harry heard a voice that he'd never mistaken. It was much more mature and profound than he remembered, but it was still him. Harry faced Ron, covered with many scarves and comfy clothing against the cold weather. The redhead was taller than him and had a beard, looking different from the young Ronald he was just with. He was completely normal—there wasn't anything off about him at all.
"What are ya staring there for? Let's go, or Mione will kill us if we miss the gathering!" Ron took his arm and pulled him away. Harry was snapped out of his daze and immediately had his guard up. He didn't feel any malice from Ron or the people around him, but somehow, alarm bells were ringing in his heart. Harry tried to search for the problem but found nothing, making him anxious even further.
"Say, Ron, where is this gathering again? I kinda forgot." He said sheepishly.
Ron: "Mate, did you hit your head on the way here? Then again the floo has never been forgiving when it comes to you."
Harry: "Hey, I can hear you."
Ron: "Sorry, sorry. We're meeting up in Maire's Sweety Delight since the girls have been craving it for a while now."
A familiar location, at least Harry doesn't have to worry about getting lost. They took their time getting there since the streets were heavily crowded and some people would try to ask for their signature. It was hard being famous.
Harry: "Finally, we made it, phew."
Ron: "About time too, Mione will kill me! I swear pregnant women are people you don't ever want to mess with."
"Huh? Pregnant?" Harry nearly screamed but restrained himself. What did he mean his best friend, sister in all but blood, was pregnant?! Ron looked at him weirdly and knocked on Harry's head.
Ron: "Are you sure you don't want to have your head checked? I'm pretty sure you were there when I screamed at the top of my lungs that I'll be a father."
Okay, Harry was in a daze. His two best friends got together in the future, what a pleasant surprise. He expected atrocities, horror, gore, not whatever this is. Though, he'll completely pick this over those any time.
Harry: "Ah, right. Yeah, let's just head in."
Ron: "Whatever you say. Don't go blaming me if you're suffering from amnesia."
Harry: "Chill out, I'm telling you it's fine."
Just when they were about to enter the shop, Harry heard something ripping the sky. Which should be impossible through normal concepts, but he was reminded where he was. He immediately turned to the sky and noticed how the blue and gray sky bled to purple and red. A large rip opened to a void, slowly corrupting reality. Large black glitching tentacles appeared and pulled on the sky, ripping the sky further.
Hermione: "Ron, Harry? What's going on out there?"
The adult version of Hermione had a small bump in her womb, signifying the life forming inside her. She walked towards them and shivered at the sight. Ginny was beside her, looking extremely pale when he heard the noises outside. Everything came to a halt as fear slowly spread through everyone's bodies. There was a suffocating silence for a second, and then someone shrieked, causing everyone to panic.
"KYAAAAAAA–!"
"Move it!"
"Mommy? What's happening?"
"RUN!"
From the expanding rip and corruption, horrifying creatures and eldritch abominations poured out like ants. More rips in reality appeared, creating cracking noises and fragmentation in the sky as if their world was made of glass. Crystal shards from the cracks fell like snow, dispatting once it hit the surface.
"Ron! Go take Hermione and Ginny and hide! No matter what, don't let those things get to you!" Harry ordered out of panic. People ran in the opposite direction, but it was no use. Cracks and rips appeared in all directions, leaving no place safe.
A giant skeletal dragon with rotting flesh clinging to its bones landed in Diagon Alley. If Harry had to compare its size to something, it would be nearly half of Hogwarts. Other creatures followed suit, ranging from humanoid-sized to titans that could reach the clouds.
Ron snapped out of his trance and took hold of Hermione. "Harry, where are you going?!" The redhead screamed when he saw that Harry wasn't with him.
"Go! Just go!" Harry desperately shouted when he got dragged away by a web. He saw a human head with spider limbs jump at his friends, who couldn't see it. Before the disgusting abomination could reach the three, Harry conjured his whip and struck the spider directly to its skull, brain matter and blood spilling on innocent bystanders who screamed in fright. As soon as the spider was gone, Harry freed himself with his daggers and evaded an attack.
'Shit, what the hell is going on here!'
Harry cleared out the wave of human head spiders before chasing after the Weasley siblings and Hermione. As he ran, screams of terror and agony replaced the once jolly atmosphere of the alley. Harry ignored the people who begged for help while they were slaughtered mercilessly by the creatures. He choked back a sob and chanted in his brain that this wasn't real. It was like watching pigs for slaughter—it was brutal and horrifying.
Cold sweat ran down Harry's spine as he evaded an attack from a morphed frog. Someone else was taken by the frog's tongue and was swallowed whole. Harry turned to look at what happened and saw the person dissolve from the frog's acid mouth. His eyes shrank as he ran faster.
'Ignore it, ignore it, ignore it.' One shot, and he's dead. He can't afford to be emotional.
He caught sight of Ron defending innocent children from carnivorous plants with eyes. Ginny held Hermione like a lifeline and pointed her wand toward any movement that might threaten them. Harry snapped his fingers and instantly sliced the plants into pieces before it knew what was happening. The children's parents ran up to them and took their children away, too panic-driven to even give their thanks.
"Harry!" They simultaneously shouted in relief. "What are you guys standing for!? Hurry, or we're dead meat once that dragon attacks!" They nodded and started running.
"Does anyone know what the hell is going on out here!? One minute, we're just talking, then this happens!" Ginny cried out in frustration. As much as Harry wanted to answer, he was also at a loss. He had formulated theories in his mind, but he could not say them aloud.
Ron: "Wait! What about Mum and the others!"
Ginny: "Oh no, we have to go look for them!"
Ginny: "Quick, find a floo network! They were still in the burrows last time we left!"
By now, Ron had carried Hermione on his back. Rigorous activities were too much for her body to handle, especially since she's pregnant. While the siblings searched for the floo, Harry made sure to defend his friends from any approaching danger. Even if it meant using others as bait to buy time, it was against his morals, but he knew his limits. He can't save everyone by himself.
Hedwig flew close to him as the skies were no longer safe for her. Man-eating flies and weird things have already inhabited the sky, narrowing Harry's range now that Hedwig can't patrol the area. Harry cursed loudly when a man-eating fly flew towards him like a homing missile. Had it not been for his quick response, the fly would've sucked his body dry like the others who couldn't defend themselves. The hairs on his back stood up when he witnessed an innocent have his body sucked dry. No organs or liquids were left of them, only bones and withering skin.
One word to describe everything that's going on is chaos. The lively street was filled with corpses. Some were beyond recognition because of the brutality of their deaths. It was the beginning of the apocalypse, one that humanity could not defend itself against. Harry wanted to vomit all the contents of his stomach but refrained from doing so. Now wasn't the time to show vulnerability. One mistake could lead to death.
"Quick over here!" Harry turned his head and saw a person calling them over. There was something off about the guy—his eyes kept twitching, and there was too much blood on his clothes. He was too uncanny, which triggered alarm bells in Harry's mind. Ginny was about to head towards the person, but Harry instantly beheaded it.
"KYAA! HARRY!" She shouted in shock. Harry quickly took her hand and pulled her away from the corpse. Red vines sprouted from the corpse and launched itself toward her, but Harry knew better and burned it before it could touch Ginny. She stared in shock at the shriveled up corpse and nearly cried out. "T-thanks."
"Don't trust anyone from now on. Let's go look for the floo so we can ensure that the others are safe." Ron nodded and helped his sister up. Despite carrying Hermione on his back, he was barely out of breath. However, he was severely rattled and was shaking from fright. Adrenaline was pumping through everyone's body, which kept them going—no one wanted to die. Hermione was crying on his shoulders while she avoided looking at the cruel reality.
"W-why, why did this happen…" She sobbed as she harshly wiped away the tears. "We just survived from war, so why…"
"Shhh..shhh, calm down sweety. Everything will be okay, and we'll reunite with the rest… I-I'm sure of it." Ron reassured her over and over again. However, he was also telling it to himself to save his sanity.
Harry remained quiet throughout the conversation since he didn't know how to help. He frowned and clutched his hands until his knuckles turned white. Was he the only player around to help out? What about the aurors? Where's Dumbledor or any strong mages to help them out? None, there's no one to help, he realized. He wanted to cry badly but couldn't, not now.
"Guys, we need to go. It isn't safe here." Hedwig had alerted him of the dragon's movements. The thing had whipped its tail and had already destroyed a portion of the alley. It looked like it was charging up its energy before releasing an attack, and Harry didn't want to stay here to witness it. Ron nodded and started running again. They ignored everyone they passed by, having only one goal in mind: return to the burrow.
Fortunately, they found a floo and immediately used it to connect to the Weasley household. Harry was last to use the network, making sure that his friends safely used it first. Once he made sure it was safe to use the floo, Harry went in with Hedwig and got spat out to the other side where Ron and the others should be waiting. What Harry didn't expect was the fleshy abomination that wrapped itself around the burrow. Thick flesh covered the walls, and numerous eyes protruded from it, staring down at them.
"Fuck." Was all he could say before he jumped off from the ground to avoid the attack. 'Where are the others?' His question was soon answered when he heard a scream. Harry conjured his scythe and mercilessly sliced through the offensive flesh.
"Hermione? Ron? Ginny?" He desperately called out, hoping that nothing terrible happened to them. He heard someone crying and screaming for help, which made Harry worry further. Seeing that physical attacks weren't enough, he used up a good amount of magic and burnt the flesh to a crisp. He got seared when a flaming flesh launched at him, but he instantly freed himself and ran. The fire was spreading fast, so he had to act quickly. He ran to the other room, where he heard the scream, and what he saw made him freeze in place.
On the wall were Mrs. and Mr. Weasley slowly getting eaten by the flesh monster. Only half of their body was exposed—the other was already consumed. Blood trickled from the monster's sharp teeth, exposing the muscles and bones of the couple. Harry shook his head in denial and took a step back. "N-no… this isn't real. This isn't real. This isn't real."
Sensing her master's state, Hedwig quickly scratched his cheek to snap him out of it. Harry felt the sharp sting and quickly got himself together. That's right, he can't be careless right now!
"Ron! Get everyone the house now! Please! We don't want any more losses!" He desperately cried out.
Ron was shaken out of his stupor, with bloodshot eyes and a runny nose. Yet he responded to Harry and quickly ran to get his brothers. Harry dragged Ginny and Hermione out of the house while Ron went up to get the others. Now that they were outside, Harry saw how much flesh had covered the burrow. No walls were spared as everything was engulfed by the fleshy monster.
Ron ran out with Percy and George in tow. All of them were panting and coughing. By now, flames had burned more than half of the house. A loud screech was released from the monster, which shook the ground slightly. Harry collapsed onto the ground, not caring about the dirt and blood that clung to his clothes. From the distance, he can see muggle planes drop bombs and attack the monsters. One by one, the planes crashed and exploded like fireworks. It was no use. Even muggles weren't spared from the massacre.
Harry wanted to ask where Fred was but stopped. Death was a fragile topic, and he didn't think that it was appropriate to mourn right now. They weren't safe yet, as he could see the creatures fighting for their prey in the distance.
"Where do we go from here? What about Nevile and Luna? Bill and Fleur? The rest?" Ron asked no one in particular. No one knew the answer, leaving only silence between them. Harry didn't know the people Ron mentioned besides Nevile, but he understood they were their friends. Friends whom he didn't get to meet.
Suddenly, sobbing replaced the silence in the air. Ginny and Ron had broken down and bawled their hearts out. George didn't know what to do and ran up to hug his younger siblings. Percy was stunned in place as if he wasn't registering what was happening to the world.
Hedwig appeared and showed Harry a recording of the area. The nearby forest was no good, already inhabited by monsters. The neighborhood was barely holding up since more than half of the population was already eradicated, leaving only a few survivors, including them.
Harry turned to the void and saw that monsters continued to pour out, and there were no signs of stopping. The whole sky was already cracked, and it wouldn't be long before the ground was in the same state. Some of the monsters were getting close, and they needed to move fast.
"Guys, let's go. We're sitting ducks out here in the open." Harry had a premonition that this wasn't the worst to come. The others got their bearings together and started planning their movements. They avoided the forest like a plague and ran in the opposite direction of any large entities they came across.
They traveled and hid for hours and hours, ignoring the gnawing hunger of their stomachs, and continued moving. Soon, they entered the muggle city, which was in ruins. The few survivors they stumbled on had stuck together to raise their survival chances. It seemed like the difference between muggles and wizards had blurred, revealing magic to common folks.
It wasn't a pretty sight, seeing wizards get accused of what was happening to the world. Instead of fighting against monsters, humans fought against themselves and slaughtered out of discrimination and need for supplies. Harry and the others steered clear when they saw the state between muggles and wizards and chose to act independently.
Banners that said SOS hung on the walls of the buildings. Occasionally, some military officials would pass by and try to eliminate the threats within the area. Unfortunately, they all met their demise in the end. It was useless to struggle. They could only wait for their demise and abide for some time before the inevitable doom. Harry felt hopeless. No matter what he thought, there was no solution to this mess.
"Hermione… please, for the baby's sake, you need to eat something," Ron murmured while he embraced his lover. It's been three days since the apocalypse. The group had been on the move every moment and would search for a place to rest every now and then. They developed a pattern of who was in charge of supply hunting, night watch, scouting, and damage dealers. Harry and Ron naturally got the role of damage dealer and scout since he had Hedwig, and the two of them were experienced in battle. Turns out that Ron is an Auror, which wasn't much of a surprise to Harry since Ron did mention before that he wanted to be one. Supply hunting and night watch were given to George and Percy since Hermione couldn't do much, and Ginny took care of her.
Hermione: "I don't like this, Ron. I'm not fragile, I can take care of myself."
Ron: "I know you're a capable woman, and I love you for that, but please, Hermione. I can't bear the thought of losing you and our child."
She sighed and leaned into his hug. "Fine…"
"How long before it's over?" Ginny whispered beside Harry. The two of them were waiting for George and Percy to return from their scavenging. They didn't want to intrude on the couple, so they were outside the abandoned building, listening for any suspicious movements.
"I don't know." Was Harry's reply to her question. During the past three days, the group barely talked about anything other than what they should do and where they should go. Reminiscing about the past was too painful for them to do.
Ginny: "Do you think they'll return back safe?"
Harry: "I don't know. We need to be ready for every possible outcome."
Ginny: "I see… you've gone cold since the war."
Harry: "Sorry."
Ginny: "No, it's not your fault. Out of everyone, you were always quick to adapt."
Harry didn't know how to respond to that, so he chose not to speak up. The two remained silent, staring into the distance as they waited. It's been impossible to distinguish whether it was day or night now that the sky was falling apart. Cracks have started forming on the ground, and soon, everything will fall apart until nothing remains.
"H-harry…" Harry saw Ginny point something in the distance. Harry's heart sank at the sight of the figure slowly limping towards them.
"Call Ron and Hermione. We need to leave." His voice was trembling as he gave his command. Tears fell from Ginny's eyes as she nodded. A scythe formed in his hands and scathed through the cement.
The thing that was limping towards them was a deformed George and Percy stitched together to make one entity. It was vicious and brutal. Harry could see bloody tears run down their deformed faces as if crying in pain. They uttered the same words over and over again, "It hurts…"
Harry's eyes glistened from unshed tears. He tightly gripped his scythe and prepared to attack. The figure stopped limping and started running abnormally, disregarding the guts spilling out of its stitches. Harry ran towards it, ready to strike.
In one swift motion, the figure was cut in half, revealing all the human organs compressed inside their conjoint bodies.
"T-t-thank… youuu…." It whispered. Harry dropped to his knees and hugged the heads of George and Percy. They may not be close, nor were they his George or Percy, but the bonds he formed with them were real.
"Go to sleep, okay? I'm sure that the others are waiting for you there." He whispered, but there was no reply. Softly, Harry placed down their heads and returned to the others waiting for him.
"Let's go."
Sending their quick prayers, they moved out and searched for a new area to stay. They were down to four, and no one knew how long they would last.
Not long after George and Percy's death, Ginny followed. She was supposed to be on watch duty, but by the time the trio woke up, Ginny was already gone. She fell into a state of hysteria and killed herself with a glass shard. Harry was first to wake up because of the bell chime, and then all of a sudden, warm blood landed on his cheeks. He hugged her tightly and tried to stitch her neck together, but it was no use—her heart stopped pumping a long time ago.
Ron had to restrain Harry from overdoing himself the following days. Even Hedwig was on edge and would often perch on her master's shoulder to keep watch of him. It didn't take long for Harry to understand what made Ginny fall into insanity. While he stared into the void, large hands fell from the sky, as large as a region. Along with it was an eyeball that's the size of the moon, looking down on humanity. There was no hope. There was no stopping the end.
"Ahahaha… it really is the end. There's no hope in this world." Harry said hysterically. He dropped to his knees and understood the players' role. "God, how the hell are we gonna stop that."
What followed after was hell on earth. Since cracks had formed on land, magma started rising, and earthquakes often occurred. It wouldn't take long before Earth itself fell apart.
Slowly but surely, humanity was getting eradicated. A few days later, Hermione and Ron died together. They held each other until the end and died in their embrace. During an earthquake, large buildings collapsed one after another, landing exactly where Hermione stood. Ron used the last of his energy to aparate by her side and kiss her one last time. They were crying, but they died smiling together with their unborn child.
Only Harry was left, witnessing the death of everyone. He cried and cried until no tears could form in his eyes. He felt exhausted. He wanted to go back and feel the warm embraces of his friends once again. This is too much. Why did they have to leave him alone to suffer? Why did the world have to be so fragile, and why did Death have to be so cruel and steal away the people he loved? No one heard his pleas, and no one was there to comfort him. Everything was cold and tiring.
The whole world was poisoned with chemicals because of nuclear bombs, but the monsters persisted. They no longer spawned in the sky but underground as well, leaving no safe place. Multiple eyes stared down on Earth, and god-like creatures appeared, obliterating everything in their way. No humans could survive this. Only Harry miraculously remained.
Something warm and fluffy pushed against his palm, startling him from his abysmal thoughts.
"Hoot."
Ah, that's right. He still hasn't lost everyone yet—he still had Hedwig. Harry held his owl and brought her to his chest. She was so warm compared to the cold reality they were living in. Harry had made a protective bubble around her, which protected her from any miasma and poison weeks prior before he slowly lost his sanity. She grew weak and couldn't fly like before, leaving Harry to carry her around.
"Please, don't leave me too." He begged.
He could hear the ground cracking again. It was suddenly hard to breathe the air despite the gas mask he was wearing, and gravity seemed to be slowly dissipating. Large waves that could reach the sky made themselves known—a tsunami was about to strike. Harry didn't have the energy to move. All of his potions were used up, and he didn't know where else to go. He desperately gasped for air and clutched his throat. It hurts.
He tightly embraced Hedwig and murmured, "Ahahaha… it was nice while it lasted, right, girl?" Harry's voice was weak, and only hoarse whispers fell from his mouth. This wasn't how he expected himself to die—he wished that he got to live a little longer.
His owl gave a meaningful nod and closed her eyes. She wasn't as white as before—she was stained with grime and blood after everything they had gone through. Yet she retained her dignified beauty and looked as majestic as ever, even to her last breath. Compared to her, Harry looked pitiful with his empty eyes and shallow smile. He gazed into the abyss, and the abyss gazed back at him.
'This is the end,' He thought bitterly.
The earth was dismantling itself, separating from each other and exposing its core. Like a bomb that can no longer contain itself, it exploded with full force, destroying everything along with it. Like Earth, infinite space had been ripped apart and destroyed by otherworldly beings. Like dominoes, the planets exploded one by one, causing a disruption in the entire universe. Nothing of the system remained. The void swallowed the universe whole, erasing it from existence.
Harry felt all of it happening and saw everything like an omnipotent being. It was painful feeling his whole existence be torn apart and fade to nothing when the void devoured the universe. He no longer had a physical form like before. It was as if he was floating around the void, waiting for something to happen. He didn't like it. He didn't like how the universe was easily destroyed. He didn't like how, despite everyone's struggles to survive, there was nothing they could do to change their fate. It was simply cruel.
DONG!
The clock chimed.
A/N: Did I say I'll take a while to upload this chapter? Well, that was a lie. Got too much motivation and ideas running through my head. Though writing this chapter made me lose my sanity, cuz goddamn it was long.
Also, don't worry! This is not the end of the fic, very far from it! If ya'll can already guess by the title and the tags, this was when the world was destroyed for the first time. So tis ain't the only time the world was destroyed. As to what happens next and how the hell is Harry alive…well, just wait for the next chap which will explain more :)