01_-_The_Alchemyst

but he was off balance and the catman ducked under the blow. Then it leapt
into the air, mouth gaping, claws extended. With a sour taste at the back of his
throat, Josh admitted to himself that he and Sophie were in desperate trouble.
He needed to get to his sister, he had to protect her…and in that instant, he
knew he was not going to make it. He closed his eyes at the last minute as the
savage cat-headed creature slammed into his chest, expecting to feel the sting
of its claws, to hear its squalling roar in his face…but all he heard was a
gentle purring. He blinked his eyes open and found he was holding a fluffy
kitten in his arms.
Sophie! He turned around…and stopped in awe.
Sophie’s aura had flared pure silver around her body. It was so dense in
places that it even reflected the sunlight, making it appear like a medieval
suit of armor. Silver sparks crackled through her hair and dripped from her
fingers like liquid.
“Sophie?” Josh whispered, elated. His sister was fine.
And then Sophie slowly turned her head to look at Josh, and he
experienced the shocking, sickening realization that she did not recognize
him.
The birdman that had been moving in to attack the girl suddenly darted
forward, beak stabbing at her eyes. Sophie snapped her fingers: tiny droplets
of silver spun away from her hands to splash against the creature. Instantly, it
folded and twisted in on itself and became a disorientated hermit thrush.
Sophie walked past her brother and stepped toward Bastet.
“No farther, little girl,” Bastet commanded, raising a clawed hand.
Sophie’s eyes opened wide and she smiled, and Josh suddenly found
that, for the first time in his life, he was frightened of his own sister. He knew
that this wasn’t his Sophie; this terrifying creature could not be his twin.
When the girl spoke, her voice was a harsh croak. “You have no idea
what I can do to you.”
Bastet’s huge feline eyes blinked in surprise. “You can do nothing to me,
little girl.”