Chapter 5: Demon
Clary ran, her feet burning and her muscles protesting.
She didn't even stop to see if the blonde had followed her, just ran in the direction of her home.
She stopped momentarily by the corner of a busy street, not wanting or ever wishing to be squashed into a human pancake to the sidewalk by a passing SUV. It was not exactly a priority on any where on her to-do list.
When a few decent drivers stopped for her to cross, Clary began running again, sweat running down her temple even though cool wind blew in her face frequently.
She was grateful that she had memorized the streets like the back of her hand. Every breath that she took in was like fire razing down her windpipe and into her lungs, quenching the thirst for air but agony at the same time.
The distance seemed to stretch endlessly before her and she felt as if she was in one of those dreams where you would run for what felt like hours but ended up going nowhere.
Gritting her teeth, Clary told herself that each ringing sound of her shoes beating against the pavement or asphalt told her that she was really moving.
She skidded to a stop when she reached her house, bracing herself against the fence as she gasped.
The door was literally hanging open - by a single hinge. The wood was splintered here and there, sticking dangerously out.
"Mom? Mom?" Clary screamed at the top of her voice as she dashed into the ruined house.
Cautiously, Clary stepped in and nearly cried.
The windows were smashed and the pillows sliced open, stuffing spilling out like the insides of a gut. Her mother's much cherished coffee table was overturned and looked like someone had hacked at it with an axe or knife, the wood dented and cut. Black splotches of foul smelling liquid stained the carpets and frankly was burning holes through the cheap Persian carpets. Glass and wood splinters littered the floor.
"Mom?" Clary whispered, her insides feeling like someone had stuck it in a blender and put it on high.
Then Clary noticed the blood.
Fat drops of blood was splattered on the hardwood floor, resembling the house to a slaughterhouse.
Ice crawled up Clary's spine as she followed the blood that from drops had slowly morphed into smears, like someone's boot had slid and slipped on them. Maybe they had.
Her stomach churned and her head spun.
What had happened here? Did burglars break into the house?
Clary looked back into the living room.
These burglars, if there were any, be bloody stupid burglars then.
Not one expensive equipment had been taken.
In fact, the New Age LCD television had spider-webbing all over the screen and was on the floor, faint wisps of smoke emitting from the ruined device.
"Mom!" Clary screamed, another wave of heart wrenching panic surging through her as she inched forward through the living room - looking like a mine had gone off in here. Her mother's room door was hanging open and Clary dared herself to entered.
The door was hanging ajar by only one rusted hinge, more blood - blood the color of oil slick and crimson alike - smeared on the once white painted wood. Clary slowly entered the room, her eyes on the black and red stains smeared in gruesome and grotesque patterns. She turned, hearing a thump.
A horrified scream ripped its way out of her throat as she skittered back against the wall. Her head slammed against the wall first - hard - but Clary was past feeling the pain.
Her mother - or what was left of her - was lying on the floor against a wall, staring at the ceiling blankly with only one eye. One part of her face - the left part which was missing an eye - had deep, sickening claw marks decorating her face, making her barely recognizable, the skin reduced to red strips. She had an arm missing while the arm that was still intact was missing a few fingers. They looked like they had been savagely gnawed off by a wild beast.
An icy terror overcame Clary as she pressed against the wall, tears of horror and grief streaming down her face
Even though she didn't want to, her eyes continued to stay glued to her mother's disfigured and - lifeless body. Her mother had been so beautiful and seeing her like this was like a physical open wound.
Slowly, Clary's senses came back to life and she realized that there was a panting and growling sound emitting from somewhere in the room. Clary eyes and ears followed the sound and she looked up at the ceiling across room.
Clary shot up and slowly backed away for the door, a greater fear and terror than the ones before completely swallowing her.
Already Clary couldn't think straight as she stared at the disgusting looking creature that hung from the ceiling.
It was eight feet long and very flat. The top of it's body was covered with hard shells that lay upon each other, faintly reminding Clary of an armadillo and it had enormous pincers that snapped at her every so often as it made chittering noises. It was reddish brown - the color of rust - and maggots and other disgusting critters crawled out from the cuts on its abdomen, making Clary gag. Wisps of black smoke rose from its body towards the heavens, ironically.
"Don't run away …" the creature hissed as it slowly descended the wall.
Clary did the exact opposite of what it asked.
She turned and ran with all her energy.
The creature made a high, annoyed keening sound that stabs into Clary's ears as it made a leap for her.
She slammed the door of her mother's room, hearing it collide to the wooden door. She twisted the lock it, hearing the lock click. Knowing that the one hinged door wouldn't last, Clary begin to think of a contingency plan.
She heard it stumble and ram into the door after her as she made her way to the stairs avoiding the debris on the floor.
Clary took the stairs two at a time, jumping the last three before dashing into the kitchen.
She heard the door smash open - the hinge and lock giving way - and the first thing Clary did was grab the flammable oils from the cupboard, lay them out beside the stove and switched the gas on.
The demon howled as it thumped down the stairs and scuttled into the kitchen, looking furious and murderous.
Clary screamed, fear devouring her again as she grabbed the lighter, her hand fumbling on the plastic. As the demon lunged for her, she retrieved a cleaver that hung on the wall and waved it in warning, knowing that there was a larger possibility of her injuring herself before she could kill the demon.
The demon made a chittering sound as if the sight of Clary wielding a weapon was hilarious to it. It crawled nearer and blindly, Clary threw herself forward, swinging her hand that held the cleaver. The cleaver buried itself in the side of the demon's flat face, if one could call it a face.
Howling in a fury that sent ice down Clary's spine, she didn't have to avoid the demon's tail that came flying at her as it spun around.
Clary felt the hard shell that protected the demon's tail slam against her stomach, making her groan before she flew off the ground, slamming against the kitchen wall, her head knocking back from the force. As she fell towards the ground, Clary shot her arms out to break her fall, her teeth sinking into her lower lip as she awaited the pain.
When the sharp cuts and lacerations arrived, all Clary could do was cry out as he head spun, whirling around like an amusement park ride. She inhaled deeply and cringed at the smell that was wafting through the air.
Already, the whole room smelt of the ignition and highly and easily flammable gas.
The tangy, sharp smell burned her nostrils and lungs upon entry and made her stomach roil like a boat on unforgiving waves.
She staggered to her feet, hearing the demon chitter with delight at her pain. Clary realized that the wall that she was leaning on was by the doorway that led into the main room.
She glared at the demon before a small smile tugged at her lips, one that obviously left the demon baffled. Clary gripped the lighter tightly, smirked before throwing herself on the other the wall and flicking the lit lighter towards the demon.
She clasped her hands over her ears and heard the deafening bang as the fire met with its aggressor. She pressed her face against the wall and shielded herself, her tiny frame shaking.
Intense heat engulfed the air around Clary but the fire didn't touch her. The creature howled in agony as the fire exploded around itself, no doubt consuming it.
There was a loud ring in her ears as she pulled herself away from the wall, lowering her hands from her ears before she steeled herself to inspect the damage, praying that the demon was dead.
The kitchen was thrashed, black in some places while still burning in others. The fridge remained unharmed, looking perfectly preserved from the explosion. The cupboards and drawers had blown inwards, shattering the glass and wood they were made out of.
Clary made a face when she saw what was lying right before her.
Half of the creature was lying across the kitchen countertop, twitching like a dying insect. It's insides - hideous yellow, black and greenish goo and chunks - spilled onto the countertop, sizzling the plastic away. The other half was lying all over the place.
On the walls, the ceiling and the floor, looking like goo and mucus as it bit and sizzled away at the material it was on like phosphoric acid.
The creature whined and whimpered, seeming to finally go slack. Only i's many legs twitched but with lesser animation with each passing moment.
Satisfied with her work, Clary took a deep breath, gnashed her teeth together and slowly backed away before turning and running for the door.
As she was about to leave the kitchen, the skin on her nape prickled like a warning sign blaring off, alerting her of an oncoming danger.
Clary heard a screeching howl and she whirled -
Just in time to see the remaining half of the creature lunging for her, it's one remaining pincer extended and making the most feral and angry growl imaginable.
Clary felt agonizing and burning pain shooting through her right shoulder and down her arm.
There was the sound of a rip of fabric but Clary's vision faded as she felt herself fall, the darkness engulfing her.
A loud boom sounded in Jace's ears as the ground floor windows exploded outwards, sending sharp shards of glass flying in many directions; one of the direction was of Jace and the Forsaken army he was fighting.
Worry filled his chest.
Is Clary hurt? Jace thought as he plunged his blade into a Forsaken's heart. Even though she was probably not his Clary, Jace still wouldn't believe it. But his Clary would've remembered him.
He gritted his teeth pushing the pressing thought down as he focused on the last of the Forsaken.
Jace dispatched the last Forsaken with a quick slide of his seraph blade across her neck.
The Forsaken woman fell to the ground with a sickening thump of flesh hitting ground, her gaping, sliced open neck gaping at Jace like a bloody grin.
He cursed, looking at the bodies of dead Forsaken that littered the lawn of this house.
He glamoured them and dashed into the house, praying that his Clary was still fine.
She's not your Clary, Jace Herondale! She doesn't even know your name. Your Clary would remember your name like she remembered Valentine, Sebastian. But, obviously, she doesn't! he screamed at himself in his head.
Jace followed his nose, going to where the smell of smoke, demon and fire was most strong at.
He turned just in time to see the demon drag one pincher down Clary's arm.
Jace dashed forward, so fast he couldn't even see his own movements. He plunged the seraph blade that was still in his grasp into the demon's already mangled heart, watching it fold in on itself as it disappeared out of existence in fine burst of fiery ash.
Clary now lay on the floor, her eyelids closed but fluttering.
Jace kneeled down beside her, looking at her wound.
She whimpered weakly in pain when Jace nudged at the cut.
The sound pierced through Jace as he shushed her gently. Unable to help his sorry self, Jace caressed her cheek, biting the inside of his mouth. Pulling himself back to earth, he shook himself and returned to the crisis at hand.
"Clary?" he said, ripping the hem of his black shirt. It came away easily and Jace wrapped it around her upper arm tightly like tourniquet, to stop the venom from flowing to any other part of her body.
Okay … deja vu? Jace thought as he secured the tourniquet.
She moaned, her eyelids fluttering before she became still, her breathing slowing.
"Clary?" Jace said, his eyes widening.
He cursed loudly once and took out his stele, drawing a Portal rune in the floorboards.
The shimmery transparent outline of a Portal appeared and Jace swung Clary up in his arms before plunging into here and there.
A/N - Thanks for reading! Please leave a review if you like :D