452. Everything Has A Price

1982,

The next year came, Magnus was on the moon working alongside a dozen other astronauts. Officially, only 6 were living on the moon that went from the rocket. 6 others were Wizards and Muggles-who-knew that came from Portkey.

Currently, the living units were expanded to house at least 20 people. In a first, now with President Harrison taking big steps, American astronauts also collaborated.

Harrison and Magnus talked nearly every day. Because Magnus had a great experience on how to bring together the muggle and magical side without letting the secret out.

For this, Magnus gave them his magical contract paper. This allowed them to actually hire Wizards and muggles without worrying about betrayals.

Harrison wanted to use Wizards to solve various problems of the country. Such as the Police. Using wizardry, sensitive cases can be easily solved. Healthcare and infrastructure can be improved. There was so much to do.

Currently, on the moon, Magnus was helping people on the moon extract Helium 3 and was also experimenting with water extraction. A big shipment was going to be sent from Earth, it was a diesel generator for the machines to work on.

"Okay, send it through," Magnus spoke on the communicator. ~Ah, why is my dragon senses telling me of danger?~

On Earth, a team had strapped the whole unit in good insulating sheets. This was not your normal generator, it was supposed to be specially made for the harsh temperatures on the moon.

"It's coming,"

*BOOM*

The generator didn't come, but the Portkey did blast off all of a sudden. It was a big enough explosion to send those standing close by a few metres away. Magnus was unharmed, "What happened? Is everyone okay?"

One by one, all astronauts nearby gave their status updates. Then news came from Earth, "Sir, one of our guys lost his arm. Wizards are reattaching it. He will be alright."

Magnus looked around, a good thing Portkey was not kept near the living base. However, now the problem is, the portkey was destroyed. "Fuck, why didn't we make multiple of those? Everyone, get ready, I will be apparating to the base."

To make sure that panic didn't strike the hearts of those who were working on the moon, not everyone was told about the lost portkey. But, Magnus too had his problems. The last time he used apparition, it was extremely painful. But it had to be done.

He went and created 5 different Portkeys for wide distances and placed them on the moon in distance. Then he apparated away, "UGH!"

The teleportation happened instantaneously, but the pain that came lasted till long after, ~Fuck, this time it hurt much more.~

He looked around at the site, there were blackened spots on the ground, marks of the blast that occurred not long ago. It was something to be investigated why and how this happened. A portkey does not explode for no reason.

"Bring me the Portkey boxes," He ordered and turned the new boxes into Portkey too.

"I will be back in a minute. Call Ragnar and Severus. We need to understand why and what happened wrong. This kind of mistake cannot be afforded in the future," he ordered the wizard mission director.

He returned to the Moon to assure everyone that things were fine. He helped them set up a new Generator and then returned to Belize base. Ragnar and Severus were there already.

"Let's go to the lab and check the broken Portkey," he suggested.

Ragnar checked it quickly, "Hmm, look at this. I don't think it exploded because it went bad, but I think it went too good. There is more magic in space, so I don't think magical things will work the same way there,"

"So you are saying it got overloaded with magic?" Magnus wondered.

"That might be the case. Look at this, Portkey didn't explode, it tore apart. Maybe when you were sending the generator, it was too big for it to handle. We probably need some sort of muggle capacitor for magic," Severus advised him.

This was good, they were basically researching new things with magic. They had nobody to reference for their problems and work in the space. All the technology they will make with magic will be helpful for generations to come.

"I will start working on it then. There should be something that we can use to store magical energy. Maybe something like a wand." Magnus thought.

"Oh, by the way, mum wanted you to come home quick, she said Emma's parents will be coming for dinner tonight," Ragnar remembered and notified.

Emma's parents were trying not to appear so secretive now that their daughter was supposed to marry someone so famous. So they regularly visited the palace for dinner.

Magnus nodded, stretching his neck, "I will return by the dinner. You two go now, I'm sure you guys were researching something nice. Thanks for coming, and if you find any way to make an object that can store magic, do tell me,"

"You okay? I heard the explosion was nasty." Ragnar inquired before going.

"I'm fine, it's not the explosion that strained me, it's the apparition that I had to do. It makes me feel as if my body was disintegrating and then forgetting how to integrate again, making me push it to do so. Don't worry, I will take a shower and be fine." He shrugged and got back to work.

It was still morning so there was enough time, he quickly headed to his private room in the Belize base to take a shower. Absent-minded, he started rubbing soap over his body, that was until he felt something.

~What's this?~

There was a rough patch on his arm, it felt as if the skin had become scaly. He quickly walked to the mirror and looked. His brows furrowed, "What the heck is this?"

There was a small 3cm by 3cm patch of skin that looked like it belonged to a dragon. He tried to wash it clean, nothing happened. He took his wand and tried to chop it away. But it instantly regrew.

Now he felt scared. ~What happened to me? Is this related to my animagus form? Or... my blood?~

He didn't want to take this lightly. But who can he go to? Saint Mungo? No, he instantly rejected that idea, his animagus form was a secret and he can't let them check his blood. Who else was there so smart and trustworthy? Dumbledore?

~WAIT! There is someone even better.~ he remembered.

Quickly, he cleaned himself off, wore his robes and apparated away to Devon. An old house appeared in his view. It brought memories back, ~It's been a while since I saw the old man Flamel,~

*Knock Knock*

The old man opened the door, he already knew Magnus was here, "Oh, look who is here, a king. Come in, lad."

"You're looking even more like a zombie," Magnus greeted back.

Flamel laughed, "Haha, the price for immortality, I guess. What about you? What's with that frowning face? Is everything okay?"

"Let's talk in your lab," Magnus requested with complete seriousness.

Flamel led the way to the underground giant lab where Ragnar and Magnus learnt alchemy a long time ago. It was still the same as before, it seems the old man had been doing nothing.

"So, what is it?" he asked.

Magnus started to take off his shirt. The old man looked at him weirdly. Magnus saw it in his eyes too, "No no, I just have to show you something. There's something wrong with my skin and I think it has something to do with my animagus or blood."

He showed his right arm. The patch was still clear as always. Flamel interestingly came closer and stared at it, touched it and squeezed it, "Does it hurt?"

"Nope, I feel as if it's just normal skin," Magnus said.

Flamel plucked a small piece of skin and went to his alchemy table to do a few tests. It only took him a few minutes to start speaking, "It's dragon skin, original dragon skin, not some sort of mutation."

"How is that possible? Why is it appearing on me then?" Magnus wondered.

Flamel thought about it for a few minutes, he quickly walked to the huge wall full of books and took one out, "This was written by a good friend of mine in the 1500s. His moral compass was loose. He used to do tests on his slaves, mostly related to how to combine a magical beast's abilities with a human body. He was unsuccessful, but he did find out that the blood of the beast would only start affecting the body when the human was pushing himself.

"So, you tell me. Have you been pushing your magical powers? Anything strange that has been happening due to this?"

Magnus nodded, "I did. This morning I didn't have this patch. But when I was on the moon an accident happened and I had to apparate to Earth. No normal wizard can do it unless they have magical powers equal to mine. I felt a lot of pain when I reached Earth."

"And have you ever felt this pain in things other than apparition?" Flamel asked. He was just trying to narrow his findings down.

"Yes, I did. Whenever I turn into my Animagus form, which is a dragon, I feel pain all over my body." He answered.

Flamel sighed, "Son, then you know the root of all this. A dragon... there is a reason why magical beasts are usually not one's animagus. Beasts are too complex to replicate. And here you are, a dragon. To become a dragon, your body needs to morph inhumanly. And then there is your dragon blood.

"I reckon that it's your blood that gives you extra power, without it you are maybe as strong as Dumbledore, but with it, you surpass all wizards. And now, if you push yourself, the dragon blood, its magic supersedes your normal biological magic. It's like a maledictus, but yours is controllable."

Magnus wore his clothes back, "So you're telling me not to use magic? Come on, professor, I still have so much more to accomplish."

"No, son. I am telling you not to overdo it. Stay within the range of Dumbledore's level of magic. If you push it, that scale, it might increase." Flamel said, saddened too.

But Magnus was in decline mode, how can such an absurd thing happen to him, "What if I do not stop? This magic is exactly what makes me different, it's what makes other wizards follow me, because they know, even if they all come at me together they can not win."

Flamel showed him the same book, "No test subject survived when this book was written. All died within a year. The fact that you are alive means your blood is better infused. There is no telling what would happen if you don't stop. I presume you will turn into a real dragon. Alive and sane? I don't know.

"You have already proven yourself, you don't need to push yourself anymore. There are no dark lords, and if anyone rises, deal with him from the start."

Flamel patted his back, "Every man has limits, Magnus. Look at me, how do I look? Do I look human? That was my limit. I tested it and now I look like this. Don't test yours, because the price may be too much."

"Thanks for the help, professor. I will leave now," Magnus didn't raise his head. He silently left the house and apparated back to London. Not at home, however. He appeared in a park where he took a seat on the bench.

He stared at his hands continuously, wondering if this was some sort of punishment for overreaching the possible limitations of Magic. But then, anger erupted.

~This... damn dragon blood. It's the origin of all problems. I can't make a family, now I can't even use this bloody magic. What's the point of having this?~ he cursed. But this magic was what that had brought him all the way here. He was also grateful for it.

Magnus silently looked at his feet, his mind going blank as the faces of his family appeared in the head. There was nothing he wanted to think about. The world was still shit. The goal was still unfinished. He can't afford to die so early. ~I... what am I to do now? Be a mediocre wizard? Dumbledore tried it for years, but he couldn't bring any change. Without absolute strength, it's just not possible.~

But it was also absolute strength that aimed to kill him. Magnus was simply lost, having no idea of time, it was sunny when he sat down, now it was evening. Children came to the park to play, dogs ran around barking. People walked by, his magic making sure they didn't notice him.

He glanced at his palms again. The lines on it were dark and clear, ~Do they really mean something?~ he wondered. His heart felt fear, not for death, but for the future that now seemed unclear.

*Cough* "Son, is this seat taken?"

All of a sudden he heard a voice, addressing him. He looked up, it was a tall, kind-looking old man, supporting a long white beard and hair, wearing glasses and smoking a cigar. Magnus instinctively moved aside and let him sit, then going back to thinking about the uncertain life ahead, planning how to accomplish the goals before he's dead.

[A/N: Some of you may have noticed, from the day Magnus turned Animagus(In chap 346) for the first time, he has been complaining about pain every now and then. I had basically planned this plot a year ago when I was just starting the fic. No, this won't make him any weak, instead, it will make him more desperate.]

[A/N: Any guesses on who this old man is? HINT: He's not from the Harry Potter Universe or any other cinematic universe. Hint two: You might be totally wrong if you have not read my other works.]

[You can see Magnus alone in the park on Discord - https://discord.gg/DgHkrAn OR see them on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/mister_immortal_novel]

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