Lethal Darkness 2: The Third War

Lethal Darkness 2: The Third War

By Snitch Builder

Chapter Two

Battle Stations

Harry stared at the front of Snape's chest. Where the front of his body had been opened six years ago to remove an Alien baby, there used to be a feint scar. But now the scar was red, sore, and was bleeding in places where the wound appeared to be opening up again.

'You see Potter,' Snape said in a low growl and eyeing Harry menacingly, 'I am changing. It is I that is getting the dreams his time. Nightmares that would stop the strongest willed man dead. The dreams you had were nothing compared to what I am experiencing.'

Harry slowly let go of Snape's shirt and took a step back before turning his eyes to look directly into Snape's.

'Explain the dreams to me,' Harry said with a morbid fascination spreading through his mind.

Snape smiled thinly and stared at Harry again; his eyes burned into him.

'They started a week ago,' Snape explained. 'The creature you dreamed about was a pussycat compared to what I have seen. She has been planting visions in my head. She knows I survived the birth of one of her kind; the only one ever. She is wary of me. I have seen what she has planned and what she has planned for me.'

'What do you mean?' Harry asked nervously. 'You said she?'

Snape closed his eyes and screwed his face up in pain.

'She is building an army,' he said darkly and opened his eyes again. 'Soon, her daughters will be ready to leave the nest. She has explained it all to me. Someone took an egg from the tunnel at Hogwarts many years ago. It is from this egg that the new creature has hatched.'

Harry felt a cold lump swell up in his stomach that churned round, making him feel sick as he knew exactly who had taken the egg: Thomas Wickett, who now lay dead in a pool of his own blood.

'What daughters? What army?' Harry asked, suddenly feeling very cold.

'She has been breeding since she was born,' Snape went on. 'She already has hundreds of her kind ready to move on. All she is waiting for is for her daughters to mature.'

It took a few seconds for the realisation to hit Harry, but if what Snape meant what he thought he meant, the planet is in for a change at the top of the food chain, so he decided to press for more information, and the best way of doing it was to make Snape mad.

'You're talking crap,' Harry snapped.

Snape was quick; too quick for a normal human. He pulled his legs up and wrapped them tightly around Harry's neck. As Snape contracted his muscles, Harry could feel his throat constrict, preventing him from breathing properly; he groped about uselessly at Snape's legs, trying to get them from him.

'I am not talking crap, Potter,' Snape growled slowly. 'When you are knee deep in the bastards, then you can come to me and tell me I am talking crap. Slatina is becoming a graveyard. It's just a matter of time that things get beyond the control of man.'

He let Harry go, who fell to the floor, gasping for breath.

'Y-you said Slatina,' Harry gasped, rubbing his sore neck. 'H-how do you know?'

'Because I have seen through her eyes,' Snape whispered dangerously. 'Or at least what she senses.' He shut his eyes slowly, then after a couple of seconds snapped them back open. 'You need to act quickly. She is a beast beyond your wildest nightmares. Her intelligence puts us in the shade. But she has a weakness. You should be able to exploit - '

He screwed his face up in agony and bought his knees up to his chest, giving a guttural moan that echoed round the dimly lit cell. Harry watched in horror as the man writhed around in agony, before settling once more. Snape turned his sweaty face towards Harry.

'I have a request,' Snape pleaded. 'This new monster is far more deadly than anything we have encountered so far. It is a pure breeder and can lay many thousands of eggs before moving on. I can help if you wish. But if you feel I cannot be of any more use, kill me now and get it over with.'

Harry looked at his old potions master and felt a prick of pity as he saw the pain and despair in Snape's eyes. He knew that look from when he was getting the nightmares. Harry raised his wand and Snape closed his eyes tightly. A red flash hurtled from Harry's wand and hit Snape squarely in the middle of his chest. Snape slumped on the end of his arms. Before he left, Harry touched Snape's wrist and sighed in relief when he could feel the skin pulse, showing he was alive.

'Did you find anything out?' Ron asked when Harry sat down at his desk. 'I didn't. None of her colleagues knew anything.'

'I did find out something,' Harry replied darkly. 'And it's not good news.'

Ron's face lost all expression.

'What did he say?' Ron asked cautiously.

Harry looked into his old friend's face and a tear welled in Harry's eye.

'There's another Alien,' Harry said quietly.

'What!' Ron whispered alarmingly. 'You've gotta be joking!'

'No, I'm not. Snape has been getting nightmares for a week now. He told me that the new Alien is worse than the one we encountered at school. Apparently, this new creature can lay hundreds of those egg things. She has been laying eggs for a week. That's what was attacking the people and animals over there. I also know that the egg came from Hogwarts.'

Ron's expression dropped even further, and his face turned very pale. 'Wickett!' he exclaimed. 'Did you see him take it?'

'Not as such,' Harry explained. 'I did have a feeling about the size of the bag he was carrying, but at the time, I thought it was Alien remains. I know what it was now.'

'What was what?' Moody growled as he clumped over to Harry.

'Wickett took an Alien egg from Hogwarts,' Harry said.

'Oh shit!' Moody said slowly.

'Yeah,' Ron said nervously. 'That's what killed him.'

'I think you're right Weasley,' Moody agreed as he looked at the photograph of Wickett's body.

'We need to find Hermione,' Harry said urgently. 'And find her fast. I think she could be in real danger now.'

'Okay, Potter, calm down,' Moody snapped. 'It'll take a little more than a couple of newbies to clear this one up. I shall call on the Minister himself. He knows a few tough Aurors that would be of use.'

'Well, be quick about it,' Harry snapped.

Moody seemed surprised at the order. 'Yes sir. Right away sir!' and he gave a sort of salute before clumping off up the office.

'I hope we can get her out in time,' Ron said, sounding quite upset.

Harry smiled, but his insides felt like a whole load of eels were writhing about.

'I'm sure she's okay, Ron,' Harry said, trying to sound optimistic. 'She's a big girl now and can look after herself.'

'Possibly,' Ron whispered. 'But why hasn't she sent us any news? She knows we would be upset at what is happening. Or maybe is she too busy trying to stop herself from being killed... or worse.'

Harry shuddered at the though of something more deadly chasing after Hermione. Could she still be alive? It was a question that nobody could answer, until either she turns up unexpectedly, or someone discovers a corpse with a hideously mutilated chest. The worst part of it was that she was not a fighter, she was a Healer, and as such would struggle to survive if found stranded in the middle of nowhere in a foreign country. She didn't wholly approve of Harry's career, but as of yet he had not had any field experience, so she didn't mind.

Moody returned a few minutes later, and in his hands he held a number of scrolls.

'Here, Potter,' he growled and shoved the scrolls into Harry's hands. 'Read this lot. It's the service and criminal records of the group of wizards and witches you will be going into Romania with. They are all ex-Aurors, but they do it for the money now, rather than the glory.'

'You've agreed to let us go?' Ron asked, sounding very surprised.

'Why not?' Moody said and a wide grin split his gnarled face. 'You've done enough training and you've proved yourself when you arrested Snape, so if this turns out to be just another madman with an axe, all you have to do is bring Granger back. Even you should be able to do that. All these have agreed to be here first thing tomorrow morning, so I suggest you have a look through this lot and go home and get some rest.'

Moody wandered back up the office while Harry and Ron looked through the scrolls. Each one contained a wizard photograph of each person, together with a physical description and a service record.

'Look at this one,' Ron exclaimed as he unrolled a scroll. 'This one looks really mean.'

'What does it say?' Harry asked, putting down his own scroll.

'His name is Tobias Simpson,' Ron explained. 'He's forty-two and graduated with flying colours as an Auror. But, get this! He was arrested during the closing months of the second war for wand-running. Apparently he was selling doctored wands to whoever would pay for them. He spent two years in Azkaban for his trouble. He is also an illegal Amiagus, a wolf, and can read people's minds very efficiently.' He placed the scroll onto the table. 'Who have you got?'

Harry picked up his piece of paper and adjusted his glasses a little.

'Miranda Fortesque,' he said, frowning. 'A sixty seven year-old witch, who spent three years in Azkaban for murdering her husband. Blimey! She is a Incendor -'

'A what?' Ron interrupted.

'She can start fires by thinking about it,' Harry replied. 'Anyway. She was also accused of the massacre of seventeen Death Eaters at Portland Bridge during the second war. But there was no direct evidence, so she got off with it. Who's next?'

'Oh, listen to this one,' Ron said with a wide smile. 'Cho Xio. Twenty-seven, Chinese origin, and an expert in Wizard Karate, Kwo-ty-cha. Like that's going to be any good to us.'

'It could be,' Harry butted in. 'It means she can cast spells without a wand, and to a more deadly effect. What else is there on her? She sounds quite nice.' His thoughts wandered back to an oriental girl he had fell in love with at school. What was her name?

'Nice!' Ron snapped in amazement. 'She has spent the last five years in Azkaban for attempted kidnap, murder after she tortured a Death Eater for three days, but after the end of the war had been declared, and she was accused of embezzling a million Galleons from Gringotts, but nothing was proved. Still think she is nice?'

Harry chuckled and picked up another scroll. The picture on the front was of a young man, with a tartan cloak.

'John Smith,' he said. 'Not very original. It says here that Smith is an assumed name and no-one knows why. His record is clean, and it looks like he had no real problems. But the records only go back three years, so anything could have happened. All it says here is that he is an illegal Animagus - a dragon! Well that could be useful.'

'Right,' Ron announced. 'This one's Bletchley Monks. Says here that he is a fifty-seven year old witch. Eh? He is a witch? Erm... Ah! Urgh! According to this, he was a wizard until about twenty years ago when he had an accident with a broom doctored with explosive curses and it -'

'Okay,' Harry interrupted, screwing his face up in disgust. 'I don't need a description. Anyway, here's the last one. Recaro Tillett. Sixty-seven, wizard, Illegal Animagus. Why do they keep saying they are illegal? Surely if the authorities know, then they can be made legal?'

Ron shrugged: 'Perhaps they don't want to register officially. Gives them some sort of perverted pleasure from winding up the authorities. Never mind. What else does it say?'

Harry adjusted his glasses again and looked back at the scroll. 'He has a strange ability to intercept Muggle radio transmissions, and can make himself invisible without the aid of a wand. Now that is useful. Oh. Oh dear.'

'What is it?' Ron asked nervously.

'He used to be a Death Eater,' Harry said darkly. 'But he returned to the Auror side upon release from Azkaban just before the second war. But he is an expert in Muggle weaponry and is proficient in the use of a Kraggle. What in the name of Merlin is a Kraggle?'

'It's a type of crossbow,' Ron said. 'You see, I do remember things. I read about them only last week. A Kraggle looks like a crossbow, but it fires powerful wand-arrows at fantastic rate. Apparently, there are only six of them in the world. I would love to see one in action.'

Harry put his scroll down and removed his glasses. His eyes stung for some reason and he rubbed them with the palms of his hands.

'Do you think we will be okay?' he asked quietly and stopped rubbing his eyes; he blinked to bring his them back into focus.

Ron just stared blankly back at him. 'I don't see why not,' he replied dreamily. 'This lot sounds okay, as long as they can take orders.'

This didn't make Harry feel any easier, but his attention was distracted when Moody came over with another announcement.

'The Minister says you will lead the group, Potter,' Moody announced airily.

'What?' Harry said in surprise. 'I'm no leader! I didn't even make prefect at school.'

Moody shook his head and put his hand on Harry's shoulder, which made it sore again.

'You'll be fine, Potter,' he growled. 'Just let them know whose boss, and you'll be okay. But one word of warning. Show the slightest chink of weakness and they'll eat you alive! Oh, and you will be second in command Weasley.'

'Why do we need this sort of backup?' Ron asked.

'You don't think I would send you over there alone did you?' Moody laughed.

'You think there is something to be worried about then?' Ron pressed.

Moody stopped laughing. 'Not really. But it's always better to be safe than sorry. Besides, if there's nothing going on, then you get a trip to the Carpathian Mountains, and a little holiday. I hear Slatina is lovely this time of year.'

Harry smiled slightly. The situation over in Romania might not be as bad as Snape made out. Perhaps the reason for his nightmares could be just his imagination. Maybe Hermione was just having a bit of fun and had forgotten to file a report, that's all. Perhaps when they arrive, the whole town could be having a massive party and Hermione could be lying drunk over a barrel somewhere. But then the vision of her lying in a pool of blood with most of her chest missing crowded his mind.

When Harry arrived home Lily-Jane jumped up at him, so he could pick her up to give her a cuddle. He turned and gave Parvati a kiss.

'Did you get Snape?' Parvati asked as she placed his evening meal on the table.

'We did,' he replied brightly, putting Lily-Jane back down and sitting down to eat.

Parvati sat down opposite him and sipped at her wine while Harry gulped his meal down. As usual, he was late home, but Parvati had gotten used to it now. Harry smiled at her, but Parvati saw straight though it.

'What's wrong,' she asked tenderly.

Harry stopped chewing and looked at Parvati. He swallowed his food and he felt his eyes prickle. A conflict grew within him as he had to tell her something, but he had to be careful about how much.

'Hermione has gone missing,' he said slowly.

'Missing?' said Parvati, and a frown furrowed her dark brow. 'How do you go missing in a hospital?'

'She went out to Romania as a special favour to the department,' Harry explained. 'There was something funny going on over there that the local Ministry couldn't support, so they asked our Ministry for help and Hermione volunteered. They lost touch with her two days ago.'

'So, what has that got to do with you?' Parvati asked and poured some more wine.

Harry finished off the last mouthful of food and put his knife and fork on his plate.

'Moody wants Ron and I to go in and get her out,' Harry went on carefully, hoping that Parvati wouldn't go off on one, like she does from time to time.

'There's something else, isn't there?' she said quietly and placed her hand on his.

Harry couldn't recall making any suggestions about anything else. Perhaps Parvati has a highly developed sense for men hiding something. She should be an Inquisitor working in the Ministry dungeon.

'Maybe,' he replied. 'There are some... some strange things going on where Hermione was sent to. People are turning up unconscious, and some are dead. We don't know what it is yet, but Moody reckons Ron and I should be able to handle it.'

'Okay then,' she sighed. 'But you be careful. I don't like it when I hear of the stuff that Aurors do. It sets my nerves on edge. Will you two be going alone?'

'No,' Harry replied, glad that she was on side. 'We are taking in six nutcases to help us. Some ex-Aurors that are more like private soldiers than anything, but they are hard and brave, so we should be okay.'

'Sounds like it could be a barrel of laughs then,' Parvati said with a chuckle. 'The great Harry Potter and his own private army.'

'Play, daddy,' came a small voice from beside him and he reached down and picked up his daughter.

'Certainly,' he said and took the toy horse gently from her small hand and made it gallop around the table with his wand.

Lily-Jane squealed and clapped her hands while Harry made the horse jump about and rear up on its hind legs, and jump over his empty plate. Watching Lily-Jane bounce up and down on his lap made him suddenly very frightened. He had a loving wife and a beautiful three year-old daughter who loved him dearly, so why did he want to go off and rescue someone he hadn't seen in months? Parvati cleared the table and joined them in the game by using her wand to make a toy man to run around after the horse.

After a while, Lily-Jane was put to bed - after much arguing - and Harry now sat alone with Parvati. The fire was blazing brightly and Harry looked around the room. It was nothing like it had been five years ago when he bought it from his uncle Vernon. But at least it got the Dursleys out of debt when his uncle was made redundant. Where were they now?

'How long will you be away?' Parvati asked as she lay against him, the firelight reflected in her deep brown eyes.

'Not long,' Harry said and hugged her more tightly. 'I hope no more than a week. I'll keep you posted though.'

Monstrous thoughts ran through Harry's mind as he sat gazing into the fire. The flames changed shape as the logs settled, and memories gushed to the surface of his mind like a ghost ship rising from a black sea. Snape explained that they could be knee deep in monsters soon, which was not a very sobering thought. He sighed as he thought that maybe Snape was wrong. But then again, what if he was right? What if thousands of Aliens were ready to take on the rest of the world? A lump came in his throat when he thought that after all the fighting he had done at school with various monsters - including Voldemort - it could be all over in a matter of weeks for the whole planet.

The night passed all too quickly for Harry's liking, and he Apparated to the Ministry early. He and Ron were summoned to a meeting room and now they stood in front of six, mean looking wizards and witches. Each one of them had scars, bits missing from noses and ears, one had an eye-patch making him look like a pirate. One of the wizards had a large crossbow slung over his shoulder. The Kraggle looked more vicious than Ron's description, but if it was as powerful as described, then they should be protected enough.

Harry looked at the line of misfits and tried to look as menacing as they did, but failed.

'Listen up, you bunch of rebels!' Moody bellowed. 'This here is Harry Potter.' The mention of his name made them all look at Harry much harder. 'He will be in charge of this particular mission. You take orders from him. If he asks you to jump, I want you to be in the air BEFORE you ask how high. You don't question what he wants you to do, and if you do, don't be surprised if he doesn't just chew you a new arse-hole there and then. Okay Potter, over to you.'

Moody clumped off out of the office, and Harry felt like he wished the ground would open up and swallow him. Chew them a new arse-hole? Not likely. Clearing his throat, he looked at the people standing in front of him. It wasn't a very nice feeling to see these people staring at him with narrowed eyes. He felt as though they were evaluating how good he was by just watching him.

'Okay,' he said in as much of a commanding voice as he could produce. 'You have been called here for a special job to rescue a Healer that has gone missing in Romania. Hermione Granger has been missing for three days now and St Mungo's is keen to get her back. It's not our fault she's lost, but it is our responsibility to get her back.'

One of the wizard's had raised his hand. Harry recognised him as John Smith.

'Yes,' Harry said, getting annoyed. 'What is it, Smith?'

'Is Granger a virgin?' asked Smith in a deep Scottish accent, and he grinned; his eyes became very wide. ''Cos I could volunteer to rescue her from that as well.'

Some of the other wizards chuckled. Harry moved a little closer to the wizard, but stopped a little short, as there was a strong smell of stale sweat coming from the wizard.

'Listen,' Harry whispered menacingly. 'We have a very experienced and valuable member of the Healer community missing. She could be dead for all we know. You make a wisecrack like that again and I shall make damn sure that you never get called up again. Do I make myself clear?' Harry felt so nervous at the moment that he thought his head would explode.

The wizard looked straight at Harry, and his grin slipped from his face.

'Aye, sir,' he said quietly and saluted.

Harry stepped back again. 'And that goes for the rest of you. I have here details of the mission (he pointed to a number of scrolls on a table next to him). The Romanian Ministry of Magic is keen for us to help, but they are also keen for a peaceful resolution to the mission.'

He paused for a moment before continuing. The problem was that he had a fluttering sensation in the top of his stomach that threatened to make him throw up and he swallowed hard.

'Right, there is something else you should be aware of,' Harry continued, his mouth had suddenly gone very dry. 'There could be some sort of... of...'

'Creature?' said a voice from the door and Harry looked round sharply to see Snape standing there. 'Hello Simpson. They dragged you out of your slime-hole to join Potter's potty army then?' Snape quipped.

'Snape, you old bastard!' one of the wizards shouted and went to break ranks.

'STAY WHERE YOU ARE!' Harry bellowed, and the sound of his raised voice made him jump. 'What are you doing here?' he said sharply, turning to Snape.

'Moody thought I would be useful, knowing what I know,' Snape growled as he limped towards Harry.

'What do you know?' asked Simpson.

'I know that you are going to fight something that will probably kill you soon as look at you,' Snape said. 'There are hundreds of them all led by a female that is truly hideous.'

'Sounds like some of your girlfriends, Simpson,' Chu giggled.

'Fuck you, Chu,' Simpson spat.

'You would just love the chance,' Chu spat back and blew Simpson a kiss.

'That's enough,' Harry yelled. 'There is one more thing. Snape is right; there is a creature out there that makes all your nightmares seem like a walk in the park. But there is one priority, and that is to get Granger out alive. Read the mission briefings. They contain the location where you need to Apparate to, so may I suggest you get on with it. We will meet up again at the suggested location in fifteen minutes. Don't be late.'

Ron handed out the scrolls to each of the people. As he did, Harry had to chuckle as Ron was sneering, trying to look mean. It didn't work, not to Harry anyway. For a few minutes, there was just the rustle of paper as they read the scrolls. As each one reached the last word on the parchment, it started to smoke, then burst into flames. One by one, the wizards and witches Disapparated with a crack! leaving Harry and Ron alone with Snape.

'Why didn't you kill me when you had the chance Potter?' Snape asked.

'No point,' Harry replied and handed a rolled up parchment to him. 'I figured you would know more, so there was no reason to kill you.'

Snape looked the parchment over and it too burst into flames when he had finished reading it. Before he could Disapparate, Harry touched his sleeve.

'Don't let me down, Snape,' Harry said dangerously.

Snape looked into Harry's eyes and pulled his sleeve from Harry's grip.

'Don't you let me down, Potter,' he said back quietly and Disapparated with a particularly loud crack.

'Are you sure it's a good idea to have Snape with us?' Ron asked nervously. 'He's a little unstable for my liking.'

'I'm sure he'll be okay,' Harry said, staring at the space where Snape had been standing a few seconds ago; a thin wisp of smoke quickly evaporated. 'I have something to ask,' and he turned to face his friend, suddenly feeling his eyes prickle. 'If I get killed, will you look after Parvati and Lily-Jane for me? But if I am captured, I want you to finish me, regardless. You understand what I mean?'

Ron put his hand on Harry's shoulder and looked at him darkly. 'As long as you promise to do the same for me. But we're going to be fine. Look at what we are taking in with us. I think the Alien is going to have its crusty ass kicked big time this time.'

Harry felt a lump come up in his throat and he gave Ron a hug. It took Ron by surprise, but he returned the gesture and they slapped each other's backs hard. This made Harry feel a little better that at least if the unthinkable happened, his family would be okay.

'Lets get this show on the road,' Harry said as they parted.

'You ready now then?' Ron asked and handed Harry his backpack.

'I think so,' Harry sighed. 'You go. I'll be along in a minute.'

Ron Disapparated and Harry was left alone. He conjured up an armchair and slumped down onto it. Holding his head in his hands, he trembled as he thought about the band of murderers and cutthroats Moody had put him in charge of. He was no leader, especially of the load of reprobates he had just sent off to god knows what. What if he gets them all killed? What if he gets Ron killed? A desire to run away came over him. Perhaps he could slip away un-noticed and hide for a while. Ron could take over no problem. No, that wouldn't do. He had a job to do and a mission to complete. What would Parvati say if he didn't go? He had been moaning like a busted toilet for a chance, and to run away at the first opportunity of some field action would have spelled the end of his marriage. He stood up and made the chair disappear. Standing very straight, he thought of the location he was going to and Disapparated.

When he arrived in the small town of Slatina, neither Ron nor any of the group was around. In fact, it was very quiet, given that it was mid-morning. A cold breeze picked at his hair, and from somewhere in the distance a dog barked. He shifted his backpack around and drew his wand. The wind blew his hair into his eyes and he pulled it away from his face irritably. Fear took hold and turned his insides cold. The town should be bustling, but there was no one about. The shop fronts were shattered and houses had doors open that wafted gently in the wind. But the most startling observation was how damaged the buildings looked with shattered windows and holes blasted in walls. He moved carefully towards the side of the town square. Something banged to his left and he spun round to see a window shutter bang up a wall blown by the wind.

Harry looked around for any signs of life, and could see nothing. Not so much as a cat was wandering around. A siren cried out from beyond a wood at the rear of the town, a mournful sound that caused goose bumps to erupt down his neck. Cautiously, he moved backwards towards an open doorway. As he approached it, he glanced around the square. Sweat ran down his spine, and made his back itch. He got to the doorway and was suddenly grabbed from behind and pulled into the building; a greasy hand covered his mouth and a strong arm gripped his waist.

Harry struggled against the attacker, but when he saw whose face it was, he stopped struggling.

'Shh,' Simpson whispered. 'Look!' and he pointed out the shattered window across the square.

Something was moving in the shadows of an alleyway on the opposite side of the square. A hideous shape sparkled slightly in the gloom. Its huge banana-shaped head was pointing to the floor, biting the carcass of a dog. A cat sprang from another house and sprinted away, knocking over some small metal tins. The Alien looked up from its meal and snapped its striking jaw before returning back to its food.

'Oh, fuck,' Harry whispered.

'Oh, yeah,' Simpson agreed.

The Alien looked round again, then sprinted off down the alleyway. Harry's breaths became very quick as he thought of what might have been happening in the town. The appearance of an Alien and the noticeable lack of people could only mean one thing: the Aliens had taken the town, and no one knew. But how could that be?

'Was that the creature?' Simpson asked.

'Y-yes,' Harry said nervously which made Simpson frown. 'We need to regroup,' Harry said after gathering up his composure and standing up. 'Did you see where the others went?'

'They cleared off as soon as they spotted the monster,' Simpson explained. 'I dunno where Ron is, either.'

Chu jumped through the doorway with the graceful movement of a cat, and Harry almost died of fright.

'Did you see it?' she asked excitedly. 'What an amazing creature!'

'You wouldn't think it so amazing if it got hold of you,' Harry muttered.

'Yeah,' Simpson laughed. 'It looks like your Kwo-ty-cha moves wouldn't do it any harm, Chu.'

'I'd just give it a chop,' Chu said and bought her hand down in a chopping motion; sparks jumped from her fingertips. 'I'm a black-wand in it now.'

Ron almost fell through the doorway.

'Shit, Harry!' he gasped. 'Where did you get to? I thought you'd gone the wrong way.'

'No,' Harry snorted, but pleased to see Ron in one piece. 'I just had a few things to do, that's all. Anyway, we need to get to somewhere where we can plan what to do next. Obviously the towns screwed so we need to start to see if we can find Hermione.'

'Hey, Tillett,' Simpson yelled as another wizard appeared from a doorway across the square. 'What do you think happened here, then?'

Tillett wandered over and shouldered his Kraggle

'Looks like we missed all the fun,' Tillett said as he entered the house. 'It seems the residents tried to put up some sort of a fight, and lost. Look (he pointed at a hole in the wall). Muggle shotgun fire, and some small explosives. There's more of it around.'

Smith wandered across the square from the other side, his wand drawn and pointing to where the Alien had been seen eating.

'Anyone seen Fortesque?' Smith asked as he entered the house.

'No,' Chu replied, sounding a little worried.

The older witch ran into the house, panting and sweating a lot.

'Shit,' she panted. 'What was that? Do you think you can take it out, Tillet?'

Tillet raised his weapon and pointed it across the square. Ron jumped when the weapon unleashed its deadly force. Arrows emerged from the end of the Kraggle too fast to count, and the noise was deafening.

'Anything comes within half a mile of me will have its tits ripped off,' he said menacingly.

'You bloody stupid bugger!' exclaimed a witch as she stumbled through the door. 'You could have took my head off!'

'Oh, pipe down, Monks,' Tillett laughed. 'If I had meant to hit you, your entrails would have been spread all over the street by now.'

'Okay, settle down,' Harry bellowed and the group went silent.

He quickly scanned the group and realised Snape was missing.

'Was that the monster Snape was going on about,' Fortesque asked.

'Yes, it's an Alien,' said a voice from behind them and Harry spun round to see Snape step from the shadows. 'A creature so powerful, so vicious, that it would make Voldemort look like a schoolgirl.'

'I don't know,' Smith explained in his broad Scottish accent from behind Fortesque. 'I've met some pretty mean schoolgirls in my time'

'Yeah,' chuckled Tillett, he still had his finger on the trigger of his Kraggle. 'You've probably had a few as well.'

Smith threw Tillett a filthy look, and then started to laugh. Harry was getting more and more nervous as he got to know the band of rogues he was with. The main feeling he had was that he wished he were anyplace but here. The stink of sweat and stale drink from the group made him feel nauseous.

'Right,' Harry commanded, swallowing hard. 'We will need to plan what to do next.'

A glance around the group showed that they were all looking at Harry, and he couldn't think of anything to say. Ron came to his rescue.

'We should see if we can make this house safe,' he suggested, 'right, Harry?'

'Erm, yes,' Harry agreed. 'Erm, Smith, take Fortesque and have a look upstairs. See if there is anyway you could make this place into something defensible.'

'Yes, sir,' Smith snapped and motioned to Fortesque to follow him.

'Tillett,' Harry said, turning to the large man. 'Go with Xio, and take a look around outside. See if there is any way anything can sneak in on us.'

'Come on then,' Tillett spat and the two of them went carefully out into the street.

'The rest of you, can you split up and see if you can find any survivors,' Harry said forcefully, and the rest of the group drew their wands and went cautiously out through the door.

Snape approached Harry; he had a look of surprise across his sweaty face.

'Well, well,' he snarled. 'I would never had believed it if someone had told me.'

Harry was in no mood to take any lip from Snape. 'What are you going on about?'

'Seeing you in charge,' Snape grinned.

Ron opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted when Chu dived back into the room; her face wore an expression of surprise.

'Potter,' she panted. 'Come quick! We've found something!'