all the ingredients together and enter the process called “the Blackening.” So the alchemists put the issue of the Philosopher’s Stone on the back burner for a moment; their immediate concern was to come up with a plan to defeat Demian in battle.
The Demon King wanted them to deliver the Stone to him in the Ironwood. So, they would meet him in the Ironwood. It seemed as appropriate a place as any to go to war.
War. Donna’s stomach cramped just thinking about it as she forced a sandwich down. She needed to find Navin and Xan, tell them what was happening. Warn them as soon as possible. Part of her wanted them safely out of the way when the shit hit the fan—which it was absolutely bound to, because this was her life and they were dealing with a demon, after all—but she also knew there was no way they’d leave her to face things alone.
Then again, as much as she hated to even think it, she might need their help as she tried to create the Stone. With the various alchemical Orders trying to make plans across continents, she was pretty much on her own. Robert Lee wouldn’t be able to arrive until Imbolc; other alchemists would join them when they could, but their numbers were severely diminished in these modern times—and too many of them were elderly and unfit for battle. Yet despite the long odds of winning a battle with the demons, the alchemists had given up on trying to create the Stone before they’d even started. They figured that it was impossible.
But Donna had a lot of experience with the “impossible,” and she wasn’t giving up any time soon. Not while there was still a chance to save two cities filled with millions of people. Not while she was still breathing.
She looked around at the gathered alchemists. There was still no sign of Aunt Paige or Maker. As soon as the others paused for breath, she spoke up. “To return to the topic of the Stone for a moment … tell me more about these artifacts that we need and who has what. There are four ingredients total, right?”
Rachel shook her head. “Five, actually—it’s complicated. The fifth ingredient is a problem.”
“Well, what is it?” Donna waited.
Quentin cleared his throat. “Let’s start with the more straightforward items. The Ouroboros Blade is in Faerie. Queen Isolde holds it safely.”
Donna stared at him. That was “straightforward”?
Miranda continued. “And the wood elves are the keepers of the Cup of Hermes. The Philosopher’s Stone is made from a liquid that needs to be drunk from that cup.”
Donna’s mind was already working, trying to figure out how she could possibly bargain these things away from the fey.
Simon wouldn’t meet her eyes when he spoke. “The Underworld protects the Gallows Tree. On that tree grows a silver pear, the only one of its kind—a single piece of fruit untouched by time. The Gallows Tree stands in the Grove of Thorns, which is the one place in Hell that no demon can enter. Even a king. Only one piece of fruit grows at a time, and without it the Philosopher’s Stone can’t be created.”
“So Demian can’t actually get us the fruit himself,” Donna mused. “Convenient.”
Rachel spoke up. “There are legends—different versions, so nobody really knows the true story—as to why the Grove is a sacred space. I don’t think the reasons matter right now. If we even attempt to create the Stone, we’ll need that pear. Yet there’s no easy way to enter a place of death.”
“Not without dying,” Simon muttered. It was a totally unnecessary thing to say, but also totally a Simon thing to say.
Everybody glared at the Magus.
Donna ignored him and counted the items off on her fingers. “We need the blade, the cup, the gallows fruit, and I have the first matter already—the spark that binds it all together.”
Quentin nodded. “The prima materia guides whomever holds it. If you follow your intuition, you should be able to create the Stone on instinct alone. However, the Silent Book also holds the instructions for how to create the Stone—the method for the recipe, if you like. Our copy is right here in the library. You’d better take a look at it, if you’re determined to follow this course of action. You’ve seen it before during your studies. It also has a map of the Ironwood that shows where the most powerful ley line is located.”
“Ley line?”
“You’d need to be standing as close