“And you and your kind have always been vulnerable to both,” Flamel said.

“True, but there are no more heroes left in the world. None to attack us. Humani no longer believe in our kind. That makes us invisible… and invulnerable.”

Josh grunted as he brought the tip of the sword up. “Not to Clarent.”

The creature tilted its head and then nodded. “Not to the Coward’s Blade, that is true. But there are three of us and we are fast, so fast,” it added with a grin that exposed its jagged teeth. “I think we can take you, boy; cut the sword from your hands before you even know it’s-”

Instincts Josh didn’t know he possessed warned him that the creature was going to attack the moment it stopped speaking. Then it would all be over. Without thinking, he jabbed straight out in a thrust Joan of Arc had taught him. The blade hummed as the point stabbed at the monster’s exposed throat. Josh knew that all he needed to do was to scratch the horror with the sword: a single cut had all but destroyed Nidhogg.

Laughing, the creature danced back out of range. “Too slow, humani, too slow. I saw your knuckles strain and whiten the moment before you thrust.”

And at that instant Josh knew they had lost. The Genii Cucullati were just too fast.

But over his left shoulder, he heard Flamel chuckle.

Josh stared directly at the creature. He knew that the last thing he could do was turn around, but he wondered what had amused the Alchemyst. He looked closely at the Hooded One. But nothing had changed… except that when the monster had darted out of range, it had landed in the puddle of dirty water.

“Has fear driven you mad, Alchemyst?” the creature demanded.

“You must know the Elder Iris, the daughter of Electra?” Flamel asked conversationally, and stepped around Josh. The Alchemyst’s narrow face had turned hard and expressionless, lips a thin line, pale eyes closed to little more than slits.

The creature’s blue-black eyes widened in horror. It looked down.

The dirty water curling around the creature’s feet had suddenly bloomed with a rainbow of colors bleeding out of the ragged strands of Flamel’s woven bracelet. The Genii Cucullati attempted to leap back, but its two front paws were stuck fast in the puddle. “Release me, humani,” it screeched, its childlike voice filled with terror. The creature frantically tried to push itself free. Digging in with its claws, it tried to get traction, but the tip of one of its rear legs touched the edge of the pool and it howled once more. It yanked its paw back and a curling claw ripped off, stuck at the edge of the water. The creature barked and its two companions darted forward to grab hold of it, attempting to pull it away from the swirling colored liquid.