Playing with Fire (Skulduggery Pleasant, Book 2) by Derek Landy Page A
Authors: Derek Landy
Tags: Fiction, General, Humorous stories, All Ages, Children's Books, Fantasy, Action & Adventure, Juvenile Fiction, Action & Adventure - General, Magic, Fantasy & Magic, Science Fiction; Fantasy; & Magic, Children: Grades 4-6, Horror & Ghost Stories
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lungs burned like they used to do when she was swimming off Haggard beach. She liked swimming. It was much better than being squashed.
And then, a light ahead of her, a flickering flame in the hand of Skulduggery Pleasant.
"It would be a tad redundant," he called out
147
over the rumbling, "to encourage you to hurry up, wouldn't it?"
She let the fire in her own hand go out and concentrated on sprinting.
"Whatever you do," he continued loudly, "do not fall over. Falling over, I think, would be the wrong move to make at this moment."
She was close, close to Skulduggery, close to that wide-open space he was standing in.
The walls ahead of her shook and rumbled and started to close, and she dove through, hit the floor, and rolled to her feet as the corridor closed behind her and the rumbling stopped. She fell to her knees and sucked in air.
"Well," Skulduggery said cheerfully. "That was close."
"Hate ..." she gasped.
"Yes?"
"Hate . . . you. . . ."
"Breathe some more air; the lack of oxygen is making you delirious."
She got to her feet, but stayed bent over while she controlled her breathing.
"We'd better be careful," he advised. "The Torment may be old, but he's fast, and he's agile,
148
and he still has my gun."
"Where . . . are we?"
"One unsavory aspect of Roar haven's checkered past was an attempt, some years ago, to overthrow the Council of Elders and establish a new Sanctuary here. We're in what was supposed to be the main building."
Valkyrie saw a switch on the wall and thumbed it. A few lights flickered on overhead. Most of them stayed off.
Skulduggery let the flame in his hand go out, and they followed the corridor, then turned right and kept going. They walked through small patches of light and larger patches of darkness. The floor was covered in dust.
He turned his head slightly. She knew him well enough to know when something was wrong.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Keep walking," he said quietly. "We're not alone."
Valkyrie's mouth went dry. She tried to read the air, like Skulduggery was doing, but even on her best day she couldn't sense more than a few feet in any direction. She gave up, and resisted the urge to look around. "Where is he?"
149
"It's not him. I don't know what they are, but there are dozens of them, relatively small, moving as a pack."
"They might be kittens," she said hopefully.
"They're stalking us."
"They might be shy."
"I don't think it's kittens, Valkyrie."
"Puppies, then?"
Something scuttled in the darkness beside them.
"Keep walking," Skulduggery said.
There was scuttling behind them now.
"Eyes straight."
And then they broke from the shadows ahead, into the light: spiders, black and hairy and bloated, as big as rats, legs tipped with talons.
"Okay," Skulduggery said. "I think we can stop walking now."
The spiders emerged from cracks in the wall, moving across the ceiling, clacking as they came. Valkyrie and Skulduggery stood back to back, watching them close in. They each had three eyes, wide and hungry and unblinking.
"When I count to three," Skulduggery said quietly, "we run, all right?"
150
"All right."
The spiders clacked as they moved, closing in, drawing in tighter, the clacking becoming a din.
"In fact," Skulduggery said, "forget about the count. Just run."
Valkyrie bolted and the spiders attacked.
She jumped over the spiders in front, landing and kicking out as one of them got too close. It was heavy against her boot, but she didn't wait to see if she had done any damage. She ran on as Skulduggery hurled fireballs.
They swerved off course when the corridor ahead became alive with hairy, bloated bodies, then ran into a room with a large conference table in its center, the mass behind them quickly growing in size.
A spider scuttled onto the tabletop and sprang at Valkyrie as she passed. It struck her back and clung on, trying to sink its talons through her coat. Valkyrie yelled out and swung around, stumbling as she did so, rolling and feeling
And then, a light ahead of her, a flickering flame in the hand of Skulduggery Pleasant.
"It would be a tad redundant," he called out
147
over the rumbling, "to encourage you to hurry up, wouldn't it?"
She let the fire in her own hand go out and concentrated on sprinting.
"Whatever you do," he continued loudly, "do not fall over. Falling over, I think, would be the wrong move to make at this moment."
She was close, close to Skulduggery, close to that wide-open space he was standing in.
The walls ahead of her shook and rumbled and started to close, and she dove through, hit the floor, and rolled to her feet as the corridor closed behind her and the rumbling stopped. She fell to her knees and sucked in air.
"Well," Skulduggery said cheerfully. "That was close."
"Hate ..." she gasped.
"Yes?"
"Hate . . . you. . . ."
"Breathe some more air; the lack of oxygen is making you delirious."
She got to her feet, but stayed bent over while she controlled her breathing.
"We'd better be careful," he advised. "The Torment may be old, but he's fast, and he's agile,
148
and he still has my gun."
"Where . . . are we?"
"One unsavory aspect of Roar haven's checkered past was an attempt, some years ago, to overthrow the Council of Elders and establish a new Sanctuary here. We're in what was supposed to be the main building."
Valkyrie saw a switch on the wall and thumbed it. A few lights flickered on overhead. Most of them stayed off.
Skulduggery let the flame in his hand go out, and they followed the corridor, then turned right and kept going. They walked through small patches of light and larger patches of darkness. The floor was covered in dust.
He turned his head slightly. She knew him well enough to know when something was wrong.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Keep walking," he said quietly. "We're not alone."
Valkyrie's mouth went dry. She tried to read the air, like Skulduggery was doing, but even on her best day she couldn't sense more than a few feet in any direction. She gave up, and resisted the urge to look around. "Where is he?"
149
"It's not him. I don't know what they are, but there are dozens of them, relatively small, moving as a pack."
"They might be kittens," she said hopefully.
"They're stalking us."
"They might be shy."
"I don't think it's kittens, Valkyrie."
"Puppies, then?"
Something scuttled in the darkness beside them.
"Keep walking," Skulduggery said.
There was scuttling behind them now.
"Eyes straight."
And then they broke from the shadows ahead, into the light: spiders, black and hairy and bloated, as big as rats, legs tipped with talons.
"Okay," Skulduggery said. "I think we can stop walking now."
The spiders emerged from cracks in the wall, moving across the ceiling, clacking as they came. Valkyrie and Skulduggery stood back to back, watching them close in. They each had three eyes, wide and hungry and unblinking.
"When I count to three," Skulduggery said quietly, "we run, all right?"
150
"All right."
The spiders clacked as they moved, closing in, drawing in tighter, the clacking becoming a din.
"In fact," Skulduggery said, "forget about the count. Just run."
Valkyrie bolted and the spiders attacked.
She jumped over the spiders in front, landing and kicking out as one of them got too close. It was heavy against her boot, but she didn't wait to see if she had done any damage. She ran on as Skulduggery hurled fireballs.
They swerved off course when the corridor ahead became alive with hairy, bloated bodies, then ran into a room with a large conference table in its center, the mass behind them quickly growing in size.
A spider scuttled onto the tabletop and sprang at Valkyrie as she passed. It struck her back and clung on, trying to sink its talons through her coat. Valkyrie yelled out and swung around, stumbling as she did so, rolling and feeling
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