Michael Scott - The Alchemyst

The Warrior came hurrying over to them. Dry your eyes, she commanded sternly. Let s not draw attention to ourselves.

Don t talk to my sis Josh began, but Scatty silenced him with a look.

Let s get you into my grandmother s shop; she ll be able to help. It s justacross the road. Come on.

Sophie obediently ran her sleeve across her eyes and followed the Warrior.She felt so helpless. She rarely cried she d even laughed at the ending ofTitanic so why was she crying now?

Awakening her magical potential had seemed like a wonderful idea. She d lovedthe thought of being able to control and shape her will, of channeling heraura s energy and working magic. But it hadn t turned out like that. It hadleft her feeling battered and exhausted from the stimulation. It had left herin pain. That was why she was crying.

And she was terrified that the pain was not going to go away. And if itdidn t, then what would she do what could she do?

Sophie looked up to find her brother staring hard at her, eyes wide withconcern. Flamel said the Witch will be able to help you, he said.

What if she can t, Josh? What if she can t?

He had no answer to that.

Sophie and Josh crossed Ojai Avenue and stepped under the arched promenadethat ran the length of the block. The temperature immediately dropped to abearable level, and Sophie realized that her shirt was sticking to the smallof her back, ice cold against her spine.

They caught up with Nicholas Flamel, who had stopped in front of a smallantiques shop, a dismayed look on his face. The shop was closed. Withoutsaying a word, he tapped at the paper clock taped to the inside of the door.The hands were set to two-thirty and a handwritten scrawl beneath it said

Gone to lunch, back at 2:30.

It was now close to three-thirty.

Flamel and Scatty leaned against the door, peering inside, while the twinslooked through the window. The small shop seemed to sell only glassware:bowls, jugs, plates, paperweights, ornaments and mirrors. Lots of mirrors.They were everywhere, and in all shapes and sizes from tiny circles to hugerectangles. Much of the glass looked modern, but a few of the pieces in thewindow were obviously antiques.

So what do we do now? Flamel wondered. Where can she be?

Probably wandered out to get lunch and forgot to come back, Scatty said,turning to look up and down the street. Hardly busy today, is it? Even though it was late Friday afternoon, traffic was light on the main street,and there were fewer than a dozen pedestrians moving slowly beneath thecovered promenade.

We could check the restaurants, Flamel suggested. What does she like to eat?

Don t ask, Scatty said quickly, you really do not want to know.

Maybe if we split up, Nicholas began.

On impulse Sophie leaned forward and turned the handle: a bell jangledmusically and the door swung open.

Nice one, Sis.

Saw it done in a movie once, she muttered. Hello? she called, steppinginto the shop.

There was no response.

The antiques shop was tiny, little more than a long rectangular room, but theeffect of the hundreds of mirrors some of which even dangled from the Sophie threw back her head and breathed deeply, nostrils flaring. Do yousmell that?

Her twin shook his head. The number of mirrors was making him nervous; hekept catching reflections of himself from all sides, and in every mirror, hisimage was different, broken or distorted.

What do you smell? Scatty asked.

It s like Sophie paused. Like woodsmoke in the fall.

So she has been here.

Sophie and Josh looked at her blankly.

That s the odor of the Witch of Endor. That s the scent of eldritch magic.

Flamel stood by the door looking up and down the street. She can t have gonefar, if she left the shop unlocked. I m going to go look for her. He turned to Scatty. How will I recognize her?

She grinned, eyes bright and wicked. Trust me; you ll know her when you seeher.

I ll be back shortly.

As Flamel stepped out into the street, a big motorcycle pulled up almostdirectly outside the shop. The rider sat there for a moment and then gunnedhis engine and roared away. The noise was incredible: all the glassware inthe tiny shop shivered and vibrated with the sound. Sophie pressed both handsto her ears. I don t know how much more of this I can take, she whisperedtearfully.

Josh led his sister to a plain wooden chair and made her sit down. Hecrouched on one side, wanting to hold her hand, but frightened of touchingher. He felt utterly useless.

Scatty knelt down directly in front of Sophie, so that their faces werelevel. When Hekate Awakened you, she didn t have a chance to teach you howto turn your Awakened senses on and off. Your senses are stuck on at the moment, but it won t be like that all the time, I promise you. With a littletraining and a few basic protective spells, you ll learn to turn your senseson for just the briefest of periods.

Josh looked at the two girls. Once again, he felt apart from his twin: trulyapart. They were fraternal twins, and therefore not genetically identical.They didn t share those feelings that identical twins often spokeabout feeling pain when the other twin was hurt, knowing when they were introuble but right now he could feel his sister s distress. He only wishedthere was something he could do to ease her pain.

Almost as if she could read his mind, Scatty said suddenly, There is something I can do that might help. The twins picked up on the note ofhesitation in her voice. It will not hurt, she added quickly.

It can t hurt more than what I m feeling now, Sophie whispered. Do it,she said quickly.

Soph Josh began, but his sister ignored him.

Do it, Sophie repeated. Please, she begged.

I ve told you I am what you humani call a vampire.

You are not drinking her blood! Josh yelled, horrified. His stomach flippedover at the thought.

I ve told you before, my clan do not drink blood.

I don t care

Josh, Sophie interrupted angrily, her aura winking into existence for asecond with her anger, filling the interior of the shop with the suddensweetness of vanilla ice cream. A display of glass wind chimes tinkled andrattled in an unfelt breeze. Josh, be quiet. She swiveled in the seat to look at Scatty. What do you want me to do?

Give me your right hand.

Sophie immediately stretched out her hand and Scatty took it in both of hers.Then she carefully matched the fingers of her left hand to the girl sfingers, thumb to thumb, index finger to index finger, little finger tolittle finger. Blood drinking vampires, she said absently, concentrating onaligning their hands, are really the weakest, the lowliest of our clan. Haveyou ever wondered why they drink blood? They re actually dead their hearts donot beat, they have no need to eat, so the blood provides no sustenance forthem.

Are you dead? Sophie asked the question Josh was just about to ask.

No, not really.

Josh looked into the mirrors, but he could clearly see Scathach s reflectionin the glass. She caught him looking and smiled. Don t believe that old rubbish about vampires not casting a reflection: of course we do; we aresolid, after all.

Josh watched intently as Scathach pressed her fingers to his sister s.Nothing seemed to be happening. Then he caught a sparkle of silver in amirror behind Scatty and he realized that in the glass, Sophie s hand hadbegun to glow with a pale silver light.

My race, the Clan Vampire, Scatty continued very softly, staring atSophie s palm, were of the Next Generation.

In the mirror Josh saw that the silver light had begun to pool in Sophie spalm.

We were not Elders. All of us who were born after the fall of Danu Talis were completely unlike our parents; we were different in incomprehensibleways.

You ve mentioned Danu Talis before, Sophie murmured sleepily. What is it,a place? There was a warm, soothing feeling flowing up her arm, not unlikepins and needles, but tingling and pleasant.