Lockwood & Co: The Empty Grave (Lockwood & Co.)

by Stroud, Jonathan

  A frightening variety of Type Two ghost that manifests as a moving patch of darkness. Sometimes the apparition at the centre of the darkness is dimly visible; at other times the black cloud is fluid and formless, perhaps shrinking to the size of a pulsing heart, or expanding at speed to engulf a room.

  Death-glow

  An energy trace left at the exact spot where a death took place. The more violent the death, the brighter the glow. Strong glows may persist for many years.

  Defences against ghosts

  The three principal defences, in order of effectiveness, are silver, iron and salt. Lavender also affords some protection, as does bright light and running water.

  DEPRAC

  The Department of Psychical Research and Control. A government organization devoted to tackling the Problem. DEPRAC investigates the nature of ghosts, seeks to destroy the most dangerous ones, and monitors the activities of the many competing agencies.

  Ectoplasm

  A strange, variable substance from which ghosts are formed. In its concentrated state, ectoplasm is very harmful to the living.

  Fetch**

  A rare and unnerving class of ghost that appears in the shape of another person, usually someone known to the onlooker. Fetches are seldom aggressive, but the fear and disorientation they evoke is so strong that most experts classify them as Type Two spirits, to be treated with extreme caution.

  Fittes furnaces

  The popular name for the Greater London Metropolitan Furnaces for the Disposal of Psychic Artefacts in Clerkenwell, where dangerous psychic Sources are destroyed by fire.

  Fittes Manual

  A famous book of instruction for ghost-hunters written by Marissa Fittes, the founder of Britain’s first psychical investigation agency.

  Ghost

  The spirit of a dead person. Ghosts have existed throughout history, but – for unclear reasons – are now increasingly common. There are many varieties; broadly speaking, however, they can be organized into three main groups (see Type One, Type Two, Type Three). Ghosts always linger near a Source, which is often the place of their death. They are at their strongest after dark, and most particularly between the hours of midnight and two a.m. Most are unaware of or uninterested in the living. A few are actively hostile.

  Ghost-bomb

  A weapon consisting of a ghost trapped in a silver-glass prison. When the glass breaks, the spirit emerges to spread fear and ghost-touch among the living.

  Ghost-cult

  A group of people who, for a variety of reasons, share an unhealthy interest in the returning dead.

  Ghost-fog

  A thin, greenish-white mist, occasionally produced during a manifestation. Possibly formed of ectoplasm, it is cold and unpleasant, but not itself dangerous to the touch.

  Ghost-jar

  A silver-glass receptacle used to constrain an active Source.

  Ghost-lamp

  An electrically powered streetlight that sends out beams of strong white light to discourage ghosts. Most ghost-lamps have shutters fixed over their glass lenses; these snap on and off at intervals throughout the night.

  Ghost-lock

  A dangerous power displayed by Type Two ghosts, possibly an extension of malaise. Victims are sapped of their willpower, and overcome by a feeling of terrible despair. Their muscles seem as heavy as lead, and they can no longer think or move freely. In most cases they end up transfixed, waiting helplessly as the hungry ghost glides closer and closer … See also psychic enchainment.

  Ghost-touch

  The effect of bodily contact with an apparition, and the most deadly power of an aggressive ghost. Beginning with a sensation of sharp, overwhelming cold, ghost-touch swiftly spreads an icy numbness around the body. One after another, vital organs fail; soon the body turns bluish and starts to swell. Without swift medical intervention, often in the form of adrenalin injections to stimulate the heart, ghost-touch is usually fatal.

  Glamour

  The ability of some ghosts to appear beautiful and good, even if the reality is markedly different. It often takes great effort of will for an onlooker to see past this illusion.

  Glimmer*

  The faintest perceptible Type One ghost. Glimmers manifest only as flecks of other-light flitting through the air. They can be touched or walked through without harm.

  Greek Fire

  Another name for magnesium flares. Early weapons of this kind were apparently used against ghosts during the days of the Eastern Roman Empire, a thousand years ago.

  Haunting

  See Manifestation.

  Ichor

  Ectoplasm in its thickest, most concentrated form. It burns many materials, and is safely constrained only by silver-glass.

  Iron

  An ancient and important protection against ghosts of all kinds. Ordinary people fortify their homes with iron decorations, and carry it on their persons in the form of wards. Agents carry iron rapiers and chains, and so rely on it for both attack and defence.

  Lavender

  The strong sweet smell of this plant is thought to discourage evil spirits. As a result, many people wear dried sprigs of lavender, or burn it to release the pungent smoke. Agents sometimes carry vials of lavender water or small explosive lavender grenades to use against weak Type Ones.

  Limbless**

  A swollen, misshapen variety of Type Two ghost, with a generally human head and torso, but lacking recognizable arms and legs. With Wraiths and Raw-bones, one of the least pleasing apparitions. Often accompanied by strong sensations of miasma and creeping fear.

  Listening

  One of the three main categories of psychic Talent. Sensitives with this ability are able to hear the voices of the dead, echoes of past events, and other unnatural sounds associated with manifestations.

  Lurker*

  A variety of Type One ghost that hangs back in the shadows, rarely moving, never approaching the living, but spreading strong feelings of anxiety and creeping fear.

  Magnesium flare

  A metal canister with a breakable glass seal, containing magnesium, iron, salt, gunpowder and an igniting device. An important agency weapon against aggressive ghosts.

  Malaise

  A feeling of despondent lethargy often experienced when a ghost is approaching. In extreme cases this can deepen into dangerous ghost-lock.

  Manifestation

  A ghostly occurrence. May involve all kinds of supernatural phenomena, including sounds, smells, odd sensations, moving objects, drops in temperature and the glimpse of apparitions.

  Miasma

  An unpleasant atmosphere, often including disagreeable tastes and smells, experienced in the run-up to a manifestation. Regularly accompanied by creeping fear, malaise and chill.

  Night watch

  Groups of children, usually working for large companies and local government councils, who guard factories, offices and public areas after dark. Though not allowed to use rapiers, night-watch children have long iron-tipped spears to keep apparitions at bay.

  Operative

  Another name for a psychical investigation agent.

  Other-light

  An eerie, unnatural light radiating from some apparitions.

  Pale Stench*

  A Type One ghost that spreads a dreadful miasma, a smell of noxious decay. Best confronted by burning sticks of lavender.

  Phantasm**

  Any Type Two ghost that maintains an airy, delicate and see-through form. A Phantasm may be almost invisible, aside from its faint outline and a few wispy details of its face and features. Despite its insubstantial appearance, it is no less aggressive than the more solid-seeming Spectre, and all the more dangerous for being harder to see.

  Phantom

  Another general name for a ghost.

  Plasm

  See Ectoplasm.

  Poltergeist**

  A powerful and destructive class of Type Two ghost. Poltergeists release strong bursts of supernatural energy that can lift even heavy ob
jects into the air. They do not form apparitions.

  Problem, the

  The epidemic of hauntings currently affecting Britain.

  Psychic Enchainment

  While most Type Two ghosts sap a victim’s willpower using ghost-lock, some are able to ensnare onlookers by making a psychic connection with them. Typically, the victim will become fascinated with the apparition, and seek to follow it, even if this costs them their life. Such ghosts usually appear charming or seductive or empathetic; they do this using the weapon of glamour.

  Rapier

  The official weapon of all psychical investigation agents. The tips of the iron blades are sometimes coated with silver.

  Raw-bones**

  A rare and unpleasant kind of ghost, which manifests as a bloody, skinless corpse with goggling eyes and grinning teeth. Not popular with agents. Many authorities regard it as a variety of Wraith.

  Relic-man/relic-woman

  Someone who locates Sources and other psychic artefacts and sells them on the black market.

  Revenant**

  A fortunately rare variety of Type Two ghost in which the apparition can temporarily animate its own corpse and cause it to break free of its grave. Though Revenants generate powerful ghost-lock and strong waves of creeping fear, they are easy to deal with because their body is their Source, thus giving an agent plenty of opportunity to encase them in silver. Also, if the corpse is old, it usually falls to pieces before doing too much damage.

  Salt

  A commonly used defence against Type One ghosts. Less effective than iron and silver, salt is cheaper than both, and used in many household deterrents.

  Salt bomb

  A small plastic throwing globe filled with salt. Shatters on impact, spreading salt in all directions. Used by agents to drive back weaker ghosts. Less effective against stronger entities.

  Salt gun

  A device that projects a fine spray of salty water across a wide area. A useful weapon against Type One ghosts. Increasingly employed by larger agencies.

  Screaming Spirit**

  A feared Type Two ghost, which may or may not display any kind of visual apparition. Screaming Spirits emit terrifying psychic shrieks, the sound of which is sometimes enough to paralyse the listener with fright, and so bring on ghost-lock.

  Seal

  An object, usually of silver or iron, designed to enclose or cover a Source, and prevent the escape of its ghost.

  Sensitive, a

  Someone who is born with unusually good psychic Talent. Most Sensitives join agencies or the night watch; others provide psychic services without actually confronting Visitors.

  Shade*

  The standard Type One ghost, and possibly the most common kind of Visitor. Shades may appear quite solid, in the manner of Spectres, or be insubstantial and wispy, like Phantasms; however, they entirely lack the dangerous intelligence of either. Shades seem unaware of the presence of the living, and are usually bound into a fixed pattern of behaviour. They project feelings of grief and loss, but seldom display anger or any stronger emotion. They almost always appear in human form.

  Sight

  The psychic ability to see apparitions and other ghostly phenomena, such as death-glows. One of the three main varieties of psychic Talent.

  Silver

  An important and potent defence against ghosts. Worn by many people as wards in the form of jewellery. Agents use it to coat their rapiers, and as a crucial component of their seals.

  Silver-glass

  A special ‘ghost-proof’ glass used to encase Sources.

  Snuff-light

  A type of small candle used by psychical investigation agencies to indicate a supernatural presence. They flicker, tremble and finally snuff out if a ghost draws near.

  Solitary**

  An unusual Type Two ghost, often encountered in remote and perilous places, generally outdoors. Visually it often wears the guise of a slender child, seen at a distance across a ravine or lake. It never draws close to the living, but radiates an extreme form of ghost-lock that may overwhelm anyone nearby. Victims of Solitaries often hurl themselves over cliffs or into deep water in an effort to end it all.

  Source

  The object or place through which a ghost enters the world.

  Spectre**

  The most commonly encountered Type Two ghost. A Spectre always forms a clear, detailed apparition, which may in some cases seem almost solid. It is usually an accurate visual echo of the deceased as they were when alive or newly dead. Spectres are less nebulous than Phantasms and less hideous than Wraiths, but equally varied in behaviour. Many are neutral or benign in their dealings with the living – perhaps returning to reveal a secret, or make right an ancient wrong. Some, however, are actively hostile, and hungry for human contact. These ghosts should be avoided at all costs.

  Stone Knocker*

  A desperately uninteresting Type One ghost, which does precious little apart from tap.

  Talent

  The ability to see, hear or otherwise detect ghosts. Many children, though not all, are born with a degree of psychic Talent. This skill tends to fade towards adulthood, though it still lingers in some grown-ups. Children with better-than-average Talent join the night watch. Exceptionally gifted children usually join the agencies. The three main categories of Talent are Sight, Listening and Touch.

  Touch

  The ability to detect psychic echoes from objects that have been closely associated with a death or haunting. Such echoes take the form of visual images, sounds and other sense impressions. One of the three main varieties of Talent.

  Type One

  The weakest, most common and least dangerous grade of ghost. Type Ones are scarcely aware of their surroundings, and often locked into a single, repetitious pattern of behaviour. Commonly encountered examples include Shades and Lurkers. See also Bone Man, Glimmer, Pale Stench, Stone Knocker and Wisp.

  Type Two

  The most dangerous commonly occurring grade of ghost. Type Twos are stronger than Type Ones, and possess some kind of residual intelligence. They are aware of the living, and may attempt to do them harm. The most common Type Twos, in order, are: Spectres, Phantasms and Wraiths. See also Dark Spectre, Fetch, Limbless, Poltergeist, Raw-bones, Revenant, Screaming Spirit and Solitary.

  Type Three

  A very rare grade of ghost, first reported by Marissa Fittes, and the subject of much controversy ever since. Allegedly able to communicate fully with the living.

  Vanishing point

  The exact spot where a ghost dematerializes at the end of a manifestation. Often an excellent clue to the location of the Source.

  Visitor

  A ghost.

  Ward

  An object, usually of iron or silver, used to keep ghosts away. Small wards may be worn as jewellery on the person; larger ones, hung up around the house, are often equally decorative.

  Water, running

  It was observed in ancient times that ghosts dislike crossing running water. In modern Britain this knowledge is sometimes used against them. In central London a net of artificial channels, or runnels, protects the main shopping district. On a smaller scale, some house-owners build open channels outside their front doors and divert the rainwater along them.

  Wisp*

  Weak and generally unthreatening, a Wisp is a Type One ghost that manifests as a pale and flickering flame. Some scholars speculate that all ghosts, given time, degenerate into Wisps, then Glimmers, before finally vanishing altogether.

  Wraith**

  A dangerous Type Two ghost. Wraiths are similar to Spectres in strength and patterns of behaviour, but are far more horrible to look at. Their apparitions show the deceased in his or her dead state: gaunt and shrunken, horribly thin, sometimes rotten and wormy. Wraiths often appear as skeletons. They radiate a powerful ghost-lock. See also Raw-bones.

  About the Author

  Jonathan Stroud was born in Bedford in 1970. After studying English Literature at York Un
iversity, he moved to London, where he worked as an editor in a publishing firm. He is also the author of the best-selling BARTIMAEUS sequence, which is published in 35 languages and has sold 6 million copies worldwide, and also of four other novels: HEROES OF THE VALLEY, THE LAST SIEGE, THE LEAP and BURIED FIRE. He lives in Hertfordshire with his family. He has yet to see a ghost, but is keeping his eyes open.

  Also by Jonathan Stroud

  Buried Fire

  The Leap

  The Last Siege

  Heroes of the Valley

  The Bartimaeus series

  The Amulet of Samarkand

  The Golem’s Eye

  Ptolemy’s Gate

  The Ring of Solomon

  The Amulet of Samarkand: Graphic Novel

  Lockwood & Co.

  The Screaming Staircase

  The Whispering Skull

  The Hollow Boy

  The Creeping Shadow

  www.jonathanstroud.com

  @JonathanAStroud

  SHORTLISTED FOR THE BEST BOOK AWARD

  NOMINATED FOR THE CARNEGIE MEDAL

  ‘This story will keep you reading late into the night, but you’ll want to leave the lights on. Stroud is a genius at inventing an utterly believable world which is very much like ours, but so creepily different. Put The Screaming Staircase on your “need to read” list’

  Rick Riordan

  ‘Genuinely spooky and suspenseful, with appealing characters and great dialogue, and all shot through with Stroud’s dry wit’

  Guardian

  ‘Plenty of humour alongside the chills’

  Financial Times

  Have you read the other books in the

  For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. Many psychic investigation agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions – the smallest and most talented agency is Lockwood & Co.

  Meet dashing Anthony Lockwood, book-loving George Cubbins and brave Lucy Carlyle. When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in …

  THE SCREAMING STAIRCASE

  When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood & Co. step in …

  THE WHISPERING SKULL

  A dangerous relic has been stolen – and it’s a race against time before its full power is unleashed …

  THE HOLLOW BOY

  A sudden epidemic of ghosts causes chaos – and tension – at Lockwood & Co ….