Anima Summa Book 3 - Into the Light

Chapter 2

Between the Two Rivers

Margot and Ron walked hand in hand around the edge of the garden one morning. Margot hadn't spoken much since breakfast, and Ron's attempts to get his girlfriend to talk didn't seem to be working. He frowned as he looked at her out of the corner of his eye - he could see that something was worrying her.

When they walked around behind the large beech tree at the back of the garden, Ron stopped and reached out to take hold of Margot's other hand, gently pulling her around to face him. "Margot... you seem... uh... a bit worried about something. Do... do you want to tell me about it? You haven't... you know... gone off me or anything have you?"

Margot looked puzzled for a moment as she stared into the concerned eyes of her boyfriend. She hadn't said anything about her horrible dream to anyone other than Ceri - they'd both agreed that it wouldn't serve any useful purpose to worry anybody with it. But at this particular moment she had something else on her mind. Her eyes opened wide as she realised what Ron was saying. "Oh Ron, of course I haven't gone off you. I... I love you - you know that."

Ron's expression changed to one of great relief and he let out the breath that he'd unconsciously been holding.

"Ron," said Margot, looking down at the ground shyly, "it... it's about something that Hermione said the other day. I... I've been getting these... feelings." She looked back up into Ron's eyes, her face colouring up. "Oh... I don't know how to say this!"

Ron pulled her towards him and gently eased her head onto his shoulder. "Just say it, Margot."

"But it's so difficult," she replied. Then she whispered into his ear, "I... these feelings... I can feel them now... they're about us, Ron, and I think you might not like me so much if I tell you about them."

"Margot!" exclaimed Ron as he eased her away to look into her tortured eyes. "There's nothing you can say that'll do that - you know that."

Margot put her head back onto his shoulder, shielding her eyes from the piercing gaze that tried to look into her soul. "Hermione told me that the rings are helping her and Harry with their... feelings. But there's nothing helping me Ron!"

Ron's eyes flew open and a red tinge crept up his face - he was glad that Margot couldn't see his reaction. "Margot," he whispered, "Harry and I... talked about it as well. He told me what the rings are doing. He said that you might have these... feelings... as well, but I didn't really believe him."

Margot gasped and she pulled away. "Ron... oh, I knew you'd think I was ... not nice... if I told you!"

"I... I don't think you're not nice Margot. I... I've been having the same feelings - it's all I seem to think about these days. You're the nicest girl I know - it's just that I... I just didn't think you could have those sort of feelings for someone like me."

Margot smiled weakly. "And why not, mon petite chevalier rouge?"

Ron didn't answer - he just pulled Margot to him, holding her tightly.

"I think... Hermione thinks as well... that we should wait until the quest is over before we... before we... you know. We both think that we all have to stay... pure... until it's all over."

"Hermione knows about this?" said Ron weakly.

"Of course - she went through the same sort of thing with Harry last year. But they've got help - we haven't."

"Then we'll just have to be very... uh, careful," he replied, and then grinned slyly. "Perhaps I'll ask Ginny to run shotgun over us."

"You will do no such thing, Ron," she said, drawing back once more. "Ginny's got problems of her own without getting involved in ours."

"What problems?" asked Ron, his face full of concern.

"Just... girl problems Ron. Forget I said anything to you about it. It's nothing that she can't handle on her own."

***

It was just over a week after Margot's dream before she had the next one. But she wasn't alone - she shared it with the Anima Summas. They all experienced exactly the same details, which they were able to remember the following morning.

"This is weird!" said Harry as he sat talking with the other four the next morning. "Why do you think all three of us dreamt the same thing?"

Margot shook her head. "It's not the first time I've experienced something like that - it was very similar to my dream at the end of the last quest, when I spoke to you in the twelfth hour of the Duat. But although I was dreaming then, you weren't, of course - to you it was all too real."

"All this dreaming stuff is way beyond me," said Ron. "The only things I dream about are Quidditch and food - although not necessarily in that order!"

"Ron!" exclaimed Ginny. "Don't be so flippant - this could be very serious."

"I only said what my dreams are about, Ginny," said Ron, looking hurt. "I know it could be serious."

Hermione had contributed nothing to the conversation up to this point - she sat deep in thought. Then she looked up at her friends. "I think it must be part of our ancient powers and knowledge coming to the surface."

Harry frowned. "What makes you think that?"

"Well, the dream was primarily about us - the Anima Summas - and I think that because Margot was sleeping so close to us, and knowing her ability to experience dreams and visions, she just mentally picked up on it and... well, just joined in. What do you think, Margot, you know more about this sort of thing than any of us?"

Margot thought for a few moments. "Well I've heard of shared dreams between two people before, mainly between two psychically compatible people who are very close. But I've not heard about three people sharing a dream, and it's certainly the first one I've experienced. But I suppose that what you say is theoretically possible, especially considering the joint powers of the Anima Summas."

"That's amazing!" exclaimed Ginny. "I wish I could have joined in on it!" She glanced at Ron a bit warily. "Tell us again what you saw in the dream."

"Well," started Harry, "Hermione and I were walking down by the river bank, and we heard a noise coming from one of the bushes."

"That's where I joined in," said Margot. "I walked through the bushes and up to Harry and Hermione."

"Then the three of us started talking about Thoth," continued Hermione. "And with that, he just appeared in front of us, sitting on the ground reading his book. He didn't say anything; he just looked up at us and pointed to the book. Then he smiled and disappeared."

"Then we had this sudden urge to Zapparate to somewhere," said Harry. "I don't know where - but we just knew that we'd find Death Eaters there."

"Did you feel that as well Margot?" asked Ginny.

"Well not exactly," she replied. "I knew that Harry and Hermione had to go somewhere, but I didn't feel that I had to go there myself."

"Then we all felt this sudden sense of urgency," said Hermione. "It was really strange - a deep-seated feeling that we had to do something. Not the urgency to Zapparate - this was something else."

"What was it you had to do?" asked Ron.

"We don't know," replied Hermione. "I can only describe it like one of those itches somewhere deep beneath your skin - an itch that you can't quite reach to scratch it."

"Then it was over," said Harry. "It wasn't until Margot tackled us about it that we realised that we'd all had the same dream."

Ginny's head suddenly shot up, her eyes ablaze. "Have you read it yet?"

"What?" they all said.

"Have you read it yet!" she repeated. "The Book of Thoth - he was pointing to his book in the dream - then you had this feeling of urgency. I think it's something that's been embedded in your minds, something that gives you a bit of a jog when something starts to materialise in the Book of Thoth."

"Of course!" said Hermione. "Why on earth didn't we think of that before?"

Harry frowned and reached out to hold Hermione's hand. He sent his thoughts to her, but spoke them as well for the benefit of the other three, "I think it's all part of the lethargy that seems to have settled on us since the summer holidays began. We've all wondered why we haven't made any progress with the quest, but I think it's all been part of the quest."

Hermione nodded silently, understanding Harry's thoughts, but the others just looked puzzled. "What do you mean Harry?" asked Ron.

"Thoth told us that we wouldn't be able to read his book until the time was right. Perhaps it's only now that the time is right. Perhaps all this lethargy and agonising over what to do was just meant to be. Perhaps we were being taught the virtue of patience or something. It's difficult to explain it in words, but you know what I'm getting at Hermione."

She nodded. "I know Harry, and I think you're right. It's as if my mind has been... sort of... opened up again. Even now, I'm beginning to see things more clearly, and think them through. I just haven't been able to do that for the last month or so."

"Before you tell us your ideas Hermione," said Ginny, "don't you think you and Harry should materialise the book of Thoth and see what's written there?"

Hermione nodded and reached out her hand to Harry once more. He caught it and they both closed their eyes, concentrating on materialising the book of Thoth. The surface of the grass in front of them started to shimmer, then the book appeared as a faintly glowing papyrus scroll.

They all looked at it expectantly, but then Ron gasped, "It's still blank!"

"Hang on a minute, Ron," said Ginny. "Last time we saw it there was only one page - but you can see that there's about five pages now. Maybe there's something written on the pages underneath."

Harry reached out and flipped over the pages of the scroll, all of which were blank except for the fifth and last page. They saw that about half the page was covered in Egyptian hieroglyphics.

"What does it say?" asked Margot.

Hermione scanned the columns of script and then summarised what was written. "Thoth is talking about an ancient spell; one that Harry and I can use. He says that in times of strife, the forces of Dark can be located by use of this spell which, it seems, Harry and I already have in our memories - one of the spells that Jesus gave us below Rennes-le-Chateau. We can use it to Zapparate to them."

"Anything else?" asked Ginny.

Harry shook his head. "That's all."

"Why do you think the first four pages are blank?" asked Ron.

"Probably because we're not yet ready to read what's on them," replied Harry. "But I can't see the relevance of this particular spell to solving the quest."

Hermione grinned suddenly. "I think that's part of it. Thoth is just telling us that there are spells and knowledge for us to find - but once we find something, we can't just go off and use it. We've got to be a bit cleverer and use our judgement in how we apply the knowledge - some things are better saved for later use. What do you think?"

"I suppose that makes sense - I think," said Ron, doubtfully.

"I think we'd better tell Sirius and the others about this," said Margot. "That spell might come in handy if we want to locate where the Death Eaters are - you know, to check if they're hiding out along our intended path or something."

"Of course, once we get our full powers, we could use it to locate Voldemort, I suppose," said Hermione.

Harry straightened up from his crouched position suddenly. "Yes! We can use it to get to Voldemort - maybe that's why Thoth told us about it now, before Voldemort translates those spells and activates the Disc of Gates. I think we should find him as soon as possible and stop him!"

"Harry, we can't!" exclaimed Hermione. "Didn't you hear what we've been saying? We've got to apply a bit of shrewdness to this. I think it'll be a big mistake to tackle Voldemort before we've got access to our full powers."

Ginny shuddered. "Come on. Let's find Sirius and the others."

***

"At last!" hissed Voldemort as Lucius and Travis walked into his cave. "Have you set up the special team?"

"Yes, my Lord," answered Lucius. "As we speak, thirty of our best Death Eaters are beginning their intensive training."

"Good. Crabbe, is the Portkey ready yet?"

Crabbe nodded. "Yes, my Lord. We can leave for the desert immediately."

Voldemort walked over to Ahmed who was still toiling away, trying to crack the cipher that hid the spells. He'd come to look on his task as more than just an intellectual challenge; he now saw it as an affront to the immense knowledge and prowess that he possessed, and he absolutely refused to believe that someone was capable of thwarting his best efforts - even if that someone had been an Anima Summa!

"You stay here to work on the spells, Ahmed," said Voldemort. "I should be back later this evening with some answers to help you complete the task."

Voldemort strode out of the cave, followed by Lucius, Crabbe, Travis and Wormtail. He didn't hear what Ahmed muttered under his breath - luckily for Ahmed. "I don't need any help! I just need more time."

Five minutes later, the five Dark Wizards strode purposefully through the cleft in the cliffs and into the ruined city of Petra, heading towards El Deir and the magical entrance to the fabled city of Irem.

The petrified body of Findus Plonger still stood at the entrance to the Temple of Gates, but didn't attract even a cursory glance from Voldemort as he led his group inside. The four torch holders were still in place around the inky black alter, and Wormtail was sent to bring more of the other-worldly dark material from the building next door to replenish what had been consumed when the last ritual had been held.

"Will you use the Disc of Gates to channel the magical energy this time, my Lord?" asked Crabbe.

Voldemort shook his head. "No Crabbe. We'll use the Necronomicon again - I don't want to risk the Nephilim getting through the gate yet."

Voldemort climbed up the steps to the top of the altar and placed the Necronomicon on its black surface. He looked down and waited until the torch holders were filled and lit and his four servants went to their correct places; then he started the ritual.

As he proceeded, Voldemort looked up at the temple walls and saw that once more, some of the pieces of black material started to spark into life. He watched as his helpers knelt on the ground and raised their arms, chanting the strange words of the ritual. He looked back down at the Necronomicon, lifted his wand, and chanted the words that were there. Green light burst from the end of his wand and covered the Necronomicon, while the black material on the walls now glowed and pulsed with the green light.

The Dark Lord spoke the final words of the ceremony as he pointed his wand at the book before him. "SA KAPU... GEN KURUM."

Green light started to stream down from the walls onto the Necronomicon, where it gathered for a few moments before sending a beam of green power towards the fresco at the far end of the temple.

The beam stopped midway between the altar and the fresco and a small black hole started to form in the air at the place where the light was concentrated. Slowly, a small area of white light started to expand at the centre of the hole, extending outwards to consume the blackness. Then it was finished; the gate had been opened once more.

Voldemort could just make out the shadowy form of the Guardian undulating in the background. Then the image became clearer and the Guardian stared into the temple, his evil gaze taking in the dark-cloaked figures before him.

"Voldemort!" said the Guardian of the Gate. "Where have you been? I told you to keep me informed of your progress!"

Voldemort glanced at the Death Eaters below the altar, and again saw that they had not heard the Guardian - the voice was for his ears only.

"That is why I am here," he replied. "I have recovered the Disc of Gates and the spells, but I have paid a heavy price. Hundreds of my best followers were killed or captured in a fierce battle at the place where the spells were hidden. But I prevailed, and I now have the ancient relics."

"And what of the Anima Summas? Have they been eliminated?"

"No," replied Voldemort. "But my campaign of terror has started, and the wizarding communities throughout the world tremble with fear. But there is a problem. The ancient spells have been scrambled in such a way that they cannot be read. I believe that it was the ancient Anima Summas who did this deed before they were hidden. I have come to seek your advice, for all attempts by my best scholars have failed to reveal the spells."

The Guardian stared at the Dark Lord for a few moments. "I am not pleased with you Voldemort. If you are as dark as you say you are, you should have the knowledge to cut through the spell of Light. But no matter - seek out the secret abode of another Dark Wizard, the archenemy of the ancient Anima Summas. The answers that you seek will surely be found within his secret chamber. Go to Abydos - to the tomb of Osiris. At the back of that place you will find a small column of copper that supports a rounded recess that holds, or once held, the likeness of Seth. Twist the column and open it."

Voldemort nodded. "You have my gratitude. I will take my scholars to Egypt and find the answers to the riddle."

"I do not want your gratitude, Voldemort. We grow impatient. I want to know when you have eliminated the Anima Summas. Then we can come into your realm and take our revenge."

"As soon as I have the spells, the Anima Summas will be my first target. When they are dead, I will return and open the portal fully."

"Be quick, Voldemort, our patience wears thin."

The Guardian gazed with evil eyes as the light shimmered, and the gate to the Dark Realm closed. Voldemort stared for a few moments at the spot where the portal had been, and breathed deeply. He fought to control his anger at being spoken to as if he were a mere puppet of the Nephilim, but his anger eased at the thought that he now had the key to unlocking the spells. He placed the Necronomicon inside his robes, then turned and walked back down to the temple floor.

"Come - we have to collect Ahmed and then go to Egypt to find the secret chamber of Seth."

***

"No Harry! I absolutely forbid it!"

Sirius stared angrily at his godson and run his hand through his black hair once more. "How can you even think of tackling 'You Know Who' before you've got access to your full powers!"

"But Sirius," said Harry, looking abashed, "if we can stop him translating those spells, we'll be saving a lot of innocent lives, I know we would."

"I know Harry," Sirius said more gently. "Look, I'm sorry to have lost my cool, but I really don't think it's a good idea. You'll be placing yourself in great danger, and not only yourself - Hermione would have to be there with you as well. Do you want to risk her getting hurt?"

Harry glanced at Hermione sitting next to him at the kitchen table. "No," he whispered.

Katie leaned across the table and squeezed Harry's arm. "Dad's right Harry. Now isn't the time to go chasing across the country after the Dark Lord. Listen to what Hermione said - she made a lot of sense."

Harry smiled wryly at his cousin. "She always does Katie. I sometimes allow my impatience to get in the way of her judgement, I'm afraid." He turned to Sirius. "All right Sirius, don't worry - I won't do anything stupid."

Hermione smiled at Harry as she caught hold of his hand in hers and gently squeezed.

"Hermione," said Ginny, "you said earlier you were starting to get a few ideas about the quest. Let's go back outside and talk about them."

The five youngsters got up from the table and walked into the garden, where they sat in a circle. Four pairs of eyes stared at Hermione - waiting for her to start talking.

She breathed deeply, looking at each of her friends in turn. "I don't think you're going to like this. We've got to trace Thoth's previous existences back to the place where wizard-kind was started."

"And we haven't got a clue how many former lives he had," said Ron. "We could go on a tour of all the ancient sites in the world for all we know. Remember last year when we had to chase after the places where poor old Pontius lived?"

"I don't know Ron," said Hermione. "But don't forget that we're looking for a civilisation that existed before Egypt, and there aren't many of those as far as we know."

"You've got somewhere in mind?" asked Harry.

"Yes, Harry," she said shaking her head. "I can't believe I didn't think of it before. And this is the bit you're not going to like - especially you Ron."

All four stared at Hermione, waiting.

"Ancient Sumer," she said. "As far as we know, that was the greatest civilisation before the Egyptian dynasties started. In fact, many scholars believe it was the very first great civilisation in the history of the world."

"But it can't be Hermione," said Margot. "Thoth told you to follow his previous existences - plural. So there must have been one or more even earlier civilisations than Sumer."

Hermione nodded. "I know, Margot. That's another thing that's worrying me. We don't know - nobody knows - of any great civilisation before Sumer. So when we get to the stage where we have to look for it, or them, there just won't be any information available. There won't be any books about it, so we won't be able to do any research. What do we do then?"

"First things first," said Ginny. "Let's get the Sumer one sorted - then we'll worry about the rest."

"Where is Sumer anyway?" asked Ron.

Hermione looked at Ron and smiled wryly. "Mesopotamia Ron. The land between the two rivers - Iraq."

"Oh bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed. "It was bad enough having Death Eaters to worry about, now we'll have Saddam bloody Hussein as well!" (*Note: The quest took place before the recent events in Iraq, of course.)

"I don't think we'll have to worry too much about him Ron," said Hermione. "I've got a feeling that the places we'll have to go to will be miles from anywhere - out in the desert where the ancient cities once stood."

"And knowing Saddam Hussein," said Ron quickly. "He'll have probably chosen that very spot to hide one of his chemical weapon stockpiles."

Margot rubbed Ron's shoulder. "Don't be so pessimistic Ron. I'm sure we won't come across anything like that." Ron soon forgot his agitation as he turned and became lost in the warm gaze of his girlfriend's beautiful green eyes.

"How come you know so much about Muggle current affairs Ron?" asked Harry.

"I heard Mr. Granger talking about the situation in Iraq with Dad and Margot's grandfather," he replied.

Margot smiled. "Those three get on so well together. You wouldn't think they would, given their completely different backgrounds."

"It's probably because Dad and Professor Denarnaud are so interested in the Muggle world," said Ginny. "But talking about Sumer - I thought it was called Sumeria, Hermione," said Ginny.

"That's a mistake that many people make, Ginny. The name, Sumeria, has only come into use recently - derived from the name of the people of Sumer - the Sumerians."

"So what makes you think that Thoth was in Sumer?" asked Harry, looking at his girlfriend.

"Because," she replied, "most scholars think that the art of writing started in ancient Sumer. The clay tablets uncovered at the start of the twentieth century have been dated to before the Egyptians. And we know that Thoth invented writing - ergo, Sumer!"

"Ok, you've convinced me," said Harry, smiling. "So what else do you know about the place?"

"Uh - nothing," she replied. "I just remember reading a bit about it when we were researching Thoth."

"And you didn't read about the name of the one who invented writing in Sumer?"

"No, I'm afraid not," she replied.

"Well I suppose that means we've got to get back to Hogwarts to do a bit of reading again?" asked Ron, smiling wryly.

"Spot on Ron," said Hermione. "Let's get back and tell the others."

Ginny grinned. "Oliver and Katie'll be pleased about that."

Hermione frowned. "Why's that Ginny?"

Ginny glanced at Harry. "Uh nothing. I'll tell you later."

She went to follow Ron and Harry as they walked back to the house, but her progress was suddenly halted by both Hermione and Margot as they caught hold of the back of her robes.

"What about Oliver and Katie, Ginny?" whispered Hermione.

Ginny looked to make sure that Harry was out of earshot. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed! Can't you read the body language?"

Margot smiled. "Our sense of intrigue isn't as well developed as yours Ginny. You'll just have to tell us."

Ginny raised her eyes to the sky. "You two are an affront to the female of the species. Though, I suppose you have got two very good excuses for not being so attentive! It's obvious that Oliver and Katie are a bit... uncomfortable. I don't think they like the... uh... sleeping arrangements very much."

"Ginny!" gasped Hermione. "How do you know that?"

"I told you, Hermione - body language. And haven't you seen them sneaking off into the bushes down by the river?"

"Oh Ginny!" said Margot. "You don't think that they... you know... in the middle of the night?"

"Oh no, Margot. They don't play midnight musical chairs. Oliver probably knows that Fred and George have put 'creaking floorboard' spells all around the upstairs corridors in the house."

Hermione gasped once more. "I thought they were just joking when they said they'd do that!"

Ginny grinned. "Fred and George are always joking - but they don't joke about jokes. They take their pranks very seriously, you know."

"So..." started Margot.

Ginny nodded. "So they'll probably think that the sleeping arrangements will be a bit more... flexible, shall we say, when we get back to Hogwarts."

"You never cease to amaze me Ginny Weasley," said Hermione as the three started walking back to the house.

***

Alvis Grimwald looked down at the small village nestling at the bottom of a little valley at the North Eastern end of the Pennine Mountains in North Yorkshire, and glanced across at the line of thirty Death Eaters under his command.

Excitement and anticipation coursed through his veins. This was the first field training exercise to be held for the special squad of Death Eaters, charged with the task of tracking down and capturing, or killing, the Anima Summas. Their instructors sat about half a mile away, perched on the top of one of the grassy summits, and had an excellent view of the action that would soon follow.

The village of Skipleigh only had ten cottages and a small shop, but it housed one of the small wizarding communities that dotted the North Yorkshire Moors. It had been specially selected for the exercise because, in addition to the eleven magical families living in the village, a team of twenty Aurors was also based there, housed in several tents at the edge of the village.

Alvis quickly worked out his tactics, based on the training he and his team had been given, and gestured to his second in command, Hindley Musgrove.

"There are five Aurors on guard duty," he said quietly. "Two at the far end of the village, two at the near end, and one over by the tents. The rest of the Aurors must be inside eating their lunch. I'll take seven of the team and approach from the far side to take care of the guards there. Then we'll go around the back of the village to take the two at the near side. You take the rest of the team and wait for my signal to attack the tents and the last of the guards. Once we take them all out, we can tackle the village people."

"What about the detection devices?" asked Hindley. "They're bound to have the place covered with them, and they'll be far enough away from the village and tents to give the Aurors time to react."

Alvis pointed to the line of tall trees that bordered the lane that led into the far side of the village. "The range of those devices is no more than about fifteen yards. We'll approach behind those trees on broomsticks, high enough above the ground to avoid being detected. Once we get behind the cottages, we'll attack from the roof of the cottage at the far end. They won't know what hit them."

Then he pointed to the hill behind the tents at the other end of the village. "You take the others on broomsticks to a position behind that hill, but make sure you're at least fifteen yards above the ground. Keep your eyes on me and wait for the signal to attack."

Hindley nodded and crept across to the men to pass on the instructions. Alvis selected seven of the Death Eaters and after mounting their broomsticks, flew low behind the ridge, which led up to the lane at a point about a mile and a half away from the village. Hindley waited a few minutes before gesturing for the rest of the team to fly along the back end of the ridge in the other direction, towards the back of the hill behind the tents.

Ten minutes later, Alvis and the seven Death Eaters perched on the roof of the end cottage, looking down at the two Aurors, who were talking quietly to each other, oblivious to the danger that lurked above them. Alvis looked to the far end of the row of cottages and waited until the two guards walked out of sight behind the far cottage before starting the attack. He motioned to two of the best shots in the team, and watched as the two Aurors were hit by stunning spells - they didn't use stronger curses for fear of causing too much noise. They fell to the ground with hardly a sound being made.

Alvis then led his men, flying just below the ridgeline of the cottage roofs, towards the place where the other two Aurors were slowly patrolling. He looked towards the hill behind the tents and saw Hindley hovering just above the summit, looking towards him. He raised his arm in the air, and then dropped it, while at the same time muttering to his hot shots to take out the two guards below.

The Auror standing close by the tents looked up in surprise as he saw more than twenty black-cloaked figures bearing down on him from the sky. He opened his mouth to shout a warning, but was hit by a killing curse before a sound left his lips. Then the flying denizens landed and were soon joined by Alvis and the other seven Death Eaters. They split up into small groups and stormed into the tents, flinging curses ahead of them.

The remaining Aurors were caught completely by surprise and stood no chance. Within a few minutes they were all dead, no mercy having been shown to them. Alvis looked with satisfaction at his team - not one of them had been hurt in the skirmish - and then led them towards the cottages, directing half the team towards the back end of the little village.

By this time, some of the residents had stepped outside their homes to see what was going on - they'd heard the sounds of curses being flung during the attack on the tents. Some of them managed to Apparate away, grabbing hold of their children, but some weren't so lucky. They shared the same fate that the Aurors in the tents had suffered.

All the action had been seen by a young girl, a witch of about twelve years old, who'd been out walking in the hills at the other side of the valley. She looked on in growing horror as she observed the attack, and dropped low to the ground, trembling with fear. She'd never understand why she couldn't drag her eyes away from the terrible carnage in the valley below, but from one point of view, it was a good thing that she saw everything that happened.

It would be her that would give Marcus Heatherington-Jones the realisation that a new breed of Death Eater was at large - a force that was intelligent, resourceful and deadly - far different from the usual fare served up by the Dark Side.

***

Professor Dumbledore had a grim expression on his face as he listened, together with his team, the protectors and the five youngsters, to Marcus giving his report on the attack at the village. Cornelius Fudge, 'Mad Eye' Moody and Jules Denarnaud were also there in the headmaster's office at Hogwarts.

"That doesn't sound like any Death Eater force that I've come up against," said Oliver. "We were overcome by sheer numbers at Qumran, and they didn't employ any sophisticated tactics. But this is different. Eighteen Aurors and twenty three villagers killed and two Aurors stunned, and not one Death Eater hit in return!" He shook his head in sadness and disbelief.

"I think the conflict is entering a new phase," said 'Mad Eye'. "We can only hope that there aren't too many such Death Eater teams out there."

"And it took a twelve year old girl to tell us about it," said Marcus. "If it wasn't for her, we'd still be in the Dark. The two Aurors who were stunned, and the few villagers who managed to escape, didn't have a clue what happened."

"I can't believe that there are many Death Eater teams like that out there!" Sirius suddenly exclaimed. "Your average Death Eater is high on brutality and short on brains - this group must be the elite of the whole sorry bunch of them."

Dumbledore looked with narrowed eyes at Sirius. "I think you've hit the nail right on the head there, Sirius. I've been pondering why such an advanced force using sophisticated tactics would want to attack a harmless little village. Now this is the first we've seen of them, so I wouldn't mind betting that this was some sort of training exercise - a flexing of muscles prior to more important engagements."

"What've you got in mind Albus?" asked Fudge.

Dumbledore glanced at Harry and the other four teens and pondered for a few minutes before answering. "I can't be sure, but it's best that you hear what I'm thinking, just in case. I can't help feeling that they're a team being specially groomed to prevent these youngsters completing the final quest."

Charlie gasped, "What makes you thing that they'll be their target Professor?"

"Voldemort hasn't had much luck stopping them up till now," he replied. "So it's reasonable to assume that he'll try something a lot more potent. He probably wants to buy some breathing space until he can get at the spells to activate the Disc of Gates. After that, he'll probably feel that he'll be invincible."

"If you're right, Professor," said Ceri, "we're going to have to be far more alert and aware of possible dangers than we've been up till now. It's a good job we've got the Relocators from Fred and George!"

"I may be completely wrong about this, of course," said the headmaster, "but it doesn't hurt to be aware of the possible danger. Severus - I think you'd better make it your priority to try to find out as much as you can about this group."

Snape nodded. "Yes Headmaster. There's a meeting of the local group in a few days time. Goyle Senior will be there, and he's usually a bit loose-lipped if prodded in the right direction. I'll do my best."

"Thank you Severus," said Dumbledore, and then looked at Hermione. "Right - what about the quest? I assume you're here to use the library?"

"Yes Professor," she replied. "We think that we have to go to ancient Sumer, but we don't know a lot about it, so we've got a bit of reading to do."

Dumbledore stroked his beard reflectively. "Sumer eh - now there's an ancient civilisation! But you may not be able to find a lot of books on it in the library - at least not in the main sections. Your best bet is the Muggle section I think, but if you feel you need more, I'm sure we can purchase them."

He raised his eyebrows towards Fudge, who nodded solemnly. "I'll get two of the people in my office to buy some. They're avid readers of anything to do with Muggle history, and they tell me there's a very good bookshop not far from Diagon Alley. I'll get them on it as soon as I get back to the office."

"Thank you Cornelius," Dumbledore replied. "Right. A spot of lunch anyone?"

***

"The headmaster was right," said Hermione. "There's not a lot about Sumer in the library at all."

The five sat around their usual table in the library looking at the three books in front of them - all they'd been able to find. Ron and Margot selected one of the books to read, Ginny and Harry another, and Hermione picked up the final one, before settling down to find out as much as they could about ancient Sumer.

An hour later, Ron let out one his usual comments, "This book is so bloody boring!"

"It's all we've got Ron!" said Hermione, looking towards Margot.

"I'm afraid Ron's right about this book Hermione," she said. "Most of it is about the descriptions of Ubaidian pottery, down to the tiniest detail. There's not a lot about the Sumerian culture at all."

"Ours is the same as well," said Ginny. "Just a list of excavated artefacts and their descriptions. It's just so dead! What about yours Hermione?"

"Not a lot better, I'm afraid," she replied. "The frustrating thing is that it just hints at Sumerian culture and their religious beliefs, and just lists all the cuneiform tablets that's been unearthed. I think these books were written by academics for academics, as a sort of reference to the purely archaeological aspects of Sumer. What we need are books that'll bring their civilisation to life. We need to know who they were, how they lived, what they believed, and of course, who their gods were."

"We'll just have to wait for Fudge to send us what his people have been able to find," said Harry.

Ron glanced at Hermione. "You mentioned cuneiform tablets. What are they - some sort of headache pill or something?"

"Ron!" she exclaimed, as Ron doubled up laughing, leaning against the grinning Margot.

"Sorry Hermione - I couldn't resist that," he said. "What are they anyway?"

"They're the oldest known examples of a written language," she replied. "It says in my book that the Sumerians, and the Akkadian and Babylonian civilisations that followed them, used cuneiform writing on cylinder seals and clay tablets to record details of commerce, their literature, religion and science. They used pens made from sharpened reeds to make wedge-shaped impressions in the soft clay, and then baked the tablets hard in a kiln to make a permanent record. Over a hundred thousand of them have been unearthed at various archaeological sites in Iraq. This is what we need to get our hands on - the translations of what some of the more interesting ones say."

"So they've been translated then?" asked Ginny.

"Not all of them," she replied. "There seems to be various stages in the development of the writing, and not all of them have been deciphered. And even the ones they know how to translate haven't all been translated yet - there's so many of them. Some scholars make it their life's work."

"If there's so many," said Ron, looking aghast at Hermione, "you don't intend for us to read them all do you?"

"Of course not, Ron," she replied. "We'll be very selective - we only want to find out about the general society and Thoth's life and work in Sumer."

"Thank god for that," he replied, looking relieved.

The spy sat silently under the Invisibility Cloak at the other end of the table, listening to what was being said, but sighed silently when it was clear that not a lot of information would be forthcoming until the new books arrived at the school.

***

The books arrived early the following morning, brought by the two ministry employees who staggered out of the fireplace in the headmaster's office, laden with two armfuls of books. The headmaster directed the two middle-aged witches down to the Great Hall where the five youngsters were finishing off their breakfast.

Hermione jumped up from the table when they walked in, and rushed over to them, smiling. "You've managed to find quite a few then?"

"Oh yes," replied one of the women, seeming a little nervous in the presence of the Anima Summas.

"We've got a fair selection," said the other woman. "We've made sure that you've got the mainstream commentaries, maps of where the ruined Sumerian cities are in relation to the places in modern Iraq, translations of the more famous tablets, their religious beliefs, science and even some books on the more revolutionary ideas on how the tablets should be interpreted."

"I hope they're what you want," said the first woman. "But if you need more, just get in touch with us at the ministry."

"Thanks. Thank you very much," said Hermione as she watched the pair walk back out of the great Hall. "Come on, you lot," she said, turning back to her friends. "Help me get these up to the library."

Shortly afterwards, the five sat around the table in the library - six counting the invisible spy.

Hermione and Margot spent a little time sorting the books into various categories, and then sat down. "Right," said Hermione. "Who wants what? I'll read the books on religion and science."

"I'll have the ones on the geography of Sumer," said Ginny.

"I'll have the mainstream commentaries," said Margot.

"I'll take the books on the tablet translations," said Harry.

Everyone looked at Ron, who stared back. "What!" he exclaimed. "I'll have the last lot then - what is it anyway?"

"Revolutionary ideas," said Hermione.

All four of his friends burst out laughing, leaving Ron puzzling at their hilarity. "What are you lot laughing at? I'm ok with revolutionary ideas!"

"Right Ron, we're only teasing," said Hermione. "I suggest we all make notes of the more interesting things we find - we don't need to write reams and reams, just write the book, the page number, and a brief note of what it's about. Right?"

"Right Hermione," they all chorused.

By lunchtime, they'd each read about two books each - or at least part of two books each. They'd skipped the more uninteresting and irrelevant pages. What they read must have been interesting, given the gasps that went up from each of them at various points throughout the morning - even Ron stared wide-eyed and exclaimed loudly at something he read. They decided that they'd take a break from reading after lunch, and update each other on what they'd noted from their books so far.

After lunch they again settled down in their seats in the library, looking forward to hearing what each of them had found. "It's probably a good idea to start off with the general history of Sumer," said Hermione.

"That's me," said Margot, looking down at her notes. "Right, now let's see... Ancient Sumer, or Ki-engir as the Sumerians called it, was a collection of about twelve city-states in southern Mesopotamia, in what is now the southern part of Iraq. It came into existence between 5000 BC and 4000 BC, although the civilisation was at its height between 3500BC and 2000BC. No one knows where the Sumerians came from, and it's been a puzzle to scholars that the advanced culture just seemed to spring up from nowhere.

"Each city was fortified and had a temple, many of them in the form of a Ziggurat - that's a sort of stepped pyramid - and dedicated to one of their gods, and it had a surrounding rural area, where they performed agriculture and reared cattle. The arid plains were made fertile by a series of irrigation canals that they built to take the fresh waters from the two main rivers and their tributaries. They traded with other less advanced cultures and much of their recorded writings related to commerce. They also developed the first known law system. In around 1900 BC they were invaded and conquered by the Amorites, a Semitic people. The existence of Sumer wasn't even known until just over a hundred years ago, the cities having fallen into ruin and covered by the desert sand. All that remains now are a collection of mounds which have been partially excavated, any further work having been halted because of the political situation in Iraq."

Margot looked up. "You next Ginny."

Ginny cleared her throat. "Sumer was located between the lower reaches of the two great rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates - that's what Mesopotamia means, between the rivers. It was mainly a flat plain brought to life by irrigation canals. Since those times, the area has changed - the rivers have changed their courses and some of the tributaries have disappeared. For example, the Sumerian city of Ur once stood on the banks of the Euphrates, close to the Persian Gulf, but now it's about ten miles south of the river and the sea has silted up so much, the ruins now stand well inland.

"Just to give you a general picture of Iraq, it's bounded on the east by Iran, the south by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and the west by Jordan and Syria. The northern hilly areas comprise the Taurus Mountains to the northwest and the Zagros Mountains to the northeast. You next Harry."

"Hermione's already told you about the written language - Cuneiform, but I must say it's a very odd one! To give you an instance - in English, as in most other languages, there's just one word for a number, say three sheep or three bottles - three is always the same word. But in Sumerian, there're about sixty words for three - depending on what's being described. The 'three' for sheep is different to the 'three' for bottles. Anyway, there're loads of Sumerian texts preserved on clay tablets and there's also Akkadian and Babylonian ones that are similar, a lot of the stories being based on the original Sumerian ones. A lot of the tablets are just lists and prices of goods, but there are some famous literary and religious works as well.

"Perhaps the most famous is the Epic of Gilgamesh - a series of twelve clay tablets telling about the exploits of the Sumerian king of the city of Uruk. There's the Atrahasis - that's the Sumerian creation story, and the Enuma Elish - another creation epic. A tablet called 'The Deluge' tells about the flood - very similar to the Flood in the bible. A controversial tablet is the Sumerian King List - the scholars have discarded it as purely mythical because of the length of time they reigned. And then there's the hymns, poems and proverbs."

Ginny grinned. "Tell us a Sumerian proverb, Harry."

Harry looked at his notes and turned to the page in one of the books. "Now let's see... here's one. 'That which is given in submission becomes a medium of defiance.' And here's a very appropriate one." He looked slyly at Ron. "He who eats too much will not be able to sleep.' Do you get trouble sleeping Ron?"

"No I bloody well don't Harry," he said, grinning. "But there, I don't eat too much, I've just got a big appetite."

"Yeah Ron," said Hermione, "we believe you. Me next.

"Like Harry said, there're a lot of texts about religion. But after reading about it, I just couldn't help thinking that it's so unlike other religions in the world. For instance, the Sumerians didn't treat their deities like gods at all. They seemed to treat them as people, but people with higher intelligence and who lived for a very long time. They wrote about them eating, sleeping, having children and that sort of thing.

"Anyway, there were four chief gods - their main god was Anu, the sky god. Enlil was his son and later took over as the chief god. Enki was the god of water, wisdom and creation and Ninhursag was the great mother goddess. There were seven gods who decreed fate - the four I've already mentioned together with Nanna the moon god, Inanna, his daughter, the goddess of love and fertility, and Utu, his son, the sun god.

"There were a number of other lesser gods as well, called the Anunnaki. They've got their own creation story, again very similar to the bible, and they've even got their own Garden of Eden - they called it Dilmun. Now as far as science is concerned, they were an incredibly advanced people when you consider we're talking about more than five thousand years ago. They were the first to make bronze, they invented an accurate calendar and based they're measurement of time on the 60 minute hour, they practiced astrology, and they developed the studies of mathematics, astronomy and other sciences."

"Since you mention astronomy Hermione, did you read about the planets they knew about?" asked Ron.

Hermione frowned. "No Ron, the authors of the books merely mentioned the Sumerians knew about astronomy. Why do you ask?"

"Because in the first book I read, the Sumerians named the planets after their gods, just like we did."

"What's so special about that Ron?" asked Ginny.

Ron grinned. "Because they named all nine planets, that's why!"

Margot gasped, "That's impossible Ron."

"We only discovered Pluto in about 1920 Ron," said Hermione.

Ron just raised his eyebrows and grinned.

"No!" exclaimed Hermione. "Don't tell me that mainstream Sumerologists are the same as mainstream Egyptologists?"

"Afraid so Hermione," he replied. "There's loads of stuff in the alternate views of Sumer that the archaeologists have just ignored or consigned to fantasyland."

"I'm not going to rant!" she said, visibly keeping her temper in check.

"Hang on a minute, Hermione, this could be important," said Margot, staring at Ron. "Have any of you come across anything that's been excavated that could have been a telescope?"

They all shook their heads.

"So how did they manage to see Pluto?" asked Margot. "You need a fairly powerful telescope to see that planet."

"And not only that, Margot," said Ron. "They knew that the sun was the centre of the solar system and all the planets revolved around it. And they knew that the Earth is round - something that we didn't find out until after Columbus' time. Oh yes, there was one other thing - they recorded a mysterious tenth planet which they called Nibiru. Not even the alternative theorists have a proper answer to that one - except for one writer who surmises that Nibiru is a planet that has a very elliptical and eccentric orbit and visits our region of space every 3,600 years. He thinks that the inhabitants of that planet visited Earth and stayed here to form a colony - and they were none other than the gods of ancient Sumer!"

Hermione gasped once more, her face flaming with indignation. "Are you sure about this Ron? It's not some fanciful guess by the people who wrote those books?"

"Quite sure," he replied. "Read them for yourself if you don't believe me. The authors are respectable researchers, or they were until they wrote these books - the establishment have written them off as loonies, even though the evidence from the tablet translations is staring them in the face."

Hermione fumed, "I believe you Ron. This is yet one more example of the facts not fitting nicely into the established paradigm of mainstream historians. How much more information have we got to uncover before they realise that the accepted history of mankind is flawed. Ohhhh!"

"So if they didn't have telescopes, or at least as far as we know they didn't," said Margot, "how did they know about the true nature of the solar system?"

"It says in these books," answered Ron, "that their gods told them."

Hermione started to cool down, with some effort. "And one god in particular, no doubt - Thoth!"

Harry leaned over and squeezed her shoulder. "What about Thoth, Hermione? Did you find anything to link one of the gods with him?"

"Well yes and no, Harry. It said in one of the books that the Sumerian Thoth was called Nanna and he was the same as the Babylonian god called Sin, but I'm not so sure they're right."

"Why not?" asked Margot.

"Well to start with, there doesn't appear to be any Sumerian god credited with the invention of writing. And there's not a lot about Nanna - just that he was the moon god, as was Thoth, of course, but it just doesn't feel right somehow. I'm going to look at the attributes of the other gods to see if I can come with something better."

Half an hour later, Hermione shattered the silence in the library with a loud shout, "Got him!"

The others shot up in their seats and stared at her.

"Listen to this," she said. "He is well disposed to mankind and plays a central role in many epics, so his character and abilities are well known: he represents intelligence and technical capabilities. He is a master craftsman, 'Lord of cunning and skill' - referring to the body of experience, knowledge, skills, and traditions which are the basis of a craft or occupation and form the basis of civilization as a whole. He is the patron god of white magic, and is often depicted holding a staff with two serpents entwined around it. In Sumerian mythology, he is most of all the god of wisdom, of craftsmanship and arts."

"That sounds like him," said Ginny. "The staff sounds just like the Caduceus held by Mercury."

"What's his name Hermione?" asked Harry.

"Enki - one of the chief gods. His seat of power was in the southern-most city in Sumer, where he had a temple - the temple of Enki at Eridu. Eridu is said to be the first city ever built in ancient Sumer."

"Is the temple still standing?" asked Margot.

"There's a photo of the Eridu site in this book," she said, holding it up for the others to see.

"Bloody hell!" exclaimed Ron. "It's nothing but a load of old sand dunes and open trenches."

"It's completely ruined, I'm afraid," said Hermione sadly. "But there's a plan of the temple layout here as well, so they must have found something - it's probably buried inside one of those mounds. The site was excavated in the 1940's."

"Where exactly is Eridu?" asked Harry.

"About 196 miles southeast of Baghdad - it's near a place called Abu Shah Rain."

"We'd better see Sirius and the others," said Harry. "And bring that book about Eridu with you Hermione - they'll no doubt want to study the pictures and site maps before we go there."

"Uh, one thing," said Ginny. "How are we going to get there? I doubt if even Dumbledore knows of anyone in Iraq who can set up a Portkey for us."

"If it comes down to it," said Hermione. "We'll just have to Portkey to the border with Kuwait and walk, or uh, fly into Iraq. How far is it from the border to Eridu Ginny?"

Ginny looked at one of the large maps of the region and quickly estimated the distance. "It's about eighty miles."

"I'm not walking eighty miles through the desert!" exclaimed Ron. "We fly - right, Hermione?"

Hermione pulled a face. "Come on - let's see the others."

Professor Dumbledore drew some surprised glances, and smiles from the five youngsters, when he announced that he could arrange for a Portkey to Eridu. "I know a wizard living close to the Iraqi border in Kuwait - I'm sure that he'll Apparate to the site to set up a Portkey. But don't expect it to be in place until tomorrow night - he'll have to take some special precautions to avoid the Iraqi Death Eaters - there're quite a few of them there!"

"Shouldn't we wait until daylight before we go poking about in the ruins?" asked Charlie.

"I don't know, Charlie," answered Sirius. "If that Kuwaiti wizard thinks it's safer at night, maybe we should take a leaf out of his book - he knows the area and the situation there, after all."

"But how are we going to find our way around the ruins in the dark?" asked Remus. "And we can't risk lighting the place up with our wands - it'll be too risky."

Sirius thought for a few moments. "Let's see that photograph of the ruins again Hermione."

Hermione placed the photo on the headmaster's desk and they all pored over it for a few minutes.

"Where do you think the Temple of Enki is?" asked Oliver.

Hermione looked closely at the photo and pointed to a large mound at the centre. "I think it must be under that mound somewhere," she said. "You can just make out the excavation tunnels at the side, just above where that path winds around to the left."

Sirius looked at the headmaster. "Do you think you could ask your wizard friend to position the Portkey where that path runs below the bottom of the mound Professor - just below those excavation tunnels?"

Dumbledore looked at the photograph and nodded. He pulled out a piece of parchment from his desk drawer and held it over the photo with his left hand, and then pointed his wand at it as he muttered a few words. A copy of the image rose slowly from the photograph and etched itself onto the underside of the parchment. Then the headmaster picked up a quill and made a mark on the parchment where Sirius had asked for the Portkey to be placed.

"I'll get this to Ali as soon as the meeting's over," he said.

"Thanks Professor," said Sirius. "We'll go at night now that we know exactly where we'll arrive. All we'll need to do is climb up to those tunnels, and once inside, it won't matter if we use our wands for lighting."

"In the mean time," said Ceri, "we can study this book about Eridu and familiarise ourselves with the terrain."

"And we can try to find out a bit more about the Temple of Enki," said Hermione. "Come on, let's get back to the library."

The youngsters continued to read all they could find on Enki and Eridu until it was nearly time for the evening meal, when Ron shut the book he was reading with a loud slam, making the others jump. "Dinner time!"

"We'll have to be careful tomorrow night," said Harry, getting up from his chair. "If there're as many Death Eaters in Iraq as Dumbledore thinks there are, we'll have to be on the lookout as soon as we Portkey there."

Ron put his arm around Margot, protectively, as they walked towards the library door. "We didn't run across any Death Eaters last summer, so maybe we'll be lucky this time as well."

"I hope so Ron," said Harry.

The spy grinned and waited until the library was empty before getting up and rushing off to a clearing just inside the Forbidden Forest, where the owl was kept in a hidden cage, to write a note to Crabbe's wife.

***

The following morning, the five sat eating breakfast in the Great Hall. The protectors had already left, with the exception of Nadine who waited until the teens started to leave before calling to Ginny, who walked over and sat down beside the French girl.

"Charlie and I went to visit my brother the other day Ginny," she began, "and it turned out to be a big surprise - for all of us. Demont was still in bed when we got there, but he wasn't alone."

Ginny gasped, "You caught him in bed with a girl?"

Nadine grinned. "It wasn't intentional - it was the middle of the morning, after all. But that's not all what I wanted to talk to you about. You and Demont were quite close last year, weren't you?"

Ginny nodded, looking puzzled.

"You see, there's something very odd going on but neither Charlie nor I could get anything out of Demont and Anne-Marie - that's his girlfriend's name. I was wondering whether he might say something to you, being so close, and I wanted to ask you if you'll come to France with us when we get a chance."

"Of course I will, Nadine. But what makes you think there's something fishy going on?"

Nadine shook her head slowly. "It's hard to put my finger on anything tangible, but it was just the way they acted together."

"You mean their body language?"

"That's exactly right Ginny. They seemed very cagey, and acted as if they were hiding something. Charlie thinks that Anne-Marie might be married to Demont's boss, but I don't think that's it, somehow."

Ginny grinned. "Naught, naughty Demont! So if you don't think it's that, what do you think it is Nadine?"

Nadine looked about conspiratorially to make sure that no one could hear and then leaned close to Ginny. "Well I can't be sure, but to me, everything points to..."

When she'd finished talking, Ginny stared at Nadine in disbelief, eyes staring and mouth wide open. "No!" she gasped

"Don't breath a word to anyone about this Ginny - I haven't even told Charlie what I think. But when we manage to get to the cabin, I'd like your help in trying something out to either prove or disprove what I think."

Ginny nodded. "Yeh - wow! You can count on me, Nadine."

***

Voldemort was in his cave waiting for Ahmed to collect his notes and a few books on Egyptian hieroglyphics when an owl flew in and dropped a note in front of Crabbe.

The large man bent down, picked it up and spent a few moments digesting its contents. "It's from my wife, my Lord. It seems that our spy has found out that Potter and his gang are going to an ancient site in Iraq tonight - called Eridu - it's just over the border from Kuwait. There's a sketch attached to the note that gives the approximate position of the site."

"Hmmm, so they've started their final quest," said Voldemort, thinking furiously. "Wormtail, Travis - take the sketch and contact the special squad immediately. I want you two and the squad in place to stage a little welcoming party for Potter. But make sure that you don't get in their way; once you get there, Alvis Grimwald will be in complete charge and I don't want you interfering with his tactics. Just observe what happens and report back to me. Lucius, Crabbe, Ahmed - come on, the Portkey to Abydos should be activated in a few minutes."

***

After dinner that evening, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Flitwick stood outside the main school entrance. The five teens and the protectors stood a little way away, waiting for the time when the Portkey would be activated.

Remus grinned. "Isn't Snape going see us off this evening Headmaster?"

"No Remus - he's gone to that Death Eater meeting he told us about."

Sirius called for the team's attention, "Before we go, I want you all to activate your Relocators, just in case we get into a bit of bother. From now on, we'd better keep them active whenever we're out in the field. We can't be too careful."

Everyone nodded, held their wands to the little devices and said the spell that activated the Relocators.

"Come on everybody," said Oliver. "It's just about time - grab hold of the tree branch."

Professor Dumbledore looked grim as the team disappeared. He turned to the two professors. "I've got a strange feeling about this quest. I don't know why, but there's something niggling at the back of my mind - I wish I could put my finger on it."

***

Severus Snape stood just inside the little clearing in the wood on the edge of the Peak District in Derbyshire. There were about ten Death Eaters waiting with him for the arrival of Goyle Senior, who would take the reports of the assembled gathering on Death Eater recruitment activities.

Goyle appeared with a 'pop' in the centre of the clearing and the others gathered around.

After the reports had been given, Snape asked a question, "Tell me Goyle, Potter and his friends seem to be able to go wherever they like, and not a finger is being lifted to stop them. Isn't Lucius doing anything to keep tabs on them?"

"I wouldn't let him hear you talking like that," said Goyle. "And in any case, things are well in hand to stop Potter."

Snape prodded further, "I haven't seen any evidence of that Goyle. Every time Potter gets back from one of his jaunts, he says that he hasn't seen one Death Eater. It's starting to get a bit humiliating."

Goyle grinned wickedly. "The next time you see Potter, Snape, he'll be dead! There's a crack team of our best people being trained up especially to get him and his friends. Even as we speak, they're out there in the Middle East somewhere, preparing a nice little welcoming committee."

Snape forced a grin. He'd managed to find out what he wanted, but now felt the urge to get back to Hogwarts to warn the team what was in store for them. He had to endure another ten minutes of Goyle singing the praises of the Dark Side before the meeting was over, and then Apparated to Hogsmeade, and rushed back to the school.

He arrived back in the headmaster's office almost out of breath and told Dumbledore, McGonagall and Flitwick what he'd learned.

"It's too late, Severus," said Dumbledore. "They took the Portkey to Eridu ten minutes ago."

They all groaned, each of them hoping and praying that the team would be able to overcome the ordeal that awaited them in the ancient land.

***

Sirius, Ceri, Oliver and Katie knew there was something wrong as soon as they materialised at the Portkey site at Eridu. It was pitch dark in the ruined site, but something borne of their experience in the field, long hours of training and, in Sirius' case, a second sight from being on the run after his escape from Azkaban, told them of the unseen danger that lurked somewhere in the ruins.

"Press your buttons now!" shouted Oliver.

Everyone in the team heeded Oliver's call - there was something in his voice that spurred them all into instant action. It was well that they did. Just before they pressed their Relocators, the desert was bathed in magical light from the wands held by five of the waiting Death Eaters.

Alvis couldn't believe his eyes when twenty-five deadly green beams from his elite squad missed their mark. He blinked in astonishment as at one instant he saw twelve figures appearing at the Portkey, which he'd earlier located on a path beside a large mound of sand and rubble, and the next they were all about ten yards away.

"Fire again," he yelled at his team. Again the deadly beams missed their mark, and the enemy were once more ten yards away from their previous positions.

"Lights out!" he yelled, thinking furiously. He called for Hindley Musgrove to join him. "Did I just see right?"

"Something strange is going on here Alvis," said the second in command. "How did they do that? They couldn't have known we were waiting for them."

"No one can Apparate that quickly," said Alvis. "They must have got something new to be able to do that. Get the team to move position - take half of them and go around behind that mound to the left. You should be able to cut them off if they try to get further into the ruins along the path. When you see the light from my wand, we'll try to drive them back towards your position."

He turned to Wormtail and Travis. "You two stay with my group."

Meanwhile, as soon as darkness fell once more, Sirius quietly led the team further along the path into the ruins, where they found shelter behind a low mound of rubble and sand.

"What do you think they'll do next Oliver?" asked Sirius.

"They'll probably split up and try to confuse us into giving away our position," he replied. "We'd better keep our heads down until we see where they are."

They lay close to the ground when, over to their left, several wands again illuminated the scene. Ceri nudged Sirius and Oliver and pointed over towards their right-hand side, where she'd spotted some movement just where the rough path disappeared around behind one of the mounds. "They've managed to get around behind us," she whispered.

"Keep your heads down," Sirius whispered to everyone. "The ones to our left are getting closer."

They held their breath as they clearly heard the crunch of boots on the rough path, and saw the illuminated wands swaying slightly in the air, as the Death Eaters approached their position, no more than about fifty yards away.

Oliver leaned close to Sirius and whispered in his ear, "We've got to do something quick - they're bound to spot us if they get much closer."

Sirius looked all around their precarious hiding place and shook his head, whispering, "If we start sending spells, the ones behind us will have a clear shot at our backs."

Sirius gasped when Harry and Hermione suddenly stood up, held hands, and started walking out from behind their cover. "Get back here!" he hissed.

"It's ok, Sirius," whispered Harry. "We're just going to get rid of them."

The team looked on as the pair lifted their arms and shouted, "DADEX ZARNPET."

The now familiar green protective shield spread out and covered Harry and Hermione, just before a number of beams of light hissed towards them from both sides.

The curses hit the shield and reflected away, dissipating harmlessly up into the dark sky. The pair turned towards the nearest group of Death Eaters and extended their free arms towards them, the shield still holding in place.

"A'NEN KHEFTEY," they shouted.

A white beam of light, tinged with a hint of crimson, shot from each of their hands and met just in front of the Death Eaters, then slowly surrounded them. Alvis, who was in the lead of the group, which included Wormtail and Travis, suddenly stopped, his eyes staring and vacant. Then he and his men turned around and started walking away.

Harry and Hermione turned to face Hindley's group, who were now running towards them and flinging curses, which bounced harmlessly into the night. Again they extended their arms and sent the same curious spell, which covered the Death Eaters and stopped them in their tracks.

The Anima Summas stood to one side as Hindley led his group past, their eyes staring and vacant, and followed Alvis' group out of the ruins into the cold, dark desert.

"What the hell was that?" exclaimed Ron as he ran up alongside his friends, quickly followed by the rest of the group.

The pair raised their arms once more and spoke the spell that dispersed the protective shield, and then grinned at their friends.

"What happened?" asked Katie, looking closely at the pair to make sure they weren't hurt.

"Just one of the ancient spells that suddenly popped into our heads," said Hermione.

"We just told them to turn back," said Harry. "For the next three hours or so, they'll be wandering through the desert. By the time they regain their senses, we should be long gone."

"I really don't know who the protectors are any more," breathed Ceri. "It seems that you two can get along fine on your own."

"That's not true Ceri," said Hermione. "If Oliver hadn't made us use the Relocators, we'd have all been fried back at the Portkey site."

"Hermione's right," said Harry. "We can't do this without you watching our backs."

"We'd better get back to the Portkey site," said Nadine. "We've got three hours to find what we came for and get out of here."

Sirius nodded. "Come on then. We'll take up positions around the bottom of the mound, just in case any Arab Death Eaters saw something and come to investigate."

They walked back along the path, holding their illuminated wands low to the ground, and stopped at the base of the mound where a rough track, worn into the surface of the ruined Ziggurat by the excavation workers more than fifty year ago, wound up into the darkness. Harry and Hermione led the way, followed by Ginny, then Ron and Margot who brought up the rear.

Hermione held her wand into the first excavation tunnel they came to, and saw that it was blocked by fallen rubble and sand. They moved further up the mound, but it wasn't until they came to the fourth opening that they found one that wasn't blocked.

"This is it then," said Harry as he looked doubtfully into the darkness. "I don't see how we're going to find a temple this high up the mound though."

"The Sumerians sometimes built temples into the sides of their Ziggurats Harry," said Hermione. "They built them on the broad platforms that formed part of the stepped pyramids. Let's hope that this is the right tunnel."

Harry led the way into the dusty tunnel, having to bend low to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling. Ron followed closely behind his friend, looking at the sides and ceiling of the excavation. "I'm glad those wooden beams are still in place," he said, "or this one would have caved in as well."

They half walked, half crawled into the mound for about thirty yards before the tunnel opened out into a broader area of about fifty feet long by twenty feet wide, and the ceiling rising so that they could now stand up straight. The floor was criss-crossed with excavation trenches, revealing the mud brick walls of a fairly complex ancient building.

"This looks like it could have been a temple," said Margot. "You can see where the side chambers run to each side of the structure and the large central area leading into a smaller chamber at the back. That could have been the inner sanctuary, or something."

Hermione nodded. "I think you're right, Margot. This must be the Temple of Enki."

"There's not a lot of it left though," said Ginny doubtfully.

"Well it is nearly five thousand years old Ginny," said Hermione. "I just hope we can find something here."

Harry and Ron walked around the left-hand edge of the excavation while Hermione and Margot went to the right. Ginny jumped down into one of the trenches and walked through the middle of the structure towards the central area. She was about half way across when she stopped, staring at the floor intently.

"Come and look at this," she shouted to the others. "There's a hole in the floor."

They all jumped down into the excavations and hurried towards Ginny who was now kneeling on the ground, shining her wand into the hole. "There's a ladder going down," she said. "But I can't see much of what's down below from here."

"I'll go and take a look," said Ron. He put his left foot on the top rung of the ladder and tested its strength, his friends supporting him as he applied more and more of his weight to it. "I think it's ok," he said, putting his full weight on the top rung.

Then he cautiously stepped down to the next rung, before grinning up at Harry. "It's just fine Harry, no problem." He stepped down another rung, his head now level with ground, but suddenly disappeared from sight.

"AARRGggghhh," he shouted, to the accompaniment of breaking wood and a loud thud as he landed on the floor below.

Margot made a mad dive to the edge of the hole and flung herself onto the ground with her wand extended into the space below. "Ron? Ron! Are you all right?" she wailed.

Then Ron illuminated his wand and she could see the red-haired boy slowly getting back to his feet, not more than seven feet below, ruefully rubbing his rear end. "I'm ok Margot," he said.

Hermione shouted down, "What's there Ron? Can you see anything interesting?"

"Me! I'm here Hermione, and the only interesting thing I can see is a bloody big bruise on my arse - or at least I can feel it."

"Sorry Ron," she breathed, smiling as she turned towards Ginny who was trying her best to keep her giggling in check.

"Help me get down there," said Harry. "It's not far by the looks of it."

Harry eased his body into the hole and the three girls caught hold of his arms, easing his drop to the floor below, where he was steadied by Ron. The girls quickly followed, supported by the boys, and they looked around them with wands held high.

"It's almost exactly like the ruins up above," said Ginny.

"I should have realised," said Hermione. "It said in the book on Eridu that several temples were built in the various periods in the city's history, one on top of the other. There's probably another one below this."

They wandered among the excavations and soon came to another hole in the floor. This time, Ron and Harry stretched their wands down as far as they could and saw that the floor was no more than six feet below. They all soon eased through the hole and stood looking at a slightly different configuration of trenches, although it was plain that they showed the outline of yet another temple, but much older than the two above. At one end of the cavern they could see the tunnel running to the outside of the mound, but they knew it was blocked at the far end.

"There should be another temple below this," said Hermione. "The oldest one dating back to when the city was first built. If we're going to find anything, I think it'll be there. Let's see if there's another hole leading down to it."

"Here it is," said Harry, looking towards the far corner of the cavern, where he could see a dark area in the floor. They all walked towards it and held their wands into the hole.

"It's about eight feet to the floor," said Harry. "Help me get down, Ron."

Ron and the girls helped to support Harry's weight as he eased through the hole, and they held onto his wrists as he stretched out with his feet to feel the bottom. "Ok, let me go," he shouted.

Five minutes later, all five stood at the lowest level of the complex of temples. It was immediately apparent that the excavations had only been partially carried out, the trenches only extending about half way into the cavern.

"Spread out and see if you can see anything," said Hermione, walking to the far side of the dig. After about ten minutes, they all stood at the boundary where the trenches met the unexcavated ground. Ginny climbed down and moved to the central trench and held her wand to the place where the digging had stopped. She saw a wall of mud bricks before her, but only the most cursory attempt had been made to remove them, the archaeologists obviously having been interrupted by something, or someone.

"I think there's something here," she shouted, and waited for her friends to join her in the trench. "Look at this wall of bricks - they started to dig their way through, but suddenly stopped. I wonder why?"

"I think I know why," said Margot, leaning close to the wall so that her face was no more than a few inches from it. "I can feel something here. A strange sort of emanation."

Ginny held her hand out and touched the bricks. "I can feel it too, Margot. I wish Nadine was here - she may be able to tell us what it is."

"Does it feel bad to you?" asked Hermione, reaching out to feel the top layer of bricks. Margot and Ginny shook their heads.

"Me neither," said Hermione. "Come on you boys, earn your keep - I think we've got to see what's behind this wall."

Ron groaned, "Why is it that us boys always have to do the hard work? Isn't it enough that I've got a big bruise on my bum?"

"Stop moaning Ron," said Ginny, chuckling. "You wont have to dig using your backside - use your hands!"

"Come on Ron," said Harry. "You should know better than to argue with these three. The sooner we start, the sooner we'll find what's behind the wall."

"Use these," said Margot. "I found them lying on the floor over by the tunnel opening. I think the workers must have dropped them in a hurry when they rushed out of here." She handed the boys two hammers and chisels, and then stood back to watch.

They started with the top row of bricks, easily disintegrating the crumbling mortar that held the bricks together, and after removing three layers, they were soon able to take a peek into the space beyond the wall. "Extinguish your wands for a minute," said Harry. "I think there's something glowing in there."

They all put out their wands and Harry and Ron looked over the top of the brick wall into the place beyond. "What can you see?" hissed Hermione, her voice full of excited impatience.

"I can't quite make it out," said Harry, "but there's something faintly glowing in there. Light your wands again."

The two boys continued to hack at the mortar and after another fifteen minutes and five layers, had made enough room to climb over the remaining brickwork. They put down their tools and held up their wands, which they extended into the space beyond their excavation.

The girls jumped back into the trench and joined the boys as they gazed into an untouched chamber of the original Temple of Enki. The room was almost bare, but at the far end, carved into the bare rock of the chamber, was the image of a man - a man that looked like a younger version of Thoth. The carving showed him wearing a curious hat and he was standing on a stepped floor, his left foot raised to lean on the upper step. Below his raised leg, resting on the floor, was either a lamb or a young deer, and a bird was perched on his right hand. The most curious part of the carving, however, was a stream of water issuing from each of his shoulders.

"It's Enki," breathed Hermione. "I've seen that depiction of him before - it was in one of the books I read back at Hogwarts."

"Look what's underneath the carving Hermione," gasped Ginny.

They all looked and saw the source of what had been glowing in the room. It was a clay tablet, propped up underneath the carving, and it was covered in a strange script. "Let's get in there and take a closer look," said Harry.

They walked up to the tablet and stared at it intently. "That's strange," said Hermione. "Most of that writing is like the Cuneiform script we saw in the books on Sumer, but the top line is in Egyptian Hieroglyphics. Can you make out what it says Harry?"

Harry held his wand close to the top line of writing. "It says 'For The Anima Summas'," he gasped. "It's a message for us, Hermione."

Hermione peered at the tablet closely and nodded. "You're right Harry. But what does it say? I can't read Sumerian Cuneiform script!"

"Well if you can't read it Hermione," exclaimed Ron, "how the hell do you expect the rest of us to be able to read it?"

"Time for you to get to work Ginny," said Hermione, ignoring Ron's comment. "Can you copy this onto some parchment - exactly as you see it?"

"No problem Hermione," she said.

"Uh Hermione," said Ron, "why don't we just take the tablet with us? It's not fixed to the wall or floor."

"We can't Ron," she replied. "We've got to leave this here for any future Anima Summas to find. And after Ginny's finished in here, you and Harry can build that wall back up as well."

Ron groaned once more, "Why did I bother to ask!"

Just over two hours later, the five emerged from the fourth tunnel and walked back down to the protectors at the bottom of the mound. They were smiling, bathed in the glow of their success, but their faces fell when they saw the look on Sirius' face.

"What's the matter Sirius?" asked Harry.

"It's been nearly three hours since you walked up there," he said agitatedly. "We've been expecting those Death Eaters to come back at any time. Come on - we'd better get out of here quick!"

They all rushed over to the Portkey, a seemingly discarded piece of wood, and held onto it to be transported back outside the main entrance of Hogwarts.