And beneath the weapons was Arachne’s armour, its weight a constant reminder of why I was here. I could feel its presence, ready and eager. From above a distant sound echoed through the mansion and I knew the Nightstalkers had arrived. I folded my arms and waited.
I heard them first, cautious footsteps echoing through the darkness, then the first flickers of light appeared at the foot of the stairs. There was a murmur of voices and I knew they were hesitating; they didn’t want another nocturne set on them. A minute ticked by as I stood, tense, trying to stay calm. At last the futures shifted; someone had made a decision. The footsteps started up again and the flickers became the shifting beams of torches as the Nightstalkers descended into the dark. They reached the foot of the stairs and formed a defensive semicircle, and yellow-green light flared up as chemical lights were broken. I shielded my eyes as the lights were thrown outwards, illuminating the chapel in an eerie glow and throwing the murals and the altar into sharp relief.
In the yellow-green glow I saw the Nightstalkers. Gold-hair girl and Captain America were watching the flanks, with Ja-Ja behind in the shadows and Dhruv at the centre. Lee was at the back, along with the girl I’d seen once before; I didn’t know her name but I was sure she was their gater. At the front was Will. He’d been already looking across the chapel and he saw me almost instantly, standing in the shadows of the far archway. He began to stalk across the stone floor.
“Will, wait,” Dhruv said sharply, looking from side to side. “It might be a trap.”
“Then check it,” Will said, not taking his eyes off me.
The Nightstalkers advanced slowly, crossing the floor of the chapel. They didn’t bunch up but didn’t space out as much as they should have either. Their movements looked nervous, and in a sudden flash of insight I realised how I must appear in their eyes. They didn’t see me as an ordinary man with a few tricks who’d survived the last few encounters only through help and luck. They saw me as a mage, mysterious and powerful, someone who derailed trains and summoned monsters. I knew that together the seven of them could defeat me . . . but they didn’t know that. To them I was an unknown, standing alone against the seven of them and not running away, and they were afraid. So I stood still, held Will’s gaze, and waited.
The Nightstalkers came to a ragged halt thirty feet away, leaving Will out on his own in front of them. Sensing that he was alone he stopped and half-turned his head back towards them. “What are you waiting for?”
“This doesn’t feel right,” Dhruv said uneasily. “Why’s he just standing there?”
Will let out a breath in frustration, then drew a gun from under his jacket with lightning speed, aiming and firing in a fraction of a second. As he pulled the trigger I spoke the command word for the forcewall and the gold discs flared with energy. The roar of the gun was loud in the enclosed space, echoing and rolling around the stone walls, and several of the Nightstalkers flinched at the din, but to my ears the forcewall muffled the sound, sending the bullet tumbling harmlessly to the floor. The barrier blocked off the archway completely, separating me from the Nightstalkers. Now the chapel didn’t have two ways out, but only one.
“There,” Will said curtly as the echoes faded. He lowered the gun. “If he’s so tough, why’d he seal himself in?”
Captain America and Ja-Ja moved forward. Captain America had what looked like a submachine gun levelled at me; Ja-Ja had no weapon but for his lethal touch. Both watched me warily; forcewall or no forcewall, they’d obviously learnt to respect me. “How do we get through?” gold-hair girl asked from behind them.
“We can’t,” Dhruv said. “Not without bringing the roof down.”
“We could gate,” gold-hair girl said, nodding towards the English girl.
“No,” Will said. “We’re not taking the chance. Those walls don’t last long; we just have to wait.” He stared at me. “No train this time.”
From above, in the mansion, I sensed gate magic. The Nightstalkers didn’t notice. “Why isn’t he talking?” gold-hair girl asked.
“I don’t know,” Will said. “What’s up, Verus? Not going to tell us to go away?”
I shook my head.
“No more threats?”
“No,” I said simply.
Lee had turned and had been looking towards the stairs up to the mansion. “Uh,” he said. “Will?”
“Later,” Will said.
“Will.” Lee sounded nervous.
Will didn’t take his eyes off me. I could sense how badly he wanted to kill me, and I knew only the forcewall was stopping him from trying. “Whatever it is, it can wait.”
“Will, someone’s coming.”
A ripple went through the Nightstalkers and they traded nervous looks. I saw something flicker on Captain America’s face and on Dhruv’s, and I knew they’d just figured out the problem with their position. I had only one way out . . . but so did they.
“I warned you,” I told Will quietly.
Just for a moment I thought I saw something in Will’s eyes, then footsteps echoed from the stairs and he turned just as Cinder and Rachel stepped out into the chapel behind him.
The plan had always been very simple: get the two people who most wanted to kill me and put them next to each other. The layout of the chapel meant there was only one way into the deeper basement, and my forcewall was blocking it. Will needed to get past the wall to reach me, and Rachel needed to get past Will to reach the rest of the basement. As long as the wall held Rachel and Will would be forced to stay there.
I’d followed many different paths to this meeting, but I hadn’t been able to see beyond it. I didn’t know what would happen next or how this would play out. All I could do was wait for Will to act like Will, and for Rachel to act like Deleo.
Cinder and Rachel had come prepared. Cinder was wearing some kind of black-plated body armour I hadn’t seen him in before, and red light licked at his hands. His eyes roved, passing over each member of the Nightstalkers in turn, ready to strike. While Cinder was dressed for war, Rachel looked as though she’d stepped out of a masquerade. She wore opera gloves, a black feathered cape and dress, and an elongated mask in the shape of a beak that left only the lower half of her face bare, her skin pale against the black cloth. It should have looked silly but to me it only looked frightening. As she twitched her head left to right, she made me think of a human bird of prey, and I felt a tingle as her eyes locked onto me. “Alex,” she said, and her voice was cold.
I saw Will stiffen as he heard her voice. “You,” he breathed. “It’s you.”
Rachel ignored him and the beak of her mask turned as she surveyed the Nightstalkers. Her movements carried an aura of menace so strong it was almost tangible, and I saw some of the adepts flinch. “Is the Council sending children now?” Rachel asked softly.
“We’re not with the Council!” Will snapped.
“Will!” Dhruv whispered. He was looking between me, Rachel, and Cinder. “Really bad idea. Really bad idea!”
“Why should I?” Rachel said suddenly. Her head was turned and she was talking as if to thin air. Once I wouldn’t have understood what she was doing; now I did. Shireen? What are you saying . . . ?
“Will?” Captain America said quietly. His hand was by his side and I knew he was poised to pull a weapon. “Who is she?”
“No, I haven’t,” Rachel said.
“Kid,” Cinder said. He was watching Will steadily. “You get one warning. Get out.”
“I’ve never seen him before!” Rachel snapped.
“You’ve seen my sister!” Will shouted. “Catherine! Remember her?”
Rachel turned to Will in surprise; it was as though she’d forgotten he was there. “Who are you?”
“You killed my sister,” Will snarled. “Remember me now?”
Rachel looked at him curiously for a moment. “Not really.”
Will’s eyes flashed with insane rage. “You. Killed. My. Sister.”