“Ignore him.” She faces the counter. “Good morning, ma’am!”
The witch looks up from her computer screen. Her name tag reads SALLY. “Welcome to Waxbyrne! How can I help you?”
“We have a private tour scheduled for today.” Samira gulps, her expression guilty. “And, um, I’m here to buy a new Copper wand.”
“Oh, you must be quite enthusiastic about reaching Silver.” Sally hits a few buttons on her keyboard. The counter slides open in two halves. A glass bowl rises from within. It’s filled with a sort of translucent, thinly grained dust. “Please place your hand inside to confirm your status.”
Samira sinks her hand into the dust. Nothing happens at first. Then a fistful of dust flies up into the air, changing into a bright copper shade. The computer says, “Copper Wand.”
Sally hits more keys. “Excellent. You’ll turn Silver any day now.”
“Yup. Any day.” Samira’s tone is as deflated as Todd’s brain. Every witch and wizard starts out a Copper Wand. Their magic evolves as they grow older. Most stay Silver, though. Samira’s little sister, Shay, is already a Silver Wand at fourteen. Having your little sister grow into her Silver abilities before you? Super embarrassing.
Even though breaking her wand was her own fault, Samira’s doing me a huge solid by being here today. The least I can do is help her deal with my cousin’s stupidity.
“Let’s get you that wand.” I put my hand on the dust pile. After a few seconds, the dust flies up again without changing colors. The computer reads aloud, “Regular.”
The same thing happens when Mom’s and Todd’s turns are up. Mom is super chill, but Todd glares at the dust bowl as if he’s pissed about being called a Regular.
Sally says, “Regulars must remain with their magical companions at all times. Paul will help you to Level Two. You’ll meet your behind-the-scenes tour guide at the end of corridor six. Have a wonderful day!” She motions to the guard, who’s pushing the marble doors behind him.
After thanking Sally, we get into the elevator, where each button is shaped like a wand. Its letters are written in the same style as the Waxbyrne logo:
Level One: Entrance Hall
Level Two: Copper Wands
Elemental Manipulation
Level Three: Silver Wands
Elemental Manipulation and Creation
Level Four: Gold Wands
Elemental Manipulation, Creation, and Destruction
Level Five: Staff Only
Once the guard shuts the doors again, Samira presses the Level Two button. The ride down lasts about five seconds. Another guard opens the doors for us. Instead of white marble, there are walls and tiled floors dripping in penny-colored paint. Customers are scattered throughout the store, which is really thirteen corridors that span from here to forever. Skyscraper metal shelves line each side of the corridors. All sorts of wands are displayed. Long, short, thick, thin, bedazzled, plain, you name it. They sit there, waiting to feel their future owner’s presence.
“Remember the key to surviving Waxbyrne,” Samira tells a slack-jawed Todd. “Duck.”
“Watch out!” someone yells a few feet ahead.
I throw myself onto the floor. A swoosh echoes all over the place. More people fall down around me. When I glance up, a wand shoots into the middle corridor. It stops right in front of a russet-skinned teen witch wearing a coral dress and matching hijab. The girl gasps. The wand points directly at her, choosing her as its rightful owner. When she grabs the wand, the whole floor claps. An older hijabi sweeps her into a tight hug. This must be her first wand.
“I love it when that happens!” Todd stands up with shaky legs. It’s like he’s died and been reborn in the span of two seconds. “Amazing.”
“Slightly dangerous, but yes. Amazing, indeed.” Mom points to the corridor with a huge emerald sign, the number six painted on it. “The tour guide will be that way. We still have a few minutes before eleven-thirty, so if it’s okay with Samira, we could walk around until your new wand finds you. Or would you like to wait until after the tour?”
“After is fine,” Samira says. “How about we go check with the guide first?”
Todd rubs his hands together. “Sounds perfect.”
Showtime.
While Todd hooks an arm around Samira’s, I touch my belly and grimace. “You guys, I don’t feel so good. I think I need to go to the bathroom. You go ahead. I’ll catch up.”
Todd doesn’t spare me a glance. He’s taking Samira deeper into the store. Samira sneaks me a thumbs-up, then pretends to be interested in whatever Todd’s rambling about.
Mom looks me up and down. “We’re not supposed to separate from Samira.”
“Regulars are allowed to go to the bathroom, Mom.” I bend a little, straining my voice to sound like I’m hurting. “If I don’t make it, do the tour without me. I’ll wait in the entrance hall.”
She considers me for a moment. “Okay,” she finally says, “but we need to have a serious discussion about how you behaved once we get home. Is that clear?”
“Mm-hmm. Bye.”
I power walk away from Mom.
Holy crap. This is happening. I’m actually for real going to Blazewrath tryouts!
I weave past the endless stream of customers, getting closer to the cash registers and the Waxbyrne logo at the center of the marble tiles. The hijabi and her mother are waiting in line hand in hand. I offer the girl a quick smile. She offers me one, too.
BOOM!
I crash to the floor with a yelp. My left knee hits the tile hard, pain shooting up in one swift wave. Everyone drops like weightless dominoes. Some shelves slam right into each other. Wands are zooming around, either searching for their rightful owners or a way out.
Then a dragon’s cries erupt from underground.
I serve the gods of wing and flame,
I live and die in their names,
Those who oppose will meet their ends,
May their blood be spilled as gods intend.
—The Dragon Knights’ Prayer
CHAPTER THREE
THE BRAZILIAN PESADELO’S ROARS HADN’T BEEN THIS SHARP, THIS high-pitched, and they hadn’t lasted this long. Back then, I’d frozen for just a second, then ran as her fireballs hunted me.
It’s been more than a second, and I still can’t move. My bones are weighed down with every unearthly note in the dragon’s song of fury. How the hell did a dragon get inside the shop?
Customers scramble to the elevator doors. No one can Transport in or out of a Waxbyrne shop. Madame Waxbyrne, one of the few Gold Wands alive, has enchanted all of her shops to prevent anyone from breaking and entering. The guards are frantically pushing people back from the doors. The tallest guard slips past the chaos, beckoning the doors to open with a push of the button, but nothing happens. No matter how many times he tries, the doors won’t budge.
BOOM!
The floor explodes behind me.
I’m launched a few feet ahead, screaming along with everyone else. This time, I land on my backpack, which cushions me from the fall. My knee is still throbbing. Wands keep darting across the room with ungodly speed. They smash into glass vases and bounce off the walls and even get stuck in the metal chandeliers. The piercing screams never end. As I’m sitting up, there’s a sizzling noise farther ahead, as if something were hurtling flames through the tiled floor.