The Magnificent 12 Read Online Free PDF Page B

learned: jet engines are really hot.
    â€œAhhh!” he yelled.
    The three passengers on the jet also yelled, “Ahhh!” but with an Indian accent.
    Mack swung with the direction of the jet, trying desperately not to crush it as it went from two hundred miles an hour to zero miles an hour in a single second.
    The scimitar swung!
    Too late to duck!
    â€œ (Ch)on-ma Mack i poindrafol! ” was shouted with a German accent.
    Dietmar!
    In a millisecond a huge shield appeared in the air between Mack and the flashing scimitar.
    CLANNNNNNNNG!
    The blade bit into the shield but not through. Instantly Mack slid his forearm into the straps of the shield, even as he carefully held the jet with his other hand. He knelt, laid the jet on the ground—upside down, but hey, it was better than crashing.
    Valin was breathing hard—swinging a scimitar the size of a sequoia isn’t easy, especially if you’re not a practiced swordsman.
    Mack, for his part, stuck his now-giant fingers into his giant mouth and winced at the pain from the jet exhaust.
    â€œWhat is your problem?” Mack yelled at Valin, mumbling because of the fingers in his mouth.
    â€œThere is bad blood between our two families!” Valin cried.
    Paddy “Nine Iron” Trout wheezed, “Yes, an ancient blood feud of . . .”
    He reached for his oxygen bottle, but Mack was not in the mood to wait politely.
    â€œWhatever it was, I apologize, all right?” Mack said.
    â€œAh, so you admit that your great-great-great . . .” This went on for a while, so for brevity’s sake let’s just cut to: “. . . great-grandfather dishonored my family and destroyed my ancestry!”
    â€œWhat the . . . Look, I don’t even—”
    â€œMy ancestors swore to Guru Hargobind himself that they would never rest until the insult was—”
    â€œGuru Hargobind?”
    â€œAha! So you do know! And so, you die!”
    Valin stabbed at Mack and missed, but dodging had put Mack off balance. He would not be able to avoid the next sweep of that terrible sword.
    Suddenly a new creature appeared on the scene. It was as big as Mack and as big as Valin. But this giant was Stefan—magicked into existence by the combined Vargran efforts of three of the Magnifica below.
    â€œGive me that,” Stefan growled to Mack, and yanked the shield from his arm.
    Valin raised the scimitar high as if to strike at Stefan, but Stefan wasn’t having it. Not even a little. He raised the shield over his head and charged straight at Valin like an enraged bull, yelling, “Gaaaahhhhh!”
    Valin swallowed hard, clapped a protective hand over Paddy “Nine Iron,” still peeking out of his pocket, and ran away, waving the scimitar ineffectually over his shoulder. “This is not over! I will force you to face your guilt!”
    Huge Mack and huge Stefan stared at each other.
    â€œShould I go after him?” Stefan asked.
    â€œNo. We’ve already destroyed the airport. We could end up crushing cars and houses.”
    â€œHuh,” Stefan said, and he was not happy about it. Most likely because he had always been a great admirer of Godzilla and would have relished crushing some houses with Mack.
    But Mack had a better idea. He looked down at tiny Xiao and said, “That treaty that says you can’t be your dragon self in the lands of Western dragons . . .”
    Xiao nodded, grinned, and said, “This is no longer the West.”
    In seconds she had left behind her human form and taken on her own, true form as a wingless turquoise Chinese dragon. She slithered into the air—a remarkable thing to see—and, flying low to the ground to avoid being spotted by Valin, went after him and the Nafia assassin.
    Â 
    EVEN LONGER AGO THAN EVER BEFORE
    The Pale Queen had been feared and worshipped since human beings first learned to walk erect. In fact, the Pale