The greenhouse doors slammed open and an angry Mazikeen barreled through with her eyes locked on Hodge. The old man jumped and cringed into himself like a 5 year old preparing for a lashing. He could have swore he could see smoke coming out of her nose like a dragon.
"A war? Are you kidding me? Why the fuck didn't anybody smoke the guy before he could raise an entire army worth of Demons? Let alone raise Raziel. I leave for 5 minutes and you let literal Armageddon reign," she exclaimed. Mazikeen was furious and pacing back and forth like an irritated school teacher. Hodge could see concern behind her enraged demeanor.
His voice shook, "I couldn't single-handedly stop a war, Mazikeen. You were gone for-"
"I know how long I was gone, Hodge," she interrupted. She sat on the bench next to him and rubbed her hands down her face, "Is Idris ruined? How many of you died?"
"It was almost ruined, 143 Shadowhunters were slain. It took them weeks to replace the Alicante wards after the demons ripped them apart and another few days to collect and preserve the bodies for proper send-offs. Not to mention the Accords Hall, I hear they're still trying to rebuild the ceiling."
"I'm assuming Valentine is dead, not even the council would bother locking him away after the mass destruction. You wouldn't happen to have a picture of him, would you?" She stood in front of the man, her eyes lit up as Hodge pulled out his cellphone and swiped through his photo gallery. He stopped and held up the phone to Mazikeen's hungry gaze. She snatched the phone from his hand and scanned the image. It was a scan of the old photo of the Circle from decades ago.
"Looks familiar," she stared at the screen with tight lips, "I should've been there. He used the sword, ugh, and the stupid fucking cup. I'm pretty sure I told Magnus to get rid of that thing, and don't even get me started on that lake. I told them it was a bad idea." She started pacing for a second time. Hodge wanted to explain to her that she wasn't responsible for the entire Nephilim race but he knew that talking someone out of guilt that heavy was nearly impossible. Her head snapped up and her body stopped in its tracks.
"Where is the sword?" He could see horror behind her emerald eyes.
"Where do you think it is? The Silent Brothers took that sword and threw it into the deepest cellar of the City of Bones again, because that worked so well the first time," he felt anger lick his nerves. Against his best wishes, the Silent Brothers decided to take the mortal instruments and lock them away, despite knowing very well that Valentine was the reason that there's a new generation of Silent Brothers.
"Again?" Her voice echoed, he felt the blood drain from his veins to the bottom of his stomach.
"Mazikeen, you were gone-"
Her eyes held fire behind them as she roared, "I know how long I was gone. You knew where it had been this whole time. I know you had people on the inside, Hodge, you could have relayed a message."
"I tried, Mazikeen, I TRIED. I wasn't truly aware if the messages were intercepted or not. All I knew was-"
"That they disappeared. And I'm assuming nobody else was willing to take the risk anymore," her voice was defeated. She sunk back into the bench once more with a sigh.
He decided to change the subject to prevent a meltdown. He could see the edge of a black and red spotted bandage poking out from under the cotton fabric of her black tank top on her shoulder blade.
"How is the damage?" Hodge inquired.
"Extensive, but nothing new. Almost lost an arm this time." She crossed her arms over her chest, her anger had bubbled down to a low simmer.
"I can try to make a salve of some kind. At least try to make something for the pain…" he trailed off. For the first time in a long time, he had no idea how to help.
"We both know it doesn't work that way. The only thing that seems to work is booze and drugs, but thank you for trying." She stood up and quietly walked out of the greenhouse doors, clutching her arms across her chest with her head hung low. Before the doors closed behind her, she perked up a bit, turned her head back to Hodge and said with a grin, "I give you my word that Valentine is exactly where he belongs now, and he won't be coming back this time."
The lake glittered like a mirror as he looked out on its flat surface. The air was silent, no insects sang through the night as they had many nights before. He turned towards the black figure as he took one last breath. He felt a vibration run through his bones as his body hit the solid ground.
Damon's body violently twitched, causing him to wake up from his afternoon nap. He's usually able to suppress his nightmares with alcohol, but he had drunk the last swig of it this morning.
He remembered talking with Mazikeen, that hadn't been a dream, he knew that. His body relaxed as he lay on his back with his fingers interlaced across his chest. She really didn't like Idris, and in a way that disappointed him, but he knew she was right, especially these days. The shadowhunter families there rarely leave, they are uneducated about the mundane world and the changes over the past thousand years. Until the war, the people of Idris despised the thought of being in the same sentence as a Downworlder let alone fighting in battle together.