I finally got chapter 9 up. Something weird was going on with my computer so it took me longer to post this up than it has in the past. This chapter is where things finally start to pick up again. I wanted a moment where these kids could have a breather before the actual action gets started. I'm going to start adding my own characters so I don't solely depend on the characters already in the story. This is a chance for me to work on my writing skills. So, please enjoy and review!
Clary is stuck in the institute with the rest of the gang. The morning starts normally, but quickly because quite serious. Clary learns secrets about herself and the future of the world from a new allie. What will Clary do with this newfound information? Will she trust Jace enough to tell him the truth? Read on to find out...
Chapter 9
Jace and I call the others into the kitchen for dinner. I put some extra hot sauce in Isabelle's soup. Jace stands aside while eating some more of the rice pudding. I make sure everyone has some food. When Isabelle starts eating her face turn completely red.
Isabelle spits out the soup. "Oh my GOD! What did you put in here? Every spice we had? God!"
Alec look up with frown. "My soup actually isn't spicy at all."
Simon and Magnus gives the same reaction. Isabelle looks at all of them. I frown slightly, pretending to be upset. I walk over and taste her soup. It actually is really spicy, but I'm really tolerant. I turn to Isabelle. "What are you talking about, Izzy. This isn't spicy at all."
Isabelle looks at me, incredulously. "Are you kidding me? It nearly burned my tongue off."
Jace walks over and tastes the soup. "It tastes fine to me, Izzy. Are you sure you're not just saying this so you don't have to eat Clary's food?"
I pout and turn away. "If you didn't like it that's all you needed to say. You didn't have to make a scene."
Jace gives Isabelle a look then turns to whisper in my ear. "Good acting. Who's next?"
I look over my shoulder at Simon. A smirk pulls at the corner of my mouth, but I manage to hold it in. I see Simon finishing the soup then setting his bowl aside with a slight frown. It looks like he wasn't really interested. Is that because he's a vampire and he drinks only blood? Hmm…
I look up at Jace. "Would you like some more soup? It's really delicious. The flavors together are really great."
Jace follows my eyes when mine flicker over to Simon who is glaring at the bowl now. Jace's eyes light up with laughter. Jace turns back to me with a grin. "I would love some of your soup. And some more of the dessert, please."
When Jace gets his food he sits next to Simon. Jace lifts a spoonful of soup up to his mouth. "Wow. This is great. All the flavors are great. And the rice pudding is probably the best dessert I've ever eaten."
Simon stares with wide eyes and mouth watering. I sit across from Simon and smile. "So, vampire, can you taste anything besides blood?"
"No," Simon mumbles.
Jace finishes eating with a satisfied groan. "That was great, Clary. You should cook for us more often. That way we'll go to the hospital less often since Isabelle always insists on cooking."
Isabelle throws her spoon at Jace. Alec stands and washes his plate. "I'm going to bed. I'm tired and I can't stand being around you people any longer."
I glance over at Jace. He nods and follows after Alec. "Wait up, man. There's something I want to ask you…"
Isabelle and Simon decides that they're going to go to bed as well. Then it's just me and Magnus. He sits back watching me through narrowed cat eyes. "What exactly are you up to?"
I shrug. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
Magnus sighs and washes his dishes. "You know what? I'm going to go to sleep. I'm tired of dealing with all of you."
Once Magnus is gone I'm alone. I decide to save the soup for tomorrow. I lean back in my seat and look up at the ceiling. My eyes narrow when I feel the seraph blade in my boot warm up. That only happens when there's a demon nearby. I sit up and look around.
There's nothing there. Nothing is making a sound or moving. I stand and move through the institute trying to figure out why the seraph blade reacted like that. The warmth soon fades away and I'm left standing in the middle of a hallway. I don't know where I am or where I'm going. I think I'm lost.
As I'm walking I come across a door splattered with black pain. I'm moving past it when I hear a noise coming from inside. When I recognize the sound I roll my eyes and go on trying to find my way. Whatever is going on in there I do not want to know about it.
Then I come to a smaller corridor that looks like it hasn't been used in a while. I push away some of the cobwebs and venture further inside. I'm starting to get a really bad feeling. The kind that climbs up my back and gives me the chills. I hate that feeling.
My seraph blade is reacting again. I reach down and pull it out as I move into a section of the corridor that is not lit. The seraph blade is the only light here. Now I'm getting the feeling that I'm being watched. I really hate that feeling too. I raise the seraph blade.
My eyes widen. This is the reason I couldn't find the demon from before. Because I was looking for something big and out of place. In a place like this it isn't unlikely to see one. I slowly retrace my steps back.
I accidentally scuff my shoe making a sound that resonates throughout the corridor. Millions of tiny red eyes turn on me. The entire corridor move sin a wave. I move back even faster. Then I hear a hiss coming from down the corridor. A word whispers into my ear. "Nephilim…"
I turn and start running. The small dark creatures give chase. I whisper the seraph blade's name. "Raziel. It bursts with bright light. It stops some of them, but not all of them. I keep on running. Then I feel something on my leg. I look down and see a thin, shiny thread.
As I'm examining it something pulls on it making me fall. I turn over quickly and hold up the seraph blade to keep the small creatures away from me. I hear something big running toward me.
When it finally comes into view my eyes widen. I back away as quickly as I can, but the thread keeps me in place. It's a lot stronger than it looks. I look up and see what was coming at me. I harden my nerves.
The creature stands as tall as the ceiling is high. At least seven feet. It's eight legs bristle with thick, black hairs. Two large fangs protrude from the front of its slimy mouth. I grimace at the smell. I've never seen anything this disgusting before. Well, actually…
I shake the thought from my head. That's not what should be in my mind right now. I reach down for the thread, but the moment my hand touches the thread it draw blood. I pull my hand away quickly.
The spider demon stares down at me, menacingly. I clench the seraph blade. The spider demon sees it and jumps back. I get to my feet, but the spider demon pulls on it and makes me fall. I curse and glare up at the spider demon.
I look around and see the smaller spider demons closing in on me. I throw the seraph blade onto the ceiling to clear the spider demons from over me. That way they don't drop down on me from above.
Of course, now I don't have a weapon. The spider demon realizes this and comes forward again with the intention to strike. I hold up my hand in desperation. I don't usually react like this, but I'm not usually pinned down by a seven foot spider demon.
There's a horrible shrieking sound. When I open my eyes my hand is glowing with some kind of golden light. I frown then look up. The spider demon has been completely turned to dust.
I stare at my hand. There's a huge whole where spider demons used to be, but now it's bare. The remaining spider demons back away. I stand and jump for my seraph blade. There's no way I'm getting it on my own. I'm way too short.
I sigh and instead get ready to leave the corridor when I hear a word whisper in my ear. "Nephilim…"
The word sticks in my mind. Nephilim? What is that? I turn back around and face the direction the voice. I walk slowly. I don't want to run into something without my seraph blade, but I don't have any other choice. I just need to know what this voice is.
As I get closer I hear steady breathing. It's deep and strained. I slow my pace until I'm barely moving. Then I see some light. It's not a direct light. It looks like the light that comes from a witchlight.
When I get closer I can see a figure moving in the near darkness. I put up my guard. A soft whisper comes through the darkness. This time it's actually words. "Do not fear me, Nephilim… I mean you no harm…"
I narrow my eyes to get my vision adjusted to the bad lighting. Then I see the figure of a woman. I look at her then notice something strange. She looks like a woman from the torso. Going down to her waist and beyond it's the body of a spider. I bite back a gasp.
The woman motions with a human finger. "Come closer, child."
Carefully, I move closer. As I approach the light gets brighter. Now I can see the spider woman better. She has long, black, hair and pale blue skin. Her eyes are as black as a demon's blood. I can see fangs inside her slightly opened mouth. Her lips are painted a strangely natural purple.
On her upper body she has a black corset, but the rest of her body is bare. It's nothing, but a spider body. What strikes me as the strangest is how she is sitting on a huge web. It's beautiful. The design looks really intricate and delicate.
The spider demon watches me with dark eyes. "Child, speak your name?"
"First tell me who you are?" I clench my fist.
The woman tilts her head. "I am Arcadia. I have been the keeper of the treasure hidden inside this institute for the last three hundred years. It seems like it is time for the treasure to be returned to its rightful owner."
I frown slightly. "What do you mean?"
Arcadia spreads her arms. "A thousand years ago a prophecy was made. The world would fall into a state of great chaos. The land will be torn apart by a great war. Only the chosen would bring the pieces of the world back together."
"Chosen?" I inquire.
"Six are chosen," is Arcadia's answer.
I let my hands relax. "The six in this institute?"
"The six chosen are in this institute," Arcadia responds.
This is intense. I don't know how I'm supposed to respond to this. Then I remember something else. "You said something about a treasure. What treasure?"
Arcadia gestures behind her. "Behind the doors is a treasure hidden by every generation of Nephilim. There are secrets behind this door that must never leave these walls."
"Is that the treasure? Secrets?"
"To others, but for you, there is another, greater, treasure," Arcadia moves slowly from the web.
When Arcadia is standing right in front of me she reaches up with a finger and touches my forehead. An overwhelming feeling of power engulfs me. I gasp and drop to my knees. I gasp. "What is this?"
"What you feel now is the power of the blood you have had since before you were born," Arcadia answers.
The feeling fades away when Arcadia touches my forehead again. I let out a breath of relief. I look up at Arcadia. "What was that?"
"All your answers are behind those doors," Arcadia gestures to the doors again.
I squint my eyes and take a closer look at the doors. They look like they have an intricate design. There is an angel hovering over what looks like a battle field. It looks really gruesome. I would imagine war would be worse than anything I've seen so far.
As I'm watching Arcadia moves to the wall where she pulls at her web. She pulls it from the wall. "Move to the door and let a drop of blood in the cup."
Arcadia moves aside to let me through. I swallow hard and move to the door. There is a cup attached to the door. I reach into my pocket and pull out a pocket knife. I cut my finger quickly then let a drop of my blood fall in the cup.
My blood dissolves into the cup. The door creaks with some locks be removed. Then the door groans as it opens. Light comes through from the other side of the door. I back away to let the doors swing open. I stare in awe as they do.
Beyond the door is the biggest library I've ever seen. I move forward and look around carefully. My eyes fall on something at the very center of the room. I step forward until I'm right in front of it. There's a case with a chalice. Inside is some gold liquid with a single, white, feather floating in it.
When I touch the glass the feather moves. I place my other hand on the glass then lift the cover. I set it down on the floor then look at the chalice again.
The liquid inside looks like what was being injected into Jocelyn when she was pregnant with me. I reach up and touch the feather. It sends ripples through the gold liquid. I smile. For some reason it sends a sort of warmth through me.
I turn around to look at Arcadia who's stilling standing at the door. "What's the matter?"
Arcadia steps back. "A demon such as myself is not allowed to enter this room. It is protected by the sacred blood of the angel."
Sacred blood of the angel? I turn to look back at the chalice. My eyes widen as I realize what this is. I turn back to Arcadia. "Are you telling me that this is angel blood?… that means my mother was injected with angel blood. Angel and demon blood? What's going on?"
"You were injected with pure angel blood, Nephilim," Arcadia assures me.
"What about the demon blood?" I ask.
Arcadia shakes her head. "I am not allowed to reveal that to you."
I nod then turn back to the chalice. I know I'm going to have to figure it out on my own. I hate that I don't know what happened to that demon blood. What I do know now is that I'm part angel. I don't know how that is even possible.
I turn back to Arcadia. "Tell me what this makes me. What does it mean that I have angel blood?"
"It means that you are the ultimate hybrid of human and angel," Arcadia moves forward a few feet. "You were created to be a weapon, but you had a different destiny. I will not say that you are indestructible, but you are the best chance the world has of surviving."
"What exactly am I supposed to do?" I frown slightly.
"All that will be revealed in time," is all Arcadia responds.
When I look back at the cup the ripples have stopped. I sigh and place the glass case over the chalice again. "This is really confusing. I don't know what all this is all about, but I know I don't want a war to break out. I'll do whatever it takes."
Arcadia just gives me a look. I don't know what it means either. I sigh and walk toward Arcadia. She steps aside for me. "You are allowed to tell the other chosen. Of course it is completely up to you what you tell them. So, what will you tell them?"
I turn to Arcadia. "I will keep your presence here a secret. I think I'll slowly tell the others this information. I don't know how they're going to react about this."
Arcadia nods then gestures her arm. "You are free to go. One of my children will lead the way back for you."
I nod then start walking. The doors close behind me then I follow one of the spider demons. I look up at where my seraph blade is stuck to the ceiling. I see some of the spider demons pulling it out. I catch it before it hits the floor. Then I stick it in my boot.
The spider demons lead me back to where I came into the corridor. It leads me out of the corridor and the entrance disappears. I wonder how that's done.
When I finally get back to the kitchen I realize that everyone is asleep by now. I sit at the table and sigh. I don't know what I'm supposed to do now. I don't even have a place to sleep. I put my head down and close my eyes. It's been so long since I've had a full night of sleep. I feel like it's going to take even longer at this point.
I let out a heavy breath. This is all too much to handle for one person. Even if it's me. There's a limit to someone's psychological strength. It's been a long time coming, but I think mine is finally going to come. I just want to get this all over with.
Knowing that I'm part angel is a big responsibility. There's going to be a war and I don't know if I can stop it. Arcadia was being so cryptic there really is no telling what might happen.
After a few minutes I realize that I'm not going to get any sleep. I sigh and sit back up. I decide to go wandering again. This time I stay away from the part of the institute that I entered the corridor in.
While I'm walking up some stairs I think about how far Jace's parents must have gone to great lengths to hide so many secrets. Luke definitely did. I need to go home and check our basement. I don't know what they've been hiding down there all this time, but I know it has to be something seriously big. I don't know if I can handle any more news.
When I get to the top of the stairs I stop. My eyes widen as I take in the view. It's the most beautiful garden I've seen in my life. This must be their green house. What I wouldn't give to be able to stay in a place like this forever.
I walk to a clear area and sit down. I stare out at the city. The walls seem to be clear here. New York looks different from this point of view. My eyes have opened wider since I was taken onto that island over a month ago. I lie down and keep staring out at the city. I wonder what's waiting for me tomorrow.
Not too long later I manage to get a few hours of sleep before deciding I want to go home to just separate myself and mentally prepare myself for what might be coming.
I go downstairs and write everyone a note saying I'll be back soon. I don't put any specifics. I leave the note then leave afterwards. I walk down the street toward my house. It doesn't take long taking a cab.
At my house I go inside and go to my room. I quickly grab an overnight bag and start putting stuff I'll need. I go to take a quick shower then my curiosity gets the best of me. I go down to the basement. I stand at the door and stop short. I wonder if I should wait for the others. I'm already keeping enough secrets from them.
I sigh and back away slowly. Then I turn and head out of the house with my overnight bag. I make sure to pack a sleeping bag. I liked sleeping in the greenhouse, but sleeping on the floor isn't doing my back any favors.
As I'm walking back to the institute I can't help, but notice some kids from school. I don't even go to school anymore, but I recognize them. Especially one girl. Aline. She's throwing her hair over her shoulder flirting with some guy that has to be at least five years older than her.
Thinking back, she and Jace had a thing going on. I frown at the thought. I don't care about that. I start to walk away until Aline spots me. She gives me a dirty look then excuses herself from the guy she was practically shoving her tongue into.
I roll my eyes and start to walk away. Then I hear her shrill voice. "Hey! Loser! Where the hell is Jace? I've been trying to get in contact with him, but he won't answer my phone calls or reply to my texts."
I look up at the sky. What did I do to deserve this? Then I look over my shoulder. "Did you consider maybe he doesn't want to have anything to do with you anymore?"
Aline crosses her arms. "As if. I'm totally hot. No guy has ever dumped me before. Especially not someone as hot as Jace. Now tell me where he is or else."
"Of else what?" I cross my arms.
For a second Aline just stands there. Then a smile spreads across her face. She looks over her shoulder and calls over the guy she was making out with before. He comes over with his hands in his pockets. I stare at him. No way. He's a fey.
Aline turns back to me with a look of triumph. "Meliorn, she was picking on me. Can you do something about it?"
Meliorn gets a dark look in his eyes. I clench my fists. Then I see his fist moving toward my face quickly. My body tenses up as I prepare to be hit. I close my eyes, but it never comes. Instead, I hear Aline gasp. I open my eyes to see light shining off of gold.
I turn to see Jace standing there, having caught Meliorn's fist with ease. Jace's eyes are burning brightly with anger. "Don't you dare touch her, fey."
Meliorn's face gets very serious. Aline is only focused on Jace. "Oh, Jace! It's been so long. I was getting worried about you. Can you believe this loser tried to convince me that you didn't want me anymore? How about you and I go somewhere more private?"
Jace's burning eyes turn on Aline. "I don't want you. I don't want to be with a whore."
Aline looks completely shocked by Jace's response. "But-"
Jace pushes Meliorn back then turns to me with a softer expression. "Come on, Clary. Let's get out of here."
I let Jace grab my hand and lead me back to the institute. On the way Jace keeps glancing at me. It finally gets too a point where I can't take it anymore. I growl in frustration. "What is it, Jace?"
Jace frowns slightly. "You should have told someone you were going out. Leaving a vague message on the table isn't enough. Like you said, we're going to take on some heat from now on. I know you've been doing this for a long time, but you need to trust us to be able to help you with these things."
I sigh and move in front of Jace with a look of determination in my eyes. "Jace, there's something you should know…"
