Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
A.N : The identity of the girl portrayed in the cover will be revealed later. Don't worry.
Chapter 01: The End of an Era of Darkness
A colossal structure with a triangular shape and made of slick grey stone stood towering over the small island where it had been built.
This fortress was home to the most cruel and evil wizard that these lands had ever seen, and even the building itself struck fear into the hearts of the people.
No one dared to come close, as it was said that anyone who approached the cursed island would never be seen again and remain trapped in this place where they would be tortured for an eternity.
An old fishing village used to exist in its proximity, but just a few years after the construction of the fortress, everyone in that village had disappeared, turning it into a ghost town.
Once in a while, people from other towns or farming villages would sometimes disappear as well, and no matter how much the authorities investigated, they were never found.
They all knew who was responsible for those disappearances. It was the old wizard who lived in that grey fortress. However, not even the soldiers dared to come close to his island.
A few times, villagers had claimed to see something that resembled a person flying through the sky in the middle of the night, riding an old broom while laughing maniacally.
The rulers of the land had tried to capture him on a few occasions by sending some of their best knights to the fortress, but those few survivors who returned spoke of the horrors they witnessed.
They told tales of ghosts, demons, and other hideous creatures living in that place. They also spoke of the wizard himself, who was able to turn humans into pigs, make them levitate in the air, or just make them vanish with a simple wave of his hand.
The King made the decision to ignore the wizard from then on. A few villagers disappearing here and there was not worth the trouble of facing that monster and losing his best men. The land around the wizard's fortress was declared cursed territory, and no one was allowed to get close to it.
And just like that, more years passed. The King grew old, and his kingdom prospered. He had two strong sons and a beautiful daughter called Helena. She was his youngest child and the pride of his life.
Helena came to be known as the most beautiful woman in the entire kingdom. She was also extremely smart, as well as humble and kind.
The King received countless proposals asking for his daughter's hand, but he never agreed to any of them. No one seemed good enough for his precious daughter, his pride and joy.
That was until he received the strangest of proposals, delivered by a black owl that flew into his bedroom one night. It came from none other than the evil wizard, and it requested that his daughter be given in marriage to him.
The King had no idea when this reclusive monster had even had the chance to see his daughter, but it was of little importance. He would never allow that monster to have her.
The King was absolutely outraged at the impudence of this demon to even dare to covet his Helena. In his moment of fury, he wrote a strongly worded letter, filled with all the things he had wanted to say to this evil wizard had he ever come face to face with him, and ended with a warning where he promised to obliterate him and his tower if he ever dared to think about laying a hand on his daughter.
The black owl, which had been waiting for his answer, took the letter in its beak and flew away into the night.
The King could no longer sleep. He called for his advisors and his most trusted general to make preparations, just in case the wizard dared to do something.
Even with all the precautions they had taken to guarantee Helena's protection, neither the King nor his trusted advisors could have predicted what the wizard was capable of accomplishing with his use of arcane magic.
Not even a week after the letter was received… his precious daughter Helena disappeared in the middle of the night, even with her window sealed shut and two guards standing by her door.
No one knew how the wizard had managed this evil deed, but this no longer mattered to the King. He was beyond enraged at this point, and he wanted his daughter back more than anything.
The King had refused to mobilize his army in the past to face the wizard as he knew the losses would be massive. He cared little for the deaths of a few peasants.
But now it is the life of his beloved daughter in the line. So without hesitation, he summoned his entire royal army to assemble and march toward the wizard's fortress.
The old ruler no longer cared how much it cost or how many of his knights and soldiers would have to die today. He was willing to throw everything away to kill that monster and retrieve his daughter.
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A violent storm raged that night. Rain hit the grey stone of the wizard's tower while thunder rumbled in the distance.
The old wizard walked with difficulty through the dimly lit corridors of his dwelling. Blood poured from his leg, and he groaned in pain. An arrow had managed to hit him, and even though he had the skills to heal it, he was too exhausted to do so.
His breath sounded ragged as he continued moving.
"Damn humans… I hate you all so much… I will destroy every single one of you… one day."
He saw the corpses of both humans and his own creatures, who had been guarding his fortress.
The wizard had certainly expected a reaction from the King, but he had seriously underestimated how much the man cared for his daughter.
The bastard had sent the entire army, and he had to admit… it had been a bit more than he could handle.
The battle had lasted for hours, starting in the early afternoon and lasting until almost midnight.
Most of his creations had been killed or driven away. His body was covered in grievous wounds, and his magic was almost exhausted.
"Argh… no… it can't end like this… I won't allow it…"
He couldn't die now. Not when he still had so much to accomplish… so many experiments to complete.
But even more so, he refused to die because he was captivated by a woman. This had always been a weakness of his, but he never thought it would cause his end.
"Hm?" As he was opening the door that led to his basement, amid the sounds of the rain and storm, he heard something metallic.
All of a sudden, a sharp blade tried to slice his neck.
"Urgh!" The wizard moved away as fast as he could but still received a nasty cut on his right shoulder.
His dark eyes were now able to spot the figure of a fully armored knight, standing beneath the door frame.
The knight was also gravely injured, just barely standing by sheer willpower at this point.
Had this knight been in better shape, he would have been dead for sure.
The wizard raised the wand in his shaky right hand and pointed it at the knight.
Before this one could charge at him, he used what little magic he had left to end his life.
"κατάρα του θανάτου."
A green beam of light came out of his wand and hit the knight in the chest.
The armored warrior dropped to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.
"Hehe…" The wizard laughed with satisfaction. He may have been exhausted and close to death, but he could still enjoy watching them die like that.
Hoping that no more soldiers of the King were left alive, he ventured deeper into the bowels of his dwelling.
The basement was like a labyrinth, filled with doors and endless narrow passages.
He moved his bony fingers across the surface of the grey walls until he found the exact spot.
One of the bricks held a secret to access his treasury. As the magical array recognized him, a hidden door opened beside him, and he moved inside.
It was here where he had hidden his most important treasures. The room was small and only contained a few dozen items, but each one of them was incredibly valuable to him.
Even if his fortress was taken, the wizard was confident that no one would find this place.
His tired eyes moved to a spherical object resting on one of the shelves.
"There it is…" He carefully took it out of its base and held it in his hands.
This was going to be his way to survive.
"To me, my children…" he spoke in a tired voice.
Shadowy creatures emerged from within the walls.
For others, these beings would be horrifying monsters, humans called them wraiths and feared them to no end. But to him, they were his beloved creations… and his most loyal followers.
"I knew those humans could not take you away from m—urgh!" His legs could no longer hold his weight, and the old wizard fell on his back.
"I… I have little time. You need to do something for me…" He used what little magic he had left to activate the object in his hands.
It began to emit an eerie green light, and the wizard could immediately feel the effects.
The creatures that would later become known as 'Dementors' approached their creator and let out sounds of agony.
The wizard raised his hands up. The spherical object shone brightly, bathing the room in green.
"I am… Ekrizdis Skarvok, and I shall be eternal. You shall find me a new vessel so I may return in the future and lay waste to humanity."
His body gave up. His hands collapsed, and his eyes lost their shine.
The most cruel wizard this land had ever seen… had just died.
But this was just the beginning.
The green sphere continued to float in the air. One of the dementors extended its fingers and touched it.
The moment it did, the essence of Ekrizdis Skarvok — his soul, his knowledge, and everything that made him… himself, became contained inside this particular dementor.
The creatures looked down at their fallen creator and cried for hours before finally leaving.
Finally, the room closed its door automatically, as it was designed to do, trapping the corpse of the old wizard and sealing itself again, so no one could find this place ever again.