Author Note

Hey everyone, I am sorry this chapter is late. I was with my family celebrating Canadian thanksgiving. Anyways, it is a bit longer than most of my chapters, so hopefully that makes up for the tardiness. It is a very interesting chapter and is very exciting.

Cheers,

Joeylejoker

Bartimaeus

I had been back at the hut for over an hour before Nathaniel got back. He walked into the hut with his face blank, his eyes staring off into space...

"Ello Natty-Boy!" I chimed.

He jumped, "oh, hi Bartimaeus." He sat down on a chair still looking fairly distant. "Well then! Should I get a bucket of water, or are you going to drift back to reality on your own?"(1) He shook his head and looked at me, a smile stretching across his face. Oh shit, that meant something was wrong. I sighed and looked at him waiting for the task which would obviously lead to my death. "What evil scheme has my master decided to come up with today?" I asked. "It is not that Bartimaeus... Britain is sending the staff here!"

Normally I wouldn't give much thought to the events and actions that took place in human society, but my eyes widened here, this was interesting, "Gladstone's staff?" I asked. I received an excited nod in return. Well this was a fun little twist! I was glad that for once I would be on the side wielding the staff instead of getting blasted by it. "So, do you get to be the one to wield the staff?" I questioned. His smile faded as quickly as it had come, "umm, I didn't really ask." I had succeeded in making his smile fade to a worried look by now, "Well..." He drifted off, "I am sure that I would be the one to wield it. After all, it was my idea to use it!"

This was just what I needed; he was more trying to convince himself now. I walked to his bed and slumped down on it, watching as his face turned paler and paler. He got that distant look in his eyes that he had had when he had walked in to the hut. He shook his head again and looked at me, "Well, time to get to business." He announced. I got up off his bed, and stretched a bit, than started jogging on the spot a bit. "So where are we going now Nat?" He stopped midway to his desk and looked at me. "Oh, we are not going anywhere..." I looked at him for a moment, and then finally it dawned on me. "Oh, I get it." He continued on his way to his desk, bent down, and took a jar of rosemary out of a cabinet. Then taking a tiny piece out, set the jar down; and threw the little piece of rosemary at me. I yelped as the little leaf passed through my essence, stinging me. He nodded, "good, the rosemary is in hasn't spoiled." I responded with a glare as I rubbed my side; realizing that since I had come back to the hut I had changed without noticing from a falcon into Ptolemy.

After Nathaniel placed out the runes and herbs for summoning, he gestured to me. I walked over to the pentacle which was made up of 5 pentacles facing a large one – Nathaniel's – (2). As I crossed into what looked like one of the larger pentacles, I thought for a moment of messing up the chalk which made it. I didn't though; now that I was here in America, I was anxious to see what would happen.

He took a deep breath, lowered his head, shut his eyes, and started chanting. He chanted long and hard, I listened closely to the words; every single syllable was pronounced perfectly. Then he said a name very loudly and a Djinni appeared in one of the pentacles – but he did not stop chanting; he continued to recite various phrases, words of binding, and summoning, The chant never faltering, just going on and on until the amount of spirits that had been summoned filled his multi-pentacle. By the end of the summoning, the pentacle contained – including me - 4 Djinni and an Afrit facing Nathaniel. He chanted the last few words of the summoning than stopped. He sat down on the ground suddenly tired by the summoning. I took this opportunity to find out more about my fellow spirits.

"So who are all of you then?" I piped.

One by one they took turns introducing themselves, starting with the Djinni to my right.

"I am Negabor."

"I am Ascobal." (3)

"Hello Bartimaeus."

I jumped with surprise at the sound of my name, than flicking to the seventh plane swore under my breath. One of the other Djinni Nathaniel had summoned was Faquarl. "Hello Faquarl," I replied. Faquarl displayed an amused smile before turning back to face Nathaniel. The last spirit to introduce himself was the Afrit; all of us Djinni (excluding Faquarl) looked eagerly towards him. With a sigh he said,

"You Djinni are pathetic, acting like kindergarteners introducing themselves on the first day of school. Nevertheless my name you all should surely know, I am rekoj el yeoj!" (4)

At this we all jumped, most Afrits are just power house spirits, essentially just a stronger form of Djinni. But rekoj el yeoj? No, he was different; he was like no other Afrit. He was smart, cunning, powerful, experienced, resourceful, witty... (5) He was a very powerful Italian Afrit, who had when fighting at the fall of Rome defeated 2 Marids single handed. He had broken into Prague one time and assassinated a whole regiment of the Czech army. He had leaded the Roman army down on Alexandria and the rest of Egypt and in many different battles. He was a true warrior.

Finally Nathaniel recovered, standing up from his sitting position. He said. "I charge you all, Negabor, Ascobal, Faquarl, and rekoj el yeoj to serve under my control, and fight for the British forces. Right now you are to accompany me on my errands as body guards before you all attend training. You may begin!" He waited until we all had stepped out of our pentacles before he crossed his own. It was smart of him, if he had stepped out first just leaving us with a first dismissal, t rekoj would have incinerated him within a heartbeat.

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(1) I was hoping he picked the first choice.

(2) I don't know why the master always has the bigger pentacle. It is not like he or she is taking up so much room. They are only human; they do not have to take on the form of a Minotaur or something else.

(3) Faithful Bartimaeus fans will remember Ascobal from PG.

(4) Rekoj el yeoj is pronounced... Wreck-awj-L-yoy

(5) I could go on all day, but I do not think any of you would like that; bottom line is that rekoj el yeoj was probably one of the most powerful Afrits ever summoned.

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Hey guys, I hope you all enjoyed this Chapter. It's very interesting, and things do take place in it. Most defiantly there will be a lot of Faquarl and Bartimaeus stuff in there. And you will all begin to learn more about rekoj el yeoj. Pronounced Wreck-awj-L-yoy! Once again I am sorry it was late. Please Review, joeylejoker.

Also if you liked this story check out Through the Fire and Flames by Allendra.