Chapter 34 - The Angel's Language
Clary didn't think she had ever heard such a horrible sound. It was an earsplitting pitched keening of snarls and cries mixed with the sound of soft flesh being ripped apart as weapons sliced through flesh and flesh was being ripped off the bone. Clary winced at the awful noise.
Through the sea of black and monsters, Clary thought she saw a head of fiery red hair and swore that it could have been Jocelyn.
"Retrieve Clarissa!" Clary heard Sarrah scream, her voice somehow managing to overthrow the sound of violence and battle around them.
Jace cursed loudly, retreating until he was standing directly in front of Clary, his back almost touching her.
"Simon, I need you to - " Jace cut off as a demon reared up behind him. He spun around and brought his seraph blade down on it. He shoved the demon backwards until it was swallowed up by the fighting Shadowhunters and creatures.
Thump. An arrow flew past Clary before embedding in the face of a demon that had reared up beside her, dripping yellow goo that sizzled from its gaping mouth. It skittered backwards, snarling. Simon threw himself at it, a blade in his hand.
Clary willed herself into coherence, gripping the stele more tightly in her hand. Alec had a concentrated look on his face as he steadily let arrow after arrow fly. By the time one arrow was in the air, Alec was already knocking another, letting it fly in the very next second. The demons reeled back, hissing as they clawed at the arrows that were in their flesh.
Occasionally, flashes of silver shot out as Isabelle's whip wrapped around the demons. Her whip wrapped around a demon's neck and she yanked back harshly, the electrum whip slicing into the skin as if it were paper and decapitated the demon. It exploded in a shower of ashes and guts that fell to the floor.
Jace fell on one of the demons, bringing his seraph blade down on it, repetitively stabbing it as it thrashed and jerked underneath him. At one point in time, he had lost one of the seraph blades that he held leaving him with one.
He rolled off the demon just as it burst into ashes. Alec pulled him up and he scowled, rubbing his shoulder. "I am seriously starting to hate demons."
Clary wanted to do something, anything, to help them but she couldn't make her limbs move.
Blue sparks flew from Magnus's hands, shooting past her and missing her by a hair though Clary doubted he had successfully missed her when she smelt singed hair. An arrow shot past Magnus ear, burying itself in a demon that had reared up behind him. Magnus grinned at Alec, sending him a flying kiss before attacking several of the creatures at once.
Two soldiers made their way across the room, through the fight and now stood several feet from her, bleeding and sweaty. They were both men and were both looking at her with a hungry expression.
Clary looked around and dread filled her at the sight of her preoccupied friends, all fighting their own battles. The closest people to her were Jace who was swiftly dodging several claws of the demons and creatures that surrounded him and Simon who was trapped under a massive demon with serrated teeth, Isabelle rushing to his aid.
Unconsciously, her hand, the one with the stele in it moved. The stele suddenly felt very warm and very alive in her grip, as if it were an extension of her arm.
"What are you going to do, little girl? Draw us to death?" one of the soldiers said, full of spite.
Maybe that's what I'll do.
The stele rested on her arm and she began drawing, pouring whatever she felt into the stele. Her hand moved in its own accord, Clary allowing the urge to draw to flow into the stele and onto her hand. The stinging of the stele against her skin as she drew brought some life and focus into Clary.
"No games, Clarissa. It makes me more annoyed with you." the more bulkier of the two said, scowling.
The two men approached her, both drawing out weapons that looked sharp enough to disembowel an elephant. She took a step back as they closed in on her. Her hand with the stele fell away, weakly falling to her side.
She felt the rune work, making her blood fizz in her like it was boiling or spiked with adrenaline. She didn't know what it would do but she could feel the burst of energy it gave her. She also felt warmer, all of a sudden.
One of the men clamped his hand on her arm and he reared back, howling in pain. His hand was a raw red, wisps of smoke rising from his raw flesh. Blisters were raised on his palm as he clutched his injured hand.
His comrade made a grab at Clary, carefully touching her only her clothing and not her skin. He squeezed tightly, his fingernails digging into her flesh through the fabric of her shirt. He yanked Clary forward, making her almost stumble and fall.
He suddenly gasped before his hand released her and flew to his chest. Blood seeped through his fingers and spilled onto the ground, his eyes flying wide. The man was then flung away, Jace standing in front of her with a furious expression that could have melted diamonds.
"Didn't your mommy ever teach you to not hurt girls?" he spat. Jace turned to Clary. "Are you okay?"
He reached to touch her and Clary moved away. "Don't. I'll hurt you." Clary whispered.
"It's okay," Jace said soothingly. "I - "
A strangled cry made Jace whirl around, his eyes going wide. A few feet away, a girl, one of the soldiers in black and red was dragging her dagger across his shoulder before she stabbed Alec, crimson pouring from his wound. She swiped his legs off the floor and Alec went crashing to the floor, his face scrunched up in pain.
"Alec!" Jace cried, unconsciously dropping his weapon and lunged forward to help his parabatai. Jace's hand shot out and wrapped around the girl's neck, his other hand, probably realizing he had dropped his seraph blade, went to his weapons belt. Jace and the girl went crashing to the floor from the force of Jace's impact, the both of them a blur of flailing limbs and weapons.
Before she could see what became of the girl, Clary felt herself being knocked sideways. She groaned before the person that knocked her down helped her up.
"I'm sorry - Clarissa Fairchild? But you were dead!" a man who looked about thirty said, shock lacing his voice. He was bloody and sweaty, his face smeared with black blood.
He looked at her for a few more moments before he released her and went back to the fight.
It wasn't too long before someone else found her too.
"Clary!" Jocelyn gasped as she shoved her way through the crowd. She enveloped her in a crushing hug, smelling of ash, sweat, blood and just the slightest tinge of cotton. She was incredibly relieved when Jocelyn didn't burn when she touched her. She guessed the rune had worn off. Over Jocelyn's shoulder, she lifted her arm and saw that all that was left of the rune was a silvery scar.
"Are you okay?" she gushed, pulling back and I cupping her cheek. Clary tried not to look so lifeless and knew she failed when Jocelyn's eyebrows scrunched up and she opened her mouth to say something.
One of the creatures with the face of a human loomed up behind Jocelyn, it's sharp spider like limbs raised and positioned for impaling.
The alarmed look on Clary's face must have alerted Jocelyn because she whirled around, a blade Clary didn't know Jocelyn had been holding raised. She heard Jocelyn gasp before she threw herself at the creature, knocking both of them back into the sea of battles and away from Clary.
Clary looked at all the fighting that surrounded her and she cringed at the sight of the fallen Shadowhunters that lay lifeless on the ground. They were losing, she knew. There were too many of them and too little of us.
In her peripheral, she saw Isabelle falling to the ground, her right hand clutching her bleeding left arm as she cried out in pain. She couldn't see Simon anywhere and hoped he was okay. Magnus looked tired and drained as weaker versions of his vibrant sparks flew from his shaking hands, unaware of his fallen lover. His magic now had less an effect of killing the creatures and demons than incapacitating them. Jace was tending to Alec frantically, his body half covering his fallen parabatai's body. From behind, Clary could see that the back of Jace's shirt was shredded by three claw marks, the skin underneath bleeding and red. Alec's eyes locked with hers, alarmingly weak.
She had to at least try to do something to help or none of them would make it out of here. She felt herself sinking in horror as she thought frantically of how to help. It didn't help that her brain currently worked at the speed capacity of a rock.
A rune flashed in her mind, the same she had been seeing for the past few days and the stele felt hot in her hand, no longer warm.
Words rang through her head and Clary closed her eyes, trying to shut everything out.
When you wake up, you need to do whatever you can to get to a stele and draw.
Those words had felt like a millennium ago, a time separated by a vast sea of pain.
Her eyes fluttered open and she gripped the stele tightly in her hand. She turned and hurried as fast as she could towards the wall of the room. She fell to her knees and she braced herself against the wall with one hand before applying the stele to the wall. When the two came into contact, it made the sound of a match being struck.
She closed her eyes and let the image of the intricate rune flow through her arm and into the rune as she started to draw. She gasped as she felt the action of drawing the rune sapping her energy which flowed through her arm in ribbons, transferring into the energy that drove her hand as she drew. She poured everything into the rune - all her pain and her hurt and the love she felt for Jace, Simon, Isabelle, Alec and Magnus. She felt as if she were pouring her blood and soul into it, her veins burning and prickling with static electricity. She inhaled sharply as she struggled to keep her hand from shaking. Clary wanted to fall to the ground and stay there.
Her hand felt heavy, too heavy to keep up but she did so anyways. The rune came out forced as she willed herself to keep drawing. She tried to make her strokes as graceful as possible so she wouldn't mess it up.
She converted the pain she felt and the anger into energy and willpower as she finished the last of the rune. When she was done, she tiredly opened her eyes, feeling completely drained of energy.
The rune glowed like a dying ember against the wall, faintly glowing. She sat back, her hand falling limply onto her lap and the stele rolling out of her grasp.
The Mark spoke of an unearthly power, one that was light and dark at the same time, one that said remember and destroy. There was something sinister in the way it looked though light was spilling from it.
Slowly, the rune glowed brighter, shining gold, the outline of it like cracks that allowed light out. An in a sudden eruption, the rune shined a bright gold and the light burst outwards, blinding Clary. She felt the warmth of the light on her face and marveled at it. At the same time, she felt something snap into place in her mind and she gasped, her eyes flying open as a sharp pain shot through her head.
She gasped as a flurry of images, of experiences and feelings invaded her mind as she stared sightlessly at whatever that was before her, still blinded by the bright light of the rune. Voices filled her head, echoing in her, followed by flashing images that accompanied the words.
"My name is not little girl."
"Welcome to the City of Bones."
"Stay away from Jace."
"To love is to destroy."
"Alec?"
"I only had one pencil."
"It's a graveyard. It's Alicante's City of Bones."
"You're not going. If I have to tie you up and sit on you until this insane whim of yours passes, you are not going to Idris."
"You showed me how to read Naruto."
"My son."
"Sometimes, Clary, love just isn't enough."
"I want to Mark you in a way that will bind us together, Clary. It's just a small Mark, but it's permanent. Are you willing?"
"Patience, little grasshopper. Good things come to those who wait."
"Since you've been a Daylighter you've had that power."
"So maybe our problems aren't like other couples."
"Jordan wants me to think about the beach."
"Some good I mean to do, despite of my own nature."
"I've never felt so … light."
"Are you saying you want him to forget us?"
"I am willing."
"I want you to meet Tessa."
"You're my best friend."
"Jace Herondale plays the piano very well."
"Every time I think I'm missing a piece of me, you give it back."
She felt hot tears fall from her eyes as she fell into the light.
Jace wiped his hand across his face as he got off the body of the dead soldier. He slipped the dagger he used to kill her into its sheath again before rushing to Alec's side, almost slipping on the oily demonic ichor that had gathered on the floor. He fell to his knees, watching in panic as Alec gasped like a fish out of water, his chest rising and falling unevenly.
For a moment, Jace felt lost and completely hopeless before he mentally slapped himself in the face and forced himself to focus.
The first thing that came to mind was how much and how quick Alec was losing blood. Jace pressed his hand to the wound, feeling warm blood coat his hands as he tried to stop the blood.
Through the loud snarls and grunts and cries, Jace swore he had heard someone screaming "Jonathan!" and it had sounded like Jem.
He shook it off as he peeled the torn fabric of Alec's shirt back, wincing at the sight.
The soldier had dragged the dagger across Alec's shoulder, parting the skin there deeply like the Red Sea, before stabbing him, barely missing his throat. It was more serious than it had looked. Alec was gasping, his hand searching blindly for something.
"Hold on, Alec. Please," Jace said. He could hear the frantic desperation in his voice as he used a dagger to cut through the fabric of Alec's shirt so he could assess the wound better. The black fabric parted easily and Jace fought a cringing at the sight of the red, bleeding wound that stretched from his collarbone to his shoulder.
Jace drew out his stele from his pocket and applied it to Alec's shoulder, quickly drawing an iratze.
It immediately turned into a silvery scar, not having done much for the wound. Jace swore before applying another iratze. And another.
Alec groaned as he clamped his eyes shut tightly for a moment before they flew open again, his blue orbs filled with pain.
Jace hated feeling so scared. He hated being scared of the pained look in Alec's eyes. He knew what Alec was trying to tell him.
"Jace ..." Alec choked.
"I'm not going to leave you, okay? You're my parabatai." Jace said harshly, using a piece of Alec's jacket which he had ripped off to staunch the blood flow of the wound. "You're either an idiot to think I'm going to even consider doing that to you or ridiculously self destructive."
"I'm an idiot … then." Alec whispered.
"Damn right you are." Jace muttered.
"From all … your influences." Alec continued, wincing and gasping softly.
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Jace said. He tried applying several more iratzes to stop the bleeding. After about three, the bleeding slowed to almost non existent.
Alec groaned, grabbing Jace's hand tightly. "Jace ..." he groaned, inhaling sharply, his back momentarily arching of the floor like a bow before he slumped back down, looking tired.
The amount of blood that had pooled around Alec on the ground and had soaked into his shirt and was smeared on Jace terrified him. How much blood had Alec lost?
"Jace," Alec said, his voice hoarse. He wasn't looking at Jace as his head was turned to a side, looking past and behind him.
"Hold on," Jace said again, pressing his stele to Alec's arm and drawing a blood replacement rune.
"Jace," Alec pressed, clutching his right wrist tightly.
"I'm a little busy saving your life, Alec." Jace said patiently, finishing the rune and watching as it slowly sank into his skin, leaving a silvery scar behind.
"Jace!" Alec said loudly, the word sounding forced and scratchy.
"What?!" Jace said, looking at Alec who hissed "Clary," at the same time, taking a shaky breath.
Jace whirled around and saw Clary kneeling by a wall, something small rolling from her hand. At this angle, Jace saw that Clary had drawn something on the wall, about the size of a mango. It looked like a Mark but it wasn't one he had seen before.
"What is she ...?" Jace whispered to himself, clutching his stele tightly in his hand.
Suddenly, the outline of the Mark cracked, light spilling from the cracks. The Mark glowed, brighter and brighter with each passing moment. Clary was staring at it, seemingly unaware of everything that was happening around her.
The rune dimmed slightly before light burst forward from it in a sudden eruption like a supernova exploding once it had reached its peak, swallowing Clary in its rays.
"Clary!" Jace screamed before he was blinded by the light.
He heard a few screams before a loud whooshing filled his ears.
Warmth caressed his skin like a dragon was breathing on him and he felt … lighter. It felt as if he was weightless, everything inside of him that was bodily scooped out and replaced with light. He gasped as he felt the familiar fiery flare of the Heavenly Fire as it sang and bubbled in his vein ignited, a feeling he hadn't felt in so long.
At first, the fiery pain didn't register in Jace. All he could comprehend was the feeling of fiery liquid molten flowing through his veins, melting him.
Then the pain felt like it was razing him to ashes as Jace screamed.
Clary? Clary? Clary.
Clary. Clary? Clary. Clary. Clary.
Voices - so many different voices - called to her. But she was so confused.
One moment, she was surrounded by light, by images and the next, everything was dark, not a single sound audible.
She wanted to claw her way back to the light but every part of her felt torturously weighed down.
All she could think was that she was dead and she hadn't gone to heaven.
Clary. Clary. Clary Clary Clary.
The voices served as a lifeline, one that she could grab onto and follow as it pulled her to the surface.
As if resurfacing from being underwater, Clary gasped, inhaling sharply. She appreciated the rush of air that travelled into her lungs. Her eyes fluttered open and light filled her vision again. She realized she was staring at a gold ceiling when she saw the cracks in the cement.
She was lying on her back, her shoulderblades dully burning with pain but she barely noticed. Her legs were bent at an unnatural, uncomfortable angle underneath her. One of her hands was lying on the cool ground, sticky and slightly wet underneath her hand. The other was lying on her stomach, clenched lightly.
She felt a little out of place … she felt different. It was as if she was awakening after a long time and only to find herself in someone else's body. Or rather, she was inside someone else's body and was watching as the person moved and breath without her doing anything. She felt detached.
On the bright side, the heavy, emotionless weight that had earlier hung in her chest had disappeared - a presence she hadn't known was there until it was gone. She felt like she could breath now and she could feel. Feel everything.
It took her several moments to realize that the sound of battle and death had silenced, leaving the air around her eerily silent. Faintly, she could hear someone murmuring something but it was too soft to make out the words.
Relief flooded her that the battle had ended and she settled with closing her eyes and going to sleep. She felt drained of energy as if she hadn't slept in so long.
A short nap felt deserved.
For once, the darkness of her eyelids was comforting and sleep was the sacred thing in the world.
But, as usual, the thing she wanted the most was held out of reach when she felt someone brushing her hair away from her forehead gently, lovingly. She didn't want to open her eyes. Maybe if this person saw that she was asleep, he or she would leave her alone and let her sleep.
The brushing continued, fingers caressing with light and gentle strokes. They were callous and so familiar. She continued to keep her eyes close, still hoping that this person would leave.
"Clary?" Jace whispered, so softly, as if he were afraid she was asleep and would wake her. "Open your eyes."
Her eyes flew open in surprise at the sound of his voice. She felt like she was somewhere else entirely, as if in that short time she had closed her eyes, she had been thrown into another time. She remembered another time like this; her lying on the sand before Lake Lyn, bloodied and injured after her encounter with the Angel Raziel and when she had opened her eyes, she had seen Jace leaning over her, asking her to open her eyes.
Jace, who was no longer dead, who the Angel had brought back.
Now, frighteningly familiar, Jace leaned over her, his eyes soft and molten gold and vulnerable. Her Jace.
As if seeing him for the very first or last time, Clary's eyes raked him in, drinking in every single detail of him like how she had when she had opened her eyes on the shores of Lake Lyn, from his tangled, messy hair that was matted and lanky with blood and sweat, slightly grey from the layer of ash that covered his head to the shallow cut that was on his jaw, surrounded by a blossom of bruises; from the lacerations that were visible through his, bloody shredded shirt to his grimy, dirty and blood streaked yet still beautiful face and to the small star shaped scar that was on his shoulder, not raised like the others on his body as if it were part of his skin, printed there.
"Jace," she whispered in slow wonderment. She remembered him kissing Colette and a stab of hurt went through her. She pushed it away and decided she would stick a chopstick in his eye for it later. Right now, she was going to appreciate him.
"I thought I had lost you again. That rune … I didn't know what it was going to do to you." His eyes tightened slightly as he brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. She wanted to hug him, throw her arms around him and never let go and tell him, reassure him that she was fine and so was he but she didn't want to lie. She didn't know if any of them were fine. "The light faded and I saw you lying on the floor … not moving and I thought that I had lost you again," he said softly, as if he were soothing himself as well as her.
And with a sudden blowing impact, Clary realized she remembered. Remembered the things that had happened to her. Hodge, Max, Valentine, Lilith, Raphael, Sebastian, Asmodeus … The memories came flooding back. She could remember the kisses Jace gave her, the demons they had fought, the amusing petty and playful arguments she had with Isabelle and occasionally Alec, every The Matrix and Lord of the Rings movie session with Simon, the laughs and tears with Jocelyn and Luke, and every bad memory she had of Valentine and Sebastian. She remembered every smile and every death and every sacrifice she had had to make and she had seen.
The fact that she remembered made her want to burst into tears and smile at the same time.
"Jace," Clary whispered, almost smiling. "It's me."
Jace's eyebrows furrowed for a moment. "Clary, I don't - "
"It's me. I remember everything." she said breathlessly, as if she couldn't say the words fast enough.
His eyes widened and he stopped rubbing circles on her cheek with his thumb, his hand and fingers frozen.
"You … remember?" Jace said, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"I remember," Clary said, this time a soft smile on her lips.
Jace pulled her up so she was sitting, a wondrous marvelling in his eyes. "The rune ..."
Clary nodded silently.
"The Angel Ithuriel gave it to you?"
"Well, yes and no." Clary said softly, tracing the outline of Jace's jaw with her index finger. "He sent Jonathan to give it to me. In a dream." Clary said slowly, waiting for Jace's reaction.
His eyes widened, slightly. "Seba - Jonathan?" Jace said softly. He had a thoughtful expression on his face. "He sure knows how to warm up to someone." Jace said finally. He looked around and Clary remembered that they weren't alone.
"We should leave," Jace said just as the sound of an explosive going off thundered through the room.
Jace pulled her to her feet, keeping a protective arm around her. She received looks of incredulity and shock from the Shadowhunters that surrounded her, all of which had thought she was dead. Clary saw that Alec was being supported by Magnus, his shirt missing from his body. Isabelle was being embraced by a seemingly hysterical Maryse while Simon and Robert stood a little to the side, watching the both of them with a small smiles.
The demons and creatures had disappeared, along with all the soldiers in black and red. The sound of rocks being torn apart rang in Clary's ears and she looked at Jace, wondering what was it.
"The Clave are tearing this place apart and searching through it. I think Sarrah, Colette and their soldiers got away." Jace's eyes raked the crowd that watched them. Clary followed his gaze and saw several werewolves in the crowd. One seemed to give her a toothy grin and she knew why it looked so familiar. Maia.
"I think your rune destroyed all the demons."
The Mark spoke of an unearthly power, one that was light and dark at the same time, one that said remember and destroy.
Clary had no idea how accurate she had been.
"Let's g - "
Jace cut off at the cry of "Jem!". Immediately, Jace's eyes widened as a stream of murmurs and gasps that rippled through the gathering of Shadowhunters.
Clary recognised the voice. Gentle yet sharp, marred by an accent somewhere in between American and British. Tessa.
Jace and Clary pushed through the crowd, Magnus, Simon and Alec following them by their heels (Alec being dragged along by Magnus so he did not particularly have a choice as he looked like he couldn't even stand on his own).
Jace had to shove aside several broad shouldered and heavy set Shadowhunters. Clary guessed he wasn't in the mood for a simple excuse me
She heard the whispers and murmurs of "Clarissa," and "Clarissa Fairchild," as she past the Shadowhunters. Jace's grip tightened on her hand as he pulled her through the crowd.
Jace finally managed to shove his way through the throng of Shadowhunters and to Tessa. They stopped short when they saw Tessa on the ground, her lap pillowing a pale and gasping Jem. His eyes were trained on Tessa's face, never leaving as he took short intakes of air.
"James," Clary heard Magnus whisper. Clary craned her head around and saw Magnus handing a pale Alec over to a familia dark haired Shadowhunter before crouching down by Jem.
"Magnus, Magnus please help him." Tessa cried, one of her hands on Jem's cheek while the other was over Jem's hand which was on his stomach. Blood was seeping through the fabric of his clothes and through his and Tessa's fingers.
Clary noticed the dagger that laid beside Jem, coated in crimson to the hilt and the body of a dead soldier that lay a few feet away.
Jace seemed to blanch at the sight as he kneeled beside Tessa, a stele in his hand.
"Clary - could you do something?" Jace asked, his forehead lined with worry.
Tessa replied him, shaking her head sharply. Her hair, which was already a mess, fell further out of the ponytail that had once pulled her hair back. "I already tried that," she said, sounding hopeless. "The runes won't do anything."
"Wo Tessa, wo ai ni." Jem said quietly, taking a shaky breath. "Wo tui pu che."
"Jem, you don't have to apologise," Tessa whispered, a tear falling from her cheek. It splashed onto Jem's cheek as if he had been the one to shed a tear.
Magnus pried Tessa and Jem's hand away and she heard him inhale sharply.
"Magnus ..." Jem whispered, his gasping slowing.
Beside her, Clary heard Simon whisper: "Persephone was right."
A/N - Hi! Now, the spelling of the words in Chinese there may not be a hundred percent correct. So in translation: "My Tessa, I love you. I am so sorry." This was the last chapter (!). Next update will be the epilogue. I'd like to thank everyone of you who commented your support! I really needed that thanks so much.
This chapter and the last chapter was suppose to be one long chapter but I decided to split it into two so here you go. Originally, this chapter was supposed to only have Clary's POV in it but I decided that having Jace's POV in it would be crucial.