Chapter 177: Second Task, Project: Drone Vision (1/2)
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The link is also in the synopsis.
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The entrance hall contained a few last-minute stragglers, all leaving the Great Hall after breakfast and heading through the double oak doors to watch the second task. They stared as Harry flashed past, sending Colin and Dennis Creevey flying as he leaped down the stone steps and out onto the bright, chilly grounds.
As he pounded down the lawn, Harry saw the seats from the first task dragon stadium in November were now ranged along the opposite bank, rising in stands built over the water of the Great lake that was packed to the bursting point and reflected in the lake below. The excited babble of the crowd echoed strangely across the water as Harry ran flat-out around the other side of the lake toward the judges, who were sitting at another gold-draped table at the water's edge. Cedric, Fleur, and Krum were beside the judges' table, watching Harry sprint toward them.
”I'm. .. here. . .” Harry panted, skidding to a halt in the mud and accidentally splattering Fleur's robes.
”Where have you been, Mr. Potter?” said an authoritative, disapproving voice. ”The task's about to start!”
Harry looked around. McGonagall was looking at him disappointedly and a little angrily.
”Now, now, Professor McGonagall,” said Ludo Bagman, who was looking intensely jolly to see Harry. ”Let him catch his breath!”
Dumbledore smiled at Harry, but Karkaroff and Madame Maxime didn't look at all pleased to see him.. .. It was evident from the looks on their faces that they had thought he wasn't going to turn up.
Harry bent over, hands on his knees, gasping for breath; he had a stitch in his side that felt as though he had a knife between his ribs, but there was no time to get rid of it; Ludo Bagman was now moving among the champions, spacing them along the bank at intervals of ten feet. Harry was on the very end of the line, next to Krum, who was wearing swimming trunks and was holding his wand ready.
”All right, Harry?” Bagman whispered as he moved Harry a few feet farther away from Krum. ”Know what you're going to do?”
”Yeah,” Harry panted, massaging his ribs. The preparations for the task had caused him to be a little late — a little too late.
Bagman gave Harry's shoulder a quick squeeze and returned to the judges' table; he pointed his wand at his throat as he had done at the World Cup, said, ”Sonorus!” and his voice boomed out across the dark water toward the stands.
”Well, all our champions are ready for the second task. I won't waste any more of your time and pass it on to Quinn West for him to continue the task.”
The stands were built above the lake, supported by vertical beams holding them above the surface; as such, there was a good amount of space between the seating area and the lake. From that gap below, the students saw Quinn coming out, and it set them lit in murmurs and discussion.
Hermione and Ron were sitting with Lily Potter to support their friend's mother because they knew that Ivy was under the lake and Harry was about to go inside.
As Hermione watched Quinn enter their sight, she elbowed Ron in the sides, hitting him in the ribs. ”.. . Is he walking on water?”
Ron was so engrossed to see Quinn walk on water that he could only nod his head. But Lily Potter did confirm Hermione's question. ”Yes, dear. Quinn is walking on water.. .”
Quinn walked a little distance on the water to the point where he didn't have to feel uncomfortable craning his neck to look at everyone in the stands.
”Be honest,” he started looking at everyone with a smile, ”you're thinking how I'm doing this, aren't you?”
There were many ”yeses” from the crowd, and Quinn could see a lot of necks craning and students standing up to get a better look at him.
”Being honest myself, I'm pretty cool right now,” he hopped on the water a couple times, showing that there was no trick here and he was indeed solidly standing on water.
It wasn't that difficult to walk on water — an intermediatory water spell and anyone could replicate what Quinn was doing right now. The wow factor was because no one did it and because ”walking-on-water” was an action tied closely to Jesus Christ, and religion was popular everywhere — be it magical or non-magical. Look at Friar; he was a cleric monk when he was alive, and even after his death, he was a devout practitioner of his religion.
Quinn smiled at the nods he received from the crowd and was about to continue when he felt a tremor beneath his feet. His smile cramped for a second. He raised his right foot and tapped it on the water, sending tremors back into the lake — hidden from everyone looking at him.
”Ahem, I'm sure since November, all of you must have heard at least one or a couple theories about the second task — all kind of speculations and conjectures in our beloved Hogwarts rumor mill, tingling curiosities up and down the castles.”
Another water tremor came back to him, and the Kraken, who was looking to play (fight), replied back sulkily at Quinn's refusal water tremors.
'Alright, not that's over with.. . .' He spread his arms wide and continued.
”Now, as we stand here, on the Great lake, all of you must have some inkling about the task — at least that it's water-related,” he glanced at the champions standing at a separate platform, ”the champions know what they have to do and what is at stake here. The first task was all about them, but this time around, it's not just themselves they have to worry about — this time around, there are more things on the line.”
All four champions displayed a different level of nervousness as they stood staring at the lake — all four knew what Quinn was talking about.
”Before I move on, I would start the task and get our champions working,” said Quinn taking out a small white sphere with red veins all around. He dropped the sphere into the water. ”I'm sure they're eager to get inside there and start their task. Before they actually go in, I can only share a couple of things — they have precisely an hour to recover what has been taken from them.”
”But before they go, I would like you to introduce all of you and them to what we're going to for the hour they're inside.”
He closed his right eye and raised his fake wand to the sky. Once again, like the first task, the light bent in the sky and a vast illusion of an underwater scene.
”This is the live feed of what's happening inside the Great lake. There won't be much to do for the hour the champions are underwater, so we will be watching them from here.”
Quinn still had his right eye closed, and that was because his right eye was currently connected to the sphere he had dropped underwater — an artificial eye that he had planned and researched since his second year (Chapter 61) and had been actively building since this year (Chapter 140).
In 「 Project: Drone-Vision 」,
Quinn's right eye's vision was cut, and his optic nerves that connected his eyes to the brain were magically getting optical signals from the artificial eye. The artificial eye was covered with a protective coating of an air bubble that kept it separated from the water.
He could literally see what the artificial eye was catching — it was a little disorienting to see two completely different scenes. But he had gotten used to it.
”Now, champions, on the count of three, the countdown starts, then. One. .. two. .. three! Start!”
The whistle echoed shrilly in the cold, still air; the stands erupted with cheers and applause; without looking to see what the other champions were doing, Harry pulled off his shoes and socks, pulled a vial of moss green potion out of his pocket, stuffed it into his mouth, and waded out into the lake. He had drunk a gillyweed potion that he and Hermione had brewed together. Harry clapped his hands around his throat and felt two large slits just below his ears, flapping in the cold air.. .. Quinn had gills. Without pausing to think, he did the only thing that made sense — he dove deep inside the lake — to get his twin out.
Victor Krum cracked his neck as he pulled out his wand and pointed it towards his head. The action made Quinn furrow his brow a little; he knew what was about to come — partial transfiguration around the head area was a tricky thing, and Quinn wasn't sure if the pro-seeker was adept enough to safely pull it off. Victor's head twisted into a shark head with jagged teeth and beady eyes.
And just like the originals, Cedric and Fleur used bubblehead charms to filter the air out of the water to provide them oxygen underwater before they dove inside to rescue her girlfriend and little sister. It was a charm that Quinn didn't use underwater, but when he had to deal with potions that released toxic fumes during brewing.
'Ah, these guys have it so easy,' thought Quinn and exhaled a big sigh as plenty of memories of being pushed around in the water, being lost in darkness, being cut, among other things like being smacked around by giant tentacles, flashed inside his mind.