Impossible Love

Don't Break

This chapter contains descriptions of torture, pain and murder.

Asmodeus started tracing the parabatai rune with his claw, but this time there was more than just the japing pain from the cut. Alec could see blue sparks forming in the demon's hand, flooding into his body and making him groan with pain.

It only got worse when he kept tracing the rune, the pain reaching soul-deep, violating the very part of him that was connected with Jace. He could almost hear his brother's gasp, could almost see him looking down to find his rune bleeding.

The parabatai bond couldn't be damaged with cutting the rune, the connection was too strong for that. But that also meant that Asmodeus could keep that up as long as he wanted, battering his rune and causing both Alec and Jace agony.

Even when he was fully done cutting the mark the demon still kept pouring magic into the wound, causing Alec to scream and squirm in the chains. He desperately wanted it to stop, the pain was overwhelming.

But it didn't. It just kept on hurting, the excruciating magic pulsing into his abdomen. He was getting weaker, feeling like maybe he would pass out soon and the pain would disappear for at least some time.

When his eyelids started fluttering and he didn't even have the strength to scream or groan anymore it stopped. At least the pain in his hip did, as Asmodeus moved away again, not giving Alec the relief of unconsciousness.

He didn't give him a break either, placing his, now human again, hand on Alec's head and a second later he felt magic trying to get inside his mind. He gritted his teeth, resisting the attempt of Asmodeus to read his thoughts and memories.

The invading pressure disappeared again and Alec breathed heavily when the demon pulled his hand away. "You are going to give up sooner or later," he told him, a menacing grin on his face "You'll see."

Alec was sure he would leave him alone now, to come back later when he was not on the verge of passing out anymore. But he didn't, instead, he once again snapped his fingers and something metallic appeared in his hands.

Looking closer he saw that the demon had conjured his stele and the Seelie ring, regarding both with a thoughtful expression. "You would love to get your hands on those wouldn't you?" He picked the ring up, before letting it glide onto his finger.

"I wonder who you were talking to with that," he went on, being weirdly talkative. Alec tried not to show how much he really wanted to have the ring, have the possibility to talk to his parabatai one last time.

He couldn't decipher the expression on the demon's face, but he seemed to be occupied with thinking. That could mean he was communicating through the Seelie ring, which made Alec's stomach turn. What was he telling Jace?

A wide grin appeared on Asmodeus' face and he pulled the ring off his finger, letting it fall to the ground. Then he just stepped on it, crushing the ring under his foot. Alec pressed his lips together, trying to hold in how he felt about that.

He had known that he wouldn't be able to get it, that he wouldn't be able to talk to Jace again, but somehow seeing his only way of communication being destroyed made him even more aware of the hopelessness of the situation.

He looked up to the stele, expecting Asmodeus to do something similar to it. The tool could only be used by Shadowhunters, which at least prevented the demon from using the agony rune, which was originally intended for weapons.

Alec watched as he snapped his stele in two, regarding the jagged edges of the broken end and moving closer again. He tensed up, trying to hold himself up a little straighter, he didn't want to seem affected by the pain too much.