A fantasy novel wouldn't be complete without a fight between good and evil, now would it? In The Alchemyst evil takes the form of the powers of darkness—the "Dark Elders" who want to reclaim the earth and their minions—cats, rats, and crows. "Good" is much more colorful, but it's also a whole lot more ambiguous. Flamel and Perenelle assure their crew that they battle against evil, but sometimes their choices seem a little, well, unclear. But if their auras—their "magical footprints"—are any indication, we'll take the pepperminty goodness of Nicholas Flamel over Dee's rotten eggs any day.