The second they enter Edom, Lilith is yelling at him.

"What in the name of Lucifer were you thinking? Uniting with the angel-blooded?" she shouts, grabs the back of Magnus's jacket. "Don't you dare walk away from me!"

Magnus twists to her with an animalistic snarl, golden magic glowing in his eyes and flaring at his fingers and striking the obsidian on his neck with a terrible fire. Lilith startles backwards a step, her hand immediately releasing its grip. She warily looks him up and down.

"You're turning feral," she says, a hint of panic to her tone that makes rage flare in Magnus's eyes. "The obsidian… I had hoped it would bring you strength, but you're taking the power too far. It's poisoned your mind."

"You made me this way!" Magnus yells, a snarl to his enraged voice. "You made me your prince! You can't complain now that I am too powerful!"

Lilith curls her lip up in disgust. "A prince does not rule. A prince is a symbol of his mother's victories and strength. You do not rule Edom while I live."

Magnus grins cruelly, that feral light in his eyes making the gold of his irises glow unnaturally bright. "When you fed me your ichor, you combined your blood with my father's. I am the purest ruler that this realm has ever seen. I am stronger than you as I was stronger than my father."

As he speaks, golden magic flares from his outstretched fingertips. Lilith watches with wide eyes as it drains into the red rock of Edom's ground. All at once, every demon in the realm screams out. Lilith almost winces, having never heard such unison in their voices before.

"Edom is mine," Magnus says, calmer now, almost a sigh, like uniting the demons has given him an overwhelming relief. "I am part of it as it is part of me."

Lilith grits her teeth, rage sharp in the darkness of her eyes. "You are insane."

Magnus hums, not sounding particularly bothered. "Perhaps," he states, careless and nonchalant and bringing his hands in front of him. An object glimmers into existence in his palms, a circle of twisted gold. "It doesn't matter anymore… I am not your concern."

There is a moment of terrible silence. Lilith stares at him, practically shaking in anger. "I saved you," she reminds him, her voice rough with forced calm. "I tended to you when you were on the brink of death. I could have left you to die. I could have left you abandoned by your friends and your lover… Instead, I gave you strength. I gave you family."

"The two do not coincide," says Magnus, quick and halfway to irritation. "You cannot be strong and feel love. You desperate need for a child is your greatest weakness. Allow me to absolve you of it." He steps closer, uncomfortably so. "I am not yours. I am no ones. I will have allies, but I do not seek love or friendship because, as you have so transparently proved to me, it – makes – you – weak."

Lilith would scream at him. She wants to hurt him; not to kill him, just to show him what he is dealing with, to show him that she is still the Queen of Edom. She can't speak. Her mouth opens, gapes wordlessly, wide eyes staring at Magnus. The warlock tilts his head, smiles cruelly. He lifts his hands to place the object on his head.

It's a crown. Obsidian gems sparkle from the twists of dark gold.

"I've had enough of your words," he says. "I've had enough of you. Go where you like, kill who you like. I don't care, but Edom and its demons are mine. Return upon pain of death."

A hand casts out before Lilith can even think of protesting—although she isn't sure she could even if she had the time—and golden magic flares before her eyes. It is the last thing she sees before being thrust out into a damp and poorly lit street somewhere on Earth.

The portal snaps shut with a crack like lightning and Lilith screams in rage.

The courtyard is dark and desolate and Alec stares out at it with a despondent gaze.

It's almost midnight. Magnus will be here soon; Alec can only assume this is where he meant when he said he would meet them at the institute. The institute's courtyard is a wide space where Magnus had summoned Azazel before. It is perfect for what they need to do.

Alec only hopes he has the strength to do it.

"Alec," a voice says and he turns to see his brother coming up beside him. Jace pushes stray locks of blond hair back from his face when Alec looks to him. "Are you okay?"

Alec doesn't dignify that with a response. "Is Isabelle ready?"

"She's going to wait just inside the institute. When you give the word, she'll come to complete the configuration and then she'll—"

"No," Alec says firmly before his brother can say it. "If we need to trap him, then we will, but I won't let her do that to him. I only had her prepare it as a last resort. Before we do anything, I'm going to talk to him. I lost him once before and I won't go through it again. There has to be some of him left."

Jace is quiet beside him, but Alec hears him take a breath. "You saw him in Toronto… Tell me you recognised him, because I didn't. He looked…"

"I know," says Alec when he doesn't finish. "Just let me try. I'll tell you if we need to take action."

"Alec—"

Jace's voice is cut off when a circle burns into the centre of the courtyard. Alec breathes out slowly as the embers light into flames.

"Midnight," he says. "It's time."

The fire stretches high, burning tongues of red and orange lapping the black sky. There are never any stars visible in New York. It seems so much darker now, however. Alec watches the flames climb up, centring until they vaguely resemble a figure. From that column of light, steps Magnus.

He is wearing the same outfit as last time Alec saw him, which is evidence enough that he is wrong. There's an addition this time. A circlet of gold sits just below his hairline, studded with small black gems. They glisten like the lightning crack of dark glass at his throat.

"Alexander," Magnus says when the fire dies, dusts soot and embers from his clothes with absent hands. "I trust you have had the time to consider my offer."

Alec swallows hard. "Yes," he admits. "I can't do what you ask. The demons will still come to earth to feed and I can't let mundanes die. We can't stop hunting demons."

Magnus inhales sharply through his nose. "Well," he says, "that is disappointing."

"That doesn't mean this conversation is over," says Alec before Magnus can disappear again.

The warlock tilts his head in curiosity. "Oh?"

"Magnus," Alec utters, coming to rest a hand on his chest. "I know you're still in there. Please, you have to remember who you were."

Magnus's hand whips up to grab his throat. He is shoved harshly backward, his feet hauled from the ground and sending him crashing into the wall. Blood spills the back of his throat and he rolls onto his side, coughs weakly to avoid choking on it. There is blood in his lungs.

"Alec!" Jace yells, races to his side and grabs his shoulder. "Magnus, what the hell?!"

"You may take that as a collective warning to avoid laying hands on me," says Magnus. "I understand my history may be making this confusing to you, so allow me to make it completely clear… Magnus Bane is dead. You speak to the Prince of Edom."

Alec shakes his head, as much as he can manage. "Magnus, no…"

"Alec," Jace utters as his parabatai coughs up another mouthful of blood. Alec can feel the stele over his healing rune. "Alec, why aren't you healing?" He looks to Magnus. "What did you do?!"

"He's not healing because I am demonic royalty," says Magnus, walking towards them. "Because the wounds I inflict cannot be sated by your runes. It is magic you need."

Alec chokes and curls up in pain, his gaze shakily lifting to rest upon Magnus as the warlock—the demon—crouches beside him. "Magnus," he chokes, swallows hard. "Please… don't—"

He is cut off with a cry of pain and golden light washes over him, blinding him with light and heat as Magnus heals him. He recognises the magic as Magnus's, having seen it so many times, having felt it under the warlock's skin when they touched, but now it is wrong. There is something dark in his power now, fighting to be masked by the golden hue, but it can't hide from Alec. It can't hide from someone who knows it so well.

It is decided.

"Jace," he gasps as soon as he feels himself heal under Magnus's rough and careless power. "Now!"

There is the tell-tale shink of a blade being drawn. Alec hears it strike Magnus's flesh, opens his eyes to see Jace forcing Magnus back a few steps with his seraph blade. The warlock snarls at him like an animal. There is blood staining his jacket and some of the golden chains across the breast are broken and limp, but it isn't stopping him from flaring magic to his hands. He will kill them if he feels the need to.

"Now! Do it now!" Alec yells.

The others run to their places and Alec slips his piece of the trap from his jacket, slamming into the ground along with the others. A barrier pulses upwards in a boxed cage and Magnus cries out and drops to one knee, fingers clawed against the ground. The crown falls from his brow, clatters onto the floor and rolls out to fall motionless at Alec's feet.

The Malachi Configuration glows eerily in the darkened courtyard.

Magnus is trapped.