A stone sword hissed through the air, slicing cleanly through the parka hood, cutting away a huge chunk of green cloth. The creature yelped and twisted its entire body in midair, curling away from the returning blade, which slashed across the front of the coat, chopping through buttons and destroying the zipper.

Josh Newman stepped directly in front of Nicholas Flamel. He was holding the stone sword he’d pulled from the cardboard tube in both hands. “I don’t know who you are, or what you are,” he said tightly, voice trembling with adrenaline and the effort of holding the weapon steady. “But I’m guessing that you know what this is?”

The beast backed away, blue-black eyes fixed on the gray blade. Its concealing hood was gone, cut to ribbons, the remnants hanging around its shoulders, revealing its head. There was nothing even vaguely human about the planes and angles of its face, Josh noted, but it was extraordinarily beautiful. He’d been expecting a monster, but the head was surprisingly small, with huge dark eyes sunk deep behind a narrow brow ridge, cheekbones high and sharp. The nose was straight, nostrils flaring. The mouth was a horizontal slash that now hung slightly open to reveal misshapen yellowed and blackened teeth.

Josh’s eyes flickered left and right at the other creatures. They too were focused on the stone sword. “This is Clarent,” he said quietly. “I fought the Nidhogg in Paris with this weapon,” he continued. “And I’ve seen what it does to your kind.” He moved the sword slightly and felt it tingle, the hilt growing warm in his hands.

“Dee did not tell us that,” the creature said in its childlike voice. It looked over Josh’s shoulder to the Alchemyst. “It is true?”

“Yes,” Flamel said.

“Nidhogg.” The creature almost spat the word. “And what happened to the legendary Devourer of Corpses?”

“Nidhogg is dead,” Flamel said shortly. “Destroyed by Clarent.” He stepped forward and put his left hand on Josh’s shoulder. “Josh killed it.”

“Killed by a humani?” it said incredulously.

“Dee has used you, betrayed you. He didn’t tell you we had the sword. What else has he not told you about: did he mention the fate of the Disir in Paris? Did he tell you about the Sleeping God?”

The three creatures slipped back into their own language, yipping and growling among themselves; then the largest turned to regard Josh again. A black tongue danced in the air. “These things are of little consequence. I see before me a frightened humani boy. I can hear his muscles straining as he struggles to hold the sword steady. I can taste his fear on the air.”

“And yet, despite the fear you can smell, he still attacked you,” Flamel said quietly. “What does that suggest?”

The creature’s shoulders moved in an awkward shrug. “That he’s either a fool or a hero.”