Atheyas

𝟑𝟕: 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖙𝖗𝖚𝖙𝖍

Laav had managed to get into the cave by using the smaller entrance, a door that required a blood sacrifice as a weakness payment. In the middle of the lake, the Horcrux was placed on an island in a basin filled with a potion that could not be touched, vanished, transfigured, or charmed; the only way to dispose of it was to drink it. To get there, one had to find an invisible boat anchored to the cavern wall. Laav knew she couldn't get through by boat because Regulus had already used it earlier, thus, her only way was to swim. She removed her Hasah, along with the heavy outfit she wore, leaving her in just her inner long-sleeved black blouse. The tip of her toe touched the water, causing a ripple effect. She waited a moment, expecting a reaction but got none. Charily, she proceeded to delve deeper, and not even a second later, she felt a sudden tug on her right leg. Losing her balance, she slipped into the lake. The Inferi had her. An Inferius was a dead body, reanimated by a spell. They are similar but intrinsically distinct from a zombie. Inferi are created through the magical branch of Dark Arts called Necromancy, which is the art of raising the dead. 

She struggled to keep her head above the watery grave that had slowly begun to swallow her whole. She had held her breath while swimming before, but this wasn't like that. This was like having a gun to her head and being told not to let her heart beat. Legs thrashing around, Laav grappled against the grip of the Inferi, but already her battle was nearly over. As they dragged her down to the abyss and her eyes strained for the bare light that dimmed above, she thought to herself, Is this how I die? Pathetic. She wanted to be saved, she wanted a rescuing hand to tow her back to life, to the world she knew. To Regulus.

Meanwhile, in the manor, Sirius was on his knees, his hands forcefully stretched to sides. Each of his wrists was bounded with enchanted shackles to the wall. He had lost the last threads of sanity he was clinging on to. The ceiling dripped but at least it didn't whisper sweet melodies to his ears only to cover the damage it's done. Unlike she did. Traitor. His biggest problem here, other than being trapped, is the reason they had caged him with. Sirius lifted his chin at the movement of a shadow in the corner. "Still not done torturing me I presume?" he grunted, assuming it was another one of Voldemort's deatheaters. Streaks of a white showed as the figure from the corner emerged from the shadows along with a tiny being behind him.

"Professor Dumbledore?" he claimed in surprise. The headmaster had apparated into the cell with the help of Hokey, one of the Ministry's house-elves. "We need to gather the members! Laav... She's a Hera! We can- we could plan something and maybe we can get her to be on our side," Sirius rambled on without thinking. "We still have a chance at winning this war!" Albus uttered nothing else but spells and continued his attempt at unshackling his student. The young wizard noticed the obvious silence and his eyebrows knotted as he painfully realized, "Merlin... You knew, didn't you?" Yet, he remained silent and still, his eyes closed in concentration. "You knew all along and you didn't tell us? We could've prevented all of this!" Dumbledore's eyes flew open and he turned to his disciple. "She wasn't supposed to be born for another 121 years!" the old man snapped. Sirius flinched at his headmaster's tone. Stilling his mind, Dumbledore calmed himself before proceeding to explain the prophecy. "A few months ago, Professor Trelawney had made a prediction that a sorcerer named after death will be the sole reason for the destruction of this era." Sirius looked surprised for a moment and then his lips clamped together firmly. "So you're saying that a Hera is the cause for all of this? That's ridiculous. They're meant to save the world not destruct it."

"She isn't like the rest of them. Danger runs in her blood. Her power is possessed by Quintessence Force." There was a long pause before he sensed the realization that hit him. Shocked and horrified, Sirius scrambled to rise from the floor but was restricted by the chains. "Quintessence?" he said unbelievably. It was the ultimate darkest form of all energies. The master can generate their own energy instead of always depending on the energy around them. The energy produced can be utilized for a number of uses such as enhancing their own physical or mental attributes to the superhuman level or above. Dumbledore nodded and said, "If you don't stop her, she will burn the world down with her."