A New Tale from the Shadowhunter Academy

11. Ascending

Cara's request was so totally unexpected and absolutely out of place that Max needed two breaths before he could ask back: "What, by the Angel, do we need the Mortal Cup for?"

Rafe seemed to get Cara's intention way faster. "No," he said resolutely.

"Yes," Cara replied.

They stood on the grass, facing each other, arms crossed. Their postures and expressions mirrored though they were otherwise so disparate in looks and ancestry. Neither seemed as if they wanted to give in to... whatever. Max still didn't get it. He shot Alex and inquiring expression.

Alex's eyes had widened and he quickly explained: "Cara wants to ascend."

"Of course, she does. Why would she be here otherwise?"

Alex shook his head: "No, I mean she wants to do it right now. To gain strength to challenge the demon."

"I would also be able to use a seraph blade," Cara threw in. "And what difference does it make, whether I do it now or in one year?"

"One year more of preparation for this dangerous procedure, which not everyone survives."

"So you lied to me about this point, too?"

Rafe groaned, a sound Max rarely heard from his big brother.

"I didn't lie back then. But things have changed."

A hurt expression appeared on Cara's face: "Meaning, now that you got to know me better, you realized that you were mistaken to think of me as strong."

"It's no such thing."

"Then what?"

Suddenly Rafe burst out: "I fell for you, ok? You're the strongest, fiercest, most fearless and competent person I know, but I don't want you to be harmed, neither by a demon nor by the Cup. Now, can we come back to the problem at hand and follow the plan that doesn't include you facing a Ravener demon?"

None of them said a word. Max' gaze flipped from Rafe to Cara and back again. Alex behind him was so noiseless as if covered in silencing runes. Cara and Rafe continued to stare at each other like in a competition. If this is love, Max thought, it's kind of scary.

Cara was the first to break the silence: "Max, do it."

Unsure, Max looked at Rafe but he just kept his composure without disagreeing. So Max sighed and murmured: "I hope Ba has not tied my old Binky to the Cup."

He closed his eyes and started to concentrate. He pictured the Cup in his mind. The last time he had seen the Cup was during Uncle Simon's Ascension. As he had been only one year old, he didn't really remember anything of the ceremony, much less the Cup itself. But he had seen many pictures and heard descriptions from his family. Additionally, the Cup was a magical item, which should be easy to locate if he only followed the angelic aura. It also helped that he knew, where the Cup was kept, in a safe in the Dean's office. So Max directed his thoughts there and reached out with insubstantial fingers, while his real fingers supported the action.

Gripping the Cup was easy. But when Max pulled, it felt like the Cup crashed against the closed door of the safe holding it in place. Of course no wall was able to prevent a conjuring, but the Cup was obviously protected by magical wards. His Ba had erected a similar protection around their apartment and Max strongly suspected that the Cup's ward was also one of his works. Which was Max's luck, as he had spent quite some time during his life to escape his Ba's bans, mostly supported by Rafe.

It took Max mere seconds to figure out the weak spot in the construction of the spell. If he had not known what to search for, he would never have found it, so the Cup was well protected from outsiders, but his Ba had probably never considered that his own son would try to steal it one day.

With one last tug Max freed the Cup from its boundaries and grabbed it. When he opened his eyes again he hold the legendary Mortal Cup in his hands, the one Uncle Jace and Aunt Clary had risked their lives for. It was filled with some dark liquid Max didn't dare to think about in detail. Hurriedly he handed it over to Cara, who took it without reluctance.

She lifted the Cup to her lips and took one sip. Alex and Max watched her expectantly, while Rafe looked away. A few heartbeats nobody said a word or dared to move. Alex and Max's eyes were fixed on Cara.

When the silence reached an unbearable level, Max spluttered: "What is it, Cara? Do you feel changed? Are you a Shadowhunter now?"

Cara only shrugged: "Guess so."

"Well, there's a simple way to test it," Rafe said and handed Cara his seraph blade. Cara took it with a firm grip and whispered an Angel's name, but which exactly Max couldn't hear. Nevertheless, the blade came to life and with a faint glow extruded from the hilt. Max saw Alex gape in awe as if Cara had created the sword out of thin air instead of naming it like he must have seen a thousand Shadowhunters do before.

"It worked," Cara stated plainly.

"Let's do one last thing." Rafe grabbed Cara's arm but she drew back hastily, a hounded look on her face. Everyone froze for a few heartbeats while Rafe and Cara stared at each other. Then realization hit Rafe's face and he lifted his hands, one of which held his stele.

"I only wanted to mark you with strength, speed and balance," Rafe said soothingly. "But of course, you can do it yourself." He handed Cara his stele like a sword with the handle in her direction. She quickly took it and drew the three Marks on her left hip. Rafe would have drawn faster and more precise for sure, as Cara had no experience in drawing runes on skin. Max wondered why she had receded, when Rafe had reached for her.

When she was done Cara handed the stele back and stated in her inimitable concision: "Let's banish a demon."