The Pyramid of Souls (14 page)

   "What?" asked Damian.

   "The Shadowkeepers didn't want Isabella's soul. She's just a—a bonus. They wanted to capture Penelope. She's the keeper of the Pyramid of Souls. As long as they have her, they can use the pyramid as they wish."

   "But," Nick said, "I don't understand."

   Damian grabbed Sergei by the arm. "You! You still

smell of Peking duck! You crazy animal dealer, where did you get Penelope?"

   Sergei cowered. "Are you going to turn me into a flea on a pig's behind?"

   Theo stepped in, speaking more calmly. "No. My brother is not going to do that. But we need to know how you obtained Penelope."

   "A man named Anubis approached me and said he had an elephant for sale."

   Theo staggered backward. "Sergei, you fool. Did you not check the animal's papers?"

   "Papers?" Sergei asked. "Elephants don't come with papers!"

   "Well, surely you must have some way of determining if an animal is stolen," Damian spat. "Do you have any idea who Anubis is?"

   "An elephant dealer."

   "No!" Theo shook his head. "What have you done? Come, we must go to Damian's library!"

   Nick followed Theo as he and Damian raced from the classroom and down the hall. "What is it, Theo?"

   "The hieroglyphics were the clue all along!"

D amian's library was crammed to overflowing with books on magic on shelves that rose up every wall to the top of the room. Theo ran to the ladder that took him to the shelves up near the mural-covered ceiling. He pulled an enormous old volume down and descended the ladder in a
whoosh, finall
y setting the book on a table.

   The cover had hieroglyphics on it. It opened itself, and Theo pointed as pages turned. In the center page, when the pages stopped turning, Nick saw that the volume was filled with the intricate picture-drawings of ancient Egypt.

   "This is the oldest book the family owns, from the Library of Alexandria, rescued from its destruction. And this, Sergei—this is Anubis."

   Rising from the pages, one of the hieroglyphics formed into a three-dimensional figure. It had the head of a jackal and the body of a man, and it held a flail and an ankh. Its eyes were dark and piercing.

   "He is, in Egyptian symbolism, the protector of the dead," Theo explained. "While his appearance might be frightening, to the Egyptians, he is part of the circle of life, the circle of magic. But over time, Anubis aligned himself with the darker arts."

   Nick gulped.

   Damian's face was stormy. He whirled toward Sergei, who lurked shamefully in the doorway. "You got the elephant from Anubis? Sergei—you will be a flea on a
flea's bottom o
n the rear end of a pig!"

   Sergei crept forward and peered at the Anubis in the middle of the book. The jackal bared its teeth, showing its canines. "He did not look like that. How was I to know?" Then a look of horror crossed his face.

   "What, Sergei?" Nick asked. "Tell us. Even the smallest detail might help."

   "He wore an ankh ring. I can see it in my mind now, clear as my own hand: a gold ring in the shape of an ankh. I am so sorry. So sorry." He brought his hands to his face.

   "Sergei," said Theo. "It matters not how this unfortunate turn of events occurred. All that matters is getting Isabella back. Penelope back."

   "I still don't understand," Nick said.

   "Penelope was the original keeper of the Pyramid of Souls since the time of Alexander. Alexander's soothsayer must have cast a spell over her and charged her with originally safeguarding it. Over time, though, like so many of our relics, the Pyramid of Souls was stolen, changed hands, gambled away. When humans came in contact with our relics, they just saw gold or jewels, not the magical powers contained within the relics. Penelope herself changed hands many times, perhaps hiding her identity as a simple circus elephant. Atsu and Siti's family are her latest keepers, but they did not know her history. They do not have the animal arts in their bloodline. When it was time to come to the convention, they brought the pyramid with them and left the elephant at home, not realizing the extent of the bond between animal and relic."

   "And in Rasputin's quest for all the magical artifacts ever forged and created, in his insatiable thirst for power, the time had finally come," Damian continued, his eyes narrowing. "The Shadowkeepers must have seen their chance to steal the pyramid. Anubis must have known all along that if he could separate the elephant from the pyramid, the relic would be especially vulnerable—and if the Pyramid of Souls were in the hands of the Shadowkeepers—he could rule with them in fear and death. He disguised himself, sold the elephant to our ridiculous friend Sergei, and planned his thievery with Maria and Rasputin, no doubt. He did not intend for the ancient elephant to get sold into our family. I am sure when he sold her to Sergei, he thought she would end up in a circus, performing, quite literally, for peanuts. When Maria was in the stalls and saw the elephant, he needed to act."

   Nick's eyes widened. "Can Anubis change shape?"

   "Of course," said Damian.

   "When Maria was here, she had a wolf-life creature with her. But…it wasn't a wolf. It was a
jackal!"

   "We are all in danger until the Pyramid of Souls is returned to the Magickeepers," Theo stated. "And to the elephant."

   "We must go find Jahi," Damian added. "He will perhaps know how we can recover it."

   "We have to hurry," Nick urged. "What happens to people after they're in the Pyramid of Souls?"

   "The longer they remain, the harder it is to retrieve them," Theo replied. "Like those buried with the pharaoh, some souls remain there forever." He closed the book, trapping the hieroglyphics inside. "Let us see what Jahi knows about the Jackal."

   The four of them hurried from the library and took the hotel elevator to Jahi's room. He did not answer the door when Damian knocked, so in true Damian fashion, they walked
through
the door.

   There, they found Jahi wringing his hands and talking to himself.

"Jahi! Jahi!" Damian shouted. "What is it?"

   But the man was in a trance and would not communicate. Nick looked around the room, searching for clues.

   He found one.

   A raven's feather.

   "Theo…I'm going to go find Sascha. She'll be worried."

   "Good idea."

   Nick left, but instead of going to find Sascha, he scrambled up to his own room. He wanted to Gaze without being under the watchful eyes of his cousins. He found Sascha anyway—she was waiting for him outside his door.

   "Hey there," Nick leaned down and hugged his cousin's tiger. He buried his face in Sascha's thick fur. "We'll get her back. I promise you." He could barely speak. His pain over Isabella was like a stone lodged in his throat.

   He opened the door to his room and the tiger followed him inside. Nick took a deep breath.
Gaze with a true heart.
That was what Theo always told him. Gaze without though
t
for personal gain.
Never had Gazing been so important as that moment.

   He touched the key he wore around his neck, as if to conjure the power of his mother. Then he walked to his crystal ball and placed his hands on it, shutting his eyes in concentration and willing a vision to come to him.

   "Nick!" He heard Isabella's voice. He opened his eyes. Isabella's face was inside the ball.

   "Nick! Theo! Damian! Irina! Penelope and I are trapped!"

   Nick touched the ball. "Isabella, don't be afraid. I'm going to come find you!"

   As soon as he touched the ball, Isabella's face disappeared. Instead, he saw Rasputin.

   "Nicholai Rostov," the monk said in a cruel, mocking voice. "We meet again."

   "I
knew
you had to be behind this." Nick glared at the Shadowkeeper.

   "Indeed. It's very simple, Nicholai. I will capture the souls of all the people you love. I already have Isabella. Next it will be the Grand Duchess. Irina. Your grandfather.
Theo. I wil
l take them one by one."

   "Why not take me first? Why go after them?"

   The monk laughed, his howl cackling and echoing in the room. Sascha reared on her hind legs and roared. Vlad hid his head beneath his tiny paws.

   "What would be the fun in that?" Rasputin asked, his mad eyes flashing. "I want you to suffer, Nicholai. I want you to see everyone you love vanish into my possession."

   As Nick listened to Rasputin, he realized that the evil monk sounded almost exactly like Alexander the Great. Clearly, the Shadowkeeper lineage extended as far back as the Magickeepers. And no amount of power and suffering was enough for them.

   "Why is it that you want me to suffer?" Nick hissed. "What have I ever done to harm you?"

   Rasputin leaned forward, his face pressed against the glass. "Do you forget the Eternal Hourglass you stole from me?"

   Nick stared at him. There was no use in mentioning Rasputin started this latest conflict. "I don't forget. But…you sent Shadowkeepers to try to kill me."

   "Not kill you, persuade you to join us. Nicholai Rostov, it's not what you
have
done. It is what you
will
do."

   "I don't understand."

   "From the moment you looked in Madame Bogdonovich's crystal ball and could see Egypt, I knew you were the one destined to destroy me once and for all. Damian, Theo… and now you: the
only
Gazer born in this generation. The only one. In that entire convention, do you know that you are the only Gazer other than Theo and Damian? So it's quite simple. I will destroy all you love until you join me—until your bitterness is so all-consuming that you share my hunger for power, and you share my magic."

   Nick glared at him. "I'll join you right now, if that's what you want. You just need to release Isabella and Penelope and all the rest of the people you took from Sanctuary."

   "A trade."

"Exactly."

   "Last time we enacted a trade, you betrayed me. You tricked me. You ended up with the Eternal Hourglass."

   "This is an even trade. I will join you if you return the Pyramid of Souls to the Magickeepers."

   "And you consider that an even trade?"

   "If what you say is true, then don't you?" Nick asked.

   The madman laughed. "You strike a hard bargain. But this time, my little Magickeeper, we're going to meet alone. And not in the desert. This time, you will not use trickery to defeat me."

   Nick tried to think of someplace in open sight where he could meet Rasputin. He thought of his grandfather and his dad. "Okay. No sand. This time, I will meet you in the center of the Hoover Dam."

   "Fine, my friend."

   "I am
not
your friend."

   "The dam. I will arrive with the Pyramid of Souls. If I see Theo or Damian, I will throw the pyramid into the water, and that will be the end of it. Do you understand me? You may bring the Egyptian twins. Just the children. They can take the Pyramid of Souls home to Egypt, and you will come with me."

   "How do I know I can trust you?"

   "You don't," Rasputin said menacingly. "Nor do I know if

I can trust you. But I'm your only chance of Isabella surviving, so I suggest you take me up on my offer."

   "Yes," Nick said. "It's a deal."

   The crystal ball went dark, and Sascha stared up at Nick with pleading eyes.

   "I know, I know, Sascha." He sighed. "But what choice do I have?"

So you understand why we have to keep this secret, right?" Nick asked Atsu and Siti later that evening.

   Siti nodded. "Poor Nanu. That is the elephant you call Penelope. We left home weeks ago with the pyramid, and spent time with family in Africa. We did not know Nanu was gone. A spell was cast on our elephant keeper."

   "
Nanu." Nick repeated the name. "That's really nice. Wha
t does it mean?"

   "'Beautiful,'" said Siti. "She has a beautiful soul."

   Atsu said, "Our father is beside himself. He feels responsible. Nanu was kidnapped. The pyramid was stolen. This is all our fault."

   "No." Nick shook his head. "Rasputin wants every magic artifact ever forged or created. He can't have too much power. Just like Alexander the Great. Alexander murdered all his enemies. He enslaved the wives and children of whole cities. Is Rasputin any different? Is his daughter any different?"

   None of them spoke for a moment.

   "How do we look?" asked Siti finally.

   "Like two tourists. What about me?" He peered down at his clothes, which he had bought in the hotel gift shop. The three of them wore Las Vegas T-shirts, sunglasses—even though the sun had set—baseball caps, sneakers, and sweatpants.

   "Like an American tourist," said Atsu.

   "Now listen." Nick spoke solemnly. "Don't worry about me. You just worry about the Pyramid of Souls."

   "But," Siti said, touching his arm, "you are our friend."

   "I'll be fine. I have a plan."