Chapter 216: The Red Dragon Appears
At the sight of the floating book, everyone's breathing grew ragged and heavy except for Robert and Mael, who did not fully grasp its significance.
After a long moment, Cyril tore his gaze away from the book with great effort and turned to Snape. "We don't know how many more defenses there are, and time is short. We can't touch the book yet. First, we need to find positions and take cover. When they enter, we attack first and hit them as hard as we can. We need to thin their numbers, or we won't stand a chance."
Snape felt an almost overwhelming urge to seize the book immediately. But he knew survival came first. If he died, seeing the secrets of resurrection within those pages would mean nothing.
"Wait for me." He gave the book on the dais one last look and nodded his agreement.
Tearing their eyes from the dais, they stood in the doorway and surveyed the most important chamber of the pyramid. Like the other two they had visited, the main chamber had been expanded with an Undetectable Extension Charm or similar magic. The interior space was far larger than its physical dimensions suggested. The pyramid's base was only about a hundred meters across, yet from the doorway, the chamber appeared to stretch back well over a hundred meters. Its width was less, perhaps fifty meters, allowing them to see the side walls clearly.
A broad central avenue, about ten meters wide, led straight from the entrance to the dais holding the pharaoh's sarcophagus and the floating book. Starting about fifteen meters from the door and continuing all the way to the dais, two rows of humanoid stone statues, each about three meters tall, lined both sides of the avenue. Ethan estimated there were at least a hundred of them. This was more than twice the number in the other chambers, creating a far more imposing spectacle. However, based on their experience, these statues were not particularly formidable fighters. Time had likely weakened or dispelled many of the enchantments placed upon them.
Beyond the central avenue stood rows of thick, ornately carved pillars, supporting a heavy ceiling also covered in intricate reliefs. A gap of about three meters was left between the pillars and the side walls, a space Ethan guessed was meant to allow room for painting the murals.
After taking in the scene, Cyril spoke. "The only cover we'll find in here is behind those pillars. We'll send out alchemical creatures to scout again, but this time, we must avoid triggering the statues' defenses. We'll clear the area near the entrance first, then work our way toward the pillars along the walls."
The statues seemed to activate within about ten meters. If they hugged the outer walls, they should be able to avoid triggering them.
Three alchemical constructs, a wolf, a deer, and a dog, were sent out. Ethan, Cyril, and Snape each controlled one, advancing them in a staggered line into the brightly lit chamber.
The moment they crossed the threshold, a curse shot out and severed a leg from the wolf Ethan controlled. The three-legged construct, feeling no pain and following his direction, continued its awkward advance, sweeping a five-meter stretch just inside the door. It systematically triggered trap after trap until it was too damaged to move. The deer and the dog suffered the same fate. Soon, the floor near the entrance was littered with the shattered components of the alchemical creatures.
But their sacrifice was not in vain. Ethan and the others had mapped out a relatively safe path. Some traps would still be triggered along this route, but with proper shielding, one could pass without injury.
Cyril then sent out a larger construct, a bear that could walk upright and more closely mimic a wizard. He layered Protego and the Bone Shield over it and sent it along the mapped path. Only after it completed the route successfully did the group enter the chamber. To deny their pursuers any information, Cyril also gathered up every piece of the destroyed constructs from the floor.
"If they aren't careful, the traps just inside the door will give them a nasty surprise."
"How much longer until they arrive?" Snape asked.
"At least four minutes. They entered one of the other chambers and spent some time there. They're moving slowly," Ethan replied. He had been keeping a close watch on the approaching souls.
"We have time. Let's each pick a pillar and secure our positions." Cyril nodded to the others.
Time was of the essence, so they chose pillars near the entrance. Snape and the elderly wizard with him took the right side, with Snape leading the scouting effort. Cyril's group took the left, with Cyril and Ethan each commanding a construct to clear a path.
Soon, a safe route to the pillar Robert had chosen was established. "Good luck," Cyril said, a complicated expression on his face as he clapped Robert on the shoulder.
Events had gone far beyond what he'd expected. He had brought these men to Egypt to protect Ethan from magical creatures and hostile local wizards in the desert. Instead, they had encountered neither, only to face betrayal from within and pursuit by unknown enemies. He wanted to offer Robert and Mael further assurances, but with his own survival uncertain, he merely pressed his lips together and led Mael to the next pillar.
Three minutes later, they had all reached their chosen pillars. They cast Disillusionment Charms and waited, watching the doorway, ready to unleash a devastating volley the moment their enemies entered.
Huddled behind the same pillar, Ethan cast Muffliato. "Grandfather, maybe I should use my Animagus form when the fighting starts. I doubt they can stand against the red dragon."
Ethan was reluctant to let his grandfather and professor risk their lives when he believed he had the power to turn the tables. As for his Animagus secret being exposed to Robert and the others, he had already considered a solution: an Unbreakable Vow. Bound by such a contract, they would be unable to reveal his secret.
"No!" Cyril flatly refused. "We have no idea what spells those people know. Your dragon form is powerful, yes, but against a dozen wizards, there's no guarantee you'd come out on top. Especially with Dark wizards among them who know the Killing Curse."
"Fine," Ethan reluctantly agreed for the moment, but inwardly he resolved that if Cyril's life was in danger, he would transform regardless.
*I've mastered Fiendfyre now. Combined with Hellfire and regular fire spells, I should be more than a match for a dozen wizards.* He remembered that it had taken four or five wizards casting Stunners in unison to subdue an eight-meter Swedish Short-Snout. His dragon form was nearly thirty meters long. A dozen wizards would be little threat.
But Cyril was only concerned for his safety, so Ethan held back for now.
"Just over a hundred meters to go," Ethan reported, tracking Gis's group's progress.
"I'm closing the door," Snape called from the other side of the chamber.
The heavy doors boomed shut, and in that instant, all the torches winked out simultaneously, plunging the chamber back into absolute darkness. Snape then cast an Anti-Alohomora charm on the doors for good measure.
"Less than thirty meters. Get ready," Ethan warned.
"Acknowledged," came the replies from different directions. Everyone gripped their wands, ready to strike.
In the final moments, Cyril, wrapped in layers of protective spells, stood on the ground. Ethan, similarly shielded, floated in the air, giving him greater mobility.
The vast chamber was silent except for the tense breathing and pounding hearts of the defenders.
Outside the door, Gis and his party had finally reached the pyramid's most important space.
"No other paths. This is it. They're hiding in there," Gis said, satisfaction creeping into his voice after their cautious journey.
"So, who goes in first?"
Saphir's question sobered everyone instantly. They all knew that Robert and Mael had not reappeared, which meant they must have reunited with Cyril. Their presence was no longer a secret. An ambush behind that door was certain. The first person through would likely face a concentrated barrage of spells, with only a slim chance of survival.
Nadim and Isaac, the latecomers to the group, tried to make themselves as inconspicuous as possible. They even glanced back down the passage, calculating their chances of simply running. But the path was blocked by members of both factions. There was no escape.
Both groups recognized the two men as potential cannon fodder. All eyes converged on them.
Naturally, Nadim and Isaac protested. They complained loudly and bitterly.
Inside the chamber, Ethan watched the entire scene unfold through his special sight. "Looks like they're arguing, but no sound is coming through. The doors must have the same soundproofing enchantment as the rest of the pyramid." He saw the souls of several men raise their fists in threatening gestures, yet he heard nothing.
He announced loudly, "They're at the door, but it's soundproofed. We can't hear them. They're arguing inside their group. Probably deciding who gets to open the door first."
Ethan's sudden announcement made the already tense defenders jump, but they quickly responded.
"Nadim and Isaac are moving toward the door. Looks like they've been chosen as scapegoats." Ethan watched the two resentful souls being led toward the entrance.
"Serves them right!" Mael and Robert voiced their grim satisfaction. They despised the two traitors.
"Hold your fire," Cyril urged. "If it's just the two of them, don't attack. Killing only them won't help us. Wait until the others come in, then we hit them all at once. We need to inflict as much damage as possible to improve our odds."
Neither Mael nor Robert replied, which worried Cyril. He did not know if his words had sunk in.
Outside, Saphir, his wand pointed at Nadim, nodded with satisfaction. "That's more like it. Being first through the door doesn't guarantee death. But refusing? That guarantees death right now."
The two men exchanged a glance, their shared hatred clear in their eyes.
"Alohomora!"
None of the newcomers had experience opening the doors or disarming traps; Ethan's group had cleared the way. After a whispered conference, Isaac and Nadim cast the Unlocking Charm simultaneously. But thanks to Snape's Anti-Alohomora Charm, the door did not budge.
They exchanged another glance, a flicker of hope in their eyes. They turned back to the others.
"It's not working. We can't open it."
"Try another spell. You can't tell me that's the only unlocking charm you know."
"It is. Send someone else."
"Enough stalling! Use an offensive spell and blast the doors open!"
Their protests were futile. Gritting their teeth, Isaac and Nadim were forced to cast attack spells. To their surprise, the spells worked with alarming ease.
BOOM! The doors shattered into several large fragments.
As the stone rubble crashed to the floor, the torches inside the chamber flared to life once more.
"What is that?!"
"A treasure! It must be an incredible treasure!"
The men outside were instantly captivated by the floating book, their eyes gleaming with naked greed.
But before they could urge Isaac and Nadim to enter and scout ahead, their violent entry had already triggered another defense. Clack, clack. The two rows of stone statues animated, gripping their stone weapons and striding toward the entrance with heavy, deliberate steps.
The sight of the moving statues put Gis and his men on edge. But they quickly recalled the piles of rubble they had seen in the previous two chambers.
"So this is where those broken statues came from?"
"They managed to smash these things with just a few people. With our numbers, it should be easy."
Gis and Saphir each offered their assessment.
The statues advanced at a moderate pace. Gis and his men cast Protego charms on themselves and fired a variety of attack spells from the doorway at the approaching stone figures.
"That's it?"
"This is almost too easy."
The statues were even weaker than they had imagined. Their confidence began to swell, and they started underestimating the pyramid's other defenses.
"Enough. Shut it," Saphir snapped, curbing their growing arrogance.
"Your turn. Go." He nodded toward Isaac and Nadim.
Emboldened by the fragility of the statues, the two men felt a sliver of hope. They attempted to Transfigure the rubble on the floor into animals to use as scouts. But the shattered stone, still faintly humming with residual enchantments, resisted their magic. They searched their bags, but their supplies of easily Transfigurable materials were limited, and their skill in the art was only average. They could only manage small creatures like rabbits, which were useless for the task ahead.
With their Transfigured decoys exhausted, they had no choice but to proceed themselves. They layered every protective charm they knew around themselves, took a deep breath, and stepped into the burial chamber, wands raised.
Clang. Clang. The sound of spells impacting their Shield Charms echoed. A spark of confidence ignited within them. But in the next second, an arrow whistled through the air and punched straight through Isaac's Protego, burying itself in his stomach.
"AHH!" Isaac screamed in agony, clutching his bleeding abdomen as he collapsed to the floor. He frantically rummaged through his Extendable Charm bag for a Blood-Replenishing Potion and Essence of Dittany.
Witnessing Isaac's fate, Nadim's will to advance evaporated. But Saphir, watching from the doorway, was unmoved. "Keep moving!" he barked.
Nadim's eyes darted around the chamber. He began to creep toward the spot where Isaac had triggered the trap, hoping to meet a similar fate: incapacitated, if not killed, to avoid having to venture further into the unknown.
He had only taken a few steps when he too was struck down. But not by an arrow. A spike of stone erupted from the floor, piercing through the sole of his right foot and transfixing his calf.
"Arrgh!" He collapsed beside Isaac, howling in pain.
"Serves them right!" Robert and Mael grinned. Even the floating spirit of Noé wore a smile.
Though it was obvious the two men were feigning the severity of their injuries and refusing to move, their captors could not simply execute their own reluctant allies. Grudgingly, they selected new scouts and continued the painstaking process of probing the chamber's defenses.
This slow, methodical advance frayed the nerves of the waiting defenders. Their patience was wearing thin, but their luck held. Once a small safe zone had been established, the attackers, lacking the finesse and control of Ethan's group, decided to enter the chamber themselves.
The first two to enter were invisible under Disillusionment Charms. But Ethan and his group, hidden behind the pillars under their own concealment charms, knew the attackers' general location. The enemies began to fan out, searching slowly.
"I can't wait any longer! I'm taking the shot!" Robert's patience finally broke. If he waited any longer, the searchers would soon stumble upon his hiding spot.
"Stupefy!" He cast his best spell directly at the approaching dark-cloaked wizard.
Despite his vigilance, Laurent was caught off guard. The red light struck him, and he crumpled to the ground without a sound.
"There! Attack!"
A torrent of multicolored spells slammed into the pillar where Robert hid. But the thick stone column absorbed them all, leaving him unscathed.
With their position compromised, the defenders had no choice but to engage. The chamber erupted in a dazzling, chaotic barrage of spells.
"Incendio!" Ethan cast a fireball at an unfamiliar blond wizard.
The man dodged the orange flames nimbly and retaliated with a green jet of light, the Killing Curse. Ethan sidestepped, and the curse sailed harmlessly past.
"Tempestas Fulguralis!"
Dodging the lethal spell, Ethan cast his improved Weather-Modifying Charm. A dark, low-hanging cloud materialized beneath the ceiling. Rain and bolts of lightning lashed down from it, sweeping across the wizards caught in its path. The targeted wizards were forced to cast defensive spells constantly just to survive.
"AHH!" A sudden scream cut through the din and reached Ethan's ears.
"Grandfather!" Ethan looked down and saw Cyril, his right hand severed at the wrist, blood gushing from the stump.
"You'll all pay for that!" A red glint flashed in Ethan's eyes. Cyril was gravely injured. His promise to his grandfather no longer mattered.
"What in the name of...!"
"Merlin's beard!"
Amidst the disbelieving cries of their attackers, a colossal, three-headed red dragon, nearly thirty meters long, materialized inside the burial chamber.
"ROOOOAR!"
Ethan bellowed in fury and unleashed a torrent of black fire from his three gaping maws upon Saphir and his allies.
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