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Post by minihagrid on Jan 22, 2002 13:33:41 GMT -5
Chapter 4: A Broken Link
The two wizards continued travelling through the forest, Aeon hacking through the charcoaled trees with his new sword. It felt easy to hold, and he felt different with it gripped in his palm. He felt safer. He no longer hid in Snapes shadow. He strode alongside Snape now, almost leading him. ‘So,’ Aeon began. ‘Why is Stubb so important to you? And why am I?’ ‘It is all because of your father. Nineteen years ago, just after the death of your mother, he came to us asking for help. This was just after Lord Vanadium announced himself to us. Of course, he was not as powerful then as he is now. He told us of an ancient artefact he had discovered on one of his many journeys, and also an old prophecy. I took no notice of him, as we deemed the threat of Vanadium minimal. Of course, we regret that decision now…’ ‘So what’s that got to do with me or Stubb?’ Aeon enquired. He failed to see how his father’s secret journeys nineteen years ago could have any relevance to him today. ‘The prophecy was of a power, hidden away at the four corners of the world. A power that had once almost destroyed the land, and it goes like this: ‘Once, the four greatest Sorcerers of the age, Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin, came together in a final attempt to remove the evil that had fallen over the land. A group of 7 wizards, ‘The Nascosta’ were wreaking havoc upon the world, and the Sorcerers hatched a plan to get rid of them. Each one of the four created an artefact, which contained magical powers beyond belief. When combined, they could do things of unbelievable strength. But it also contained deadly danger, and when used, it almost proved fatal. ‘The Witches and Wizards successfully used this force to trap the Nascosta in a magical force, and then sealed them away forever. Not even the most powerful Wizard could find them. ‘Where is it?’ Aeon asked. He was getting into this story. It was similar to the ones that his father had told him when he was a child, all those years ago, while he snuggled up underneath the covers of his soft bed. ‘No one knows. They never told anyone, fearing that it’s potential would once again be released. But the force that they had created was also hidden. The artefact that your father had found, and most probably gave Stubb, could be the key to finding them, and ending Vanadium’s reign of terror for ever.’ Aeon stayed silent. There were no words that he could find to explain what he was feeling now. His father, the father that he hadn’t seen for twelve years, had supposedly left behind the key to returning peace to the world. He felt anger that his father hadn’t shared with him the secrets that he had learned. And for some reason, he also felt guilty that he hadn’t found it out sooner. All the pain and suffering that he could have saved… ‘You needn’t feel responsible for everything that has happened,’ Snape said, in a slightly softer voice than usual. Aeon jumped. He had the strange sense that Snape had the ability to somehow…read his mind. But that was impossible. Surely? Aeon did not have time to ponder these thoughts, as they had just exited the shadows of the forest behind them, and entered a large clearing. The first thing that caught Aeons eye was a short figure, propped up against a thick trunk of a tree. A long gleaming object was pointing out of its chest, reflecting the orange glow of the fire behind them. He broke into a run, followed soon by Snape. As he neared the silhouetted figure, his worst fears were realised. Stubb. A blade, similar to the one that he held in his hand, was pinning him to the tree. A large river of blood was flowing from a gaping wound in his chest, and a scraping cut across his forehead shimmered red. Aeon couldn’t help it. He broke into tears, and collapsed onto his knees, barely feet away from his friend
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 22, 2002 13:34:24 GMT -5
‘NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!’ he screamed, at the top of his lungs. He buried his face into his hands, and felt the burning tears running down his chin. Snape continued past him, and crouched next to the house elf. ‘Ennervate,’ he whispered. Nothing happened. ‘Ennervate’ he said again, more frantically now. Still nothing. Yet Snape kept trying. Eventually, after several more attempts, Stubbs eyelids flickered. He was still alive, barely. The three of them looked at each other for a while. No one spoke. Until Stubb broke the deadly silence. ‘What happened Stubb? Who did this?’ Aeon asked, although he knew the answer. ‘D-Death eaters. They came after me. They asked me for the key. But I do not have a key.’ ‘Aeon-’ he said hoarsely. As he spoke, little droplets of blood formed at the corners of his mouth. ‘Aeon, I’m sorry.’ ‘What have you got to be sorry for? It’s my fault for not finding you soon enough.’ He was holding back tears, but sobs broke his words every now and then. ‘I ran from you. I left you. And I was supposed to…’ ‘Supposed to what Stubb? Tell me.’ ‘I was supposed to give you, this…’ He lifted his hand, and Aeon had to shield his eyes. Snape did the same. A gold and silver light was swirling around in circles, rising up above Stubbs outstretched hand, spiralling in patterns. After a lot of swirling, an object finally appeared, hovering in mid-air. The lights faded. It was an egg, shiny blue, and encrusted with jewels. In particular, Aeon noticed four incredibly rounded jewels on the side. One red ruby, one green emerald, one blue sapphire, and one yellow amber. They looked like buttons, or switches or something. ‘Stubb, it’s, it’s beautiful!’ Aeon exclaimed. ‘What is it?’ ‘That I do not know.’ His words were becoming more and more delayed, and his breathing heavy. ‘It is what your father entrusted to me all those years ago. I should have given it to you earlier, but he made me promise…’ Stubb released a loud cough, and his eyes filled with tears and blood. ‘Aeon, I am in pain. Please, please help me.’ ‘What can I do? I know no magic or medicine.’ Aeon turned to Snape, a hopeful look in his eyes. ‘Magic cannot penetrate the elf’s own Magic. There are no spells that can save him. I am sorry.’ Snape looked close to tears, as he stared into the eyes of the house-elf. ‘Then…Aeon…can you please…finish me…’ The tortured look in his eyes bore into Aeons mind, and the sadness of his words rattled around his head. ‘N-no. I won’t give up on you. You are my only friend…’ but Aeon could see that there was no arguing with his friends request. It was the only humane thing left to do. He dropped his own sword, and placed both hands firmly on the handle of the blood stained blade that was cutting through the flesh and the wood. He couldn’t bear to watch. He turned his head, and as he did, he heard the elf’s last words: ‘Thank you…Aeon…’ With a cry of sorrow, Aeon forced himself to push the sword through Stubb’s heart, and with one movement, he twisted the sword 90 degrees. He heard the sound of tearing flesh, and the deep breaths of the small creature stopped. The only sounds now were the sobs of Aeon, feeling like a child alone in the woods…
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Post by Magic_Oli on Jan 22, 2002 13:46:18 GMT -5
Its really really sad The last bit is so real...so...sad Please continue, you cant leave us hanging
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 22, 2002 13:49:12 GMT -5
I can, coz i havent written any more yet....But its in the process...
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Nimuee Macor
Slytherin Alumni
Ah....it's nice to see you in your physical form..
Posts: 621
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Post by Nimuee Macor on Jan 22, 2002 14:05:35 GMT -5
Oh, this is so beautifully sad.....poor little thing...
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 22, 2002 16:11:06 GMT -5
Chapter 5: Key To A Future
Aeon couldn’t move for a few minutes. He just sat down, cross-legged in front of Stubb, his head bowed. His face was stained with tears, and droplets of blood from the House-elf’s wound stained his white T-shirt. Snape was striding in circles a few yards away, examining the jewelled egg intensely. His face was screwed up in thought, and it seemed that he didn’t even realise that Aeon existed, let alone that he was upset.
Aeon looked at the sky, and saw nothing but dark clouds, hovering over them dangerously, and ready to drown them with unrelenting water. A flash of lightning illuminated the sky.
After a while, Aeon stood up, and his knees ached with pain. He picked up the sword, gripping it firmly. The rain started to beat down, and a clap of thunder broke the silence. Aeon shivered, his clothes already soaked. All around the clearing, the rain was quenching the fires, and smoke started to rise up out of the ashes.
Aeon slowly stumbled over to Snape, who had finally turned to look at him. Snape too, seemed drenched, but was ignoring the pounding of the rain. He spoke to Aeon, but had to shout to make himself heard.
‘We should leave now. Find somewhere to rest and prepare for our dangerous mission. Come over here.’
Aeon got even closer to Snape, as he pulled out the little box again. With a few well-chosen words, the box began to glow, warping them out of the rain. They immediately re-appeared inside a huge room. Looking around, Aeon saw few windows, high up against the walls. Little light was present, but Snape once again cast a spell, and floating candles suddenly lit the room. Aeon could see some Heavy machinery lying unused in the distant corner, but Snape led him in another direction.
They walked through a doorway, their wet feet leaving footprints on the stone floor. In the next room, Snape sat down, and removed his dark cloak. Aeon was surprised to se that he was wearing a bright orange Chudley Cannons T-shirt, but didn’t say anything. He was too numb to speak right now. Instead, he dropped his sword with a clatter, and silently laid down on a thin mattress which was on the floor next to him, soon drifting off into a sound sleep.
Several hours later, Aeon awoke. His blonde hair was matted to his forehead, and his clothes were still damp. He tried to remember a dream that he had been having, as it had been a particularly good one. At first, he thought that he was still at home, in his little ‘house’, and he waited patiently for his wake up call from Stubb, but then his heat lurched. He remembered the night before, the monster, the egg, and Stubb….
He gradually sat up, and looked around for Snape. Something was sticking into his side. It was his wand. He reached down and took it out of his pocket. His sword gleamed up at him from where he had dropped it the night before, but there was no sign of Snape. Getting groggily to his feet, he walked through to the next room. In the far corner, Snape was swooping around the machinery, and a column of green light was being emitted from one of the machines.
As he got closer, Aeon saw that the column was levitating the egg, and Snape was busily scuttling around it, taking notes in a pad. As soon as he saw Aeon, he stopped. Bending down, he picked something up off the floor. He threw it at Aeon, who caught it. It was a blue cloak, and some new clothes.
‘You might be needing those. You can’t wear the same top all the time, and you have a long trip ahead of you.’
Aeon immediately went back into the small side room, and gratefully changed into his new clothes. He went back to Snape, feeling a lot better, and thinking how smart he looked in the brand new robes. Snape had now removed the egg from the light, and was carefully handling it.
‘How’s it goin’? Aeon asked. He could see that Snape wasn’t having much luck with the object.
‘Not too well, I’m afraid. I think that these four large gems are the buttons of some kind, but I’m not sure how to operate them.’
‘Can take a look at it?’ Aeon said, a bit annoyed that Snape was keeping his father’s secret from him. Snape looked resentful at the thought, but decided not to say anything. It was, of course, not his to be resentful over. He slowly handed it over to Aeon, who took it with both hands. He rolled it around in his fingers, getting a closer look at it, when it slipped.
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 22, 2002 16:12:10 GMT -5
It dropped off of the palm of his hand, and quickly started to accelerate towards the floor. With no hesitation, Aeon dropped to his knees, and stuck out his hand, catching it safely again.
‘Not bad Aeon. You could probably make a good seeker.’
‘Thanks’ Aeon replied. ‘But I think that it could be a long time before we could see that happen…’ He clambered to his feet once more, absent-mindedly whirling the egg, when his finger slipped and touched the large red ruby on the side. Almost instantly, the egg split, and a ball of light came shooting out. It was about the size of a Golden Snitch, and it floated around the ceiling for a bit, before hovering back down, stopping in the air between the two wizards.
Snape cautiously stepped forward, and reached his arm towards it. His long, bony fingers touched it, and passed straight through it. Nothing happened. He tried again, but still nothing. He waved his entire arm through, yet it still did not move. And then Aeon reached for it.
As soon as he touched it, heat radiated through his hand. The light wavered for a bit, and started to expand. It grew larger, and larger, engulfing the space between them. They stepped backwards, watching as it approached them, until it stopped. The ball was now as large as Snape, and it still wasn’t finished. It started to unfold, plating out into thin sheets. Snape and Aeon continued to move backwards, keeping a safe distance of a few feet away from it.
Soon, the light was no longer ball shaped. It was completely flat, and still hovering in the air. It formed a large flat surface, about twelve feet square. Aeon and Snape were at either end of it, both with their mouths gaping. And still the light wasn’t finished.
Now, small areas of the map were rising up, forming different shapes on the surface. Soon, Aeon realised what it was. ‘It’s a map!’ He exclaimed, his excitement building. The 3D objects on the map were incredibly detailed, and there were even moving figures. Aeon noticed a small group of housing, with children playing outside, aswel as a rather nasty looking hound creeping through the nearby woodland.
‘It’s incredible…’ said Snape. Aeon was surprised at this, considering that Snape was the greatest wizard of the modern era. He was not supposed to be in awe of something that impressed someone like himself.
‘What is it?’ asked Aeon. ‘I mean…I know that it’s a map, but what of?’
Snape pointed at a large building which had just been raised from the floor. ‘That,’ he began. ‘…is The Temple of Coraggio. It is in Greece, hidden from muggles and wizards alike. It is protected by the villagers of The Verteid, who are there to stop it’s secret falling into the wrong hands.’
‘But then why is it on this map? Surely, it has been made unplotable?’
‘Obviously, someone thought that it was necessary to allow someone to find it. Obviously, that someone is you. You were the one who opened the map.’
‘I did? How? I mean, I didn’t do anything to it!’
‘You accidentally pressed the red Ruby on the side. It must have activated the spell. But when I tried that, nothing happened.’ Aeon looked down at the egg in his palm. His right forefinger was still resting on the Ruby, which was shining. It was pushed halfway into the egg. He pressed it again. Instantly, the map folded up, into a ball shape once more, and shrank back to it’s original size. It slotted easily back into the opened top of the egg, and it closed, looking identical to what it did before. The Ruby slid back into place.
‘I’ve never seen magic like this before.’ Muttered Snape. ‘And I’ve seen a lot of magic. I have seen a moving map, but only in 2 dimensions. This must have taken a great deal of power. No ordinary wizard could achieve such a feat.’
‘Well, wouldn’t it be a good idea if we actually went there to see what this is all about?’ He never thought that he would, but for some strange reason, Aeon almost longed for his simple life back in his run down home with Stubb. A life of dreams and hopes, where he could wait for someone else to save the world. But now, he felt that it was going to be a different life for himself…
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Post by Magic_Oli on Jan 22, 2002 17:21:16 GMT -5
Cool 8)
More! I wish I could get it emailled to me so I could read it at school
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Nimuee Macor
Slytherin Alumni
Ah....it's nice to see you in your physical form..
Posts: 621
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Post by Nimuee Macor on Jan 23, 2002 6:00:30 GMT -5
Wonderful, wonderful story Minih! It's so easy to visualize everything you write!
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Post by Magic_Oli on Jan 26, 2002 8:46:49 GMT -5
Yep...and Im still waiting for more
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 26, 2002 9:06:41 GMT -5
Dont worry...There are two more chapters to volume 1 and I've written one of them. So, It'll be up soon. The final chapter will be up soon aswell, hopefully...
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 26, 2002 10:09:38 GMT -5
Chapter 6: A Final Briefing
Aeon spent the rest of the day mulling around the large warehouse, examining the egg. He pressed the other large jewels, hoping to find more maps, but they did nothing. The Ruby still produced the amazing map of the temple, and Aeon liked to look at it, studying the lives of the people there, aswel as the surrounding area. He was a bit concerned by a large pack of what looked like wolves, and constantly reminded himself to walk on the steer clear of that area.
Snape had left him temporarily, to lead a meeting. He had been gone for hours, which gave Aeon plenty of time to think over the events of the previous day, from waking up facing the eyes of Stubb, to fleeing from the roaring bikes, and to twisting the sword in Stubb’s heart. It had all happened so quickly. And now this, this task that had been set for him.
He knew that he had to do this, but believing that he could do it was a different matter altogether. He was uneducated, both in the arts of Magic, and fighting. Sure, he could do a few basic spells, and knew how to deal with common beasts, but would that be enough? He realised that Snape was really his only hope.
‘Do not worry about being able, it is all inside you Aeon.’ Aeon jumped, and turned. Snape had appeared behind him, and yet again seemed to read his mind. ‘I can feel it, and it is you who the key has chosen to reveal itself to. Before he could reply, Snape spoke again.
‘We must leave immediately. The Wizards Order is holding a meeting now. It is essential that we are both there. Gather your possessions, and we’ll depart.’ Once again, he pulled out the little metal box, and fiddled with it. Aeon hurried of to the little side room. The rain was still pounding down up above, echoing all around the empty building.
He quickly snatched up his wand, and reached for his sword, but he realised that it was no longer there. He reached his hand under the ragged mattress, but it wasn’t there. He ran back into the other room. ‘Severus! My sword! It’s gone!’ To Aeon’s surprise, he neither looked surprised or worried.
‘Ah, yes, perhaps I should have told you…’ He started, a strange grin etched across his face. ‘The sword of the Death Eaters is magically attracted to them. If they lose it, they will be able to locate it, and summon it back to them. I thought it best to remove it, in case they got a fix on our location. It also proves that Vanadium has released that Death Eater that we stopped last night.’ He didn’t know why, but Aeon felt that Snape had a dislike of him.
Aeon went over to him, and together they touched the box. Immediately, they were whisked away to another location. Aeon hated this thing already. When they stopped, Aeon looked around. It was again a large room, but this time it was almost pitch black. The only light was coming from twelve small lamps, placed evenly along a circular desk, which ran around the outside of the room.
‘I must take my place amongst the council. You shall wait here.’ And Snape left. One by one, the seats behind the lamps became occupied, each by a wizards that Aeon couldn’t see. Their faces were masked in the darkness, and only their hands and arms were visible. It gave Aeon an ominous feeling that he couldn’t explain. As soon as all the spaces were occupied, a brilliant white spotlight flashed down on Aeon. He stepped back, shielding his eyes. And then someone spoke. ‘You are the one who opened the map, correct?’ Said a deep, husky voice.
‘Yes, I did. But only by accident…’ This answer brought some small gasps from the hidden mouths.
‘That does not matter.’ Said the same voice. ‘Is it also true that you are the son of Sirius Black, ex-Auror for the ministry of magic?’
‘Yes it is. But, my father died twelve years ago…’
‘We know. We are truly sorry. It was beyond our powers to save him. But we have no time to dwell on it. Our sources inform us that Lord Vanadium has found out about the secret power, and seeks it himself. Of course, he does not have the key…’
Aeon shuffled nervously. He slid his hand into his pocket, and handled the key nervously. ‘And this is what I have?’
‘Yes. That key is our one advantage over Lord Vanadium’s powers. Without it, he will not be able to discover the locations easily…’ It was a different voice that spoke now. It was fairly wispy, and fast. Aeon struggled to hear him. ‘May we see the key please?’
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Post by minihagrid on Jan 26, 2002 10:11:10 GMT -5
Against his better judgement, Aeon slowly withdrew his hand from his pocket. He clutched the egg tightly, as if refusing to let it go. But a spell instantly ripped it from his hands. It flew through the air, and neatly into the palm of a wizard sitting to his left. He could see it being passed around the circle, before finally reaching the hands of the wizard in the chair directly in front of him.
‘Well…’ said Snape’s voice. ‘It looks like all that needs to be done here has been done. If none of you have any objections, I shall adjourn this meeting.’
‘Stop!’ called a witch behind him. Aeon turned, and heard the sounds of others turning their heads.
‘You have an objection Gloria?’ Snape sounded shocked.
‘Yes, I do as a matter of fact. Are we seriously to believe that this, that this boy is the supposed savoir of our people? Why send an uneducated wizard when there are still plenty of highly trained Aurors about?’ This drew a few murmurs and agreements from the Order.
‘Because, he is the one with the power.’ Snape said, starting to show his frustration. ‘I have faith in what I have seen.’
‘And something which we have not seen, and have only your word on. And we all know of your history with Black. If this is some sort of plan of yours to gain revenge on Sirius, than we will not endorse it.’ Aeon could sense an argument brewing here, one which he would much rather not witness. He couldn’t stand the way that they were talking about him as if he weren’t there. And them talking about his father like that was driving him mad.
‘Don’t you dare accuse me of such treachery!’ Snape roared. ‘There are hundreds of occasions when I could have harmed Sirius. But I am above that behaviour.’ Aeon could now see his face. He was leaning forward, his fists clenched, and his mouth screwed up in anger.
‘We do not mean to accuse you, Severus. We would merely like proof that this boy can cope with the dangers that he is to face. Some sort of a challenge, perhaps?’ This was the person on Snape’s right hand side making his first comment.
‘I agree with Nicholas I’m afraid Severus. I put forward that we take a vote on whether to challenge the child.’ Aeon was about to snap if one more person called him a child. He was twenty-three, and knew how to take care of himself.
‘Fine. Very well, we shall cast a vote. You know what to do. Red sparks for against, green for with.’ One by one, 12 sparkling fountains rose out of hidden objects. Green sparks, followed by green sparks. Only one set of red sparks shone, coming from the wand of Snape.
‘Vote carried in favour of the challenge, eleven to one. The boy will face the test…’
‘I AM NOT A BOY!’ Aeon screamed. His frustrations had finally spilt out. ‘I can look after myself, and to prove it, I shall take your ‘challenge’. I’ll prove what I can really do!’
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Post by Magic_Oli on Jan 26, 2002 10:13:11 GMT -5
OOOOO Good ‘We must leave immediately. The Wizards Order is holding a meeting now. It is essential that we are both there. Gather your possessions, and we’ll depart.’ Once again, he pulled out the little metal box, and fiddled with it. Aeon hurried of to the little side room. The rain was still pounding down up above, echoing all around the empty building. Thats my favourite bit this time
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Nimuee Macor
Slytherin Alumni
Ah....it's nice to see you in your physical form..
Posts: 621
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Post by Nimuee Macor on Jan 26, 2002 12:19:48 GMT -5
More, more! This is not the end......is it?
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