HP: The Duelist of Hogwarts - 427

Chapter 427: Plundering the Dragons

Once the wizards stopped holding back, the six dragons’ situation deteriorated rapidly.

The Chinese Fireball could no longer dart about freely. Its flight path was cut off again and again by spells, forcing it lower and lower until conjured ropes of magic coiled around its limbs and wings. It thrashed as they dragged it down and slammed its massive body into the ground.

The Hungarian Horntail tried to dive to its rescue, ignoring the Fireball’s warning roar. The moment her claws hit the earth, two quick Eye-Binding Curses struck her. Blinded, she staggered forward, crashing through trees before more ropes wound around her and pinned her where she lay.

The Antipodean Opaleye and the others fared no better. They were still airborne, but under the coordinated strikes of wizards Apparating all around them, they could not hold out for long. One by one they were knocked from the sky, bound tight by magical cords. Surrounded by a small army of wizards and with the air itself sealed, the six dragons never stood a chance.

“Well done, everyone,” the Head of the Department said. “They are all a bit battered, but nothing serious. That is good enough. We can turn them over to the Romanians in this state.”

He began directing his subordinates and the Aurors to take down the barrier.

As the dome of light dissolved, a sudden gust of wind swept through the clearing. The stars vanished behind a rapidly thickening blanket of cloud. Within moments, the night sky had turned pitch black, and only the roiling mass of stormfront overhead could be seen.

“Bloody weather…” The Department Head spat and raised his voice. “Move quickly! It is about to pour. I do not imagine any of you fancy getting soaked!”

The wizards glanced upward, swore at the sky, and hastened their work.

None of them noticed that they were not the only ones studying the change in the air.

The captured dragons had raised their heads as far as their bonds allowed, nostrils flaring.

“That feeling… the chief is here!”

“Are you sure?”

“It is him. That aura is the chief!”

A thunderclap split the sky.

The wind redoubled, whipping the trees into a wild dance. A moment later, raindrops the size of Galleons hammered down, a roaring curtain of water that drenched the clearing in seconds.

“Damn it… Weather Dispersal!”

Normally, the Department Head would have preferred not to interfere with the weather at all. It was Ministry policy to avoid large-scale magic where Muggles might notice. But this storm was too sudden and too fierce. If he did nothing, they would not even be able to work. In circumstances like these, there was no choice.

A bolt of red lightning shot from his wand and speared the clouds overhead.

It exploded with a crack, then vanished without effect. The storm did not so much as falter. The Head frowned, assuming the squall was simply too strong and his spell had not fully taken hold. Without hesitation, he tried again.

“Weather Dispersal!”

A thicker, more intense spiral of red light blasted upward, boring into the black mass and lighting up a swathe of cloud.

Again, nothing.

As he and the other wizards stared upwards in confusion, the afterglow of his own spell picked out a colossal silhouette in the clouds above.

Dark night, black stormfront, howling wind, torrential rain, and a vast shape limned in blood-red light…

Whether from the cold rain or some deeper instinct, almost everyone shuddered at once. A heavy sense of their own smallness pressed down on them.

“What in Merlin’s name is that…”

“This is not a normal storm. Everyone, get the dragons out of here. Now!”

“Move! Whatever that thing is, it is probably coming for us!”

Another thunderbolt slammed down from the sky, gouging a crater in the ground.

High above the clouds, Sean stood balanced on Kulkan’s massive head, looking down at the six dragons.

Kulkan had reverted to her true form: a long, thick serpent’s body, six broad wings of many-coloured feathers, a pair of dragon-like forelimbs, and a crown of interlocking horns. Her crimson eyes glowed faintly as she glanced up at Sean. “You are sure we cannot eat them?”

“No.”

“But they look delicious. Especially that gold-and-red one. If I ate it, I am fairly certain it would help my growth quite a bit. Absolutely no chance?”

Sean shot her an exasperated look. “Do not try that on me. I know perfectly well what helps you and what does not. You are just greedy. I said no.”

“Heartless. Cold. Scheming. Selfish. Virgin…”

“Oi! One of those doesn’t belong!”

“Oh? Are you not?”

“Of course I still—” He cut himself off mid-sentence, jaw tightening. He crouched down and smacked her on the head. “Say one more word of nonsense and see if I do not give you something to cry about.

“Cover me.”

With that, Sean swept a hand down his chest. His clothes rippled and became a voluminous hooded cloak. A silver skull mask formed over his face. He vanished from Kulkan’s head and reappeared on the ground among the Ministry officials and Aurors.

Before anyone had fully registered his presence, his wand was in motion. Every rope binding the dragons snapped in an instant. The six of them surged free.

They did not get the chance to spread their wings.

Sean’s wand flicked again and again. Each dragon shrank in a heartbeat, folding down to palm-sized miniatures that flew straight into his hand. He slipped them into a pocket beneath the cloak.

Then he raised his wand once more. A halo of blue-white light flared at its tip and neatly cancelled a red curse flying his way. A second sweep knocked aside a volley of spells from the other wizards.

Sean’s wand moved like a conductor’s baton, each small gesture deflecting another incoming curse. A final, lazy-looking wave made the ground ripple like the surface of the sea. Ministry officials and Aurors alike staggered and slid, unable to keep their footing, much less pursue.

Sean let out a low, rasping laugh behind the mask.

“The great Dark Lord has returned,” he said, voice distorted and harsh. “His servants send their regards.”

He dissolved into a column of black smoke, shooting back up into the sky to land on Kulkan’s head. They streaked away into the storm, leaving only a vast Dark Mark blooming overhead, its sickly green glow washing over the frozen, frightened faces of the Ministry wizards below.