Chapter 35
3rd POV
Slytherin
Harry stood before the entrance to the Black Citadel. The great entry doors were made of iron and were decorated with a scene that set his teeth on edge, this was even before he felt Godric's anger at the sight of the doors.
The scene depicted on the door was of twelve long beard wizards, each bearing a wand standing above a kneeling populace wearing naught but rags with their heads bowed. A short bearded wizard stood beside each long bearded wizard. The wizards instead of weakening robes, wore armor and a cape, held together at the front with a brooch.
Each wizard bore an animal on their brooch and each short bearded wizard's brooch bore the same animal as one of the long bearded wizards.
'The cable. Ruling over the masses with blood and death. Each apprentice took on the animal sigil of their master and would carry that sigil as their own until they finished their training.' Godric explained, Harry could feel the anger these people still caused the founder.
'What happened when they finished their training?' Harry asked, almost afraid of the answer.
'Well, they left to find their own apprentice, taking another animal as their sigil in the process. But often they killed their master, taking their sigila as their own, as well as their throne.' Godric's rage was simmering and Harry figured it was best to let the subject drop.
"'Arry? Do you know the significance of this scene?" Fleur asked with a hand on his shoulder.
Harry closed his eyes and settled his nerves. He needed to be calm for what was coming. As he opened his eyes, he noticed the pink haired auror looking at him in confusion while Dumbledrore gave him a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, this is the seat of the Cabal's power. The cabal were a group of twelve wizards who ruled this area before Hogwartswas created by the founders. Each member of the cabal was a master wizard, the most powerful wizards in the area and each of them had a single apprentice." Harry gestured at the door, showing the masters and the apprentices.
"The founders defeated the cabal in a battle at the gates of Hogwarts, but only a single founder knew of the location of this place. Salazar hunted the cabal and killed them all, for the safety of Hogwarts. He wasn't a monster at this time, he was the greatest of heroes, brother in all but blood to Godric." Harry trailed off, taking a breath and Fleur took hold of his hand.
"We should go in. Professor, are we ready?" Harry asked and Dumbledore gave a slight nod before turning to Mad-Eye Moody who Harry had forgotten was there.
Moody turned and barked something to two authors who nodded and moved to stand beside the wizards and witches they had taken prisoner.
Moments later, Dumbledore turned to Harry and Fleur.
"May I ask that the two of you cover the rear of our party? Alastor and I will take the front." Harry nodded, knowing that if Salazar was around only the three of them stood a chance, no need to have them all at the front of the group.
Harry watched Dumbledore and Moody wave their wands at the door, a flash of blue light signaled the great iron doors opening. He held his breath, releasing Fleur's hand and drawing his second wand. Harry shared at a glance with Fleur who nodded.
"We will win this, 'Arry." She promised and Harry couldn't hold the smile that grew on his face.
A moment later the two turned to the group of twenty aurora walking through the open iron doors of the Citadel, each holding their wands in a ready stance.
Harry and Fleur followed the aurors into the entrance hall to find it fit the aesthetic of the outside. Every surface, from the walls toteh shiny to the pillars that lined the walls was made of the same shiny balck material as the outside, obsidian.
Harry wasn't surprised at the dark, foreboding atmosphere of the entrance hall. But he smirked at one of the aurors in front of him who was.
"Horace, why is this place so creepy?"
Harry leaned closer and whispered into the group of aurors.
"So, they could terrify the peasants who came to ask things of them. The cabal ruled this area by fear, this whole place would be a nightmare if you didn't have magic. Imagine getting through the forbidden forest without magic, only to find this place at the end of your journey."
He fell back beside Fleur who shook her head at him.
"Show off." She whispered and he grinned before it faded as quick as it had come.
He stood in the center of the entrance hall. Everything was obsidian with only dim lighting, giving everything an uncomfortable appearance. It was as if the stone absorbed the light and whatever spell was keeping the room lit struggled with the stone, the result was the light flickering like firelight. Though rather than the orange of the firelight, it was more of a greenish tinge to everything.
"Creepy." Fleur shivered, though her body was tense and ready for anything.
On either side of the entrance hall stood great pillars, each at least a meter wide with about two meters between each pillar. The hall was around fifty meters long and half that wide. Harry noticed a single door on either side of the entrance hall, about halfway along the wall. His gaze slipped past them, they were unimportant for the time being.
However, he noticed Mad-Eye make silent gestures to the aurors that Harry didn't understand. but then ten aurors peeled off from the group, five going to each of the doors. Leaving ten aurors standing between Harry and Dumbledore.
In front of them was a staircase leading up to another large iron door. The group moved up the stairs and Harry made out what they depicted.
On the great doors, a scene shows the twelve members of the cabal standing in a circle, each with their apprentice beside them.
"I guess witches weren't allowed in the cabal." Harry whispered to Fleur who snorted, though was careful to muffle the sound
"We know why it died out then." She sneered and Harry smirked.
Still at the back of the group, Harry and Fleur watched as Dumbledore used his wand to open the heavy doors to reveal a massive room the size of the great hall. The room was bare except for twelve large thrones in a circle, each taller than Dumbledore made from bleached white skulls, rather than obsidian like everything else in the Citadel.
Beside each of the thrones sat a luxurious looking chair, made of marble but with skulls carved across their surface.
All these thrones sat empty for over a thousand years. But in the center of the room, where each of the throne's eyeliner met stood an even larger throne, that would make Hagrid look small.
This great throne was made of the same gray stone that Hogwarts was made of.
Carved on every surface of the great throne were serpents of every type with a stone basilisk wrapped around the base of the throne, its body making its way up the throne to eventually rear up above the throne, glowering down at any supplicant in front of the throne.
The throne itself sent a shiver down Harry's spine.
He noticed twelve skulls, arranged in a circle in the chair back, similar to the arrangement of the cabal on the door.
Underneath the twelve skulls sat an amused looking Salazar Slytherin, head resting on a fist as he watched the group gawk at his throne room. Salazar's short goatee framed his youthful face; if Harry didn't know better, Salazar looked to be in his thirties. He wore rich dark green robes, so dark as to almost be black. The robes were embroidered with serpents, creating a subtle collage effect as the serpents wound together, appearing to make teh robes themselves.
'Of course, Salazar would make his new body youthful.' Godric grumbled in Harry's mind and Harry hid a smirk.
"How may I ask, did you find me Citadel? It should have been impossible to find." Salazar lounged in his massive throne, looking as though he was asking about the weather. Though Harry could see the rage in his eyes, the rage the reborn man held contained behind impressive mental shields.
He couldn't tell whether that rag was due to their intrusion tohis domain or because he ahd been tortured in Tartarus for a shousand years, probably both.
Seeing that no one else seemed to want to answer, Harry planted a smile on his face, the same smile he knew Fleur hated before she knew it was fake. He moved around the aurora and walked alone , towards one of the outer thrones.
"We simply looked around, there were a few clues outside the entrance to the chamber of secrets." Harry gestured with one hand vaguely around them while his other hand trailed along the marble of an apprentice throne.
Salazar's face twisted into a snarl of rage. This time, Harry knew it was because of him mentioning the chamber, which had been Salzars secret domain, but now it was Harry's
Salazar schooled his features into a mask of curiosity but straightened up in his throne with his eyes flashing, the only outward sign of his anger.
"The Black Citadel has been an acceptable place to gather my forces. But Hogwarts is mine by right, if you wish to live beyond this day you will see that school I built." The goateed man said, and Harry had to steel himself. If he hadn't known better, forewarned by Godric, he would almost be drawn into the man's charismatic charade.
But forewarned, Harry saw through it and noticed the tells of a man barely restraining his rage and whose arrogance would accept nothing less than what he had requested.
"But sir, I am a student of that school. You attacked me. The school is perfectly fine without your assistance. You are neither wanted nor needed. The basilisks have a new master and the dragons are dealt with. Your servants are no longer in the picture as well." Harry grinned, trailing his fingers across the marble of the throne he stood beside.
"It's just you against all of his, you cannot win." He finished, keeping a close eye on Salazar.
Salazar sneered, his gaze moving across the intruders into his domain and a smirk crossed his face as footsteps echoed up from the entrance hall.
"The basilisks will return once you are dead, young upstart." Salazar began before pausing as his eyes moved upward, as though looking to the sky and his lip curled. His gaze moved back to Harry, ignoring the others in the room.
"Have you discovered the true power of parseltongue, upstart?" He asked and laughed at Harry as he cocked his head in response.
"Obviously not. Well then, I shall not enlighten you." Salazar smirked before a wand fell from his rich robes into each of his hands.
Harry saw Dumbledore draw his elder-wood wand, before freezing. The headmaster turned around as the echoed footsteps stopped revealing not reinforcements like they had assumed, but twelve walking corpses, each with a light beard visible on their decayed faces.
They were remarkably preserved considering they were a thousand years old.
The Cable apprentices.
Each of the undead apprentices bore a wand and their tattered robes were once grand, judging by the gold trim and detailed work put into the robes.
Harry heard Moody bark at the aurors, and the red robed men and women turned from Salazar and faced the undead apprentices. Dumbledore met gazes with Harry and nodded, leaving Moody to lead the aurors while the headmaster aided Harry in his coming fight with Salazar.
Harry met Fleur's gaze and she nodded, a look of determination crossing her face as she made her way to his side.
"Transform behind the throne, I'll buy you time." Harry whispered as Fleur stopped beside him, out of the corner of his eyes she saw her nod.
Without further delay, Harry shut out the other conflict in the room, ignoring the aurora and the undead apprentices. His only focus on Salazar, who stood from his throne with his amused smirk hiding the rage in his eyes.
Harry slashed both his wands at Salazar, using Battle magic at the start. His wands both unleashed brilliant bursts of vibrant red light that Salazar coundtered with ease, though his enraged eyes widened.
Harry's wands flashed with power as he threw everything he could at the reborn man, while Harry noticed Dumbledore flicking his wand sending his own brilliant bursts of light at Salazar. Dumebdlroe's spells were unknown to Harry, but he could feel their power, even from the distance he was from them. Dumbledore's spell fire was not limited to the basic battle magic that Harryknew, and it showed as Salazar was forced back.
Salazar snarled as he retreated, away from his throne as Dumbledore's attacks overwhelmed him. Harry's own high-powered battle magic forced the reborn man to split his focus. Unlike the last time they fought in the chamber when Harry had been of little help, this time he could apply pressure to the founder.
A flash of white light erupted from behind him and he knew Fleur was finishing her transformation. Moments later he could feel her placing an instant wards around him while feverishly working to provide a perfect defense, enabling him to unleash all his offensive power.
Salazar was forced back further, his face showing rage at his situation. Harry couldn't help the smirk as he saw the man's rage of being overwhelmed by the two of them.
With A slight widening of his eyes, Harry noticed the floor around Salazar becoming soaked with water, before electricity arced through it. This forced Salazar to leap away from the water, putting up the now familiar battle magical shield until he landed away from the electrified water.
With a wave of Dumbldore's wand, one of the marble thrones behind Salzar store free from its place and flew at Salazar, the man spun and with a single wave of his wand the throne turned to dust and the man transfigured the dust into snakes.
'Kill the girl and the old man.' Salazar hissed to the snakes.
'You will not, you will bite your creator.' Harry countered and the snakes started between the two speakers.
With an enraged snarl, Salazar dismissed the snakes who returned to dust once more and used both wands to create a massive fiendfyre basilisk which tore across the room toward Harry.
The obsidian thrones careened across the room in the bath of the fiendfyre, not even slinging it down as it rushed at Harry.
Harry retreated in front of Fleur, so she was right behind him and as she rushed to erect what protections she could, Harry focussed his magic into the single piece of grand sorcery that Merlin had been able to teach me so far.
A blue spherical shield grew around the two of them and Harry felt the extreme drain on his magic. A moment after the shield sprung to life,it was enveloped by the fiendfyre.
It was like a pack of rabid wolves all jumping over each other to get at him. He saw fangs of fire all over the shield as it flared, the heat of the fiendfyre seeped in through the shield and it was unbearable.
Inside the shield, Harry felt he would catch alight in moments and out of the corner of his eye he saw Fleur's brilliant wings drooping. Her wards flared to life, working to protect them, but almost nothing worked against fiendfyre.
Harry felt his power waning, the grand shield drained far more of his than he thought it would and he wasn't sure how much more he would be able to hold it, the fiendfyre gnashing teeth and claws unrelenting as it tried to devour homand Fleur.
The pressure of the fiendfyre lessened and Harry figure Salazar was only using a single wand to cast the spell. With a sinking feeling, Harry wrapped an arm around Fleur's waist who gave him a startled expression before he dragged her to the ground.
An instant after the fall, a vivid green light flew over their head, carving through the fiendfyre. The sound of onrushing death drowned over the snarling of the fiendfyre as it tore through Harry's grand shield.
Harry's mind considered that the killing curse would cut through any magic shield, even the grand shield that Merlin had taught him. It was clear now to Harry that the killing curse was something special, not in the same league as any spells.
Harry shared a quick nod with Fleur who spread her brilliant white wings and leapt into the air. The fiendfyre having been dissipated by the killing curse left Harry and face Salazar who stood with his head cocked. his eyes calculating as the man batted away a spell from a singed and injured Dumbledore.
Harry returned his holly wand and called Godric's sword, the ancient blade forming in his right hand.
Salazar's eyes widened as he saw the sword in Harry's hand. A snarl appeared on his lips a moment later.
"Godric." He breathed before slashing both wands at Harry, sending out two killing curses.
The vibrant green passed Harry by as he ducked one and leant aside away from the other, the sound of onrushing death catching in Harry's mind.
A sound he had heard only twice before.
Harry returned his second wand, holding Godric's sword with both hands as he came closer to Salazar, his legs pumping as he neared the erborn founder.
Two meters away from Salzar, the man defelted a vibrant purple curse fired from Dumbeldore as Harry noticed he was fighting off two undead apprentices. Clearing his mind of any other distractions Harry continued.
One meter away from Salazar, Harry saw Fleur unleash a blasking hex with as much power as she ahd remaining, while also throwing the full force of her alpha allure at the man. He shielded the blasting hex without turning away from Harry, while his rage burned through the allure.
But Harry was not too close.
He thrust Gryffinors sword through Salazar's heart, passing through his shield as if it weren't there.
Harry tore the sword out from the founder's heart and after spinning out of the way from another killing curse, Harry separated Salazar's head from his body.
Salazar dropped to the ground, and Harry let out a rasping breath.
'Young one, it's not finished. Use the sword as a conduit, like your wand. Pour your intent into it, turn your entire being toward the purpose of sending him back to the underworld.' Godric cried in his mind as a black mist pulled itself free of the decapitated body.
Harry focused on the sword in his hands. Following Godric's instructions and moments later, the sword glowed white as did Harry's ritual runes across his body.
Salazar's essence, returned to wraith form, turned from the glowing white Harry and flew away from him.
Harry threw the sword at Salazar's wraith , like he had done with the basilisks outside and directed it with his hand, sending the glowing white blade through the wrath of Salazar which with a pain filled scream faded to nothing. The sword plunged deep into the obsidian wall of the room, burying itself to the hilt.
Harry fell to his knees, gasping for breath as his ritual tattoos faded, holding himself up on his hand and knees. Fleur landed beside him, her wings retracting as she revertedto her normalform, wrapping him in a tight embrace.
"'Arry, are you okay?" She whispered as he tried to catch his breath.
Harry felt drained, far more than he ever had before. He had fought toetotoe with Salazar and with the help of Fleur and Dumbledore, had won. He raised his head to look at the body of Salazar laying only feet away, missing the head as blood seeped across the obsidian floor.
Harry's stomach tightened and swallowed down his breakfast as it tried to resurface at the sight of the headless man in front of him.
He had done that, cut off a man's head.
"Its' okay, my 'Arry. you saved lives today. That man was dead a thousand years ago, he had no business being among the living." Fleur whispered in his ear, her arms growing tighter around him.
"Please, Harry." Her breath hitched and Harry turned his gaze from Salazar'sbody to see the tears flowing down her face.
In an instant he raised himself to his knees and returned her embrace.
"Fleur, I'm so sorry." He whispered as he held her blse to him, reveling in her body against his.
"My Harry, we should leave the rest of this to the clothes. We should return toHogwarts." She murmured as she pulled back to meet his gaze.
He nodded.
With a smile, Fleur stood, helping Harry to his feet and he turned to look at the rest of the room.
Half of the thrones were reduced to rubble, or in some cases only dust remains of them. A single obsidian throne lay on its side in front of Salazar's central throne where Dumbledoer had tossed it in front of the fiendfyre. The central throne had chops missing from it and scorch marks across it but was otherwise intact. Most of the obsidian walls were chipped with deep gouges carved in them from errant curses.
But what broke Harry's heart were the three standing aurora.they were moving across the room, levitating their fallen comrades into a line on the floor. Seven aurors lay on the ground with an array of wounds on them, one of them was missing limbs which the pink haired auror levitated to place with the fallen aurors.
Harry saw Moody standing over three of the undead apprentices before leaning down to claim their wands. Each wand was a masterpiece compared to the wands Harry knew came from Ollivanders, who was regarded as the heat wand maker in Britain. Moody looked like he had picked up a few more scars from his fight with the apprentices but otherwise looks like he would be fine.
Nearby, Dumbledore stood over the twoundead apprentices that had been attacking him while he had been helping Harry fight Salazar and once again Harry marveled at the old man's skill. Fighting three opponents at the same time, while one of them was the superior combatant.
Dumbledore's once bright robes were torn and filthy and his usually twinkling eyes were dull and filled with sadness.
Harry and Fleur leaned on each other as they made their way to Dumbledore.
The headmaster turned to look at Moody.
"Alastor, I need to return these two to the school. Shall I return after?"
Moody turned his scarred visage to Dumbledore and gave a heavy sigh.
"Aye, Albus and bring some more aurors if you can. I'm going to need help with all of this." The scarred man admitted, waving a hand around the battered room.
Moody clomped a hand over to Harry, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"You were a good kid. None of it would be alive if you hadn't of done what you did." He growled before turning back to the seven aurora laying on the ground. Moody let out a deep sigh as another auror was lowered beside the seven, the pink haired auror having returned from the entryway with another auror Harry remembered going off to investigate the side doors in the entrance hall. The authors had been ambushed by the undead apprentices, it looked as though they'd all died.
Harry and Fleur struggled down the steps into the entrance hall, seeing an auror levitating another fallen auror in from one of the side doors and Harry felt his guilt overwhelming his occlumency barriers.
Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to keep walking. He could feel Fleur putting more of her weight on him for support and remembered how much her transformation took out of her, and not just from her magic, physically growing wings and flying around put immense strain on her body.
They stepped out of the Citadel, Dumbledore only a few steps away from them and Harry saw the pain in the headmaster's eyes. There were half a dozen dragons laying still on the ground, some having fallen atop a basilisk that Harry had killed earlier. Scattered around the fallen monsters lay dragon handlers.
Of the twelve that came with them, only two remained, Charlie and a woman Harry didn't know.
But while they lived, they were going to be scarred for life. The left side of Charlie's torso was burnt, dragon fire having burnt away teh dragonhide jacket he had worn. His chest was red raw and looked like it had melted wax poured over it.
Beside him, the woman dragon handler limped, she was using a branch from the nearby forest as a crutch due to her right leg from the knee down being a charred ruin.
The two moved slowly around the battleground, levitating their comrades into a line, much like the aurors inside the Citadel were doing.
Harry felt the guilt rise inside him like a wave and would have fallen to his knees if Fleur hadn't tightened her grip around his shoulders.
"Harry, Ms. Delacour, you should call your brooms back to Hogwarts. I need to talk yo young Mr. Weasley over there. I will see you after this is sorted out. Thank you, Harry and Ms. Delacour, you've saved many lives this day, and Hogwarts itself." Dumbledore said before turning and moving toward Charlie.
Harry felt a tear escape down his cheek and reached out a hand calling his broom. Fleur did the same and they mounted their brooms.
Harry looked down at what Dumbledore would feel, seeing those he knew as they took off and considered when the old man was going through. All the dead aurora and dragon handlers had likely gone through Hogwarts, which meant they all almost certainly were taught by and known by the headmaster. Harry closed his eyes, trying not to imagine the grief that Dumbledore would feel, seeing those he knew as eleven year old children die.
Harry turned away from the carnage below them and flew beside Fleur, both keeping a close eye on the other in case they fell into the forbidden forest.