ʜᴇᴀᴠᴇɴʟʏ ꜰɪʀᴇ ~ ᴛᴍɪ

Chapter 8 - Abbadon

"So you don't know Elvis Presley? Queen?"

Allison just shook her head. "I know the names. Haven't heard their work yet."

Simon was offended. "Why are you even alive?"

She glared at him, which made him reconsider his words. "You really don't have any music in your secret city?"

"We do have music, Mundie," she scoffed, propping her legs on the dashboard. "My grandmother's place has vinyl records. I didn't care enough to listen to them."

Simon had the sense to not continue this conversation and pursued to sort through his friend's CD collection.  Surely, she must've been the one to lead the others to Dorothea's apartment. She surprised herself though. Allison opted to stay behind. She had promised the Inquisitor to not get involved. Rather not get caught in action, she explained to Jace and stayed back with Simon. 

Rain splattered hard down the entire city. She was glad to be inside this infernal van, to be fair. 

"You look tense," Simon didn't have to look up from his CDs.

She was, indeed. Something was very wrong. Her senses were on high alert as if something unnatural was nearby. Possibly Forsaken. Yet...

"Don't you smell something putrid? Rancid? Actually, do not answer that."

"I get the feeling you really love this van," Simon shot her a side-eye. 

"That's a different issue," She peered out the window, hoping to find something unusual. Another wave of the malodorous scent hit her. As if some sort of a demon was inside. Isabelle had found some demon traces. But this...it was stronger than the other scents. That was another ability she had, aside from Heavenly Fire, she could track down what species of a demon just by the smell. Like a bloodhound, her trainer had commented once.

This smell was one of the most powerful she had encountered.

"Fuck it," She said and opened the door. "If this ends up badly, head back to the Institute and warn Hodge. Do not, under any circumstance, enter that apartment. Understood?"

Simon frowned. "I can't let Clary—"

"Did you understand what I said?" She asked him again, with a calm yet serious voice.

He reluctantly nodded. 

Allison stepped out into the rain and made her way to the apartment complex.

Even opening the foyer made her cough. How come the others did not sense this? She should've been inside earlier, then let them through. The door was open, and she spotted Isabelle first. Who was taut with a dagger in her hand. Allison slowly crept to the door and heard a woman's voice speaking, "Would you like to use the Portal?"

"Don't touch that—" Jace.

There was a collective catch of breath, that made Allison stumble in.

The Portal was a spiral of black and red. Scarlet rolling clouds shot through with black lightning. A terrible-black figure shot through, that made everyone drop to the floor. Allison landed beside Isabelle when the figure strikes the supposed Dorothea. She screamed, thrusting her arms upward. Rather than knocking her down, the dark thing wrapped her like a shroud. Her back humped monstrously, her shape elongated as she rose and rose into the air, her bulk stretching and re-forming.

"I did say I sensed something bad!" supplied Allison, staying close to the floor.

"You should've implied how bad it was!" Alec said in a choked voice.

"Look!" Isabelle shouted, the hand holding her whip trembling. The demon twisted into a grotesquely misshapen form. Allison stifled a gasp, and said, "Head to the door! NOW!"