I'm getting some new ideas and trying to update as quickly as possible. If there are long gaps in between my updates, I apologize. I will continue, and I will finish this, it just may take some time. Please be patient with me. =]
Anyway, here is Chapter 12. Enjoy!
The sun had set long before the Clave convened. The early winter night was cold. Not too cold, but cold enough that Magnus could see his breath before him when he breathed. He stood on the edge of Alicante with the young blonde-haired man from Valentine's study. Magnus shivered, but not from cold. He had spells for that.
"I can only accompany you this far," Magnus said to the young man. "Valentine is expecting me back."
"It's alright," the young man replied. "I know my way."
Magnus nodded curtly. "Do me a favor. If you see a young man, black hair, blue eyes-"
"He won't be harmed. Alec Lightwood, yes?"
Magnus nodded again.
"I give you my word," the young man said and began on his way to the center of Alicante.
At a quarter to eight, members of the Council of the Clave began trickling into the cathedral in which the Clave met. As the Council members came, they opened the gate and walked across the lawn to the heavy oak double doors of the cathedral. Two hooded figures stood behind a pillar, watching as the Council members arrived.
"There's too many of them," Jace whispered. "We can't slip in between them." The members of the Council didn't come one at a time, but rather in groups.
"Even if we do get in, we haven't decided what to do about the two guards at the door," Imogen whispered back. "It doesn't help us that we have to cross churchyard. From the gate to the door, there's nothing we can use for cover."
"I told you, just take out the guards."
"Oh yeah, great plan," Imogen snapped. "You might as well march right into the Hall of Accords and say, 'Oh, hi, I'm here.'"
"Jeez, Imogen, no need to be sarcastic," Jace mumbled, pretending to be hurt.
Imogen rolled her eyes. "We need a diversion."
"I'll distract the guards, and you make a run for the door," Jace offered.
"No, they'll recognize you," Imogen said. "Wait, I think I have an idea, but it's risky."
"Just the way I like it," Jace smirked.
A hooded figure burst through the gate and ran down the path across the churchyard. The guards exchanged glances. The Council members had all arrived already. The hooded figure halted before the guards.
"Remove your hood. Who are you?" one guard demanded gruffly.
The hooded figure obeyed. It was a dark-haired girl. She put her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. She looked up at the guards with wild desperation in her eyes. "I'm Imogen Adaire," she stated.
The guard who spoke raised an eyebrow at her. "All the Adaires are dead."
"Obviously not. Heh, you thought Valentine was dead. I have to speak to the Clave."
"What business do you have with the Clave? You're not of age to be involved with Clave business."
"Trust me. They'll want to hear what I have to say. It's about Jonathan Morgenstern."
The guard stiffened. "What about Jonathan Morgenstern?"
Finally having caught her breath, Imogen stood up straight. "I know where he is."
Jace watched the guards escort Imogen into the cathedral. As soon as they disappeared behind the doors, Jace opened the gate and sprinted across the churchyard. He slipped inside the door and found himself inside the large atrium of the church. Now he had to find the Hall of Accords. At the opposite side of the atrium were Imogen and the two guards. One of the guards turned to resume his post. Jace dove behind a pillar and waited until the guard was outside. He peered around the pillar. To his disappointment, the other guard was still with Imogen. Jace made his way around the atrium to get to Imogen, using the pillars for cover. He edged out from behind the pillar. Behind the guard's back, Jace signaled to Imogen to let her know he had gotten in.
"Since you're not of age, you cannot enter the Hall of Accords without the High Inquisitor's permission. So you will have to stay here until the Council meeting ends," the guard explains.
Imogen shook her head. "I need to speak with the Inquisitor now."
"The Council meeting has just started. You'll have to wait."
"This can't wait," Imogen insisted, brushing past the guard.
The guard caught her by the arm. "What do you know about Jonathan Morgenstern that is so urgent?"
"He's here. In Alicante," Imogen said, anger in her voice. "I need to tell the High Inquisitor immediately. I don't know what Morgenstern is planning, and I don't need to tell you he's dangerous."
The guard sighed. "Wait here. I will go speak with the High Inquisitor." With that the guard turned and started down the corridor to the Hall of Accords. The second the guard disappeared, Jace grabbed Imogen and the two of them sprinted in the opposite direction.
"How are we going to get into the Hall of Accords?" Jace asked.
"We need to find an air vent."
"An air vent? I thought they only did that in cheesy spy movies. Since when are we spies?"
Imogen rolled her eyes. "Shut up and find an air vent."
Meanwhile, the guard standing outside the cathedral was approached by another person. It was a young man with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. As he came closer, the guard saw how dull and tired the young man's eyes were. Despite this, he was good-looking and well dressed. He walked with his back straight and shoulders squared. His designer jeans accentuated his long legs. He wore a black button-down shirt under a black suit jacket.
"I apologize for the intrusion," the young man said to the guard once he reached the door, "but I have an urgent message. I understand there is a meeting among the Council right now. I must speak with them."
"What is your message?"
"Again, I apologize," the man said politely. "I must give the message personally."
"And why is that?"
"Please," the young man pleaded. "Let me in. I don't want to hurt anyone."
The guard immediately reached for his seraph blade. The young man was faster and struck the guard's neck. The guard slumped to the ground.
"I'm truly sorry," the young man said as he stepped around the unconscious guard and entered the cathedral.
"In here, Imogen," Jace called.
Imogen followed the sound of Jace's voice into the prayer hall. Jace was standing on a table in the back corner of the room. He grabbed the iron grate covering the air vent and yanked it off the wall. Imogen climbed up onto the table with Jace and peered into the air vent.
"Perfect," Imogen said. "Do you have a witchlight?"
"Always." Jace pulled out his witchlight from his pocket and handed it to Imogen.
"Great. Let's go." Imogen pulled herself into the small opening and began crawling through. Next Jace heaved himself through the opening and followed Imogen through the vent. Jace grunted as he wedged himself between the metal walls. He hated small spaces. He wasn't quite claustrophobic, but he much preferred having open space to maneuver.
"So where's the Hall of Accords?" Jace whispered.
"Not too far. It should be just up ahead," Imogen whispered back.
"How do you know that?"
"James and I used to sneak around while our parents were in Clave meetings."
"Why? There's no breathing room up here," Jace complained. "Oh by the way, speaking of breathing, please don't fart."
"How about I kick you instead?" Imogen retorted.
After a few minutes of crawling, the air vent widened substantially. Soon there was enough room that the two Shadowhunters could fit side-by-side.
"There," Imogen whispered, pointing toward an iron grate up ahead. Voices of various Council members could be heard. Imogen handed Jace his witchlight, which Jace put back into his pocket. The two crawled up to the edge of the vent and lay on their bellies.
"Hey, it's Alec," Jace whispered. And surely, Alec was sitting between his parents. Maryse was standing and addressing the Council.
Maryse cleared her throat. "Jace-"
"Jonathan," the Inquisitor corrected harshly.
Maryse ignored him. "Jace is just a boy. And though he may be Valentine's son, the two are nothing alike," Maryse said.
"And how do you know that?" someone asked.
"I have raised him as if he were one of my own sons. He truly cares for people, but he sees his emotions as a weakness that Valentine can exploit. So he hides his emotions."
Alec stood up. "Jace is my paratabai. He is my brother in every aspect but blood. I trust him with my life, as do the rest of us at the Institute in New York." He sat back down as soon as he finished.
"What is he doing in Idris?" someone else piped up.
"He's looking for Valentine," Maryse answered.
"Of course he is!" Inquisitor Donovan retorted.
"It's not like that," Maryse said sternly. "A few months ago, Jace stumbled upon a girl, a Shadowhunter. We took her in and sheltered her. She is a slave of Valentine. She has silencing and binding Marks on the back of her neck. Jace is looking for Valentine so that he can free the girl. They've become very close friends."
"Who is this girl you speak of?"
"Her name is Imogen Adaire."
The Hall of Accords broke out in shock and chatter.
"Order!" the Inquisitor shouted. The hall became silent. "I thought she was dead along with the rest of her family."
"No, she's not quite dead yet." Maryse explained Imogen's story to the best of her ability. Once she finished, the Council broke out in chatter again.
"Silence!" the Inquisitor demanded. Once it was silent, he continued. "We are here to discuss what to do about Jonathan Morgenstern and the girl. Now I think it is in our best interest to neutralize Jonathan."
"He means no harm," Maryse argued.
"Quiet, Maryse!" Inquisitor Donovan shouted. "Jonathan is Valentine's son. We don't know where his loyalties lie. He's dangerous."
"Hell yeah, I am," Jace muttered under his breath. Imogen frowned and elbowed him.
"The Adaire girl, on the other hand," the Inquisitor continued, "could be useful to us. If found, she should be taken in for questioning. We can find out where Valentine has been hiding and attack him before he attacks us again."
"Taken in for questioning?" Maryse demanded. "What is she, a criminal?"
"Maryse, be quiet!" Inquisitor Donovan shouted again. "If you speak out again, I will have you removed from the Hall of Accords."
Maryse clenched her fists and sat down.
"All in favor of questioning the Adaire girl?" Inquisitor Donovan prompted. One by one, the members of Council raised their hands. The only ones who didn't were the Lightwoods.
"All in favor of neutralizing the threat that is Jonathan Morgenstern?"
Again, the Council members raised their hands, more quickly this time. The Lightwoods didn't move. Suddenly, the doors of the Hall of Accords burst open. A young man with blonde hair stood in the doorway with a seraph blade in his hand. The guards rushed at him immediately. The young man tore through the guards without mercy. Screams and cries of surprise and fear rang throughout the hall. Within seconds, he had felled all the guards and sprang at Inquisitor Donovan. The young man held the Inquisitor by a handful of the Inquisitors hair and held his seraph blade to the Inquisitor's throat.
"Hear me!" the young man bellowed. The hall went dead silent. The young man led the Inquisitor around by his hair. "I have a message from Valentine. The message is to surrender. Surrender and no one else must die. You have twenty-four hours to surrender, or Valentine attacks Alicante."
"With what army?" Alec demanded, standing up.
"You idiot," Jace grumbled.
"Valentine has raised an army of Shadowhunters. They are loyal to Valentine and will not show you mercy."
Alec opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it. The rest of the Council members were white with shock.
"Why isn't anyone doing anything?" Jace hissed. Imogen didn't answer him. "Imogen?" Jace looked over at Imogen. Her face was as pale as a sheet of paper. Her jaw hung open and her hands trembled.
"Imogen, what's wrong?" Jace demanded.
"This is Valentine's message," the young man said. Then he slit the Inquisitor's throat. Gasps of terror and shock were heard around the hall.
Suddenly, Imogen shoved the iron grate. It fell to the floor with a clatter. The Council members jumped in surprise and turned to find the source of the noise. Imogen crawled out of the vent and jumped down to the floor.
"Imogen, wait!" Jace called after her. He grunted with frustration and jumped down from the vent.
"Imogen! Jace!" Maryse cried with utter surprise when she saw them. "What are you doing here?"
Imogen ignored her and stepped cautiously toward the blonde young man. The young man's eyes widened, and he dropped his bloody seraph blade. He stumbled back from the Inquisitor's lifeless body.
"No, no, i-i-impossible," the young man stammered. "You're dead. He-he told me you were dead."
Tears welled up in Imogen's eyes. "James," she breathed.