125 The Dark Lord's Return
"War? War with who?" Zabini asked
"Who else, numbskull?" Lucien replied
It didn't take long for Daphnee to finish preparations. When she was finished, she found her way to Lucien. She told him of her plan that she coordinated with his Grandmother. When the time came, his legions would come to their aid by way of the magic circles she carved into the school grounds.
"How do you know Hogwarts is in danger?" Lucien was a bit curious.
"The Dragons escaped, but haven't left the Forbidden Forest. And the Greengrass Fryd has been mobilized to prove the family's loyalty.
Pettigrew has ordered my family to help the dragons lay waste to Hogwarts during the final round to kill Dumbledore."
"Who cares? Dumbledore isn't worth saving. Have you all have forgotten, he tried to take Navarra away from us, and he'll do the same to us if he lives. Let the old bat die!" Said Zabini
"Fuck Dumbledore, but I need the school. Zabini, stay with Daphnee, and whatever you do, do not go back into the castle." Lucien separated himself from Zabini and stood on his own.
"And what about you?" Zabini asked
"I have to get to the third task or risk death, but I wanted to get you guys out of the castle first" Finished saying his piece, Lucien vanished and reappeared at the third task's starting point.
Turning to face Dumbledore, Lucien said, " Open the maze."
A request that Dumbledore couldn't deny. Once in the maze, Lucien used his wind step enchantment to speed through the maze. If he wanted to win, he first had to save his friend.
The further into the maze they went, the contestants navigated their way through as best they could. Unfortunately, Mael was the first to encounter a minotaur. A raging bestial man-bull with massive ivory horns and blood-red eyes. The minotaur acted as an obstacle placed in the maze to add difficulty. And soon, each contestant would approach their own impediments, Some more cruel than the other.
Viktor now stood in front of a dead-end; however, his wand pointed directly at the bush wall. It was as if the Triwizard cup was just on the other side. Flourishing his wand, Viktor attempted to disenchant what he thought was an illusion. The moment his spell made contact, the wall began to open.
"Shit" was all Viktor could say as an ancient Liche stepped out from the maze wall.
Just as the Liche was to attack, Vera had turned the corner to find her husband.
"Reducto.." she cast her curse, reducing the Liche to ash.
Turning towards his wife with a welcoming smile. Viktor's face soon morphed into one of concern, for Vera had now aimed her wand at him.
"My Love..." he said to no avail. Not a trace of emotions could be seen on Vera's face.
"Vera," he called out.
Vera's eyes were void of everything with a foggy grey color. Viktor knew that the only way to get his wife back was to fight her.
"Expelliarmus!" he shouted.
Vera twisted her wand in response as the two spells bounced off of each other. The husband and wife then engaged in a duel. Back and forth, they went in a very expected deadlock. Fed up, Viktor channeled his death essence, killing everything in the vicinity. Vera responded in kind.
The moment she channeled her death essence. The husband and wife resonated with each other and joined in union.
Boom!
A one-mile radius around the companions of death was reduced to ash. A deathly black tower erected towards the sky. Feeling the eminence power, the Labyrinth responded to protect the remaining contestants and began closing in on itself, pushing the contestants towards the Triwizard cup.
When Lucien saw the black tower of power erect towards the sky, a bleak look overtook his face. He was too late. All he could do now was a race towards the cup and hoped the love Viktor and Vera had for one another would save them from the infamous black pearl's power.
Speeding up his search, Lucien raced to the Labyrinth's center to end the race as soon as possible. Lucien believed that the battle between Viktor and Vera would mark the beginning of the siege on Hogwarts.
The chaos of the death tower was the launch signal. Only a fool would this impromptu devastation take its course without moving for advantage.
The closer he got to the center of the maze, so did Mael and Harry. When the cup finally came into view. Mael and Harry were already fighting tooth and nail to reach it. The two were inches away from the cup. As their hands reached out to grab it, Lucien suddenly appeared, and the three of them vanished together.
* * *
Meanwhile, on the Hogwarts campus.
The death tower created by Viktor and Vera acted as a signal for the Greengrass Fryd to attack Hogwarts led by the rouge dragons that escaped after the first task.
"Daphnee, they're coming. We should really call for those reinforcements now," Zabini watched as a massive force approached the undefended Hogwarts.
Daphnee smiled in return. Taking a hand full of crystal quartz, Daphne tossed them into the air. The quartz began to shimmer and fly to the teleportation circles.
The circles activated and shined bright, illuminating the night. In a matter of moments, an eleven-goblin force appeared ready to defend Hogwarts.
* * *
Lucien, Harry, and Mael appeared in a graveyard with a thud. Together the boys got and began to look around. To Mael, the sudden twist was exciting as he realized the Triwizard cup was a portkey.
"I've been here before," Harry spoke to himself, but Lucien caught every word.
"Harry! Lucien! The cup is a portkey!" Mael shouted.
"I've been here before," Harry repeated himself. "I've been here before. In a dream."
Harry turned to the closest tombstone attached to the sculpture of the grim reaper. He ran his fingers over the name, Tom Riddle.
A grim reality set in on Harry as he called for his Lucien and Mael to return to the Triwizard Cup.
Lucien suddenly felt a familiar presence and teleported away, leaving Harry and Mael behind. Lucien watched a Harry doubled over in pain from a distance, a cauldron was lit, and a green flash of magic kill Mael Brodeur in an instant.
'Pettigrew, ' Lucien thought.
Peter Pettigrew had killed Mael and captured Harry Potter. In his arms was a small crippled version of the once-powerful dark lord, Voldemort.
"Quick. Now!" said Voldemort.
Leaving Harry in the embraced of the Grim Reaper, Pettigrew turned and dropped Voldemort into the boiling cauldron.
Pettigrew bulled a bone from the tom riddle's grave and added it to the caldron with a burst of flames. " Bone of the father unwillingly given."
"Flesh of the servant willingly sacrificed." Pettigrew put away his wand and drew his knife. In one determined move, Pettigrew cut off his own hand.
Pettigrew's then faced Harry. "Blood of the enemy," he said as he cut harry's sleeve open.
"Forcibly taken."
Pettigrew cut into Harry's arm and added his blood as the final ingredient to the Voldemort morbid ritual. He spoke the last words, "The Dark Lord shall rise again!"
Caldron burned hotter, and its contents turned blood red before bursting into flames. Harry cried out in pain as the cauldron melted away and transformed into something new.
Lucien watched as the contents of the caldron morphed into a newly resurrected Voldemort.
