Silence stretched inside the magical construct that cradled Isabella and her group, yet by no means was it quiet. The sky, quite literally, was burning at this point, thrumming with relentless explosions as the wreckage of battle boiled into ragged, churning thunderclouds that hung heavy over the horizon.
Time dragged forward, each second stretching as everyone's eyes remained locked on the aftermath, absorbing the terrible beauty and sheer scale of what had just unfolded. Fear, shock, and reluctant admiration spread across the sea of faces, spilling over from those present to those who watched from behind glowing screens, each witness frozen in the same suspended moment of disbelief.
"Is it… finally over?"
Remus Lupin, his face lit orange by the streaks of fire and lightning erupting around him, asked, speaking to no one in particular.
"Unless those blue-skinned bastards have any more of those humongous machines hiding, then yes, I believe that last move from the kid was the conclusion." Sirius Black, a stretch later, answered his best friend, his pupils reflecting the long trail of burning gas left in the wake of total annihilation.
Suddenly, Isabella lowered her camera, a faint gleam catching in her eyes as she gave a small, almost imperceptible nod, her gaze tracing the figure far off in the distance. It was perhaps the first time she had done so. Even in the heat of fending off the countless small aircraft inside the thundercloud she had always kept it pointed, and the people with her all couldn't help but turn to look at her.
"What happened?"
"Nothing," Isabella said, shaking her head slightly as she looked at Sarah. "Ricky just told me to cut the feed."
"Why? Are we heading back?" asked Simon.
"I don't know." Isabella looked just as puzzled, but since Maverick had said so, she simply complied without question. Glancing toward him in the distance, she saw that everyone had started to gather near him, so they might as well too. "Let's go over there."
Meanwhile, with Maverick.
Now that the threat had been all but annihilated, everyone instinctively converged around him, driven by the twin forces of curiosity and anticipation. He, after all, had been the leader of the entire operation, and plus, they all wanted to see up close this great enemy leader who had been captured by him, the one who had made the entire world hold its breath.
"What do you suggest we do with him, Master Caesar?" Niklas Flamel asked, without even an ounce of fear, as he circled Ronan and glanced briefly at his bloodshot eyes. "Try him in front of the entire world? Imprisonment for life? Or simply… end him?"
"I say break his mind first, extract everything. Who's to say more of these freaks won't be coming." Alastor Moody suggested, and despite sounding bleak, he raised a very good point.
"I'm only a soldier." Danvers, when Maverick glanced her way, raised her hands before he even asked.
"Ororo?"
"I'm with her." Like Danvers, Ororo also seemed not to want to involve herself in the decision.
Maverick did not argue with any of them and finally turned to Edward wanting to hear his thought. "Teacher, what do you think?"
"Is he their leader?" Edward asked, scrutinizing the bound prisoner first.
"Yes."
"If it were up to me," he said after a moment of thought, arms folding over his chest, "I would… let him go."
"What nonsense are you spouting, old lion?" Hearing the unexpected answer, especially coming from Edward, whom she knew was decisive in his actions, Maxime couldn't help but blurt out, "Did someone put you under an Imperius or something?"
"Hear him out first, Olympe." Dumbledore, though also slightly taken aback at first, understood that there must be a good reason for Edward to suggest such a choice.
Takamura did not chime in, and just furrowed his brow, waiting for Edward to elaborate.
With everyone's eyes fixed on him, even Ronan, bound yet seething with fury, cast a glance his way as Edward began to explain his reasoning. "First of all, the idea of holding a trial for this invader is pointless. The outcome will surely be either death or imprisonment for life, which, in my opinion, both choices would be meaningless and a waste of time."
"But I agree with the Brit," he continued. "We should uncover everything about their world, their empire, and extract every secret from his mind. The existence of extraterrestrial advanced civilizations is something new to both us and the muggle world."
He paused, then continued, "And as for my opinion on releasing him, it is simply to send a message." His eyes gleamed dangerously at the imprisoned alien. "Our world is not a place any Tom, Dick, or Harry can invade whenever they please."
At this point, most of the gathered people had more or less understood Edward's reasoning.
Listening to his explanation, Maverick nodded thoughtfully, fully agreeing. Initially, his plan was to squeeze everything out of his mind and just burn him, but releasing him to send a message to the Kree Empire sounded more logical.
"Do we need to involve the muggle leaders… ask their opinion as well?" he asked, if only to hear their opinion.
"Ridiculous!"
Takamura was the first to scoff, and judging by the expressions on the others' faces, it was clear they all thought the same.
"Unnecessary, young Maverick." Nikolas Flamel, perhaps the oldest and wisest among them all, was also not inclined to consider the muggle world's opinion on the matter, and he expressed himself decisively. "We can tell them our decision, but their opinion in this is truly not required."
"Very well then." With the decision made, Maverick nodded and prepared to extract the memories without dragging things out.
"Wait, are we doing it now?" Maxime asked with a raised eyebrow. "How old is this alien anyway?"
"Several centuries, actually, according to the memories I extracted from their commander earlier. But we only need very specific information, which shouldn't be difficult or take long."
After saying, Maverick glanced back at the Kree once more and saw that the visible rage in his eyes had vanished, replaced now by paralyzing fear. During their brief discussion, they had not been subtle, and clearly, Ronan had heard every last word.
What kind of cursed planet was this? He regretted it—truly regretted his actions now. The first thing he vowed in his heart, if he was ever allowed to leave, would be to find the bastard who had written the intelligence of this cursed world.
To make him talk, if it were physical torture, he would have only scoffed at them, for there was no way he would betray his empire and reveal their secrets. But these monsters were talking about literally invading his mind, and so casually like it was nothing to them.
"Accuser…" Maverick said, locking the bulging eyes of the terrified Kree without an ounce of sympathy. "You will tell us everything you know about your empire and its military strength. Every one of their deepest, darkest secrets you know..."
Of course Ronan couldn't speak at that moment, his tongue held by the curse, and Maverick had only asked to make it easier to navigate the specific memories he needed; while he spoke, his finger was already pressed to the alien's temple and the spell answered his words a moment later.
Legilimens!
---
Some time later.
Click.
It didn't take long, around only ten minutes or so, and Maverick was already done extracting what he needed. He then sealed the enchanted bottle, the faint shimmer of stolen memories now swirling inside, and passed it to his teacher, while Ronan could only watch, eyes wide and bulging, as the proof of his violation was carried away before him.
He did not know how, only that he was certain these monsters had done exactly what they had discussed earlier. He, the most loyal soldier of the entire Kree Empire, had betrayed it today, even if the means forced him completely against his will in a way he had absolutely no resistance against.
His blood boiled now more than ever, even more than when he had watched his fleet being annihilated. Revenge. Revenge. He would have his revenge, he made a solemn vow in his mind. Sooner or later, he would have his revenge.
He then saw the monster wave his hand in the air, and suddenly out of nothing a single fighter unit materialized there.
What kind of ridiculous abilities even are these?
Meanwhile, Maverick ignored the questioning stares everyone was giving him. Without a doubt, they were all wondering why he had one of the enemy's spaceships stored inside his ring—and probably more than one—but he did not care. He did not even glance their way, and simply motioned toward the alien.
The hatch opened at his gesture, and with the next sweep of magic, he shoved the son of a bitch inside. Only after that did he remove the bindings, and with one final flick of his finger, the curse broke, freeing the alien's twisted tongue as well.
Slowly, Ronan settled into the seat, and surprisingly calmly for someone who had been held prisoner so humiliatingly, not to mention the person in question was renowned for his arrogant character.
"One last thing, Kree," Maverick said, fixing the Accuser with a cold glare. "You invaded a world under the dominion of whom you should be well aware. So I suggest you first worry about reconciling with them before even thinking about planning your revenge against us."
He paused briefly, and while releasing a bit of his dominance over the clown, added. "Carry this to your supreme intelligence. Tell them how we humiliated you, how we massacred your fleet, how your proud cruisers fell like flies at our vanguard. Tell your leaders you did not escape. You were spared. Remember this, Kree. C-53 will hold your empire to account. Our retaliation is certain, with or without the Allfather."
"Now, scram!"
The Accuser listened to every word in silence, enduring Maverick's scornful and humiliating speech without a sound. Perhaps he had nothing to retort with—after all, every word of contempt he heard was, whether he liked it or not, true. Or perhaps he was simply too terrified that these monsters would change their minds if he dared speak back.
Regardless, when it ended, he offered only a cold, wordless glare. Then he turned away, sealed the hatch, and ignited the engines, vanishing into the sky.
—————————
Author's Note:
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