Skulduggery Pleasant: Kingdom of the Wicked
Derek Landy
Fantasy
260/390
Summary
Lament and his group haven't come to imprison Argeddion, but to wake him. It turns out that Lament and his team have actually been under Argeddion's control for some time. Just shutting off the Cube wouldn't work, because there would be the chance that Argeddion would stay in his coma, so Lament is going to use the Accelerator as a defibrillator; to shock him awake. Skulduggery and Valkyrie sneak to the Accelerator room, to try and stop Lament before it's too late, but instead they walk in on Argeddion. Argeddion tells them that everything- the mortals gaining magic, the Summer of Light- is an experiment he is conducting. He tells them that he plans on bringing magic out into the open. He says that sorcerers have been hoarding magic for centuries, and he plans on gifting it to the rest of the world. He says it will be an Age of Enlightment. Utopia. Skulduggery begs to differ. He says that when people receive the magic, they won't be happy with just that. Humans never are. They will scramble to be on top; they will start wars and they will kill each other. 'The human race will wipe itself out'.
Argeddion turns to Skulduggery. He disappears, and comes back holding the armor of Lord Vile, Skulduggery's dark side, much like Valkyrie's Darquesse. Argeddion gets rid of the armor, eliminating the risk of Skulduggery coming after him wearing it. Then, he turns to Valkyrie. He needs to also eliminate Darquesse. He puts his hand to Valkyrie's head and puts up a wall, blocking Darquesse so that she can't come out while Argeddion is still alive. He is going to start everything on May first, with, he says, the help of the Accelerator and a 'surprise guest'. Then, he disappears to continue his experiments and Skulduggery and Valkyrie are led outside.
When they exit the force field, ghastly and Ravel are waiting for them. They settle down and talk about what happened. Valkyrie thinks about what Argeddion did. As much as she wants to deny it, she misses the power of Darquesse. She misses the feel of the possibility of people able to be the most powerful person around. But she doesn't want to talk to Skulduggery about that. Thankfully, he's out working. there was a prison break and eight had escaped, including Silas Nadir, the shunter. Valkyrie turns to the Elders, and puts out the idea that Argeddions plan may not be all that bad. If everyone had magic, they would be equal, right? But the Elders disagree. They say that if everyone could suddenly use magic there would be a fight for dominance. The entire order of the world would be flipped around and as each country struggles to the top millions would die. Many sorcerers have the potential to be incredibly destructive, and in a world with so many different beliefs and ideals, one group of such people could bring the whole world down.
Skulduggery comes in with no news. Argeddion has disappeared without a trace. They need to find out who this surprise guest is. They say that maybe Greta Dapple, Argeddion's old girlfriend, can help, because the start of the Summer of Light is set to begin on May first, her birthday.
Skulduggery drives Valkyrie home, and Valkyrie drops in her window to find her reflection, a 'clone' of herself to take her place while she's out with Skulduggery, waiting for her. They talk about Darquesse. Valkyrie tells her reflection about how she misses the power, but the reflection points out the danger. The reflection says how, last time Darquesse came out, Skulduggery was there, but he might not be able to later. Also, the reflection points out, Valkyrie's relationship with Skulduggery has deepened. Skulduggery would not be able to pull the trigger on her, even if she turned Darquesse.
In the middle of the night, Valkyrie jerks awake, her arm throbbing. She grabs her phone and her magic ring but she trips and the ring rolls out of her grip. She touches the mirror to bring out her reflection, and grabs for her clothes but suddenly the bedroom floor is gone and she's falling, and she lands, hard on the ground, in her underwear and a T-shirt, phone in hand, her only consolation being that she managed to bring out her reflection so her family wouldn't notice her gone. Then she turns to find her reflection sitting beside her and that hope drains away.
They find themselves back in the dimension that Valkyrie shunted into, and her hometown is gone, replaced by a small village.She and her reflection find some clothes, and walk through the village, watching all the mortals (people without magic) working on their farms. They see a woman calling for help, and despite her better judgement, Valkyrie goes to help her. The woman tells her that her son was taken, and Valkyrie offers to help, even though her reflection warns her of the dangers. The woman takes Valkyrie to a Barge, a flying craft that she needs Valkyrie to break into. However, as a hatch in the Barge opens, the woman hits Valkyrie on the head with a rock, and tries to trade her for her son.
Meanwhile, Elsie comes to the place where Kitana, Doran and Sean fought Skulduggery and Valkyrie. She asks to speak to someone in charge, and she convinces the supervisor of rebuilding to let her talk to a mage. Skulduggery Pleasant shows up and takes her to the Sanctuary. On the way, he asks her about Kitana, Doran and Sean. She describes them for him. She tells him how Kitana just wants excuses to hurt people. They discuss how to stop her.
Valkyrie is taken in to the rich part of the country, where the sorcerers live, and is taken to see Mevolent, a great, though terrible, sorcerer who, in her world, was defeated. She glances over at a case and starts. In it is an armor, and armor that Mevolent wears. But what catches her attention is not the armor but a small golden staff, a black crystal embedded in its hilt. The Sceptre of the Ancients, the most powerful weapon in the world. If she could just get that, they could defeat Argeddion- Mevolent walks in, and begins talking. It seems these people believe that she is a member of the Resistance, a band of sorcerers that is rebelling against Mevolent. Mevolent tries to coax information out of her. When she can't answer his questions, he sends her to the dungeon. But before she is taken, she hears footsteps-and is delighted to recognize that they are Skulduggery's. She turns to look at him and finds Lord Vile.
When Valkyrie enters the dungeon, she finds the alternate reality former Grand Mage (chief Elder) Eachan Meritirous, who died in her reality. She convinces him that she is from an alternate universe, and tells him about her world and the differences.
Valkyrie dozes off, and wakes to someone shaking her. It's a prison break. Her reflection has gotten a hold of the Resistance, and they have come to rescue her, along with others that are imprisoned unfairly. Valkyrie sees people she knows (sort of), like Ghastly. They are freeing people, when suddenly someone spots Lord Vile, who has come to stop the prison break. Ghastly makes symbols on the walls to slow Vile down, and while Vile is distracted, they use a Teleporter they had captured to teleport away. They come to a place where people are waiting for them, and there are happy reunions. Valkyrie finds her reflection and catches up, until Ghastly comes to take Valkyrie to the Resistance leader. It turns out to be China Sorrows, an old friend of Valkyrie's on the other side. China invites Valkyrie to join the Resistance. Afterwards, Valkyrie's arm starts throbbing again, and she knows that she will shunt soon. She notices a man who seems very anxious. She tells Ghastly, along with a theory that Mevolent might have put a spy in the dungeon. Ghastly gives an order to disperse the crowd, and goes to confront the man, but Lord Vile appears. Ghastly immediately goes to attack Vile, but gets killed for his efforts. Bloodshed follows, and the throbbing in Valkyrie's arm gets stronger. She runs toward her reflection, and their fingers almost touch- and then Valkyrie is gone, and the reflection was left behind.
Response
I'm really enjoying this book, because it's getting very suspenseful, and the action is speeding up. The plot is tangling itself up, but that just makes it more suspenseful. I don't really have a prediction for future reading, I only think that maybe the next time Valkyrie shunts, she will have to get her reflection back and the Sceptre to defeat Argeddion.
Derek Landy
Fantasy
260/390
Summary
Lament and his group haven't come to imprison Argeddion, but to wake him. It turns out that Lament and his team have actually been under Argeddion's control for some time. Just shutting off the Cube wouldn't work, because there would be the chance that Argeddion would stay in his coma, so Lament is going to use the Accelerator as a defibrillator; to shock him awake. Skulduggery and Valkyrie sneak to the Accelerator room, to try and stop Lament before it's too late, but instead they walk in on Argeddion. Argeddion tells them that everything- the mortals gaining magic, the Summer of Light- is an experiment he is conducting. He tells them that he plans on bringing magic out into the open. He says that sorcerers have been hoarding magic for centuries, and he plans on gifting it to the rest of the world. He says it will be an Age of Enlightment. Utopia. Skulduggery begs to differ. He says that when people receive the magic, they won't be happy with just that. Humans never are. They will scramble to be on top; they will start wars and they will kill each other. 'The human race will wipe itself out'.
Argeddion turns to Skulduggery. He disappears, and comes back holding the armor of Lord Vile, Skulduggery's dark side, much like Valkyrie's Darquesse. Argeddion gets rid of the armor, eliminating the risk of Skulduggery coming after him wearing it. Then, he turns to Valkyrie. He needs to also eliminate Darquesse. He puts his hand to Valkyrie's head and puts up a wall, blocking Darquesse so that she can't come out while Argeddion is still alive. He is going to start everything on May first, with, he says, the help of the Accelerator and a 'surprise guest'. Then, he disappears to continue his experiments and Skulduggery and Valkyrie are led outside.
When they exit the force field, ghastly and Ravel are waiting for them. They settle down and talk about what happened. Valkyrie thinks about what Argeddion did. As much as she wants to deny it, she misses the power of Darquesse. She misses the feel of the possibility of people able to be the most powerful person around. But she doesn't want to talk to Skulduggery about that. Thankfully, he's out working. there was a prison break and eight had escaped, including Silas Nadir, the shunter. Valkyrie turns to the Elders, and puts out the idea that Argeddions plan may not be all that bad. If everyone had magic, they would be equal, right? But the Elders disagree. They say that if everyone could suddenly use magic there would be a fight for dominance. The entire order of the world would be flipped around and as each country struggles to the top millions would die. Many sorcerers have the potential to be incredibly destructive, and in a world with so many different beliefs and ideals, one group of such people could bring the whole world down.
Skulduggery comes in with no news. Argeddion has disappeared without a trace. They need to find out who this surprise guest is. They say that maybe Greta Dapple, Argeddion's old girlfriend, can help, because the start of the Summer of Light is set to begin on May first, her birthday.
Skulduggery drives Valkyrie home, and Valkyrie drops in her window to find her reflection, a 'clone' of herself to take her place while she's out with Skulduggery, waiting for her. They talk about Darquesse. Valkyrie tells her reflection about how she misses the power, but the reflection points out the danger. The reflection says how, last time Darquesse came out, Skulduggery was there, but he might not be able to later. Also, the reflection points out, Valkyrie's relationship with Skulduggery has deepened. Skulduggery would not be able to pull the trigger on her, even if she turned Darquesse.
In the middle of the night, Valkyrie jerks awake, her arm throbbing. She grabs her phone and her magic ring but she trips and the ring rolls out of her grip. She touches the mirror to bring out her reflection, and grabs for her clothes but suddenly the bedroom floor is gone and she's falling, and she lands, hard on the ground, in her underwear and a T-shirt, phone in hand, her only consolation being that she managed to bring out her reflection so her family wouldn't notice her gone. Then she turns to find her reflection sitting beside her and that hope drains away.
They find themselves back in the dimension that Valkyrie shunted into, and her hometown is gone, replaced by a small village.She and her reflection find some clothes, and walk through the village, watching all the mortals (people without magic) working on their farms. They see a woman calling for help, and despite her better judgement, Valkyrie goes to help her. The woman tells her that her son was taken, and Valkyrie offers to help, even though her reflection warns her of the dangers. The woman takes Valkyrie to a Barge, a flying craft that she needs Valkyrie to break into. However, as a hatch in the Barge opens, the woman hits Valkyrie on the head with a rock, and tries to trade her for her son.
Meanwhile, Elsie comes to the place where Kitana, Doran and Sean fought Skulduggery and Valkyrie. She asks to speak to someone in charge, and she convinces the supervisor of rebuilding to let her talk to a mage. Skulduggery Pleasant shows up and takes her to the Sanctuary. On the way, he asks her about Kitana, Doran and Sean. She describes them for him. She tells him how Kitana just wants excuses to hurt people. They discuss how to stop her.
Valkyrie is taken in to the rich part of the country, where the sorcerers live, and is taken to see Mevolent, a great, though terrible, sorcerer who, in her world, was defeated. She glances over at a case and starts. In it is an armor, and armor that Mevolent wears. But what catches her attention is not the armor but a small golden staff, a black crystal embedded in its hilt. The Sceptre of the Ancients, the most powerful weapon in the world. If she could just get that, they could defeat Argeddion- Mevolent walks in, and begins talking. It seems these people believe that she is a member of the Resistance, a band of sorcerers that is rebelling against Mevolent. Mevolent tries to coax information out of her. When she can't answer his questions, he sends her to the dungeon. But before she is taken, she hears footsteps-and is delighted to recognize that they are Skulduggery's. She turns to look at him and finds Lord Vile.
When Valkyrie enters the dungeon, she finds the alternate reality former Grand Mage (chief Elder) Eachan Meritirous, who died in her reality. She convinces him that she is from an alternate universe, and tells him about her world and the differences.
Valkyrie dozes off, and wakes to someone shaking her. It's a prison break. Her reflection has gotten a hold of the Resistance, and they have come to rescue her, along with others that are imprisoned unfairly. Valkyrie sees people she knows (sort of), like Ghastly. They are freeing people, when suddenly someone spots Lord Vile, who has come to stop the prison break. Ghastly makes symbols on the walls to slow Vile down, and while Vile is distracted, they use a Teleporter they had captured to teleport away. They come to a place where people are waiting for them, and there are happy reunions. Valkyrie finds her reflection and catches up, until Ghastly comes to take Valkyrie to the Resistance leader. It turns out to be China Sorrows, an old friend of Valkyrie's on the other side. China invites Valkyrie to join the Resistance. Afterwards, Valkyrie's arm starts throbbing again, and she knows that she will shunt soon. She notices a man who seems very anxious. She tells Ghastly, along with a theory that Mevolent might have put a spy in the dungeon. Ghastly gives an order to disperse the crowd, and goes to confront the man, but Lord Vile appears. Ghastly immediately goes to attack Vile, but gets killed for his efforts. Bloodshed follows, and the throbbing in Valkyrie's arm gets stronger. She runs toward her reflection, and their fingers almost touch- and then Valkyrie is gone, and the reflection was left behind.
Response
I'm really enjoying this book, because it's getting very suspenseful, and the action is speeding up. The plot is tangling itself up, but that just makes it more suspenseful. I don't really have a prediction for future reading, I only think that maybe the next time Valkyrie shunts, she will have to get her reflection back and the Sceptre to defeat Argeddion.
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