She turned, the clouds swirling, and she glimpsed China Sorrows lying in a field of broken glass, blood drenching her blouse, her eyes open and unseeing. Valkyrie turned away to shouts, to jeers, and saw a stream of energy blast through the chest of a girl, saw her fall back, hair covering her face, and when Valkyrie went to catch her the images swirled away and Valkyrie could see herself, on her knees, tears running down her face. Defeated. Alone.

And she knew she was watching her own death.

Valkyrie’s legs gave out and she collapsed. She didn’t try to get up again. She stayed where she was, her eyes tightly shut, hands over her ears.

“Make it stop,” she muttered. “Make it stop.”

A fingertip, under her chin.

This was real. This reassured her. Valkyrie breathed, calming, and opened her eyes, but it wasn’t Skulduggery crouching before her, it was a woman with silver hair, and Valkyrie jerked away, fell back, and the woman laughed.

“All this pain,” the woman said. “All this death and destruction. It’s because of you, my dear. All because of you.”

“You’re … you’re not real.”

“I will be,” the woman said, and smiled. “You will make me real. I know who you are. I know your secret.” The woman stood. “I am the Princess of the Darklands, and I’m coming for all of you.”

Her image drifted away on the thinning steam, and Skulduggery plunged through, scattering it completely.

“Did you see that?” Valkyrie asked.

“Some of it,” he said, helping her up. “Not all.”

“Her, I mean. Did you see her? The woman with the silver hair?”

“I’m afraid I didn’t,” he said, guiding Valkyrie to the chair.

She slumped down on to it, her limbs leaden. “She spoke to me.”

“To a future version of you.”

“No, Skulduggery – to me. She was speaking to me, now, just a few seconds ago. She touched my chin. I could feel it.”

“That’s not possible.”

“I know that. But I’m telling you it happened. She said she knew my secret. What secret? Do I even have any secrets? She said she was the Princess of the Darklands and that she’s coming for all of us. You didn’t see her? Hear her?”

“All I saw were the lines of people, the fire, Saracen, and then China. You’re sure she touched you?”

“Yes,” she said. “I mean … I’m pretty sure. I could feel – or at least I think I could feel …” She sighed. “I don’t know. The whole thing was kind of overwhelming.”

“What else did you see?”