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Chapter 29– Showdown.
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"So just be a good money-making scheme, and toddle along. I'm a fucking busy man." Hearing those words uttered at me and being dismissed in such a way stopped me cold. And pure blazing fury roiled through my veins as the words echoed inside my head. The pure dismissal just set off something in my mind. My neurons started firing, and my Occlumency turned out to be backfiring on me here because it all started coming to the forefront of my mind.
Every family that skipped right over me and chose another child to take home. Every foster family that took me in and then hated me and chucked me out. Every time I tried to put myself out there but was rebuffed and ignored. Dismissed. I fucked up with my Occlumency. I focused on protecting and hiding my memories and keeping the others out, and I didn't focus very much on sorting out my own mind beyond distinguishing myself from Lockhart. And it is coming back to bite me now.
I have enough sense to realise what is happening and why and my follies in not sorting this out beforehand. However, my reason is far gone, and I don't care about any of that at this moment in time. I can sort all that out later and then try and get a hold of my abandonment issues and need for love and attention; I guess I know part of the reason I am now Gilderoy Lockhart. Right now, though, I need to expel all this wrath bursting inside of me.
I quickly utilise my Occlumency to the best of my current ability, not to stifle my emotions and clear my mind, but to focus and calm myself. My rage is thinned to a deadly fine point, and my wrath is now cooled and waiting to explode. Rasputin has already walked past me and towards the exit, and I can't allow him to leave. My wand raises, and I don't even speak the words as I swish it. My spell cuts through the ground and creates a chasm in the floor, just in front of Rasputin, impeding his path.
"Shit! What the fuck!" Piotr shouts as he comes to a stop, my spell having halted his path and cut a deep rivet into the ground in front of him, hitting the wall and digging into that as well. I wasn't aiming to kill or maim him, just to stop him from leaving. Okay, so maybe that included maiming. Lucky him for avoiding that. Of course, he doesn't think he is fortunate, and that is reflected when he slowly turns his head to look at me with an incredulous look on his face.
"Like I said before. We are not finished here." I say, my face as hard as stone as I stare him down and dare him to try and continue leaving without my okay. He doesn't take well to that, what with him being an entitled little silver spoon baby that thinks he deserves the world and got cheated out of it. My actions are paramount to treason against royalty in his mind, and he is pissed about it. Especially as he views me as a weak peasant so far below him that my actions are nearly inconceivable to him if he didn't just witness them himself.
"You... You fucking Хуй (Hui)!" He snarls. "Did you just try and fucking kill me, huh! You tried to kill me!" Yeah, he definitely can't believe it. Even now, he is questioning if what happened actually happened. I don't say anything and just continue to stare, waiting to see what he will do. Will he stop and honestly answer me, or will he draw his own wand and decide to fucking fight me and let me find out whether that battle was a fluke or not. Because I am willing to put my life on the line, and I'm pretty sure I am going to walk away.
"You..." He says, his face was red just like before. His anger rises, and then he stops and sighs and swallows it. I am assuming Occlumency because this is not the type of man to hold his feelings back. The regular kind of Occlumency where you clear your mind, and not the weird and wonderful version I have with so many facets that I ignored one of the basics. Right now, though, I don't want to hold back my anger. Why should I? What need is there to restrain myself here?
"You are lucky." Rasputin finally says his voice level. "You are lucky I have a very slutty bitch waiting for me, and I would rather be fucking her stupid British brains out than waste my time here blowing your brains all over the walls." He finishes, once again dismissing me even when I have literally nearly deprived him of several of his toes.
My rage is bubbling again. I am really going to have to sort this thing out after I am finished here. I really shouldn't have wasted my time sleeping with as many women as I could instead of focusing on my Occlumency and getting a handle on my deep-seated need for approval and love... which is obviously also the reason I have been sleeping with so many women. Fuck, why hadn't this occurred to me before?
"Don't try that again, or you won't live to see tomorrow." My mind focuses back on the here and now as he says that to me and then moves to leave, stepping over the cut in the ground. And I can't just allow that, can I? Not when this fucker has played me like a fucking fool and made me reach a fake high and then ripped it away from me, and then told me to be a good boy and take it on the chin. No, I am not the same person I was before when all I had to do was just sit there and take it.
Again he tries to leave, and once more, I brandish my wand and wave it forth, sending out another spell that rushes in front of him and cuts through the stone. He jumps back in response, which is the correct response because, this time, I wasn't aiming to merely stop him. He would have lost more than a few toes if he didn't just jump back, and it was probably his wealth of experience as a duelist that informed him of that, as he only stopped for my other spell.
"You want to fucking prove that." I fire back, my intention clear as I raise my wand. This is the only way this can go now. He isn't going to answer my questions, and I want to find out whether or not my championship win just now was a fluke or not. And this is the only method I have now. Another fight. No holds barred. No stakes on the line except for lives, so he has to fight with his all. And I will know for definite whether or not he gave me the win. I am going to win.
"...I gave you a chance." Suddenly I am jumping to the left to avoid the spell he just lobbed my way, and given the sickly feeling and colour of it, I am betting he is delving into the dark stuff he was taught at school that he couldn't use in the duel. Well, now there are no rules, and we are both free to use whatever magic we want, no matter how dangerous.
I respond with an equal lethality, thrusting at him a spell that would cause his blood to boil. Dark magic is something I myself have been taking an interest in. And, of course, there are a lot of theories out there, both here in this world and in my past world, and so I approached the subject with some caution. I would have stayed away from the subject altogether, assured I could use normal means to achieve my goals if it were not for the black book. Inside which, was a lot of Occlumency geared towards using dark magic without losing your mind.
According to my research and own experiments, dark magic does affect you. First, because it follows the same rules all magic does, and that is intent and willpower. You need the will and intent to make your magic manifest, and it is the same for all magic, with some added steps here and there. And dark magic, well, there are some fucked up spells, and you have to want that kind of damage and horror to be inflicted upon someone, or else it won't work.
So yeah, over time, your mind will warp and twist as the more dark magic you use, the more psychotic and demented you will become, wanting to inflict pain and hurt on others. Unfortunately, it is not something that can be adequately fixed without some actual serious therapist and psychologist work, which you can sure as shit no wizard here is going to actually get. So they bridge the gap and put a bandaid over it by using their rudimentary Occlumency to retain some semblance of sanity, but eventually, even that would be futile.
However, whoever had written this black book, sick bastard that they were, had done a lot of work on this and figured that out, as well as how to use dark magic without any side effects. I won't go into specifics because they are horribly detailed. Still, essentially Occlumency is used to create the artificial feelings and intent for each specific spell. Then you call upon that intent with your Occlumency, and you are able to cast the spell, returning the intent to a corner of your mind after casting.
This is why I have been delving into dark magic since I can actually use it without losing myself. I have been disguising myself and travelling to Borgin & Burkes to satisfy my new point of interest. And that is why I was so easily able to cast that spell at Rasputin, though he avoided it with ease, and so I quickly transitioned into the next stage of the battle.
Subterfuge. Half of the battle is the terrain and turning it to your advantage, as well as controlling the area. Not something that can really be done in a duelling arena, but here? Here, I can do whatever I want. Swishing my wand, I use transfiguration to alter the ground, transforming it to become all topsy turvy on his side while my side remains flat with a few short walls rising up to give myself some cover if I need it.
Of course, Rasputin did not stay still during all of this, and he tried to fling another series of spells at me straight off the bat. However, he did so just moments after I altered the ground, and his footing was thrown off, making all of his shots go wide. I take advantage of this and quickly jump forward and blast a stunner at him. However, he is still a skilled duelist.
Instead of trying to regain his balance, he notices my attack and falls with his stumble, using it to his advantage to avoid the attack and roll back onto his feet, hurriedly starting to retaliate. I dive behind one of the brick walls that I have created, and quickly realising my error, I use transfiguration to again alter the ground and lower the ground beneath me. Allowing me to sink into the ground below just in time to avoid the bombarda that blows apart the brick wall above me. I cover my head with a single arm to protect myself from the debris, and at the same time, I use my wand with the other.
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Pointing my wand into the air, a cold mist starts to spread out into the surrounding and create a foggy cloud. I won't lie; I took inspiration from Naruto and Kirigakure's Hidden Mist Jutsu since it seemed useful. With myself now hidden, I quickly put some stealth charms onto myself and climbed out of the hole, starting to go wide to try and flank my opponent.
I hastily dropped to the floor when I saw a bright orange light through the fog that started to ring alarm bells in my head. And thank Merlin I did, because an unbearable heat passed over my head a second later that would have definitely cooked me alive. Crazy bastard. He definitely has a wealth of experience over me. If the territory doesn't suit you, then destroy it. The motherfucker decided to just release a ring of deadly fire all around him to get rid of the fog and possibly kill me.
Thankfully the fire was concentrated to a single altitude and wasn't covering the entirety of the surroundings allowing me to survive by ducking it. Laying on the ground, thankfully behind one of the walls I made by some stroke of luck, I think to myself, two can play at that game. So I swipe my wand in his direction, and I decide to be just as brutal and let loose with a cutting curse.
Except, however, different from the two previous times I cast the curse, this time, I did not cast it vertically. I launched it horizontally, hoping to cut the fuckers legs off. Again, it should have been evident that my attack would not have been as unexpected as I thought, as there were about a dozen walls constructed by myself between him and me. And my cutting curse cut through them all, toppling them and obviously alerting Rasputin to what was heading his way.
Thankfully, given the howl that rang out, he didn't manage to evade my attack entirely. But he definitely lost something there. I am hoping for at least a foot, which would really hamper his mobility and make it easier for me to beat the fucker down. The roar of rage I heard served to make me think that was what happened, and a smile showed up on my face. But, of course, that was before it was promptly wiped off by the words I heard screech out of Pioter's mouth.
"AAARGH! PESTIS INCENDIUM!" I hear the incantation, and for a second, I freeze, unable to recognise what exact spell that is but knowing it is bad. And then I feel the wave of heat hit, and I realise how fucked I am about to get, and he'll probably end up killing himself as well. Because he just cast the spell for Fiendfire, a spell I had read up and researched on since it was known for its fearsome power, and also something I had yet to experiment with given how uncontrollable and powerful it is. It is very hard to actually control the fire, even if you can cast it.
However, whether or not Rasputin is capable of controlling it doesn't matter. All it would change is whether or not he would die in the blaze with me, and given that he did it in a moment of rage, I am betting on him not being capable. So, acting quickly, purely off of survival instincts and a will to live, I searched my mind for anything that could help me live here. I know there was a charm that was explicitly made to abate Fiendfire and calm it down, but I never took the chance to learn it since I wasn't learning Fiendfire yet either, and I didn't think I would encounter it in such a way.
"Protego Diabolica!" I quickly called upon one of the preset dark spells I had set up using Occlumency, one that I was thankful I did, given its power as well as how much control it gave. Immediately I swished my wand around myself, blue flames quickly pouring out and encircling me as they formed a shield of blue flames around me.
The reason I learnt this one was that it was a defensive charm, and I thought I could develop the spell and use it in an offensive way since the roaring blue flames could burn anything to a crisp. Unfortunately, I have yet to figure out a way to control the blue flames aside from having them form a shield; thankfully, a shield is all I need right now. I thank Merlin that I was trying to learn this as a substitute for Fiendfire because now it is going to compete against it.
I see the orange glare of the flames just before the cold blue of my own flames finally finishes wrapping around my surroundings and protecting me. That doesn't mean I can relax, though, and I grip my wand with both hands as I will for my shield to hold. Sweat pouring out of me, and my hands shaking, I focus entirely on the shield. I try to ignore the harsh orange light blaring through my blue flames and threatening to enter. Even with my shield up, I feel like I am being roasted alive, and I don't think my inferior flames can hold up much longer against the sentient fiendish fire.
Thankfully, the orange light starts to dim for some reason, but I don't let it down and keep my shield up, refusing to let it go before the orange disappears completely. I can't risk it. And then, even after the orange glare has disappeared, I keep my shield up a few seconds longer before finally allowing it to dissipate. Not because I felt I was safe but because I felt like I was about to pass out from the heat. If I were to faint, then I would leave myself to the mercy of Rasputin, and given that I am pretty sure I cut some part of his body off, I don't think he will be forgiving.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" As soon as I heard the first syllable, I dropped to the ground and started rolling to the left, Like I was on fire, though I was just trying to avoid instant death. You know, I could have fooled myself into believing that we weren't all out trying to kill each other before and just try and let each other go before either of us died. I am sure he could replace whatever he lost since we have magic on our side. But now, he has fired a spell meaning only death at me, and there is only one way for this to go now.
Watching the deathly green glow pass above my head, I quickly jump to my feet and dart towards the right. Sprinting to find some cover before he could fire any more death curses at me. Right now, I need cover. Besides from a quick glance at my opponent that only allows me to see his position without much detail, I focus on getting close to the outside perimeter and trying to flank him again. There are still some barriers I put up there that haven't been destroyed.
I pause and quickly halt my steps, allowing a green light to flash past the front of me. Another killing curse, silently this time. The similarity to my own actions earlier on does not escape me; however, I don't have time to appreciate the irony since my life is in danger. I was running, thinking that he would shout the words and I would have ample time to dodge if I heard it, but he just cast it silently.
Granted, saying the words will improve your spell, but since he did it wordlessly, the spell was slower, but it still shows that he really must want to kill me. The fact that he could probably be sending a dozen different silent death spells in my direction makes me alter my plans, though I do resume running. Lashing out with my wand, I once more do a widespread transfiguration, except this time, it is bigger than anything I have ever done before, not in quality but in quantity.
The simple fact of the matter was that as long as he knew my general direction, then I was not going to be safe. The killing curse could not be blocked by magic, only by something physical, and even then, that thing was going to take damage and probably explode, so I couldn't just hide behind a low wall. This is why I took my previous strategy and built upon it, quite heavily, in fact.
My transifuration took place very quickly, and I was glad that my Occlumency was such a help in focusing my will and intent because this was a big move. The concrete floor quickly flattened out all over the place, and then after that, brick walls started to rise out of the ground all over the area. Except, this time, every brick wall was connected together in some way, and everything was connected. I was making a maze, putting as many walls between myself and him as possible.
I am sure there is probably a better, more efficient way to defend against the killing curse and a better strategy here, but I hadn't really thought about how to protect against it much. It was an unforgivable and not allowed in competitions, which is the only place where I thought I would be fighting for the time being. But, of course, I am not an idiot, and I wasn't just going to put up a giant maze that I knew absolutely nothing about. That would be the height of stupidity, and I would completely lose sight of where my opponent was.
No, even if this might have been a dumb move made in the heat of the moment, I wouldn't do it in a dumb way. I had been working on my Occlumency for a long time now, and I had built many a structure withing my mind and altered many different things over time. And one of the things I had created in my head was a maze. It didn't lead to anything or hide anything, but I just thought it would be a good time waster for any invaders.
And so, when I did my transfiguration, I brought the maze in my mind to the physical world, impressing it on the world around me. And so, when it was finally done, I knew my exact position in it as well as his exact position. Or, at least, his starting position because he wasn't just going to stay in one place, was he. With the walls all now up, I knew I had to move. And just because I put up a maze didn't mean I had to follow the rules of the maze and move within it. This was my creation, and I could alter it to my image as I pleased.
Holding my wand before me, the wall in front of me starts to split and create a new passage for me and without wasting time, I continue my journey breaking walls open and closing them behind me as I make a beeline for his last known position. He could probably do the same, but I think he is much too angry right now to be thinking clearly. As I close in on it, I slow down and approach it cautiously. When I reached the exact spot, I discovered he was no longer there, much like I expected. which was fine since this was part of my plan, and I started to employ some spells that I had become quite an expert at. Tracking spells.
Employing a series of these spells, I start to follow Raputins tracks and begin to hunt him down. I had gotten very well acquainted with this set of spells because of the months I spent tracking down all the wizards the original Gilderoy had messed with to clean up his messes. Travel time was basically nonexistent with magic and portkeys, but half of those wizards were no longer in the same place when I got there. So most of those months were spent tracking them down, and I had to learn these spells.
I continue following the trail, turning various corners and closing in on my prey. Getting closer and closer as the trail becomes bigger and bigger. And then I come to a section with a passage to my left and my front, a brick wall to my right. The trail says that Piotr went forward, and so I move onward to follow it when I spot something out of the corner of my eye. I spin back around to see Piotr pointing his wand at me from down the left passage, and I quickly surmise from my knowledge of the maze that he had luckily looped around just in time to spot me.
Acting with a speed that befuddles even me, I manage to fire off a spell just after he does. And my Expeliarmus quickly bolts down the passage and is crossed by the killing curse he had sent at me, the two narrowly missing each other. I jump to the left, avoiding his attack of instant death and watch with glee as my Expeliarmus hits him dead on and wrenches the wand out of his hand and sends it flying through the air towards me.
And reach out my unarmed hand to the air in anticipation, wanting to grab ahold of his wand. To signify my win and the fact that it wasn't a fluke. I was capable of this. I won that match. My eyes follow it along, and my hand readies to grab it, and just as it closes in- PAIN. Immense pain hits my back, and I let out a scream as my back is blasted with so much force that I pretty much shoot straight down into the ground, and it takes me a second to realise what had happened.
The killing curse I had dodged had hit the wall behind me and exploded, bringing the brick wall down on top of me. And now here I lay, covered in heaps of bricks, and my back feeling like it was broken in two.
And Piotr is in the distance, a sickly smile on his face.