• Unknown Location •
• October 3rd, ??:?? •
[ Gellert Grindelwald ]
Gellert found himself standing before a worn-out, slightly torn, ancient-looking book. This was his mental catalogue index—the key to accessing almost everything within his mindscape. It might seem like a foolish idea at first glance, granting any intruder access to all he knew, but the truth was, nothing here was as easy as it appeared.
This place, this library, was the manifestation of his innermost being, as apparent in its appearance: grey ceiling and floor, walls of slightly darker shades, dark brown wooden shelves. A black table, messy with parchments and books, stood to the right; before it, a black couch and a dark grey coffee table.
The entire space was a study in grey and black. Even the lighting was muted, like morning light on a winter's day. He could change it, adjust it, but he had a feeling that was not a good idea. This place might resemble the library of his old family manor, but it was not. It was the very center of his mindscape, the pure representation of his mind and psyche.
"If anyone can arrive here, then having the index or not having it makes no difference," he confessed. "If the defenses outside don't stop the intrusion, then there's nothing I can do about it."
That was the simple truth, but it didn't mean this place lacked a final line of defense. This book, for example—though created as a tribute to his past self, a reminder of his roots and origins—was not something anyone could simply touch. This entire room was now well-defended, thanks to his new magic: Scripture Magic.
This magic was a fusion of two half-formed theories of Albus—something he'd called "word and letter magic," which he theorized needed a specifically engineered language. Albus had been dabbling with crafting one by taking the best elements of the magical writing systems he knew.
It was a praiseworthy effort for something he wasn't researching seriously. Gellert could, at least, commend the genius of his friend when it came to magic, if nothing else. Still, even though Albus was already paving a road for this particular kind of magic, Gellert didn't follow it. Instead, he took the summary of the idea and worked from there—not in the opposite direction, but in a parallel one. Where Dumbledore was trying to use languages like Latin, Arabic, and Sanskrit with some Oriental elements mixed in, Gellert had gone a different way. He went for Runes.
It had taken him a long time inside his mindscape to research, compile, and find the perfect blend, but when he did, he created what was likely the first unified runic language in the history of wizarding magic. He didn't stop there, though; he also finished Dumbledore's research. In fact, he pretty much perfected it—or at least, this was the best possible version as of now. He wasn't arrogant enough to think no one would ever improve upon it, but that wasn't his concern. The only reason he had completed that research was to rub it in Albus's face.
"I can't wait to see his reaction," he smiled. It was childish, and petty to some extent, but that was exactly why he did it. And now he had created the perfect magic for himself: Scripture Magic. By writing what he wanted to happen in either his runic language or the new scripture language, he could produce varying effects, from weaving imperceptible wards to etching commands on the reality itself.
The protection of this inner room had been his practice ground, where he had tested, adjusted, and readjusted everything until he achieved the optimal results.
"And now I can proudly say I have a worthwhile legacy," he smiled, broadly and with pride. He felt proud of himself—a sense of accomplishment he hadn't felt in a very long time. It was comforting, like snuggling into the softest fur.
Still, he knew he wouldn't feel this particular satisfaction again anytime soon. That was the nature of accomplishment: the greater it was, the harder it became to surpass. He imagined it would take considerable time before he achieved something that eclipsed this.
Grindelwald sighed as he felt a slight tremor—a clear indication he was waking up. He walked back and sat on the couch. He had done everything he could and achieved all he had set out to do, yet he still felt a sense of disappointment. He wished he could remain in this state permanently. He had accomplished so much in this state that the years spent in that tiny prison cell no longer seemed to matter.
He had upgraded his mental defenses to a level he once thought impossible. He had trained his spellwork and casting to the point of no longer needing a wand—well, he still needed it for his new magic, but otherwise, he was good. And now his body was back to a hundred percent.
'No, that's inaccurate,' he thought. He was way past one hundred percent. Even his Eye of Prophecy had healed.
"I just have to not kill a qilin this time around, and I won't lose it again," he joked with himself. Qilins were such mysterious creatures. Their connection to the world and magic was no joke—a lesson he had paid dearly to learn. But no matter; he wouldn't make the same mistake twice.
He sighed contentedly again as he felt his magic pulse in response to the last of his connection to that deep state fading—a pulse of want and desire that perfectly mirrored how he truly felt about leaving it. It was disorienting, like suddenly switching from flying on the latest sports broom to trudging through mud.
"Haaaaah," he exhaled heavily and shook his head. There was no point in sitting around and wishing for the impossible. He had more important things to do…
"Now then, it's time to wake up," he said, and willed himself out of his mindscape.
X
Gellert opened his eyes, only to see big, round, innocent eyes right in front of his face, looking at him with worry. He flinched slightly at the suddenness as his mind, body, and magic caught up. His magical sense was sharper than ever, and he had felt his house-elf before seeing it, but that didn't really help.
"Master Gellert finally woke up. Tipsy was so worried," the house-elf sighed with his whole body, his ears drooping more than usual and his eyes filling with tears.
"I am fine, Tipsy," Gellert sighed in resignation. His mouth felt parched, as if he had spent weeks in a desert without water. "Can you get me some water, please?"
"Right away, Master!" Tipsy bowed and Apparated away, returning two seconds later with a jug filled with water and a glass cup. He filled the cup as Gellert sat up, before putting the jug down on the bedside table and moving the tray that had the cup closer.
Gellert took the cup and drank slowly. The water tasted divine at that moment. Just as he was about to ask Tipsy to refill it, he felt his left eye sting, and an old, familiar feeling washed over him. He knew what it meant. He was about to see a vision.
— VISION —
Gellert suddenly found himself standing in the middle of what looked like a battlefield. Smoke and dust rose from everything and everywhere the eye could see. The buildings—'Muggle buildings,' he noted—were made of glass and concrete, half-destroyed and tall, falling apart around him.
He moved, noting how vivid this vision appeared to be. He turned his head left and right, watching and cataloging everything with detached interest.
He heard noise coming from up ahead and hurried toward the source. He wanted to see if he could gather information about what was happening. That's when he saw something he thought he'd never see: Albus Dumbledore, standing in front of a few wizards and witches in uniform, his clothes in tatters and bloody. Golden light shone behind him like a bubble, shielding and healing the people behind him.
Far ahead, a few feet above the ground, appeared what looked like portals—different sizes, red and purple in color. In front of each one floated a being. 'They are not humans,' his mind supplied as he observed them. They looked like energy given humanoid form. He didn't know what they were or what any of this meant. In fact, he felt more confused than ever as he got closer.
"Alastor, Amelia, I want you to get yourselves and everyone here back to Hogwarts," he heard Albus say. His voice was serious, layered with the hardest no-nonsense tone he'd ever heard.
"But, Albus, we can't leave you here alone…"
"It was not a request, Alastor. I can't fight gods and devils while protecting you…"
"But… but…"
"Alastor…" Albus suddenly pivoted slightly, turning his head to look at the man behind him. His posture radiated absolute alertness. "I need you to get everyone out of here first and then try to contact Gellert if you can. He will help…"
"You can't be serious!" the woman suddenly exclaimed. "You want us to contact that traitor?!"
"Amelia…" Albus sighed. "He's not a traitor. He's just misguided. Foolish and with more pride than sense, but he's not the big bad you think he is."
"But, Albus!! He allied himself with a god!!!"
"I know." Albus exhaled slowly. His eyes seemed to gloss over for a split second before he shook his head. "It wasn't his fault, either. It's my fault. I should have updated him about everything when I found out. I should have told him that Ariana…" Albus stopped and turned back. "It doesn't matter. Even if I'd told him she had already reincarnated, he wouldn't have believed me anyway…" he muttered to himself.
Gellert was confused, with more questions than answers. He was trying to figure out what was happening, why, and how. But he didn't have time, because Albus started moving forward.
"Anyway, do as I told you. He will help," Albus said in a serious tone. "No one wishes for our race's survival more than Gellert. So I'm sure he has a plan of some kind. Now go…"
The people looked at each other, their faces showing unwillingness as they gritted their teeth and clenched their fists before nodding to each other and disappearing in a consecutive series of pops.
Soon, it was only Albus and the four beings floating before him. They looked at each other appraisingly for a few seconds before Albus began to chuckle, then laugh.
Gellert was confused again. 'What in Merlin's name does Albus find funny in this situation?' he thought as he moved closer.
"Ah, if only I had Gellert and Aberforth with me, we probably would have won," Albus said as he began to glow golden. "I really should have kept them in the loop about things, but I couldn't bring myself to trust Gellert again after his last stunt, and Aberforth was still too sulky and busy with that goat of his…" The glow intensified as Albus suddenly transformed into a being made of golden energy. He felt warm and pure—like the world's purest thing. "I really should have played with my little Ariana a little more. Ah, Daddy's little princess is going to be sad after she hears about this."
Gellert felt like something was stuck in his throat. He didn't know what had happened or what led to this point, but… "Albus has a daughter?" he asked himself, his voice cracking slightly.
Albus floated up, bringing himself to the same eye level as his opponents. "Thank you for waiting," he said, his voice gentle yet firm.
"Do you really have to fight us? All we wanted was for you to submit. Nothing else," one of the beings asked.
"You know I can't do that," Albus answered. "Submission means my world gets swallowed. I can't allow that…"
"So be it…" the other one said. "We will just have to force you to submit, then."
"Hahahahaha!" Albus laughed, his voice melodious. "You have to leave this place alive to do that."
Albus then raised both hands. "Let me show you my latest magic. It's still incomplete, but it will have to do…."
Suddenly, magic circles of different sizes began to appear behind him. The smallest was the size of a palm; the largest was bigger than the biggest portal behind the beings.
"I call it Infinite Magic…" Albus's voice echoed from everywhere as the beings tensed and magic circles began to appear in front of them.
"Infinite Magic, Chapter One—Absolute Annihilation." Albus's voice rang out as the magic circles started to expand and multiply. They shone with different colors, covering the sky and the earth, surrounding both the beings and Dumbledore.
"You madman!!!!" one of the beings yelled, attacking with lightning that was intercepted mid-air by a small magic circle.
"You're trying to take us all with you…" That wasn't a question; it was a statement. "You forget that we will just reform after some time, right?"
"Hahahahaha!" Albus's laughter sounded. "You can't reform what isn't there…"
And then everything turned white.
— VISION END —
Gellert gasped, dry heaving as he tried to inhale the air in the biggest quantity he could. He hated visions. They were disconcerting and more bothersome than they were worth.
Still, this vision was by far the most vivid he'd ever seen. He didn't know whether it was because he was stronger than ever or something else, but he didn't care about that. He was more worried about its content than the technicalities behind it.
What were those beings? Were they really gods? But what about Albus? He had the same state as them by the end there. What did they mean when they said he allied himself with a god? Why would he do that? What happened to Ariana? And the biggest question of all: Albus has a daughter?
Gellert started taking slow, deep breaths to calm his mind. There were too many questions and too little information.
"Yes, information," he muttered. "That's what I need."
He needed to figure things out quickly and, for the time being, stop himself from doing anything that would break whatever small trust Albus still had for him. He didn't miss the part where Albus said he couldn't come to trust him because of the "stunt" he pulled. Gellert had an inkling of what happened, but he couldn't be sure—because, well, it hadn't happened yet.
Nevertheless, he needed to reevaluate all the plans and strategies he had thought of. He hadn't accounted for the fact that Albus would finally decide to have a family of his own. He would not, in any shape or form, be responsible for orphaning Albus's child. Not in this life…
"…Master Gellert!" He snapped back to reality as he felt Tipsy shaking his knee. He looked at him and saw how worried the old house-elf appeared.
"I am fine, Tipsy," Gellert smiled reassuringly. "I just had a vision, and it's slightly disorienting."
"Oh… phew. Thank magic," the old house-elf muttered.
"Anyway, Tipsy. Could you prepare me something to eat?"
"Of course, Master Gellert. At once." And with a soft, almost imperceptible pop, he was gone.
Gellert leaned back on his bed, his head pounding as he thought about everything again.
"Damn you, Albus," he muttered. "Damn you, world. Just as I was preparing my plans, the world seems to throw a wrench in them. Couldn't you just let me win for once…"
X
• Hogwarts School, Headmaster's Tower •
• October 3rd, 6:45 AM •
[ Albus Dumbledore ]
"Heheheheheh," I laughed—more like giggled like a little girl, really—as I looked over my Archive and saw everything going according to plan.
I didn't want to go with this plan at first, but after I reviewed everything Gellert had planned, I couldn't afford to look the other way. While I would have loved to play lord with Gellert, we simply do not have the luxury of time.
He was planning to regain his forces and use my own theories and ways to prove he could achieve his goals. Not a bad plan, and I would have let him do it if we didn't face the threat of annihilation, so I had to come up with a preemptive counter: the vision.
While I found the method distasteful—and still do—I can't ignore the results. Gellert was rattled enough that he's reconsidering his strategy. That was enough for me. I don't mind him doing whatever he wants, as long as what he wants doesn't try to screw us over. That's where I draw the line.
"Still, that vision was exquisite," I admitted. "Totally worth spending a quarter of my divine energy just to craft it." And it was. And now all I have to do is send the notification of Gellert's promotion and watch as everything falls into place.
I directed my attention back to the Archive screen in front of me and clicked Enter. I was smiling widely and gleefully as I imagined just how much chaos the news and the new ranking would cause. The wizarding world could do with some sense of danger and urgency. I need to train them, and I can't really force them yet, but this will ensure that I don't have to.
Suddenly, all across the world, those who had the Archive received a notification.
[Congratulations to the wizarding world and every wizard and witch on the creation of new magic. Congratulations to Gellert Grindelwald on his outstanding achievement. The creation of Scripture Magic is an event worthy of celebration.]
That was big news. I could almost picture the morning papers' headlines.
Now then, let's check on the rankings. I clicked on the screen a few times and watched the list update, and smiled. There he was. Gellert's name, right under mine on the ranking list. Both of us were ranked B-, with the only difference being the color of the name—where mine was already slightly orange, his was still red.
I exhaled slowly, flopping onto my bed again, my head hitting the pillow as I did so. This was enough for the day. Now it was time for me to check on Gellert's new magic.
Scripture Magic was fascinating. It allowed the user to write what he wanted in the air and bend reality to make it happen. Sure, it took a lot more magic than normal spells, but it was worth it. The writing-in-the-air part is done by deploying a mixture of an enchanting technique that demands immense magical control, as well as a few air-writing spells and techniques.
"Leave it to Gellert to complicate the simplest thing about the magic," I shook my head as I continued to read and check. I was impressed by his newly developed unified runic language as well as the new magical writing language he compiled and optimized. "Scripture Language, is it?" I laughed at the name.
I knew exactly why he created that language, but…
X_
P@treon/hunter20