Here it is! Soon like I promised! Haha! I'm particularly proud of this chapter. It's actually one of the first ones I finished when I began writing this story. I've had this finished for about a year or two! Note, that all of the demon names I use are taken straight from my copy of "The Shadowhunter Codex" (which I've actually put notes in myself and worn it out).

Slight trigger warning: blood, violence, death, past sexual trauma, attempted sexual assault (doesn't get farther than an unwanted kiss)

I hope you all love it!

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters or demons, all rights go to Cassandra Clare.


Chapter 20: The Third Mortal War

"Close the Portals!" Kiara called out as the enemies surged into the city. Half of them were demons of all shapes and sizes, many of which were very powerful and terrifying and incredibly rare, even for demon standards. Female warriors made up the other half of the invading army, all of them dressed in nearly identical armor to Kiara's soldiers. However, one major characteristic that separated the two of them were the demonic markings upon their skin. Angry, red, burning lines etched on, reminiscent of Sebastian's Endarkened Army. They poured through the Portals by the dozens, flooding the city.

Kiara and her troops wasted no time. They all scattered in different directions, clashing with the enemy. The silence of the city shattered with deafening sounds of screams of agony, demonic shrieks, and the clash of metal weapons. Fire caught almost immediately as Portals continued to appear, pouring more and more enemies into the peaceful city. Kiara and Alyssa led their own squads. Alyssa and her team immediately transformed into their feline forms and pounced on a hoard of Behemoth demons that emerged from the nearest Portal. Meanwhile, Kiara's group consisted of Lady Hannah, her brother, their family, and a few spare troops from the Honor Guard. Together, they moved deeper into the city, where more Portals opened. All of them tried to stay in line of sight of each other, but that proved impossible as a hoard of soldiers divided their group.

The cries rang throughout the city, the beautiful grassy landscape and elegant structures marred by fire and blood and poison and hellmist. The sky filled with smoke that cast the entire city into darkness. Children's screams were heard from inside homes as demons did as they pleased, soldier's cried out in agony as they dropped from wounds, demon's roared and groaned as they were cut down before more took their place, but the armies kept fighting. Because they all knew this was the last time. This was the factor to decide the fate of their race.

Neither of them was going down easily.


Kiara charged through the streets of the weaponry district with Izzy and Jace right behind her. Following her senses, she sliced down a Shax demon that appeared before her with ease, not slowing her pace. Her ears buzzed as the cries she heard and felt grew stronger and clearer. Somewhere, a building of injured were being attacked, and Kiara had to protect them. Jace and Izzy followed her without question, cutting down soldiers as well to keep pace.

Coming upon the building, the screams rang in her ears and white-hot fury overcame the queen. She kicked down the door in time to see a group of elderly women being torn apart by Kuri demons. Their long, spidery legs wrapped around their throats, choking off their air until they went limp. Kiara's vision went red and she roared (full on lion roared) in rage, charging into the house and slicing apart the demons with terrifying power and precision. Jace and Izzy followed, only able to dispatch the couple stragglers Kiara missed. Once all the demons were exterminated, Kiara didn't hesitate. She raced to the fallen elders, but none of them had a pulse and their eyes were lifeless. For a moment, the two Shadowhunters saw pain and regret as she swiftly but gently closed their eyes, speaking a prayer of death in a language neither of them knew. None of them spoke as she stood back up and replaced her sorrow with rage and fire. Turning on her heel, she raced out of the house, following the sound of more screams from the adjacent building. Jace and Izzy followed.


"On your left," Simon said as he fired another arrow at a Facemelter that had been attacking a few soldiers on their side. Alec made no response, loading his bow and fired, striking an enemy warrior just as she pounced for the kill. She fell to the ground with a sickening thud, and the stomach-churning crack of her neck made them flinch momentarily, an involuntary reflex. From behind, Alec heard a shocked yelp before one of the other archers was dragged off the roof by a Du'Sien. Suddenly, a great shadow appeared over them. No one had time to react before it gave a great cry and fell limp, revealing Lady Hannah standing on its back with one of her wicked knives lodged in its flesh.

"Stay focused," she said as she yanked the blade out with a sickening pop. "We need to try and stop as many things coming through those Portals so our soldiers can close them."

"Easier said than done," Simon called back as he fired another arrow at a Hydra that was emerging from another rooftop Portal. However, only one head died and that only seemed to piss it off. With a howl of rage, it leapt onto their roof. The soldiers barely had time to roll out of harm's way-some of them rolled right over the building's edge and clung to the edges for dear life. The hydra was massive, heavy enough to cause the stone beneath their feet to heave and crack unsettlingly. Heads swerving, it lashed out at the soldiers, spraying acidic poison and attempting to eat the less defended. It managed to burn one girl, and swallow another whole. Lady Hannah slipped behind it and stabbed it in the back. It howled once more, but one head latched onto Hannah's leg and threw her off, slamming her down onto the roof. At the same time, the other three heads knocked five more archers over the ledge of the building. Alec and Simon kept firing arrows at it until it slipped over the edge and died when hitting the ground, ichor covering the other bodies of soldiers from either side already littering the ground. Each boy grabbed one of the Lady's hands and pulled her up, received a nod of appreciation, and turned back to the battle, praying that Clary and Magnus were able to close the Portals.


Magnus, in all his years, had never had so much trouble closing a Portal in his entire life.

Each time he came close, something interfered, from demons to soldiers to strange magic resistance. Had it not been for Clary and Alyssa, he would've been torn to pieces by now. Behind him, he felt hot, sticky, disgusting breath on the back of his neck, but it disappeared as he heard a tiger's growl. Then there was the sound of flesh tearing by giant claws, and the demon's pained screeches before it died. Another demon came at him out of the corner of his eye, but he saw a flash of bright red and silver, and the demon shrank as ichor poured out of it. Thankfully, the two vicious women were able to keep most of the monsters at bay, and after an eternity the swirling mist of the Portal vanished.

"Closed!" he called out before turning around. Clary finished slicing apart a group of Ravager demons a moment later. With a brief smile of relief, she made her way over to the High Warlock.

"Are you ok?" she asked him hurriedly. "If you need to stop, we can get you somewhere safe."

"I'm fine, Biscuit," the cat-eyed man answers, using his hand to put pressure on his bleeding side. "Are you alright?"

"A bit winded, but able to fight," she answered, taking out her stele and quickly drawing a special healing rune she developed on Magnus's torso. The bleeding from his side receded and the pain began to subside, and Magnus gave the girl a smile of thanks.

Then, with an exhausted sigh, Magnus let his knees give out and he sat on the ground. It happened so suddenly that Clary nearly ripped his arm off trying to keep him upright.

"Are you really ok?" Clary asked worriedly, grabbing his hand. Magnus smiled at his Biscuit. It was a worn, strained, tired smile, but it was a real smile.

"I just-I need a second," Magnus gasped out. Clary nodded and continued to scan the room around her as he sat at her feet, trying to catch the breath he had no idea he had in his efforts. He decided to take this brief moment for what it was worth. The room was full of bloodied corpses and ichor covered bodies, but the silence was welcome for this brief moment. After a moment, Magnus felt his breath return and his vision focus a bit more.

Then, he noticed something off.

"Where's Alyssa?" Magnus asked as he continued to glance around the room. The two of them turned to look around the room full of rotting demon flesh. All around them, demons lay dead or dying, along with a few enemy soldiers that had entered through the Portal. No doors or windows were broken, and there was no other form of life besides themselves.

Alyssa had vanished.


The woman gave a gasp of pain as the sword entered her gut and punctured her heart, and a moment later she lay dead on the floorboards. Jace stood over her, trying to shake the blood off his blade while trying not to look guilty. He was used to killing demons. He had no problem killing demons; they were just soul-less monsters that wreaked havoc. Killing them was in his nature, it was his calling and his purpose. Intentionally killing a being with a soul...never sat well with him, no matter how evil their deeds had been. To his left, Isabelle kneeled in front of another woman, this one an ally, gasping for breath as blood filled her mouth due to her punctured lung. Izzy just held the woman's hand as her breathing stilled. Once it did, she stood up, her face stony but her eyes determined not to give up. There were only three or four other living being in the room, all of them allies that had been following them since the fighting had started. They had started the day with about eight others in their group. Now there weren't so many.

"Rest in peace, my son," Kiara's voice murmured. The two of them turned to see Kiara cradling a child of about ten years in her arms. It was a boy, one of the few males in the city. His blue pajamas were now stained purple, nearly brown with his blood and demon ichor, his tan skin was pale from blood loss, and his eyes were empty. One of his arms from gone, and his throat was slick with red blood, gushing from the puncture to the artery. They watched as Kiara lifted the dead child and placed him on one of the cots, setting him as if he were in a coffin. The two of them also felt pangs of guilt and sadness stab at their hearts, because the boy looked exactly like Max Lightwood had when he had been placed on the pyre years ago. The resemblance was uncanny, and only made the situation more painful to witness. Remaining silent, Kiara turned back to her group, tears in her eyes that swam with rage and despair. She then turned to the remaining soldiers of the squad.

"Captain, disperse your team to the far reaches of this section. Go in pairs, and search for any spies or holes in our defenses. Protect and save all you can." The captain nodded before she and her half a dozen followers ran out the door. Three remained: the queen and the two Shadowhunters.

"Let's move," Kiara said firmly. Before they made their way to the door, however, the sound of slow, mocking clapping echoed throughout the room, preceding the sound of cruel, amused laughter. Kiara's body seized momentarily-a fear-based response-and her eyes widened a fraction with well hidden fear. In that small opening, they were ambushed.

A pack of nearly two dozen Raum demons barged through the doorway, but the noise of the chaos did not diminish the sound of laughter. In her frozen state, Kiara had no time to register the attack, allowing one of the demons to latch its jaws onto her leg, causing her to cry out in pain. On instinct, Jace sliced the demon in two, which snapped the queen out of her frozen state. Swift and deadly, the queen danced through the demons with her two comrades, stabbing and slicing through the monsters as fast as possible. It only took a moment, but once the demons were gone the three were out of breath. They struggled to stay upright and keep their breathing even. They couldn't show any signs of weakness, no fatigue, because the enemy would have the upper hand.

Out of the corner of her eye, Kiara caught a glimpse of far too familiar sea green eyes that danced with murderous delight. She felt her stomach turn inside out, and her blood turned to acid in her veins.

"Oh, my beautiful pet," his silky, almost seductive voice rang out. "How I have missed you."


When Magnus felt the ice in his stomach, he was blasting away three warriors at once. At first, he ignored it, concentrating on staying alive as he finished two of the women off quickly. The head wounds he inflicted weren't fatal, but sure to leave them unconscious for quite some time. However, that icy feeling continued to grow as he tried to focus, making his way over to Clary and the other soldiers on his side. They had moved from the previous building to a mansion closer to the center of the city, where a set of nearly four dozen enemies had been trying to open another Portal a minute earlier. Now, most of them were either dead or wounded, but the few that remained were the deadliest of their little club. Even though they were outnumbered three to one, the last six enemies did not stay down. It took them forever to knock them out. As the last one fell to the ground in unconsciousness, Magnus made his way over to Clary, who was gasping for breath and trying to stay upright on her wounded leg. The icy feeling in his stomach had spread throughout his entire torso, and he felt a distinct need to search for something in the opposite direction, deeper into the city.

"Did you feel that?" he asked as he lowered a glowing hand to one woman's leg, concentrating on the skin repairing itself.

"Yes," one of the warriors responded. "The queen is in danger."

"How do you know?" Clary asked as Magnus helped her stand on her feet.

"The queen is attached to any of her people who bare her mark," another warrior said as she tended to her comrade that lay bleeding on the marble. "Since she had marked you and us, those who are closest to her can sense when she is in danger, and vice-versa."

"We have to find her," Magnus said, but his hopes were dashed as a second later, Facemelters and Hydras charged through the walls and attacked. They started fighting again. However, three of Kiara's soldiers jumped in front of the warlock and red-haired Shadowhunter, drawing the demons away.

"We can handle them!" the captain called out as she stabbed two at once. "Get to her Majesty! She needs you!"

At that moment, the demons they were facing became stiff. Then, they toppled to the ground, a number of arrows protruding from their backs. The two of them whipped around to see Alec and Simon standing on one of the broken window ledges, firing their arrows at any demon they saw. The warlock and redhead ran in their direction, trying desperately to get to their friends. Once there, the four paired up and fought as units.

"You sensed it too?" Magnus asked as he blasted apart a Hydra that focused on the captain. Alec gave a grunt in response as he let four arrows fly into the chest of a Facemelter.

"Clary and I can handle this," Simon told them as he ducked to allow Clary to slice off the head of a Raum demon that was behind him. "Kiara needs you both. We'll catch up once we're done here."

The two of them did not question him. As soon as an opening appeared, the two of them charged through. They fought their way out of the mansion and back out into the city. Once they made it out the door, they charged in the same direction, towards the center of the city. They didn't need to discuss where to go. All they had to do was feel it.


The three demon slayers stood panting over the numerous demons that lay dead at their feet. They panted like dogs in the heat, their limbs shaking in attempting to remain conscious. One of Jace's arms dangled at an odd angle, while Izzy leaned more of her weight on her left side. Kiara had slashes and burns all over her arms and torso, but she looked fine physically aside from that. However, an instant later she straightened up and went stiff. The next moment, with no warning, she tackled Izzy to the ground, shielding the black-haired woman with her own body.

Izzy didn't have time to question what happened before she saw a dagger fly out of the shadows and onto the wall behind her. From the angle and the height the dagger impacted in the wall, if Izzy hadn't moved, it would've gone straight into her heart.

"Oh, you've improved since we last played," the male voice said with sinister delight. "Please, show me more of what you have learned. It shall make this reunion much more entertaining for me."

Kiara jumped to her feet, drawing her fans out and frantically searching for the source of the voice. Nothing but shadow surrounded them, as if all the light from the outside world vanished and they were in a dark hell. Trapped in the lair of a hungry, vicious predator.

"Shut up!" Jace called out. Before he could utter another word, a sword lodged into his bad arm, making him howl in pain. In that moment, his sword flew out of his good hand and into the shadows, leaving him unarmed, wounded, and vulnerable. There was a "tsk" sound coming from the voice.

"Young Herondale, you must learn not to interfere with matters that do not involve you." When he finished his sentence, Jace cried out in pain as the sound of a whip cracking resounded throughout the room. The sound continued, and Jace continued to grunt and gasp in pain, falling to his knees as an invisible weapon struck his back, tearing his shirt and armor, making him bleed profusely.

"STOP THIS AT ONCE!" Kiara commanded furiously. "YOUR QUARREL IS WITH ME, NOT WITH THE NEPHILIM!" A dark chuckle caused their blood to run cold. It reminded them of Sebastian, but it wasn't his. But, it was just as dark.

"Au contraire, ma amour," the voice replied with that same unnerving seductive tone. "He fights for you; he is willing to be harmed for you. Therefore, he is a part of this. He is just another tool in my arsenal. A lovely tool that works so well, don't you think love?"

The whipping continued despite Kiara's screams of protest and Jace's blood splattering on the ground. Izzy struggled to stand again, but when Kiara covered her earlier, she had felt her bad leg pop. Each time she tried to put a tiny bit of pressure on it, she fell to the ground because the pain was so powerful. She called out for the man to stop along with Kiara, her voice dripping with rage rather than desperation. The whipping finally ceased when the man let out another dark chuckle.

"Oh, my darling pet," the voice said with delighted insanity. "How grateful am I to Queen Helena for restoring me to this world. Think of all the fun you and I may have together."

"SHUT UP!" she ordered, beginning to slash her fans at the shadows in any attempt to find the source of the voice. Despite her command, he continued as if nothing had happened.

"Ah yes," he continued pleasantly. "I remember such fun we had together. I recall the delighted screams you emitted when I whipped you with that demon-poison drenched whip. Do you remember that my dear? It went on for hours. So alluring."

"BE QUIET!" Again, he ignored her.

"Though, I must confess, I cannot decide whether I enjoy your pleas for mercy better. That time when I had you strung to a cross and summoned Kuri to gnaw at your bare limbs? Mm, your cries for mercy were so delicious. They sent shivers down my spine. Even now they make me tingle when I think about them."

"STOP IT!" Kiara cried out, having stopped her attack. Now she had her hands clutched around her ears, clawing at her skin and hair as he spoke, trying to drown him out.

"Even so, I do know what my absolute favorite game was. The ones we played without the toys. Much more personal. Just you and I, nothing between us, vulnerable and bare to the world."

Kiara froze, her eyes glazed over in terror and nausea as the memories swept over her. She knew exactly what he was talking about; it was something that had taken her decades to recover from. The begging, the crying, the pain, the humiliation, the violation, the feeling of dirtiness…it was all so much. She dropped her hands, her face went pale, her breath came out in short, desperate gasps. The two Shadowhunters only watched in shock and horror as they registered what the voice meant. At her reaction, the male voice chuckled happily.

"Ah, you do remember. You were always so beautiful, my pet. Your cries of pain, your tears of desperation, your begging moans for me to stop…all of them so delightfully satisfying. The heat of your body, the bruises dancing on your beautiful pale skin, the expressions you made, all so delicious. Granted, most times I had to restrain you with chains or ropes, but that only added to my excitement when we were together. You know, that was the reason I kept you alive all that time. Out of all my things and toys, you never stopped giving me pleasure. You were my beloved pet. All the others, they wore out and gave in, they became complacent or simply stopped living, but you…you never stopped. Even after you were thoroughly broken, you still fought in your way. But it was so amusing. So captivating. I love that about you."

"Stop it," Kiara whimpered, begged. It was terrifying, foreign to hear such a small, frightened voice emerge from such a strong, powerful woman. Since the moment they met, Kiara had been so strong, beautiful, powerful…unstoppable. Now…now she was on the ground, shaking like a kitten in the rain, her face pale with terror and shame. Both Jace and Izzy felt a mixture of horror, fear, and rage for the queen. She was so frozen in her memories and fear that she had lost all sense of danger or reality.

The perfect opportunity to strike.

He pounced while she was frozen. He looked to be around the age of fifty, but his eyes showed an emptiness, an absence of life. Not all his being was there. For such an old man, he had a very lean, fit body, strong enough to pin Kiara down. He had grey hair and gold skin, dressed in the masculine form of enemy armor. The marks on his arms indicated he was a Shadowhunter, but they were dark and demonic, like those of Sebastian's Endarkened Army. His face curled into a delightedly sinister grin as he kept Kiara pinned to the floor. She remained frozen, her eyes widening in shock and fear as the man held her down with ease. She did not struggle. She did not move. In her shock, she remained frozen solid.

"Oh, my darling," the man said in a silky voice laced with evil intent. "I know you loved it as much as me."

"I HATED IT!" she screamed suddenly, breaking out of her trance and trying to force the man off her. However, he held her down easily. No matter how she squirmed and struggled, his hold on her was like concrete. Her strength had vanished in her terror.

"Oh, don't lie to me," he said, feigning a hurt voice and face, using one hand to slowly pet down the side of her face. "The way you moaned and begged…you're just a toy for me, aren't you? My pet was just begging to be loved and attended, aren't I right?"

"I AM NOT! LET ME GO!" she denied angrily, but the fear overlapped it. The man continued to hold on, his grip tightening around her wrists. He glanced over to Jace and Izzy, who were watching helplessly a few feet away. Jace tried in vain to stand but couldn't move with his raw, open back. Izzy tried to crawl over to them, but her bag leg caught on something and she couldn't get any closer. The two watched desperately, full of anger and disgust. The sinister grin on the man's face returned, his eyes alight with sinister mischief as he looked back at is pet.

"What do you say we give your new friends a show? Show them what you really look like? Who you truly are?" Kiara didn't say anything; she didn't have the chance to. Without waiting for her answer, the man leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, forcing his tongue into her mouth. Kiara screamed against him, kicking out and struggling to find a way to get away. Her magic was inaccessible since she couldn't move her hands, and his strength was still superior to her own, along with his weight and mass.

She continued to struggle as he continued his assault. Around them, she heard Jace and Izzy cry out, heard them struggling to try and get to her, screaming at the man to stop, but it was all hazy. She could feel the man forcing her legs apart with his knee. She could feel the hardness of his arousal against her thigh, rubbing against her in pleasure, while she tried to push away in humiliation. Tears tracked down her cheeks as she continued to fight futilely against him. Then he moved his free hand away from her face, and began to reach to the bottom of her shirt. It reached the end of her armor. His fingers slipped beneath the bloodied fabric, pressing flat to her toned stomach muscles. The touch felt like acid. Slowly, he began to pull upwards.

Then he froze.

"Release the queen," a familiar, but chillingly deadly voice hissed. In the next moment, the man flew off Kiara and into one of the walls thanks to a blast of magic blue fire. He landed sideways into the wall, revealing the arrow that protruded from his back. Turning her head shakily, Queen Kiara looked up to see her saviors: Magnus and Alec.

Suddenly, a dozen Ravenger demons leapt out of the shadows and surrounded the two. Alec let his arrows fly, hitting each one perfectly as Magnus followed each hit with a blast of his own. The combined assault caused the battle to only last a few moments, which was just how long the man remained dazed. When they finished, the three of them stared at each other for a moment before the lone man drew out a sword.

Magnus wasted no time, charging the man and blasting him with everything he had. He didn't fight smart, he fought mad, and it would work for a short time. Meanwhile, Alec moved to check on Kiara, who only pointed to Jace and Izzy. The Lightwood moved to tend to his siblings without argument, leaving Kiara to watch her brother. Her mind raced as she analyzed the fight. Magnus was fighting strong, but he was tiring out, his aim was sloppy, and he hadn't landed a single hit.

When the man struck Magnus and sent him to the ground, Kiara remembered her training. Her strength instantly returned.

Standing swiftly, she grabbed her fans and raced towards them. The room seemed so large and time seemed to slow as she ran closer. He raised his sword to strike down at Magnus, Alec reached to grab an arrow, Kiara's feet flew. At the last second, Kiara made it in front of her brother; her fans raised above her, crossed to catch the blade. Her body roared to life as rage and instinct took over. Sparks flew as their blades caught together. With fierce determination and hatred, she looked straight into the dead eyes of the man who was the scourge of her life for so long. She didn't feel fear. She didn't feel shame. She didn't feel mercy or forgiveness or acceptance or pity or horror. This man had attacked her brother. This man had lied to her about her brother. This man had taken her from her brother once. He was not going to do that again.

No, Kiara was livid.

"I don't belong to you," she practically hissed. Faster than anyone could see, Kiara stabbed the man through the chest, directly into his heart. She kept looking into his eyes as the blade tore through the cardiovascular muscles, instantly spelling death. Blood dripped out of the man's mouth for a moment. He stared in shock at his pet, who was so good and so behaved, and so brokenly his. She stared back at him with cold fury. His pet was gone. This…this was something else. Then he fell back, landing with a large, dead thump on the floor. He didn't move. He didn't breath. He was dead.

Once the deed was done, Kiara's body collapsed. Everything came back to her instantly; her body went numb. She wanted to take a shower; she wanted to rip off her own flesh. She felt disgusting, but she remained calm. Remembering her therapy, she slowly breathed in and out on an eight count. The warm patch on her back indicated that Magnus had his hand on her in a comforting gesture. Then, she felt a familiar warmth of magic cascade over her skin, mending the lacerations and marks easily. Huh, she'd been stabbed earlier. And poisoned? Guess that's why her strength didn't work? Oh, well, it was over now. She didn't turn around, just continued to breath and calm her racing heart.

"Are you alright?" Alec asked as he made his way over. Kiara didn't say anything, just gave a tiny nod. She didn't look any of them in the eye.

"Is everything he said true?" Magnus asked gently, his tone soft but hard. "Did he really do that to you?" Another small nod. When she nodded the second time, Jace grunted and turned his head to the dead man by the wall.

"That bastard," he said angrily, his fists shaking with rage. "I swear to Razeil himself, if I could kill him a thousand times I would."

"Same," Izzy chimed in, her eyes cold as she also looked at the body.

"Don't say that," Kiara said. All of them turned to her, seeing her look at them with the same hard, strong eyes that they had encountered when they first met.

"It is alright to be angry, but don't go that far. That anger will not help you. He hurt me, he tortured me for years, but now he is dead and won't do it anymore. Killing him again won't take away all the atrocities he has committed in his life, and it won't change the fact that he destroyed me when I was young, or that he destroyed countless others like me. Him being dead doesn't also mean I'm cured of my trauma, it will always be there. His death will give me some relief, but wishing to kill him again…that is not healthy, for anyone. I am honored that you all feel so angry at a man who isn't even your enemy, but don't hold onto that anger. Please, for now, let the dead be dead. We have a war to fight, and we need all the best warriors we have to be mentally ready."

All of them wanted to argue, wanted to stay angry, but Kiara was right. Now wasn't the time to be consumed by anger. They had a war to win. For a few moments, Magnus continued to check over his sister, before he shook his head in frustration. With a wave of his hand, two small bottles of bubbling, neon liquids appeared at Kiara's side. Questionably, the queen picked each up and read the labels, then her eyes widened. When she turned to look at her brother, he shrugged.

"While you all were helping with the evacuation, I decided to make myself useful. Clary and I made plenty of these for situations like this," he explained. Kiara gave him a grateful look before popping off the cork of the smaller vile, which contained a light purple liquid that had green steam rising off it. With a look of distaste, she chugged the liquid down, letting out a gag once it was drained. She then took the second one and popped the cork, but this time poured small amounts into her hands and proceeded to rub it into the raw or bleeding areas on her skin.

As Kiara administered the healing potion, Magnus conjured up a number of other bottles for the rest of them. With each one, he explained how to use them, and soon everyone was in better shape than a few minutes prior. At some point Simon and Clary arrived as well, barging in and ready to fight, but calmed down when they saw there was no fighting necessary. Magnus gave them a few potions, too, which they happily accepted with thanks. While administering her potion, Clary asked why everyone was so quiet, but no one answered. Jace then whispered that he would explain later, all the while looking at Kiara, who refused to meet his gaze. Despite the roar of war outside, for a minute, all of them were calm and quiet. However, they knew that moment wouldn't last long.

Kiara opened her mouth to speak before she felt her head throb in pain. Searing, white-hot spikes drove through her skull, causing her to moan and gasp as she didn't have the energy to scream again. Everyone gathered around her, worried and asking what was wrong, but she didn't see nor hear them. Behind her eyelids, she saw a woman with cascading black locks and stormy grey eyes.

You know where I am, child, she spoke. Unless you want me to come and slaughter your new little friends, you will come to me. I believe it is time we settle this matter.

Then the voice went silent, and the pain receded. Slowly, Kiara's eyes opened and came into focus, staring at the six faces that were leaning over her in worry. She struggled to sit up with assistance from Clary and Jace.

"Don't push yourself too much," Clary advised worriedly. "Take a minute to breathe, let us fight for you, at least for a minute."

"There's no time," Kiara answered. "Helena has summoned me to battle. She wants to finish this, and I agree with her."

"So, you're going alone?" Izzy asked angrily. "You said yourself that you can't beat Helena by yourself. The last time you did, Hannah had given you a potion to give you an edge. You'll be killed!"

"If I don't go, she will come here and kill all of you," Kiara spat back, her eyes colder than dry ice and just as cloudy. "Don't tell me you all can take her, because she could break all of you with a snap of her fingers. She called for me, not you, so I am going. If you try to stop me, I will call my guard and have them lock you in the dungeons!"

Her eyes were cold, hard, unbending, but there was also the sheen of tears and desperation that spoke volumes.

"Let Magnus and I come with you," Alec said. "She didn't say you couldn't bring anyone. The odds of beating her by yourself are slim, but if you had some backup you could have an edge."

"Alec, she'll be expecting that," she nearly pleaded. "The safest place for you, oddly enough, is out in the city, away from the castle."

"Kiara," Magnus said softly. She turned to look at him, their identical eyes locking on each other in a battle of wills. Slowly, he leaned down and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I've lost a sister once. I just got her back a few weeks ago. There's no way I'm letting you go without a fight. And just because you're a new angel-demon warlock hybrid doesn't mean I can't beat you magically. I'm still older and far more experienced."

The two of them stared at each other until Kiara gave a sigh in defeat.

"Man, you are stubborn," she said with a humorless laugh. She struggled to stand again, Clary and Jace assisting her again. Once she was on her feet, she swayed for a moment before regaining her footing. Izzy held out Kiara's knives, which the queen took with a nod.

"The rest of you fan out and help anyone in need around the city," she ordered. "If Helena's guards start closing in on the castle, you can't let them get there. Alec, Magnus and I will head to the castle; you all keep anyone from following us, be it ally or enemy. I don't want more casualties than necessary."

With a nod of confirmation, they all headed towards the door. Kiara stood out the window, holding her hand up for them to wait. She stared, waiting for the right moment. Then she let it fall.

All of them ran out the door as fast as possible, Jace and Izzy in the lead. Kiara, Magnus and Alec followed behind them, jumping over the enemies they cut down for them. Behind them, Clary and Simon stopped to fight off a group of enemies that had begun to tail them. The remaining five continued to run through the streets until a Facemelter tackled Izzy. Jace immediately jumped on it and stabbed it, but then its friends arrived. Despite the urge to stay and help, the last three continued to run towards the castle, until they finally reached the grand stone walls.

The walls weren't so grand now, crumbling and cracked and melted in some places. Scattered all around it, dead women in dark garbs and ninja masks lay dead or dying on the ground. Kiara stopped them for a moment when her eye caught sight of one them trying to crawl towards them. Immediately, she raced over and kneeled, taking the woman's hand. When her eyes landed on the queen, the wounded warrior became desperate.

"Sh—she's in—" Her word were cut off as blood filled her lungs and she could no longer breathe. Kiara sadly let go of the woman's hand before standing to face the gates.

Slowly, the three of them walked through the opened gates, Kiara in the lead. The once enchantingly dangerous gardens now lay decimated by fire and ash and debris. All the trees were burned or burning, the flowers lay trampled on the ground, all green and life destroyed. Kiara marched through with the other two on her tail, and without hesitation, forced the grand doors open. Silently, the three of them headed inside to face their greatest adversary yet.


Well there it is! Cliffhanger! Oh I'm so excited to post the next part!

Tell me what you think!

Side note: I have not experienced any sort of physical trauma like Kiara has, but I wanted to try and make the act and feelings of the moment as realistic as possible because I know that millions of us girls (and guys and non-binary people and everyone in between and beyond) have experienced sexual assault and I wanted to try and convey how real it may feel to someone experiencing it. I mean, just thinking about it makes me feel ill. And I wanted Kiara's response to be reasonable too. She's spent so much time getting better, but she makes it clear that just because she's killed the sonovabitch doesn't mean everything is magically cured for her. She's still going to have that trauma, and maybe it'll be a bit harder now since she's just been attacked by her attacker and then confronted him in the most final way possible. Just…I hope you like it.

Side note: if you HAVE experienced sexual assault, know that YOU ARE NOT ALONE! IT IS NOT YOUR FAULT! And here's the number for the National Sexual Assault Hotline (open 24/7): 1-800-656-4673.

Ok, now that that's settled, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please comment and tell me what you think! Next chapter will (hopefully) be up soon! It's mostly written but I have to finish and proofread it. Bye-Bye for now!

With SO MUCH LOVE!

KiaraBaneTMI