Chapter 25 The Hunt part 2

The group stepped out of the portal and into Magnus' London apartment. It had been a quick getaway. Even though luckily they hadn't run into any trouble from the Clave, the Iron Sisters hadn't been so cooperative.

"What exactly happened?" Asked Jace as soon as they entered the large living room, pulling Clary to himself as he scanned her body again for any signs of injury. "Why did we have to get out of there so fast?"

"Do you wanna tell them?" Asked Simon, seemingly out of breath for no reason. When Clary didn't immediately respond, "Your mate kicked an Iron Sister in the face," said Simon.

"She was going to raise an alarm," Clary quickly defended herself when the others turned to look at her with shocked expressions. "I had to."

\\

Entering Alicante's Armory had been no problem for the duo.

Located on the eastern side of the small city, it wasn't unusual for shadowhunters taking late night strolls, especially those ones visiting from institutes in different time zones, to make a quick trip to the Armory. The ground level floor of the imposing building was a museum after all.

Hence, when the two got to the large stone building, after exchanging a few pleasantries with the two patrolling night guards, they were able to simply walk right in.

They were fellow shadowhunters. What were they going to do? Rob the place?

Once inside, it was essentially a game of hide and seek as the two quickly, and quietly, maneuvered their way through the building. This was where Clary's unmatched skills with runes came in handy. Her runes have always packed more power than those of other shadowhunters, even alphas. This made her the perfect fit for these sort of missions. There was hardly any door that the young beta couldn't get through.

Decending deep into the basement of the building, the two made their way through many series of twist and turns along dimly lit corridors, slipping through one door after another. If not for the map that Izzy had drawn for them, there was no doubt that they would have long since gotten lost. Although how Izzy even knew the exact location to where the Iron Sisters carried out their work, the younger Lightwood had refused to say.

It took some time, especially with Simon reading the map wrongly a few times, but, eventually, they found the right door.

"Are you sure this is it?" Clary whispered, reaching for the piece of paper in Simon's hand with what looked like a child's drawing scribbled on it.

"I'm sure," Simon whispered back. "It's not my fault Izzy can't draw. How she even manages with her runes, I have no idea. Next time you better do the drawing."

"I'll tell her you said that," Clary teased.

Simon groaned, "Please don't."

The two had practically melded themselves into the wall.

The door to the repair room was a thick, heavy looking slab of steel. There were no windows, no peep holes, nothing that could enable them see what was happening inside.

Pulling out her stele, Clary activated her hearing rune before placing her ear against the wall. There was movement inside; soft chatter and a light clinking sound; Iron Sisters. Clary couldn't be completely sure how many there were, but she could make out two distinct voices.

"What do we do?" Asked Simon. "Do we try one of your unlock runes. We can't just knock on the door."

A small smile slowly spread across Clary's face. "That's exactly what we're going to do."

Simon looked at her in confusion for a moment before realization suddenly dawned on him. In the next instant, a supposedly drunk Simon was beating down the door, drawing the attention of the two Iron sisters inside.

Instantly on guard, the two women looked at each other seemingly in askance before they both moved to open the door, the taller one in front while the shorter one brought up the rear.

"What are you doing down he..." The taller Iron Sister started, letting down her guard upon seeing that it was a fellow shadowhunter seemingly in an inebertated and confused state. But, before the she could finish her statement, the other Iron Sister now at her side, Clary was stepping out from where she had stayed plastered against the wall and out of their line of sight.

Then, to the Iron Sisters' shock, she was throwing what looked like a potion bottle, no doubt one of the knock out potions that Magnus had given her, at their feet. The small glass vile shattered into pieces, the yellow liquid inside turning into a white perfumed smoke which quickly filled the doorway before just as quickly dissapearing.

Having already nulled their own sense of smell, Clary and Simon stood back and watched as the Iron Sisters, quickly holding their breathes, struggled to fight off the effects of the potion. However, they were much too late. The effects of the potion were swift and potent; it takes but one breath for it to hook it's claws into it's victim.

"Wow." Simon was stunned. "That was fast."

"Magnus' potions aren't to be messed with," Clary agreed.

With the Iron Sisters lying unconscious, the duo made sure that they were comfortable before they got to work, quickly rumaging through the large workroom. It didn't take long for them to find what they were looking for. Luck was finally on their side.

However, that luck soon started to dwindle. As they were leaving, making that journey of twists and turns back up to the ground floor, just as they turned one corner, a third Iron Sister suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It was as if time stood still. They all froze in place, eyes shifting back and forth between each other. And if that wasn't enough, they could also hear the soft chatter of more shadowhunters headed in their direction.

"What are you two doing?" Asked the Iron Sister, her startlingly bright blue eyes looking them over with suspicion. "Do you have clearance to be down here?"

Simon was an absolute stuttering mess. They didn't have time for delays. And considering what they'd just done to the other two Iron Sister, coming up with an explanation for why they were in that section of building was the least of their worry. Clary acted fast. Moving with lightening speed, the redhead took off of the ground, her body twisting in midair as she landed an almost bone breaking kick to the Iron Sister's jaw. Then she was grabbing Simon's hand and they were moving, not even bothering to wait around to see the effects of her little move.

"Was that necessary?" Asked Simon as the two of themquickly exited the building, causing the two night guards to also now look at them suspiciously.

"We don't have time for long explanations," Clary said simply.It was only a matter of time before someone finds the Iron Sisters, and then there would no doubt be a search party after them.

Their journey back from the Armory was a lot quicker. In no time the two had made their way back to the cottage where the others were waiting for them.

"We have to go right now," Clary said as soon as she got to the door, seeing an anxious looking Jace standing in the open doorway.

"Why? What happened?" Asked Jace as he pulled her to his side. He had been on the verge of going to the Armory himself. Sitting on the sidelines was not one of his virtues.

Everyone quickly crowded around her and Simon.

"I'll explain later. But we've gotta get out of here now," Clary reiterated.

"Did you get it?" Asked Magnus anxiously. That was the only thing the warlock seemed to care about.

Clary tapped the leather satchel stretched across her shoulder. "It's right here."

That was all that Magnus needed to hear. The warlock didn't need to be told twice. With that confirmation, he immeadieately began opening up a portal.

\\

The morning was just begining to dawn over London, small rays of sunlight fighting their way through the thick layer of clouds blanketing the sky. The scene, although nothing new to the London skyline, was very much reflective of the current mood.

After hearing Clary's brief account of what'd happened, they all looked at her with varying expressions on their faces, Jace with obvious pride. Even though they'd known it was a strong possibility, they'd all hoped to avoid a run in with the Iron Sisters. Hence one of the reasons why Simon and Clary had gone so late at night. Well, it was unfortunate that it couldn't have been avoided. But, as far as they were all concerned, the most important thing was that they got what they needed.

Simon plopped down in a deep red arm chair, "Well," said the beta. "If we weren't fugitives before, we're definitely fugitives now."

"It doesn't matter," Izzy assured him, having gathered as much already from her parents' fire message. "We'll deal with all of this later. Once we find Alec. What's that?" She asked when Clary opened her bag, pulling out what looked like a stone at first, the edges smoothed and rounded, as if someone had polished it. However, that was not what Izzy was staring at. She already knew what that was. It was the Adamas. No. What Izzy was staring at was the strange looking book peeking out of Clary's bag.

"I'm not sure," said Clary as Izzy took the Adamas from her hand, looking it over. "I saw it back there on one of tables." She then took the book out of her bag.

Simon looked flabbergasted, "What?"

"So you just stole it?" Izzy raised a surprised brow.

"When did this happen?" Asked Simon. "I was with you the entire time."

"I grabbed it when we were on our way out," said Clary. "And no, I didn't steal it." She looked over at Izzy, offended. "I borrowed it. I plan on bringing it back."

Jace took the book from her hand, looking it over. It was the size of your typical book (quarto), very old looking and bound with brown leather. "I've never seen runes like this before," he noted, turning over a few of the fragile looking, but sturdy pages.

"Right," Clary agreed.

Magnus didn't even bother giving the book a second glance. At the moment he had no interest in secret runes or anything else for that matter. His gaze was solely focused on the glass like stone in Izzy's hand; the Adamas, glowing softly at her warm and gentle touch.

"There'll be plenty of time to study runes later," said Magnus pointedly, bringing everyone's focus back to the matter at hand.

"Right," Jace's eyes shifted to Magnus. "So what do we do now?" He handed the book back to Clary and accepted the Adamas from Izzy, rolling the stone over in his hand.

Magnus' shoulders seemed to straighten that much more as his eyes met Jace's, his expression one off absolute seriousness; determination. He was a man with a mission.

"Now, we track your parabatai and my mate."

After instructing Jace to lie down, the shadowhunter making himself comfortable, stretching out on a large victorian chaise lounge, Magnus and the others all gathered around him.

"Are you ready?" Asked Magnus.

Jace simply nodded his head, shuffling his shoulders a little. "Let's do this."

"Good." Magnus let out a steadying breath, rubbing his fingers together as blue sparks of magic crackled and danced around his finger tips. Breathing in a deep breathe, the warlock then held his palms out over Jace's body as he pushed forth his magic. "Now close your eyes and..."

"Wait!"

It was Clary. The redheaded beta had cut Magnus off mid-sentence in a fit of panic. "Are you sure this is going to work? He's not going to get hurt?" She was obviously very worried about her mate, the gravity of the situation seemingly only now just dawning on her.

"I'll be fine," Jace assured her, taking one of her much smaller hands in his own. "There's nothing to worry about. Right Magnus?" He looked up at the warlock.

Magnus seemed to hesitate for a moment before replying. "He'll be fine," he assured the worried beta.

"But shadowhunters have died before," Clary lamented, worry twisting her brows and glossing over her eyes.

"Majority of those shadowhunters were betas," said Jace as he gently squeezed her hand. "And they weren't me. You know how stubborn I am. Nothing's going to happen to me. Plus, they didn't have handy warlock taking care of them like I do."

It was Clary's turn to look up at Magnus expectantly, her eyes pleading with the warlock; promise me Magnus.

Magnus was caught off guard for a moment. Was he doing the right thing? What if in his desperation to find his own mate he costs another their own? No. He couldn't think like that. Jace was going to be fine. He wanted to find Alec as much as he did. This was their best bet.

Taking a deep breath, Magnus once again assured Clary, "I won't let anything happen to him. You have my word."

"Alright," Clary whispered after a few beats, squeezing Jace's hand once more before releasing him and stepping back.

"Alright. Are you ready?" Magnus asked again.

And when Jace nodded, "I'm ready." The warlock continued.

"Good. Now close your eyes and concentrate," Magnus instructed. Jace closed his eyes, everyone in the room seemingly holding their breaths.

Magnus let his hands hover over Jace's body, moving up and down the length of his frame as his magic washed over him, blanketing and wrapping itself around the shadowhunter like a protective seal. "Now reach out to Alec as you normally would through your parabatai bond."

They all watched as Jace's eyelids began to flutter rapidly, his breath increasing.

Inside Jace's mind, the shadowhunter found himself surrounded by a thick fog. There was a never-ending sea of white all around him; white walls, white floors and white ceiling; a vast expanse of nothingness. It was so bright, his eyes ached at the strain to keep them open.

He'd seen this place before. Since Alec's disappearance, whenever he'd tried tracking his parabatai, he would always find himself in this cold and desolate place. It left a chilling feeling of forlornness clawing away at his heart.

This time however, as he blink rapidly, looking around him, trying to see something, anything, he could feel that something was different. There was a presence. It was as if there was something, no, someone, calling out him. The feeling started off small, then it slowly began to overwhelm him. Alec wasn't just a ghost anymore; a wisp of smoke perpetually slipping through his fingers.

Jace ran as if his life depended on it.

With no real direction, he could only move forward, putting one foot in front of the other in what he hoped was the right direction. He didn't know for how long he ran before he suddenly found himself pushing through an even thicker layer of fog, the feeling of electricity lightly brushing against his skin, causing the hairs on his body to stand on end. It felt like cobwebs, sticking to his body as he tore his way through it, breathing out a sigh of relief when he was finally freed.

Then, he was surrounded by red brick walls.

Alec?

This should be long enough, thought Alec.

The omega had pulled a loose thread from one of the curtains, wrapping the fine thread around one of his fingers, creating a small ball of yarn.

He had a plan.

It was a stupid plan, and would only end up getting him into even more trouble. But, after that dream, there was no way he could continue to just sit around waiting for rescue that may never come. Even if he was unable to escape on his own, at the very least, he needed to investigate his surroundings. He needed to find out more about what was going on; what all of this had to do with Magnus. Perhaps there was something outside of the room he was currently confined in that could be of help. Either way, he would go crazy if he stayed in that room any longer.

Although it was difficult to keep track of the exact time, based on his own internal clock as well as the meals he'd been receiving, the last one being what he would normally have for dinner, delivered by one of Camille's darklings, Alec guessed that it was still probably night time. In the mortal relm at least, since he didn't think that he'd slept that long. Hence, if he was going to try and leave the room, now would probably be the best time to make his move.

Getting to his feet, Alec grabbed one of the curtain rails from the curtains that he'd pulled down off the wall. Although the makeshift bo-staff wasn't his weapon of choice, beggars couldn't be choosers. He was actually surprised that Jonathan hadn't 'weapon proofed' the room. But then again, Jonathan probably didn't expect him to attempt something this stupid.

Already fully dressed, still wearing the clothes Jonathan had given him, Alec made his way over to the door, leaning the staff beside him against the wall. The omega took a few deep breathes, steadying himself before knocking on the door twice.

"I need to use the bathroom," said Alec loud enough that the darklings, and hopefully nobody else, could hear.

Pressing his ear against the door, he heard one of the darklings asking the other one to go and get Jonathan. Alec quickly cut him off.

"No please. That'll take too long. I really need to go now," Alec whined, his voice sounding truly desperate. "There's no need to bother Jonathan. I'm sure he won't be happy with you if I go on the floor. Or worse, on myself. Please..."

There was silence.

Alec was getting nervous. If they called Jonathan then he was screwed. Two darklings was no problem, but adding Jonathan to the mix... He wasn't certain he could subdue all three of them without alerting anyone else.

It felt like forever, but after a few beats, Alec heard the sound of the lock on door opening. Steadying his breath, Alec plastered himself against the wall. Then, as soon as the door opened, he was grabbing the first darkling by his clothes, dragging him forward, and throwing him into the room. Caught completely off guard, the darkling went tumbling into a pile of limbs onto the floor.

Then, just as swiftly, before the first darkling could even think of how to untangle his limbs and pick himself up from the floor, Alec was already some few steps out in the hallway, landing a jaw breaking punch to the other darkling's face. The darkling instantly fell unconscious in Alec's hold, Alec grabbing the front of his clothes to keep him upright as he pulled him into the room as well.

The first darkling was now back on his on his feet, coming at Alec with a very uncoordinated punch. It all happened in milliseconds. But, with his years of training, for Alec it was as if time had slowed down, allowing him to react accordingly. Somehow managing to release the unconscious darkling in his hand on time, with one swift turn of his body, he greeted the other darkling coming at him with a foot to the face, knocking him unconscious as well.

There was no time to waste. Barely catching his breath, Alec quickly glanced outside in the hallway, looking left and right to see if anyone else was out there. Seeing that the coast was clear, he lightly closed the door.

He then quickly tied up the two unconscious darklings with the curtain ties, dragging them to one corner of the room. Then, grabbing his makeshift staff by the door, he checked the hallway once again before quietly leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

It was the same scene as before; all brick walls with 'witch lights' lighting the way. Alec looked to his left and then to his right, trying to decide which way to go. Both ends of the corridor went on forever with no end in sight, the lights fading into a frightening darkness at either end. He also noted that the lights somehow seemed dimer than he remembered, casting ghostly shadows on the walls. Suddenly remembering that the bathroom was to his right, he decided that it was probably best to go in that direction. He stuck close to the wall as he went. Perhaps he would find other rooms in that direction as well. Or at the very least some kind of exit.

It only took about a minute for him to reach the bathroom. As he paused at the door deciding whether or not to use the ball of thread in his pocket, having thought it was a good idea to bring something that he could attach wherever possible to act as breadcrumbs in case he needed to find his way back or avoid going in circles, Alec couldn't help but roll his eyes at himself as he decided against using it and continued on. He actually suddenly wanted to use the facilities. Is he not ridiculous?

Ignoring his body's moment of weakness, the omega picked up his pace. He must have walked for more than twenty minutes. Still, there was nothing in sight. No windows, no doors, nothing. There was nothing but brick walls and 'witch lights'.

Alec was becoming suspicious. There was obviously various spells casted on this place. He knew that at the gates of Duduael was a vast labrinth, however that didn't explain his current predicament. He hadn't even ran into fork in the road, so to speak. Nothing. Just a straight line to nowhere.

It was another thirty minutes later when Alec's suspicions were confirmed. Finally seeing something in the distance, a door partly opened, the light shinning into the hallway, he slowed down, moving without sound. He had to stop himself from swearing out loud when the realization hit him. He was back in front of 'his' room door.

Has he been going in circles? Was he stuck in a loop spell? Shit!

Alec's heart sank.

He decided against turning back, moving closer to the door still, he could hear voices coming from inside; Camille's and another voice that he didn't recognize.

"I don't know why the idiot is even searching for him," said Camille. "He'll end up back here sooner or later. "

"He thinks he's in love," the other voice, a male, chuckled. "Shadowhunters," he drawled mockingly.

There was a brief moment of silence before Camille spoke up again. "I can't wait to get rid of those damn smelly pigeons once and for all. I did not sign up to be a babysitter." Alec could just imagine the snarl painting her face.

The male chuckled once again. "You know why we need to keep them alive. With the omega here...alive," he emphasized. "Magnus will be distracted. And most importantly, he won't return to Edom. At least not in time."

Alec fought to hold in his gasp at the mention of Edom and his mate's name, straining his ears to listen further as his heartbeat sped up rapidly against his chest.

"Once everything is in place, then I'm sure you'll get to do whatever you want with them," the male continued. "But for now, they, the little omega especially, needs to stay alive."

"And the other one? Do we really still need him? I'm this close to ripping his throat out," Camille sneered.

"He's still useful," the man replied.

"I don't see how. I really don't know what she's waiting for," said Camille. "Now is the perfect time to strike."

"There are still some hold outs. Be patient," the man soothed. "You'll have your taste of shadowhunter blood soon enough." Again there was another long pause. Then...

"Alexander dear. Are you going to stay out there all day?" Camille suddenly called in her usual sing songy voice.

Alec gasped lightly, though he didn't know why. Of course they knew that he was outside. They were vampires for Angel's sake. Well, at least Camille was, as he would see in a moment when he stepped into the now fully opened doorway. She'd probably smelt him coming a mile away.

"Who are you?" Alec asked without preamble, gripping the staff in his hand firmly. "And what do you want with Magnus?"

The man was fairly tall with his dark hair slicked back into a neat ponytail, sporting a full mustache and goatee. He was impeccably dressed in a black velvet floral embroidered suit. Alec could not only smell his strong alpha pheromones, but, he could also sense the power emanating from him. As expected, he was a... Warlock.

"Does it matter?" He asked, giving Alec a very slow once over.

Alec could see the roaring flames of desire burning in those dark deep set eyes and it made his skin crawl. It was moments like this that he hated being an omega. Although how the man was even managing to keep himself restrained, the predator like look in his eyes the only indicator of the lust he was struggling to control, Alec had no idea.

"You really gave our dear Jonathan quite the scare," the man, or rather warlock, continued, taking a step forward, prompting Alec to take several back out into the hallway. "Although I don't know why. With the looper spell I've cast, there was no way you would have been able to escape. How have you been finding your accomodations by the way?" He then asked without missing a beat. "Jonathan was especially fussy about making sure that you were comfortable."

Alec did not respond. He didn't have a chance to. Because in the next moment, he saw a very flustered looking Jonathan rushing down the long hallway, the two darklings he'd knocked out earlier with him. Alec's knuckles grew white as he gripped the makeshift staff in his hand even tighter.

And then Jonathan was hugging him. "You scared me to death," the other shadowhunter breathed as he hugged him tightly. "Don't ever run off like that again you hear me. It's not safe here," he whispered in Alec's ear, paying no attention to the others or the staff still clutched tightly in Alec's hand.

Alec couldn't move. He felt numb. He knew that it was useless to fight back. He could only allow himself to be hugged and then led stiffly back into the room.

The others left first, leaving him and Jonathan. It was only after Jonathan was certain that he was alright that he too left, promising to bring him something to eat.

"I know you hate me right now," Jonathan had said. "But please, don't do anything stupid like that again. Just be patient for a little while longer, then I'll take you out of here. We can go anywhere in the world you want." Jonathan brushed his knuckles against Alec's cheek, his eyes shinning with what Alec could only guess was concern.

"You know that they're going to kill us, right? Once we've outlived our usefulness." Although Alec knew that Camille and the strange warlock had said those things because they knew that he was listening, he didn't for one second doubt their sincerity.

Jonathan chuckled. "I'm not that stupid you know. Of course I don't trust them." Smiling, he leaned in closer to Alec, his lips a hair's breath away from his ear. They were both seated on the bed. Alec, with his back against the headboard and Jonathan on the side.

"Are you worried about me?" Asked Jonathan. When Alec rolled his eyes and pulled back, Jonathan sighed, moving away from him.

"Don't worry," said Jonathan. "I have my own plans. Now, I'm going to get you something to eat. Please don't do anything stupid." And with that, he left the room, leaving Alec alone once again to battle with his thoughts.

Alec was starring up at the ceiling when he felt it. His mind had been whirling with the possibilities of what Camille and the warlock were talking about meant. Based on their conversation they were obviously working with, or for someone else. He wished he could have found out more, although he knew that it would've only ended up driving him even more crazy.

It was an all too familiar feeling; a pull. It was one that he didn't know if he would ever get to feel again; like someone was calling out to him.

Then...

Jace?

Alec gasped, his eyes going wide. As he realized what was happening, tears began to slowly run down the sides of his face, pooling in his ears and soaking the pillow He could feel his parabatai. Not just this faint 'he's alive' feeling. But, he could...he could sense him. He could hear him.

Alec closed his eyes tightly as he allowed his mind to reach out, answering Jace's call.

Time and space converged.

In Magnus' London apartment, tears equally began slowly running down the corners of Jace's eyes.

The others in the room didn't need to ask what was happening as they all looked on with rapt attention. They could all sense it.

Magnus desperately wanted to reach inside of Jace's mind and talk to Alec himself, but, he knew that that was dangerous. The only thing the warlock could do was let his magic continue to wash over Jace, keeping the shadowhunter's heart stable. He could already sense the taxing effects the Adamas was having on Jace's body, even as he was pumping his magic into him...strengthening him.

Jace had found himself surrounded by brick walls. He was in a strange looking hallway with seemingly no end in sight. Nonetheless, he could feel the pull of the parabatai bond getting stronger and stronger, urging him forward. So, without wasting time, he quickened his steps. After walking for a little while he noticed a weird looking shadow ahead of him. There was a lone door set in wall, the light from the other side casting a rectangular shaped outline into the hallway. Jace's breath caught in his throat as he rushed forward, only breathing when he reached the door.

Jace did not hesitate, grabbing the door handle, pushing the door open with way too much force, practically ripping it off it's hinges. It was in a bedroom, he noted; messy with things strewn all about. It wasn't a room he'd ever seen before and he wasn't sure if it was a real place, or just something Alec's mind had conjured. But, that wasn't important right now. What was important was that after days of uncertainty, of having to fight back that little voice of doubt in the back of his mind, telling him that what he felt through their bond wasn't real, that Alec was severely hurt, dying, and he just didn't feel it, he was finally going to be able to confirm that Alec was indeed alright.

He could feel it...could feel him.

As he looked around the room, he noticed a lump in the bed. There was something underneath the blanket. Someone.

"Alec!"

Jace was by the side of the bed in an instant.

A surprised gasp tore out of the shadowhunter when he pulled back the blankets, his eyes going wide. It was definately Alec alright. Except, that it wasn't the Alec he'd expected to see. It wasn't the Alec who was about becoming eighteen in a few days. This Alec looked to be about ten years old. This was the Alec of when they'd first met.

Although Alec looked to be physically fine, Jace had found his parabatai in a moment of despair. Hence, Alec's mind's image of himself was that of crying ten year old little boy.

For a second Jace didn't know what to do as he watched a sniffling younger Alec quickly sit up in the bed, roughly wiping away his tears with the backs of his hands.

"Are you aright?" Asked Jace, reaching a hand out to comfort his young parabatai. However, Alec quickly scrambled away from him, pulling his knees up against his chest as he practically melded himself into the headbroad.

"Who...who are you?" Alec sniffled, bright blue eyes looking up at Jace.

Oh shit! This Alec wouldn't have met him yet Jace realized. He really didn't have time to explain all of this. He wasn't sure how much longer the connection would last.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Jace decided to just go with the truth. Alec had always been able to see through his bullshit so there was no point in making up a story. "I'm your parabatai," he said simply.

"I...I don't have a parabatai."

"Not yet," said Jace. "But believe me, I'm your parabatai. My name's Jace and I'm here to help you. Your parents, Robert and Maryse and your sister, Izzy, they're all worried about you."

"You know my parents...Izzy?"

"Yes. And your mate, Magnus. He's also worried about you..."

Alec looked shocked at that, but, Jace could see the look of suspicion in eyes slowly fading away. He could tell that Alec was beginning to believe him.

"I'm here to help you get back to them. Do you know where we are?" He asked as he glanced around the room briefly. He really needed to get that bit of information before anything else.

"Duduael," said Alec.

Jace swallowed around the lump that had formed in his throat at that. "Don't worry buddy, we're gonna get you out of here. I promise."

And even as Jace reached his hand out once again to try and comfort his parabatai, gently brushing Alec's untamed hair off his forehead, he could see the recognition slowly growing in his eyes.

"Jace?" Alec did not pull away from him this time.

"It's me buddy."

Then, Alec was throwing himself into Jace's arms. Jace watched as his ten year old parabatai suddenly transformed into his soon to be eighteen year old self. The two of them hugged each other tightly.

"Jace!" Alec gripped Jace as if he was the last life raft on a sinking ship. And, he was. "How...how did you? Oh, by the Angel. Jonathan has gone crazy," Alec rambled on. "You...you have to tell Magnus. He's working with Camille. Magnus is in danger. This isn't just about me."

Both of them were shaking. Jace, surprisingly even more so than Alec.

Something was wrong.

"They're..." Alec's voice broke off.

And as they pulled back, Jace saw Alec's eyes suddenly going wide. Jace could feel something dripping from his nose, prompting him to slowly lift one of his hands, touching his fingers just above his upper lip. He then pulled his hand back to see what it was. Blood.

Alec looked panic strickened. "Jace?"

"Magnus?" Clary was freaking out. "What's happening?"

They were all freaking out. Jace's body was shaking, spasming as blood suddenly began running down his nose.

"Do something," Izzy pleaded.

"You need to pull him out of it. Magnus!" Clary was on the brink of becoming hysterical.

Ragnor quickly moved to Magnus' side in case his friend needed his help.

"Quick, get the stone out of his hand," Magnus ordered even as his magic continued to flow into a frantically mumbling Jace.

"Gonna... gonna get you out of here...Alec...Don't." Jace was holding onto the Adamas as if his life depended on it. It took Simon holding his arm down whilst Clary pried his fingers opened for him to release it, ultimately severing the connection.

With the connection broken, Magnus could now concentrate his efforts into repairing whatever damages the Adamas had caused instead of just trying to keep Jace stable. Without even having to be told what to do, being able to sense what Magnus needed from him, the kind of intuition that could only come from centuries of friendship, Ragnor joined in. Whilst Magnus worked on repairing Jace's weakened heart, Ragnor aided him by concentrating his efforts on healing Jace's mind.

Luckily the Adamas had only just began to truly take it's toll on his mind. Else... Magnus didn't even want to think about it. When he finds his mate, he would like for him to come home to a wholly mentally intact parabatai.

The two warlocks worked quickly but meticulously while the others could only look on with their hearts in their hands, praying to the Angels that their brother, lover and friend, pulls through without any issues. It was a few minutes, though it felt like hours, before they were finally done. However, Jace did not wake up immediately.

"Why isn't he waking up?" Asked Clary, rushing to Jace's side and grabbing ahold of his hand as soon as Magnus and Ragnor stepped back.

"Parabatai bonds are very complicated. They're like a tether that binds two souls," explained Magnus. "When Jace reached out to Alec, a part of his soul reached out as well. We need to give that returning piece of his soul time to fully settle. Just give him a few minutes, he'll be fine," Magnus assured.

As beyond eager as he was to know what Jace had found out, Magnus knew the damage he could cause if he forced Jace to wake up before that bit of his soul had the chance to return and fully settle into his body. He could only sigh as he plopped down in a royal wingback arm chair, conjuring himself a strong drink as he threw one leg over an armrest. He was beyond tired. They all were.

"I suggest we use this time to rest and recuperate," said Ragnor, his gaze fixed on his friend as he spoke. The warlock then conjured up a hearty looking spread for everyone.

"What do you think he's going to say when he wakes up?" Asked Simon as he busied himself fixing a plate."

"I'm not sure," said Izzy as she joined him at the table, looking over her shoulder at Clary who was still sitting on the chaise lounge beside Jace. "But whatever it is, I hope it's the information we need to find Alec. Else all of this would have been for nothing."

"Hey," Simon grabbed one of Izzy's shoulders, turning her around to face him. "We're going to find him," he assured her, brushing a lock of her hair behind her ear as they naturally gravitated closer towards each other. "I'm no expert with all of this parabatai and magic stuff, but, from Jace's mumbles, it sounded to me like he got something."

"I hope your right," said Izzy as Simon wrapped his arms around her, the two of them taking comfort in each other's familiar scent.

After talking with Izzy for a little while longer, Simon placed a few turkey sandwiches on a plate and brought it over to Clary. "Here." Clary looked at the sandwiches but shook her head. "You've gotta eat something," said Simon. "We need to keep our strength up. Who knows where the hell we'll be going next. Pun intended by the way."

Clary chuckled lightly, accepting the plate.

It was another half an hour before Jace finally woke up.