Agent Potter Ch.16: The Attack on Le Duff Villa (Patreon)

Dark clouds rumbled, the wind tugging at Harry’s cloak as he stood next to Valkyrie, breathing in the silence of the night. In the dim red glow of the tablet, her forehead creased, a pink tongue flicking out to lick her lips.

“What’s the matter?” 

“Forty-six people,” Valkyrie said, passing the device to him. “That is going to be a big kill count today to get Le Duff. We cannot spare anyone unless we wish to incite a court battle in the ICW and have every single person walk free. There have to be no witnesses. This is a shadow operation at its worst.”

“In and out with no one knowing the better.” Harry’s heart pounded in his chest. “Nothing left behind.”

“Exactly. We aim to kill. And even if we leave someone alive yet incapacitated—”

“The air strike will destroy the villa and everything within it anyway.” A fist of razors clawed up Harry’s throat. “The best we can do after all this is take Le Duff straight to the Black site to get more information from him before he meets the same fate.”

“Yes.” Blue light flashed over Valkyrie’s grim features and the crack of thunder echoed in the distance. “There is another thing I haven’t told you yet.”

Harry twisted. “What?”

Valkyrie took a deep breath. “In case the Auror force of the country gets wind— they shouldn’t with the precautions we are taking, but if they do, we will have to fight them too. To death.”

“Excuse me?” Harry blurted. 

“Welcome to Shadow Operations.” Valkyrie gave him a sad smile. “We leave no witnesses. Usually, agents who are a lot more experienced than you do these missions. But we are on a tight schedule with practically no better alternatives.”

Harry felt a storm of uneasiness rise in his chest, stabbing against his chest like a thousand sharp knives.

“We’ve taken steps to prevent any Auror interference, of course,” she continued. “The Aurors should be busy handling a fire on the other side of the country while this is going on. And with our jammers and all escapes cut, they won’t have a way to call them.”

“But there’s always a chance that they do.” Harry closed his eyes, balling his fists. “And someone like Le Duff who practically runs half the government behind the scenes— well, he would definitely call them to protect his ass.”

“He would try to,” Valkyrie said. “If he’s successful, that is when we’d have to worry, Felix. Hopefully, it won’t come to that.”

“And if it does?”

“Then we must do what’s necessary, Felix.” She drew herself up. “Because if this gets out, the whole operation would slip through our fingers. And the consequences could be a lot more dire with such an organization out there. You saw what they did with the Veelas. It is better to kill forty than risk the lives of forty thousand.”

“I’d prefer a way where I don’t have to do either. Especially when the forty are Aurors who are just doing their jobs.”

“In an ideal world, sure.” Valkyrie squeezed his shoulder lightly. “But we do not live in an ideal world. That is why we have to do what we do. It is a shit explanation but it is all I can give you. As you undertake more missions, you will find that lines blur. Some decisions are hard. Some, even impossible. But when it comes down to it, we must do what we have to.”

“Keep the world safe.” Harry felt a knife twist beneath his ribs. 

“Exactly.”

“If that’s the case, we do this as fast and as quietly as we can,” Harry declared. “The faster we do it, the less time there is for the Aurors to respond. The ones inside will die. But not a single person more will get hurt if I have a say in it.”

“That’s the plan,” Valkyrie said. “Do your job properly and people don’t get hurt. Slip up and they do.”

“I understand.”

“Good.” Valkyrie glanced at her watch as it buzzed, its screen blinking yellow. “Any moment now. Get your head in the game. And remember, be careful of the Japanese assassins.” 

Harry nodded quietly, taking a deep breath. 

“All teams, hold positions. Only go in on my signal.” Valkyrie pressed a finger to her ear. “Flying squad alpha, set up a perimeter. No one should escape.”

A chorus of affirmations rang through his earpiece and Harry smothered a wince, turning to Valkyrie. “How much more time?”

“A few minutes.” The tip of Valkyrie's wand lit up in a faint golden and she ran its tip against the veil of magic in front of them. “The wards are complex and strong— works of professionals, no doubt. Even with our resources, it takes time to get through these when you don’t want to raise a commotion.”

“I can go in quietly and start the party,” Harry said. “The wards won’t stop me. And they won’t ever know I am there. I can take many down in a few minutes by apparating around.”

“That’s risky,” she muttered. “But it could work wonders.”

“If you can figure out where Le Duff is, I can go in and take him out quietly if he’s alone,” Harry added. “It could mean sparing about forty lives.”

Valkyrie shook her head. “Many of those men in there are wielding guns, Felix. They’re a part of this operation as much as Le Duff is. We have to take all of them down” 

“Of course.” Harry let out a sigh. 

“Let’s stick together for now. Once we are in, we tear through the security and get to Le Duff as soon as we can and close this chapter once and for all.” Her watch beeped green and a timer appeared. “Right on time, as always. All teams, this is Valkyrie. Be prepared. Quetzalcoatl, you are up.”

“Yes, ma’am,” a voice rang in Harry’s ears. “I am ready.”

Harry let the Elder Wand slip into his palm, closing his fingers around the shaft of white wood, feeling it thrum slightly, tugging at his magic.

‘It just loves death. And a challenge.’ Harry pursed his lips. ‘Well, time to fulfill its wish for once. No slipping up tonight. If I slip, innocent Aurors might die.’

“If you don’t want to kill, incapacitate them. They’ll die in the strike anyway,” Valkyrie murmured, putting the tablet away. “Though, it is still a risk. It is your choice, Felix.”

Harry said nothing, feeling magic rise behind him. The bubble of wards in front of him wavered slowly disappearing into nothingness.

“Their wards are down and ours are up. Go!” Quetzalcoatl said and Harry strode forward with Valkyrie, his wand held ready. “Two targets, fifty feet ahead. Wanded.”

Harry flitted between trees till he caught sight of a man walking up and down a clearing while his companion lay against a boulder, his snores drifting in the wind.

‘First, the one who’s awake and then the one who’s asleep.’

Taking aim, Harry let a spell fly, tearing through his chest. Blood spurted upon his sleeping companion who jolted awake. 

“Mierda.” He rolled away as the man fell, snatching his wand from his pocket. “Mie—”

A dark pink beam hammered into his skull, crushing it against the rock. The wand rolled out of his hand, stopping at Valkyrie’s feet who stepped on the wand, breaking it. 

“Five down over the property. They don’t seem aware yet,” Quetzalcoatl said. “Now, there are four up ahead. Two on each side. You gotta split up and meet back in the middle, where there's practically a party assembled around the pool.”

“I’ll take the ones on the right.” Valkyrie stepped over the bushes, disappearing into the night and Harry turned around, walking to the other side.

Thunder rumbled across the sky and Harry saw the slightest hint of crimson in the distance, amongst the trees.

“How many down?” Harry pressed a finger to his ears.

“Um… Nine. Wait. Ten now. Sugarquill and Chutney took one down,” Quetzalcoatl replied. “And you might want to go a little to your right. You are venturing— yeah, that’s about it. You should be able to spot them in a few seconds.”

Two figures came into view in the distance, pacing across a plain stretch of land, their silver guns gleaming in the light of the floating lanterns. 

“I am telling you, Albert!” A woman scowled. “I saw something in the woods. It could be spellfire for all we know! We should call it in.”

“Are you fucking nuts, Samantha? If we are wrong, we go out of a job. Or worse, those two fucking nutjobs crack our skulls open.”

“I see them. Going in.” Harry crept forward, feeling a warmth spread across his chest as he disappeared from view.

“Wait, where did you go? Felix? Felix?”

“Right here, Quetzal. Give me a minute.” Harry neared Samatha, who was hissing expletives under her breath, her knuckles white against the gun. “Lacero.”

A line of red shone against her pale skin, soaking into her robes. She put her hands around her through, letting out a strangled noise, gaining the attention of Albert.

“Wha—” A magenta spell gauged through his chest and both Samantha and Albert collapsed, dead.

“I can’t see you on the map but you just took your targets down. Valkyrie is fighting hers— well, now she is done too. You might want to hurry. She’s a tall gal and already closer to them than you are.”

Harry let the invisibility fade away, stepping around Samantha’s dead body. “How many?”

“Eight around the pool,” Quetzalcoatl replied. “Six with guns, two with wands. Once you get them, you will be through the outer—”

A shrill whistle pierced through the air, clawing at Harry’s ears. Flashes of spells erupted on the other side of the villa, and shouts echoed through the night.

“You all have been found out. Hurry and—”

“Go invisible,” Valkyrie’s voice rang over Quetzalcoatl’s. “It is safest if you aren’t seen. Get to them and take down whoever comes in your way.”

“Alright.” Harry willed the power of the hallows to envelop him, feeling the warmth spread across his chest again.

“Don’t disappear off the map, Felix,” Valkyrie snapped. “How am I supposed to fucking coordinate when we don’t even know—”

“Valkyrie, two are approaching.” Quetzalcoatl cut in. “Gunmen, thirty meters out and closing. Act fast before they see you.”

“On it.”

Harry let go of the invisibility, touching his wand to his forehead, feeling a chill spread down his body as the magic washed over and he shimmered away from view.

“Can you see me on the map now?”

“Yep, I can. Two groups are near— Valkyrie has engaged her targets— yeah, two groups are near you. One to slightly to the right of where you are facing and another way right. But there’s no one else to block them.”

“I’ll get them both.” 

Harry leaped over Albert, sprinting across the field, the magic over him shifting like the waves of the sea. Ducking under branches, he saw the two men treading through the field, their guns held in front of them.

“You think anyone here, bub?” One man narrowed his eyes, a bright light emitting from the nozzle of his gun, stabbing in Harry’s eyes. “We could be missing all the action.”

Harry flinched and raised his arm over his eyes as the man continued his tirade, using his gun as a flashlight. 

‘If he comes any closer, he’ll spot me despite the charm unless I remain absolutely still. The light is too bright’ Harry took a deep breath, tugging at his magic. ‘Better end him and fight the other.’

A flash of sizzling orange stuck the man, blowing a hole through his chest. The other jumped in surprise, stumbling back before throwing himself to the ground, avoiding a flash of yellow. 

“INTRUDER.” Beams of crimson burst from his gun, whizzing past Harry’s head. 

The man waved his gun like a child’s rattle, flinging spells that disappeared into the night. Harry batted away a duo of beams that came close to him before gathering magic at the tip of his wand. With a flick of his wrist, Harry hurled the magic at his attacker, banishing him.

‘Reducto.’ Harry crushed the disgust that rose in his chest as the man’s head exploded, the gun slipping out of his hand.

“Where are the other two?” Harry pressed the earpiece. “And where’s Valkyrie?”

“Val is heading toward Whale to help her with a bunch of attackers. And your other group is heading toward the place where you just came from. Probably checking in on the ones you killed.”

“I am going to disappear off the map for a moment to apparate.” Harry pulled at the magic of the hallows, and the world twisted around him.

His boots squelched into a puddle of blood and he jumped back, kicking his feet, drops of dark mud raining onto Albert’s body.

“Gross. Scourgify.” The blood cleared off the boots and he stepped away. “How far are they, Quetzal?”

“They’ll be at the location in half a minute. Maybe less,” Quetzalcoatl replied. “One has a gun and the other just has a wand.”

“Good.” Harry backed away from the bodies. 

The snap of branches echoed through the trees, soft murmurs rustling in the wind. A faint light shone between the gaps of the leaves and Harry held his breath.

‘They are here.’

A woman stepped over the bushes, light falling upon the dead bodies on the ground. Her gasp echoed through the leaves and her partner came into view, his silver gun gleaming in the light of the woman’s wand.

“Suntem atacați! Trebuie—” A bronze curse pierced through his neck and blood splattered across the woman’s face. Her companion gurgled, clutching his neck as he fell to his knees while the woman stared dumbfounded.

A moment later, she threw herself to the ground, a curse blasting the tree trunk behind her to dust. She rolled to her feet, avoiding a magenta flash, flinching as it gauged a hole through the ground. 

“Avada Kedavra!” 

Harry hastily conjured a block of marble that burst into pieces, a thin shard cutting a line against his cheek. He felt the trickle of warm blood flow down his face and tugged at his magic. 

“Fuminis.” 

A bolt of lightning smashed into the woman, the crack of the spell ringing in Harry’s ears. Harry blinked the spots out of his eyes, seeing the witch’s smoking, charred body twitch on the ground. 

‘It’s done.’ Harry twisted, apparating away, back to where he had come from. 

“Quetzalcoatl?” He pressed a finger to his ear, letting go of the hallow’s invisibility. “It is done.”

“I saw. There are only a handful left now and all are within the Villa. Valkyrie has taken care of the guy by the pool. Go straight ahead. You’ll find her waiting. Also, how do you keep disappearing off the map?” 

“Trade secret,” Harry smiled faintly, jogging ahead, his eyes darting across the clearing. “Has any team breached the building?”

“Sugarquill and Chutney are closing on the Villa,” Quetzalcoatl paused, faint voices drifting through Harry’s comms. “Now, Whale and Jupiter are going around, hunting strays. Valkyrie and you will be the first to breach the building from the back.”

Harry nodded, squinting as a faint amber glimmer caught his eye. 

‘The pool.’ Harry hurried down the gentle slope, the disillusionment charm fading away like the soft ripples in water.

“There you are.” Valkyrie tossed her hair over her shoulder. “You’re bleeding.”

“It’s nothing,” Harry flinched as she ran her wand along the cut, a burning cold seeping into his skin. 

“All healed. You should make it a point to heal the small injuries and not let them bleed out,” Valkyrie tutted. “Let’s go. It seems security measures have kicked in. The building’s exterior has turned to stone and windows have turned to metal.”

Harry frowned. “I have never heard of defenses like that.”

“I have. It is a transfiguration runic sequence that has to be weaved into the brickwork when the building is being made. It hardens everything to metal and stone instead of glass and bricks. Very hard to blast through.”

“Any other way to go in?” Harry pressed his earpiece. “Quetzalcoatl?”

“The only direct entrance is the main gate in the front,” he replied. “You can try and go in through the roof but they have men up there so flying might be dangerous.”

“What about the windows or the balconies?” Harry asked. “Maybe something that can be opened from the inside?”

“Windows have turned to metal,” Valkyrie said. “I would rather blast a hole through the walls to get in.”

“Then let’s do just that,” Harry said, eyeing the wall of gray stone that stretched in front of him. “At the count of three?”

“I’ve got a better idea.” Valkyrie removed a pen from her pocket. “WAND’s standard issue grenade pen.”

“That’s a grenade, not a dynamite.”

“With the right spells, it’s both.” She grinned, clicking the pen. “Get back.”

Valkyrie stuck the pen to the wall of the villa, running back to Harry’s side. “Bombarda Maxima the pen on three. Three— two— NOW!”

Two beams of cracking silver magic hit the pen stuck to the wall and the building shook, a deafening blast sending Harry’s ears ringing. Dust stung his nose and eyes, spots dancing in his eyes as he stumbled back.

With a swish of his wand, the dust vanished and his vision cleared the burning fading away. Harry coughed, glancing at Valkyrie, who sat on the ground a faint bubble of magic covering her face. 

“That was reckless,” Harry pulled her up. “We—”

He saw a flash of purple out of the corner of his eyes and lunged at Valkyrie, pushing her to the ground as a stream of purple and yellow curses sliced through the air over them. Two men appeared, through the hole, spells curving a path of purple flashes toward them, leaving gashes on the soil.

‘No,’ Harry thrust his wand forward and a wall of dirt rose to swallow the spells, a haze of purple magic shining off its edges. 

Harry transfigured the dirt to stone, pouring magic to strengthen it. The purple haze faded away and the spells stopped.

Harry glanced at Valkyrie, who was clutching her head, her knees against her chest, her body quivering. “Valkyrie? You alright?”

“No,” she groaned, just before a haze of orange shone at the edges of the wall, cracks spreading across its surface as it shook.

‘Reparo. Reparo.’ The cracks vanished momentarily before reforming.

“Valkyrie?”

Her head snapped up, her eyes sharpening.

“Fuck, sorry.” She scrambled to her feet, tendrils of golden fire curling to runes, while Harry repaired the wall again. “Adoleo.”

A ball of golden flames roared from her wand, flying over the wall and the ground shook, a warm breeze prickling Harry’s skin.

“They’re dead.” Valkyrie walked around the wall while Harry peeked over it.

Patches of soil smoked, soot covering the gray walls, dark as the charred bodies of the men who had been attacking. A puddle of silver covered their burnt hands, sticking to their body like armor.

‘Those were the guns they had been using.’ Harry felt his insides twist. ‘Bloody hell.’

“Why didn’t Quetzalcoatl warn us?” Harry frowned, pressing a finger to his ear. “Quetzal? Agent Quetzalcoatl.”

Static rang in his ears and Harry felt his heart twist.

“They have somehow blocked our comms. Fuck,” Valkyrie cursed, pulling her earpiece out and crushing it under her foot. “We’re on our own. Be careful from here on.”

He followed Valkyrie through the hole, feeling the heat prickle the hair on his arms. Valkyrie stopped short as five figures loomed across the lavish hall, their guns pointed at them. 

“Put your wands down,” a man barked from the first floor. “It’ll be a lot less painful for you.”

“I will counter with the same.” A smile curled on Valkyrie’s lips as she dragged her wand across her palm in a streak of red blood that floated in front of it, swirling with golden embers. “But it doesn’t matter. You’re done for.”

The blood disappeared and amber ropes of fire burst from her wand, lunging at the gunmen just as a hail of spells rained in their direction. Harry drew his wand in a sharp vee, and a bronze shield appeared, the spells bursting against it in a shower of sparks.

Around the hall, tongues of golden flames wrapped around the men, eating through their bodies, leaving naught but smoke and screams behind. Spells ceased and guns clattered to the ground, drowning under the last of the screams while Harry watched, horror crawling up his face.

“What the hell was that?”

Valkyrie took a heaving breath, wiping her face and leaving smears of red on her skin. “Blood magic— Very powerful, very obscure.”

Harry snatched her hand, feeling the blood trickle into his palm. “Terego. Episkey.”

The blood dripping down her hand disappeared and the gash on her hand closed, leaving a faint pink line.

“Thank you. Come, we still have to—” 

A loud blast rang through the hall from the far end, the floor shaking slightly.

“Now, what was that?”

“Probably the food squad.” Valkyrie cracked a grin. “They must be trying to breach the door.”

“Should we help?”

“We have to get Le Duff first.” Valkyrie shook her head just as a crack echoed through the villa from the other side. “Besides, they can take care of themselves. Stick to the mission, Felix. Le Duff is here in this building and he has no way to escape. 

“So he will likely be hiding in one of these rooms.” Harry breathed. “We just need to find him. And since his bodyguards, those Japanese will be with him, it is just a matter of guesswork. Heck, if we were in contact with Quetzalcoatl, we would’ve already found him on the map.”

“We still can,” Valkyrie pulled out her tablet. “It is just—”

Cracking red and green lines spread across the screen and smoke poured out of its sides.

“Fuck. Damn it.” Valkyrie smashed the tablet on the floor, white cracks appearing over its dark screen. “His wards are too strong and probably made for us. We’ve to do this the old-fashioned way.”

“Searching through the villa with detection charms.”

“Exactly.” Valkyrie swept ahead. “Be careful and watch my back.”

A shadow stirred out of the corner of his eye and Harry conjured a metal spear, banishing it at the man as soon as he came into view. The glow on the gun’s nozzle fizzled out and it clattered to the floor.

“Better start looking around immediately,” Harry said. “Homenum Revelio.” 

A blue shimmer of magic spread from Harry’s wand, rolling over the floor and seeping under the doors. Lights glowed in front of his eyes, the wood of the Elder Wand thrumming like a pulse.

“There’re people all over the villa. I cannot tell where Le Duff is but there seem to be a lot of people on the second floor.”

“Then let’s go there.” Valkyrie climbed up the stairs, her wand held aloft. “There’s no one on the stairs.”

“They are on the other side,” Harry muttered, jabbing his thumb in the other direction and turning. “This is a fucking big Villa.”

“That it is.” Valkyrie walked a step behind him, her fingers running along the rich mahogany railing while her eyes swept across the corridors. “Fucking rich bastard.”

Harry felt the hairs on his neck stand up and raised his wand just in time as a woman jumped from behind a pillar, a spell curving toward them. Harry swatted it away, putting a piercing hex through her skull, her blood splattering against the richly colored walls.

“That was a cheap shot.” Valkyrie narrowed her eyes. “Let’s keep going.”

“There should be more up ahead,” Harry whispered. “At least six somewhere around here. Maybe a few more.”

“Hopefully protecting Le Duff,” Valkyrie murmured. “Let’s find him and finish this.”

A blue shimmer spread from her wand, glowing against the door ahead. A man leaped out, his body glowing blue as his disillusionment faded and spells roared from his gun. Flashes of pink pierced through the air only to splatter across Harry’s silver shield.

Valkyrie shot a blasting curse over his shoulder, and the man raised his gun to intercept the spell.

A blinding white explosion erupted, sending a tide of magic crashing against Harry’s shield, tearing through the walls and the furniture around. Harry stumbled, chunks of marble and brick collapsing on the floor below, gray dust drifting through the air.

A gust of wind blew it away and Harry turned, peeking through the torn wall, into a room covered in gray dust.

Two golden swords gleamed in the light of the room, the two Japanese bodyguards standing next to Le Duff who was pressed against a pillar, his wand clutched tightly in his hand. Behind him, two gunmen stood, their hands trembling.

“We are here.” Harry declared, a smile blooming on his face. “Le Duff, I will give you one chance. Throw down your weapons and surrender or—”

“You… are mistaken,” A figure stepped out of the shadows, a long white wand held in her hand and Harry felt a chill run down his veins. “We… meet again… agent. And hello… Valkyrie.”

“Cadros.” Valkyrie scowled, moving to stand next to Harry, the tip of her wand glowing green. “You’ve been a pain in the ass for a while. I must say, I didn’t expect you of all people to defect. And it ends today.”

“That… we will… see.” Cadros croaked, flicking her wand. 

Instantly, Harry felt magic prickle his skin, like he had been locked in a cage.

“Wards,” Valkyrie hissed. “She has boxed us in.”

“Only one… leaves alive.” A smile curled on her lips. “A fight… to… death.”

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AND… DONE! Hope you all liked the chapter!

So, after all the efforts WAND has put in, it all comes down to this! Harry and Valkyrie against Cadros, Le Duff, and his security to get the ultimate price: Le Duff himself. 

Cut off from the headquarters, with a ticking clock over their heads, how will our agents fare? Whatever happens, one thing is clear. We are now into the final showdown! 

A huge thanks to Nanu, Shadowcheck, and Mughil, for betaing this chapter.

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Stay Happy! Stay Safe! Keep Smiling! Keep Reading!

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