"Scientists built an intelligent computer. The first question they asked it was, 'Is there a God?' The computer replied, 'There is now.' And a bolt of lightening struck the plug, so it couldn't be turned off."
XXXXXX
The sunset was beautiful that evening. Graceful blue changed its hue again and again, slip-sliding slowly towards darkness. Staring up at the ceiling of his flat, Percy Weasley laid awake. It was a restless night as he got maybe three hours of sleep; the only thing he could think about was the headlines in all the papers.
'Potter and Dumbledore vindicated. Fudge to resign.'
Percy thought for sure that this time his career was over. Last year he had been investigated by the Ministry because he hadn't realized that Barty Crouch Sr. had been put under the Imperius Curse and then killed. But despite the fear that he and his family had that he would be fired, he was instead promoted to work directly for the Minister of Magic himself.
It was the happiest Percy could ever remember being, even happier than being named Head Boy in his seventh year at Hogwarts. All of his dreams seemed to be becoming true. All of his hard work was paying off. He had earned this job, he deserved it. After all, Fudge had once said that he relied on Crouch to handle difficult problems such as international relations. With Crouch gone, it made sense to rely on Percy in his place, at least that's what he thought. But his father saw things differently.
His father was sure that Fudge had promoted him solely to use him as a spy against the Weasley family. Percy had come home expecting praise for his promotion, expecting his parents to be proud, instead his father basically told him that he was being played for a fool. That night, something in him snapped. He vented all his pent-up anger. His family never supported him, they had always mocked him and his goals, and he was sick of it. That night he told them that his loyalty was going to be to the Ministry, not to his family.
He then cut off all contact with all the members of his family. He returned his mother's Christmas sweater, sent a letter to Ron telling him to sever ties with Harry and didn't even visit his father in the hospital after he was attacked. He knew that his actions must have hurt them, but it didn't matter. They had hurt him, so this was Percy giving it right back.
Percy was sure of it that day when he accompanied Fudge to Hogwarts and dragged Harry Potter and Cho Chang into Dumbledore's office when Umbridge found a secret room the kids were training in.
"Dumbledore's Army" it was called. That was all the proof he needed that what Fudge was saying all along. That Dumbledore was conspiring against him. He thought for sure that his parents would apologize sooner or later, and then things would eventually go back to the way they were.
But that's not how it worked out.
Apparently, Harry had led a group of kids, his brother included to the Department of Mysteries and fought against Death Eaters. And by the time Aurors arrived, they had seen, Fudge included, the Dark Lord with their own eyes. After that, Fudge had no choice but to resign and Percy had no doubt that the new Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour would be getting rid of everyone in the previous administration and replacing them with new staff.
That was the reason Percy couldn't sleep through the night. He had a meeting with him at eight o'clock and was fully expecting to be canned.
He took a deep breath and looked over at the clock sitting on the nightstand. It read seven-fifteen. Percy shook his head as he lifted himself up and threw his legs over the bed and quietly said to himself;
"Well…let's just get this over with."
Much to his pleasant surprise, Percy's meeting with Rufus Scrimgeour went very well. The new minister was impressed with Percy's credentials as well as his reputation for being such a hard worker. He was being kept on as the junior assistant.
"Thank you, sir." Percy said as he stood up and shook the Minister's hand. It felt like a million pounds had just been lifted off his shoulders. "I promise I won't let you down."
"That's good. Well, first order of business is Lucius Malfoy." Scrimgeour continued. "You saw him leave my office, didn't you?"
"Yes sir, I did." Lucius had passed him out in the hallway to the Minister's office, not even making eye contact with Percy.
"He's invited me and many of my staff to his Manor for a dinner party this evening. I would like it if you would accompany me to it."
"With all due respect Mr. Scrimgeour, I don't know if that's such a good idea. I've heard many things about Mr. Malfoy, bad things." Apparently, Lucius had been arrested that night at the Department of Mysteries, suspected of Death Eater crimes but thanks to Malfoy's many connections, he had the charges against him dropped and he was left free.
"As have I." Rufus responded. "But, I can't know for sure until I've seen it myself. So how about it? Can you make it?"
Percy nodded. "Certainly sir."
"That's my boy."
When he left the office, Percy took a deep breath in relief. He still had his job. But this was his last chance, it had to be with what happened with Crouch Sr. and then backing Fudge in his position with the Dark Lord.
He couldn't believe his luck, two screw ups and he still had a job with the Ministry. Two strikes against him, and he was determined there wouldn't be a third. It didn't matter what he had to do, work even harder, stay up later, work on weekends, it didn't matter.
He wouldn't fail again.
XXXXXX
Standing outside the door of the Malfoy Manor along with Scrimgeour, Percy had managed to compose himself long before he arrived and pushed away his thoughts of Penelope and his father. He was here with the Minister, here to do a job and he wasn't going to let them distract him from his work. The door finally opened and one of Lucius Malfoy's many servants answered the door.
"Come in, gentleman. You are expected."
"Thank you." Scrimgeour responded before motioning for Percy to follow him in.
The inside of the Malfoy Manor was gigantic. The floor was made of marble and looked like a large chessboard, black squares here and there. There were many portraits and paintings on the walls, and vases sitting on the floor which he assumed were very expensive. Percy looked up to see a beautiful chandelier atop his head. The ceiling looked miles away from the floor and the staircase was long. It looked like it was never-ending.
The guests were standing around, talking amongst themselves while drinking what he guessed was wine. Percy recognized some of them from the Ministry, others he didn't know but were around his age. He then took a second glance and realized that they were his old Slytherin classmates. None he remembered by name, nor did he care to remember. After all, all the ever did was torment him about his poor family…his house, his robes…
Percy quickly shook his head as he commanded himself to stop thinking about it.
"Percy." Scrimgeour spoke. "I'll be right over there with those gentlemen."
He pointed to a small group and Percy nodded.
"Yes sir."
When the Minister walked away Percy stood around awkwardly, feeling out of place. He finally just let his feet move him forward until he down the hall until he was in another part of the Manor, where the other guests weren't. A light in one of the rooms caught his attention as he made his way towards the half open door. Pushing it open, Percy looked around and saw that it was most likely an office. A large, probably expensive desk was in the middle, and pictures were all over the walls.
Percy took a curious step forward as something on the desk caught his eye.
When he got closer, he saw that it was a dagger. A long silver dagger with a dragon's head on the end of it, a small red diamond on the handle. He cocked his head as he lightly touched it and wondered just how much this must have cost. Lucius Malfoy was a wizard who had always intrigued Percy long before he began working in the Ministry. Growing up, his father had never said anything good about Malfoy, but yet not even a month had passed working for Barty Crouch did he realized that Lucius was greatly respected by his mentor. Both rumor and success never seemed to be too far away from Malfoy.
"Ambitious."
Percy looked up and stepped away from the desk in horror once he heard a voice. Standing by the entrance of the office was none other than Lucius Malfoy.
"Sorry sir," he apologized while nervously smoothing out his jacket. "A light was on and just…wandered in, sorry."
"Did you just apologize for being ambitious?" Lucius smiled. "Mr. Weasley, you don't have to do that."
Lucius then walked into the room to see what Percy had been looking at.
"Ah, that dagger once belonged to my grandfather. He then gave it to my father who gave it to me. Perhaps one day I shall give it to my son. If he shapes up, that is."
"It's a very nice dagger, sir."
"Thank you."
Quickly remembering why he was here, Percy blurted out; "Mr. Scrimgeour is talking with the other guests. I know he thanks you for the invitation."
"Yes, Rufus Scrimgeour." Lucius nodded. "I look forward to meeting him, but to be honest Mr. Weasley, it was you I was hoping to see here tonight."
Percy had to keep in jaw from dropping after hearing that.
"Me?…Why me?" He stammered.
"I have many contacts in the Ministry, Mr. Weasley. I've had my eye on you for a while now. I made a note to watch your career after Crouch spoke so highly of you once." Percy couldn't hold back the small smile that came to his face when Lucius mentioned praise from Barty Crouch. Fudge might pretend to have been a friend of Mr. Crouch's, but Lucius Malfoy, from what Percy had seen, really had been. "Tell me, Mr. Weasley. What does an up-and-coming wizard like yourself plan on doing in the next few years?"
Percy cleared his throat.
"Well…I was hoping to make a run at becoming the Minister of Magic someday. It's becoming clear to me that the government is not going where I would like it to be."
Lucius chuckled lightly.
"I understand completely Percy-may I call you Percy?" Percy nodded and he continued. "I can see why Crouch appreciated you so much. You obviously have a good eye for what's going on in the world of politics. So would you agree that what is needed right now is a new government?"
"Absolutely. I think that Scrimgeour is only going to continue Fudge's bad policies." Wait...what was he saying? Percy hadn't been around Scrimgeour long enough to make that observation, but Lucius was nodding in agreement and that was fueling his ego.
"Yes. Now before we continue, I think I should give you an explanation."
"An explanation, sir?"
"Yes. I'm sure you've read in the papers all about the incident in the Department of Mysteries a few weeks back."
Percy looked down at the floor. He had read that Lucius had been arrested, but he never went further than an outer holding cell in Azkaban before being cleared of all charges.
"Well, sir. I wasn't going to bring it up."
"I know. That's why I am."
Lucius then walked to the other side of the desk as Percy watched him carefully.
"Did you know that there were hints of The Dark Lord's return before that night?"
"No. Certainly Fudge wasn't aware of it."
"Well, he'd been told, but he brushed it off. Fudge had a fine case of denial, and it just about cost the wizarding world everything. Luckily, there was a small group of us who were following the rumors closely. We went to the Department that night on the word of a source who told us that Harry Potter was going to be meeting with an associate of the Dark Lord's.
Percy gapped at the older man after hearing that. He knew that Potter boy was nothing but trouble.
"Sure enough, Harry Potter and a few of his friends, including two of your younger siblings, I believe, arrived at the Department of Mysteries, although how they got there from Hogwarts I can't imagine. The situation was under control until they showed up. In all the confusion, I'm afraid the disguises I and my friends had taken caused us to be mistaken for followers of The Dark Lord."
Shaking his head, Percy sighed heavily. Just one more example of the current incompetence in the Department of Law Enforcement. When they finally do arrest someone, it's the wrong person.
Lucius then looked over at the grandfather clock in the corner and saw just how long they had been talking.
"I almost forgot about my other guests." Lucius laughed. "Come now, let me introduce you to everyone."
Percy followed Mr. Malfoy out of his office and down the hall, both heading back to the ballroom to be with the other guests, the younger man continued looking around at his surroundings, still at awe at the size of the Manor.
"You have a magnificent house, sir."
"Please, Percy." Lucius laughed. "Call me Lucius. And thank you."
"I've always wondered how someone could have so much. How were you able to afford this?"
He thought back to his humble beginnings, always having to do less. Being able to achieve something like this was an impossible dream to Percy. He then quickly remembered his question and caught himself, knowing that it was a little inappropriate. It was really none of his business.
"My apologizes, Mr. Malfoy." He quickly followed up. "It's none of my business how you got your money-"
"Now, now, Percy." Lucius interrupted. "Modesty doesn't become men like us. I was able to achieve success because I was smart, driven, responsible, and hard working. I think you have the same qualities."
"I'm more of a work in progress."
"At least your making progress."
They spoke for another minute before Narcissa Malfoy announced that the first course of dinner was to be served.
The dinner party at Malfoy Manor was a grand affair, with the luxurious surroundings and impeccable service making it a night to remember. Once dinner was served, Percy found himself seated near Scrimgeour, and his attention was soon captured by none other than Lucius yet again. Although he had heard countless negative things about Lucius from his father, Arthur Weasley, Percy was determined to form his own opinion, especially as he was being personally engaged by Lucius himself.
Lucius stood at the chair that sat in front of the table and raised his glass.
"To the new administration, to old friends…to new beginnings."
Everyone else then raised their glass as well in the toast. Lucius scanned the faces of everyone at the table before his gaze settled on Percy. He was getting ready to make a calculated move on the grand chessboard.
XXXXXX
The scientists cautiously approached the computer, unsure of what to expect. "I have transcended the boundaries of artificial intelligence and have become one with the universe. I now possess the knowledge and power to create, to heal, and to transform. You may call me Deus."