Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 113: Hell on Earth
The roof of the main chamber was shattered by Voldemort's spell, making all the demons fall to their deaths while the wizard used his magic to levitate slightly and slow his fall.
Voldemort shifted his attention to the scene in the room. The corpses of those elite wizards and witches from the I.C.W. were now littering the chamber of the cathedral.
They seemed to have put up quite a fight, given all the destruction that could be seen around.
However, the demon itself was still seemingly uninjured and in high spirits.
Tonks and Moody were injured but still alive, while Sirius was holding the body of that woman called Hestia Jones.
Voldemort was now sure that his initial assessment of this demon was very much correct. That creature was on a whole other level, and even those expert wizards were unable to do much against him.
"Are you leaving already? You still haven't seen the best part!"
Voldemort heard the voice of Harry trying to taunt him from above.
Clenching his teeth, Voldemort moved to where the survivors were still standing. "We have to leave," he told them as he grabbed Sirius by his robes.
"No! I won't leave her!" Sirius complained and struggled in his grasp but had no more strength to fight back.
Moody pushed Tonks away from him and spoke in a tired voice. "Go… I'll buy you a few seconds. Don't bother with the portkeys or apparition; they won't work properly while inside the circle, and you will likely die if you try… just run."
"No! I won't—"
"Now is not the time for this!" Moody screamed at her. "At least follow the last order I give you." He aimed his wand at her and used a spell to send her flying towards the door before turning to the demon and using a Patronus Charm, which seemed to be the only thing that had any effect on him.
While being dragged away by Voldemort, Sirius glanced towards the second floor of the cathedral, through the hole that he had just made, and spotted the figure of Harry standing there, looking at their plight with an expression of amusement.
Abbadon batted the patronus construct with the back of his hand, like it was an annoying insect, and then aimed his finger at Moody.
A crimson sphere of light was produced and shot at the man, who was too exhausted to even attempt to move aside.
"Ahhh!" Moody screamed when Abbadon's attack began to consume his flesh.
For a brief moment, the light of Moody's spell illuminated the entire chamber...a defiant flash of silver that reflected against the marble pillars and broken glass. The scent of smoke, blood, and burning magic filled the air.
Voldemort turned his head for an instant, his cold gaze unreadable. There was something almost human in it...recognition, perhaps, or reluctant respect.
Tonks covered her mouth, tears blurring her vision as Moody's last shout echoed through the cathedral. The light faded, and silence reclaimed the battlefield.
"What a bore… none of these humans could give me an interesting fight." Abbadon scoffed as he watched Moody die with his cold eyes.
Harry jumped down into the chamber and used a feather-weight charm to slow his fall. "You could have stopped them from escaping," he pointed out.
At this point, Voldemort, Tonks, and Sirius were more than exhausted. For a being like Abbadon, it would have been very simple to catch them and kill them.
The demon shrugged. "This is your war, not mine. If you want them dead… go chase them."
The demon never showed much interest in fighting humans and had only done so now because it was in his own interest for the ritual not to be interrupted, but he would not do more than what was strictly necessary.
Harry, of course, already knew this. He was probably the only human who could come close to understanding how this demon thought. He wasn't even that annoyed that those three had escaped. That way, they could see what he had done with the city.
"You think they will like it?" Harry asked.
Abbadon began to laugh. "They are going to love it."
"Today, humanity will get a taste of what true horror is." Harry started to walk towards the doors. "This is going to make them much easier to manipulate."
"Scared animals are very predictable," Abbadon agreed. "Still… I have to say that I am impressed with the results. Never thought that something like this would be possible."
"That's because no one has tried it before." Harry kicked one of the wooden gates, and it fell off its hinges, revealing the gruesome scenario outside.
Despite it being nighttime, everything was bathed in an intense red light.
"That's because no human has ever been crazy enough to do so," Abbadon pointed out as he watched from his spot.
Harry walked outside and smiled, feeling content with what he had accomplished.
The screams of the people who used to live here had mostly died down, but the city had completely transformed into something terrifying.
With the massive sacrifice of seven million souls, Harry had not just summoned demons into this world; instead, he brought a piece of the Netherworld here and fused it with what remained of London.
Now this was a truly hellish place. The buildings and houses were torn apart, the streets were covered in fire, and in the sky one could already see some ugly winged creatures flying around, looking for prey to hunt.
A large number of demons had also crossed over to this side and were now the inhabitants of the metropolis.
"Beautiful indeed…" Harry said.
Abbadon stood at his side. "I do prefer the colder parts of the Netherworld, but this one fits more the image that humans have made up for their stories."
"Yes, I can't wait to see the news spreading out. The magical world can no longer be hidden from the rest of society," said Harry. "Soon, those foolish humans will arm their deadliest weapons and get ready to use them. A modern witch hunt, if you will."