It was the crack of dawn and most birds were still sleeping. The humidity in the air was thick and surrounded New York with a chilly vibe. Jace woke up and was ready to train. He walked to Alec's room and knocked on his door. Nothing. He knocked again but still nothing.
"I'm coming in!'' Jace walked inside but there was no sign of Alec. He continued by walking straight to Alec's room were he saw his Parabatai sleeping. He started pinching his brother in the arm.
''Wake up Alec. We have some training to do.'' Alec let out a soft grunt. His body felt weak. His head was spinning. It was still so early in the morning and realized he had barely slept.
''What time is it?'' He asked as if he didn't want to know the answer.
''Time to to train. We have to get some information on this warlock and nothing prepares your day like a morning session of combat training.'' Since when do I wake you up? Shouldn't it be the other way around?'' Jace had a point. It was Alec who follows rules and strict plans. It was a bit out of character but Jace was happy that he for once got to interrupt a sleeping Alec.
Alec got dressed and they walked to one of the training rooms. It was early so not many Shadowhunters were awake. They were the first to arrive the training area.
They started off by sparring with swords which wasn't Alec's specialty but for a crappy start of the day he managed to stand his ground. Next up was archery which was no problem at all. The training started out smooth but Alec's mind was wondering off. He started to think about last night. He enjoyed himself more than he thought he would. Magnus was definitely worth seeing again. But he did not know how to approach him. Do you need more than one reason to make the first move? The next arrow he shot missed the mark on the dummy.
''Sloppy! You missed the mark by a mile.'' said Jace teasingly.
''Maybe if you stood in front of...'' said Alec jokingly.
Suddenly Clary appeared out of nowhere. She was pacing fast toward the boys. "guys we have a problem. They are back. Two attacks are happening right now.''
''You don't have to say more, let's go''. Jace grabbed his sword and tossed Alec his bow.
''Me and Izzy will take on the first attack that appeared in Central Park. You have to go to the south-east of Manhattan. I will text you the specific coordinates once you get there and watch out. There is a big number of bad guys there. Be careful, gather information. Don't go and attack there are too many of them to handle.''
Izzy walked in and joined the trio. "And before Clary forgets to mention it, don't play the heroes. We need reinforcements from the Clave before we can actually challenge them. They are with more than we thought''. Both duos parted and went their ways.
The coordinates that Clary text-ed led them to Corlears Hook. The attack happened near the amphitheater. It was very quiet as if nobody was there. Alec took in the strong smell of the salty water. A hard breeze went trough his hair. It was afternoon and it wouldn't be long before it got dark.
They arrived at the amphitheater. The infamous warlock was walking towards the middle of the stage. An innocent mundane was begging for her life.
''Please, please don't hurt me! I have kids!'' she cried. But her cries were futile. The warlock didn't seem to care. All he wanted was her energy.
''Don't you worry. It won't hurt much.'' He said with a voice so cold that drove shivers down the poor woman's spine.
He lifted his arm ready to lash out but an arrow flew right in front of his face. He turned around and saw two Shadowhunters with drawn weapons in front of him. He recognized one of them.
''You again? I see you brought a different friend to help you out?'' he jeered.
''Let the mundane go'' Alec pointed his arrow straight at the face of the warlock. Before he could answer the woman started running away. The warlock sighed. ''Look what you just did. I guess i have to teach you boys a lesson about not getting in the way of a powerful warlock.''
Jace pointed his sword at the warlock. ''Who are you and what do you want with innocent mundanes?''
A smirk appeared on the warlock's face. ''You never heard of the great Rastor Kayn? That's a shame.''
''What do you want with the mundane Rastor?''
''I'm merely draining the energy of their useless bodies.'' His voice sounded without mercy or guilt.
''That makes no sense. Why help Valentine's followers? He hated Downworlders, including you. They will betray you in a heartbeat.''
''Helping Valentine's followers? You've figured that out quick. I'm not a fan of long explanations so I'll keep it simple. Those followers came to the realization that they need some Downworlders in order to succeed and that some of them have similar goals. So i help them and they help me. It's more of a mutual understanding. They get rid of most worthless Downworlders and i get what i want.''
''You would sell out your own people and for what? Power? To be perceived as some kind of superior Downworlder? Jace said with rage in his voice.
''Clever boy but there is so much you don't know yet. If you don't mind I have some mundanes to hu-''. Rastor got interupted by a charging Jace.
''Jace don't! shouted Alec. But he didn't listen. Jace swung his sword at Rastor who could dodge it just in time. He shot an energy blast that blew Jace away. Alec started shooting his arrows but Rastor blocked them with a shield. He ran between the theater seats to get close to Jace who was still trying to get up. Rastor was now focused on Alec and was shooting his energy blasts at him. Alec managed to dodge them before diving between the seats. Jace got up and grabbed his sword from the ground. He flung his sword in a circle and placed a cut in the face of the distracted warlock. Rastor grunted and looked furious. He shot another blast but Jace managed to parry it making the warlock fly back. Jace's knees were shaking and he took long breaths. The magic of this warlock was very powerful and very draining. Rastor got up. Blood was dripping from his face. He was tired but not ready to let this go. Alec got up from behind the seats and with a quick draw from his bow he shot an arrow in Rastor's shoulder. Rastor fell to his knees. He was wounded and couldn't find for much longer. Jace walked up ready to throw the final punches but he heard loud voices and footsteps in the distance. Rastor's help was on the way and they weren't very far. The wounded warlock was not ready to give up without a fight. Jace backed up and realized that they had to leave or they were the ones taken out.
''Get him Jace! Come on!'' Said Alec frustrated.
''We can't Alec we got to go now.''
''We can't let him get away again, not this time.''
''No, there is no time.'' They both backed up and started running back into the streets of Manhattan. They stopped in an empty alleyway. They were both exhausted.
" I can't believe I let him get away again.'' Alec leaned against the wall behind him with his hands in his hair.
''Not your fault brother. We knew this could happen. Izzy warned us about the others.''
''The mundanes are still not safe.''
''We saved that woman's life. Besides we now know who we are dealing with. We finally got a lead.'' Jace smiled. ''That was a great fight you did well. Don't beat yourself up.''
''You too.'' They both paused to get their breath again. ''Let's head back and see what we can find about this Rastor Kayn. Maybe someone knows this guy.'' Alec looked up. A smile appeared on his face.'' I know someone who has some knowledge about warlocks.'' he said.