Once Upon A Time In Brooklyn

Chapter Eleven: The Big Bad Wolf

Alec took the stairs to Magnus' apartment two at a time.

They had been forced to give up at the Institute. For all Shadowhunters' knowledge on fighting demons, there was very little about how to kill the particular demon that ailed them. They had relocated to Taki's Diner shortly after, their arms stacked full of demonic literature.

Clary and Isabelle had called in every favour they could and the usual suspects had answered. Simon had been useful in searching through Mundane dealings with Asmodeus. He seemed to know quite a lot about obscure internet wikis that Alec would never have thought to check.

Luke had arrived no less than five minutes later. Having someone who was such an experienced Shadowhunter had helped them narrow down some of far-ranging theories that they had managed to construct.

Strangely, Raphael had also answered the call. He sat, serious and sullen, in a corner of the booth, reading works in Spanish about demons that Alec couldn't understand a word of.

Finally, they had to give up as the night wore on. Alec had suggested they relocate to Magnus' to see if the Warlock had come up with a new plan. So now they were thundering up the steps to Magnus' apartment with tired looks on their faces.

At first Alec assumed the tremors were from so many of them on the rickety staircase but then a particularly violent one threw him off balance. He fell backwards, causing Jace to tumble with him. Their velocity was stopped by Raphael, who pushed against them to prevent the domino effect. Alec barely even nodded him thanks before he had turned to run back up the staircase, gripping the rail tightly to keep his balance.

There were sounds of crashing and snapping, a dull roaring sound, shouting. Alec grabbed the door handle and had to pull his hand away quickly. It was red hot to the touch and had seared a crescent into his palm. He dug into his jean pockets, pulling his leather archery gloves on and gripping the handle again.

The leather sizzled against the handle as it resisted the brute force turning it. His arms strained to force the handle to turn, tendons standing out on his neck. Finally he heard the click and the door opened.

What he saw inside made him stop short. The whole apartment was trashed, the ceiling seemed to have caved in. Everything was covered in dust and wood splinters and bits of plaster. His eyes scanned the destruction, trying to pin point anyone who could let them know what had happened.

He saw it, the flash of blue and red amongst the dust and rubble. He began to move it frantically, his nails snapping against the plaster and wood. He finally uncovered Catarina's upper body by heaving the remnants of an antique bookcase to one side.

"Light...wood," she managed to hiss out in a pained breath. Alec tried to assess her injuries, but they were far graver than anything he had experience with. "Mag...nus... Taken... His... Father..."

Alec felt Jace brush him aside, calling Clary and Isabelle to help him move the rubble off her legs. He watched them blankly for a second before Jace turned to him, golden eyes narrowed.

"Alec! Check the apartment for Ragnor or Magnus," he ordered. It was enough to snap him out of it, clambering to his feet and stumbling over the uneven ground of the apartment. He searched for anything, green skin, a splatter of glitter, a pained sound, but he found nothing.

"Magnus!" He finally called, aware that his voice sounded frantic. No one replied. "MAGNUS!!!"

*

"Now, now, stop struggling," Asmodeus chided, patting Magnus on the head. Magnus jerked his head away from his father's touch. His arms were splayed out and bound by Asmodeus' magic. The only thing he could still do was breathe, talk, blink and move his head.