Next I wrote a sign saying that the Arcana Emporium would be closed for renovations and hung it in the window. It felt like I’d been doing that a lot lately. Now that I thought about it, between jobs, trouble, and Luna’s training, it’d been months since I’d put in a full week at the shop.
And after that I went to explain to Sonder that he wasn’t coming.
“But I can help,” Sonder said.
“I know,” I said. “That’s why I want you somewhere else.”
We were standing in the daylight outside the station. “You’re taking Luna,” Sonder objected.
“Luna’s protected. That’s the whole point of her curse.”
“I can take care of myself too,” Sonder said. He had a wounded look, like a dog that had been told it wasn’t going to be taken for a walk.
“Come on, Sonder,” I said. “You think I don’t know that? But every person we bring is an extra risk.”
“What if you need to find out what happened in the mansion?”
“You won’t be able to look into the past inside the walls anyway. Look, this job is investigation, not combat. What we need you for is research, and you can do that more effectively and with less risk from London. There’s a good chance I’ll need your help up there later, but not right now.”
Sonder sighed, though he still didn’t look happy. “What do you need?”
And finally I went to see Arachne.
* * *
Arachne’s home is one of the very few places I feel safe, and as I walked down the tunnel to her cave I turned off my mental radar and let myself relax. I wanted to take the chance to rest: Once I left for Fountain Reach I had the feeling safety was going to be in short supply.
I found Arachne perched over a table, working on something with her four front legs. I dropped down on a sofa with a sigh. “Hey.”
“Hello, Alex,” Arachne said. She didn’t stop working; Arachne never seems to have any trouble making something and carrying on a conversation at the same time. Either she’s had so much practice that it’s automatic, or she’s just really good at multitasking. “How was last night?”
“Well, it wasn’t boring. At least I got a good look at Jagadev’s place.”
“What did you think?”
I was silent for a moment. “Confusing,” I said. “I’ve been to mage balls, but this was different. I’m not sure what was going on.”
“Confusion is Jagadev’s way,” Arachne said. “Shadows and misdirection. Always he keeps his true aims concealed.”
“Do you know why he’d gather so many adepts?” I asked. “Or what he’d be doing with two apprentices like Anne and Variam?”
“No,” Arachne said.
I thought for a second. “Jagadev’s powerful,” I said. “And he’s a magical creature who lives in London.”
“Yes.”
“He must have dealt with the same problems you’ve had.”
“Yes.”
I looked at Arachne. “But you’ve never allied with him.”
Arachne didn’t answer. I wanted to know more, but I didn’t push. The only sound was the click and rustle of Arachne’s tools.
“He offered exactly that,” Arachne said at last. “A long time ago in your years, a short time in mine. He came here to propose an alliance, of information and assistance.” She paused. “I refused.”
I looked at her curiously. “Why?”
“Jagadev is a destroyer,” Arachne said simply. “He holds a grudge against humans. What he seeks is not creation but revenge.”
Arachne fell silent and I sat on the sofa frowning. If that was true, then what was going on between him and Anne and Variam?
“There,” Arachne said, her voice becoming cheerful. “All done!”
I looked over in interest. Arachne had set her tools down and was holding something out to me. I honestly couldn’t tell you how the tools work or what she’d been doing. By mage standards I’m an expert on magic items, but Arachne’s on a completely different level and I don’t understand even the most basic principles of how she can do what she does.
The item looked like a wand, fifteen inches long and slightly tapered so that one end was narrower than the other. A handle was built into the wider end and a small sphere was set at the base of the handle. It had the colour of alabaster or ivory but as I took it from Arachne its texture felt more like silk. “Huh,” I said, turning it over curiously.
“Now be careful when you test it,” Arachne said. “In fact, if I were you I’d make sure to be all the way out of line of sight.”
“I will.” I looked up. “Thanks, Arachne.”
Arachne waved a leg. “Don’t mention it. Just come back safely.”
* * *
Fountain Reach looked very different in the daylight. It was still cold but the sun had come out, taking off the worst of the chill. Puffy clouds floated in a blue sky, with the green hills as a backdrop.
The driveway was crowded with expensive-looking cars and two more pulled past us as we walked in, tyres crunching on the gravel. In the centre of the front courtyard was an elaborate fountain. Statues of young women poured a steady stream of water from a stone urn, while two phoenixes looked on. “What’s that?” Luna asked curiously.
“Fountain of Youth,” I said. “Old mage legend.”
We followed other people into the entry hall, handed Luna’s papers to one of the administrators, and set off into the mansion, up a flight of stairs and then down again. I checked my watch; the opening ceremony was supposed to be starting now. As we reached an intersection I could hear the buzz of activity from ahead of us but couldn’t tell exactly where it was coming from. “Which way?” Luna asked.
“Good question.” Fountain Reach’s wards were doing their work and I couldn’t effectively map out a route. I looked around for someone to ask directions from, but all of a sudden the corridors were empty. There was something weirdly deserted about the mansion. The ambient noise made it feel as though there were people all around you, but when you stopped to look you always seemed to be alone.
I picked a direction that I hoped was right and Luna followed. “What’s up with this place?” Luna asked, echoing my own thoughts.
“Not a clue,” I said. “It must have been built for something but I have no idea what.”
We turned a corner and the distant murmurs grew louder. To the right I could see a set of double doors and make out a voice speaking from behind it. More by luck than judgement I’d led Luna back to the same duelling hall in which I’d run into Onyx.
The hall was packed. Close to two hundred men, women, and teenagers were scattered around and I recognised dozens of mages in the crowd. Most were Light, some were unaligned, and a handful were Dark, but for every mage I knew there were two more I didn’t. Some wore ceremonial robes but most of the Light mages, especially those connected with the Council, wore formal business suits. The ones in robes and the ones in suits mixed freely, forming comfortable groups. Other mages. . didn’t. The ones wearing smart-casual streetwear or anything else unusual were scattered more to the edges of the crowd, away from the “power” groups, as did the ones who by their dress or manner obviously weren’t mages.
The apprentices looked much like their masters. There was a little more variety in how they dressed but not much, and it was surprisingly easy to match the apprentice to the mage. I picked out Charles, the apprentice Variam had been matched against two days ago, as well as Luna’s opponent, Natasha. Charles was wearing a blazer and standing next to a white-haired mage who looked exactly like an older copy of him, while Natasha was with another Asian girl. They looked as if they’d been talking but now were turned towards the stage at the end of the room. Following their gaze I saw Crystal on the stage, wearing an elegant-looking two-piece suit. She seemed to have just finished a speech, and now she was reading from a clipboard. “The first elimination round will begin at nine o’clock tomorrow morning,” she said, her voice raised to carry over the sounds of the hall. “The draw is as follows. Michael Aran and Charles de Beaumont; Vaya Merrin and Traysia Lacann; Dominica Soria and Fay Wilder; Stephen Jasper and Victor Kraft. .”