From beneath my cape, I extract the golden key which hangs on the slender chain around my neck. Kneeling in front of the trove, I remove a smaller box from inside it. This is made entirely of ebony, black and gleaming, without ornament or carving. I unlock it and reach in for the blue glass vial that sits snugly within. The second my fingers touch it I feel its heat. The warmth travels up my hands, my wrists, my arms, so that by the time I have lifted it from the box my whole body is aglow with the heat it gives off. For a moment I stand transfixed, staring at the innocuous-looking bottle with its cork stopper and wax seal. The Elixir. I am holding it in my hands. The Great Secret is contained in it, and I am about to set it free. Others are aware that it has been disturbed. Urgent whispering and chattering fills my head, but I ignore it. From somewhere deep below, somewhere in the Darkness, I hear sighing and calling, but I must not be distracted. At the edge of the circle, I place the chalice on the ground before me. With infinite care, I break the seal on the vial and gently ease out the stopper. There is no smell at all, rather a sense of energy being released.

Cautiously, I tip the bottle and pour seven drops of the precious, ruby liquid into the chalice. I replace the cork and set the bottle back in its box, which I lock once more before returning it to the trove. When I take up the chalice I find my hands are shaking as I walk back to the center of the circle, holding the chalice up in front of me.

I am still wearing the diamond necklace. I close my eyes and let my fingers select one small stone. It is no longer cold, but warmed by my own body. Quickly I work the platinum thread counterclockwise until the gemstone unscrews from its setting and drops into my palm. I hold it aloft, my eyes still closed. As I recite the ancient words of the Raising spell I close my hand tight about the diamond. I feel its hard surface resist my grip, the sharp edges digging into the flesh of my palm. And then, slowly, magically, it yields. Yields and crumbles until it is not more than fine sand. I open my eyes now and look down at Freddie. He looks so very far away from me. Fear grips me. What if I fail? What if I make a mistake?

I must not.

Carefully, I let the diamond grains fall from my hand into the chalice. A thin wisp of green smoke rises briefly from the Elixir and then vanishes.