Nicholas Flamel

 ROLE IN THE SERIES 

In the book series The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel, Nicholas Flamel is the titular character. Flamel is portrayed as one of the few of mankind who has been able to unlock the secrets of an ancient book, known as the Book of Abraham, to uncover the elixir of immortality. Flamel and his wife, Perenelle, have been wandering around the world for centuries, taking the elixir to make them appear eternally young. During these years, he and his wife have been searching out twins the world over, searching for the twins mentioned in the Book of Abraham. He is said in the series to have close cropped black hair and to dress like a rocker who gets older every day. His aura is the color green and the smell he emits when he uses magic is peppermint. He is not a skilled magician, and very rarely uses his magic as it takes much effort.

At the beginning of the first book, The Alchemyst, Flamel and his wife run a bookshop in dowtown San Francisco when they are attacked by John Dee. Dee and his golems trash the bookstore, even though Perenelle and Flamel defend it to the best of their ability. They attempt to take the Book of Abraham, but not before Josh Newman rips the last two pages out, which contain the Final Summoning. Perenelle is kidnapped by Dee and his cronies, and Flamel flees with Josh and Sophie Newman, the supposed twins of Prophecy. After enlisting aid from Scathach, the Shadow, he takes them to Hekate, who resides in a Shadow Realm in California, in order to unlock their auras. Hekate has barely Awakened Sophie when Bastet, John Dee, and the Morrigan attack the Shadow Realm. Flamel flees with the twins and Scathach to Ojai, California, where he gets the Witch of Endor (Dora) to teach Sophie Wind Magic before encountering an army of zombies and escaping to Paris, France through a mirror along the ley lines.

In the second book The Magician, Flamel seeks out the Comte De St Germain, another human who has discovered the secret to eternal life, so he can teach Fire magic to the awakened twin, Sophie. At the same time, he is being chased through Paris by Niccolo Machiavelli. He gives Josh, who has not yet awakened, the sword Clarent, one of four swords based in the four elemental magics. Clarent is of Fire, but is evil. After meeting the Comte, who is now a modern rock star, and his wife the historical Joan of Arc, the twins and Flamel, along with Scathach, rest at their Parisian home. Sophie barely learns fire magic when an attack ensues. Then, the Valkyries, fierce female warriors, attack the house. What ensues is a chase as Flamel, Scathach, Joan, and Sophie chase after Josh, who is hunting the ancient dragon Nidhogg. Eventually, Josh kills the Nidhogg with Clarent, but Scathach is grabbed by the ancient Dagon and pulled into the Sienne. Dee takes Josh to be awakened by the god Mars, but is thwarted soon after when Flamel, Sopie, and Joan break in and freeze Mars and take Josh back. With the assistance of the Comte and Joan, the trio of Flamel, Sophie, and Josh race away from Paris with John Dee and his cohorts in hot pursuit.

In the third book The Sorceress, the twins and Flamel have barely stepped foot in England when the Hooded Ones attack. An ancient knight, Palamedes, aids them and wisks them off to his home, where they encounter the Bard himself, Shakespere. Barely have introductions been made when Cerunnos, a great Archon older then the Elders and known as the Master of the Hunt, appears and attacks the Shadowrealm. Palamedes, along with Flamel and the twins, barely manage to get away while Shakespere holds them off. The four of them encounter Gilgamesh, now living as a beggar on the streets of London, and Gilgamesh is extremely distressed to see Flamel again. At this point, secrets start to come out, especially about the numerous twins that Flamel and his wife have found over the years and their fates. At this point, Sophie and Josh trust him even less. When Cerunnos again attacks, Flamel does not have enough strength to defend the group. They all flee to Stonehenge, where a ley line is located. Shakespere and Palamedes defend the portal as Flamel and the twins escape back to San Francisco to be united with Perenelle.

 THE HISTORICAL NICHOLAS FLAMEL 

The real Nicholas Flamel was born around 1330 and died around 1418. He married Perenelle, who was a widow, and became a successful seller of books as well as a well known alchemist. It is believed by some people today that Perenelle and Flamel lived beyond their dates of death due to their knowledge of the Philosopher's Stone, as well as the fact that when their tombs were opened, they were empty. Various sightings have been reported to this day that says the Flamels are still walking the streets of Paris, the most famous occurence stating that the Flamels were seen viewing an opera in Paris in 1761.