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 129: The Duel
Harry held Excalibur in both hands, the light from its golden runes pushing against the darkness of the maze.
The sacred blade felt alive in his hands, eager to cut down the enemy before him, as if it could recognize an old foe.
Mordred stood twenty feet away, his greatsword raised. The deep gash Harry had carved into the dark metal was still smoking.
The knight's crimson eyes flickered between Harry and the blade.
'He's assessing me,' Harry thought. 'Waiting for an opening.'
The training with Morgan flashed through his mind. "Don't think. Let the sword guide you and trust your body."
Harry exhaled slowly. Then he attacked.
He did not charge carelessly. He moved as she taught him, with light steps, maintaining his balance. Excalibur was held diagonally across his body.
The young wizard took three quick steps and then feinted left.
Mordred took the bait. His greatsword came down in a vertical chop meant to split Harry in half.
Harry pivoted on his back foot, spinning away from the strike. The greatsword buried itself in the grassy ground. Before Mordred could pull it free, Harry swung Excalibur in a low arc toward the knight's exposed legs.
Mordred leaped backward, ripping his sword from the ground, his crimson eyes narrowed.
'He's fast,' Harry admitted. 'But not as fast as me.'
He pressed his advantage. Another feint, and then a real strike...a horizontal slash aimed at Mordred's side.
The knight blocked with the flat of his greatsword, but the impact sent sparks flying.
Excalibur's golden light flared, and Mordred's blade screamed.
The knight stumbled back a step.
Harry was not willing to let him recover. He advanced, swinging again and again. Each strike was precise and controlled. Morgan's lessons echoed in his mind.
Excalibur sang through the air. Mordred blocked, parried, and dodged, but each defense cost him something. More gashes appeared on his greatsword and armor. The dark metal was weeping now, black smoke pouring from the wounds.
Harry drove Mordred back across the maze's corridor. The knight's crimson eyes were now flickering wildly, showing his increasing desperation.
"Mordred," Harry said between strikes. "Can you hear me? Can you understand my words?"
The knight did not answer. His greatsword came up in a powerful swing. Harry ducked under it and slammed Excalibur's pommel into Mordred's chest plate.
The knight staggered.
"I know you were not always this," Harry continued, circling. "You were Arthur's son. His betrayer, yes, but also his flesh and blood. What happened to you after Camlann? Who raised you from the dead? I wish to put an end to all of this!"
Mordred's helmet turned toward Harry. The crimson eyes flickered, and for just a moment, something else appeared beneath them...something almost human.
Then it was gone.
The knight charged, swinging his greatsword in a wide arc. Harry leaped over it, landed behind Mordred, and swung Excalibur at the back of the knight's knees.
The blade bit deep into the armor. Black ichor sprayed. Mordred's legs buckled, and he crashed to his knees.
Harry stood over him, breathing hard. "I'm sorry it came to this. You were a traitor in life, but you were also a victim. The Argent Flame has no right to use your corpse…or any of the others. I will send you on your way now…rest in peace."
He raised Excalibur for the final blow.
Mordred's hand shot up and grabbed Harry's wrist.
"Urgh!" The grip was as strong as a vice. The crimson eyes blazed brighter than ever.
Mordred's helmet was cracked open, and all of a sudden…a voice emerged from within. It sounded raw and broken.
"Merlin…"
Harry froze.
The knight's jaw moved beneath the helmet. Words came, each one a struggle. "The… stone… destroy it…"
"What?" Harry leaned closer. "What stone? What are you trying to say?"
Mordred's grip tightened, crushing Harry's wrist. Pain flared. "The… Leader… he is…"
The crimson eyes flickered violently. Whatever force was animating Mordred fought back against the moment of clarity. The knight's body began to shake. Black smoke poured from the cracks in his armor.
"Arthur…" Mordred gasped.
Then his helmet sealed shut. The crimson eyes went cold. The grip on Harry's wrist relaxed.
Mordred was gone. Only the puppet remained.
Harry pulled his wrist free, massaging the bruised flesh. He looked at the kneeling knight, at the broken sword, the smoking armor, and the empty eyes.
He raised Excalibur. "Goodbye, Mordred." And brought it down.
The golden blade cleaved through Mordred's helmet, through his skull, through the dark magic that held him together. The knight's body crumbled to dust, just like the others.
Harry stood in the silence, his chest heaving.
He looked down at Excalibur. The runes pulsed gently, almost looking satisfied.
'Mordred tried to warn me about something,' Harry thought. 'The stone?' He knew about Arthur, of course. But he had no idea what he meant by the other part. What stone did Mordred want him to destroy? And did that have something to do with the source of the corruption that the Lady of the Lake told him to get rid of?
He did not have time to puzzle it out.
A shadow passed overhead.
Harry looked up. Through the gap in the hedges, he saw it—a massive red dragon, wings spread wide, flying low over the maze. On its back, a rider in a black uniform.
And beyond the dragon, he saw the stands...or what remained of them. Smoke rose from the Quidditch pitch. Flames licked at the outer walls of the castle.
'They are attacking the students?!'
Harry's blood ran cold. He had expected the Argent Flame to strike during the task, but he had hoped Morgan would be able to handle it alone. Now, seeing the destruction, he knew he could not stay in the maze.
Harry produced his staff and pointed it at the sky. "Levicorpus Inversus!"