Elemental Genesis

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Chapter Eighteen: In the Tombs of Cursed Sands

"Weasley, put these records on file." Cornelius Fudge handed Percy Weasley a large pile of parchment before picking up another roll.

Percy hurried out of the opulent office with the records with a rushed and reverent, "Yes, sir!" He didn't notice the minister take out a magazine as soon as his back was turned. This was in all respects a mixed blessing. The Minister of Magic shouldn't be reading a magazine like THAT. Percy's opinion of the Ministry would have probably changed to one of contempt if he ever caught the Minster reading an inappropriate magazine like that during work hours. He was abhorrent of that kind of behavior in the workplace.

He had found a small apartment in a decent London neighborhood with good rent and was living relatively comfortably. Penelope, his long-time girlfriend, was planning on moving in as well. She had taken a desk job in the Improper Use of Magic Department and had a long commute. Not only would they be together that way, it would also be convenient. He smiled fondly at the thought of the curly-haired girl.

Not only did he have a great girlfriend, but also a fantastic job that he could only dream about. It appeared that all the work and effort that he had put in while under Mr. Crouch paid off. Now he was the aide to the prestigious Minister of Magic. Could it get any better?

Well, he thought. It could have been better. He sat down at his desk with a frown. All around him people busily milled about like ants in an anthill. Why are they listening to Dumbledore? He's only spouting nonsense and they're swallowing it! Percy unconsciously organized the papers into neat piles. His entire family had turned their backs on him when he told them of his promotion. His father was especially angry. A lot of horrible words had been said on both sides.

It was not as if he hated Dumbledore. No, he greatly respected the elderly wizard. But he was taking the word of a boy who could speak Parseltongue, a Death Eater, and using his own view of what had been going on. Had it never occurred to him that not all the signs pointed to the resurrection of the Dark Lord? Why did he hold such little trust in such a high and esteemed establishment as the English Ministry of Magic? Preposterous.

He had sent a letter to Ron just yesterday. Percy was proud that the often-overlooked youngest male Weasley had been made prefect. Ron had always tried to gain recognition, which was hard since almost everything to achieve that credit had been done before by either himself or the other Weasley boys before him. He had enclosed his enthusiastic congratulations in that correspondence. Then, after he sent it, he wondered if Ron had only received the position because Harry Potter had disappeared.

Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. The arrival of the black-haired, emerald-eyed celebrity to the Burrow was always an anticipated event. His father would smile happily, his mother would fuss, the twins would plan tricks, and Ron would be ecstatic, while Ginny would smile dreamily to herself. Percy himself never saw what was so special about his brother's famous best friend. He was nice, sure, but he was so shy and soft-spoken. Harry always seemed flustered and embarrassed at any attention thrown towards him. His actions at school, though, seemed to counter this. Everyone knew of the grudges between him and the Slytherin house, in particular against Draco Malfoy and Professor Severus Snape. He had become Seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team in his first year and in his entire record had lost only one game, while helping the team win the Quidditch Cup. He found the Sorcerer's Stone with the help of Ron and Hermione as well in that year. He was thought to be the infamous Heir of Slytherin in second year, but at the end of the year he had found the Chamber of Secrets, killed a basilisk, and saved his little sister. Third year, he survived an encounter with both a werewolf and the notorious Sirius Black (then still considered to be a criminal). Finally, in fourth year, Harry had competed in the Triwizard Tournament as a fourth champion. After the final task, he returned from out of nowhere with the Triwizard Cup and the dead body of Cedric Diggory while claiming You-Know-Who had returned. He could speak Parseltongue and had fits during classes (yes, he had read Rita Skeeter). The boy seemed to ask for it.

Two red letters dropping into the inbox of his immaculate desk tore Percy from his musings. Uh oh. I better run. He made to grab them and run. But it was too late. The first Howler exploded and the magnified voice of a very angry Ronald Michael Weasley filled the hall.

"HOW CAN YOU GO AND WRITE THAT LETTER TO ME, YOU GIT?! IF HARRY SAYS THE DARK LORD IS BACK THEN HE IS! I DON'T THINK THAT CEDRIC JUST DROPPED DEAD IN THE THIRD TASK! HOW DO YOU JUSTIFY THAT? AND WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HARRY'S DISAPPEARANCE?! DO YOU KNOW HOW BAD HARRY WAS HURT BY THOSE MUGGLES?! THAT HE WROTE 'HELP' ALL OVER HIS ROOM IN HIS OWN BLOOD?! HARRY HATES HIS FAME AND WOULD NEVER TO SOMETHING LIKE THAT JUST TO GAIN ATTENTION. ALL HE WANTS IN LIFE IS TO LIVE NORMALLY AND HAVE FRIENDS AND FAMILY, THINGS THAT WE TAKE FOR GRANTED! I SUPPORT HARRY AND DUMBLEDORE! NEVER TRY TO SPEAK TO OR CONTACT ME AGAIN!"

Everyone had quieted down to a ringing silence. But the worst had yet to come. The second Howler began to smoke and exploded. Now his mother's livid voice reverberated in the hall.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU CAN SAY SUCH THINGS ABOUT YOUR FAMILY! THAT INCLUDES HARRY! WHAT HAS HARRY DONE THAT SUGGESTED HE WAS SELF-CENTERED AND ATTENTION GRABBING?! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THOSE MUGGLES HAVE DONE TO HIM?! AND AFTER ALL HE HAD JUST BEEN THROUGH?! I DIDN'T RAISE YOU TO BE UNCARING AND INHUMANE! CUT YOUR TIES WITH US IF YOU WANT! AT LEAST WE ARE TRYING TO PREVENT THE LOSS OF LIVES BY SUPPORTING AN 'OLD COOT'!"

The hall was deathly quiet.

<><><>

The man in the dark robes respectfully kneeled before Voldemort to speak. "My Lord, if I may ask: why do you wish us to look for this staff?"

Voldemort replied, "Because that staff will give us a huge advantage over Dumbledore, that Muggle-loving fool." Not to mention help me gain the power needed to open the Dark Gateway.

"How so, my Lord?"

Scarlet eyes narrowed and the demon twirled his yew wand casually between his fingers. "Are you questioning me, Avery?"

"No, my Lord! Not at all! Plea-please forgive-"

He was cut off by Voldemort brandishing his wand and in a low voice saying, "Crucio." Avery's screams rang through the chamber. If the other Death Eaters reacted, they did not show it from behind their masks. Finally, Voldemort stopped the curse. His servant fell to the floor in a slump, panting hoarsely. Voldemort only smirked at this. "Don't question me, Avery. I hope that little lesson reminded you of your place." Avery barely inclined his head in response. Voldemort barked, "Malfoy!"

A death eater in slightly more lavish robes than the others came forward. The man behind the white mask bowed deferentially. "Yes, my Lord?"

"Gringotts is planning to excavate the Tomb of Cursed Sands in Egypt, where the staff is. We will let them recover it for us and then we will strike. You are to lead this operation."

"It is a honor, my Lord. I will try not to fail."

"See that you don't. As for the rest of you, continue the random attacks and don't get caught. That will keep Dumbledore busy and continue to throw that hapless Ministry into disarray." The Death Eaters nodded. "This meeting is over. But remember," he said viciously, wand sparking dangerous green sparks. "I will not accept failure."

Almost as one, every Death Eater of his Apparated out of Serpent Castle, his base in a remote and deserted moor of Wales. With a sharp crack of red sparks, Voldemort himself disappeared from his throne room and reappeared at the top of the highest tower in the complex. A faint wind rustled his robes and he looked up at the structure that stood stark against the veil of the ancient night goddess.

Before him was a freestanding threshold made of an unidentifiable dark crystal, shot from the inside by gold and silver. Forbidding iron doors, shielded and strengthened by the smoldering red runes sunk into the metal, further gave off the aura of pure darkness. The emblem of darkness lastly sealed the doors that neither he nor the great goddess Pheta could break: the winged silver dragon of Tartarus. Voldemort grinned sinisterly. Soon, this gateway into the realm of the darkest of the dark realms will be open. Then, Lady Pheta will have her revenge.

<><><>

"So, where is the tomb?" Bill Weasley was hot. Not in the way that most girls he had met thought of him, but as in the temperature 'hot'. He added a little more ice to his water glass. Currently, he was wearing a white t-shirt, a many-pocketed vest, and khaki pants along with his usual dragonhide boots. If his attire didn't make him stand out against the shift wearing and veiled locals of Malak-Javeh, then it was his pale skin and long red hair tied back into a ponytail. It was better that he dressed this way though. Malak-Javeh was largely a Muggle settlement. So far, many thought him to be some archaeologist or some other kind of Muggle. He could imagine what they would think if he showed up in full wizarding robes. The man across from him wore similar attire, but unlike Bill, he seemed apprehensive.

"I don't know, Bill...there has to be a reason why the security wards are so strong. Maybe we're supposed to stay out of it..."

"That doesn't answer my question, Dan. Where's the tomb?"

"I don't know. I don't even know if it's actually a tomb there."

"What?!"

"Listen," Dan sighed. "We've never seen the place actually. There's a huge force field around it. We assume it's a tomb. Also, it's charmed so that its location is never remembered. Our only guide is a cat."

"A cat," Bill repeated slowly, disbelieving. "Our only guide is a cat."

"Well, when you see it you'll understand. We don't think it's normal."

Bill took a sip of water. It was very hot today. The sun glared down harshly on them, even under the canopy of the outdoor café they were sitting in. The stone buildings of the town seemed to be 'air-conditioned'. Unlike his father (who interrogated him endlessly over this), he understood this wonderful Muggle appliance. He wished he were in a room with one right now. Even the usually verdant date trees looked to be sweltering in this heat.

Then, it hit him.

Looking back on the situation later, he would not be able to describe the feeling. It was like a drastic and urgent shock to his system. He would call it a flash of intuition or a premonition, but he really didn't hold with Divination. He only took that subject in school for an easy grade. But this was different. Immediately, he looked around to find what caused it. Nothing. But what was THAT?

"Bill? You alright?"

"Don't worry, it's nothing." But even as he waved it off, he could still feel that whatever had done that was nearby. His attention was soon drawn to something else. It wasn't hard to miss; it was the only living thing outside on the street other than them. It was a sleek black cat, walking lithely down the street as if it owned it. Its paws were silver and the tips of its ears and tail were a metallic gold. It continued to saunter down the avenue as if it were royalty, but at the same time it was watching everything with alert green eyes. Judging from its path, it was heading for the desert.

Dan reluctantly stood up. "There's our guide. I'll get the crew.

"Right," Bill concurred as he grabbed his hat and backpack.

Neither of the two men noticed the woman garbed in golden yellow watching them with keen interest ablaze in deep hazels, her face masked by a veil. A few black strands could be seen falling into the mystic eyes. A few minutes after they had left, she too started to make her way into the desert.

<><><>

Uneasiness clawed at his brain, urging him to leave and never come back.

He and his group of seven men had followed that strange cat into the desert. Bill was happy that plenty of water had been brought with them for the heat was brutal. Still, they trudged through the pale gold and ivory sands. He looked down and noticed that the ground was becoming slightly more stony and solid. Then, he ran into it.

"OW!" It felt as though he just ran headfirst into a brick wall. Around him, he heard his colleagues curse out various profanities as they too encountered the barrier. Squinting, he could barely see the black lissome silhouette of the cat behind what seemed to be a shimmering curtain. "Guys," Dan called out. "I think we've found it."

"No, we're just stopping here to have a party! Oy, Chris, break out the champagne!" That remark came from Rudy Steinberg, their sarcastic rune expert. All too soon, everyone in their ten-member party began talking at once.

"Shut up!" Everyone quieted as Bill shouted his into the sharp heated air. Hmm...it seems I have the same effect on people that Mum has. Pushing that thought aside, he tapped the force field experimentally. "This looks like a simple shield spell, only it just has a whole lot of power behind it. We could bring the shield down if we do a counter charm all together."

The expedition crew, as one, raised their wands and chanted, "FINITE INCANTATEM!"

Bill could feel the shield resisting their attempts and put more power into the charm. He felt the others with him do the same. But the shield was not budging, but merely absorbing the spell. What is this?!

Right then, he felt that strange shock again. With a brief flicker, the shield died. They weren't expecting what would appear behind it though.

A pyramid of shining white marble stood in front of them, veined in black streaks. Towering obelisks of the same stone rose out of the sands to form a square around the structure, presumably the endpoints of the force field. A stale wind kicked up powdered earth and dirt into their faces. Overall, the whole thing was gigantic.

Dan stuttered, "Wh-what is this?!" Bill didn't reply, but he couldn't help but agree with his stammered incredulity. The building was amazing. With unspoken assent, they all stepped forward beyond where the barrier blocked them. He had not taken more than two steps forward when a huge spike shot up from the ground, it's deadly edge glinting. Then, with sharp shaft sounds, similar spikes rose up from the sands around them. They practically covered the entire area around the tomb.

Rudy caustically said, "Well, we're stuck."

"No, wait," said a good-looking man with an eye patch over his left eye. Bill remembered how he lost it. In school, someone was foolishly waving their wand around in the hallways. Unintentionally, they caused a pencil to start zooming across the room. It unfortunately embedded itself in this man's eye as he was innocently walking down the corridor. Madame Pomfrey did all she could, but didn't manage to save the eye. This was a large blow to they Slytherin house: Wyvern Irving was the best seeker they had ever had. They had to drop him and soon after, Charlie started joined the Gryffindor team and started to win matches for the house. I guess some skills just don't fade. "That cat got through just fine, there's no reason why we can't as well. There is a path to the door, but it's just hard to see because of the spikes. The start should be...there!" He pointed to an area about five feet away.

As they wended their way towards the pyramid entrance, none of them noticed that they were being watched. Hazel eyes behind a yellow veil observed them. The figure of a woman in gold could be seen sitting on the top of one of the obelisks.

<><><>

"This just isn't normal," announced Wyvern. "Traps are supposed to activate with us in them, not when we're a few steps before it. It doesn't make sense."

Rudy raised an eyebrow. "You're complaining?"

Bill broke in with, "It implies that there's something not right here. The spells here are incredibly powerful and the fact that they're malfunctioning just before we land in them is odd." He had mixed feelings about this. On a health level, he was glad. The last room had flamethrowers in the walls. On another level, it disconcerted him. Is someone watching us? What irked him most about this whole state of affairs was that cat.

Something was definitely different about that cat. For one reason, black cats weren't normal in hot desert climates. They absorbed too much heat and stood out too much in the pale environment. It was obviously magical: no other cat would have silver feet and gold-tipped ears and tail. Not to mention its green eyes, pondered Bill as he and his crew progressed through the corridor with wands lit with the Lumos spell, seem like they could see any and everything. Bill's last reasons to how he knew the cat was magical lie outside in the first chamber they had entered. Tin the room where the vibrant colors of hieroglyphics still shone through under a blanket of aged dust, were hundreds of bones and skeletons. With its pristine exterior, the group was not expecting this sight. A majority of the bones were desert rodents, but the remains of men also were scattered about. He swore he saw the bones of a nundu(*) in there. One thing about that eerie room was that he was certain of was that the cat had inexplicably killed them all. He didn't know how, but he knew it did. It was in that room that they found a clue as to what this strange place was for, thanks to Rudy (he demanded this thanks with a great deal of whining):

Stranger who dares to defy the will of the great ones

What do you hope to seek in this tomb found in the cursed sands?

The staff of ancients that binds the destructive entity known as Kardis

Will bring naught but ill to all those not of immortal blood

Kingdoms will fall, the dead will rise, and iron will turn to gold

Nature will repel against all law and chaos will reign supreme

Do you still wish to find Kardis under these cursed sands?

Apparently, the treasure hidden here was a magical tool or amplifier of some kind. Gringotts wouldn't want it. But it would be useful to the Order of the Phoenix. He wouldn't tell this to his companions though. Many of them, excluding himself and Rudy, were Ministry supporters. Though, actually he wasn't too sure about Wyvern. Then again, he was a Slytherin and who knows where they place their loyalties. Under this curious message were yet more lines of vague rune, nearly covered in a flaky red substance. It looked like blood.

The three powers will work together again after millennia of separation.

The Almighty who wields authority over all will move the pieces into play

The Universe will send her dark children against the worshipped one.

The Chaos will launch his demon armies over land, sea, and celestial mist.

The Gateways will open and the Tower of the Grey Ancients will rise again.

The Sovereign will rise from oblivion while the Storm Harbinger will come to power.

And lastly...the lines of rune that filled him with an unexplainable feeling of fate...

If one puts his trust into that of the eternal dark goddess, he will not be disappointed. Even the mighty Osiris of the Nile makes way for her greatness. Long live those in the service of Melania Amarna, the dark queen of the dead.

They continued to follow the cat, which ignored them. It guided them to what seemed to be the last corridor, which lead to...

...an empty chamber.

Dan loudly exclaimed, "What the hell?!" The room with the blank walls and floor of bare earth was completely devoid of anything, except the cat. It just walked in and turned around, fixing them with what seemed to be a laughing green stare. It's black and gold tail swished across the dusty floor in an amused manner. Behind him, he heard Dan growl in anger. "We went all this way...to get nothing?!"

Wyvern glared at him. "So what? We knew that treasure wasn't promised in this mission since we didn't know what was here in the first place. Since we didn't know what this was, our expectations naturally were low. And our low expectations were fulfilled. As least we have more experience with tougher charms now."

"Calm down, Dan," Bill ordered.

"No, I won't!" Dan lunged at the cat and grabbed it before it could dodge. It clearly wasn't expecting them to attack. He held the struggling animal by its neck, trying to choke the life out of it. "You can take your expectations and experience and shove them somewhere else! We didn't come all this way to be disappointed!"

"STUPEFY! Bill shot the stunning curse at the man, who promptly let go of the snarling feline and collapsed to the ground. Moving quickly, he ran forward to catch it before it hit the ground.

He didn't catch a cat though. He now held a staff in his grubby, dusty hands.

<><><>

Cloaking himself in dark shadows, Thanatos watched the woman in the golden dress and veil, not letting her know that he was there. He had felt a disturbance from this area and went to check it out. He had heard from the reaper known as Ptolemy Shadis that some Gringotts tomb breakers were in the area. It wasn't that hard to put two and two together. And here he was at the Tomb of Cursed Sands and look at whom he found there: Sekhmet, goddess of the deserts, protector of the noble, brave, and innocent. If I know Sekhmet, she's done something. Hopefully, he'll come to answer my question, albeit indirectly. Yep. He watched as a bright light flashed next to the woman. Light-born gods are so predictable. The death god smirked. Especially ones as high up on the light-born hierarchy as these two are.

A tall, muscular man with long blond hair tied back into a ponytail stood next to the woman sitting on top of the stone tower. He was thickset with broad shoulders and a glint of intelligence shown clear in callous light brown eyes. Unlike his casual mostly Muggle attire and Sekhmet's golden gown, he wore white robes with the symbol of the sun stitched on them. Currently, he was looking down on goddess with an expression of curiosity, exasperation, and anger. "Sekhmet," he said in a deep voice. The power of the sun's rays pouring down on the area seemed to grow even brighter and stronger. Figures. I knew that the oh-so-mighty sun god would show his face sooner or later. I wonder what they've done now. "Why are you here in this accursed place?"

She looked at the man with narrowed hazel eyes. "Keeping an eye on my own, Helios."

"You mean the red-haired one?"

"Correct. He is under my protection. One does not see one from the north come down to my deserts with such courage and morality. I dare not lose one so rare as him."

"Which is why you disabled the traps?" Thanatos raised an eyebrow. Disabled the traps? Here? Crap. Helios continued. "They were placed there for a reason. Kardis is a dangerous spirit with amazing power. Mortals have channeled and misused it before."

"It is best that it is moved. If it encounters the right person to serve, it would not be so hazardous for the world."

"There aren't that many people to choose from," admonished Helios. "Kardis will work for anyone that it accepts as a worthy master, but if the person does not have the blood of an immortal flowing through their veins then they are doomed to die after channeling the power ten times. A person without the special ancestry needed will only die because of the amount of power needed to control the spirit. And as you know, those who carry the line of the gods with in them are rare now. I believe only about fifty remain."

Sekhmet scowled. "I know. And your dear sister wants them eliminated."

Helios shrugged. "Pheta never would think things through. She does not care anymore since Hyperion Apollyon, her last mortal descendant, died about three centuries ago. Not to mention, she still has that grudge against Melania."

"Why does she hate her so much?" It's obvious! Come on, why they hate each other is right in front of your eyes! Idiots...why am I the only smart one?

"It is not our place to know," replied Helios. "Pheta is stubborn and will never admit that she is wrong. While she is in the right, Melania Amarna of Annuvin does not have the support of dozens of gods behind her. At the moment, it is best not to get involved. But let us return to the situation at hand. You are taking a large risk."

"Sometimes great risks must be taken. We will see who Kardis will choose as its master, whether they be of mortal or immortal descent."

I wonder who will react worse to this little development, Mel or Rin?

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