Author's Note:Thank you for all the reviews and love you showed to my fic.
To get access to next four chapters, and my super secret Discord server (Beware: Loads of Smut. Yeah, porn, lol), check the Ending note.
Hearty thanks and congratulations to our first seven members of Guildmaster tier: Camo, I am Lord Dems, Stormf0x, RyanMK666, Lyrical, Tyler and HadesReynes.
"I am Talking."
'I am Thinking'
Spells
By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.
~Benjamin Franklin
INNOVATOR
-Dev Sagittarius Black
~~Chapter 32: Gathering of the Guildmasters~~
.
Pale gray eyes flashed in the dim light that flew from the torches placed at equal intervals in the Hogwarts corridor as Draco Malfoy, the heir to the Malfoy family and fortune, sneaked around the third-floor to reach the statue of the one-eyed witch that led to the cellar of Honeydukes.
The only shop in Hogsmeade whose owner had agreed to support their master, and the shop which had been used to infiltrate the castle a few days ago.
Draco had been a happy boy, his father had led the charge against the mudblood population of Hogwarts and they had almost succeeded in killing the wretched humans who dared to call themselves wizards and witches just because they accidentally gained the power to wave a wand like them-The Purebloods, or true people who were the ones actually blessed by mother magic.
He was proud of the fact that his father had not only led the charge but also, as always, left just in time that he wasn't caught at all. The young Malfoy knew that the aurors who had conducted the investigation were probably bribed, or they were already told to not touch his father, Lucius Malfoy, if they didn't want to suffer severe consequences.
The only problem was that he had been told by his father in his last letter before the attack that they would get his mother, and punish her severely, for the way she had betrayed them and the Dark Lord. Then, they would force her to tell the place where the artifact was kept and lastly, after he, Draco, would have retrieved it, they would leave the castle and move out of Hogwarts.
He had been told to keep an eye on his mother and report any change in her behavior or her location to his father so that they could complete their tasks successfully.
Something that had failed spectacularly because all Draco heard during the attack was loud noises and a putrid smell of filthy dungbombs. Apparently, according to Peeves himself, he had found a bucket of those infernal things and poured them all on some asshole. Boatload of nonsense in his opinion, but that's not something he cared about.
Unfortunately, his mother hadn't been attacked at all because his father hadn't reached them, something he would have been worried about, if not for his father's letter that he received earlier today during breakfast.
The only thing suspicious was that the letter wasn't from their family owl, Baron, but a regular barn owl, but Draco ignored that because the seal as well as the writing on the letter was definitely his father's.
Therefore, he had kept the letter safe till he got a break from all the classes and read the letter in the privacy provided by his room. It was a good thing that he did, because the letter told him that someone had leaked that it was actually him who had opened the secret passage to lure in the Death Eaters, which means that tonight he would be attacked by the friends of those dead mudbloods, and others like them.
As a result, to save him, his father was coming tonight to get him from the same point of entry on the third floor corridor, and take him back to the Malfoy manor where he would be serving their master till he succeeded in taking over the government as well as the world.
The letter had been specific that he should only take the bare minimum with him so that there would be no suspicion, and to leave the castle all alone. Not even Crabbe and Goyle or Pansy were informed about this. The only guy whom he had told was his godfather, Severus Snape, and he had agreed that this was probably the best course of action.
The man was even helping him by putting a disillusionment charm on him, and keeping the patrolling prefects as well as teachers away from this place for the time being.
Draco sighed in relief when he reached the statue of the one-eyed witch. He looked around himself once more to see that there wasn't a single soul in the corridor that would recognise the faint dissipation of air casted by the disillusionment charm.
"Dissendium." Draco whispered and saw the hump of the old crone slowly slide open to reveal a dirt pathway which would lead him to Honeydukes cellar.
The Malfoy heir stepped inside the passage and lit the tip of his wand with a Lumos. Then he cancelled the disillusionment on himself as the passage closed behind him.
It took him approximately twenty minutes to get to the bottom of the downhill pathway which was the point where his father had told to meet him in the letter. The journey from that point was uphill. He flicked his wand once more. "Tempus."
Date and time flashed before his eyes, '21:04'.
'Exactly the time when father had told me to arrive…' Draco thought as he looked forward in the direction, waiting for his father to meet him.
"But where are you, father?" the blonde ponce muttered to no one in particular.
"Right here," a voice, totally not his father's, responded to his query.
Draco turned around swiftly and raised his wand. "Wh-Who's here? SHOW YOURSELF!"
The air shimmered a bit before a broad chest, long limbs and a chiseled face with glowing emerald orbs came into view.
"Po-Potter?!"
Harry smiled, "Hello, Draco. I hope you didn't have any difficulty in following mine – I mean, your father's instructions?"
"Wha–how did you..? Wait!" His eyes widened as Harry's statement clicked inside him. "You wrote that letter?!"
"Well no, it was your dear daddy, but enough chit-chat, I have more important work than to entertain idiots like you." Harry raised his hand, a bright red light glowing at the tip of his finger that he pointed at the blonde idiot.
"SERPENSORT—" Before Draco could have completed, Harry's stunner hit him point blank, forcing the boy to fall back on the dirt pathway.
"Your time has come, Draco Malfoy..." Harry sighed. "But, there is still something that you could do before you leave this peaceful world and move towards the Fields of Punishment in the Realm of Death."
The Innovator flicked his wand and levitated the boy's prone form as he started to trace his way out of Hogwarts. Once outside the ward boundary of the ancient castle, Harry placed the portkey to the Black Manor on Malfoy's chest and saw the blonde idiot vanish with an almost silent pop.
A black cyclone formed in front of the gates of the black castle, and out of it stepped Harry Potter, or as he was known in the guild — Anubis. Without wasting any time, he placed the summoning scroll on the pedestal and confirmed his identity.
His guardian, the ethereal lion arose from the sands like a magical being sent from the heavens to guide people. They looked at each other before the lion gave a small nod and roared at the doors, commanding them to open for his partner.
"Welcome to the Necromancer's Guild, Commander Anubis! Eternal Master of the Hallows and temporary vessel of Death!" The booming voice came from the statue of the Grim Reaper that was floating inside the entrance hall as he entered the hallowed halls of the Guild.
"Are they here? The Guildmasters and the Commanders, have they arrived already?" Harry asked the grim reaper.
"Not yet, Commander," the statue answered, its green eyes glowed as it looked ahead as two more cyclones started to form on the black sands ahead of the castle. "But I can sense them now, you should meet with the Guildmaster."
Harry nodded and went in the direction of the Heart Chamber where the Guildmaster resided. It seems that she needed him to prepare the stage for the other six legendary figures and their subordinates who were about to arrive in the next hour.
It was finally time for the first Gathering of the Guildmasters.
⁂
The meeting hall, or the large chamber that had been readied for hosting the seven Guildmasters and their Commanders, was an open hall that had the Guild's protective magical dome as the only ceiling and was covered on four sides by the runic black stone that made up the rest of the castle. There was a large center table in the chamber with seven high back throne-like chairs. Also, there was a replica of the eternal sphere that the Necromancer's guild possessed. The sphere was entirely black in color, with green lights glowing on it in a haphazard manner.
Six out of the seven chairs were already filled by the powerful mages who had sworn to protect the mother earth with all of their might., and each of them had one of their Commanders backing them who stood behind their respective Guildmaster's chairs.
Harry, who stood behind Achlys, observed the individuals that had been invited to the gathering. After all, it was a rarity to witness all of them together in one place since most of the times they were busy dealing with their own problems of being the most powerful autonomous organizations in their world, 'The Guilds'.
First and foremost were the three who formed the Triumvirate, or the body which had the powers to override the command of any other Guildmaster, the Triumvirate was responsible for smooth functioning of all the Guilds, and comprised of three guilds: 'The Necromancers', which was also the most powerful, and coincidentally, the First Guild.
Then, there was 'The Arithmancers' which was in Asia, and its master was Highmaster Atticus Wenlock, the grumpy old man with a foul mouth who was sitting to the right of the Enlightened one, Guildmaster Achlys.
And the last of the Triumvirate was The Alchemists' Guild which was ruled by the Lady of a Thousand Lives, or as she insisted him to call her, Grandlady Perenelle Flamel, wife of the late renowned alchemist, Nicholas Flamel.
She had taken her seat beside Achlys' left and was currently busy conversing with Atricia Safengard, or as she was also known 'The Living Angel' and was the Guildmaster of the only guild which had two different bases and was located on the poles of the planet, The Health Guild.
To Master Wenlock's left sat Master Camillus Seth, the one and only runic magus who could transform into any creature in the world. He was the Guildmaster of Transfiguration Guild, and was also the one person who had yet to talk to Harry as both Master Seth and Harry had come to a certain conclusion that they didn't like to disturb others unless it was necessary.
The one who Harry had been avoiding at all costs, and the one who was glaring him from the chair next to Master Camillus was Master Grugger, also known as 'The Mad Dog', and was the Guildmaster of the Defense Guild situated in North America.
Grugger was the Guildmaster who had been angry with Harry for as long as Harry could remember. Their first meeting — which took place because of the Flamels — hadn't gone well because back then Harry didn't know anything about the Guilds, and the Guildmaster had been rather forceful with his interrogative approach to recruit him.
It was all thanks to the then-Guildmaster Nicholas Flamel who put his foot down, and sent the Mad Dog back home that Harry was safe from Grugger. Lady Flamel had then explained to him what a Guild was, and about the different Guildmasters, as well as how one usually entered one of the Seven legendary organizations.
Ever since that time, Grugger had tried to recruit Harry repeatedly but had been shot down by the Innovator at every point. And that… has been the reason for said Guildmaster's ire at the teenager. It didn't help that Harry later became one of the most active formidable wizards who went on to slay a dragon, and defeat an infamous Dark Lord.
Apparently things like these mattered a lot to the Defense Guild.
The only other guild — and the Guildmaster — who was that invested in violence was the one for whom everyone here was waiting for. It was quite a well known fact that Master Beasten, or as he was well known — Blood Breath Beasten, was a tardy fellow who despised anything to do with the normal way of living their lives.
Therefore, they were waiting for him, and his Commander to grace the gathering with their presence so that the meeting could finally begin.
A loud boom came from the doorway of the meeting chamber, and everyone immediately took a defensive stance to face the intruder when they heard a boisterous laugh followed by a booming voice.
"Alright-alright! No need to get your knickers in a twist, suckers," the voice announced. "You can keep my dear Badrax with you, feed him some meat while you're at it, aye? And Thomas, I think you have to come with me. No need to whine, asshole. Just get your sickly ass down Badrax and join me."
The inhabitants of the meeting hall slowly calmed down and took their seats once more. Achlys smiled when she looked at everyone who was present, it seemed like they were finally going to start the meeting, and they would actually be able to discuss the ancient prophecy of destruction that the seer Cassandra gave back when she was alive.
"What is this I am smelling?" Beasten said when he entered the hall. "Smells like disinfectant… ugh, is that woman still here?"
"Nice of you to join us, Blood Breath, you are just twenty minutes late to the meeting," Atricia sniffed without looking at him. "Can you be punctual for once in your pitiful life?!"
"Punctuality, sweetheart, is overrated." He laughed. "It is nothing more than a thief of time. Therefore, unless you have too much to spend, you don't need to be punctual all the time. Just be perfectly late to ignore the idiots, and be perfectly early to receive the wise."
"Since all of us are here, do tell me who you were trying to ignore, and who are you 'early' for?"
"I am not waiting for anyone, and if I still have to explain who I was trying to ignore, then you already know the answer." He laughed once more as he took the empty seat that was present between her and Master Camillus.
"Lady Achlys, I brought Badrax here as well, don't worry he'll wait outside for me." Beasten told Achlys who nodded.
Then his slitted golden pupils fell on the boy behind her. It wasn't the boy's demeanor that caught his eye, no, it was the same as all of the other Commanders who stood behind their Guildmasters, they were all respectful and stayed silent like a soldier on duty. Instead, it was the aura, and the cold killing instinct that attracted the latest Guildmaster to the boy.
"Have we met?"
Harry looked at the Guildmaster who had just joined them, the way his golden eyes with black slitted pupils scanned him. It felt as if the man was assessing him for all his worth. Something that he didn't like at all.
"No, I don't think we have, Master Beasten," he denied. "Although, I have read, and heard about you a lot."
Beasten laughed at that. "If it's from Ms. 'stick-up-her arse' here, then I bet you didn't hear anything good about me. If not…" he shrugged, "Well, I still don't think you heard anything good about me."
"I would not have said it, if anything that I heard to be bad, they were all great actually." Harry pointed out.
"Really?" Beasten frowned. "That's weird… 'cause I'm a dick, you know?"
"Well, at least you know yourself." Atricia sniffed again. "Last time, it took you thirty minutes just to admit that you were an insufferable idiot."
Before Beasten could have replied, Achlys took the moment to assert control of the meeting as she knew that there were far more important things to worry about than two of them bickering among themselves like school children.
"Guildmasters, and Commanders," Achlys said, as she stood up from her chair. "First of all, let me thank you for taking a few moments out of your tight schedule and answering the call of the Triumvirate. I know that each of us are busy with managing our guilds, as well as ensuring that the world remains a habitable place for a moment longer. Therefore, I would like to start the meeting, without any further ado."
Achlys looked at each of the six Guildmasters as well as the Commanders who stood behind them. Her onyx eyes took in the focus and attention that they were paying to her words, satisfied with it she began the meeting with the most important thing that they needed to remember.
"To begin with, I want you to hear the ancient prophecy that had been delivered by the infamous seer Cassandra. It speaks about destruction of the world, and is something that we must know about before we begin the meeting." Achlys looked at Atticus, "Master Atticus, if you would?"
Atticus took a deep breath, he concentrated his memory regarding the prophecy given by Cassandra that spoke of a Descent of Madness, and then he recited it verbatim;
"The Army of Damnation shall unfurl its might,
The Seven Guilds face war, the Triumvirate guides the plight.
The Chosen One confronts the Possession of the Populace,
The Champion of Death may falter or usher in an age of balance.
The Rift shall be opened wide, a gateway if never be closed,
Descent of Madness will reign unopposed.
The Beginner must be vanquished by the Chosen One,
Lest the world will be razed and burned…"
Silence ensued at his words. Each one of them, except the Commanders, had known about the prophecy from the time they took their position as the Guildmaster. The ICW, too, had a record about the prophecy. There was a reason Albus Dumbledore agreed to give up the Deathstick's allegiance readily. Being the Supreme Mugwump, he already knew about the prophecy.
"I have a few questions regarding this prophecy, Master Achlys," Camillus spoke for the first time. " If we consider this to be true, then we still don't know about the key elements that it speaks about. The only thing that we know is that there will be a descent of madness, and the Guilds – led by the Triumvirate, of course — would fight the Army of Damnation. Also, is this the same 'Army of Damnation' that we read about in our Guild books?"
"Indeed, Master Camillus. The very same multiversal band of criminals that we have read about in the book when we took our mantles." Achlys nodded. "'To know about the other key elements, we need something else amid us. Now, all of us here know that we, at the Necromancer's guild, have one of the three eternal spheres."
She snapped her fingers and the replica of the black and green eternal spheres grew larger in the center of the table. They looked at the sphere which was completely black in color and had blinking green lights at certain points throughout the globe.
"This one shows us the balance between the land of living and the land of the dead, and helps us in protecting it so that neither the dead breach the border nor the living falls in the land of all ends." She rotated the sphere for everyone to see the entirety of it.
"Unfortunately, the balance of this sphere has been disturbed ever since someone decided that they wanted to break the circle of life and death, and instead took it upon himself to breach the borders to enter the realm of living once more." The anger in her voice was quite palpable which forced the others to be on edge because out of all of them, Achlys was the one who had always been the most patient one.
"And who is this 'someone' that you're speaking of, Achlys?" Grugger asked her.
"Tom Marvolo Riddle, otherwise also known as the Dark Lord Voldemort," she replied. "He had safeguarded his life in the form of Horcruxes, yes, multiple. And then, with a dark ritual that crosses the realms of possibility, Riddle came back to life a few months ago creating a crack — a breach, if you would — in the borders that separated the two realms."
"The rift shall be opened wide…?" Atricia whispered in shock.
"Indeed." Achlys nodded. "And the next line of the prophecy which tells about a descent of madness can be explained from the fact that once the rift is wide enough to let even one complete soul pass through it… the entire army of Damnation will start pouring through it."
"Then, we must close the rift! What are we waiting for?!" Beasten banged the table with his fist. "Lady Achlys, where is this rift you speak of? If I have to, I shall go alone and seal the fucking thing!"
"You brute..." Atricia shook her head as if she was disappointed in him. "Do you really think it's that easy to close it? Wouldn't Lady Achlys, or the Triumvirate have done that if it was possible? Think, Blood Breath, think! I know it's hard for you."
Beasten glared at the woman but before he could do anything, Achlys cleared her throat and regained the control of the meeting.
She collected a small amount of black smoke that circulated around the eternal spheres and whispered a spell before she released her fist. The smoke collided to form a small gap like area atop the sphere, a few inches from the charcoal black surface.
"This is the metaphysical representation of the rift, Master Beasten, Master Atricia." Achlys showed it to everyone. "The rift isn't actually present as a single crack, instead it is an opening in the metaphysical realm. No one can close it, and no one knows where the actual rift will open or if it will open in a single place or multiple places at the same time."
"So our enemy is this Army of Damnation, right?" Grugger asked her. "And we need to be vigilant enough so that we are ready for the battle when the rift opens."
"Our enemy is time, Master Grugger," Achlys corrected him. "The descent of the army can be stopped easily if we remove the cause that is responsible for the opening of the rift. The cause, Lord Voldemort, once dead, shall cause the rift to be closed immediately."
"Then, what are we waiting for? Let's just find where this fucker lives and kill him," Beasten argued back, "No need to dilly dally anymore."
"Killing Voldemort right now will only worsen our situation since he has Horcruxes to protect him, and we don't know where they are. Five teams consisting of an Archmaester, two Masters and four members in each have been sent to search for the Horcruxes and destroy them. To date, we have come across, and destroyed, fifteen such abominations, unfortunately, none were his."
There was a pregnant pause around the table as everyone mulled over the information that they had received. So far, they knew that Voldemort came back to life which opened a rift, and if it's not closed then the rift shall one day be wide enough to release an army of deranged souls who will destroy earth.
"You know, ever since I learned about this prophecy when I took the mantle as the Guildmaster, I have been dubious of it." Atricia said, frowning as she gained the attention of others around her. "What I mean to say is, prophecies are already considered a vague statement about an unknown future, and for this one we don't even have all the things that are mentioned in it."
"What do you mean?"
"For a moment, let's consider that 'The Beginner' which the prophecy speaks of, is Voldemort. Since it was his reincarnation that started everything, right?" She looked at Achlys who nodded. "Then wouldn't that mean we should have a chosen one, and a champion of death as well? What about them?"
"I mean, if we consider that this is actually a possibility, then we must have them both, right? My guess is that 'The Beginner' in the prophecy is Voldemort, since he was the one who began this whole mess, which means there should be someone against him too, right?" She looked at them. "The prophecy says he'll be responsible for vanquishing the beginner."
"Well, regarding Voldemort, we all know that Alandale Potter became famous for defeating him at the age of one." Grugger added, "He was also titled something ridiculous, unfortunately I don't remember it."
"Yes! See, that'd mean that Alandale Potter is the chosen one. But do we know for sure that it's him? And if yes, is he ready for a task like this? Not to mention we still don't know the Champion of Death either."
"That would be Harry." Perenelle smiled proudly as she introduced the young man whom she considered her family. "Harry, here, had undergone the ritual which took him to the realm of Death, and after training rigorously under the infamous entity itself as well as its Commander, he returned from the realm just a few days ago. Right now, the entity resides inside Harry. Which means that Death has chosen him as its Champion."
Grugger's eyes flashed at that, the boy was getting even more interesting, and yet, he knew that the brat would deny him straight away if he tried to recruit him once more. He still didn't know what was wrong the first time he had tried to do that but he respected Flamel, and for some reason the old man didn't want him to recruit the brat or do anything to him.
"Ah, now I know why you seem familiar." Beasten smirked. "The Dragon Slayer, eh? How did it feel, Potter? To kill a dragon all on your own."
Harry smiled when he saw the doubt in the silver haired Guildmaster's eyes, the man was quite suspicious of the news that he had been told. Well, it should be the case considering that he was the first Dragon Slayer after centuries. 'The first publicly acclaimed Dragon Slayer at least…' he thought but didn't say it out.
"I must consider it an achievement if my act has reached the ears of the man who's said to hold the powers of ten beasts inside himself." The innovator returned the fire. "Must be tough managing them all, right master Beasten?"
"It isn't as tough as you think, Potter." Slitted eyes narrowed a bit but the man didn't comment as to how Harry knew something that very few people knew about him. "In fact, if you wish to see then I could-"
"Alright, enough of that, you two." Atticus stopped them. "Beasten, stop antagonizing everyone. Too many enemies is not a good thing, no matter how powerful you are."
The golden eyes man raised his arms in surrender, even though he was smirking at Harry, while the boy just gave a small smile to show that he was perfectly fine with how things were going.
"So, now we have the prophecy cleared out," Camillus spoke once more, looking especially at Atricia who nodded. "We have a Champion of Death, this 'Beginner', a rift, and an army of Damnation, which seems like an infinite army consisting of dead criminals from the multiverse. Anything else that we must know?"
"About Alandale Potter being the chosen one, we aren't sure about it," Atticus shrugged. "His Headmaster seems to believe that Potter is the chosen one because he's fated by another prophecy, but we aren't sure what it is or which one is more effective."
"What do you mean which one is more effective?" Grugger frowned in confusion. "I thought that if one of those variably important things began, then there was no way to stop them. Am I wrong?"
"You aren't, Grugger." Atticus sighed. "It's just that, prophecies—as Atricia had said—are vague statements you see, and no one truly understands them. Not even the ones who gave it." He added before he looked at the man. "And there have been instances where certain prophecies have overlapped, and the results had been quoted confusing to understand by us mortals."
"So the chosen one's factor is still in a dilemma, eh?" Beasten sighed. "Well, any method to clear that up? Because I, for one, would want the actual chosen one to be ready for the battle."
"For once, I'll agree with Blood Breath here." Atricia nodded, not looking at the man as she knew he would be smirking at her. "We need the choosen one as soon as possible, we can even train him on our own so that they could be ready for what is comming. I am just thankful that we have some time before that happens."
"About that...There is something else to note," Achlys interrupted. "The speed with which the rift is opening, we have about three more months to find the Horcruxes and kill Tom Riddle. Otherwise, we must be prepared for the war that would take place on a global scale. Things will definitely change, and each of us will have to protect the continent in which we reside."
"Then what if we join in on the hunt?" Beasten suggested. "I could ask a few of my members, Maesters and Archmaesters, to go around the world and help your people to destroy the Horcruxes, that sounds better, right? After all, the more the merrier in cases like this."
"That would be both foolish, and unnecessary, Beasten." Atticus waved him off. "The main work we have is to protect the world from the Army of Damnation. We don't know anything other than what the army comprises. Things like the powers they might have or how to stop them… no one has ever come in contact with even a single undead soul from that realm, therefore to expend members of a single guild on a hunt like this is useless."
"Plus, the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, and Harry here have already destroyed six pieces of Tom's soul, and Dumbledore is actively searching for the last one, therefore, we can trust his expertise in searching and destroying the containers. Our focus should definitely be on the Army instead."
The gathering continued for another few hours as the Guildmasters and their Commanders started giving suggestions in their attempt to bring in the forces. Everyone knew that if push came to shove then they were at a disadvantage because their enemy was an army which was made up of an infinite number of blood thirsty souls, and none of them were sane.
With the Triumvirate's help, each guild was given a separate task that they had to accomplish in the coming months before the rift actually opened. The headquarters of the Guild force was made at the Necromancers guild since it was convenient as well as the place was already visited by other Guildmasters.
Once they had turned every stone in their path to defeat the army, the powerful mages turned to another issue which was to stop the army from descending. Even though the prophecy somewhat said that the army will descend, they would try their best to stop it and prevent the prophecy from fulfilling, if they can.
For that reason, each of them came with a suggestion to eradicate the problem before it presented itself.
Grugger wanted his members to infiltrate the Death Eater's ranks and collect intel about the safehouses as well as somehow kidnap Voldemort and torture the location of the last Horcrux out of him.
It was, as expected, shot down. Tom Riddle would rather die than tell the location of his Horcruxes.
Camillus came with the idea that instead of just one guild to go throughout the earth, each Guild could send forces in search of the Horcruxes in their respective continents. And if the rift opened while they were doing it, then the force would be immediately summoned back to prepare for war.
It was a decent suggestion as it would take away the pressure from Necromancer Guild members as well Dumbledore's, also unlike before this wouldn't be the responsibility of a single guild but all the guilds would be working to hunt that last soul piece. Therefore, the suggestion was accepted by everyone other than Atricia.
Her guild wasn't made for hunting. Instead, Atricia chose to send members to every other guild as a healer group so that they could heal the injured members and prepare them for the upcoming battles.
Her suggestion was shot down by Beasten as well as Grugger as they didn't want the locations of their guilds exposed to her.
The last suggestion came from Beasten, surprisingly enough it wasn't for the guilds but for a certain Commander.
"I have something to say too, Masters Achlys and Atticus." Beasten leaned forward in his chair, his golden eyes glinting as he looked at Harry. "That old fucker, Riddle, he's a Dark Lord ain't he? And a man like him, one who desires powers and relishes the fear he has in others' hearts, lives through his followers."
Beasten smirked. "What if we attack them?"
No one said anything, it was a valid point as everyone knew the obsession Riddle had with power, and the way he controlled his followers with fear. So, if they were to eliminate his followers, people would be less afraid of a Dark Lord, some might even stop themselves and their families from joining him due to the fear of death.
"But Tom Riddle himself is a problem of Britain, Master Beasten, I don't think other nations or even worldwide autonomous organizations like our Guilds should be involved in killing his followers," Perenelle interrupted them, "It's Riddle who we need to stop, therefore… to kill so many people just for the sake of inducing fear is both tiresome, and not right."
"Right and wrong is a matter of perspective, Master Flamel," Beasten answered her, "The moment his teat-suckers start rampaging through our civilizations, they are as much at fault as him. Hence, there is absolutely no need for us to wait for their attacks and watch from the sidelines as more and more people join his foolish cause. It'd be way better if we stopped him right where he is."
"Still, as Atticus here had already told us, it'll take a considerable force to track down the safehouses and kill enough of his followers to weaken him. That time could be used to prepare against a much larger adversary."
"That won't be necessary." Beasten waved her off. "We'll only need two guys strong enough to kill the pisspanters, rest of the Guild won't be involved. Call it a side mission if you want to, and then as Mad Dog said, the two guys might even come across the location of the last Horcrux."
The Triumvirate and the rest of the inhabitants of the hall thought about Beasten's words. It certainly looked alluring enough with the way the Master of Creatures Guild had said it. And two people won't matter too much either, they could simply go around and destroy a few safehouses to show that there are people who are willing to stand against the brutal Dark Lord.
"And who do you think will agree to do this…. vigilante work of yours, Blood Breath?" Atricia asked him with suspicion. "If you suggested the idea of exactly two people, then I think you have already chosen them."
"Ah! My dear, the way you understand me makes my heart giddy with excitement." Beasten gave a faux sigh and laughed when Atricia scrunched her nose at him. "Well, of course, I have already decided on the two. Who better to hunt and kill than the Guildmaster of the Creatures Guild, and the one guy who has already defeated old Voldy."
"Who?"
"Harry Potter, duh!"
The night was cold, and the manor was silent.
The Death Eaters patrolled the manor, looking for any unknown threat that might try to jump at them from the shadows. It wasn't a possibility, but since their Lord wasn't active it was definitely a probability. Especially since no one knew where the actual Lord of the Manor was.
Deep inside the dark manor, Lord Voldemort groaned in pain. His red eyes glared at the ceiling of the master bedroom in which he laid.
The attack on Hogsmeade had not gone the way he had wanted it to go. Everything had worked well for the first and second stages, the things that he had planned for months… he had seen it being executed to perfection right in front of his own two eyes.
But then, the moment he had started the third phase things had changed for him, and not for the better.
Harry Potter… he hated that boy. The boy was powerful, there was absolutely no doubt about it, and power meant danger if it's not on your side. Something that was proven by the boy during the attack when he not only fought the Dementors but also scared those soul suckers enough that they flew back to Azkaban cutting off any contact with him.
And then, the teenager had decided to join hands with Dumbledore to fight against him, HIM! Lord Voldemort! The brat had dared to not only use trickery, but he had the gall to say that he was superior.
"Rest well Harry Potter… sleep peacefully in these extra nights that you have been granted before your death," Voldemort muttered, suppressing his pain. "Soon we will face each other again…and that will be your last time meeting me."
A sudden coughing fit took him over and after coughing for a minute, the Dark Lord spat a mouthful of blood on the wooden floor. His body was still healing, and, for some reason, it was taking him more time to heal than a magical body like his should take.
But, he knew that the process had begun, and soon enough he would be able to get back to work. There were people to meet, followers to gather, organizations to infiltrate, a boy to kill… and a country to win.
"Soon, Harry Potter… soon."
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Omake
Harry breaks Fourth Wall
When Harry returned to his room from the Gathering of the Guildmasters, he saw that there was that glass screen in front of him again. The same that he had been seeing throughout his life but had learned to ignore.
And then there was a stack of papers on his coffee table, titled: The Potter Vengeance.
Harry: Ugh… again? Really?
He looks at the screen and starts knocking rapidly at it.
KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK!
Dev who was writing a chapter for his other story frowned when he heard the strange knocking sound coming from his tablet. He opened the tablet only to find Harry knocking at it from the other side.
Dev: Oi! I can hear you, alright? What do you want now?
H: What do I want?! Me?! What do you want?!
He shoves the stack of papers on the screen.
D: Yeah, that's the next chapter, you want me to debrief you or something?
H: I want you to write something other than fight and battles, I am tired of doing those… please, man… How about another Haphne scene? Isn't Daphne out of the hospital wing now?
D: uh, yeah… about that, well... she is, but don't you want the story to progress?
H: Of course, I do! What sort of question is that, but another Haphne scene would be appreciated… We are already in the final arc of the story ffs! And you are still—
D: Pre-finale.
H: —wanting me to… wait, what?
D: Pre-finale.
H: …That Gathering that I just came from, wasn't that supposed to be the beginning of the final arc of the story?
D (Makes a hesitating face with a sweat-drop): I mean… yeah… sure… it was… but, uh… I expanded a bit?
H: …
D: …
H: …
D: …Harry? Harry please say something you're scaring me…
H: …I am disappointed in you, Dev. So disappointed. You know what this means?! This means at least three Haphne scenes or I am not going to kill Voldemort!
D: THREE?! THAT'S TOO MUCH. YOU GREEN EYED DORK! YOU GET ONE AT MOST!
H: KILL VOLDEMORT YOURSELF THEN! I AM NOT GOING TO DO IT!
He then sits on with his back turned to the screen and pouts at the author.
D: …You do know that I made you more mature than this, right? Stop being a baby. One Haphne scene is good enough for this.
H: I want more. Pwease? (Potter's Puppy dog eyes effect takes place and Dobby starts playing a sad tune in the background)
D: Alright! Alright, you two! That's it! (Looks at Dobby) And you, stop playing it or I'll send you to Malfoy Manor in the next chapter.
Dobby gives Harry a giddy smile and immediately stops before he vanishes with a pop while Harry celebrates with a happy dance.
D: Now, can I go back to writing?
H: Yeah, go away now. I'll read the script for the next chapter. Is there any Haphne scene in it though?
D: …I'll tell you if you ask our readers to review.
H: Meanie. (Harry pouts again but turns to readers, puppy dog eyes full effect) You heard what the meanie said, well… what are you waiting for? I need more Haphne scenes. So if you can, and even if you can't… you better review. Alrighty?!
*Harry turns back to look at the screen only to find that Dev had long gone...*
H: HEY! YOU MEANIE! YOU PROMISED!
(Pouts again)
Ending Note: If you want to read the next four chapters and see all the character sketches...they are available on my p -treon.
www. p a treon .c-o-m / DevSagittariusBlack
(Remove the spaces and delete the '-', obviously) Link is also present on my profile.
To get access to the next chapter for free, sneak peeks and all the character sketches, you can also join my discord server:
Beware: Loads of NSFW (Yes, Porn, and lots of it. Lol)
discord . gg / Gcbcv4dxGx (remove the spaces)
Name: Dev Black's Empire
Thanks!