"Anywhere else," Harry wished with all his might. "I wish that I was anywhere but here."
He was sitting on his bed, clutching his wand, the only item he'd been able to hang onto when Uncle Vernon had locked his trunk away in the attic.
"Wish granted," he heard.
* * *
Ulric Kerensky looked at the small boy in front of his desk. The child looked comical stood between the pair of hulking elementals who flanked him, particularly given the glowers that the two infantrymen were directing at him.
"A dangerous infiltrator indeed," he murmured, stroking his beard. "How old are you, boy?"
The boy kept his face towards the ground, directing ahead of unruly black hair towards the Khan. One of the elementals raised his hand to 'motivate' an answer out of him, but Ulric forestalled him with a raised finger.
"You caught him in the Mech hanger, quiaff?"
"Aff," the Elementals responded reluctantly.
Ulric punched a code into the computer on his desk, bringing up security surveillance of the hanger. He advanced the recording to the approximate time and advanced it until movement was detected. The camera had not detected the boy's arrival, he first came into view scrambling down the side of one of the OmniMech's stored there, Ulric's own OmniMech in fact. He was hanging from the Gargoyle's groin armour when the hanger door opened and the two patrolling Elementals entered, spotting him immediately.
Ulric watched in fascination as the child slipped off the armour just as the first Elemental reached the Mech and landed feet first in the man's face. Unfortunately for the Elemental, the hanger had not been cleaned since the maintenance cycle so he had been standing on a thin layer of coolant fluid. The giant soldier slipped off his feet and the boy bounded away as the Elemental toppled.
The boy tried to scramble up a ladder onto the gantry and the two Elementals reached up just as he was at their head height. The second Elemental caught his heel in his face and flinched back. Flailing in the other direction, the same foot lashed towards the first elemental who dodged. The coolant fluid still staining his boots betrayed him and he once again landed on his ass. The boy dodged a last attempt to grab him and swarmed up the ladder.
The Elemental grabbed hold of the ladder and shook the relatively flimsy construction, forcing the boy to stop climbing and hang on for dear life. As the first Elemental joined in, the stress became too much and the ladder simply snapped, dropping its lower half and the boy on top of the second Elemental. Twisting as he landed, the boy sprang away, only to be finally captured as the first elemental made a diving tackle and drove him to the floor. Ulric winced - the Elemental outweighed the boy at least four to one.
"So," he said thoughtfully, halting the footage. "And what do you propose be done with the boy, Warrior Ronald?"
The boy twitched slightly at hearing the name and Ulric catalogued the reaction for future reference.
"A sound beating," growled the slightly taller of the Elementals, the one who had had the accident with the coolant fluid. By odd coincidence, he did have red hair.
Ulric raised one eyebrow. "Indeed. And if another was responsible for his presence in the hanger, would you say the same?"
"A sound beating for both of them," Ronald responded promptly.
"You are responsible for the security of the hangers this watch, quiaff?"
Ronald hesitated. "Aff," he said doubtfully. His companion winced.
"Then preventing such intrusions is your responsibility, quiaff?"
Comprehension reached Ronald's eyes. "Aff," he answered miserably.
"I am sure that your Point Commander can fulfill your side of the bargain, Warrior," Ulric declared. "I will see to the boy."
As the two Elementals departed, Ulric studied the boy. It was hard to gauge his age accurately - most likely somewhere in the early stages of puberty, judging from his height and size. Lightly built and somehat underfed, not surprising if he was one of the bandit caste. As the boy relaxed slightly and glanced around the office, Ulric caught sight of huge, luminous green eyes.
"So," he said calmly. "What am I to do with you?"
No answer was forthcoming.
"Do you have a name?"
The boy whispered something. Ulric raised his eyebrow, questioningly. "Harry Potter," the boy repeated.
Ulric snorted. Bandit caste then. Still, he had potential. "Well then, Harry. Since you're certainly no warrior, I'll ascribe that to ignorance. You have no bloodname, so as far as the Clans are concerned, your name is Harry. No more." He smiled at the glare that Harry directed at him. Defiance. Good, he could use that. "Either accept it or pretend to accept it."
The Khan tapped at his computer for a moment and studied the result. Yes, that would do nicely.
"Send in the trainer for Sibko seventy-one," he ordered the communit that shared his desk with the computer.
"What do you know of the Clans?" he enquired.
Harry shrugged.
"A sibko is a class of warriors," Ulric explained. "They start when they are half your age and train until they are grown. From what you managed against Ronald and Jonathon, you have some potential. If you fill it then you will be a warrior. If you wash out..." He shrugged. "From here on, your life will be whatever you make of it."
* * *
Harry stared at the bunk above him.
As days go, this had to be one of the oddest he had ever had. Not the worst. But strange, very strange. From finding himself suddenly sat on the head of a giant metal statue, to being dragged in front of a man who resembled nothing so much as a cross between Dumbledore and Sean Connery to being inducted into a class of twelve year old child-soldiers. The words surreal and mind-boggling could also be considered.
If the Khan resembled Dumbledore, then Trainer was more like Madame Pomfrey crossed with a drill sergeant from one of Dudley's war movies. Her general response to any error or perceived error on his part was a swift clip around the ear, but she had also started her supervision of him by taking him to a medical station where a man in a long white coat had diagnosed a fractured rib, and taped it up, attaching a small electronic device that he assured Harry would have the rib fully restored by then next day. Then he had been provided with a large meal, not quite up to Hogwarts standards but filling, which Trainer Kana had insisted he eat entirely.
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.
He was sitting on his bed, clutching his wand, the only item he'd been able to hang onto when Uncle Vernon had locked his trunk away in the attic.
"Wish granted," he heard.
* * *
Ulric Kerensky looked at the small boy in front of his desk. The child looked comical stood between the pair of hulking elementals who flanked him, particularly given the glowers that the two infantrymen were directing at him.
"A dangerous infiltrator indeed," he murmured, stroking his beard. "How old are you, boy?"
The boy kept his face towards the ground, directing ahead of unruly black hair towards the Khan. One of the elementals raised his hand to 'motivate' an answer out of him, but Ulric forestalled him with a raised finger.
"You caught him in the Mech hanger, quiaff?"
"Aff," the Elementals responded reluctantly.
Ulric punched a code into the computer on his desk, bringing up security surveillance of the hanger. He advanced the recording to the approximate time and advanced it until movement was detected. The camera had not detected the boy's arrival, he first came into view scrambling down the side of one of the OmniMech's stored there, Ulric's own OmniMech in fact. He was hanging from the Gargoyle's groin armour when the hanger door opened and the two patrolling Elementals entered, spotting him immediately.
Ulric watched in fascination as the child slipped off the armour just as the first Elemental reached the Mech and landed feet first in the man's face. Unfortunately for the Elemental, the hanger had not been cleaned since the maintenance cycle so he had been standing on a thin layer of coolant fluid. The giant soldier slipped off his feet and the boy bounded away as the Elemental toppled.
The boy tried to scramble up a ladder onto the gantry and the two Elementals reached up just as he was at their head height. The second Elemental caught his heel in his face and flinched back. Flailing in the other direction, the same foot lashed towards the first elemental who dodged. The coolant fluid still staining his boots betrayed him and he once again landed on his ass. The boy dodged a last attempt to grab him and swarmed up the ladder.
The Elemental grabbed hold of the ladder and shook the relatively flimsy construction, forcing the boy to stop climbing and hang on for dear life. As the first Elemental joined in, the stress became too much and the ladder simply snapped, dropping its lower half and the boy on top of the second Elemental. Twisting as he landed, the boy sprang away, only to be finally captured as the first elemental made a diving tackle and drove him to the floor. Ulric winced - the Elemental outweighed the boy at least four to one.
"So," he said thoughtfully, halting the footage. "And what do you propose be done with the boy, Warrior Ronald?"
The boy twitched slightly at hearing the name and Ulric catalogued the reaction for future reference.
"A sound beating," growled the slightly taller of the Elementals, the one who had had the accident with the coolant fluid. By odd coincidence, he did have red hair.
Ulric raised one eyebrow. "Indeed. And if another was responsible for his presence in the hanger, would you say the same?"
"A sound beating for both of them," Ronald responded promptly.
"You are responsible for the security of the hangers this watch, quiaff?"
Ronald hesitated. "Aff," he said doubtfully. His companion winced.
"Then preventing such intrusions is your responsibility, quiaff?"
Comprehension reached Ronald's eyes. "Aff," he answered miserably.
"I am sure that your Point Commander can fulfill your side of the bargain, Warrior," Ulric declared. "I will see to the boy."
As the two Elementals departed, Ulric studied the boy. It was hard to gauge his age accurately - most likely somewhere in the early stages of puberty, judging from his height and size. Lightly built and somehat underfed, not surprising if he was one of the bandit caste. As the boy relaxed slightly and glanced around the office, Ulric caught sight of huge, luminous green eyes.
"So," he said calmly. "What am I to do with you?"
No answer was forthcoming.
"Do you have a name?"
The boy whispered something. Ulric raised his eyebrow, questioningly. "Harry Potter," the boy repeated.
Ulric snorted. Bandit caste then. Still, he had potential. "Well then, Harry. Since you're certainly no warrior, I'll ascribe that to ignorance. You have no bloodname, so as far as the Clans are concerned, your name is Harry. No more." He smiled at the glare that Harry directed at him. Defiance. Good, he could use that. "Either accept it or pretend to accept it."
The Khan tapped at his computer for a moment and studied the result. Yes, that would do nicely.
"Send in the trainer for Sibko seventy-one," he ordered the communit that shared his desk with the computer.
"What do you know of the Clans?" he enquired.
Harry shrugged.
"A sibko is a class of warriors," Ulric explained. "They start when they are half your age and train until they are grown. From what you managed against Ronald and Jonathon, you have some potential. If you fill it then you will be a warrior. If you wash out..." He shrugged. "From here on, your life will be whatever you make of it."
* * *
Harry stared at the bunk above him.
As days go, this had to be one of the oddest he had ever had. Not the worst. But strange, very strange. From finding himself suddenly sat on the head of a giant metal statue, to being dragged in front of a man who resembled nothing so much as a cross between Dumbledore and Sean Connery to being inducted into a class of twelve year old child-soldiers. The words surreal and mind-boggling could also be considered.
If the Khan resembled Dumbledore, then Trainer was more like Madame Pomfrey crossed with a drill sergeant from one of Dudley's war movies. Her general response to any error or perceived error on his part was a swift clip around the ear, but she had also started her supervision of him by taking him to a medical station where a man in a long white coat had diagnosed a fractured rib, and taped it up, attaching a small electronic device that he assured Harry would have the rib fully restored by then next day. Then he had been provided with a large meal, not quite up to Hogwarts standards but filling, which Trainer Kana had insisted he eat entirely.
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.