CRACK! Accompanied by the unmistakable sensation of something breaking inside his body, Grindelwald's first thought was not pain, but a strange sense of déjà vu, of someone who was about to be blasted into the distance. BOOM!!! Then he was gone. While it was technically the second time tonight he had been sent flying, this was perhaps the first time in his long life that he had been hit so directly and so viciously, by his own magic no less. Bombarda Maxima. It was a spell born purely for destruction. To kill. To obliterate. To reduce everything in its path to dust. Even in the hands of a mage apprentice, it was capable of causing tremendous damage, let alone when fueled by the magic of a warlock, it goes without saying how terrifying the result could be. From a distance, it looked like a crimson streak crossing the night sky like a shooting star, descending at a steep angle toward the earth. Without slowing, Grindelwald's body crashed straight into a rocky hill, the terrifying momentum carrying him completely through it before tearing through another ridge as well, pulverizing everything along the way, only coming to a stop when he slammed into a third… BOOM!!! A deafening thundercrack rang across the region like a shotgun blast, followed by a powerful shockwave. His body embedded itself deep into the earth, carving out a massive crater and hurling a sky-obscuring cloud of dust high into the air. Cough... cough, cough... Moments later, the sound of rolling rubble, pained groans, and violent coughing emerged from within, and a silhouette slowly stood, swaying slightly but otherwise looking far more intact than one would expect after such a collision. At first glance, perhaps. Cough... cough, cough... Grindelwald was certain one side of his ribcage, if not his entire chest, along with the bones in his left arm, had been completely shattered. Pushing a pulse of magic outward to disperse the dust, and sure enough, the first thing that greeted his eyes was his left arm hanging limply at his side at an unnatural angle. His robes had been torn apart and through the blood-soaked fabric he could even see pale fragments of bone protruding from his chest. Blood flowed continuously from the wound while pieces of damaged tissue and organs were visible beneath. Cough, cough... He grimaced, blood sputtering from his mouth with every cough. To the old Dark Lord's credit, he showed remarkable composure despite the horrific state of his body. Then, slowly, his hand shaking, he passed his wand over his body as though casting a spell upon himself. Nothing visibly changed, though. The only noticeable difference was that the pain etched across his face eased somewhat. Finally, he raised his head. Maverick was already there, seemingly having watched the entire time, hovering some distance away while looking down at him with expressionless eyes, the hem of his coat fluttering softly in the wind. Cough, cough... gahahaha... cough, cough... For some reason, the sight appeared to delight the old Dark Lord. He began to laugh, a harsh, mad cackle punctuated by violent coughs that sent blood splattering from his lips, though he seemed wholly unconcerned by his condition. Then, all of a sudden, he waved his wand sideways. The movement looked unsteady, his body swaying like a drunk, the injuries causing him struggling to even maintain full control over himself. Boom! His action was not offensive. Sparks exploded when his magic collided with a blood-red arc of magic resembling some kind of whip made from pure energy. The clash produced a small shockwave and, despite reacting in time, he only barely managed to stop it. Boom! Another crackling lash of energy came hurtling at him from the side. Still swaying unsteadily, he flicked up his wand and managed to turn it aside at the last possible moment. Boom! Then another… The lash-like arcs of energy were not particularly fast. They came one after another at a steady pace, almost as though he was being granted just enough time to catch his breath before being forced to intercept the next. Cough... cough... Fresh blood continued to well from the wound at his side, where his own spell had struck him with all the force he had intended for somebody else, enough force to blast apart a mountainside. It was nothing short of miraculous that he was still standing at all. Had some of his magic not instinctively rushed to protect him at the last moment, there was every chance he would have been reduced to little more than minced meat on the spot. Boom! Again, sparks flared, the collision ringing out like a hammer striking iron as he intercepted the strange energy from another angle. The attacks gradually became more frequent, but against all odds he still managed to stop every one of them despite looking half dead. Cough, cough... ghahhahaha... ghahhahaha... cough, cough... Boom! Boom! Boom! From a distance, the entire area seemed bathed in a crimson glow. The landscape had been reduced to a wasteland, like a devastating earthquake had torn it apart before a meteor descended to finish the destruction. The ground was cracked and broken in every direction, molten rock bubbling from countless fissures that spread across the shattered earth. Even more miserable was the sight inside the crater his own body had created. The old Dark Lord swayed left and right like a drunk, desperately swinging his wand to intercept each attack while Maverick continued his almost lazy offensive. Finally, one found an opening and slipped through before Grindelwald could react. THWACK! It wrapped around his only functioning arm the instant it made contact, coiling around it like a snake. Grindelwald struggled miserably to wrench himself free, both physically and by ramming his magical energy against the restraints, but no matter how much he tried, they refused to budge. Perhaps if he had been in better condition he might have succeeded, but at this moment he was completely at their mercy. "This is… cough... cough... is not magic I recognize… cough... cough...?" Oddly enough, instead of the panic one might have expected, he still continued to wear that mad, almost crazed expression, even while laboriously trying to pry the strange magic wrapped around his arm loose. BOOOM! His question went unanswered. Instead, another crimson band shot forward and wrapped itself tightly around his already broken arm this time, causing him to wince despite himself. Boom-boom-boom-boom! Then even more began to emerge and soon it was no longer just one or two, but three, four, bursting forth simultaneously from all around him like living things. They wrapped around him from every angle, layering over one another while steadily tightening their hold. Ghahhahaha... cough, cough... ghahhahaha... cough, cough... cough, cough... The old Dark Lord, however, burst into even louder laughter despite the miserable condition he was in, his expression a strange mixture of pain, madness, and shock, all blended together into something bizarre. When everything finally settled, it was a familiar sight once again. Much like Voldemort in his final moments, his predecessor now stood utterly defeated as well, his body covered from head to toe by crimson bands, with only his face spared. He knelt helplessly with all four limbs pulled behind his back, his chest rising and falling as he dragged air into his lungs like a broken bellows. Finally, silence returned to the area. Maverick landed softly before him, while the old Dark Lord also raised his head ever so slightly, his eyes settling on the young man who had so utterly defeated him. "Well played... cough, cough... boy..." There was not a shred of fear on Grindelwald's face. If anything, a bloody grin spread across his lips. "Any last words?" "Cough, cough... gehahahahaha..." Far from afraid, Grindelwald only laughed harder upon hearing those otherwise dread-filled words. The sound echoed through the ruined crater while blood continued to spill from his lips. "How..." He drew a ragged breath. "When... when did you manage to do it?" Maverick's brows arched ever so slightly before the corner of his mouth curled upward into a faint smile. That’s right, the reason the spell had landed so cleanly was not because the portal had caught the old dark lord off guard. Such a thing was impossible. Even a fraction of a fraction of a second was an eternity to a warlock in battle, more than enough time to react, and certainly enough time to evade. But if Grindelwald’s five senses were tampered with, even slightly, then it was another story entirely. In fact, Maverick had already gotten a taste of that tonight when Grindelwald used some sort of illusion to catch him off guard earlier. He did not know exactly what spell had been used, but he had a few theories. It was certainly not on the level of his teacher's spell at Master Proficiency, so it was probably an improvised version of Nebulus mixed with the principles of several other charms. The point was that it had worked. Briefly, yes, but it had still managed to fool Maverick. Likewise, when Maverick used Illusio Lunam Lectorem to subtly tamper with his senses, it worked as well. The effect had also only lasted briefly before the old Dark Lord realized something was wrong. Unfortunately for him, that realization came an instant too late. Combined with the surprise of the Sling Ring portal, the magic Grindelwald had unleashed with all his might struck him squarely. Even if a fraction of his magic had flared up in defense at the final moment, it was still nowhere near enough to withstand the full force of an attack of such terrifying power, hence the old Dark Lord's current miserable state. "A taste of your own medicine, I suppose," said Maverick, retaining the lazy smile without visible effort. "I should thank you. It had nearly slipped my mind that I had that spell in my arsenal." "I... see..." Something moved across Grindelwald's face, not quite surprise and not quite acknowledgement but occupying the territory between them. He was quiet for a moment. "Very well... boy. Do what you must." After saying, his crazed expression finally changed a little. Masked beneath the madness, there was now a trace of melancholy in his eyes as well. "Dare I ask," cough, "for one favor?" he continued, raising his head to meet Maverick's gaze. "Bring... Albus to me before… you kill me..." Just as Grindelwald finished, Maverick's head turned slightly to one side, then to the other, his magical senses picking up several disturbances nearby. Vmmm... Vmmm... Vmmm-vmmm-vmmm... The muffled cracks came in quick succession, one after another after another, and figures began emerging from the darkness onto the shattered ground, stepping carefully over the broken stone, one by one by one.