Damian had been living at Chris's house long enough to set up an intricate network of protective alarm wards. They were designed to trigger upon any intrusion, instantly alerting him to the danger.
He quickly tucked Old White's diary into his robes. He had only skimmed the pages, but he had seen enough to know he needed to get back to his residence immediately.
Damian pulled a battered walking stick from his pocket. He had discreetly cast the Portus charm on it days ago. Tapping it with his wand, the Portkey activated. Space twisted violently, yanking him from the bedroom by his navel.
With a sharp crack, Damian materialized in the spare room next to Chris's study back at 56 Riverside Street.
The moment his boots hit the floorboards, he sensed dark, volatile magic radiating from the ground floor. He extended his wand hand, casting a silent, localized Revelio.
Damian frowned. The magical signature below was foul—different from an ordinary wizard's magic. It felt disturbingly familiar.
Before he could place it, a loud crash echoed from downstairs. Chris had encountered the intruder.
Rushing down the stairs, Damian froze. Looming in the hallway was a monstrosity that violently triggered the human uncanny valley effect. The beast was nearly ten feet tall, its naked, rotting bulk covered entirely in protruding human faces.
The expressions on the grafted faces varied, but most were locked in eternal, hideous terror. Faint, gurgling murmurs echoed from the mouths scattered across the monster's flesh. "It hurts... my face... it hurts so much..."
Chris was slumped against the far wall, a massive chunk of his left arm missing. The flesh looked as though it had been violently torn away by brute force.
Gasping for breath, Chris spotted him. "Damian! The beast's hide is like iron! My spells and blade barely scratch it! Be careful!"
A flash of absolute shock crossed Damian's eyes as he recognized two specific faces grafted onto the beast's chest: Ryan and Trina.
How are they already on this thing? Damian thought, his mind racing. Did Jack send it to slaughter them the moment I left their house?
Scanning the writhing mass of flesh, Damian spotted another familiar visage—the missing Syndicate Watchman from his initial case file.
"Drink this, quickly!" Damian shouted, tossing a vial of Essence of Dittany to Chris to stop the bleeding.
So this abomination is the cause of the White Stone Town disappearances, Damian realized, his grip tightening on his wand.
He slashed his wand through the air. "Confringo!" A blinding flash of the Blasting Curse struck the monster squarely in the chest.
The sheer force only made the beast stumble half a step backward. It slowly raised its massive head, its crimson eyes locking onto Damian. Its jaw unhinged to its ears, revealing rows of pitch-black, needle-like teeth as it emitted an ear-piercing shriek.
Incredible magic resistance, Damian noted grimly. The beast's hide rivaled the scales of a fully grown Basilisk.
Suddenly, the human faces turned their eyes toward Damian. Ryan and Trina's faces shrieked in unison, "Operative... save us!"
Trina's previously pretty face was now bulging with dark, necrotic veins. She sobbed in sheer agony, "Please... help me... I don't want to die!"
The grafted faces were horrifyingly still conscious.
Damian gritted his teeth and cast a rapid barrage of Severing Charms. "Diffindo!"
Knowing a prolonged fight would destroy the house and likely kill Chris, Damian turned and sprinted out the front door, baiting the monster to follow.
The invisible blades of the Severing Charms only left shallow, oozing gashes across the beast's thick hide. However, the faces struck by the magic wailed in amplified torment. Blackish-red blood wept from their eyes as they moaned, "It hurts... it hurts so much..."
Then, the sorrow in their voices twisted into pure, unnatural malice. "Kill him... kill him!"
The monster burst through the doorway, charging after Damian with terrifying speed.
Just as Damian cast a non-verbal Protego, the beast slammed into him. The sheer kinetic force of the blow sent both the shimmering shield and Damian hurtling backward through the air.
Thanks to the density of his mature magical core, the Shield Charm held, absorbing the lethal impact.
Mid-air, Damian quickly cast the Feather-Light Charm on himself, followed by Ascendio. Using the momentum of the monster's strike, he vaulted high into the night sky, landing gracefully on the sloped roof of a nearby watchtower.
Safe for the moment, Damian pulled a smooth, white badge from his pocket. It was his temporary Syndicate Operative identifier, enchanted with a highly advanced Protean Charm.
These badges functioned similarly to two-way mirrors, allowing operatives to securely communicate across specific magical frequencies. Damian currently only had Link and Anna's frequencies synced to his badge.
He tapped the badge with his wand, channeling his magic to open a channel. Within seconds, the badge grew warm and emitted a faint glow.
"What is it?" Link's voice crackled through. He clearly knew Damian wouldn't be calling for small talk at this hour.
"I'm under attack at 56 Riverside Street," Damian said quickly. "The target is highly dangerous. I need backup, now."
"Hold on for a bit, we'll be there immediately," Link replied sharply.
Damian left the Protean connection open so Link could monitor the situation.
Suddenly, a massive shadow blotted out the moon. Instinct took over, and Damian threw himself to the side.
BOOM!
A massive boulder obliterated the spot where he had just been standing, sending shattered shingles and a cloud of dust into the air. A large chunk of the watchtower's roof caved in.
Damian slid down the slate roof and vaulted onto the adjacent building's terrace. He barely landed before another boulder smashed into his previous position.
Down on Riverside Street, the multi-faced abomination was casually tearing chunks of masonry from a neighboring brick wall and hurling them like cannonballs. Thankfully, it wasn't tearing apart Chris's house.
Boom! Boom! Boom! The impacts echoed like thunder through the quiet, sleeping town.
In the distance, a Syndicate Watchman blew a shrill, magical alarm horn, waking the rest of the residents.
Its intelligence is feral, Damian assessed calmly, ducking another flying brick. A creature with human cunning wouldn't draw the attention of the entire Syndicate watch in the middle of a covert assassination.
Realizing its crude artillery wasn't hitting the agile wizard, the beast let out a frustrated roar and dropped its rubble.
It sprinted to the base of Damian's building. Driving its massive, clawed fingers straight into the solid stone wall, it began to rapidly scale the side of the building like a monstrous spider.
Damian watched the abomination climb with a cold, expressionless gaze. Just as the beast reached out to grab the edge of the roof, Damian pointed his wand directly at the masonry beneath its claws.
With a sharp, complex flick of his wand, he cast a powerful Transfiguration spell. The solid stone wall instantly transfigured into a rushing cascade of clear water.
Losing its grip entirely, the massive beast plummeted back toward the cobblestone street below.
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