On his way to the Hotel Dumort. Alec quickly popped into the nearest dollar store to pick up some necessities he required if his plan to bring Valentine out of hiding would succeed. Laying out the mug and plastic sword on the table beside the soul sword.
"Alec, what are you planning?" Clary asked, looking at the items on the table then back up at her brother confused.
"Valentine is desperate, he wants the Mortal Cup and Soul Sword so, that's how we're going to lure him out," Alec explained.
"… And you're going to throw mugs and plastic swords at him?" Simon said, he looked sceptical of this idea. Alec got them out of trouble many times growing up, but this is the shadowworld, and it won't be easy taking down Valentine then it was with school bullies.
"No Si, we can't risk Valentine getting his hands on these. So instead…" Alec started picking up the mug waving one hand over it, blue sparks emanated from Alec's hand. The mug changed, instead, it looked like Alec was holding the Mortal Cup, "I can glamour both the sword and mug to look like the mortal instruments, which should lure Valentine out,".
"Oh, and we can ask Magnus to hide the real soul sword with the mortal cup," Clary said, smiling. Still, Alec shook his head, asking Magnus to hide the mortal cup had been risky enough if Valentine realised that Magnus is important to Alec. That would be like handing the mortal cup over to him on a silver platter.
"It's too risky. What if Valentine realised our link with Magnus, he might go after him? I have an idea on where to hide them," Alec said, and Clary nodded her head.
"Where?" Simon asked.
"I can't say Si if Valentine got hold of either you or Clary then he could torture the location out of you, and I wouldn't wish that one anyone. To keep you safe, I'm going to be the only person who can know where the cup and the sword are going to be hidden" Alec said, he couldn't risk his sister or his best friend. From the look, Raphael sent him; he'd grateful on trying to keep Simon safe. He refused to let them experience what he had. However, Alec had yet, dealt with that issue. Instead, pushing it down trying to forget that anything like that had even happened to him. "Now we need to explain everything to Jace, Izzy and Magnus. Clary would you text the shadowhunters to meet us at Magnus' but clarify that they shouldn't tell anyone where they're going. We can't trust anyone at
the institute, we don't know who's in the circle".
"You think someone on the inside is working with Valentine?" Clary asked, horrified.
"Clary, we can't risk our plan falling through. We need to stop Valentine, and if someone is working with Valentine, it will only risk him finding out about the fake instruments. We'll never stop him," Alec warned, they had no choice, they could only trust a select number of people.
Alec quickly messaged Magnus telling him he's about to portal into his apartment with Clary. Simon decided to stay behind with Raphael since there wasn't much the vampire could really do to help at the moment. After receiving the okay from Magnus, Alec summoned his magic, opening the portal and stepped through with Clary following behind him, the real and fake mortal instruments hidden safely inside his bag. Magnus sat on his sofa with a cocktail in his hand.
"Ah, Alexander, Clary, what can I do for you?" Magnus said before taking a sip of his drink.
"I need the Mortal Cup, with Valentine in town I can't risk him figuring out that we're hiding the cup here," Alec explained. He didn't want to give Valentine anymore of a reason to come after Magnus.
"You know I can protect myself from Valentine," Magnus said.
"I know you can, but I have a plan to bring Valentine out of hiding, and I can't risk him getting his hands on the mortal cup before we can lure him out. Please, I know where we can hide them for now," Alec explained, and Magnus sighed. Standing up, walking into another room before quickly returning with the mortal cup in hand.
"I hope you know what you're doing," Magnus asked. Alec didn't really know what he was doing, taking on a madman with his magic and a bow and arrows. He had little knowledge of the shadowworld, but that couldn't stop him. To protect those he cared for, he needs to follow his instincts and bring Valentine down.
"Me too," Alec said, flashing a small smile at Magnus as he took the mortal cup before hiding it in his bag alongside the soul sword.
"Jace and Izzy are here," Clary said looking up from her phone before walking over to the front door, opening it letting both Jace and Izzy inside.
"Clary mentioned you had this plan to bring Valentine down, what is it?" Jace asked, sitting down on the sofa beside Izzy whilst Alec, Magnus and Clary sat opposite them.
"There is a warehouse district close to the Hotel Dumort. If we can lure Valentine to that warehouse, then it will keep him away from the mundanes. Suppose we glamour a mag and plastic sword to look like the mortal instruments. In that case, Valentine might fall for the bait and come after us," Alec explained the basics of his idea.
"That's dangerous, you could get yourself killed," Magnus said, and Alec shrugged his shoulders.
"Someone has to try. The rest of the shadowworld are hiding away from Valentine, hoping he'll just disappear. He took my mother like hell is I going to let that bastard stay alive any longer". Alec's hands were shaking, he would not let that monster get away with hurting any more downworlders, he'll bring the end of this once and for all.
"Oh. Hodge had a breakthrough on potentially someone who may have made the potion for Jocelyn" Jace said, pulling his phone out of his pocket. Tapping on the screen before sliding it across the table to Clary with a picture of a red-skinned Warlock with horns.
"Ragnor Fell?" Magnus said, taking the phone.
"You know him?" Alec asked, looking at Magnus, who nodded.
"Ragnor is one of my oldest friends, he's very prickly, likes to keep to himself," Magnus explained.
"Hodge believes either Ragnor Fell or Tessa Grey are the only ones who may have made the potion for Jocelyn. We just need to figure out who had access to her," Jace explained.
"By the early '90s, Ragnor was a professor at the Shadowhunter Academy in Idris" Magnus explained, handing Jace his phone back.
"Idris? Didn't Luke say mom lived there? Does that mean he could have made her the potion?" Clary said, looking at Alec, who nodded. He remembered Luke saying how their mother had lived in Idris most of her life until she ran away from Valentine.
"The little bugger! That's why he hasn't responded to my fire message. Ever since Valentine began hunting warlocks, Ragnor's been holed up in his private countryside house outside London.
For all I know, Ragnor suspected by fire message was a ploy by Valentine to lure him out of hiding," Magnus said.
"Then you must find him," Alec said. As much as he wanted to go find this Ragnor person, he still had both the Mortal instruments with him. He needed to hide them soon.
"You not coming with us?" Clary asked, but Alec shook his head.
"I have something else I need to do first" he replied. Clary frowned before her eyes widen as she realised what Alec meant. Her eyes trailing over to where they'd hidden the mortal instruments inside Alec's bag.
"Be careful?" Clary said, wrapping her arms around her brother in a tight hug.
"You too" Alec replied.
Maryse Lightwood was the last person he wanted to see, but Alec had no choice. Valentine would search everywhere for the Soul Sword and Mortal Cup, except with at the institute. It's a risk if there is a spy inside the institute. They might see Alec had the Mortal instruments over then they can alert Valentine of their location. Still, it's a risk he's willing to take. The Mortal Instruments will be safe in the hands of the New York Institute. Alec walked into the institute, heading straight towards Maryse's office. When the door was shut, and a silencing spell placed on the office. Alec explained everything from finding the Mortal Cup to stealing the Soul Sword and what Valentine is planning on doing with it if he got his hands on them.
"Why bring them here? If you went through all this trouble to find and steal the mortal instruments. Why bring them back?" Maryse questioned, looking down at her desk where the two instruments lay.
"Because this the last place anyone would think to look. No one besides a select number of people knows about my relation to you, they'd have no reason to assume I would bring them directly to you. I don't trust the Clave, and I don't trust you, not after what you did to me, but I need to keep these safe. If Valentine gets his hands on these instruments, then he'll use your sacred wish and destroy all downworlders, I can't let that happen. Promise me until Valentine is dead, you'll keep these safe then you can return them to wherever they belong," Alec explained.
Maryse looked at her son, the boy she gave away. He'd become everything she wished her child could be and more. If Alec wished for her to hide these mortal instruments. Until Valentine is dead then for once in her life, she'd do the right thing for her son, "Okay, I promise to keep them safe, all I ask in return Alec is that you keep yourself safe".
"Valentine, we've received a message from our spy inside the institute," one circle member said, walking over to their leader. Who was quietly seething to himself in the corner after losing the Soul Sword.
"What is it?" Valentine snapped, glaring at the shadow hunter.
"A Silent Brother told the Clave how a warlock broke in seconds be we did and took the sword," the circle member passed on the message. A ferocious growl ripped up Valentine's throat.
"That abomination, no other warlock would dare go after the soul sword, he must have figured out our plan. Find him, find Alexander Fray, and bring him to me. I'm going to make that bastard regret being born," Valentine ordered. His plans may be on hold for now, but that didn't matter. He was going to kill Alexander Fray if it was the last thing he did.