But before he could do so, a female voice was speaking in his ear, ‘You surprise me, Lex. I would have thought you’d have jumped at the chance to be made into a glass person.’
Lex opened his eyes and looked at the Goddess of Luck standing before him in the tree.
‘Are these yours?’ Deryn demanded, waving his hand at the prisoners.
‘This one is,’ Lady Luck said, tapping Lex lightly on the head.
‘Well, what are they doing down here?’
‘It was an accident. Please be quiet,’ her Ladyship said, waving the other God into silence. ‘Well, how about it, Lex? Are you sure you want to pass up this chance to be made into a glass person?’
Lex stared at her. ‘My Lady, why in the world would I want to be turned into glass?’
‘Isn’t it obvious, darling? These glass men they make down here — they don’t grow old. They can’t catch illnesses or disease. They don’t die. They just go on and on, progressing all the time. They’re out there, even now, exploring the underworlds in their magnificent glass spaceship. Wouldn’t you like to do that, Lex?’
‘Well, I can’t say that exploring the underworlds in a glass spaceship doesn’t appeal to me,’ Lex admitted. ‘But those glass men have no emotions so life’s wasted on them. They’re just chess pieces — the only reason they’re exploring is because the Gods told them to. It’s just… pointless. A farce. I don’t want to live twice as long if it means I can only be half alive.’
‘Well, you’re right, of course. This is a silly sort of Game. I don’t even really see the point of it myself. It’s like being constantly amused with a doll’s house. But you realise that if you were turned into a glass person you would never risk getting the soulless wake?’
Lex shrugged impatiently. ‘I’ll take the risk gladly. There are so many things left that I still want to do,’ he went on, aware that a slightly whiny tone had crept into his voice. ‘I haven’t seen enough or experienced enough. I want to see and do everything before I die.’
‘Are you asking me for help, Lex?’ the Goddess asked, raising an eyebrow. ‘After the way you double crossed me?’
‘I’m sorry for that,’ Lex replied — finding that, for once, he did actually mean the apology. ‘I promise — I solemnly swear — that if you take me back I will never betray you ever again for as long as I live. I give you my word.’
The Goddess regarded him, her head a little on one side, making a show of considering what he’d said. ‘The problem, Lex, is that I don’t trust your word. Not one bit. I know who you are, remember. You’re a liar and a fraud and a cheat. You’d say anything to save your skin. So why should I believe you?’
‘Because we fit together,’ Lex said at once — feeling a little desperate, for it seemed to him that he was losing her. ‘I don’t trust you either, my Lady. But when all your other followers left you because you were too fickle and unreliable, did those traits bother me? Not at all! I joined your church and prevented it from being closed down. I saved it for you single-handedly. You owe me a second chance for that.’
‘Oh, I do, do I?’ the Goddess said.
‘Yes, you do. I demand it!’
Schmidt and Lucius were staring at him with shocked expressions on their faces and, for a moment, Lex even wondered whether the Goddess might be about to slap him. But then she smiled — a dazzling, brilliant smile, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
‘You’re my favourite, Lex,’ she said. ‘Future Games just wouldn’t be the same without you. You know, when I was cross with you before, I never intended to stay angry for ever. And I simply never dreamed that you’d actually come down here like this. Dear boy, you might have got yourself killed… ’ Lady Luck fluttered her hands anxiously at the thought. ‘Oh, well. Never mind. No harm done,’ she said, turning to look pointedly at Deryn and Saydi who were both still standing outside the tree, sulking.
‘Sorry to have interrupted your little game, darlings,’ she said cheerfully. ‘I’ll just take these humans out of your hands and then you can go back to your little chessmen.’
‘Just see that it never happens again,’ the Goddess of Beauty said with a huffy sniff.
‘I can put you back on the Space Ladders,’ Lady Luck said, ignoring the other Goddess and turning back to Lex. ‘Then you’re on your own, but it’ll be an easy enough thing from there.’
And with one last conciliatory smile at the two disgruntled Gods outside the tree, the Lady picked up the three humans and put them back on the Space Ladders.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
They were put back in the same place that Lex and Schmidt had left, just above where the dead griffin lay, not too far from the top. Lex expected Lucius to start cringing in terror at actually being on the Space Ladders but he seemed to have used up his fear for the day whilst in the Lands Beneath. As they still had some way to climb, Lex rummaged about in his bag for the first-aid box he’d brought and handed the ferret to Schmidt whilst he bandaged his twin’s arms.
‘Thanks,’ Lucius said softly.
‘No problem,’ Lex replied. He glanced over at the ferret hanging hopelessly in Schmidt’s hands and felt an uncomfortable pang of guilt. ‘Look, Lucius, I’ll change Zachary back tomorrow, okay? The hat isn’t safe for humans and I’ve already used it once today so-’
‘Lex! The hat!’ Schmidt said in sudden alarm.
Whilst they’d been in the Lands Beneath there’d been no danger from the enchanter, but now that they were back on the Space Ladders, there was the very real danger that he would be coming after them. And by this time, it was probably safe to say that he would be very, very pissed off indeed. Lex hastily took a deep breath and held it for twenty seconds until the hat fell off.
But it was too late. The enchanter appeared on the platform above them and anger seemed to be emanating from him in palpable waves of wrath. There was no mercy or hesitation in his cold blue eyes and Lex could tell just by looking at him that the enchanter wasn’t even going to shout or gloat or taunt first — he just wanted Lex dead.
Without thinking about it, Lex jumped onto the platform below and slithered down several ladders to get to where the dead griffin lay. He had some vague idea that he might be able to get to the sword that was still buried in Zoey’s chest and use it to defend himself. If not then at least he had drawn the enchanter away from the others.
He quickly ran to the griffin’s side and pulled the glittering sword from her body, but it was so heavy that it was all he could do to hold the thing. When he turned around, the enchanter was standing on the platform behind him, although Lex hadn’t heard him come down the ladders.
‘Lex Trent,’ the enchanter said coldly. ‘I thought you would be taller. Older. Capable of holding a sword.’
The sword was so heavy it was making Lex’s arms tremble. It was quite clear to both of them that he wouldn’t be able to do any damage with it. So with a shrug, Lex let the sword fall to the ground with a clatter. You couldn’t beat an enchanter with a sword anyway. The magician linked his long fingers around his staff and said, ‘How would you like to die?’
‘I get a choice?’ Lex asked in as bright a voice as he could manage. ‘Look, I’m sorry about the ship. We didn’t make any mess. I’d
… I’d be happy to pay you a-’
‘No one steals from an enchanter! I can promise you that you will suffer dearly for what you’ve done.’ He took a step closer to Lex, towering over him in a distinctly threatening manner. ‘Now, what death do you fear the most?’
Although he automatically put up his hands to shield himself, Lex was unable to prevent the magician from placing long fingers alongside his temples. Then there was a brief, but unpleasant, slideshow of images that ran through the air above their heads as the enchanter rifled through the unwanted memories in Lex’s head.
Lex tried as hard as he could never to think of his grandfather as he’d been in the last few years of his life, for that old man hadn’t really been Alistair Trent. Alistair had loved his grandsons and he would never have shouted at
