Harry Potter - Another Dark Lord

The rain stopped nurturing the forest. Benjamin William couldn't move. He couldn't see. He could only hear the screams and the falling water. How long was he waiting, he wondered. Why did he take on this job, he asked himself. He prayed for salvation. He wanted to see his daughter Grace, the only remnant of his long-gone wife Sophie. She would be around six in two days. He'll miss her birthday at her grandpa's house, but she would be safe.

Unable to cry, the father felt a foreign presence entering his mind. The memories of his intervention to make sure no death occurred displayed once again. He couldn't fight back. The stranger was there, but invisible. It witnessed how Benjamin flew through the air above the Utah's environment. The hawk above the cloud, tracked the orphan entering different houses in the capital and smaller city.

The shapeless individual traveled through the mind layer where the animagus main talent revealed itself. The father of Grace was an unspeakable. Having developed a prototype of portkey tracker, he had been approached by the leader of light this year when the object was functional. The small task was for the greater good. He had to check for one summer, on a potential new leader of light's candidate.

Never, this father had expected to have to follow the orphan through three different countries. Curiosity over vigilance had been his downfall. It had helped him to climb into the restricted rank of unspeakable, but now. This thirst for uncovering the unknown cost him a lot. Darkness filled his mind. He couldn't concentrate on the memories. He knew he was observed.

HP - Another Dark Lord

Hidden deep into the mountain ground, one wizard fed another one with a potion of Draught of Living Death. The artificial cavern held enough space for a small house with five rooms. Runes engraved on stones and walls made the construction durable and hidden from magical ripples. The air was kept fresh by small tunnels piercing the cavern roof as wind come in and out thanks to runes of Ehwaz for movement and Ventus Jinx for the wind.

Unconscious in a deathlike slumber, the sleeping wizard didn't notice the change in his memories as dreams of boring days, watching over an orphan reading near a pond, filled his head. Drinking another potion for the tiredness, the green robe made sure to learn the special knowledge of the unspeakable. The little chat with the headmaster made him angry. He thought he was cleaned of suspicion. If this old man tried to contact Benjamin, the orphan cover would be blown away. He had to make his trip short and effective.

Flesh golems couldn't fool the light lord. The unspeakable had to be the real one when he would meet Dumbledore. Not expressing anything, the wizard hit the sleeping father with a Freezing Charm in case the man woke up. To further strengthened the security, chains bound the captured man to the ground while his wand was removed and a circle of runes was drawn around him. To make sure the animal shape wasn't useful, the green robe transfigured the man clothes into a big cage with Anti-Apparition Charm.

Gulping down the Polyjuice Potion with a new hair, the green robe underwent another change. With the appearance of a young redhead of twenty years old, the wizard transfigured his robe into black suits. The new physic and clothes were not enough, the wizard practiced to change his voice intonation. Satisfied with the preparation, the orphan took in his pocket the unspeakable wand before leaving the cavern in twisting space.

HP - Another Dark Lord

The redhead saluted to the magical shopkeeper. Taking a hand of power to use the fireplace, the wizard shouted 'New York, the Dakota'. This building was a cooperative apartment building located on the northwest corner of 72nd Street and Central Park West. The hidden underground was the most popular magical gathering pub for wizards and witches visiting this city.

A lot cleaner than the Leaky Cauldron, the Dakota Underground Bar was filled with wizards the local equivalent of butterbeer. No smoke tainted the place as it was dissipated as soon as it touched the enchanted bar's roof. A ginger-haired barmaid invited the newcomer to a bar seat. Paying for a shot of Firewhisky, the foreigner put his elbows on the bar counter, filling the place with his magic.

" Strong lad are you son ? ", strong hands filled the short drink.

" Thank sir, my friend said the same in my hometown. ", in one gulp the alcohol was emptied.

" What brought you here, looking for work sunny ? Don't worry I've seen many succeed with the MCUSA now recruiting. ", scratching his black beard, the wizard behind the bar counter grabbed another short container. Filling the new one, the worker observed the client while cleaning the used drink.

" Don't worry about that my friend. I'm a spell crafter and I just wanted to see the greatest library in the country. Any tips, five ? ", playing with the small glass, the customer leaned closer, pulling out twenty Sprinks.

" Good one, forget about any others than the NY Public Library. If you know the way, you can find anything. Remember, salvation for our kind. ", the barman hid the money in his pocket, revealing a five branches star tattoo.

" I do. ", finishing his command, the newcomer paid for the second drink and gave more for the appreciation.

Avoiding a burly suit, the foreigner exited the bar by a door in the back. The mental invasion went better than expected. Not noticed at any moment, the invader had the time to find useful data about the black market with this supplier. The group of wizards weren't as dark as death eater, they smuggled forbidden goods, but tended to avoid any death. Freedom for the wizard kind was their ideal. They were displeased with the many restrictions set by the government. They believed it was reducing the wizard progress, so they organized some places and events.

When the wizard was touched by the sunlight, the door behind him disappeared. He was in the dead-end of a street. Checking for any undesirable with invisible third eyes, Human-presence-revealing Spell, the wizard hit every bird, cat, rat, insect inside a distance of thirty meters with the animagus reversal spell. No animals were fake, still the foreigner disillusioned himself and flew among the buildings.

Seeing the Central Park on his left, the invisible wizard knew he was close to the destination.

HP - Another Dark Lord

Inside the Public Library of New York City were shelves of books on almost every topic. The rows of ordered tables with seats helped the many visitors to study near the d.e.s.i.r.ed subjects. The illumination on each table and above the different sections guided the newcomer to the specific path. In order to access the magical library of forbidden books, the wizard had to follow a precise behavior.

As he saw in the barman memories, at the twelfth walk up and down of the southeast stair, a shelf fell back to open the entrance of the wizard library. Two librarians were pointing their wands toward the place where the invisible wizard stood. Floating above their head, he escaped the detection spell they cast. Confused, both returned to their seats while the incident memory faded away. They were feeling tired and fell asleep in minutes.

Shelves reaching four meters tall surrounded the visitor. Sections were classified by magical branch like transfiguration, charm or dark arts. No particular defensive wards or spells were put on the books. This place was for sharing the knowledge, even disapproved by the current system. Taking books on runes, the wizard was disappointed. For the content, the runes theory and use were following the European system of Latin and Nordic.

Putting them back, the visitor searched section for the native magic. The single shelf on this topic was on the fourteenth row. Unlike the majority, this shelf wasn't filled to the brim. Half-empty, almost all of the books were old notes taken or diary about wizard describing their adventure with the indigenous tribes. The few useful data described the role of medicine man and shaman in some Navajo groups.

Not mentioning the rumor of having to sacrifice one member of their family for the power of no wand magic, the small textbook on this tribe compared the shape shifting ability of those different wizards with the usual animagus. Unlike the latter, the skin-walker could bore more than one form. However, the process was as dangerous and the consequence quite dire.

To gain a new skin, one had to kill the previous older by himself. The magic ritual wouldn't recognize the wizard if he had to rely on external help to get the skin of the d.e.s.i.r.ed animal. After killing the host, the skin-walker had to wear the new form on his body and fight the beast soul in a mental fight. If this step wasn't successful, the skin-walker would forfeit his body to the animal and live the rest of his life as a spectator contained his in a shell.

An interesting part was the use of many skins of the same kind. A legend passed down through the native tribe described a mad skin-walker who had a hundred of wolf forms. Unable to resist the wild, the man hunted down human flesh. That wizard was a lot stronger than any normal man, he could toss trees like a pebble and his form was one of a giant wolf. Whenever a lucky hit killed the man, he would come back to life with a smaller skin. All the wizards at that time had to work together to slay the madman one hundred times.

Closing the doc.u.ment, the visitor moved toward another section for rituals and dark arts to compare the dark lord memories with new references. Necromancy and soul magic weren't favored branches of magic. Even this secret library didn't have many books on the subject. The Necronomicon was a legend said to contain all the rituals and spells for reigning over the dead. Numerous authors had tried to find this book, but none succeed.

Removing a small skeleton from his suitcase, the ritual adept followed the instructions on one of the advanced necromancy tome. Calling upon magic to brand the inanimate with his mark, the child skeleton glowed with an invisible light. The third eye followed the magic diffusing from the mark to the rest of the bones, reaching feet and fingers tips. Blue flames danced inside the empty socket. The skeleton mechanically rose up. Seeing its master, its knees touched the ground.

The link between the undead and the wizard was strong. It couldn't speak, but the devotion passed through the mark on the back of the skull. This phenomenon wasn't common according to the necromancy notes. Only family members or close friends could bring such feel when they rose again. The stronger the link was, the easier it was for the necromancer to command and channel magic through the undead.

Staring into the blue fire, the orphan glanced into the child's past as it was forced to swallow pills of cyanide when the invader entered their home. This last scene echoed in the soul shell even after death. Memories prior to this incident were washed away with the soul's depart. The nameless skeleton stood up, following the orders. It stayed still as new servants were brought back to the living word.

Facing to the small company of skeletons, the ritual adept commanded his new servants to change into their second form. Five rings of silver fell on the floor. The cold didn't bother the necromancer as he put the metals on his fingers. Waving his hand forward, the five creatures jolted toward the front. With appropriated runes and weapons, the small group of undead could turn into an unexpected surprise.

Wanting to carry an army on himself, the necromancer that created this kind of undead only succeed with undead that had a strong connection with the death wizard. The mark engraved on the bones could store more runes for new effects, but the magic channeling through the link had to be strong enough to activate them. Trying to bypass this restriction, the necromancer wrote down his life experience for years, but in the end, he failed.

Finishing the last tome on necromancy and soul magic, the visitor noticed a note on the last page. The paper wasn't old like the tome, it was recent. The text at first glance only described the way the soul left the body after death or stay in this world because of regret or fear. However, when the reader only used the first and last words of each line and column there was a hidden message. The thirteen of this month, there would be a gathering for the summoning ceremony at Central Park at fifteen minutes past three in the morning (03:15).

That was tonight thought the ritual adept. Should he go or not, he pondered. Waiting for the decision, he moved to another section.

HP - Another Dark Lord

The moon was hidden by cloud. Central Park was silent this night, waiting for the morning. Few lights illuminated part of the small forest in this city. Shadows moved past the trees. They traveled through bushes, avoiding the light, across the water to reach and empty area. A dozen of hooded wizards drenched the ground with red. The giant circle of ten meters size was enriched by engraved runes and offering deposed on specific spots.

Disillusioned, the foreigner witnessed the hundred of wizards and witches gathering in this place. The hour for the summoning was coming closer. In fifteen minutes it would be the time. The black robes accelerated to prepare the circle and all the magical arrays inside. Cats, dogs, lambs, homeless, men, women and children were brought into position. The seemly leader of the group ordered to keep the offering alive while the put the last thing for the ceremony.

A thousand of candles were set on fire when fifteen past three resonated through the night. The orphan observed as the animals were the first to fall on the ground while magical ingredients were burned and the smoke concentrated on the circle center. The blood runes shone brighter as new liquid fed the earth. The wizards and witches surrounding the summoning circle all cut their wrists when the last animal closed its eyes.

The leader whispered unknown Latin psalms the foreigner couldn't recognize. Sweat pearled on this wizard when the smoke solidified into a floating mirror. With the same size of the circle, the mirror towered the surrounding vegetation. A burned hand of five meters hit the other side. Sounds of broken glasses reverberated. Fascinated, the orphan didn't move from his position as the mirror showed cracks on its surface.

Red light flew through the group of wizards. Some fell, others retaliated, but the ceremony master with five individuals continued the ritual. The ministry security agents tried to stop the ceremony. The team of ten called for back up and in eight minutes the assaulter were the same number as the ritual wizards. The giant hand pierced the barrier, engulfing the sacrificial humans into flames.

" Keeper of the key !", an inhuman sound broke the windows of every building in a kilometer perimeter. Reddish light escaped from the gate as humanoids jumped into the summoning circle.

" Show yourself ! ", the burned hand slammed the ground. Lifting all the wizard into the air, they witnessed the surrounding leveled up. The trees uprooted while sirens resonated far away. The candles used for the ceremony turned ethereal and those burning weren't affected by anything.

" You can't hide, we'll open the path ! ", the roasted member was joined by another hand with seven fingers this time. The twelve extremities clawed the mirror border, trying to enlarge it by force.

Shocked, the orphan avoided an humanoid coming his way. The bipedal creature threw its three arms while jumping at the invisible wizard. Deploying his wings to fly faster, the ritual adept conjured metallic marbles that pierced the creatures in the head. Full of holes the eyeless head trembled before it stopped moving. Instead, the belly expanded and exploded. Toothless mouth biting the air escaped the corpse.

Avoiding the creature descendant, the invisible wizard couldn't resist to fly and position himself in front of the gate. He wanted to see what was on the other side. What world could give birth to such nightmares and giants. A human torso with animal hair occupied the full aperture as its burned fingers bled on the mirror limits. The earth dissolved at the liquid contact. Half of the candles were burned away.

Gulping down at the vision, the flying wizard didn't pay attention to the legion of foreign creatures jumping from the gate. They looked like deformed humans, but they weren't. The American wizards had subdued the one that had made the ceremony into fruition, but they were overflown with the endless input of nightmare creatures. The invisible wizard dropped down to avoid a handless arm that shot from the portal.

Space around the mirror was crackling. The orphan didn't want to involve himself with this event. It was dangerous. It wasn't his problem. He could just apparate away and be done. Yet, the creature words impacted the youth. He knew it was direct to him. The key, he had it. He didn't know with the appearance it showed at that time, but as it resonated with the giant words, he understood. The key to where, he wanted to know. For months, he didn't find any clue about it, but now it appeared out of blue.

The lesser creatures weren't of any use as their minds were only filled with the d.e.s.i.r.e to hurt and be hurt to stop the burning sensation on their bodies. The giant on the other side was different, the orphan couldn't destroy its mental defense. Summoning a condensed shield, the wizard redirected a spell that came his way toward the open gate. Incinerating the attacker, the ritual adept prepared a plan in his mind.

New reinforcement came to stop this disaster to affect the city.

It was too late, space cracked open. The mirror broke. A thirty meters tall rift engulfed the Central Park into red flames. The sea of fire flowed from the other dimension, burning away the vegetation, ponds, street and buildings inside a perimeter of three kilometers. Some wizards survived by distorting space and avoid the danger zone. The humanoid creatures weren't spared from the disaster and turned into cinders.

Flying above the great fire, the orphan conjured giant chains to contain the titan that broke space with its b.a.r.e hands. Snapping the metal with brute force, the otherworld monster was still too big to pass by the thirty meters door. Flying back the ritual adept conjured his chains again, but before sending them to restrain the creature, he cut his finger to manipulate his blood to engrave runes of Isaz for the ice element and Algiz for protection.

Giant metallic nails flew from the sky and accelerated into the titan. Weakening the creature, the first assault allowed the chains to wrap around the giant while the second wave of tree size nails fell from the sky. Catching his breath, the orphan bit his last pill for magic replenishing. The amount of magic used took a chunk on his reserve. The second wave of nails pined the chains and the giant to the ground.

Coming closer to absorb the creature vitality the ritual adept summoned six layers of shield the instant the chains moved by a bit. Using those metallic objects, the creature whipped them on the wizard. Like a ball, the orphan was thrown away, traversing walls and building alike. The shield layers didn't withstand all the impacts. Far from Central Park, the orphan couldn't see. Only sound was perceived.

Despite the fatigue all over his body, the ritual adept tried to get up. He fell face against the ground. The pain wasn't registered in his brain. He knew he was done if he couldn't heal himself fast. Forcing himself to crawl toward the sound of the nearest human, he waited until his hand grabbed something. The five servants appeared from the silver rings and caught a civilian each.

Draining the energy from the victim, the wizard summoned green light to heal his body. The flesh cut and broken bones disappeared under the magic effect. Summoning a third eye, the wounded saw the titan trying to enter this world when the gate closed itself and brought it back to its dimension. Relieved of this dangerous experienced, the foreigner called back his servant into rings and apparated back to the Dakota Underground Bar. Not bothering with the ruins, he jumped into the fireplace and threw powder to return to Salted Lake City magical shop. Mentally exhausted, the wizard focused his magic to return to his underground cavern and sleep.

HP - Another Dark Lord

Water droplets hammered the cavern floor. Fist-size agglomeration of magic circled around the sleeper. The latter cheek twitched. The ambient magic concentrated around the individual. His ears tilted. Opening his eyes, the foreigner didn't remove his seven layers of transparent shield around him. Scanning the room with a summoned third eye, the wizard relaxed a bit. He was almost alone.

Taking time to sit up, the wizard massaged his eyes. The moves were slow. His body ached. His mind was muddy. Muscles were sore and everything itched. Taking a deep breath, green light covered the wizard full frame. Repairing the damage, the body relaxed. Knowing he was in recuperation, the orphan still got up. He wanted to stretch. He vomited blood. Half crooked, he emptied his stomach and lungs on the ground.

The dizziness diminished. Opening his suitcase, the wizard retrieved potion for blood and energy replenishment. Feeling better, the wizard started his morning exercises. Whenever he trained his body and magic, it helped him to forget about his problems. Conjured weapons floated around while some transfigured into animals or flames. He had been too arrogant, thinking he could manage the otherworld creature. He almost died. The reinforced wall was pierced by his fist.

His magic was trashed by the giant creature. Such power was beyond what he knew. The biggest creatures the wizard met in the Forbidden Forest, weren't in the same league, trolls were easy to kill. Even giant from this world with their seven-eight meters tall were dolls-size in comparison. Gritting his teeth, the wizard apparated from his place to the cavern opposite corner. Repeating this spacial move while continuing his other magic and physical training almost cut part of his arms.

The progresses he made were too slow for his taste. One hit made him out. Without eyes contact, he couldn't try the basilisk gaze on the creature. He couldn't rely on its lethality. If he was blinded or unable to see the opponent's eyes, it would be useless. Shadow weighed on his back with a touch of lilac. He didn't even try to stop the blood like hair that fell on his face.

The orphan stopped trembling. He hadn't registered he was. That contact comforted him. His heartbeat slowed. He was calmer. Cutting his inner arm, the ritual adept drew a circle on the earth. Cold hands directed his arms to engraved runes on the circle and body. Conjuring a silver knife, the orphan commanded it with his telekinesis to cut his flesh. Gritting his teeth till he tasted iron, the orphan didn't flinch. Runes of Thurisaz and Algiz carved his bones for defense. As the flesh regenerated, the knife burned white and marked it with runes. He didn't stop, her voice helped him to not lose conscious. Vitality, immunity and secrecy covered over his head, trunk, back, legs and arms.

Dropping on his knees, the orphan caught his breath. All injuries were healing by themselves. The knife had disappeared. Spending some time to accommodate himself with the change, the orphan remained still. He didn't know how much time he spent sleeping. He was done here. He completed his objectives. He acquired foreign knowledge and books from the library before it was destroyed with a big part of the city. Money wasn't a problem even if habit died hard.

Gathering all his belonging, the wizard found the unconscious Benjamin bound and restrained inside a cage. Canceling the magic to clothe the older man, the wizard checked on the mind to make sure nothing suspicious could be found inside. The father would only remember days of watching over the reading orphan and not going to his daughter's birthday because of the job.

Opening his suitcase, the wizard put his prisoner inside before apparating to the Salt Lake City.

HP - Another Dark Lord

The magical shop owner from the Utah capital greeted a new customer. This blond witch was different from the other newcomer that came days ago, but she reeked of the same dangerous feeling, even stronger than the old man with a beard. He would remember for his whole life of this gut feeling as the grandpa smile or the unease he felt while believing everything the customer said. The newcomer only came to buy a newspaper article before leaving.