The Valiance of the Alchemist (Fred and George series) ✔

Chapter 6

Was one life worth so many?!

We struggled with that truth for so long. More out of habit than need, we continued to take the elixir whenever it seemed to wear off. Our wounds always healed, sickness never took root, and then, as a cruel and constant reminder of the deaths that were brought about by my failure, we ceased to age. In the pursuit of saving my love from death, and in adapting the existing magic of the Resurrection Stone, I had inadvertently created immortality.

Others began to notice our youthful appearance. Some of it could be explained away by growing a beard or lying about Perenelle's age, but eventually, the Ministry of Magic started an inquiry to understand our steadfast youth. It was at this point that I was required to tell them about the elixir, for Perenelle's protection. Once I had, they showered me with honors and awards. Well-known to wizardkind, we were besieged with offers to buy even a sip of the elixir. And then came the attacks.

Perenelle and I learned quickly the importance of an escape route through any city. Without an ability to perform magic, or to Apparate, creating a new form of magical travel for Muggle use became a necessity for survival, were I not present to protect Perenelle from those who would mean to cause her harm.

The idea was Perenelle's, in fact. Having read more of magic than I, she devised a concept for portable Apparation. Together we developed a magic that could move her from one place to another in a flash, safer and as quickly as Apparation. Just as a ship could dock at any port in the Mediterranean, this magic could transport her to any place previously secured by myself.

After many months of testing, I invented a spell that, when placed on an object before Disapparating from one location, would permanently record the exact travel distance upon return. Whenever Perenelle touched the Portkey, she would vanish and be taken to the destination of where I had Apparated.

We were suddenly safe and, of course, showered again with accolades and awards from the Ministry of Magic.

I was not the only former Triwizard Champion earning the attention of the wizarding community, however. The Hogwarts Champion was gaining notoriety for claiming her part in culling the Muggles. The Black Death had been eradicated, and all of Wizendom was divided between admiration and disgust. But those who worshipped her were misled, and I knew it was vital that I stop her from gaining any more ground, any more power.

With little consideration, I began a personal quest to track down my nemesis and to seek the lost keys of Sacredoon. Beside a crew of wizards and squibs, I piloted a ship called the Sultannica and, using clues gathered by an eager boy I had met at an alchemical conference in Cairo, we took to the seas to discover the mythical land.

At every turn, my opponent and I would clash, a bloody battle over each key would ensue, but never more so than when she discovered a wizard by the name of Peverell, who not only guarded one of the sacred keys but was, himself, a descendant of Sacredoon. I would then learn that he was also the possessor of the most powerful wand in history, with a reputation all its own. It was called the Wand of Destiny, the Death Stick, the Elder Wand.

I knew I had to be smart in how I faced her, as well as Peverell, for the two had become more than allies. And when she was with child, my moment to strike had arrived. I discovered Merlin's underground castle, where they resided with the lost key of Sacredoon, and made my move. But in my haste to steal her prize, and though I gained the Peverell key, I lost both the Resurrection Stone and the cloak, and suffered a devoted retaliation that came in the form of losing my ship, my crew, the boy with clues to the location of Sacredoon, my maps, and two of the keys.

Worst of all, my nemesis had escaped — never to be seen again — and I resolved, over many frustrating years, to relinquish my quest and return to Perenelle.