Cornelius looked at his watch again, tapping his foot impatiently.'Something's wrong,'he thought for the hundredth time. Harry should have sent an owl by now.
He stared at his hands, feeling a growing worry in the pit of his stomach. He needed to do something, anything. Hogwarts was in danger, the students were in danger, but as he looked up at the sea of faces that represented the Wizengamot, he knew anything he told them would fall on deaf ears.
If he went without their approval, his career was as good as over. They would eject him from office, and he would never get his revenge on Potter for what he did to his wife.
He thought about Harry, the good he was doing, the people he helped, the danger the students were in, his need for revenge at war with his sense of honor.
A lone tear rolled down his face as he thought about his wife. "I'm sorry Isabel," he murmured heavily, accepting that he wouldn't be able to give her the justice she deserved.
He stood up, his chair scraping across the floor as the acting chief warlock stopped speaking, looking down at him in surprise.
"What is the meaning of this?" Ogden demanded, his eyes narrowing as he regarded the Minister. "You do not have the floor Minister Fudge, sit down," he ordered.
"NO," Cornelius said, shaking his head. "No, what I have to say can't wait. Hogwarts is under attack!" he revealed. "All Aurors need to mobilize immediately to rescue the students."
"Preposterous," Ogden barked. "Hogwarts is the safest place in the wizarding world. Everyone knows that. I don't know what game you are playing at Minister, but it stops here and now. The Aurors are not going anywhere. They will remain at their posts to ensure public safety, not go off on this wild goose chase you've concocted."
"Hogwarts isn't the safest place in the wizarding world, not anymore," Cornelius denied. "I assure you, all of you," he turned, raising his voice to address the rest of the Wizengamot. "This threat is real, and we can not sit back and do nothing!"
Albus regarded Fudge shrewdly, his eyebrows knitting together. Fudge was as crafty as they came, and wasn't above bluffing to get what he wanted, but this was bold even for him. Lying to the Wizengamot?'What's he playing at?'he wondered.
"AFTER this inquiry concludes, you may send a few Aurors to investigate your claims. Now sit back down and remain silent Minister Fudge. You've tested my patience more than enough for one day," Ogden replied, the irritation clear in his tone.
Cornelius looked into the faces of the Wizengamot, seeing the smug and calculating looks on a few of their faces, along with some amused chuckles. Very few of them were taking him seriously.
"Amelia," he said, looking to the head of the DMLE. "We can't wait any longer. We need to go now," he said urgently.
"Go?" Ogden ground out. "You are not going anywhere! Now sit back down while you still have a career left. Disrupting a Wizengamot inquiry with these outlandish claims is more than enough cause to dismiss you from your post!"
"I know," Cornelius said, a determined look in his eyes. "And I don't care. Amelia, are you with me?" he implored over the shouts of the Wizengamot.
Amelia rose to her feet, knowing that after this her career would likely never recover, but couldn't bring herself to care, not with Susan in danger. "I'm with you Cornelius, Aurors to me," she ordered. "We march for Hogwarts."
To Fudge's dismay, only ten Aurors stepped forward, the rest of them looking to the acting Chief Warlock for instruction.
"Dumbledore," Cornelius said, regarding his political rival. "I know we don't always see eye to eye, but this threat is real, I promise you. We can't stop it on our own. We need your help too," he admitted. "Please."
Albus regarded Cornelius, exchanging looks with Elphias. Fudge was more than adept at manipulation, but for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what angle he was playing. If he walked out of the Wizengamot chambers, his career was as good as over, and along with it, the protections he received against the darker families.'What's he playing at?'he thought again, unable to make sense of Fudge's strategy.
"Dumbledore!" Cornelius tried again, shouting over the roar of the Wizengamot. "This isn't a trick! This isn't some cheap political stunt. The students are in danger! You are duty bound to protect the students!"
"…I'm sorry Cornelius," Albus finally replied, unwilling to risk his career over Fudge's latest scheme, whatever it was. "I am here under the orders of the Wizengamot, and will not disrespect this body by going along with whatever this scheme of yours is."
"Let's go," Amelia said, nodding her head towards the door as she regarded the headmaster with contempt.
Cornelius gave one last look at the Wizengamot members before he turned on his heel, quickly followed by Amelia and the Aurors.
"You are not excused Minister! You are not excused!" Ogden roared. "Neither are you!" he shouted at Amelia and the Aurors at their sides. "If you leave this room, I will see you all dismissed from your posts!"
Cornelius grabbed the door, turning back one last time to address the Wizengamot. "I may not be able to prove it yet, but I know that some of you are behind this, and some of you are going along with it because of the back room deals you made with them, but there must be at least a few of you that will do your duty. This is your time to stand up and be recognized," he implored. "Help us, please."
After a long pause, he let out a disappointed sigh. Some of them had turned away, unable to look him in the eye anymore, but none of them stood up. He pushed open the door and stepped outside.
"Alright Cornelius," Amelia said as the door closed behind them. "This is your show. What do you want to do?"
"We need to get to Hogwarts," Cornelius said. "We'll use the floo. It's the fastest way."
"Right," Amelia agreed, as the Aurors fell in step behind them. "We don't know what we'll be stepping into when we arrive," she said to her Aurors. "Be ready for anything. Keep your guards up, and we might just get through this alive."
The Auror's tensed, preparing themselves mentally for battle as they arrived at the fireplace.
"Hogwarts, Headmaster's office," Fudge said, throwing a pinch of floo powder into the fireplace, only for nothing to happen. He frowned, trying again, but the result was the same.
"It's cut off from the floo network," Amelia realized, getting a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"Hogwarts, hospital wing," Cornelius said, trying again, only for the same result. "Damn," he said, shaking his head. "I should have seen this coming. Alright, we'll go to Hogsmeade, then apparate to the edge of the Hogwarts wards. We'll have to walk the rest of the way."
"Hogsmeade, the Three Broomsticks," he said, throwing in another pinch of floo powder and disappeared in a jet of green flame, followed quickly by Amelia and the Aurors.
***
Harry groaned, feeling the weight of the other students on him as he came to. He crawled out from underneath the unconscious students to find the great hall in chaos again. Many of the students that fought against the Alumni were down, or only just struggling back to their feet.
"Ron!" Harry said, helping his friend to his feet. "Are you alright?"
Ron groaned, feeling the blood dripping down from his forehead. "What hit me?" he questioned, still in a daze.
"The Alumni," Harry explained. "They set off some kind of explosion," he added, looking around for Hermione and Draco. "Where are they?" he asked with a frown. "They were standing right next to us."
"Hermione! Draco!" Ron shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth as he shouted over the other students. "Fred! George! Percy!" he called out, looking for his brothers as well.
Harry spotted McGonagall on the other side of the room, organizing the students, but didn't see Olivia with her.'What a mess,'he thought, looking around at all the chaos the Alumni caused.
"We're still trapped here,"Merlin said."The iron is magically resistant. We're not going to have an easy time getting through it."
Harry nodded, knowing they were running out of time. For all they knew, Andre could have already started the ritual.
"Not yet,"Merlin replied, picking up on Harry's thoughts."When it happens, you'll feel it, but it won't be much longer."
"Fred!" Ron shouted, spotting his brother in the crowd.
"Go," Harry said. "I'll keep looking for the others."
Ron nodded, running to check on his brother.
Harry pulled out his wand. "Episkey," he said, healing the wound of one of the downed students and helping her to her feet. "Your Jones right? Megan Jones?" he asked, remembering the Hufflepuff.
"Yeah," Megan said, still wincing from her other injuries. "Thanks for that."
"I need your help," Harry said. "Do you think you're up for it?"
"My help?" Megan asked in surprise. She'd seen Harry take down more of their attackers than anyone else, making her wonder how she could possibly help him.
"Yeah," Harry nodded, looking around at the other injured students. "A lot of people are still hurt. Can you help heal them?"
Megan looked down in embarrassment. She hadn't paid much attention in class, more than happy with just staying out of the bottom third of the student rankings. "I don't know any healing spells," she mumbled.
"It's alright," Harry said, putting his hand on her shoulder comfortingly. "It's a third year spell, but it isn't hard to cast," he said, demonstrating the wand movement. "Episkey is a minor healing spell, but it should at least help with healing a few cuts and bruises. Can you do that?"
Megan looked at Harry, still feeling nervous. "What if I screw it up?"
"You won't," Harry assured her. "Can I count on you?"
Megan looked at Harry, seeing the determined look in his eyes, and knew she couldn't let him down. "Yes."
"Good," Harry replied, nodding. "You might have to cast the spell a few times to close up a wound. That's normal. It wasn't designed to deal with these kinds of injuries."
Megan nodded, practicing the wand movements. "I'll do my best."
Harry nodded. "Teach the spell to whoever you can and get them to help you as well."
"…Harry," Megan said, glancing around uncomfortably. "Is it- I mean, can I stick with you? Just for a little while? Until I get the hang of the spell?"
Harry nodded, seeing how nervous she was. "Sure," he said, reassuring her. "I'm looking for my friends, Hermione, and Draco. Have you seen them?"
"No," Megan said, shaking her head apologetically.
"It's ok," Harry said reassuringly. "Let's help who we can."
Megan followed Harry, watching as he cast the healing spell on the injured students, conjuring bandages for some of them, and enervating a few others. She quickly fell instep with him, casting the healing spell he taught her.
It was tough. She could feel the strain of casting the spell so many times, but she pushed forward, determined to not let Harry down.
"Hermione, Draco!" Harry said, spotting them both on the ground, next to a few other students. He looked them over, checking them for injuries.
He winced, seeing the gash on Draco's arm, along with the large bruise on Hermione's face from when she landed. "Episkey! Episkey! Episkey! Episkey!" he said, casting the healing spell twice on each of them, closing their wounds.
"Enverate! Enverate!" he said, waking them up.
Draco shut his eyes tightly, feeling a splitting headache. He hurt everywhere.
"Are you two ok?" Harry asked, looking them over.
Hermione sat up, wincing as she touched her face gingerly. "Yeah, I think so, just banged up," she groaned.
"Same here," Draco said as he slowly got to his feet.
"Episkey! Episkey!" Megan said, casting the spell on Hermione's face, healing her bruise the rest of the way.
"Thanks Megan," Hermione said gratefully as she looked around at the other students slowly getting to their feet.
Megan nodded. "It was the least I could do," she said gratefully. "You two saved me, you know? One of them, they was using explosion hexes. Some of my friends... They didn't make it," she finished sadly, her breath catching in her throat.
"I'm sorry," Hermione said, gripping her hand comfortingly.
"It's not over yet," Draco spoke up. "There's a lot of people still hurt. They don't look good. We have to get out of here. Get everyone to St. Mungos."
Harry nodded. "It's not going to be easy. The iron blocking the doors and windows, they're magically resistant. Unless someone comes and opens it from the outside, we're going to be in here for a while.
"Where's Ron?" Hermione asked, casting a worried glance around the hall.
"Somewhere over there," Harry said, pointing in Ron's general direction. "He's ok, he's with his brothers."
"How much time do we have?" Draco asked. "Before…" he trailed off, not sure how much of this they should reveal to Megan.
"They haven't started the ritual yet," Harry replied, seeing little point in hiding anything now. "But it won't be much longer."
"Ritual? What? What's going on?" Megan asked, staring back and forth between Harry and his friends.
"The people that attacked us," Harry explained. "They're here to do something very dangerous. If they succeed, we're all going to be in a lot of danger."
Megan nodded shakily. "Ok," she said, deciding not to question Harry further, trusting that he would explain everything when he could.
"Megan?" Harry asked. "We need to talk to McGonagall and figure out a way to get everyone out of the Great Hall. Can you help the other students on your own?"
Megan nodded, trying to be brave. The last thing she wanted was to leave Harry's side. It was the first time she'd felt safe since everything went to hell, but she knew that if they were going to get out of here it would be Harry that would do it.
"It's ok," Harry said, sensing her distress. "You're ok. You'll get through this. We'll get everyone out and take them to St. Mungos."
"Right," Megan said shakily. "I'll be over there," she said, gesturing to a few of the older Hufflepuff students. "I'll teach them the healing spell too," she added, forcing a brave smile on her face.
"Good luck," Draco said as they watched her go.
Megan nodded, making her way to the group of third years.
Harry, followed by Draco and Hermione, made their way to Professors McGonagall and Green.
"We can't blast through," McGonagall said, studying the iron. "Its magically resistant."
Green nodded. "Maybe there's a release mechanism?" she said, thinking out loud. "We just have to find it."
"We don't have time," Harry said, joining the conversation.
"Mr. Potter," Professor McGonagall said, a relieved look on her face at seeing him alright. "I think it's high time you explained what exactly is going on here," Professor McGonagall demanded.
"We're in danger. The people that took us hostage are going to do something very dangerous, a ritual. We have to get out of here and stop them," Harry explained.
Minerva regarded Harry, a pensive look on her face. She had hoped the students were out of danger after the last of their attackers went down, but it seemed like it was only the start of it, and from the looks of things, Harry and his friends were in the thick of it.
"Alright," she relented. "Lets get everyone out of here, and then we'll call for the Aurors."
Harry nodded. "These iron barriers look like they've just been fitted over the doors and windows, but maybe not inside walls. I think our best chance is to bore a hole through the stone and escape that way."
"That's not going to be easy," Olivia Green said, examining the wall. "This is solid granite, it has to be at least a couple feet thick."
"Then we better get started," Minerva said, pointing her wand at the wall. "Defodio," she said, a yellow beam of light coming from her wand, and boring into the stone.
"Wait!" Hermione said, straining her ears. "Does anyone else hear that?"
"What? What is it?" Draco asked, straining his ears until he heard a faint grinding noise as well.
"I don't know," Hermione frowned. "But I think it's getting louder."
"I hear it too," Harry said, furrowing his brows as he tried to pinpoint where the noise was coming from.
"Maybe someone on the outside went for help," one student suggested hopefully, getting a cheer from the students within earshot.
"Quiet!" Harry shouted, walking towards the center of the hall as he followed the sound.
"What is it Mr. Potter?" Minerva called, as Olivia quieted down the students.
"Maybe it's someone trying to break down the wall from their side," Olivia suggested.
"No," Harry shook his head. "It's not coming from the wall, it's coming from below us," he said, looking at the spot the Alumni made their last stand, now able to feel vibrations in the floor. "It sounds like there's something moving underneath us, something big."
He extended his senses beneath the floor, but to his surprise, he couldn't sense anyone. Warning bells went off in his head as the grinding noise along with the vibrations grew louder, much louder.
He exchanged a look with his friends and the professors as he felt the ground tremble beneath his feet. "Everyone get back!" he ordered. "Grab anyone that's still unconscious! Get them to the walls!" He ordered.
"Everyone get ready," Olivia said, seeing dust fall from the ceiling as the walls and floor shook. "Anyone that can fight up front, everyone else, stay behind us!"
Harry heard loud footsteps behind him as the students quickly got into position. He nodded to Hermione, Draco, and Ron, who moved to stand on either side of him.
"Any idea what it is?" Ron questioned, keeping his eyes trained on the floor in front of them.
"No idea," Harry replied. "I can't sense anyone beneath us."
"That's not good," Draco said ominously.
Hermione bit her lip nervously. She glanced behind her at the frightened students, some of them crying openly as they heard the grinding get louder and louder.
"It's coming through," Harry warned, spotting a piece of the stone tile shaking, then watched as it flew into the air.
"Protego," he said, casting the shield spell to protect the students behind him, watching as the stone smacked into his shield before falling to the ground with a loud thud.
"Professor?" He asked, looking back at McGonagall. "How long do you think it would take to bore through the back wall?"
"Half an hour, at least," Minerva replied, recognizing the danger as well.
"Whatever comes through the floor, it isn't going to be good," Harry replied as another piece of stone rose from the floor and smacked into his shield.
"Alright," Minerva replied, moving to the back. "I'll make the hole," she said, returning to casting the spell on the rock.
"Professor, whatever happens, you can't stop," Harry said, glancing back at her.
Minerva nodded, understanding what Harry was asking of her. She was the only one that knew how to cast the spell, and every second counted.
Harry returned his attention to the floor, his wand raised just as a deafening crash reverberated around the great hall and the stone floor exploded outwards, sending a shower of rubble and dust into the air.
Harry watched in shock as a monstrous figure emerged from the gaping hole. It was a giant metal golem, easily fifteen feet tall. Its body forged from dark tarnished iron that gleamed menacingly under the flickering lights of the candles.
His eyes rose to its head, looking into the eyes of the golem. They were hollow, glowing with an ominous red light.
Then it moved, accompanied by the grinding noise of ancient gears, and the groaning sounds of strained metal. He could feel the floor tremble with each step it took as it stepped clear of the hole.
For a moment it stood still, as the students and teachers alike stared at in horror, wondering where it could have come from. Then its head moved, looking back and forth as it scanned the great hall.
Harry's eyes locked on the golem, realizing it was looking for a target. He heard screams from behind him as the golem stepped forward.
"I've seen these things before,"Merlin revealed
'How do we stop it?!'Harry thought back urgently.
"Smashing it," Merlin revealed. "If you can get through the armor plating, you can stop the gears, but it won't be easy. The iron is magically resistant."
Harry looked up at the golem as it raised its fist.'Anything else?'Harry thought hopefully. 'Any weaknesses?'
"It can't cast any magic," Merlin replied.
The information was of little comfort to Harry as the golem stalked forward, looking like it didn't need any magic to tear them all limb from limb.
"Hit it with Bombardas!" Harry shouted, sending an explosion hex at the golem, watching as it, along with a volley of spells from the students behind him struck the golem's armored chest.
He shielded his eyes from the explosions as the golem paused, but when the smoke cleared, there wasn't a scratch on it. He could only watch as the golem's head moved again, scanning the room before stepping forward again.
"Again!" He shouted, this time charging up his spell, putting as much magic as he could into it. He held up his wand, feeling it shake and buck in his hand as the spell turned from a light blue to an angry red just as he released it.
He watched it fly across the room, zooming past the other student's spells, magic crackling along the beam of light as it crashed heavily into the golem's chest.
A scraping noise filled the room as the golem's feet dug furrows in the stone floor as it skidded back, but stayed on its feet.
"Damn it!" Harry cursed, only seeing a shallow scratch in the golem's chest plate, then it stepped forward again, this time towards him. He glanced behind him, seeing the frightened looks in everyone's eyes.
"It's after me," Harry said. "Stay low to the ground and try to get to the other side of the hall. I'll see if I can keep it busy."
"What about you?" Hermione hissed. "We can't leave you to face that thing alone!"
"You have to," Harry replied. "Nothing you throw at that thing will even slow it down. It's made of the same stuff that's blocking the door and windows."
Hermione, Draco, and Ron looked at Harry reluctantly, unwilling to sit back and let their friend face the golem alone.
"GO!" Harry shouted as he raised his wand again. "Accio stone!" he shouted, pulling a piece of rubble towards him and slamming it into the golem's back with a heavy thud.
The golem stumbled for a moment, but stayed on its feet, its head turning completely around, followed by the rest of its body. The head moved from side to side, scanning, before it turned around again and continued towards him.
Harry kept an eye on the golem, watching as the other students edged around it, looking for any cover they could find.'Come on,'he thought desperately.'Almost there.'But just as the students crossed the halfway mark, the golem came to a sudden stop. A metallic whip uncoiled from its body, spinning around rapidly. It scrapped along the wall, stopping the students in their tracks as they looked at the deep gouges in the wall with fear as they froze.
The golem swiveled its head again, focusing its glowing eyes on Harry as it stepped forward, but this time it was faster, much faster. It broke into a sprint; the floor cracking under its heavily armored legs as it quickly closed the distance.
It raised its fists high in the air, bringing them down with a powerful strike. Harry quickly rolled out of the way, missing the attack by a hair's breath as the floor cratered where he had been standing just a moment ago.
Coming out of his roll, he aimed his wand at the golem. "Glacius!" he shouted, sending an icy-cold blast of air at the golem's leg, watching as the air solidified into ice, trapping it.
He took a few steps back as the golem tried to free its leg, hearing the heavy gears inside its leg grind for a moment before it broke free, shattering the ice. It turned towards him again, this time moving slowly again.
"Glacius! Glacius!" He heard a shout from his side, seeing Professor Green target both the golem's legs with the ice spell. Just like with his attack, it slowed the golem down for a few moments as it freed its legs, but this time its head swiveled to Professor Green, advancing on her this time.
Taking advantage of the golem's distraction, he moved to the other side, flanking it. "Everte Statum!" he shouted, intending to throw the golem against the wall, but it just planted its feet, weathering the hit, before it turned in his direction again.
'It's targeting the last one the attacked it,'Harry thought.
"For now,"Merlin replied."These things are killing machines. They learn from every battle. Sooner rather than later, it's going to recognize who the real threats are, and you won't be able to distract it anymore."
"Glacius! Glacius!" Olivia shouted from the other side of the room, targeting the golem's legs again, hoping to stop it, and draw its focus back to her.
This time, the golem was prepared for the attack. As soon as the ice formed on its legs, the armor plating popped out, then retracted again, shattering the ice immediately.
'Damn it!'Harry thought as the golem swiveled towards Professor Green, targeting her again.
"Arresto Momentum!" he heard Hermione shout from the other side of the room, catching the golem on its side, but the spell had almost no effect, marginally slowing down the golem as it swiveled to face a now very frightened Hermione.
"Bombarda Maxima!" Harry shouted, putting everything he had into the explosion hex. He watched as it streaked across the room, slamming heavily into the golem's back. It stumbled, but the only evidence of the attack was a scorch mark on its armor.
Harry watched as the golem turned around, targeting him again. It was faster again, quickly closing the distance between them. His eyes widened as it sent a punch at his head.
The only thing that saved him was his enhanced perception, seeing the bulky arm of the golem hitch before it slammed forward. He dropped to the ground, rolling out of the way, but the golem moved with him, slamming its other arm down at his chest.
Relying on instinct alone, he aimed his wand at the wall, using a silent Accio to pull himself away.
He got to his feet shakily as the golem stood up again, moving towards him as it returned to its slow, methodical pace.
He looked around frantically, struggling to find a strategy to deal with it. Even his strongest attacks were no match for the golem's armor plating.
"Hit it with everything you got!" He heard Ron shout from across the room. A moment later, a flurry of spells struck the golem from all directions. He couldn't even tell what half the spells were. Jets of fire, explosions, and gusts of wind hit the golem all at once, but the spells had little to no effect.
The golem just stood there, weathering the hits as the spells struck its armor, its head swiveling in a full circle as it scanned the students, looking for its next target.
"Get back!" Harry shouted as the whip uncoiled from the golem's body, spinning around rapidly, and striking a few students unfortunate enough to get too close.
Screams of pain filled the air as students dropped like flies. Harry could only watch on grimly as the whip retracted, and the golem moved toward a seventh year Slytherin this time.
"Locomotor Mortis!" Harry shouted, locking the golem's legs together, or at least he tried to. The golem just slowed for a moment as the spell washed over it, but continued forward regardless.
"Spells like that aren't going to have much effect,"Merlin said."Its armor is spell resistant."
'There has to be something we can do,'Harry thought desperately.'You said you faced these things before. How did you beat them?'
"We got through its armor," Merlin replied. "It wasn't easy, and we lost a lot of good witches and wizards in the process. We had to hit the same spot on its armor over and over again until it weakened enough to get to its insides. Once we destroyed the gears, it stopped."
Harry cursed mentally, knowing they didn't have the firepower to pull off the same trick.
"Harry!" Olivia shouted. "I've got an idea. I'm going to hit it with an Aguamenti, you hit it with a Glacius! You need to make the spell as strong as you can!"
Harry nodded, agreeing to the plan. They had to do something before it reached the students.
"Aguamenti!" Olivia shouted, drenching the golem with water as she ran around it in a wide circle, keeping the spell going.
Following Olivia's lead, Harry ran in the opposite direction. "Glacius!" he shouted, freezing the water solid, neither one of them stopping as they ran circles around the golem, layering the ice around it as thick as they could.
Finally, when they stopped, the golem stood there, frozen inside a sphere of ice, its eyes dim.
Olivia came to a stop beside Harry, breathing hard as they watched the golem carefully for any movement.
"Is it over?" they heard a student shout, but neither one of them answered as they regarded the golem carefully.
"It can't be this easy," Harry said wearily.
Olivia looked between Harry and the golem, thinking the same thing. She had never seen anything like this before. It looked like a machine, but was clearly powered by magic. It was old too, at least a few centuries, maybe even older.
"Who could have made this monstrosity?" Olivia wondered out loud.
"The people we need to stop. They've been around a long time, thousands of years," Harry explained.
"Minerva!" Olivia shouted. "How's it coming with the wall?"
"Slow," Minerva replied. "It will take at least another hour before it's big enough for anyone to squeeze through."
Harry eye's widened as he looked down, seeing a tiny stream of water coming from the block of ice encasing the golem. "No," he said, waving back the students that were coming in for a closer look. "Stay back!"
"What? What is?" Olivia asked, alarmed.
Just then, the eyes of the golem flared to life again as its armor heated up, turning a bright red. The ice shook as the golem's limbs vibrated, a large crack forming in the ice.
"Protego!" Harry and Olivia shouted as they scrambled back, raising shields just in time to block the chunks of ice flying at them as the golem shattered its icy prison.
Harry racked his brain, trying to think of a spell he could use, anything that could stop this monster, watching as its head swiveled back and forth between him and Professor Greene as it chose its next target.
Finally, its glowing red eyes focused on him as it brought its massive arm down in a clubbing blow. Harry ducked, turning it into a roll as he barely avoided the strike, but the golem wasn't done yet, smashing its other arm down hard a moment later.
It was only Harry's enhanced perception that saved him as he threw himself to the side at the last moment.
He quickly sprang back up to his feet, but had to duck down again to avoid the next punch from the golem as he weaved to the side, only to be met with a cross.
With no time to avoid the punch he brought up his arms, hardening his skin to absorb the blow, but even that wasn't enough to fully protect him as the iron fist of the golem struck his arms, knocking him off his feet, and sending him flying backwards.
Harry winced in pain. The bones in his arms felt like they cracked after taking the hit. As he flew towards the wall, he saw the golem move in his direction, faster than it ever did before, actually catching up with him while he was still in the air.
Harry tracked the golem's attack as it reared back before hammering its iron fist into his midsection. Even with his enhanced perception, there was nothing he could do to avoid the blow as he continued to fall.
He hardened his skin around his midsection and back as he prepared to take the hit just before the golem's fist slammed into his chest, hammering him into the wall.
Harry hit the wall with a heavy thud, sliding painfully to the ground. He was in agony, coughing up globs of blood as he struggled to breathe. The wind knocked out of him.
He could feel his vision darkening around the edges as he clutched his stomach, unable to even stand up. He felt tired, his vision darkening further as his head slumped down.
"NO! Do not fall asleep!"Merlin screamed into his mind."If you do, you won't wake up again!"
"Tired… so tired," Harry mumbled, having difficulty even thinking straight.
"GET IT TOGETHER HARRY!"Merlin screamed even louder in his mind. "There are people counting on you!"
This time it shook something loose in Harry's mind as his vision swam, and he fought his way back to consciousness. Through his bleary eyes, he could see a blob, the golem, as his head lolled from side to side.
'It hurts,'Harry thought, seeing the golem move away.
"I know Harry,"Merlin said quietly. "I know, just hold on."
'Can you turn off the pain?'Harry thought, remembering when Merlin had done it for him before.
"No Harry,"Merlin said regretfully."The pain is the only thing keeping you awake right now."
'What do I do?'Harry thought, trying to ignore the pain in his chest as he struggled to stay conscious.
"Just stay still," Merlin said. "I'm doing what I can to stabilize you."
Harry nodded, screwing his eyes shut as he heard a loud noise, but couldn't make out what it was. Then it felt like someone was shaking him. His vision finally cleared, and he found himself looking into the frantic eyes of Hermione.
"Wha- Her— mione?" He said, his words slurring.
"Just— just stay still, Harry," Hermione said, her voice catching in her throat. "You're going to be ok, you hear me? You're going to be ok. Harry? HARRY?!"
"Hermione," Harry said, wincing as he spoke.
"That's it, stay with me," Hermione said, cupping his face in her hands.
'Now Merlin?'Harry thought into his mind. It was impossible to even think through the pain.
"Alright,"Merlin agreed reluctantly, blocking Harry's pain receptors."I patched you up the best I could, but there isn't enough to get you back on your feet. I'm sorry you—"
Harry nodded, not needing Merlin to finish the thought. He was going to die. After the golem dealt with Professor Green, it would come back for him.
He looked up, seeing Professor Green and a few students trying to fight off the golem, but it wasn't working. It already recognized who the real threats were, and didn't respond to the student's attacks as it chased Professor Green down relentlessly.
"Incendio!" Olivia shouted, hitting the armored chest of the golem with a fire spell. She charged it up as much as she could, turning the fire a hot white as she tried to melt through the iron, but besides leaving a scorch mark on its chest plate, there was no real damage.
She glanced briefly at Harry's crumpled form against the wall with concern, then at the worried faces of her students. She didn't know how much longer she could hold out.
She watched wearily as the golem stepped forward, getting closer and closer to her. She stepped backwards until she felt the wall pressing against her back, but to her surprise, the golem stopped, swiveling its head back and forth.
Olivia knew it meant the golem was looking for another target, but no one had sent a spell at it. The golem abruptly turned on its heel, now walking towards a frightened second year Hufflepuff.
"NO!" Olivia shouted, trying to get the attention of the golem. "Bombarda Maxima!" she shouted, hitting its back with the explosion curse, but it didn't even pause as it continued towards its new target.
"HEY! OVER HERE! EXPULSO!" she shouted, sending another explosion curse at the golem's head, but it just ignored her.
"Go! RUN!" she shouted at the student, but he just stood there, obviously too frightened to even move.
Olivia ran forward, shouting every spell that came to mind. "Bombarda! Incendio! Confringo! Bombarda!" she shouted in rapid succession, trying desperately to draw the attention of the golem back to her.
She was so focused on her attack it caught her completely by surprise when the metal whip uncoiled from the golem's body and flew at her as fast as lightning. She felt a sharp pain around her neck, realizing a second later that it was the whip. She gurgled as the golem lifted her in the air, dragging her towards it.
Her wand slipped from her fingers as she struggled to breathe, getting closer and closer to the menacing, glowing eyes of the golem, only then realizing it had been a trap. The golem figured out she would protect the students at all costs and used it against her.
She looked past it as her vision darkened, her eyes locking with Harry's.
"No," Harry said, his voice horse and shallow as the golem pulled Olivia forward. He struggled to get to his feet, to do something, but his body refused to work properly.
His eyes widened in horror as the golem reared back its hand, forming a fist. "NO!" He screamed as the fist hammered into Olivia's stomach.
He heard a squelching sound as the golem's fist burst out of her back, covered in blood and bone.
He lay there in shock, going silent as he watched the golem lower its fist and Olivia's lifeless body fell to the ground, her eyes open and lifeless.
***
Hi, thanks for reading. What did you think of the chapter? Professor Green, as some of you guessed earlier fell victim to the DADA Professor curse. The Alumni planned for this event for a very long time, so they're going to pull out all the stops to open the portal, stacking the deck even further in their favor. I hope you enjoyed the addition of the golem to the story. I wanted it to catch everyone by surprise, and really hammer home the stakes Harry is up against.
If you can, please take the time to review, let me know what's working, what's not. It helps a lot with figuring out what I need to adjust or change to improve the story.
If you would like to support me and my writing, please consider visiting https://taplink.cc/jumpin for all the stories I'm currently working on and early access to chapters 64, 65, 66 and 67 of Legacy of Merlin, along with some character portraits for Merlin, Morgan and Nimue, and an audio versions of the chapters, along with all the other stories I'm working on.
Thank you to all my supporters, and for everyone that reviewed. I really appreciate it.
Jumpin