Playing With Magic

[P]-[W]-[M]

Reality: Wizarding World (Harry Potter)

Location: Littletree Castle

Johnathan Grey

[P]-[W]-[M]

I fucking love the [Thu'um] so much.

Watching Durnehviir materialise like that brought back so many memories, and watching him and the Dwarves attack the village almost made me want to join them. It would have been like the Stormcloak/Imperial war but with Dwarves and Vampires.

I could still hear 'For the horde' even from here. I suppose it was my fault for going too far into the whole being a dragon thing, but life just made it too easy. I mean, a place to put my things that no one else can access, my [Animagus] form, my [Template], my soul. And most importantly, if I didn't embrace the dragon theme, I would be doing a disservice to all those hours spent replaying Skyrim.

It was a shame it wasn't the real Durnehviir, just a Conjuration equivalent. More intelligent than average Conjurations, with the ability to speak and use dragon shouts, but still not a real dragon. Much like the [Ressurectiion Stone], I couldn't cross realities with the [Thu'um].

At the end of the path from the front gate, standing before the metal front doors, was a pale figure cloaked in dark, flowing robes. Her features were sharp and relatively good-looking, even though she looked rather gaunt. No doubt she was a worker of some kind and most likely didn't get enough blood compared to others. 

"Welcome, stranger," She said as she gave me a curtsy. Her voice sounded meek, but it could just have been the lack of need to speak loudly with how sensitive their hearing was now that they had been turned, though the accent was a little odd. "I am Agnes, servant of this house and faithful to its Lord. I bid thee welcome to his domain."

"Agnes," I greeted just as quietly with an incline of my head. "Let's not keep your Lord waiting."

 "As thee wish, stranger," Agnes nodded, stepping aside to slowly push open the heavy metal doors and motioning for me to follow. "My Lord is awaiting your arrival in one of the dining rooms."

"I must admit," I said as we walked down the corridor, completely ignoring the glances she made to my feet when she noticed I made no sounds of footsteps as we walked. "Your way of speaking is a bit unusual. Is it just habit after being alive for so long?"

Agnes' lips twitched as she continued forward. "Tis no great mystery, stranger. I was born a commoner just after the turn of the century. My old habits sometimes come through as I've not spent enough time improving how I talk. The old ways simply linger 's all."

"Makes sense, I suppose." I nodded. "Though, I can't help but wonder—were you sent to try and kill me once I dropped my guard?"

Agnes froze as her hands tightened around the folds of her dress. She turned her face away from me slightly as she answered, hiding her face behind her long raven hair so I couldn't see her features. "Yes."

I let out a snort as I chuckled humorlessly. "Well, that's rather forthcoming of you. It doesn't seem like the best tactic for someone caught out plotting murder. But I do appreciate honesty."

Agnes shrugged as she continued leading me down the corridor, seemingly resigned to her fate. "There is no point in denying, stranger. Even if you spare me, my master will not. Once he's through with you, I will meet the same fate as anyone who fails him."

I chuckled again, this time with humour, as I clasped my hands behind my back and followed slightly behind her again. "Your master seems to have a bit too much faith in himself. It'll take more than a few dozen vampires to bring me down. Though, if there are more like you who may be here against their will, it would probably do you some good to keep out of what happens next."

Agnes stopped and turned to face him for the first time, her crimson eyes narrowing. "Your allies are still fighting in the village, stranger. You are alone here and don't have the number to win against my lord and his men. How do you plan to survive?"

Though she couldn't see it behind my helmet, a grin was faint but undeniably confident. "Simple. I plan to survive by committing a massacre. But only of the bad vampires, of course."

Agnes blinked, seemingly taken aback by my flippant tone. Her expression softened almost imperceptibly for a moment before she turned back around to continue toward the dining room. "You are either the bravest man I have ever met or the most foolish."

"Man," I repeated her word with a tilt of my head as if testing the word of another language, the deep baritone sound of my voice adding some intensity as I spoke. "You clearly do not understand who you have been talking to."

As we walked down the torchlit corridors in silence for a while, I sensed no change in the locations of the Vampires in the castle. With my senses, I could verify the lower magic levels of those given less blood, much like Agnes, were not in the dining room we were heading to. So I wouldn't have to worry about accidentally killing 'good' vampires when the work was done.

Having made our way through several hallways, stairwells and corridors with blacked-out widows, we finally neared a pair of large ornate doors leading to the large gathering of Vampires. Agnes stopped and turned to address me, "Your name, so that I may announce you?"

With my hands now by my sides, I summoned [Aerondight] from the [Hoard] as I tilted my head slightly, startling Agnes a little. "They may address me as Lord Grey."

She nodded as she rested her expression to be unreadable. "Very well."

With a soft push, she swung open the doors, revealing a vast dining room dominated by a large table in the middle, its surface littered with goblets. Around it sat or stood vampires of various shapes and sizes, pale and grinning viciously. Unlike Agnes, who seemed to dress similarly to Witches, Wizards, or women still in the 1300s, they seemed to be dressed to fit into Muggle culture, with jeans, hoodies, sneakers, etc.

At the head of the table lounged a larger, stereotypical vampire dressed in a 3-piece suit. His feet were resting on the table, and the permanent smirk on his sharp features projected an air of smug attitude like he had already won. In one hand, he held a goblet filled with a thick, crimson liquid, which I didn't need enhanced senses to recognise as blood.

Agnes stepped aside as his dark eyes flickered toward her, gesturing toward me with a slight bow. "My lord, I present… Lord Grey."

A slight smirk played on my lips as I surveyed the room, noticing the clear signs of readying for combat even as they tried to look cool by leaning back in their chairs or leaning against the wall with their arms crossed or in pockets, discreetly holding wands. All eyes in the room were already turned to my direction the moment the doors opened, but I could see some fear in them, no doubt due to the massacre still happening in the Village.

"Grey," the Vampire leader said as he swirled the blood in his goblet almost unconsciously as he tilted his head in thought. "Not a family name I would admit I have heard before, but no matter. You grace us with your presence. I…hear your journey here was eventful?"

"Indeed," I gave the vampire a shallow nod, using [Aerondight] like a cane as I took a few steps into the room, ignoring the angry look the Vampire gave Agnes, indicating for her to leave. "It was a shame I could not participate in the festivities the Village is currently presenting, but I have no doubt our soon-to-be violent conversation will fill me with great solace."

I was leaning into the whole regal persona pretty hard, but I was technically a Lord now - or would be in a few minutes. I needed to get some practice in. Agnes, for her part, silently stepped back out of the room, closing the door behind me.

The lead vampire, still seated at the head of the table, swirled the blood in his goblet lazily as his dark eyes bore into me. With a mixture of condescension and amusement, a faint smile played across his lips.

"'Violent conversation,' he says," the vampire drawled, eliciting some jeers from his minions around the room, which we both ignored as we stared each other down. "So, Grey, does the Ministry truly believe they stand a chance against us now? Our numbers have grown significantly since last any had tried. And when word spreads of today's little stunt, the vampires across the world will rally. You'll have made an enemy of every lair in existence."

I tilted my head slightly, not even slightly caring for his threat. "This isn't about the Ministry." I corrected, resting my gauntleted hands on the pommel of [Aerondight] in front of me. "This is about Littletree, Lord Littletree, that is. His decree before his… untimely demise—it was too intriguing not to give it a try." I paused, letting it sink in. "And frankly, I'm in the market for a lair of my own."

I could feel his magic working, trying to find a trap as we spoke, looking for more people that may have snuck into the castle or wards going up. There were none, not even [Anti-Apparition] Wards. I wanted to send a message, and I would use any surviving Vampires — should there be any — to do just that.

"Ah, so you're just another pretender with delusions of grandeur," He said, practically dripping with mockery as he leaned forward, resting his forearm on the table. A low murmur rippled through the room once again as the vampires exchanged glances, some incredulous, others sneering with contempt. "You've walked into my lair, alone, and think you'll leave it more than a corpse. If I didn't know any better, I would assume you to be a child trying to prove himself a hero without even a viable plan to see his deed through."

For a second, I thought he had figured out who I was, but he was just roasting me…eloquently, I guess.

"Allow me to introduce myself, Grey. I am Lord Alan Gilbert." The head Vampire growled as he slowly rose to his feet. "And unfortunately for you, you have made your last mistake, mortal. Before you die, you will tell us everything—your allies, your plans, the people attacking the village, every pathetic detail. Then, we'll drain you dry and dismember your body, piece by piece." He paused as a feral smile spread across his face, "Your severed limbs will make excellent gifts to the Ministry."

The vampires around the table began to rise as well, and similar to their leader, their movements were predatory. Some cracked their knuckles as they blatantly showed their wands, no longer seeing a reason to hide them. Others licked their lips, purposely revealing their fangs as their jeers and sneers filled the air while they sized me up.

"Tell me," I spoke after a few seconds as I stood utterly calm. "Have any of you ever heard a dragon shout?"

The room fell briefly silent as the Vampires looked at each other, some confused, others growing more agitated. But Gilbert only narrowed his eyes, refusing to dignify the question with a response as he once again checked his wards for any traps, only to come up short concerning finding some kind of trick once again.

"Take him," Gilbert barked.

I instantly summoned 2 [Golems] from the hoard to guard my sides as the vampires closest to me surged forward, moving with supernatural speed. Their movements weren't quite as fast as the Elves from Bright, but they were still around double the physical abilities of regular humans. But to me, they might as well have been moving in slow motion as they bared their claws and fangs while making a B-line right for me.

It was finally time. I had waited far too long to do what I was about to do now, especially as a Skyrim fan. A younger me would have been disappointed by the wait, but what I was about to do now would definitely redeem myself.

Taking a single step forward, I impaled [Aerondight] in the floor, balling up fists to my sides as my chest expanded forward while I took a deep breath. Lowering my stance, I opened my mouth and roared the words every Skyrim player would remember until the day they died.

"FUS… RO DAH!"

The [Thu'um] tore through the dining hall like a hurricane of raw power, practically tearing the very air apart as it exploded like a thunderclap. The vampires closest to me were immediately obliterated, their bodies disintegrating into a gory mess under the sheer magnitude of the blast. Those further out were launched into the stone walls with such force that my enhanced hearing picked up the sound of shattering bone as they became intimate with stone.

Tapestries were shredded, chairs splintered, and the massive dining table was demolished, standing no chance against the Unrelenting Force as it shattered the ornate chandelier above, sending shards of crystal raining down like stars.

Gilbert had been quick to summon a wand from a wrist holster, casting a shielding charm that shimmered into existence just as the shout reached him. But even that wasn't enough to get out unscathed. The magical shockwave struck him like a tidal wave, shattering his shield and flinging him into the far wall. He hit the stone with enough impact to crack the surface behind him like some of his minions, but I could tell he was alive.

I was a little astounded they tried to physically capture me instead of just using the [Incarsurus] spell. Seeing that their wands were already out, it would have been quicker. It wasn't like they didn't have enough magic for it, they did, but I suppose they were possibly hoping to save it up for when my supposed reinforcements turned up. I just couldn't tell if it was bad guys being dumb or overthinking things.

When the dust settled in the now ruined grand dining hall, Gilbert slowly staggered to his feet, using the wall to stabilise himself. With blood dripping from the corner of his mouth and his suit now in tatters, his rage-filled dark eyes took in the damage as he scanned the room. Seeing nothing but crimson-stained walls and a floor littered with the lifeless forms of the vampires crumpled in grotesque heaps, having been too slow or weak to protect themselves, or too far to be disintegrated by the [Thu'um].

A handful of vampires also managed to rise, groaning and shaking off debris. They exchanged wary glances, settling on their boss for further instructions. Gilbert, however, had his gaze fixed in my direction, his mind going a mile a minute.

"He summoned the statues," Gilbert spoke quickly in a horse but sharp voice, "to guard him while he cast the spell. And the sword…" His eyes flicked to [Aerondight], still impaled on the floor. "He needs it to protect himself while his magic recharges."

Instead of granting the soon-to-be-dead Vampire a verbal answer, I casually moved my hand to the hilt of the sword, my fingers lazily wrapping around the handle.

"I find it rather odd how someone with enhanced visual senses can see so little," I said casually as if I hadn't just killed over 30 Vampires. "I had so many ways to kill you. A maximised sunlight spell, overwhelming your castle with thousands of golems, altering your wards to allow for sunlight to bust through and then destroy the windows. But, I settle with a shout and a sword…and now, I find myself disappointed."

Gilbert's lips curled into a snarl. "Forget capturing him," he barked venomously to the surviving vampires, "Kill him! Kill him before he can do that spell again!"

The vampires hesitated for only a moment before survival instincts overwhelmed their fear. They bared their fangs and grabbed some ceremonial swords that were knocked off the walls by the [Thu'um], surging forward faster than human eyes would be able to properly track. 

Gilbert himself chose to hang back, aiming his wand directly at my chest, with green glowing on its tip. "Avada Kedavra!" He shouted with a sneer.

Finally seeing the chance to test the [Reflect] spell from the Mysticism school of magic on the killing curse, I sidestepped the green spell while casting [Reflect], just in case things didn't go as planned. Seeing the green death energy bouncing off the [Reflect] and heading right for the now surprised, wide-eyed Vampire, who was at least cognisant enough to dive to the side, allowing the spell to destroy a portion of the wall in his place. 

This didn't stop the other vampires from trying to get to me, though. So, pulling [Aerondight] from the floor, I stood ready as they closed in while putting the [Golems] back in the Hoard, wanting to test my improved physique a little.

The first Vampire to reach me struck forward with a curved blade aimed at my side. With a fluid motion, I parried the attack, letting his momentum take him further past me as I twisted, deflecting another blow from a second attacker, stabbing a third in the heart and kicking his dying corpse away to refocus on the others. Having regained his footing, the first to have attacked me tuned to do so again, only to be decapitated by one quick whirl of my sword, too slow to properly react.

A rather ambitious Vampire swung dual blades for my neck. Forcing me to spin and pivot to evade the strikes, before sidestepping a spear thrust from one that had gotten behind me. Using my sword as leverage on the shaft, I effortlessly grabbed just underneath the spear tip, snapped it in half and impaled the failed spearman in the heart, all in the same breath.

Trying to use his dying comrade as a way to mask his attack, one Vampire tried stabbing me through the corpse with a longsword. But even without magic sense, I would have heard his attempt with my enhanced hearing. Punching the corpse forward as a distraction, I darted to the right of it, the same direction the Vampire moved, and used the momentum to deliver a devastating cleave, decapitating the old living dead, black blood staining the floor.

"Avada Kedavra!"

Once again, I cast [Reflect] on the killing curse heading right for me courtesy of Gilbert, not even bothering to look at the effects of the deflected spell heading back to its sender as I cut through a poorly made blade to bisect the skull of a vampire trying to block [Aerondight]'s path. Even with the black blood splurging out of said skull, my armour remained clean as the innards slid to add to all the gore on the floor.

Cutting the throat of a jumping bloodsucker behind me without even looking, I spun low, sweeping one bald vampire off his feet before driving my blade into another's chest and going back to impale the downed vampire in a single, fluid motion. The wound didn't reach his heart, but it didn't need to. The basilisk venom would do its word soon enough.

Pulling my sword free, I turned just in time to catch a dagger aimed at my throat. With his hand outstretched across the room, it was clear to see Gilbert resorted to using physical attacks when he realised his spells didn't work.

"You could have all apparated out of here," I spoke casually, dropping the dagger to the side as I straightened to full height, slowly walking in his direction, seeing that he was the last surviving living dead in the room. "You could have retrieved the reinforcements from the other colonies of Vampires you mentioned earlier. But it doesn't seem like you chose to do either."

"Useless fuckers," the vampire scoffed. "Looks like I have to do everything myself." He sneered, discarding his wand like a child throwing a tantrum and moving to pick up a longsword from the floor off to the side.

Coming to a stop in the middle of the room, I didn't bother stopping him, patiently waiting for what I already guessed would be an anticlimactic final duel. Ripping off the tattered suit jacket with his free hand, Gilbert walked to stand a few feet in front of me as our eyes locked.

"You will die here, mortal," Gilbert growled with the sneer still plastered on his face. "I will make sure of it. Then I will get the reinforcements to take care of all those that attacked the village before going after their families" A sinister smile formed on his face as he spoke. "The children, grandparents, wives, husbands, brothers, sisters, it doesn't matter. They will feel paid before they die….this I can promise you. All because you couldn't mind your fucking business."

I stared at the Vampire for a long moment, taking in his words and thinking about all the people he must have killed to live this long. All the 'children, grandparents, wives, husbands, brothers and sisters' he must have killed….and I started to regret the time I gave him to ready himself just now as I asked, "Now, why would you have to go and say that?"

Lifting my left hand, I started to clench my hand into a fist as he got into a stance and watched as his body froze and started bending in on itself.

"ARGHN! YOU MoThE-AREGHCK!" He forced out through gritted teeth as my [Telekinesis] jerked his body violently, causing grotesque cracks to echo around the room as his hands and feet snapped, forcing him to drop the sword. Gilbert snarled, fangs bared, as he struggled against the unseen force, even using his magic to try and counter it, but its attempts were futile—he lacked the power to stop me.

"RARG-ARHG! FUC-ARURG!" The Vampire Lord let out a guttural scream as his shoulders caved inward, the audible snap of bones once again reverberating through the room as his arms were forced toward its chest. His ribcage buckled with an agonising creak, causing him to throw up black blood as I continued. The painfully dying Vampire's guttural screams filled the air as I dedicated a few minutes, slowly crushing him to death.

With a final, decisive motion, I completely clenched my fist as tight as I could, Gilbert's entire form compacted inward, collapsing with a sickening, wet crunch. The sound was a gruesome mix of shattered bones and ruptured organs. What remained was a black dripping ball of flesh and blood the size of a basketball, which went discarded to the floor as I released my hold.

The room fell eerily silent as I slowly lowered my hand, placing [Aerondight] in the [Hoard] while I turned to leave, ignoring the revolting smell of the numerous dead Vampires strewn across the room.

Next time, I will remember to deliver a cool one-liner before I kill my opponent… hopefully. But for now, I will have to settle with a mutter barely over a whisper.

"For the horde."

[P]-[W]-[M]

"There are worse things out tonight than vampires."

—Blade

[P]-[W]-[M]

Hello there

Some villains over-analyse, some just do dumb things even if they're smart….some just lack brain cells.

Then you get the actual geniuses who just win by practically out-thinking the universe, or having plot armour… clearly, Gilbert wasn't a genius.

[P]-[W]-[M]

Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OC and original ideas. All credit goes to their respective owners.

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