The Rise Of The Morningstar (Eng. Version)

Chapter 76 - Rune to Heaven's Gate

Chapter 76 – Rune to Heaven's Gate

--- 2 days before the start of the war. ---

A few more hours of research later, Isabelle threw the last book of her now completed stack across the aisle. Having finished my half of the list a few minutes earlier and now returning the books to their places on the shelf, I heard the book fly past my head just a few meters away. Spinning around, I saw it land edge-first on the floor and tumble several times before coming to a stop. The violent impact had visibly damaged the book.

"If Alandra Gladstone ever finds out, my family won't be your biggest problem anymore," I blurted out, only half joking.

But Isabelle ignored me entirely. "Those damn idiots," she fumed, throwing the next book right after the last one. With a crash, it hit the shelf opposite me and then slammed down onto the wooden parquet floor. My eyes widened in shock as she unleashed a string of curses that she must have picked up in the underworld. "Fools, all of them. How can they just forget the legends surrounding such an important cultural artifact like the mirror? It's not like we wouldn't all be here without it! It's not like it played a crucial role in Raziel's appearance! But no, it's fine, let's just forget all the secrets around the mirror because we're all dumb, useless idiots!"

Silently, I put the remaining books in my hands back on their shelves and then sat down across from Isabelle at the table. Sighing, I massaged my temples. All that reading had turned my brain to jelly, even though reading had always been one of my daily duties. No wonder Isabelle's head was about to explode.

"I swear to you, Clary, if we had the time, I would personally force you to create a resurrection rune. Just to disturb our past leaders in their eternal rest. Just to shake them until they wished to be dead again. Just because they're idiots and they deserve nothing less."

I wondered if she was aware of how hard she was pounding on the book in front of her. "Then they're probably lucky that Nephilim burn their dead. Not even one of my runes could bring a pile of ashes back to life."

Isabelle's dark pupils flared accusingly. "Aren't you the one who should be just as upset? Where does this sudden relaxation come from?"

I shrugged slightly and pulled the stack of books out from under her arms before she could throw them around or damage them in any other way. "I got used to failure after Jonathan's visit to Imogen. Since the chance of finding something here wasn't high anyway, I didn't even set my expectations high."

"No wonder we fail if you don't believe in anything else! You can only achieve goals that you believe are possible," she said reproachfully.

But I was only half listening to her. I lowered my gaze, pondering, and stared at the books between my fingers, not really seeing them. Just to disturb our past leaders in their eternal rest. Isabelle's words had stirred something in me, like a desire that appeared out of nowhere and just wouldn't go away, no matter how hard you tried to push it out of your mind. An idea that made the skin under my fingernails itch.

"What if we can't resurrect the dead, but we could visit them?" I whispered during one of Isabelle's breathing pauses, and her swelling tirade got stuck in her throat. Our eyes met across the table, hers wide in speechless shock, as if she could only half follow my words.

"You mean ... you want to create a rune that transports us to the afterlife?" Her voice shot up again, this time a mix of panic and admiration.

"Ithuriel has called my soul to Heaven before. Maybe I can summon the same power. I'm not sure if we can really talk to our ancestors. I didn't gather enough information last time. But someone has to be there to greet us."