Okay, I'm already writing on the next chapter, but this would get to long for one upload. Maybe you'll get chapter 26 at the weekend^^ Have fun.

Chapter 25

Magnus' POV

Ezekiel was right, after a few minutes Aaron entered the room and let the chain snap to my collar. I must have been very exhausted and angry after the games today, I just remembered that I had to... relieve some pressure. I found the loincloth on the ground at the window, its closing was ripped open and not useable anymore, what didn't really concern me. I just didn't remember when and how I did that... before I took a shower? Why did I choose those clothes? They were awful! All black, I looked like a nephilim, there was no color but the gold of my collar. I looked into Aaron's grumpy face and said: "It would be such a wonderful thing to take that damn collar off for just taking one shower. I got the feeling my skin moldered under it." He just watched me as I stood at the window, looking down on my wrinkled clothes. I barely slept in clothes, the talk with Jace must've killed my last resources of power, the talk or his sheer unnerving presence...

"There is a lot of space between your collar and your skin, so don't worry. Now stop being such a pussy and follow me." What I hated the most was that I never got socks and shoes! I followed Aaron like all the time here, with my bare feet tapping on the ground. My father must've been a cruel foot fetishist. I groaned as the collar burnt my skin and recognized that I slowed down behind Aaron. I just got lost in my thoughts all the time, I got the feeling something was missing or wrong, I just couldn't put my finger on it. I ended in my father's living room again and let myself fall down into an armchair. I saw two glasses of scotch already prepared and standing on the small table, but Aaron was still beside me. I tried to pick the vial out of my pants as inconspicuous as possible and played a little with it in my closed hand. As my father entered the room through a door behind us, Aaron turned around to watch him and I let some of the bonemeal fall into his drink, before closing the vial and grabbing my glass with the same hand on the way back to my armrest.

My father sat down a few seconds later and Aaron gave him the chain to my collar. He let it snap back to his wrist completely, when he wanted me to not move, he could force me with magic. "Why am I here, father? And why am I allowed to wear normal clothes? Not that I miss that super stylish loincloth..." He let his hands glide over his suit pants to straighten it out and then looked at me. "I like to see at the first sight in which position someone is, that's what I like about the slave outfit and it reminds you where you belong now. But today I'm not gonna show you around anymore so it doesn't matter, but when you decide to wear all black again, take a suit, looks better." I took a sip of the scotch, the ice cubes danced in the liquid and I felt the burn in my throat. What would I do for a pina colada now... "You didn't tell me why I'm here." "For a little small talk..." I raised my eyebrows and took another gulp of the scotch. "Okay. I'm here to offer something. Your nephilim boy toy is alright with taking your place..." "No! No matter what you arranged with him, take it back! He's not staying here with you!"

He smirked, took the glass and let the liquid move in circles, playing with it, but not drinking something. "Keep calm. I didn't have the intention to give you up, I just wanted to know what he would do to get you out of here. I have to admit, he would do anything. When it comes to you, he thinks his life isn't worthy as much as yours. You think the same way over him, too bad. There won't be a happy end for you, Magnus. I'm not talking about the games, I'm talking about your life..." "We already know that! What the hell do you want?! Stop to philosophy about immortality and love! As if you would know something about love, anyway!" "I'm so much older and wiser than you, you would do good to listen to my philosophies. But if you don't want to listen... What have your nephilim planned? I got enough trouble with the blonde one taking a candidates place, I don't want to think about their stupid ideas to get you out of my reach." He took a large gulp of his scotch, I saw him swallowing the liquid, before I grinned. My father looked at the glass in his hand, frowning and coughing slightly. "Greetings from John Baptist."

He watched me with a confused expression, it looked so hilarious, I almost laughed out loud. "What..." He began to cough more and more, closing his hand over his mouth and bending forward, the glass hit the carpeted ground without making a sound. I could hear how he tried to breath, the rattling in his windpipe was clearly audible and he couldn't stop his coughing fit. He stood up and I saw blood running through between his fingers a few seconds later it was joined from blood running out of his nose and over his fingers. Aaron came running into the room, but Asmodeus pushed him away as he tried to support his master. I smiled into the glass before taking another sip of my own scotch. "What is going on? How can I help?" Aaron fumbled on Asmodeus' jacket, trying to help somehow but got kicked back by an elbow in his stomach, as a reward. He looked at me with panic in his eyes and screamed: "What the hell have you done?!" My father bent forward again, letting his hand fall down in the try to get more air into his lungs but only got to throw up blood and spit it onto the white carpet, he glared at me. I still smiled: "Not feeling well, Dad?"

I felt a shock wave throwing the glass out of my hand and pushing me back into the armchair. Asmodeus slowly stopped coughing and signaled Aaron to leave us alone again. Aaron shot me an angry gaze but walked out without saying another word. Asmodeus sat down again, picked a handkerchief out of his breast pocket and wiped his mouth with it. His voice was raspy when he said: "That was good... Your blonde boy toy gave you something to hurt me a little, so what?" I tried to not show my surprise as he said that he knew about Jace's and my meeting in my room. Had they found out what Ezekiel was doing? "What do you mean?" He watched me closely now, looking really pissed somehow. "Don't tell me your memories have been manipulated, too!" He stood up and pressed his hands down onto my head, i still couldn't move to duck away from them. I felt him boring deep into my mind and began to scream as it became too much. What was he searching for? I saw pictures of Jace flashing behind my closed eyelids before he let go.

I sank back against the armchair, breathing heavily and with a headache now. "I exerted myself to get Blondie and you together and someone of my own people helps you to forget it!" I didn't know what he was talking about, but it didn't matter, my head was hammering like a percussion drill. "It's no fun if you can't remember what you did!" He came over again, his hands on both armrests and his breath hitting my face. "Do you really believe Rosier would let you out of his drugs influence so easy?! You jack off and that's it?! Remember his words...'no matter who will be there to soothe your desire tonight... you will let him or her fuck you senseless'... Herondale fulfilled that desire! He fucked you senseless, after the games today, after you pleasured yourself, which didn't help. Blondie fucked you while taking a shower, he did it hard and he did it good, after you tortured him with the blow job you gave him, bringing him to the edge, but not pushing him over it. And you loved it, you loved every thrust, loved his cock buried deep inside of you! You didn't waste one single thought on your lovely, so called boyfriend!"

I smelled the blood in his breath, but that wasn't the only thing why I felt becoming sick. "You're lying." It wasn't more than a whisper, the hammering in my head became louder. He smiled down at me, the blood let his teeth seem to be pink. "No, I'm not. That's the reason why he was in your room and you could've talked about the daggers out of John the Baptist's bones. Maybe I can't torture your two nephilim with their betrayal against each other anymore, in that you succeeded, but you know me and know that I tell you the truth. You have to live with the knowledge that you betrayed your precious Alexander. And I think it's kind of funny, the knowledge without really remembering it... can torture you even more."

He smiled brightly and looked like a wolf after a victorious hunt. He sat back onto the couch, took a new glass and served himself a scotch, drinking it slowly. I just sat there. That couldn't be true, I wouldn't cheat and at least on Alec. I knew it made more sense like that, that Jace was in my room because my father wanted it that way. The black clothes as if I just grabbed something to get dressed as fast as possible. I remembered how the drug made me feel in the arena, remembered Rosier's words, but... it just couldn't be! And who helped me to forget it? And I manipulated Alec and Jace, too? I leaned forward, my face embedded in my hands, trying to breath normal. My father ripped me out of my thoughts, as if he hadn't broken my world into pieces a few seconds ago. "Now... I saw in your memories that Blondie isn't alone and that there are more than one dagger and the bonemeal. I know that you can hurt me, but I also know that you need me to get back into your dimension. What are we gonna do now?"

I sat up again, leaning my head back against the material of the armchair and recognized that I had revealed everything we got and planned without saying one word, I'm a hero... "You can send us back into our dimension and leave us alone." It sounded extremely tired, even in my own ears and I was tired, mentally tired and exhausted. "Or I can not do that and wait for your friends to fail on their mission." "What did you think how long Alexander would survive your games? You invited downworlders, demons, mundanes but also higher demons like Astaroth, but he's still alive and in the third round. Alexander and his family and friends are the best shadowhunters I've ever seen, they will get their chance. When it means that we have to stay here, so be it, it's better than living under your control."

He snapped his fingers to let the blood stains vanish from his suit and the carpet. He shifted in his seat. "How many shadowhunters are here?" I looked at him as if he's stupid, and really thought that in this moment. "You just read my memories... I don't know it." "Not the exact number, but you know which friends and family members would come here with the Herondale." I thought about lying, but went with the truth, he could always read my mind again. "Four, when they are alone, with family members... eight, with friends of mine... eleven, at least. When you count more than just the closest, it could be a lot more." Asmodeus took a sip of his new drink, looking thoughtful. "And what exactly do you want?" He let the liquid circle again, the ice cubes made a soft noise every time they connected with each other or the glass. "You set me free, no deal over two years and than pushing me to another owner. I'm free and you won't bother me again. You will send all of my friends and the friends and family of Alexander, including Alexander, back into our dimension and won't bother them again... And I want Ezekiel to come with us." His gaze showed a little surprise, but it was gone fast. "Your brother? Why would I send him away? He's born here and has a lot of potential, even when he's nerve-racking. He's very good in doing what he wants, without being found out, like visiting his brother. I saw him in your memories... You want to protect him."

"For sure I want to protect him. Look at my other siblings, they would sleep with me without regretting something. Other beings are just toys and not worthy anything! They are like you... Ezekiel should have the chance to have a better life."

He took another gulp of the alcohol and watched me closely. "I have to think about it." I nodded and stood up, still looking at him. "You want to have time to search for my friends, not to think it through. You won't find them. You've got time until tomorrow morning, that's it. After that you're fair game." Asmodeus put the glass down on the small table and stood up, too. "In that, you're just like me. You love to be in control and you love to show that you have it. Give me the rest of the bonemeal." "I don't have any. It was a small amount and was all in your drink, just as an example of what is to come." His eyes bored into mine, looking for a lie, but after a few seconds he walked around the couch and gave the chain over to Aaron, who connected it to my collar. Back in my room I laid down on the bed and tried to remember... how I felt at the games, after the games, after I jerked off... was there something to prove my father's words? Or something to prove to me that he was lying... I hoped it so bad, but... it fitted too well in that big hole I felt all day. I saw an image of Alexander in my mind and felt the tears running down my cheeks and somehow knew... they were waiting to come out for a long time today, showing me the truth my heart already knew. I was guilty.

General POV

It wasn't very hard to get into the lower ranks of the servants, here were plenty of people, so many they wouldn't recognize new faces instantly. The crowd got smaller very fast after the games, most of the viewers left this realm, but some of them went into a wing of the castle where they had a room to stay. Now there was one less and a free room for Clary, Simon, Izzy and Jem. They have taken the room of one of the not important guests, the servants changed every time and no one really recognized who stayed here. Izzy and Jem had chosen to take the places of servants, Simon and Clary tried everything to get into contact with Jace, Alec or Magnus. They all used heavy glamour runes from Clary to hide their runes and scars and were observing and investigating most of the time.

Everyone was back in the room just waiting for Izzy and Jem. The door crashed into the wall and a fuming Izzy came in, Simon went over to her with a worried gaze. "This place is ridiculous!..." Before Izzy could scream even more, Clary shut the door and draw a rune on it, Izzy was just too loud. "... Everywhere are slaves running around, as if that's not outrageous enough, everyone is allowed to do with them what they please! But that's not enough for the guests here, they have to touch the servants, too!..." Simon's gaze shot up. "Who touched you!?" They have chosen the position of servants because it seemed that servants somehow had something like rights here. The slaves could be used for everything by everyone, which didn't count for every slave, there were a few ones you had to take hands off from... it was complicated. Izzy was still screaming when Jem came back. "We all know that Isabelle. Calm down now." he said and took a seat at the small table in the small living room. "I saw someone who could help us..."

That made Izzy and Simon shut up and Clary walk over to them and sitting down at the table too. "Shoot." "Her name is Vivienne. Most of the time she's in the wing with the 'pets', like Asmodeus calls them. I heard her and her son talking about Magnus, that he needs help and they both were willing to help him." Simon looked at him impatient and curious. "And? What happened?" Jem grinned like a Cheshire cat and answered: "She knew all the time that I was listening, she felt my presence. She waited until her son left and cornered me. She will help us to infiltrate higher positions. She made a deal with Magnus, we have to take her son with us. Her son, Ezekiel, has access to Alec, Jace and Magnus and can give them the informations they need. Jace and Magnus were together before Ezekiel talked to his mother, so maybe Magnus knows what we have planned." Clary looked confused and asked: "Why were they together?"

Jem thought about it, he didn't think about it before. "Mmh... I don't know, to be true... Could have been Vivienne's idea, I didn't ask." Clary watched him a little unsteady. "Do you trust her? We don't know anything about that realm and the people surrounding Asmodeus." "No, I don't trust her. But she really wants to get her son out of here and I think she will do everything for that. We need a contact, without that we won't get near Asmodeus." Izzy leaned back in her chair, her arms crossed. "And believe me, when I'm near, he will pay for what he did to Magnus and Alec!" Clary frowned and asked in Izzy's direction: "And what's with Jace? He has to pay for what he did to Magnus, Alec and Jace... right?" Izzy just waved it aside "He just had to kiss Magnus, he will survive it! I would have no problem with kissing Alec's boyfriend... maybe a little because he's Alec's boyfriend..." Simon had problems to close his mouth again, he watched his girlfriend with a shocked expression and then said over Jem's and Clary's laughter: "Ahem!... You should have a problem with it cause you're not a single!?" Izzy just ignored him, as if he didn't say something and said to everyone: "Speaking of Alec. I saw him on his way to Asmodeus. Jace's room is in the same wing, but far away and I couldn't see a weapon or his stele on Alec, maybe Jace doesn't have his dagger anymore."

Now Izzy kissed Simon on the forehead to show that she was just kidding and smiled at him as Jem said: "I told Vivienne she should fill us in when she or her son talked with the guys. I saw Magnus, but only very short. He seems to be exhausted, but healthy." Izzy took one of the grapes from the fruit bowl and threw it into the direction of Jem's face, but he caught it out of the air before it could hit him. "You're such a lucky one! I only got a glimpse on Alec and for that I had to get my ass grabbed." Jem chewed the grape before swallowing it and answering as he stood up: "Hmpf!... Lucky one... They didn't only grab my ass..." Izzy, Simon and Clary sat on the table and watched the departing silhouette with surprised expressions.