CHAPTER {264-266}

****THE-SURPRISE-VISIT (III)****

Harry didn't have to wait long before Muggles rushed at him with assault rifles, and he let them aim their guns at him and then shoot at him. After all, he was hunting them down, so not giving them a chance to fight back wouldn't have been fair. The bullets harmlessly pinged off the translucent shield surrounding him, so it was not a big deal.

Harry raised his Wand toward one of the assailants and cast a Spell he had been meaning to use for quite some time…

*schrilch*

|So, that's what it sounds like when a person is turned inside out| Lily muttered while nodding her head in understanding. It was a weird sound and Harry wasn't sure if he could use a particular word to describe the sound, but he liked the sound. So, even though the rest of the Muggles were aghast at the sight in front of them, Harry decided to kill them too, in the same way.

*schrilch* *schrilch* *schrilch* *schrilch*

|Maybe, I shouldn't have done that| Harry decided as he gazed at the mess in front of him. Yes, he liked the sound of turning a person inside out, but now the whole room was filled with gore and innards. Now, it was simply impossible for him to cross the room without getting any blood or gore on his shoes and that was something he wanted to avoid at all costs. So, there was only one thing left for him to do.

He simply flicked his Wand and vanished the mess, making a way for himself. He carefully stepped past the mess he made and then he continued to push his way inside the warehouse while casually flicking Blasting Curses left and right. He knew that with his current pace, most of the enemies would be already gone, but he was in no hurry to kill them.

That was never his intention, to begin with… Yes, he wanted to kill them. He wanted to kill them all, but he wanted to make their lives as miserable as possible before finally releasing them from their mortal coil… If he really wanted to kill all of them right here, then he would have gathered the Lost Garden and surrounded the base before carrying out a true surprise attack.

Then all of a sudden, Harry simply moved aside and an Organ Melting Curse passed by his head. |Quite nasty, that one| Harry mused mirthfully inside his head before he twirled around his body to dodge another nasty Curse. He slowly turned around and batted away another nasty Curse with the tip of his Wand. He batted away another Spell before casting a Blasting Curse at one of the barely standing walls.

The wall exploded and a Witch rolled out from behind the wall just before his Spell struck the wall. Harry smiled at the Witch before destroying another piece of rubble, making a Wizard jump out of the cover. The attacks stopped and soon a couple more Wixen stepped out from behind their covers, making Harry nod his head in satisfaction.

"So… Royal Mages, huh?" Harry asked, looking curious. If the group of Wixen were surprised, they didn't show it on their faces and they simply started to take their positions, but for whatever reason, they didn't attack. Harry started to wonder if they wanted him to start monologuing or something like that, and not being one to disappoint, Harry started to monologue like a common villain.

"I will be honest, I never imagined a group like you to exist, considering the Statute and how strict the ICW is when it comes to the Statute, but here you are… I am impressed with how you guys probably existed for centuries, working from the shadows" Harry finished with a casual look on his face, but when he noticed the still stoic look on their faces, Harry looked kind of disappointed.

"Not much of a talker, are you?" Harry asked in a disappointed tone, knowing that it was a rhetorical question. "Oh well" Harry shrugged with a roll of his shoulders before he started to raise his Wand and that was all the motivation they needed to resume their fight. Harry easily batted away two Spells before summoning the sole Witch in the group in the path of a really nasty Curse.

The woman shrieked in pain as boils started to appear on her skin and her eyes seemed to explode bathing the man who cast the Spell with pieces of her eyeballs and pus. The man screamed in rage and banished the woman before her whole body started to bloat. Harry continued to watch her with interest as he continued to bat away the Spells without even looking.

The woman continued to bloat and her skin finally started to crack, and then after a few more seconds, she finally exploded, bathing everyone with her blood, gore, and innards except for Harry. After all, he knew what was about to happen, just the person who cast the Spell, but that man did not have the time or option to raise a barrier since he was busy casting Spells at Harry.

"Oh man, you made her bloat, but in a completely wrong way" Harry joked and started to snicker at his own joke. He noticed the man grimace, but that was it. He wanted to see if he could rile them up and make them go mad, but all of them were well-trained and disciplined. They didn't seem too bothered by the death of their own colleague and even if they were, they didn't show it on their faces.

|Boring…| Harry trailed off inside his mind as he finally started to get bored while playing with them. He would have entertained them a bit more if at least one of them would have snapped, but they were almost stoic like puppets, which was boring as fuck… Harry casually jabbed his Wand toward one of the Wizards and the said Wizard stumbled back a few steps before spitting out blood from his mouth.

The man slowly looked down only to find a palm-sized hole in his chest… Whatever Spell Harry had used, it had punched straight through his chest. The man opened his mouth to say something, but he simply fell over, never to rise again… Harry grinned viciously before he started to wonder how to kill the last two…

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****THE-NEXT-PHASE (I)****

By the time Harry dispatched the last two Wixen, Harry could sense that the base was practically empty. They must have sent the Wixen group to buy some time so that the rest could evacuate. However, he was not bothered by their escape… After all, he knew where to look if he wanted to find them.

Regardless of that, Harry still decided to stroll around the base and see if he could find anything else. After some time, he finally stumbled inside the command center only to find it completely wrecked. Some of the machines were still on fire, so Harry simply waved his hand and the flames disappeared.

|They must have decided to get rid of everything| Harry mused internally as he started to walk around. |Now, what do we have here…| Harry trailed off curiously as he kneeled down to inspect a pristine piece of paper lying on the floor. He flicked his hand to remove the gravel from on top of the paper.

\Harry Potter, I lost several subordinates, loyal subordinates tonight. All thanks to you, but at the same time, I realized something. I realized that I can't beat you, we can't beat you. I know when to back off and cut my losses… That is why I am proposing a meeting. Just the two of us… Kings Cross, 11.00 am tomorrow? I will be waiting by the entrance of Platform 9¾.

Rachel Node\

|Interesting| Harry mused as he pocketed the note. He wasn't against a meeting and considering the pristine condition of the note even though the room was completely wrecked, Harry believed that the note was left by the leader or a representative of the Royal Mages.

|Are you going?| Lily asked without elaborating anything.

|Yeah. There is no harm in a meeting| Harry answered without missing a beat.

|It could be a trap| Lily pointed out.

|True, but I don't think they will be foolish enough to spring a trap in the middle of Kings Cross just before the new year and don't worry, I will scout the place before walking in| Harry tried to reassure her and for the time being, Lily seemed placated, so without wasting any more time in this shithole, he disappeared with a crack…

<Line Break>

~~Tottenham Court Road~~

Selene jumped from one rooftop to another with the rest of her team following her. Even though the street beneath them was alight, they went completely unnoticed by anyone since the streets were completely empty and even if the streets were busy, it was doubtful that they would have been noticed.

After all, they were trained and experienced Death Dealers, they knew how to avoid being noticed by the common folk…

"Selene, they are gaining on us!" Selene heard her lieutenant scream from behind. While she appreciated the information, it was kind of unnecessary. She could clearly hear the resounding cracks getting closer and closer. Selene internally grimaced, but she didn't look back. She couldn't afford to…

She knew they were getting closer and her only saving grace was that they didn't have brooms or the chase would have been long over… However, Selene could feel the clock ticking. She knew that they were going to get surrounded or cornered any second now, so before that could happen, she wanted to find a suitable place to make a stand.

That was when Selene noticed something from the corner of her eyes and cursed inside her mind… A dozen or Wixen were coming towards them from the front… "We need to get in there, no choice!" Selene exclaimed and jumped down into one of the alleys with her team following her lead. It didn't take them long to break inside the building.

"Fuck! Reynaud, cut the power and the rest of you with me" Selene snapped into the role of a leader as soon as they were inside. Reynaud, her second in command and the second strongest vampire in her team nodded his head before rushing toward the basement while the rest of them followed Selene.

"Hey, whose…" That was all the guard managed to say before Selene's fingers coiled around his fragile neck. Moments later, she snapped it, killing the guard. Selene never liked killing random people who were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, but the guard needed to go. The noise must have alerted him, but the safety of her team was her priority.

Then the lights inside the building finally turned off, but Selene didn't look relieved… They were fucked from nine ways to Sunday. Facing a dozen competent Wixen would have been impossible to face in the open even with her seasoned team, but there were at least two dozen Wixen outside the building.

Facing them in the open would have been monumentally foolish, so she decided to even some of the odds by making a stand inside the building. While Vampires were stronger, faster, and more perspective than common folk and Wixen, they wouldn't stand a chance against Magic. Now, she could only hope that the Wixen after them were complete greenhorns.

"What now?" One of her men whispered in a low tone. The voice was barely audible and if Selene wasn't a Vampire, she would have missed it.

"We stalk. It is our only chance, but no unnecessary risks. If you think you can't take them down, then don't engage. Our priority is escape" Selene answered in an equally low tone and all of her team nodded their heads in understanding. Raynaud wasn't here, but she knew that he could take care of himself. Soon, her team started to spread out throughout the building without any further directions.

'Why aren't they breaking in?' Selene wondered in frustration. Her hearing was sharp enough to hear if someone entered the building and her perception was sharp enough to notice any Magic, in case they were using Silencing Charm, but there was simply nothing. It was like they were still waiting outside the building for whatever reason.

So, Selene decided to silently make her way toward one of the windows to see what was going on… She noticed a few Wixen standing outside the building on her side, which meant the building was probably surrounded from all sides, which was not a good sign. 'This is bleak…' Selene internally grimaced…

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****THE-NEXT-PHASE (II)****

"My men have surrounded the building. You are trapped in the building with no chance of escape. I am giving you 5 minutes and if by that time all of you don't surrender, then I will torch the building with Fiendfyre" The man paused for a bit before adding the last bit. "I hope you chose wisely" And then there was silence.

Selene cursed inside her mind… They were fucked in all ways possible. The enemy leader was smart. Instead of rushing inside blindly to capture them, he came up with a very logical plan. Selene suspected that the leader wasn't a greenhorn even though the man was in his prime.

'What to do?' Selene wondered internally as she continued to curse her shitty luck. While her Vampiric part wanted her to tell the enemy leader to fuck off, the logical part of her wanted her to contemplate her chances…

'There is no way we could escape if the building is really surrounded' Selene decided grimly. There was always a chance that the enemy leader could be bluffing, but the building wasn't that big, to begin with, and they definitely had enough men to surround the building.

'He could be bluffing about using Fiendfyre, but from his voice, I don't think so' Selene decided after thinking for a bit. The man sounded completely calm and firm while giving the ultimatum. His voice didn't falter even for once. It was like he had done this before and knowing some of the wicked Wixen out there, she wouldn't be surprised if the man was a genuine arsonist.

'Surrender might be the only choice if I want my men to survive' After thinking for a bit more, she finally concluded. For a moment she wondered if she could taunt them into rushing inside the building, but she decided to drop the idea. While it wasn't a bad idea, it wasn't going to be effective. After all, even if some of the enemies rushed inside, the rest would stay outside and set the building ablaze with Fiendfyre…

Maybe, their enemies would show some leniency if they surrendered…

Selene felt Raynaud approach her and she stepped out of the shadows to face the man. He looked just as grim as her, which meant that he had also reached the same conclusion. "What now, Selene?" The man asked in a low tone.

"What is there to do?" Selene asked with a furious look on her face. She knew she shouldn't snap at him since it wasn't his fault, but she was just that frustrated. "Of course, we are going to surrender" Selene revealed, making the man nod his head in understanding.

"Alright. Let me grab the others" Raynaud muttered before he started to leave without voicing any discontent. To be honest, he also believed that surrendering was their best choice. They could always try to negotiate the terms of their release later and even though Kraven was going to be mad, Raynaud didn't care much, and they could always reach out to Amelia, the current ruling Elder if Kraven tried anything funny.

Meanwhile, Selene started to wonder how she was going to face Viktor after such a monumental failure, especially with Kraven always waiting for the opportunity to show up to her…

<Line Break>

~~The Leaky Cauldron~~

Merlin peered out from the curtain and grimaced… "Looks like someone has kicked the hornet's nest" Merlin said with a frown as he turned around to face both of his companions. Alan simply deadpanned at his friend while Agatha seemed to roll her eyes at Merlin before she started to speak.

"What makes you think that?" Agatha asked drily.

"Well, I don't know" Merlin huffed as he threw his hands in the air. "It might have something to do with all the Aurors and Hit-Wizards crawling the streets and let's not forget the members of the Lost Garden" Merlin added with a scowl after a small pause.

"It's a surprise to see that there are still some Aurors and Hit-Wizards who haven't quit" Alan pointed out in a sullen tone.

"Yeah. With both Potter and the Riddle running around, it is a surprise, but there were a lot of Aurors and Hit-Wizards still willing to fight during the last War, so not much of a surprise I guess" Agatha pointed out with a hum.

"Well, it's my birth land, what else did you expect?" Merlin puffed out his chest proudly, earning a disgusted look from Agatha, while Alan simply decided to ignore him. "What's more surprising is the fact that the Aurors and Hit-Wizards aren't even bothering the members of the Lost Garden" Merlin added with a scowl.

"Do you think Amelia Bones is no longer hiding her allegiance?" Agatha asked curiously.

"No, I don't think so" Alan denied with a shake of his head. "I think the Aurors and Hit-Wizards are simply afraid even though they are still sticking with their jobs. You guys must remember that most of these people are family men. They simply can't quit the job no matter how much they want to if they still want to bring food to their tables. Then most of them know what happened at Hogwarts" Alan paused to take a breath.

"Yes, Potter might have massacred a lot of their colleagues that night, but he also spared anyone who bent their knees even if there were some Death Eaters mixed in. They know that Potter isn't going to come after them if they don't mess with him first. None of them wants to poke the sleeping dragon as the saying goes" Alan finished with a sigh.

Merlin looked like he had sucked a sour lemon, but he didn't retort while Agatha simply looked saddened. "This whole situation is completely fucked up!" Agatha scowled angrily and Alan simply nodded his head in agreement. There wasn't much to say after that. Even if Potter didn't know what they were truly capable of, he knew about their existence, which would make him raise his guard.

While problematic, it wasn't the end of the world…

"Look, enough with the pity party. This isn't the first time we are facing such odds and this isn't going to be the first time we were against a whole community, but we still made it work in the end and this time, it is not going to be any different!" Merlin growled with a determined look on his face, rousing both Alan and Agatha.

"Guys, we need to win this. That is the only option we have or the world we know will be no more" Merlin declared before he shoved his hand over the table. Alan and Agatha looked at each other before placing their own hands over Merlin's with a determined look on their faces. They were going to make it work.

'We need to keep the status quo, or everything will be ruined…' Merlin vowed that he was going to succeed…

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