The Traveler's Secret

CHAPTER 26: WHEN THE STARS FALL

Jean Fulver silently opened the door to the Astronomy Tower roof. After a quick scan of the immediate area around them, he led Sergei Krum out onto the roof. The night was still and thick with the evening heat. Stars sparkled above, shards of their diamond cut light shining down on them. Jean felt as if a thousand eyes of the entire universe were looking down on this moment and this place. He suddenly had a dark premonition, as if a fast approaching shadow was catching up to them.

At the moment though, he had one job and one job only. He had to protect Sergei Krum. Near the door, hidden away in the shadows, was an alcove. It was a blind spot to anybody who came onto the roof. Jean had sensed it was there because he knew the way the wall rounded would surely lead to such a hidden place. It was in this place that Jean motioned Sergei over to. It was probably the most concealed spot, which wasn't saying much.

Though the roof was far from the ensuing battle below, it was still too open to attack. Jean knew they were vulnerable and he hoped that Vikious' word could be trusted. Fulver crouched low and began to prowl from shadow to shadow, keeping well below the crenellations along the roof's edge. As he did so, he thought of Vikious and why he had been so ready to trust the Potions Master. Never before had Vikious proven to be friendly, but when Jean had looked into his eyes, he had seen terror as well as, surprisely, courage. Vikious could have easily incapacitated Krum if he had wanted to harm him, but he didn't. It was at that moment that Jean's instincts had told him to trust Vikious and he always trusted his instincts. They had kept him alive in the dangerous world he lived in. But if Vikious was the traitor, then this place was a trap and someone would be waiting for them.

Jean was preternaturally silent, moving like a ghost. He used the natural sounds and lighting of his surroundings to mask his presence. He breathed when the wind blew and blended into the shadows thrown off the wall. His visual acuity was sharp. He saw details that most people would never have thought to look for, but even with all of this skill he was still exposed.

Every few seconds his eyes would flit back to Sergei, making sure he was still where he had left him. Once Jean was sure that his friend was safe, he allowed his eyes to take in every detail of the rooftop. They raked the far end of the roof and the tiny nooks nearby. They scoured every shadow and alcove. Jean felt his adrenaline pumping through his body, pockets of stored up energy pounding through his legs and arms. He was ready to attack, to shoot and in this mode he was the most lethal. He looked up at the sky around them and down to the ground below. In a matter of minutes, his eyes had scanned the entirety of the rooftop. Jean made his way back to his friend.

Though he was satisfied that no one was there with them, his instincts were on full alert. These same instincts had told him he could trust Vikious, but they warned of danger in this barren place. He couldn't understand why this was. Even though he allowed Sergei to step out from the alcove, Jean stayed close to his friend's side.

The night wind blew through the crenellations on the walls, creating a hollow, despairing sound, which scraped on Fulver's nerve endings. Not one sound of the battle below could be heard and for Jean, this was unnerving. Sergei, on the other hand, relaxed a little bit.

Krum walked a little further from the alcove and looked up at the stars, a sigh escaping his lips. His eyes grew wide in wonder. The world above was a magnificent palette of possibilities for him.

Unlike Sergei, Fulver couldn't stand still and found no solace in the stars. In fact, the sky was too open, too much of a liability to him. Jean prowled, restless and feeling useless. He was not used to running away from a battle. He was always the first to jump in, but now everything had changed. He had his friend to protect.

"Jean, stop pacing. Dumbledore should be back soon and we'll be safe. This battle won't last long. Whatever happened at the Leaky Bucket should be over by now. I just hope that Tom is safe with his father as he should be."

"Yes," Jean answered distractedly. "It's just something doesn't feel right, Sergei. My instincts led us here, but"

Suddenly Sergei gasped and Jean spun around to face his friend. He noticed that Krum was looking up at the sky above. When Jean turned his head upwards, he saw what it was that took Sergei's breath away.

Streaking down from the cold black sky were the bright bodies of falling stars. Jean watched as the fiery orbs descended from the heavens. It was in that moment that he knew something was not right with the night sky. Jean could make out the outlines of darkly clad figures who were quickly descending down towards the rooftop on what looked like brooms. Sergei had still not seen the fast approaching figures, being so enchanted with the falling stars.

"SERGEI, GET BACK TO THE DOOR!" Jean screamed.

Stunned, Sergei turned towards Jean, his eyes wide in terror. Jean pushed him back towards the door, raising his gun up at the small formation now coming into view. It was five men in a V-formation flying at them. Jean took aim at the one at the apex of the formation. He just needed them to get a little closer. Fulver knew he could probably take out the lead man, but he didn't know if he would have time to take down the other four. He hoped that the protections that Vikious had talked about would hold.

All Fulver could do was put his body between Sergei and the incoming force. When they were close enough to see some of the features of their faces, Jean cocked his gun, and took aim, but before he could pull the trigger, the formation hit a barrier of some kind. A wall of blue light rippled outward from where they had hit. Jean sucked in a breath of relief. The group of men flew back and forth in front of the barrier, probing it, searching furiously for a way in.

Before Fulver could wrap his mind around the wall of light and the notion of flying brooms, one of the men pulled out a wand and pointed it at the barrier. The spell hit the shield and bounced off. Ripples of light undulated out from where the spell had hit. Jean noticed that the color of the barrier had faded a tiny bit.

Behind him he heard Sergei gasp in horror. Jean scuttled back towards his friend. He hoped the shield would hold. He hoped that they wouldn't find a spell that would drop it. Jean watched as the wizard in the lead flew a little ways down the wall pointed his wand at the shield again and screamed out another spell. It too hit the shield and bounced off. And once again circles of light rippled out from where the spell had hit, though they were slower and the wall was dimmer.

Jean knew it was only a matter of time before the barrier fell. He took aim at the lead wizard and took a shot. The blast reverberated throughout the night air and the bullet sped towards the magical wall and the wizard. It would have hit the man in the head, if it hadn't been deflected by the shield. The only effect it had on the situation was that it got the lead wizard's attention.

For the first time, Jean looked into the malevolent dark eyes of his enemy, which seemed to burn with the fires of hatred. The man was an older man, whose face was covered with a scraggly beard that was specked with gray. Frayed robes with a multitude of holes hung on his narrow frame loosely. Fulver watched as the vagabond moved a little further down the barrier. He barely noticed the other men, his focus on the one in the lead and was vaguely aware that they had formed a formation behind the lead wizard. The vagabond took aim and a jet of red light streaked out from his wand and hit the barrier.

At first, nothing happened. The spell hit the magical wall and seemed to be absorbed by it. Then the hole began to form, and Jean watched in horror as the night sky and the falling stars began to become more clearer. Fulver raised his gun at the hole, taking aim. His hand was ready and his breaths were measured. Behind him, Sergei tried to stand at his side, his black eyes as hard as steel.

"No, Sergei! Stay behind me. No matter what they can't get you!' Jean responded, pushing Krum behind him. Fulver returned his attention back to the rapidly growing hole, his heart falling in his chest. It was like the very stars were slowly peeling back their last true defense.

When the hole was big enough for a man to pass through, the lead wizard zoomed in. Jean shot at him, but the wizard swerved out of the way of the bullet. He pointed his wand at the pair of men and shot a spell at them. Both Sergei and Jean hit the ground as the rock wall they had been standing in front of exploded leaving a gaping hole, the debris landing on and around them.

"Stop! Lord Grindelwald wants Sergei Krum alive and unharmed!" said a voice that Jean knew all to well. He couldn't believe who it was he knew had spoken and his anger began to rise in him. When he looked up, he saw that the formation of men had formed semi-circle around them.

Near the front of the circle, next to the lead wizard was none other than his former friend Marius, sitting unsteadily on a broom. He still didn't seem to have complete control of the device.

Jean Fulver and Sergei Krum scrambled to their feet as the semi-circle began to close in. Once again, Jean placed his body in front of Sergei, his weapon raised. His gun was the only defense left and he had every intention of using it. The question was who did he shoot first because he knew that the moment the bullet left the chamber, the other men would be on him.

Jean swiveled back and forth, the gun quickly switching from one man to another. Not once did he look at Marius. He couldn't bare to see the man who had betrayed him.

"If ve can't harm Krum, can we kiel the Muggle?" asked a young, blond haired wizard at Marius' side.

"No! Lord Grindelwald said that I will handle Jean!" Marius snapped.

Jean turned for the first time towards his friend and saw that Marius had a gun pointed at him. Fulver felt anger and a lash of pain at this betrayal roll through his body like a hot wild fire in the middle of summer, but he showed none of it on his face. Now was not the time to allow his emotions to control him. He continued to stand firmly in front of Sergei, though he knew he was on the losing end of this battle. Fulver knew he was outmatched. He had one gun and four wands pointed at him.

"It doesn't have to be like this, my friend," Marius stated quietly. "You could join us and live. You could share with me the incredible reward we will get when Lord Grindelwald gets what is his. All we want is Sergei Krum."

Jean noticed that Marius was perfectly in earnest. He truly believed that these men would let Fulver live if he stepped aside and let them take Sergei. He couldn't believe that his friend could be so foolish.

"It seems that it does have to be like this. We all must choose what side we fight on and I will not side with a man who wants to kill thousands of innocent people, Marius. So, I am staying where I am which is right here next to Sergei Krum. If you are not with us, then our friendship is over!" Jean growled.

He saw Marius' face pale in anger, his familiar temper flaring in his eyes.

"You always were more stubborn than what was good for you. I'm trying to save your life, Fulver, but you're willingly to sacrifice it for our enemy, a man you barely know!"

"Yeah, I guess I am. He has more character than you'll ever have!" Jean spat out.

Marius scowled in anger. Jean could see that the men behind Marius and the lead wizard were restlessly moving back and forth. They wanted this ended. They wanted blood.

"So be it!" Marius said tersely, the muscles in his face twitching.

Marius took a shot at Jean. Fulver pushed Sergei out the way, diving as he went, but he wasn't fast enough. The bullet hit Fulver's shoulder and sent him sprawling. Somehow, he managed to hold onto his gun.

Things quickly spiraled out of control from there. Jean retaliated and took a shot at Marius, who swerved. The bullet hit a wizard behind Marius in the chest and the man fell to the roof near Sergei wounded and dazed. Jean was struggling to get to his feet, with Sergei trying to help him up, but the lead wizard hit Jean with a spell that sent both men flying backwards.

Jean slammed into the wall near the door, pain radiating out from the wound in his shoulder. Fulver crumpled to the ground dazed with pain. Darkness edged his vision, but he pushed it aside with all of his will power. Jean's gun had fallen from his hands. All he knew was that he had to get to his gun. It was their last defense.

Sergei skidded into the ground and rolled. He stopped a few inches away from Jean's gun. Sergei screamed in anger as he picked up the gun and took aim, but he was not able to get a shot off. The wizards swooped in on him. They quickly disarmed him and tried to get a hold of him. Sergei lashed out, his fists smashing into the nearby wizard's face. Another wizard tried to conjure up silver chains to bind Sergei, but Krum ducked and dived, hitting and kicking wherever he could. He was not going to taken without a fight. It took all four wizards to hold him in one place long enough to place him under a stunning spell and bind his wrists.

Jean watched this in horror. He staggered to get up from where he had fallen, stumbling over to help his friend, but he didn't see Marius on the side of him. Marius struck out at Fulver, kicking him in the stomach. Fulver doubled over and then hit Marius in the ribcage as he strode over to hit Jean again. A furious fight broke out between the two former friends. Marius moved quickly around Jean, jabbing and kicking him where he could. He had always been faster than Jean, but Fulver had always been stronger, except now his strength was ebbing as his blood flowed freely from his wound on his shoulder. Sweat covered Jean's face, but he continued to fight, despite his pain, despite his losing grip on reality. He swung at Marius and made solid contact with his jaw.

All this did was anger Marius more. He swept Jean's legs out from under him. Fulver hit the ground hard. Black stars speckled his vision. His breath was becoming harder to catch. His body was enflamed, every nerve burning. Sweat trickled into his eyes and stung them. He avoided the kick Marius had aimed at his stomach and rolled away. Jean saw a flash of what was happening to Krum as he tried to stand.

Sergei was being carried over to a broom, and a spell was placed on him that bound him to the lead wizard. They were almost gone. Jean felt a new burst of energy run through his muscles. With everything he had left, he pushed himself to his knees, but before he could get to his feet, Marius had his chin in his hand.

"I'm sorry it had to be this way. You were always a good friend. Pity you couldn't see reason," Marius said before he brought his fist down onto Jean's nose, breaking it. Blood spread over Jean's face and Fulver collapsed to the ground. He felt the darkness slowly fall over him. The blood from his nose was sticky and warm and it flowed over his face and onto his jacket.

He watched in helpless anger as Marius strode over to his broom. The other wizards were already airborne, with Sergei securely behind the lead wizard. Before Jean succumbed to the darkness, he saw the group fly off, disappearing into the night. Before he blacked out, he saw the stars as they fell from the sky like celestial teardrops, tumbling down to their end.