A Quill Ladder Read Online Free PDF

your mother uses them every morning, and what ’ s going to happen could affect everyone in the world. ”
    “ She what? ” Simon said, scrunching up his face. Abbey was glad Simon hadn ’ t known either. Then he frowned. “ Unlike you, possibly, since you seem to have spent much of your life cooped up in Nowhere, we ’ ve seen the future. And yes, there are some challenges, but it ’ s not like the world was completely obliterated. We could make it worse. ”
    Ian winced at the mention of Nowhere. “ You ’ re right. We don ’ t know how the future looks. That ’ s why we need your help. The stones tend to jump you approximately twenty to thirty years into your biological future. They ’ ll go less if you ’ re near the end of your potential lifespan and can ’ t possibly live that long. Since we spent so much time in time purgatory, twenty to thirty years in the biological future, for most of us, is the past. ”
    Ian paused to let this sink in. Abbey ’ s legs went a bit rubbery.
    The stones did allow travel to the past.
    Ian continued more deliberately. “ But the thing about going to the past is that creating paradox is about as easy as tripping over your own shoelace, and none of us is particularly keen to go back to Nowhere. Yet there are some of those in the Guild who are probably willing to sacrifice their own lives for the greater vision, if you know what I mean, and could be convinced that they ’ ll be rescued from Nowhere again if they help out. And that could really screw things up — for everyone. I don ’ t think any of them have tried it yet. But they will, eventually. ”
    “ I don ’ t know if we know quite what you mean. Is there a greater vision? ” Abbey said. “ Whose greater vision? ”
    “ It ’ s best not to say —”
    “ Oh, is that kind of like ‘ he who shall not be named ’ ? ” Simon sneered, cutting Ian off.
    Abbey saw the outline of Ian cock his head to the side. Of course he would have no idea what Simon was talking about.
    Ian continued, “ Before you interrupted me, I was going to say, it ’ s best not to say right now . If you want me to explain the intricacies of the Witching Guild and politics, it ’ s going to take some time, and I really need Jake ’ s address tonight. I ’ m prepared to offer lessons in witchcraft in exchange. ”
    “ I don ’ t believe any of you can do magic, ” Simon said. “ You just crawled in a window and are begging us for an address. If you could do magic, wouldn ’ t you just wave your wand and make the address appear? ”
    “ We don ’ t call it magic, ” Ian said in a strained voice. “ At least those of us who know what we ’ re about don ’ t, and we don ’ t have wands. ”
    “ Fine, then. Whatever you call it. Can any of you actually do anything the rest of us can ’ t? ”
    Ian flicked the switch on Simon ’ s desk, picked up a pencil, and withdrew a piece of paper from Simon ’ s recycling bin. When he drew a pentagram, Abbey almost gasped. Ian pushed the paper in Simon ’ s direction and handed him the pencil. “ The problem — the one you ’ re currently frustrated about — think about it and draw the numbers that come to your mind in as many of the vertices as you wish. ”
    Simon narrowed his eyes, but nonetheless started scrawling random numbers into the corners of the pentagram. When he was finished, he placed the pencil back on the desk with a vaguely defiant look.
    Ian picked up the pencil and started adding and multiplying the numbers in an order that cut three diagonals through the pentagram, but he was doing the sums and products so quickly that Abbey couldn ’ t quite follow. Then he started summing and multiplying the sums and products, until only one number — a nine — remained.
    Ian circled it and said, “ The thing you ’ re working on. Three isn ’ t going to be enough. You need nine. ”
    Simon blanched. “ But three is the industry standard. ”
    “ It may be, but when