Harry Potter: The Golden Viper

0583 The Centaurs

'This is undoubtedly a paradise on earth.'

As a gentle breeze swept through the glade, carrying with it the sweet fragrance of blooming flowers and the earthy scent of the forest, golden sunlight sprinkled on the lush green lawn.

The sound of joyous laughter drew Bryan's attention, and he watched as a dozen simply-dressed children, their faces filled with innocent delight, ran towards the centaur transport team.

As the commotion of the children's arrival filled the air, the adults in the unusual tree houses began to emerge one by one. Bryan's gaze swept over these folks taking in their simple linen robes. As he studied them more closely, his eyes flickered with a sudden realization - each of these adults exuded an extraordinary vitality, that marked them clearly as followers of the Druid sect.

Intrigued by this discovery, Bryan focused his perceptions, his senses expanded to penetrate the sturdy walls of the giant tree that was at the center of the glade and delved into the hollow space within the tree's trunk.

Inside the hollow, several young Druids sat cross-legged around an intricately carved altar, with their eyes closed in deep meditation. As Bryan watched, he saw tiny specks of emerald green light begin to seep out from the air around them.

Slowly, almost indiscernibly at first, these glimmering points of energy began to merge with the meditating youths, filling their bodies with a soft, pulsing glow that grew slowly brighter with each passing moment.

Fascinated by what he had witnessed, Bryan turned his attention to the altar itself, his expression shifted as he took in the intricate symbols and glyphs that were on its surface. With a sudden flash of recognition, he realized that he had seen an altar of this kind once before, in a memory that Cliodna had shared with him during their first meeting.

In that vision, Bryan had watched as the former high priest of the Druid sect had performed an ancient ritual upon a similar altar, using the power of divination to search for one who could aid them in their quest to obtain the Twin-Serpent Staff.

As he continued to study the altar and the young Druids who sat around it, Bryan's attention was drawn to the four centaurs who stood at the edges of the hollow. Three of these centaurs were familiar to him - Ronan, Bane, and Firenze, the ones he had encountered during his previous dealings with the centaurs. But the fourth centaur was a stranger to him, an aged one whose fur had faded to a soft white and gray.

Before the commotion from outside could reach the ears of those within the tree hollow, Bryan watched as this elderly centaur bent its head over a collection of ancient stone tablets, each one engraved with intricate star charts and celestial diagrams.

The silence within the hollow was broken by the sound of Ronan's voice, his words were tinged with a note of concern as he called out to the elder.

"It's Cray and the others, Elder," Ronan said with his hooves clattering against the wooden floor as he trotted to the cave entrance to peer out at the source of the disturbance. As he took in the scene outside, Ronan's shoulders slumped with relief, the bowstring he held in his hand going slack as the tension drained from his body.

"We also need to leave, Elder" Firenze, his own expression grave and respectful, lowered his head to the elderly centaur, his voice was soft but urgent as he spoke.

"Until the waning crescent moon appears, Cray will lead the clan in guarding you and the others here. We must return to the forest to continue our efforts to clear out those vile Acromantulas that threaten our lands."

But as Firenze said to leave, the centaur elder, whose thoughts had been lost in the depths of the ancient star charts, suddenly spoke.

"Wait, Firenze," He said, carefully placing the stone tablet it had been studying back against the wall. With Bane's assistance, the elder slowly rose to its feet, and his old body trembled slightly with the effort.

"I have been away from the clan for some time now," He continued, his eyes growing soft and distant. "I wish to return with you, to be among our people once more."

The three younger centaurs, though surprised by the elder's decision to leave behind the precious star charts that had been given to them by the Druids, did not question him. Instead, they stepped behind the elder as he made his way out of the tree hollow.

The Druid followers living here were already very familiar with the centaur elder and clearly respected him greatly. As the elder passed by them, each Druid bowed in salute.

"Elder," the centaur called Cray spoke softly, lowering his own head in a gesture of respect as he called him.

"How are the clansmen?" the centaur elder inquired in an hoarse, unhurried voice. "Did any clansmen die at the hands of those evil acromantulas?" 

"No," Cray replied with a note of relief evident in his tone. "Some of our brethren were wounded in the battles to purge our forest of those foul creatures, but none have suffered mortal injury."

At the mention of his fellow centaurs being hurt, Bane snorted angrily, his hooves pawed at the soft earth beneath him in a gesture of barely contained rage.

Firenze, his own eyes filled with concern, turned to Cray and asked, "And what of Hagrid? did he come?"

Cray nodded in confirmation and turned towards the centaur elder.

"He did indeed wish to speak with you, Elder," He said with a note of disapproval. "He wanted to convince us to lay down our arms and cease our hostilities against the Acromantulas. But we rejected him outright."

The elder centaur nodded slowly and his face creased with lines of deep thought. "And in your journey to this place, were you discovered by those who reside within the castle walls?"

Cray shook his head. "No, Elder," he replied, his words filled with a fierce pride. "We took great care to avoid the eyes of the wizards."

Satisfied with this answer, the elder centaur seemed about to offer further instructions to Cray regarding the protection of their secret refuge in the days to come. But before it could speak, a young girl with brown hair and sparkling eyes, no more than eight or nine years of age, stepped forward, her face filled with curiosity.

"Elder," she asked, her voice filled with a childlike wonder, "is it true that there are many children living in the castle beyond the forest? Sister Cliodna told us that they are all learning divine arts there. Is this so?"

The elder centaur, whose stern demeanor seemed to melt away in the presence of the Druid child, smiled gently and his eyes were filled with a grandfatherly affection.

"Not divine arts, young Roya," He said, his voice becoming soft and patient. "It's magic, magic of the wizards."

At the mention of wizard magic, the other children gathered around the centaur transport team let out a collective gasp of excitement. Though they had heard tales of the magic learned by those beyond the boundaries of their forest home, they had never witnessed such power with their own eyes.

Roya's eyes were filled with longing as she asked hopefully, "Will we have a chance to visit the castle, Elder?"

The little girl's question made the surrounding atmosphere a bit gloomy. Some of the older children showed dismay on their faces, clearly knowing the answer to this question.

The centaur elder remained silent in the face of Roya's question. Instead, Bane tossed his black hair and said in a stiff tone, 

"There is nothing within those walls worth seeing, Roya, the wizards are a bunch of greedy and despicable lot, quick to turn their magic against their own kind in their endless quest for power. We want nothing to do with their kind, and even if we did, they would never welcome us within their midst."

The little girl fell silent, but judging from her expression, she didn't seem to entirely agree with Bane's words.

The centaur elder and Firenze did not linger long in the glade. After giving a few final words of instruction to Cray regarding the protection of their hidden sanctuary, the two centaurs turned and made their way back into the depths of the forest. Upon reaching the spatial barrier of the hidden realm, Firenze took out the "key" that Cray had handed over to him and summoned the gateway in and out of this place.

Bryan took one last deep look at this hidden realm filled with a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere. After a soft sigh, he left this secret land before the gateway disappeared.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

The strength of this old centaur elder was far inferior to the young and strong centaurs. After walking a stretch, it had to stop and rest for a while, causing the return journey to take much longer than the way there. By the time they reached the outskirts of the village, the sun had long since set, and the distant castle had transformed into a glittering beacon of light by the hundreds of candles burning in its many windows.

In the darkness of the forest, the centaur village was a scene of quiet tranquility, most of its inhabitants had already returned to their simple dwellings to rest. Only the centaurs standing watch in the tall wooden towers that surrounded the village remained awake.

Firenze, Bane and Ronan had been away from home for half a month. After bidding farewell to the elder, the three centaurs dispersed with eager strides, while the elder slowly made its way back to the tallest wooden temple structure in the center of the clan.

Although crude in design, the temple exuded a unique magnificence. The elder, greatly fatigued, shakily climbed the wooden stairs. After panting for a few breaths, he prepared to enter the temple. However, as soon as his front hooves crossed the threshold, the sight of a thin young man with his hands clasped behind his back, looking up and examining the carvings on the dome of the dim temple, made the elder's face fill with astonishment, and his heart pounded violently in his chest.

For a moment, the elder's instincts screamed at him to call out for help, to summon the other centaurs to defend their sacred space against this unexpected intruder. But as he looked closer, taking in the young man's face, a flicker of recognition passed through his mind, stopping his cry of alarm before it could pass his lips.

"What is that?" Bryan asked, gazing at the carving on the dome depicting centaurs, giants, werewolves, dragons and humans living in harmony in a paradise.

"They depict a scene from the distant past," The centaur elder replied hoarsely after a brief silence. "A time when our ancestors lived in harmony with the other creatures of the world on the fabled island of Avalon. It is a great honor to meet you here, in this sacred place, Mr. Watson."

"Avalon Island?" Bryan's brows instantly furrowed. He withdrew his gaze from the dome carving and looked towards the centaur elder at the door.

Seeing the caution and wariness on that old face, he asked with slight surprise, "You know me?"

The elder nodded choosing his words with great care. "We centaurs have never been fond of dealings with wizards, but we know that we cannot completely sever our ties with the wizarding society. Mr. Watson, we have always paid attention to major events in the Wizarding world. I think, whether wizards or intelligent magical creatures, there are probably not many who don't know you now."

After pondering for a moment, the centaur elder did not call any clansmen over. It slowly came before Bryan and asked, "Is Dumbledore well?"

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