Harry Potter and the Artificer Legacy Chapter 24 (Patreon)

Finishing our Anniversary Month off right! Here's the third Artificer Legacy update!

Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of Harry Potter and the Artificer Legacy! Time to Recover from Artifact Creation, then it's Testing time! We'll be needing another Panel of Artificers to certify!

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Chapter 24 – Recovery, Testing, Panel

Harry sighed as Madam Pomfrey hovered around him. The Matron of the Hospital Wing had been fretting over him since yesterday. Penny had levitated him here after he’d finished his Artifact Sword and fallen asleep. Seeing a student exhausted, physically and magically, burned in various areas, and brought in unconscious had almost sent Pomfrey into a fit. He’d woken up this morning to three vials of potion he had to drink. Not the most pleasant thing to do first thing in the morning. Penny had visited at breakfast and stayed with him until classes began, so that was nice. Now came what he was expecting since he woke up.

“Good morning, Mr. Potter.” Dumbledore smiled at the teen Artificer.

“Good morning, Headmaster.” Harry returned the greeting.

“You gave us quite the shock when Head Girl Clearwater brought you into the Hospital Wing yesterday.” Dumbledore informed him with a classic ‘worried grandfather’ look. Harry figured the man had decades to perfect said look. The Headmaster was somewhere north of one hundred thirty years old.

“Sorry about that, Headmaster.” Harry apologized with a slight bow of his head. “I had thrown myself into my work a bit too much. Or at least that’s what Penny says I did.” He cracked a slight grin.

“Being passionate about one’s work is a good thing.” Dumbledore nodded, with a small smile of his own. “But we can’t have students harming themselves like that. Poppy tells me that you had both muscular fatigue and symptoms of prolonged magical exhaustion. Could you tell me how your Enchanting brought you to such a state?”

“I wasn’t just Enchanting, Headmaster.” Harry shook his head. Seeing Dumbledore’s curious look, he continued. “I was Artificing. I finished a project two years in the making, sir.”

“You’ve crafted another Artifact?” Dumbledore looked a mix of impressed and confused. “Your last Artifact did not leave you such a ragged state, Mr. Potter.”

“My Rune Safe was almost accidental in its Artifact status.” Harry admitted with a shrug. “This time I fully intended to create an Artifact, a powerful one at that.”

“Might I inquire as to what Artifact now resides in Hogwarts?” Dumbledore questioned; his tone noticeably different. Harry looked at Headmaster Dumbledore right now, he realized, rather than the genial grandfather figure he acted as for others.

“A sword that cannot cut anything.” Harry let himself smile slightly.

“Cannot cut anything?” Dumbledore looked truly confused and Harry wondered how rare that look actually was.

“Nothing physical anyway.” Harry shrugged with a shake of his head.

“I must admit to my curiosity.” Dumbledore gave his grandfatherly smile.

“I still have to craft a handle and a sheath for it,” Harry remarked thoughtfully. “Then I’ll need to test out its full capabilities, of course. Once that’s done I’ll need another Panel of Artificers to come and examine it themselves.”

“Mr. Potter?” Dumbledore interrupted the teen’s planning. Harry looked at the old man after blinking for a second. “While it is fine to make plans, as Headmaster I do still need to know if this sword is in anyway dangerous to the students or staff.”

“Oh, right, well it shouldn’t be.” Harry shook his head. “It can’t cut anything physical. I guess you could still hit someone with it, but that’s true of a Beater’s bat too. As for my sword, it’s a Spell Cleaver. It cuts through Magic, rather than things.”

“A Spell Cleaver?” Dumbledore looked perplexed. “I don’t think I’ve come across that term before.”

“I might have made it up, for all I know.” Harry gave a half shrug. “I made my sword unable to cut physical objects in exchange for cutting through all forms of Magic. Well, theoretically, anyway. I still have to test it to find out its limitations.”

“That still could prove dangerous, Mr. Potter.” Dumbledore gave him a look.

“It’s not nearly so dangerous in anyone else’s hands, Headmaster.” Harry raised his hands in front of him. “I’ve already tied it to my Bloodline, no one but I can currently use the full range of my sword’s abilities. Not until I have children at any rate; which I don’t plan on for quite a few more years.” He chuckled and Dumbledore looked mirthful as well.

“Very well, Mr. Potter.” Dumbledore stood from his chair. “I would like to be present for your tests of this Artifact however; for safety’s sake, as well as damage control if something should go wrong.”

“I can agree to that.” Harry nodded. Dumbledore smiled at him again.

“I wish you a speedy recovery, Mr. Potter. I’m sure Head Girl Clearwater will make sure that you don’t fall behind on your classwork.” Dumbledore mentioned with a chuckle. “A good day to you, Mr. Potter.”

“To you as well, Headmaster.” Harry nodded. Dumbledore left the Hospital Wing shortly afterwards and Harry was left to run ideas through his mind. Lunch came and went quietly. Like clockwork Penny came in after classes with his daily assignments and homework. Harry pretended to pout but Penny was having none of it. So Harry set to work with his girlfriend by his side. They had dinner together in the Hospital Wing that evening. Madam Pomfrey had shooed Penny out afterwards and began to check Harry over with her wand.

“Well, Mr. Potter, the good news is you seem to be mostly well again. Your Magic is still rather low though. You’ll be staying another day while I check your recovery.” Madam Pomfrey informed the teen.

“Yes, Ma’am.” Harry replied with a sigh. Penny would insist he stay if Madam Pomfrey recommended it. There wasn’t much point in arguing. He wondered if it would be tomorrow or the day after when he’d receive a written reprimand from Tonks and one from Fleur as well. Knowing Penny she had already written to the others. He should be thankful to Hogwarts, really. It was currently acting as a barrier between him and Tonks’ worry and frustration with him.

‘I’ll make her something nice for her birthday.’ Harry thought to himself as he lay down for the night. ‘She’ll forgive me then, probably.’

-Tuesday ~ Second Day of Recovery-

It was a fairly quiet day in the Hospital Wing. Penny came to have breakfast with him again. Harry finished his homework from yesterday. Penny came with Hermione, Padma, Mandy, and Luna after classes.

“How’d you do this to yourself, Harry?” Hermione asked gently. Harry looked fine now, but Penny had informed them of Madam Pomfrey’s initial diagnosis. All of his study buddies looked curious as well.

“Artificing is a bit different from Enchanting, Hermione.” Harry informed the brunette. “To create a True Artifact takes time, a lot of trial and error, testing, and quite a bit of mana. My Rune Safe was a fairly tame creation in comparison to most Artifacts. But it was only a Minor Artifact because of its construction and limit of use. This time I went for a much more powerful Artifact, so the amount of time and mana needed to create it increased proportionately.”

“So what did you make?” Mandy questioned; her dark brown eyes curious.

“A sword.” Harry replied with a grin.

“An Artifact Sword?” Padma blinked “Like the Sword of Gryffindor or Excalibur?”

“Not sure it can compare to Excalibur, since no one seems to know all that much about that particular sword. But it can probably stand on a similar level of the Sword of Gryffindor.” Harry smiled. He happily omitted any knowledge of the Sword of Gryffindor becoming the Sword of Erdunn. He wouldn’t want that bit of information to get out for a while, after all.

“Can we see it?” Luna asked with an excited grin.

“When I’m done testing it and making a sheath for it.” Harry nodded to the small blonde who smiled brightly.

“I brought your classwork and homework for the day, Harry.” Penny smiled at him. Harry could see the amusement Penny was getting from delivering his schoolwork to him. He’d take it though, give Penny this small ‘revenge’ for worrying her like he’d done.

“Thank you, Penny.” Harry looked at her flatly. Penny was still all smiles as she handed him the assignments.

-Wednesday ~ After Classes-

“Intent-based Wards aren’t easy.” Harry grimaced as he looked through a large tome on Warding. To determine intent and then prevent certain actions, such as entering an area or picking something up, was quite the Arithmancy puzzle.

Luckily for Harry it was also a well-researched Branch of Warding, so he was able to find some examples. Taking some Basilisk bone Harry set about hollowing it out and shaping it with his blacksmithing tools. After some time he’d gotten the bone hollowed out to fit the tang of his blade. Shaping it down into a handle was then followed by etching the Ward Sequence into the bone. Harry primed the Ward on the new handle with his own mana and then attached it to his Artifact Sword. Seeing the Ward Sequence glow brightly and then dim made Harry smile. The handle had integrated properly and now the Ward on the handle was part of the sword as a whole.

“Now I’ll wrap it with leather, and then I’ll get to work on carving and forming a sheath for it.” Harry planned aloud as he worked. It had been a while since Harry had worked with wood. Luckily he happened to live right next to the most Magical Forest in Britain for ten months of the year. He had plenty of wood, both magical and non-magical to work with. A quick call to Tayla and the Family House Elf was more than happy to quickly pop around the edge of the Forbidden Forest and collect sections of wood. The forest was absolutely full of fallen trees and branches after all; he might as well make use of them.

-Thursday ~ After Classes-

“What are you going over so thoroughly, Harry?” Penny asked her boyfriend with a fond smile.

“I’m making the sheath for my Artifact Sword.” Harry smiled back as he showed Penny his work. “You remember that ‘Spell Ward’ idea I showed you in my journal? I should be able to make it work with this. A sheaths’ Function is to hold a blade and to protect anyone from its edge. If I match that Function of Protection with a similar Array then I should be able to create a sheath that blocks spells, including things like Summoning Charms and the like. That’ll keep the sword from being taken while it’s sheathed.”

“You’re really taking safety seriously for this sword, Harry. I’m impressed.” Penny pulled him into a side hug.

“I have to be, it’s a very powerful Artifact, one that I’ll pass down to children someday.” Harry looked at her with a soft grin. Penny’s cheeks went pink before she kissed his cheek.

“Don’t go making plans that far in advance just yet, boyfriend of mine.” Penny giggled. “Neither of us is ready for that kind of responsibility yet.”

“Maybe not, but it’s good to plan ahead when possible.” Harry chuckled.

“Don’t forget your homework though.” Penny teased him with a grin.

“Yes, mother…” Harry jokingly rolled his eyes. He broke into a laugh when he felt a ball of mana ‘pop’ against his head.

-Saturday-

Harry spent most of the morning carving out a length of wood for his sheath from a thick fallen limb of an ancient Magical Oak Tree. Tayla had, as most well-treated House Elves often did, gone above and beyond for him. She’d gone far deeper into the Forbidden Forest than he intended for her to. But her results spoke for themselves. The thick fallen limb she’d brought back still lingered with Magic even though it was probably separated from the tree many years ago. It showed none of the usual signs of decay and rot, only being dry enough to work with. Tayla wouldn’t accept any kind of reward, of course, but Harry had almost made the House Elf burst into happy tears with the sincere and genuine thanks he lavished on her. He was sure the Elf was probably still dancing around Wood End Cottage from her joy.

By the afternoon he had the two halves of his sheath carved and hollowed out to carefully hold his sword. Now came the time to etch the ‘Spell Ward’ Array he’d developed. He was going to make sure he wouldn’t have to replace the sheath for decades by making it to the best of his ability. For that very reason he was using Sylvuan as the Rune Material to fill in the etchings. Covering the wood in ‘Conquered’ Basilisk Hide would also increase the Magic Resistance the sheath had. Penny had come to watch him most of the day as he worked. She worked on her own homework and also made sure he took breaks for meals. When Harry sealed the edges of the two halves into the Form of the sheath that evening he smiled. Carving a ‘Permanent Adherence’ Sequence onto the outside of the sheathe Harry carefully attached the Basilisk Hide to the length of the sheath. He capped both ends of the sheath with Sylvuan as well for durability. Both would also permanently attach to the sheath to make sure it stayed together.

“A bloody good Enchanted Object; if I do say so myself.” Harry congratulated himself with a grin as he finally sheathed his Artifact Sword for the first time. With this he was now ready to test the sword. Lucky for him tomorrow was Sunday, so he had all day free.

-Sunday ~ Morning after Breakfast-

“Headmaster, Professor Flitwick, glad you both could come.” Harry welcomed Dumbledore and his Head of House. Penny was already with him and his study buddies all stood behind her eagerly.

“I must say, Mr. Potter, for a young man you cut an impressive figure with that sword on your hip.” Flitwick smiled at his student. Indeed Harry had his sheathed sword on his left hip and looked stronger for it. Whether that was because the boy was in the middle of a growth spurt or was entirely caused by the swords’ presence was something the short Wizard didn’t think about.

“Thank you, sir.” Harry nodded to his Head of House.

“I wouldn’t want to miss this, Mr. Potter.” Dumbledore smile genially. “I’ll trust in your skills as an Artificer. But it makes me worry less to have members of the Faculty present for these tests in case anything was to go wrong.”

“That’s understandable, Headmaster.” Harry agreed. “Thank you both for taking time out of your day to supervise. Both Professors gave him smiles and waved away his thanks. Harry walked over to Penny, who would be helping him test a few things.

“Ready?” Penny asked him with a grin.

“As I’ll ever be.” Harry nodded back with confidence.

The two walked a good distance away from the others and Harry drew the sword. None of the onlookers saw much ‘special’ about the sword. It was shiny, maybe unnaturally so, but the blade was fairly plain. It didn’t look any different than a regular double-edge sword. The guard appeared to be the same metal as the blade but inlaid with what looked like gold. The handle of the sword appeared to be leather-wrapped and nothing fancy.

“Huh, I thought it would be fancier.” Mandy commented. She got agreeing nods from Hermione and Padma. Luna just watched on with a smile.

“Test one: Weaker Spells, let’s begin.” Harry nodded to Penny. Penny returned the nod and held up her hand. From her fingers the blue bolt of a Flipendo Jinx was launched at Harry. Harry brought his sword up and as soon as the Jinx touched the blade it vanished.

“Looks like it worked.” Penny smiled at seeing the success.

“Let’s keep going.” Harry grinned as he motioned for Penny to use another spell. Dumbledore, Flitwick, Padma, Hermione, Luna and Mandy all watched on as spell after spell disappeared as soon as it made contact with the blade. Stinging Hexes vanished, Expelliarmus was blocked, and even a Stunning Spell simply disappeared when it came in contact with the sword.

“Alright, I’m going to use a Fireball, if you’re ready,” Penny told Harry. The Artificer only nodded back eagerly. Penny sighed even as a grin made its way onto her face. Harry would always be ready to test out his creations, regardless of the fact that he might get injured. “Alright, here it comes.” The Head Girl conjured a fireball into her palm with a snap. She then sent it towards Harry with a thought.

“It could have been a little faster.” Harry chuckled as he watched the fireball move towards him at the equivalent of jogging speed. When it was close enough, Harry raised his sword and the fireball dispersed when it touched the blade. “Well, that proves that conjured elements can be dispersed.”

“Should I try a water ball next?” Penny asked from her position. Harry gave her a nod and the blonde conjured the sphere of water. Sending it towards Harry at the same speed as the Fireball, they were all pleased to see the conjured water vanish just the same.

“Time to really test out the range I can give this.” Harry announced and Penny looked at him worriedly while everyone else just looked confused. Harry raised his left hand and concentrated. Far above him, at least fifty meters in the air, a large fireball crackled into existence. The sphere of flames was easily the size of a carriage and Harry yanked his hand down in a fist. The large fireball came descending down with speed and Harry took his sword in both hands. The blade glowed faintly white-blue and Harry swung it towards the descending fireball before it had cleared even have the distance.

“My word.” Dumbledore breathed out, even as his wand was in his hand and pointing towards Harry to shield him from the flames if necessary. The near transparent wave of magic had passed through the fireball without even slowing down. The large mass of flames dispersing into nothing near instantly as the wave touched them.

“Success!” Harry laughed. He laughed even more when he saw the absolutely massive ball of water Penny had conjured in response to him throwing a huge fireball at himself. His girlfriend was always looking out for him and it brought a warm smile to his lips. With another swing of his sword he made the water vanish as well. “I’m fine, Penny, thank you though. I appreciate your concern.”

“Well someone has to be concerned for you.” Penny raised one of her eyebrows. “We obviously can’t trust you to be concerned for yourself.”

“That’s unfair and untrue.” Harry replied with a faux offended look on his face.

“Is it?” Penny arched her eyebrow fully.

“Sort of…” Harry barely restrained a smile.

“Why do I love you again?” Penny sighed with a warm look in her eyes.

“Because I challenge you intellectually, because I’m interesting, because I make you nice things, because I’m devilishly good-looking, I can keep going.” Harry laughed.

“Picking up some habits from Sirius, I see.” Penny could barely stifle her giggles at Harry’s silliness.

“I’m not that bad!” Harry cried in mock indignation. Penny burst into laughter at that and Harry chuckled along with her.

“Alright, alright, you wanted to test the sword’s ability as a Focus too, right?” Penny asked after her bout of laughter subsided.

“Yeah, I should be able to cast spells through it. How much of the swords’ power I use should be able to be controlled as well.” Harry mused as he looked his sword over. “Send me a wave of spells, even if they’re all the same, just send too many for me to have even a chance of blocking with the sword. I’ll try out Protego first.”

“Alright, a swarm of Stinging Hexes for Harry.” Penny sing-songed with a grin.

“Thanks…” Harry replied flatly as he walked back to a suitable distance for the test. “Go!” He gave the signal. From Penny’s hands came a burst of the small orange lights of the Stinging Hex. There were easily two dozen of the balls of light heading for him at a good speed. Harry focused, feeling the deep connection he had to his sword; he pointed the sword towards the incoming spells. A large, white Protego, far larger than anything Harry had ever cast before, appeared between him and the Stinging Hexes. The little orange lights were negated instantly upon touching the Shield Charm.

“Incredible!” Flitwick cheered at seeing the massive Protego. It was the largest he’d ever seen before! Easily dozens of meters in diameter! Harry could shield from almost any spell Flitwick could think of with a Charm that strong!

“Penny, stand in front of the others, please.” Harry requested. Penny looked confused but did as Harry asked.

Harry let his next spell flow through the sword as easily as he did with his wand. With downward swing a thin line of pressurized water was released that cut cleanly through the dirt for several meters. Noting that it didn’t take nearly as much mana to perform that spell as it did when he used it Wandlessly, Harry smiled. It was further proof that his sword was an efficient Focus too. Harry pointed the blade straight up, right at the sky, and tapped into about half the swords’ power. The flames that came from the sword must have reached close to fifty meters into the air. It was like watching a fully grown Dragon breathe fire!

“Oh my Lord!” Hermione exclaimed in shock as seeing the potent effect of the sword.

“One last test!” Harry called out to everyone watching. “Full power this time!”

“That wasn’t full power?!” Padma cried out; her eyes wide and jaw almost on the ground.

The Artifact Sword sparked along the length of the blade as Harry channeled the Fulmen Curse through it. Tapping into the full power of his sword Harry let it empower the Curse. With a helm splitter swing straight down, Harry cast the Curse. Lightning cracked through the air in a massive arc of electricity that tore through the ground and sizzled through the air. The loud thunderclap that followed from the super-heated air was near deafening. The arc of lightning travelled in a straight line for almost one hundred meters before dissipating leaving behind a deeply gouged, trench through the ground that let off a few small sparks occasionally.

Hermione, Padma, and Mandy all collapsed in shock as they stared at what Harry had accomplished with a single spell and a swing of his sword. That was insane! Harry was only thirteen and he was already capable of creating Artifacts this powerful! What would he be like in a decade?! Luna was clapping wildly, apparently thrilled by the show. Penny just stared critically at what her boyfriend had just done. Her curious and inquisitive mind trying to extrapolate how much mana the sword provided and how much Harry provided to that Curse.

“Mr. Potter!” Dumbledore called out the teen Artificer as he looked over his sword.

“Yes Headmaster?” Harry looked towards the old man and Flitwick, both of whom were rushing towards him.

“I’m going to have to ask you to refrain from doing anything like that again on school grounds, Mr. Potter.” Dumbledore told the Third Year student with a serious look on his face. “While it was very impressive, it was also highly dangerous.”

“Understandable, Headmaster, I’ll refrain from using the full power of my sword while on the grounds of Hogwarts.” Harry agreed. “Though I may need an exemption from that whenever we can arrange for a panel of Artificers to come and certify my sword as an Artifact. They’ll need to run their own tests and I’ve already locked the sword to my Bloodline. Only I and my direct descendants will be able to use this sword like I just did.”

“That is reassuring at least.” Dumbledore nodded. He’d seen the horrors that could be wrought by a Wizard with a powerful Focus before. If Harry’s sword could be wielded by anyone then he’d fear for the future should a Dark Wizard ever get their hands on it. Knowing that was and impossibility, even if they did possess the blade, cleared up the majority of Dumbledore’s concerns already.

“Simply incredible, Mr. Potter.” Flitwick congratulated his student. “Never in all my years have I seen such a remarkable Focus!”

“Thank you Professor.” Harry smiled at the short Charms Professor.

“Well, I’m sure we can arrange a time for a few distinguished guests to come visit Hogwarts and inspect your sword, Harry.” Dumbledore nodded with a grandfatherly smile.

“Thank you very much, Headmaster.” Harry gave a short bow to the old man. Dumbledore waved off his thanks with a chuckle.

Harry quickly walked back to Penny and his study buddies. He chuckles at the shocked forms of Hermione, Mandy, and Padma. Luna had congratulated him happily and he’d thanked her. Penny gave him a quick kiss of congratulations before she started asking for more details about his sword. Harry could only chuckle as he started to explain.

-Next Weekend-

It was Saturday, just past noon, and Harry was standing near the far edge of the Hogwarts grounds. This was as far from the castle as they could get to ensure safety. Standing with him was Dumbledore, as Headmaster, Flitwick, as his Head of House, as well as Penny. The small group watched as four people were guided to them by Hagrid. The large man had waved at Harry with a smile. Harry smiled back and noticed Hagrid was wearing the gloves and scarf he’d made for him in First Year. He noticed the obvious signs of wear and tear on the items and decided to make Hagrid a new set for Christmas.

Thanks to Dumbledore and Flitwick, the area they were standing in was free of December snow and pleasantly warm. The group of four, two Witches and Two Wizards, all smiled happily at the change in temperature when they crossed into the spelled area. With happy murmurs the visiting Artificers removed their heavier coats and cloaks. One face stood out to Harry; considering he’d been here to examine Harry’s Rune Safe it wasn’t surprising. Not to mention that Lorenzo was still the oldest looking man he’d ever seen. Flamel didn’t count since the man hadn’t aged a day in somewhere north of five hundred years.

“Good day, Ladies and Gentleman, on behalf of all of us here I’d like to welcome you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.” Dumbledore welcomed their guests; all of whom gave their thanks at the kind welcome.

“We’re pleased to be here again, Dumbledore.” Lorenzo chuckled and the two old men shared a look of old friends meeting again. “Though I have to say, I didn’t expect Artificer Potter to have another potential Artifact so soon.”

“Do Artificers take breaks?” Harry questioned curiously and all four of the visitors chuckled.

“Most do between projects, Artificer Potter.” Lorenzo nodded. “Even the ones that try and create Artifacts back to back often take more than two years to make another potential Artifact. Ah, but where are my manners, I should let the others introduce themselves.”

“Happy to be here and not in my Office for a bit!” The first new person spoke up. He was slightly pale, and spoke with an accent. His hair was a dark brown and he had green eyes. “My name is Lucas Miller; I’m an Artificer that works for the Canadian Ministry of Magic. I’ve held the Title of Artificer for twenty four years and have two True Artifacts to my name.”

Greetings were made and then the next person stepped forward.

“Forgive me if my English is a bit rough, it’s my newest language.” The next member of the group spoke up. She was an older woman, not quite as old as McGonagall, but a bit older than Professor Sinistra if Harry had to guess. “I’m Lucia Nuñez, a freelance Artificer from Argentina. I’ve held the Title of Artificer for twenty years and have two True Artifacts to my name.”

Everyone introduced themselves to the newly named woman before the last person, another woman, stepped forward.

“Happy to be here.” The woman spoke with warm eyes and a kind smile. She was almost the epitome of ‘grandmother’ in her presence and demeanor. With white hair, some wrinkles, and brown eyes, she was easily the second oldest person of the group after Lorenzo. “My name is Anna Kowalczyk. I am an Artificer from Poland. I’ve held the Title of Artificer for sixty one years and have four True Artifacts to my name.”

Dumbledore also apparently new Anna as well since both greeted each other as old friends. With introductions out of the way the four visiting Artificers gathered around to examine Harry’s sword. Harry unsheathed the blade and held it out to them.

“Feel free to touch the blade, it can’t cut anything physical.” Harry spoke up and all four Artificers looked at him quizzically for a moment. Harry looked back at them for a few seconds before explaining. “It only cuts Magic, so physical objects can’t be cut.” With murmurs of curiosity all four Artificers looked the sword over.

“Is this sword ‘Blood Bound’ Artificer Potter?” Anna questioned a few moments later. “I can tell it is Magical, but I feel nothing when I pour my Magic into it.”

“Yes, Artificer Kowalczyk, it is bound to my Bloodline already.” Harry confirmed. “I’ll have to demonstrate its full capabilities myself.”

“Perfectly alright, Artificer Potter; wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen that.” Lucas chuckled as he looked over the blade.

“You say this cuts Magic, but how do you mean?” Lucia asked curiously as she turned to face Harry.

“It might be easier to show you.” Harry replied as he took the sword back and conjured a fireball to hang in the air. Touching the blade to the fire snuffed it out instantly. “It’s like that.” All four Artificers nodded in understanding before they drew their own wands. Harry handed the sword back to them and watched on as they tried to bombard it with spells of all kinds. Not a single spell could even touch the sword without dispersing.

“Well, it most certainly does what you say.” Lorenzo looked flummoxed. “Spells can’t even touch it.”

“Just leaves the physical tests!” Lucas smiled as he picked up the sword. “Apologies in advance in case it breaks, Artificer Potter.” The Canadian Wizard bowed slightly. Harry nodded back, he was confident in his Artifact Sword.

“These rocks should do.” Lucas nodded to some large rocks and boulders off to the side. He hefted the sword up and brought it down on the rock closest to him with all his strength. There was the sharp clang of metal on stone and then Lucas was bringing the blade up to his eyes to inspect. “Well made, Artificer Potter!” He smiled. “Not a ding, crack, or even scratch on it!”

“Don’t be so gentle.” Lucia smiled as she waved her wand and levitated a larger boulder. “We must be thorough. Lucas laid Harry’s sword on the rock he’d hit with it and backed away. Lucia dropped the boulder and the giant rock smashed the sword and the rock it laid on. A few moments to clear the large cracked pieces away and Lucia whistled. She pulled the sword from the rubble and showed the dusty blade still perfectly intact. “Very impressive, Artificer Potter, very impressive!”

“Thank you, Artificer Nuñez.” Harry smiled at the woman.

The four Artificers conversed for a bit over the tests and after a minute or so seemed to come to an agreement. The four approached and handed Harry the sword. Harry accepted it back and wiped off the dust with the edge of his robes. Penny gave him a look for the action but Harry just grinned.

“It is most definitely an Artifact, Artificer Potter.” Lorenzo smiled at the teen. “But until we see its full capabilities we cannot determine its Grade.”

“Allow me, and my lovely assistant, to demonstrate then.” Harry motioned to Penny, who rolled her eyes playfully at him, and the two began a similar demonstration to the one that Dumbledore, Flitwick and his study buddies had seen.

“This is full power.” Harry informed the Artificer Panel as he held the sword over his head. The blade began to spark with electricity as Harry channeled the Fulmen Curse through the sword. With a helm splitter swing the massive blast of lightning carved through the ground and shattered the largest boulder in the area. Only pebbles remained of the once massive rock. The Artificers all stared wide eyed at what a thirteen year old had done. Harry didn’t even look winded! Like he hadn’t even tried to put any extra power behind the spell! If that was almost entirely the sword then it far exceeded a Minor Grade, even a Median Grade wasn’t enough!

A few moments of hushed conversation followed the demonstration. The Artificers all seemed to come to an agreement and walked over with shock on their faces. Though they all appeared to be pleasantly shocked at the very least.

“Well, Artificer Potter, it seems we were right to expect great things from you! Your Artifact Sword is clearly far more than any Minor Grade Artifact.” Lorenzo congratulated the teen. “We’ve all reached the same thought,” Here the other three Artificers nodded to Lorenzo. “Your Artifact Sword is of Greater Grade. You’ve done what many Artificers spend their entire careers attempting! Quite the remarkable young man you are, eh?”

“Thank you, Master Trevisan.” Harry thanked the very old Artificer. He really just hadn’t processed that he’d skipped a Grade entirely yet. He was sure he’d freak out in short order once that fully processed.

“Do you have a name for your sword, Artificer Potter?” Lorenzo questioned the young man.

“Yeah, someone important to me helped come up with it.” Harry smiled at Penny who faintly blushed as she returned his gaze. “Aethereum.”

“Aether; the magical or higher sphere in Alchemy and many other Magical Practices. As a sword that can’t cut physical materials, only Magic, it does seem appropriate.” Anna remarked with a smile.

“Very well, I’ll have it logged for addition into the next reprinting of the Tome of Artifacts.” Lorenzo chuckled. “Congratulations on your second True Artifact, Artificer Potter, now I’m very curious as to what you’ll make next!” The old man laughed.

Harry thanked the four Artificers for their time. He figured this would be in the papers soon enough, probably after Christmas depending on the speed at which the story spread. But he’d just deal with it as it came.

Penny pulled him into a hug as the group walked back towards the castle together. Harry happily returned it and looked forward to the Yule Break and returning to Wood End Cottage. Which reminded him, he’d need to Mirror Call Sirius about this. Harry was sure his Godfather would be over the moon for him.

-End Chapter-

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Well now, Greater Grade! Holy shit! Harry’s definitely going to start gaining some more notoriety over this accomplishment! What will he make next? He has plenty of projects to explore and things to create!

Aethereum, the Spell Cleaver, an Artifact Sword capable of dispersing Magic with its blade! In exchange for not being able to cut physical objects it can negate near any Magic it cuts or touches!

How’s that for an Artifact Sword?

Onto Christmas and the next projects! What are they?

Keep reading to find out!

Current Mana Levels

Harry – 5,726

Tonks – 7,158

Penelope – 6,122

Fleur – 6,582

Until I get your reviews, later!