Rodolphus walked over to Bella's side. His gaze lingered on the Auror captain's face for a moment before he turned to glance at the dark wizard beside the camera. The man was bending over to remove the equipment from the tripod. The red recording light had gone out, but a standby light above the lens was still on.
He packed the equipment into a moisture-proof case, then looked up and nodded in Rodolphus's direction.
Bella straightened from the iron railing and walked to the edge of the barrier. She tilted her head, and two dark wizards approached from the flanks, each seizing one of the Auror captain's elbows. One held his head back to expose the nape of his neck while the other forced his head down, pressing him from a standing position to his knees.
"My lord? My lord! What are you doing? Don't kill me! I'm useful!"
He struggled desperately, trying to raise his head. His knees slammed into the reef with a dull thud, making him shudder in pain. Before he could beg any further, a Petrification Curse froze him in place.
Bella had no intention of listening to his nonsense. She simply waved a hand behind her. Apart from the four dark wizards assigned to stand watch, everyone else split into two groups. The cameraman from earlier picked up a metal case by his feet and walked to the front of the line.
He flipped open the lid. Three layers of items were neatly arranged inside—the top layer held a row of mechanical cameras purchased from a Muggle department store, their bodies black and the edges of their lenses ringed with worn metallic gleams; the middle layer contained glass sampling tubes and sealed bags; the bottom layer held a row of short blades, their surfaces bearing