Ever since gaining the Nimble Casting talent, Sean had always been faster than his opponents. This was the first time he'd met someone whose casting speed could match his own, and the challenge exhilarated him.
Barrett watched Sean, whose wand moved in a blur that was no slower than his, and his expression tightened. He pushed his speed even further. Sean, not to be outdone, met the challenge, his own wand becoming a torrent of deadly light.
Stunning Spell.
Disarming Charm.
Petrification Curse.
Cutting Curse.
Blasting Curse.
The standard spells taught at Hogwarts flowed from their wands with barely a whisper of incantation, each one a testament to their skill. Neither bothered with defensive magic; it was a pure, violent clash of offense. A Stunning Spell was blown apart by a Blasting Curse; a Disarming Charm was nullified by a Petrification Curse. Spell after spell collided in the space between them, erupting in showers of sparks and concussive force.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
As the duel raged, the contrast between the two was stark. Barrett's expression grew increasingly grave, the pressure from Sean mounting with every passing second. Sean, on the other hand, was becoming more frenzied, more alive. He let out a joyous laugh in the heat of the exchange, his wand movements growing wider and more sweeping, yet his casting speed never faltered. If anything, his combinations became even more ruthlessly effective.
No one felt Sean's transformation more keenly than Barrett. It was as if the boy before him was evolving, improving at a superhuman rate. A terrible, nagging thought began to form in Barrett's mind: was it possible Sean truly was the Dark Lord, or perhaps his reincarnation?
A momentary lapse in concentration. The briefest of openings.
Sean's eyes flashed. He seized the opportunity instantly, his wand sweeping in a wide, powerful arc that cleared away Barrett's incoming spells.
"You are distracted, Barrett!"
The spell-for-spell exchange was over. Sean pointed his wand forward, and the very ground surged. Earth and stone roiled like mud, forming countless sharp spikes and earthen spears that shot toward his opponent.
Barrett waved his wand, and stone walls erupted around him, but just as the spikes were about to hit, Sean's wand traced another arc. The earthen spears transformed mid-flight into bladed chains, wrapping around the stone walls. With a command from Sean, the chains tightened, intertwined, and sliced, shattering the defenses into rubble.
At that moment, a white mist shot out from behind the shattered stone, fleeing deep into the forest.
Sean grinned. Wreathed in black smoke, he shot into the air and gave chase.
To prevent Barrett from Apparating, Malo and another wizard capable of the spell transformed into two streams of black mist, flanking the escape route. The other dark wizards, unable to follow by air, plunged into the forest on foot.
Soaring through the trees, Sean kept his eyes locked on the white mist that was Barrett. This was true, unsupported flight, and unlike Apparition, it allowed him to cast spells. His wand waved continuously, and a barrage of curses rained down from the sky, blasting trees apart and gouging craters in the forest floor.
Barrett had intended to flee, but seeing Malo and the other wizard cutting off his escape, he knew he was trapped. In that case, fighting to the death offered a better chance than being hunted down.
With that thought, he dropped out of his incorporeal state. The white mist descended, and Barrett emerged, raising his wand and firing a jet of sickening dark green light at the smoke-wreathed figure in the air.
"Avada Kedavra!"
As a fanatical follower of Voldemort, of course he knew the Killing Curse. It was his final trump card, his one remaining chance at victory.
The instant the green light flashed, Sean knew what it was. And to counter the Killing Curse, there was only one spell.
"Expelliarmus!"
A brilliant jet of red light descended from the sky, colliding head-on with the green death-light. A blinding explosion of red and green energy scattered in all directions, snapping trees in two and leaving scorched black craters in the earth.
Barrett held his wand aloft, his arm trembling. He looked up at Sean, who hovered in the air like a god, and a thought struck him with the force of a physical blow: If the real Dark Lord were here, this is what he would look like.
The moment that thought took hold, Barrett felt his wand grow impossibly heavy. He gripped it with both hands, but still, he couldn't hold it steady.
Thump.
He fell to one knee, his arms bending under the strain. The red light of Sean's Disarming Charm was slowly, inexorably pushing back. Black, vein-like lines—the telltale sign of a backfiring Killing Curse—began to crawl up his hands. If Sean continued, the curse would consume him.
But just as the curse was about to overwhelm Barrett completely, the overpowering red light vanished. The backfiring curse dissipated with it.
Dropping down from the air, Sean swatted the wand from Barrett's hand. This was the first time he had defeated an enemy purely with magic. While it lacked the raw, physical exhilaration of using his troll strength, it had a different kind of frenetic energy that he found deeply satisfying.
Grabbing Barrett by the neck, Sean leaned in close, looking down at the kneeling, defeated boy. "Barrett, I admire you. Your skills are impressive. So I'm giving you a chance. A chance to live. I have a contract spell. If you sign it, your life and death will be entirely subject to my will."
"So tell me now. Will you die for your faith and fanaticism for Voldemort, or will you live with faith and loyalty to me? Tell me, Barrett!"
Looming over him, wreathed in black smoke, Sean looked like a demon, yet also like a god. In that instant, Barrett found that the image of Sean had perfectly merged with the vision of the Dark Lord he had always longed for.
Besides, between life and death, the choice didn't seem very difficult at all.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Barrett looked up at Sean. Without a shred of hesitation, he said decisively, "To hell with Voldemort!"
[Chapter Complete]
***
Want more? Check out my Patreon for:
✓ Advanced chapters of all my stories
✓ Exclusive novels & fanfics
✓ Early access content [email protected]/meowthtl
💪 Community Goal: 500 Power Stones unlocks a bonus chapter!
Thanks for reading and supporting the story!