Chapter 77 - Sebastian’s Lab

***** Bonus Chapter ***** A/N: Back to work today, and honestly wish I called in sick again. So bloody tired (and probably still recovering from yesterdays hangover). *****

"Imperio!"

Khan read the name of the spell aloud, fondly recalling finding Slytherin's Scriptorium and opening its door, using another similar spell.

'Only Sebastian would hide his lab in such a hard to unlock fashion.' He thought to himself amusedly. 'It wasn't that nobody wanted to take up Sebastian's work… more like nobody else could figure out how to get into his lab'.

Similar to the scriptorium, there was a simple reason that this lab went unopened for so long; nobody could even begin to imagine that the requirement to open said door would be casting an unforgivable curse.

And even if they had, they would face a problem similar to the one that both Ominis's late aunt Noctua, and Jordan now faces; they did not bring along a companion to cast the spell on.

And while Noctua unfortunately passed away from her similar problem, Khan was more upset that it appeared that he would no-

'Wait a second... I just need to cast Imperio..... it's not like it's harmful, so long as the caster does not commander the receiver to do itself harm.' Khan thought to himself.

Unlike the Crucio, which affected the nervous system directly causing pain, Imperio did not inherently cause external harm to the receiver. Which gave Jordan an idea...

"TEEK!"

* POP *

Teek immediately popped into existence, clad in his butler's uniform, smile wide on his face.

"How can I aide you sirs?" He asked professionally, contrary to how he was currently feeling.

Teek had heard his entire life about all the exciting adventures that Jordan Khan had brought his father Deek on previously. Thus as a result, he had been hoping that his master would similarly call himself, to aide and join him on all of his various tasks and adventures.

And although he was slightly older now, he was currently very happy he had decided not to retire, as from the appearance of the unfamiliar room he had been summoned to, it seemed that Teek would finally get his chance!

His son Zeke would be so jealous, but Zeke will have to wait his turn!

"Hello Teek, thank you for coming." Khan politely greeted his friend. "I have a favor to ask, but first of all, you should know, that you are free to reject my request if it makes you uncomfortable."

Teek attempted to respond, but Jordan continued, holding up a hand.

"While listening to my favor, remember that I am not asking as your Master; I am simply asking a favor of a friend, and will not be offended if you refuse."

Nodding his head up and down quickly, Teek's big ears flapped back and forth with excitement not matching his age. He was so proud that his Master was not only strong, but also kind.

"Please sirs!"

"Would you allow me to cast an Imperio curse on you?" Khan asked. "You see, I currently need help with getting into this door right here, which requires the casting of this Unforgiveable spell."

"You can of course, rest assured, that I will release you as soon as we open the door, and will not command you to do anything untowards."

"... It is no problems sirs!"

Although hearing the word 'unforgivable' gave Teek pause for a moment, he nonetheless responded positively and agreed, trusting Jordan as his master.

Hearing his agreement, Khan smiled at the trust shown to him, and not wanting to waste anymore time, quickly took aim with his trusty wand, casting out 'Imperio!' with practiced ease.

Khan watched with his magical sight, as Green light shot out of his wand, blasting Teek directly, and causing his eyes to take on a similar shade of green, as he expected from all his previous experiences of casting the imperio spell.

But that's not all that happened.

Jordan's spell beam appeared to split apart, right before it impacted Teek, part of it being absorbed into the door!

Appearing like a bit of green lightning, as it was sucked into the door, it looked to also be powering a glowing spinning runic sequence that now also appeared on said door.

Watching the hypnotic sight before him before it disappeared after a few seconds, Khan happily watched as the door slowly creaked open afterwards.

'Sebastian got really good with his runic sequences if he was able to remake a door such as the one we found protecting the Scriptorium!'

Luckily he remembered to release the imperio spell holding Teek, before rushing inside in his eagerness.

A musky smell hit their noses, clearly indicating that just like Natty had said, Sebastian's lab had not been opened in decades, ever since he had left the Department of Mysteries.

Undeterred by the smell, Khan continued in, with Teek hot on his tail. And what they saw, similar to what Jordan saw in the other rooms, was needless to say, somewhat surprising.

They both stopped in slight shock.

Similar to the other rooms, there were a few desks and chairs, the room being illuminated by numerous torches.

But what surprised them however, was what appeared to be the focus of study.

"Is that...."

In the center of the room was what looked to be an Egyptian exhibit, with numerous relics, obelisks surrounding what looked to be a huge pyramid created out of bones.

Four giant skeletons kneeling backwards made up the sides of the Pyramid, with numerous other bones filling in the rest of the pyramid.

In fact, it looked just like a giant version of;

"Dark Magic Artefact that Sebastian got obsessed with, and his uncle Soloman subsequently destroyed?" Khan finished off asking himself from previously, when he had finally gotten a good look at everything, specifically that huge pyramid in the center of the room.

Moving closer, he inspected it, remembering each of his adventures with Sebastian involving this specific relic.

He thought it looked familiar at first glance; now that he was closer, Khan knew without a doubt that was indeed a giant recreation of the smaller dark magic relic that Ominis, Sebastian and himself had discovered all those many years ago.

Did Sebastian really grow so obsessed with that relic, that he continued to study it, going so far as to recreate a giant version of it after his uncle destroyed it?

'And whats up with the Egyptian exhibit?' Khan asked himself, looking around at the variously scattered Obelisks and other clearly Egyptian artefacts, haphazardly littered around giant Relic. 'Natty clearly said that he appeared obsessed with Egypt, but I had no idea it was to this extent....'

Remembering how obsessed Sebastian had become over the relic previously when Anne was sick, Jordan could only imagine how much worse he had gotten in the last 100+ years, especially with how Sebastian's lab appeared to look.

'Over 100 years later, and he's still studying this relic.' Khan thought to himself, walking around the giant pyramid. 'What secrets have you learned after all this time, I wonder....'

*****

"Hello Ms. Tonks! Lovely to see you again!" Khan greeted her with a fond smile on his face.

Khan had unfortunately run out of time, with him agreeing to meet back up with Dumbledore and Moody that evening before heading back to Hogwarts.

And although Jordan wanted to stay longer, searching around Sebastian's lab, the next day was Christmas, with the Yule Ball following later that evening.

And Fleur would kill him if he were to miss that event simply for an investigation...

As a result, he had to leave the lab after a few hours of reading, observing and researching.

"W-W-What are you talking about?!? We just spoke to each other less than a month ago!" Tonks panic yelled in return, embarrassed at Khan's apparent forwardness in front of her mentor.

"I must say, it is refreshing to see you once again in person!" Khan of course was referencing seeing her in person after only talking to her through floo flames, the last time being the summer when he saw her in person last.

'Is he flirting with me? Here?' She thought to herself, her hair beginning to charge to a bright red color, with her thoughts.

"You..... Shut up!" She pointed at him accusingly.

"Lass, I know you two met before, but you should know that he was the primary one responsible for rescuing me from Crouch Jr!" Moody barked out in introduction. "Be more respectful!"

Khan had made his way back to the Auror Department, where Moody was reintroducing him to the currently redheaded and blushing Tonks, much to his amusement.

"But sir! H-h-he's be-"

"No buts! He may be biologically younger than you, but even I treat him as a senior! And so shall you! Understood?!?"

"He hasn't even graduated yet! And what do you mean that you treat him as a senior?!?"

"What graduated.... he's a Junior professor at Hogwarts! He is only waiting to take the rest of his exams..."

Khan watched the mentor and protégé pair argue, clearly displaying their fondness for each other, as they went back and forth with a smile on their face, having apparently forgotten all about Khan, who was left standing there.

After a few more minutes, Jordan's thoughts couldn't help but wander back Sebastian's lab, and specifically, that letter that was currently in his pocket.

***** Back in the Lab *****

After circling the giant recreation of the Dark relic a few times, Jordan soon moved on viewing the other scattered Egyptian artefacts, looking for any significance or link between it, and the giant relic pyramid.

'Could it be that the relic that they found, was actually of Egyptian origin?' Khan thought to himself, looking around in slight awe in his close up examinations of all the numerous artefacts.

Egyptians were the oldest known wizarding civilization that Khan knew of... And although there still currently existed an Egyptian Wizarding Society, Jordan was sure that there were still a lot of lost Egyptian magic that had been lost to time.

Unfortunately, Khan did not see or notice anything different/out of the ordinary with the egyptian relics.

He even casted 'Revelio!' a few times, having gotten back into his old habit, not finding anything, before he decided to move on to searching the various desks littered about the room, looking for any left over notes or diaries Sebastian might have left behind.

Rummaging through a few desks before finally finding something, his search soon bore fruit, as he discovered a few discarded pieces of parchments on them bearing what he recognized to be Sebastian's handwriting.

Opening them up with his hands shaking slightly from his excitement, Jordan took a closer look.

It appeared to be an entry from Sebastian's journal!

He quickly took a read:

~

Dear Journal,

Today, I find myself at the crossroads of ancient mysteries and untold power. As the evening sun casts long shadows across the vast expanse of my lab, I can't help been feel the weight of anticipation and trepidation hanging in the air.

The journey that led me here was one of serendipity and chance, the kind that can only be orchestrated by the whims of destiny herself.

It all began during my recent expedition to the far reaches of Egypt. The land of pharaohs and enigmatic artifacts has always held a peculiar allure for me, especially after Jordan's and my discovery of the dark Egyptian-like artifact, but little did I know that my insatiable curiosity would lead me to an extraordinary discovery.

It was in a small, dimly lit room within a long-forgotten temple that I stumbled upon a parchment of ancient origin, the likes of which I had never encountered before.

The text inscribed upon the fragile surface spoke of a ritual, a ritual so potent and mysterious that its very existence seemed both surreal and fantastical.

The symbols danced before my eyes, their meaning hidden behind layers of intricate secrecy. The hieroglyphs whispered tales of ancient gods and cosmic energies, of a power that lay dormant, waiting to be awakened by those deemed worthy.

It was as if the parchment itself was beckoning me to unveil its secrets, to partake in an adventure unlike any other.

And so, dear Diary, here I stand, on the precipice of an extraordinary adventure. I have yet to unlock the full potential of this ancient rite, to comprehend its true implications.

But with each passing moment, I sense a profound shift in the very fabric of my being, as if the ritual's secrets are intertwined with my destiny.

I tread carefully, mindful of the mysteries that lie dormant within the ancient Egyptian sands.

For now, I will continue my pursuit of knowledge, my thirst for understanding unabated. As I gaze upon the moonlit parchment, a glimmer of anticipation and wonder dances in my eyes.

The journey has just begun, and I cannot fathom what lies ahead. But with every ounce of my being, I am committed to embracing the unknown, to unraveling the cryptic riddles that have captivated my soul.

After all, it is only through that, that I may actually have a chance to save them.

Yours,

S. Sallow

~