Chapter 31: Chamber of Secrets Part 1

Kaiser Lunar always believed he had a weird name. From the first time he woke up, it was his name, not only in this new world of magic he found himself in, but also in the previous one.

He never had parents, he only knew that he was left with a note in front of an orphanage, in both lives, though a few days before that there was a Lunar Eclipse. Perhaps that would explain why his last name as 'Lunar'.

The world has always fascinated him, and he wished to discover more about it. he found that physics and Maths were his best companions, as he could describe and experience another facet of our universe through equations.

Blessed with a perfect memory, learning was never a problem for Kaiser. He absorbed every piece of knowledge he got his hands on like a sponge in water, finishing his education at 18. By the age of 20, he already had a PhD.

It was the year 2047. Computer chips were getting smaller and smaller. In fact, they have already reached their limits. We've reached the pinnacle traditional computers had to offer, but it still wasn't enough. There are simulations that would require a lot more processing power than what the traditional computers have to offer, and therefore, the only alternative we could think of was Quantum Computers.

He was working with a group of thirty researchers, pioneering the development of the world's first fully functional Quantum Computer. They had run a test on a certain algorithm that would require ten thousand years on the world's fastest traditional super computer, and it finished in less than five minutes.

Quantum Computers, unlike traditional ones, do not work with two stated systems. "True" and "false". But instead, on a percentage of both, meaning it can hold a nearly infinite number of states, among other pros.

Quantum Computer also had a massive advantage in term of Cybernetic warfare. It can crack almost any traditional encryption system instantly, which rendered them obsolete. That means that whichever country developed it first would hold a massive advantage in that area, so much that it could bring countries networks on its knees.

Unfortunately, the researchers were too optimistic in hoping the world would understand how useful it would be for humanity as a whole, or maybe they never thought of the consequences of their research. Petty politicians could do nothing but think in terms of power. Not that it was wrong for their own countries, but it was wrong for the rest of the world. That one thing never seemed to change, no matter which world you are in.

He was murdered, most likely among the many other researchers working on the project. Yet it wasn't the end for him, as he somehow woke up in a world similar to his own, albeit in a different era and with different possibilities.

But most importantly, something existed there, that probably didn't exist in his old world: Magic. And even more, this was a world he was too familiar with. The world of Harry Potter, the one he always read about, thought about, dreamed about, over and over again. This was a dream came true.

When one hears about magic, he starts thinking of fairy tales and everything that do not make sense in the "Real World". But the truth of the matter is: phenomenon you experience makes sense. It is how you interpret it that's definitely flawed. A lot of examples are present through history, the most glaring one would be Gravity.

Isaac Newton's interpretation of gravity, along with his fundamental law of dynamics, explained numerous facets of the phenomenon, but also couldn't hold for very long once confronted by several celestial bodies' movements. And while Einstein's general relativity introduced the concept of space-time, that explained a lot more than Newton's model did, it still broke down when confronted by Black Hole.

Kaiser thought at first that Magic made no sense whatsoever. He read about this world in books, he knew what was going to happen, that in itself should prove that this was some kind of simulation he was in. Or was he also the product of someone's imagination? Wouldn't that mean that each person's imagination makes a universe of its own? Kaiser had a headache thinking about it.

But common sense still told him that magic shouldn't make any sense, but this is as far as common sense would take him. As curious as he was, he looked for answers, and thankfully found quite a few.

Magic IS a deterministic science. Repeat the same experiment, under the same conditions, and you get the same results.

On a side note, Kaiser found out that Isaac Newton was a wizard in this world, and also the first one to have made a broom. Was he a wizard in both lives? Did magic actually exist in the previous world, and the statue of secrecy was so evolved it was able to trick everyone even when they were that technologically advanced?

Surprisingly, the existence of magic is able to explain some phenomenons modern science was unable to, like 'Dark Energy'. But that is a subject for another time.

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Studying magic has been a wonderful experience for him, capable of making him forget the demons of his past, at least temporarily. Every time he learned something new, he can't help but think of the infinite possibilities magic has to offer, and their various applications.

In both worlds he lived in so far, he noticed something disturbing.

'Science is always political'

The difference between the development of a given field and the dawning of an entirely new field of scientific inquiry is all influenced by politics and the interest that people in charge find in each application, a government in 2047 could easily use legal and economic pressure to influence the world of science breaking thousands of dreams and studies that could easily reshape the whole world.

Kaiser's team didn't suffer from this type of limitation as their field of research was being pursued internationally, only to suffer from high expectations and his government shackles, along with bigger responsibilities that ended leading him to his own demise.

Deep down he knew his invention won't be used to raise people's lives, but he wasn't a humanist, he wasn't pursuing fame or money either, his only interest was the pure n simple knowledge. He dreamed of a place where knowledge was most prized, and Human life protected. This new life could be his opportunity to change the world and get closer to his ideals.

Alas, the magical world has its own faults as well. In the magical world, knowledge was more precious than anything, another extreme, and families treasured their knowledge the most, keeping it only among themselves, and rarely sharing anything. Family magic, family secrets...

There is someone in this world that has already achieved immortality, but Kaiser had no illusion the knowledge would ever be shared.

Fortunately for him, he was not the only one with these ideals. Salazar Slytherin and Rowena Ravenclaw had the same dream as well.

Rowena was Salazar's first wife, both united by their hopes to reach a new understanding in magic. He found out when he first entered the Room of Requirement. Somehow, he was granted access to Rowena's library, a great honor, though he does not know exactly why.

They both researched the Mind Arts, because they believe it was one of the most important part of the soul, and therefore holds many secrets of magic, as it is the common consensus that the Magical Core resides in the soul.

While the Mind Arts are an obscure art, they are not as obscure when you consider the soul as a whole, which was to this day one of the biggest question marks of magic. Armed with the knowledge accumulated through thousands of years by the Ravenclaw and Slytherin families, they were able to achieve outstanding results.

Rowena researched where and how memories were stored, and was ultimately able to make her master piece: Rowena's Diadem. It is a device that converts short term memory into long term memories. In layman's terms, it gives the wearer a perfect memory.

While they both ultimately researched the same subject, Salazar took a different approach. It is known that Legilimency attacks aren't the only mind attacks possible. Two examples come to mind: Veelas and ... Basilisks.

The fact that it looks to the victim's eyes to kill them is a giveaway it uses a mind attack. But clearly, it's not a regular Legilimency attack since those were incapable of hurting you.

Salazar researched how Basilisks kill their prey, and tried to understand the mind attack. While it can't be said he understood it perfectly, and was able to replicate it, he was nevertheless able to stop it from affecting him. It is one of the three functions of the locket. The second one was the ability to speak the language of serpents: Parseltongue.

Another thing Salazar was fascinated by in the studies of the soul was one very particular Ancient Spell: the Fidelius.

The [Fidelius] is a spell that can be cast on a location following certain criteria and makes it disappears from existence. Literally.

For example, say a house is under a Fidelius. Someone who do not have access will not be able to see it, even if he stood right in front of it. Even more, if he was standing in front of its gate, and marched forward, he would appear on the other side of the house. That region of space becomes unavailable. Those who have access, however, will see themselves enter the house.

Kaiser did not know the details of Salazar's research yet, but he know he was able to make the locket 'a secret keeper'. Which means that anyone who has the locket will be able to access the Fidelius-protected place.

The place he was looking for was in the Chamber of Secrets. It wasn't called that for no reason. Speaking of which, Kaiser found out that all the rumors about it were false. It never hid a "monster" to rid the school of "muggle-borns". Salazar never discriminated against 'muggle-borns'. His second wife, a scion of the Gaunt family, did. Kaiser guessed his association with their house is the reason he is ill thought of.

The chamber held the school's protector, a Basilisk, that would attack anyone trying to harm the school. The basilisk had clear orders. Not to hurt any student. And to follow the orders of anyone who holds his Locket, as he left it for his descendants. But clearly, he miscalculated. His descendants were all failures, even his daughter, Helena Ravenclaw, who betrayed her mother and stole her precious artifact.

Kaiser waited until the weekend to come here, mainly because the corridors would be empty. He couldn't sneak out at night, as that would alert the headmaster, who is keeping an eye on him. He was now standing in front of the entrance to the chamber, in a certain abandoned bathroom.

"Open." he hissed in the language of snake.

He descended the stairs that came out at his call, toward the infamous Chamber of Secrets, and soon he found himself in front of Salazar's statue. 'This was the moment of truth... I am placing my trust in the locket's ability to protect me. If the Basilisks decides to attack me for some reason, I will have no choice but to forfeit my life. Dumbledore himself would not be able to fight him on his own….' He internally thought.

"Open." it appeared that the doors responded to anything in Parseltongue. There was no need to say things like "Speak to me, Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts Four". A rumbling noise was heard, as the status suddenly moved forward, then sideways, showing a strangely well-lit entrance.

"Who are you?" Kaiser heard a hissing sound, yet somehow I was able to understand it.

"Greetings." 'What am I supposed to say? How do you greet a basilisk?' He thought nervously. He couldn't see the basilisk yet because of the dark tunnel hiding its presence.

"I wear the locket of Salazar Slytherin."