creatures, thousands, tens of thousands of them. They flowed up the stairs,
slowing only as they approached the light.
Perenelle knew what they were then spiders, deadly and poisonous and knew why
the webs were so different. She glimpsed a seething mass of wolf spiders and
tarantulas, black widows and brown recluses, garden spiders and funnel webs.
She knew they should not exist together which probably meant that whatever
had called them, and now controlled them, probably lurked below.
The Sorceress slammed the metal door shut and wedged a lump of masonry
against the base. Then she turned and ran. But she had only taken a dozen
steps before the door was ripped off its hinges by the weight of the massed
spiders.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
J osh wearily pushed open the door to the kitchen and stepped into the long
low room. Sophie turned away from the sink and watched her brother slump into
a chair, drop the stone sword onto the floor, lay his arms on the table and
rest his head on them.
How was it? Sophie asked.
I can barely move, he mumbled. My shoulders ache, my back aches, my arms
ache, my head aches, I have blisters on my hands and I can barely close my
fingers. He showed her his raw palms. I never realized just holding a sword
would be so hard.
But did you learn anything?
I learned how to hold it.
Sophie slid a plateful of toast across the table and Josh immediately
straightened up, grabbed a piece and shoved it in his mouth. At least you
can still eat, she said. Catching hold of his right hand, she turned it over
to look at his palm. Ouch! she said in sympathy. The skin at the base of
his thumb was red, bubbling up in a painful-looking water blister.
Told you, he said through a mouthful of toast. I need a Band-Aid.
Let me try something. Sophie quickly rubbed her hands together, then
pressed the thumb of her left hand against her right wrist. Closing her eyes,
she concentrated and her little finger popped alight, burning with a cool
blue flame.
Josh stopped chewing and stared.
Before he could object, Sophie ran her finger over his blistered flesh. He
attempted to pull away, but she held his wrist with surprising strength. When
she finally let it go, he jerked his hand back.
What do you think you re , he began, looking at his hand. Then he
discovered that the blister had vanished, leaving only the faint hint of a
circle on his skin.
Francis told me that fire can heal. Sophie held up her right hand. Wisps of
gray smoke curled off her fingers; then they snapped alight. When she closed
her hand into a fist, the fire extinguished.
I thought Josh swallowed hard and tried again I didn't know you d even
started to learn about fire.
Started and finished.
Finished?
All done. She brushed her hands together; sparks flew.
Chewing his toast, Josh looked at his sister critically. When she d first
been Awakened and when she d learned the Magic of Air, he d seen the
differences in her immediately, especially around her face and eyes. He d
even noted the new subtle shading of her eye color. He couldn't see any
changes this time. She looked the same as before but she wasn't. And the Fire
magic distanced her even further from him. You don't seem any different, he
said.
I don't feel any different either. Except warmer, she added. I don't feel
cold.
So this was his sister now, Josh thought. She looked just like any other
teenager he knew. And yet she was unlike anyone else on the planet: she could
control two of the elemental magics.
Maybe that was the scariest part of all this: the immortal humans people like
Flamel and Perenelle, Joan, flamboyant Saint-Germain and even Dee: they all
looked so ordinary. They were the type of people you would pass in the street
and not give a second glance to. Scathach, with her red hair and grass green
eyes, was always going to attract attention. But she wasn't human.
Did it did it hurt? he asked, curious.
Not at all. She smiled. It was almost disappointing. Francis sort of
washed my hands with fire oh, and I got this, she said, holding up her right
arm and allowing her sleeve to fall back to reveal the design burned into her
flesh.
Josh leaned forward to look closely at Sophie s arm. It s a tattoo, he
said, envy clearly audible in his voice. The twins had always talked about
getting tattoos together. Mom is going to freak when she sees that. Then he
added, Where did you get it? And why?
It s not ink, it was burned on with fire, Sophie explained, twisting her
wrist to show off the design.
Josh suddenly caught her hand and pointed at the red dot surrounded by the
gold circle on the underside of her wrist. I ve seen something like that
before, he said slowly, and frowned, trying to remember.
His twin nodded. It took me a while, but then I remembered that Nicholas has
something like it on his wrist, Sophie said. A circle with a cross through
it.
That s right. Josh closed his eyes. He d first noted the small tattoo on
Flamel s wrist when he d started working for him in the bookshop, and though
he d wondered why it was in such an unusual place, he d never asked about it.
He opened his eyes again and looked at the tattoo, and he suddenly realized
that Sophie was branded by magic, marked as someone who could control the
elements. And he didn't like it. What do you need it for?
When I want to use fire, I press on the center of the circle and focus my
aura. Saint-Germain called it a shortcut, a trigger for my power.
I wonder what Flamel needs a trigger for, Josh wondered aloud.
The kettle pinged and Sophie turned back to the sink. She had asked herself
the same question. Maybe we can ask him when he wakes up.
Any more toast? Josh asked. I m starving.
You re always starving.
Yeah, well, the sword training made me hungry.
Sophie stuck a fork through a slice of bread and held it out in front of her.
Watch this, she said. She pressed on the underside of her wrist and her
index finger burst into flame. Frowning hard, concentrating, she focused the
wavering flame into a thin blue fire and then ran it over the bread, gently
toasting it. Do you want this done on both sides?
Josh watched with a mixture of fascination and horror. He knew from science
class that bread toasted around 310 degrees Fahrenheit.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
M achiavelli was sitting in the back of his car alongside Dr. John Dee.
Facing them were the three Disir. Dagon sat in the driver s seat, eyes
invisible behind his wraparound glasses. The car smelled faintly of his sour
fishy odor.
A cell phone buzzed, breaking the uncomfortable silence. Machiavelli flipped
it open without looking at the screen. He closed it again almost immediately.
All clear. My men have pulled back and there is a security cordon in place
around all the connecting streets. No one will accidentally wander into the
area.
Whatever happens, do not enter the house, the Disir w
ith violet eyes said.
Once we free Nidhogg, we shall have very little control until it feeds.
John Dee leaned forward, and for a moment, it looked as if he was about to
tap the young woman on the knee. The look on her face prevented him. Flamel
and the children must not be allowed to escape.
That sounds like a threat, Doctor, the warrior sitting on the left said.
Or an order.
And we do not like threats, her sister sitting to the right added. And we
don't take orders.
Dee blinked slowly. It is neither a threat nor an order. Simply a request,
he said eventually.
We are here only for Scathach, the warrior with violet eyes said. The rest
of them are not our concern.
Dagon climbed out of the car and opened the door. Without a backward glance,
the Valkyries stepped out into the first glimmers of predawn light, spread
out and moved slowly down the back street. They looked like three young women
coming home from an all-night party.
Dee shifted position, taking the seat facing Machiavelli. If they succeed, I
will ensure that our masters know that the Disir were your idea, he said
pleasantly.
I m sure you will. Machiavelli didn't look at the English Magician and
continued to follow the progress of the three girls as they walked down the
street. And if they fail, you can tell our masters that the Disir were my
idea, and you can absolve yourself of any blame, he added. Shifting the
blame: I believe I originally came up with that concept about twenty years
before you were born.
I thought you said they were bringing Nidhogg? Dee asked, ignoring him.
Niccol Machiavelli tapped the window with his manicured fingernails. They
did.
As the Disir moved down the narrow, cobbled, high-walled alley, they changed.
The transformation occurred as they passed through a patch of shadow. They
entered as young women, dressed in soft leather jackets, jeans and boots and
a moment later they were Valkyries: warrior maidens. Long coats of ice white
chain mail fell to their knees, knee-high metal boots with spiked toes
covered their feet, and they wore heavy leather-and-metal gauntlets on their
hands. Rounded helmets protected their heads and masked their eyes and noses
but left their mouths free. White leather belts around their waists held
their sword and knife sheaths. The Valkyries each carried a wide-bladed sword
in one hand, but each also had a second weapon strapped to her back: a spear,
a double-headed axe and a war hammer.
They stopped before a rotting green gate set into the wall. One of the
Valkyries turned to look back at the car and pointed a gloved hand at the
gate.
Machiavelli hit a button and the window rolled down. He raised his thumb and
nodded. Despite its decrepit appearance, it was the back gate to
Saint-Germain s house.
Each of the Disir reached into a leather pouch that hung from her belt.
Taking out a handful of flat stonelike objects, they tossed them at the base
of the door.
They re Casting the Runes, Machiavelli explained. They re calling
Nidhogg the creature you released, a creature the Elders themselves locked
away.
I didn't know it was trapped by the World Tree, Dee muttered.
I m surprised. I thought you knew everything. Machiavelli shifted in the
seat to look at Dee. In the gloomy half-light, he could see that the Magician
was looking pale and there was the faintest sheen of sweat on his forehead.
Centuries of controlling his emotions ensured that Machiavelli didn't smile.
Why did you destroy the Yggdrasill? he asked.
It was the source of Hekate s power, Dee said quietly, eyes fixed on the
Valkyries, watching them intently. They had stepped back from the stones
they d dropped on the ground and were talking quietly amongst themselves,
pointing out individual tiles.
It was as old as this planet. And yet you destroyed it without a second
thought. Why did you do that? Machiavelli wondered aloud.
I did what was necessary. Dee s words were ice. I will always do whatever
is necessary to bring the Elders back to this world.
But you didn't consider the consequences, Niccol Machiavelli said softly.
Every action has a consequence. The Yggdrasill you destroyed in Hekate s
kingdom stretched into several other Shadowrealms. The topmost branches
reached the Shadowrealm of Asgard, and the roots stretched deep into
Niflheim, the World of Darkness. He saw Dee stiffen. Not only did you
release Nidhogg, but you also destroyed at least three Shadowrealms maybe
more when you destroyed the World Tree.
I didn't know .
You made a lot of enemies, Machiavelli continued smoothly, ignoring him,
dangerous enemies. I have heard that the Elder Hel escaped the destruction
of her kingdom. I understand she is hunting you.
She does not frighten me, Dee snapped, but there was a quaver in his voice.
Oh, she should, Machiavelli murmured. She terrifies me.
My master will protect me, Dee said confidently.
He must be a powerful Elder indeed to protect you from Hel; no one has stood
against her and survived.
My master is all-powerful, Dee snapped.
I look forward to learning the identity of this mysterious Elder.
When all this is over, maybe I ll introduce you, Dee said. He nodded down
the alleyway. And that could be very soon.
They were irregular pieces of flat black stone, each etched with a series of
angular lines, squares and slashes. Now the lines were glowing red, crimson
smoke coiling into the still predawn air.
One of the Disir used the tip of her sword to move three of the runestones
together. A second nudged a stone out of the way with the steel toe of her
boot and then dragged another into place. The third found a single runestone
at the edge of the pile and eased it into position at the end of the string
of letters with her sword.
Nidhogg, the Disir whispered, calling the nightmare whose name they had
spelled out in the ancient stones.
Nidhogg, Machiavelli said very quietly. He looked over Dee s shoulder to
where Dagon sat staring straight ahead, apparently disinterested in what was
happening to his left. I know what the legends say about it, but Dagon, what
exactly is it?
My people called it the Devourer of Corpses, the driver said, voice sticky
and bubbling. It was already here before my race claimed the seas, and we
were amongst the first to arrive on this planet.
Dee quickly swiveled in the seat to look at the driver. What are you?
Dagon ignored the question. Nidhogg was so dangerous that a council of the
Elder Race created a terrible Shadowrealm, Niflheim, the World of Darkness,
to contain it, and then they used the unbreakable roots of the Yggdrasill to
wrap around the creature, chaining it for eternity.
Machiavelli kept his eyes fixed on the red-black smoke coiling from the
runestones. He thought he saw the outline of a shape beginning to form. Why
didn't the Elders kill it?
Nidhogg was a weapon, Dagon said.
&nb
sp; What did the Elders need a weapon for? Machiavelli wondered aloud. Their
powers were almost limitless. They had no enemies.
Although he sat with his hands resting lightly on the steering wheel, Dagon s
shoulders shifted and his head turned almost completely around so that he was
facing Dee and Machiavelli. The Elders were not the first upon this earth,
he said simply. There were others. He pronounced the word slowly and
carefully. The Elders used Nidhogg and some of the other primordial
creatures as weapons in the Great War to completely destroy them.
A stunned Machiavelli looked at Dee, who looked equally shocked by the
revelation.
Dagon s mouth opened in what might have been a smile, revealing his
tooth-filled maw. You should probably know that the last time a group of
Disir used Nidhogg, they lost control of the creature. It ate all of them. In
the three days it took to recapture it and chain it in Yggdrasill s roots, it
completely destroyed the Anasazi people in what is now New Mexico. It is said
that Nidhogg feasted off ten thousand humani and still hungered for more.
Can these Disir control it? Dee demanded.
Dagon shrugged. Thirteen of the finest Disir warriors couldn't control it in
New Mexico .
Maybe we should Dee began.
Machiavelli suddenly stiffened. Too late, he whispered. It s here.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
I m going to bed. Sophie Newman paused by the kitchen door, a glass of
water in her hand, and looked back to where Josh was still sitting at the
table. Francis is going to teach me some specific fire spells in the
morning. He promised to show me the fireworks trick.
Great, we ll never have to buy fireworks again for the Fourth of July.
Sophie smiled tiredly. don't stay up too long, it s nearly dawn.
Josh shoved another piece of toast into his mouth. I m still on Pacific
time, he said, his voice muffled. But I ll be up in a few minutes. Scatty
wants to continue my sword training tomorrow. I m really looking forward to
it.
Liar, liar.
He grunted. Well, you've got your magic to protect you all I have is a stone
sword.
The bitterness was clearly audible in his voice, and Sophie forced herself
not to comment. She was getting tired of her brother s constant whining. She