The War Room - Thorne Manor
Things were tense and silent in the War Room with the weight of the distant battle pressing down on them all. Roderick Burgess watched the foe-glass machine with its far too large number of reddish hued lights and prayed silently that no more of the indicators would go dark.
Irma and Pomona kept their eyes closely focused on the map in the center of the room, trying to follow the progress of their friends so they could warn them of threatening enemies in time to help. However, as time went on and the battle grew fiercer, this was getting harder and harder to do.
The castle itself was crumbling under the weight of the evil done to it and the effects of the massive assault it was now under. As a result, the map, magically bound to it, was beginning to lose its cohesion. The image wavered and flickered before their eyes as they strained to keep track of everyone’s movements.
Suddenly, one of the lights on the foe-glass machine, already glowing a lurid red, blazed like a star and exploded, showering Roderick with bits of glass as he threw up his hands to protect himself.
Irma gasped and turned towards her husband. “Are you all right? What happened?”
Roderick nodded and searched the machine anxiously. “I’m fine. One of the lights went brilliantly red, but instead of going dark, it just exploded. What could that mean?”
“Which light?” asked Irma, shivering with a sudden chill as her husband turned solemn eyes to her.
“Harry Potter.”
“No,” murmured Irma as she turned back to the map, searching desperately for Harry’s name. She’d been tracking him just before the foe-glass machine exploded, and he’d been heading toward the Great Hall, but now she couldn’t see him anywhere.
“Pomona, do you see Harry anywhere on the map? He was near the Great Hall just a moment ago.” Irma appealed to her friend for help, and Pomona joined Irma in searching the map closely. But try as they would, neither woman could see a sign of the young man anywhere. Irma snatched up her floostick and activated it.
“Calling Mongoose. HQ calling Mongoose…report! If you can hear me, please report!”
Everyone held their breath and prayed for an answer, but no answer came. What did it mean when a foe-glass light exploded? Was Harry dead? Or had something even worse happened to him?
Irma and Pomona kept their eyes closely focused on the map in the center of the room, trying to follow the progress of their friends so they could warn them of threatening enemies in time to help. However, as time went on and the battle grew fiercer, this was getting harder and harder to do.
The castle itself was crumbling under the weight of the evil done to it and the effects of the massive assault it was now under. As a result, the map, magically bound to it, was beginning to lose its cohesion. The image wavered and flickered before their eyes as they strained to keep track of everyone’s movements.
Suddenly, one of the lights on the foe-glass machine, already glowing a lurid red, blazed like a star and exploded, showering Roderick with bits of glass as he threw up his hands to protect himself.
Irma gasped and turned towards her husband. “Are you all right? What happened?”
Roderick nodded and searched the machine anxiously. “I’m fine. One of the lights went brilliantly red, but instead of going dark, it just exploded. What could that mean?”
“Which light?” asked Irma, shivering with a sudden chill as her husband turned solemn eyes to her.
“Harry Potter.”
“No,” murmured Irma as she turned back to the map, searching desperately for Harry’s name. She’d been tracking him just before the foe-glass machine exploded, and he’d been heading toward the Great Hall, but now she couldn’t see him anywhere.
“Pomona, do you see Harry anywhere on the map? He was near the Great Hall just a moment ago.” Irma appealed to her friend for help, and Pomona joined Irma in searching the map closely. But try as they would, neither woman could see a sign of the young man anywhere. Irma snatched up her floostick and activated it.
“Calling Mongoose. HQ calling Mongoose…report! If you can hear me, please report!”
Everyone held their breath and prayed for an answer, but no answer came. What did it mean when a foe-glass light exploded? Was Harry dead? Or had something even worse happened to him?