cannot, then I m sure that there are others who would be only too delighted
to try. He held up his cell phone. I can call upon Amazons, Samurai and
Bogatyrs.
The temperature in the room continued to fall as Dee spoke, and his breath
plumed white in the air, ice crystals forming on his eyebrows and beard.
Enough of this trickery! Dee snapped his fingers and his aura flashed
briefly yellow. The room grew warm, then hot, heavy with the stink of rotten
eggs.
There is no need for these lesser warriors. The Disir will slay the Shadow,
the girl standing to Dee s right said.
How? Dee snapped.
We have what those other warriors have not.
You re talking in riddles, Dee said impatiently.
Tell him, Machiavelli said.
The Disir with the palest eyes turned her head in his direction and then
looked back at Dee. Long fingers flickered toward his face. You destroyed
the Yggdrasill and released our pet creature, which had been long trapped in
the roots of the World Tree.
Something flickered behind Dee s eyes and a muscle twitched at the corner of
his mouth. Nidhogg? He looked at Machiavelli. You knew about this?
Machiavelli nodded. Of course.
The Disir with indigo eyes stepped up to Dee and looked down into his face.
Yes, you freed Nidhogg, the Devourer of Corpses. Still leaning toward Dee,
she swiveled her head to look at Machiavelli. Her sisters also turned in his
direction. Take us to where the Shadow and the others are hiding, then leave
us. Once we have loosed Nidhogg, Scathach is doomed.
Can you control the creature? Machiavelli asked curiously.
Once it feeds off the Shadow, consumes first her memories and then her flesh
and bones, it will need to sleep. After a feast like Scathach, it will
probably sleep for a couple of centuries. We will recapture it then.
Niccol Machiavelli nodded. We didn't discuss your fee.
The three Disir smiled, and even Machiavelli, who had seen horrors, recoiled
from the expressions on their faces. There is no fee, the Disir with indigo
eyes said. This we will do to restore the honor of our clan and avenge our
fallen family. Scathach the Shadow destroyed many of our sisters.
Machiavelli nodded. I understand. When will you attack?
At dawn.
Why not now? Dee demanded.
We are creatures of the twilight. In that no-time between night and day, we
are at our strongest, one said.
That is when we are invincible, her sister added.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Why? Scathach asked. They were standing in the fully equipped gym in the
basement of Saint-Germain s house. One wall was mirrored, and it reflected
the young man and the vampire, surrounded by the latest exercise equipment.
Josh glanced up at the clock on the wall. It s three a.m . I should be
exhausted, but I m still totally awake. It could be because it s only six at
night back home.
Scathach nodded. That s one of the reasons. Another is because you are
around people like Nicholas and Saint-Germain, and especially your sister and
Joan. Although your powers have not been Awakened, you are in the company of
some of the most powerful auras on the planet. Your own aura is picking up a
little of their power, and it is energizing you. But just because you don't
feel tired, that doesn t mean you should not rest, she added. Drink plenty
of water too. Your aura is burning through a lot of liquids. You need to keep
hydrated.
A door opened and Joan stepped into the gym. While Scathach was dressed in
black, Joan was wearing a long-sleeved white T-shirt over loose white
trousers and white sneakers. Like Scathach, however, she was carrying a
sword. I wondered if you needed an assistant, she said, almost shyly.
I thought you d gone to bed, Scathach said.
I don't sleep much these days. And when I do, my dreams are troubled. I
dream of fire. She smiled sadly. isn't it a wonderful irony: I m married to
a Master of Fire, yet I m terrified by dreams of fire.
Where is Francis?
In his office, working. He ll be there for hours. I m not sure if he ever
sleeps anymore. Now, she said, looking at Josh and changing the subject,
how are you getting on?
I m still learning how to hold the sword, Josh muttered, sounding vaguely
embarrassed. He d seen movies; he d thought he knew how people fought with
swords. He d never imagined, though, that just holding one would be so
difficult. Scathach had spent the past thirty minutes attempting to teach him
how to hold and move Clarent without dropping it. She hadn't had much
success; every time he spun the weapon, the weight dragged it from his grip.
The highly polished wooden floor was scratched and gouged where the stone
blade had struck it. It s harder than I thought, he finally admitted. I m
not sure I ll ever learn.
Scathach can teach you how to fight with a sword, Joan said confidently.
She taught me. She took a simple farm girl and turned her into a warrior.
She twisted her wrist, and her sword, which was almost as tall as she was,
moved and curled in the air with an almost human-sounding moan. Josh
attempted to copy the action and Clarent went spinning from his hand. It
buried itself point first in the floor, cracking the wood and swaying to and
fro.
Sorry, Josh muttered.
Forget everything you think you know about swordplay, Scathach said. She
glanced at Joan. He s watched too much TV. He thinks he can just twirl a
sword around like a cheerleader s baton.
Joan grinned. She deftly flipped her longsword and presented it to Josh, hilt
first. Take it.
Josh reached for the sword with his right hand.
You might think about using both hands, the small Frenchwoman suggested.
Josh ignored her. Wrapping his fingers around the hilt of Joan s sword, he
attempted to lift it from her grasp. And failed. It was incredibly heavy.
