Judd shook his head and stared at the ground for a long time without speaking. What I’d just said had clearly affected him. Then I noticed his hands – they were shaking.
‘What’s wrong?’ I asked.
‘This is going from bad to worse. From what you’ve just told me, the witches are attempting to summon Siscoi, the greatest and most powerful of the Old Gods in Romania. Their spooks have many successful methods for dealing with ordinary vampiric entities such as witches, elementals and daemons, but the vampire god is truly dangerous – we are utterly powerless against him.’
The name sounded familiar. Again, I was annoyed at myself for not reading the Spook’s Bestiary more carefully. I was sure it had made some reference to Siscoi. ‘Is it easy to summon him?’ I asked. ‘Some of the Old Gods are difficult to bring to our world.’
‘That they are, Tom, and they can turn on those who summon them,’ Judd replied. ‘Some welcome the chance to destroy those who dabble in the dark. But unfortunately for us, Siscoi is different. He loves being worshipped and looks kindly upon those who bring him through a portal into this world. Romanian witches are able to summon him at midnight, but he can stay here only until dawn. That’s the good news. The bad news is that even from his domain in the dark, he can temporarily send out his spirit to reanimate the dead or possess the living. So you might think you’re dealing with a strigoi, and then, too late, you realize that the silver blade on the end of your staff is having no effect because it’s Siscoi. And that’s the end of you. There’s nothing to be done.’
‘What about this?’ I asked, drawing the Destiny Blade.
Judd whistled through his teeth and his face lit up in admiration. ‘Can I examine it?’ he asked.
I nodded and handed him the weapon.
‘So this is the sword you used to kill two strigoi hosts,’ he said, studying the hilt closely. ‘The skelt has been skilfully wrought, and those rubies that form its eyes are priceless. How did such a weapon come into your possession?’
‘It was given to me in the Hollow Hills by Cuchulain, one of the ancient heroes of Ireland. It was forged by the Old God Hephaestus. He made only three swords, and this is supposed to be the best of them.’
‘Well, Tom, you certainly mix in exalted circles. Made by one of the Old Gods, you say! I wonder if it has the power to slay one of their number?’ Judd asked.
‘I used it against the Morrigan – it didn’t destroy her, but it slowed her down and gave me a chance to escape,’ I explained.
‘You fought the Morrigan?’
‘It was in the Hollow Hills, just after Cuchulain gave me the blade.’
‘You’ve certainly had an eventful apprenticeship. I never ventured out of the County. No wonder I got the urge to travel and ended up in this mess,’ Judd said, handing me the blade. ‘But even if it could damage Siscoi, you’d never get near him. Vampiric entities can be fast, but nothing compared to him. You’d be dead before you knew it.’
My ability to slow time would give me a fighting chance of wounding Siscoi with the sword, but it didn’t mean I could put an end to him. The Old Gods had great powers of regeneration. Using the blade against the Morrigan had just bought me sufficient time to make my escape. However, I didn’t bother to correct Judd – it wasn’t wise to tell him too much. I didn’t tell him about Bone Cutter either. If the daemons put pressure on him in the future, he might tell them what he knew about me. So instead I asked him a question.
‘So what was that light shining out of the ground? How do the witches raise Siscoi?’
‘They create an offal pit,’ Judd replied. ‘First they search for a deep fissure in the ground. It has to be in a special location where dark magic is particularly potent. Over a period of weeks, they drop blood and offal down into it – mainly slices of raw liver. When combined with rituals and dark spells, this generates tremendous power within the pit – the beam is just a fraction of this escaping into the air. Siscoi grows himself a body by feeding on the offal and blood. When he is ready, the witches come at midnight to complete the final ritual. Then he climbs out of the pit within his flesh host, existing in the same manner as the Fiend. From what you’ve described, it seems that the witches’ rituals have reached the point where he is almost ready to emerge. It could happen at any time – maybe even at midnight tonight.’
‘What could be their purpose for summoning him right now?’ I asked.
‘They might just want to worship him. In return, he’ll give them power. But they’ve already tried to pressure you into bringing Grimalkin here. They want the Fiend’s head badly. Siscoi is fast, and once in the flesh can cover great distances rapidly. He might go after Grimalkin himself. After that you might be second on his list.’
‘SO WE NEED to find a way to stop Siscoi,’ I said.
Judd gave me a humourless grin. ‘There’s nothing I’d like better. At this time of year it’s about four and a half hours from midnight to dawn. He could do a lot of damage in that time. But all my training in Romania doesn’t give me the slightest inkling of how it could be done. And even if we had the means, the witches would be there within seconds.’
‘Not if we do it during daylight hours. They’ll be sleeping then. If warned, could they still project their souls from their bodies when the sun is shining?’
‘I’ve never heard of such a thing – though it might be possible. I assume you’re thinking of attacking Siscoi while he’s still forming in the pit. What have you in mind, Tom?’
‘I’d like to try one of the oldest tricks in a spook’s repertoire – salt and iron,’ I said.
Judd shook his head. ‘We’d most likely be wasting our time. Salt and iron don’t work against Romanian witches, elementals or daemons.’
‘They don’t usually work against the Old Gods, either. But that’s when they are fully awake and ready to rend the flesh from your bones. Siscoi is still growing his body from the blood and offal in the pit. I’m sure salt could burn that vulnerable half-formed body, and iron might bleed away its strength. They might not stop him, but they could slow him down and give us a chance to search for my master. What do you say? Isn’t it worth a try? Let’s do it now while the sun’s still shining! We can tip salt and iron into the offal pit and then deal with the sleeping witches one by one.’