CHAPTER SIXTEEN
THE SILENT CITY
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Just like the Silent Brothers themselves, their residence was just as unnerving. They were stationed underground, and more often than not, the entry was located in a graveyard. Walking between the tombstones now, Adrian couldn't help but wish he had stayed at the Institute. He could have easily just said that someone had to watch Max, who had been locked inside Isabelle's bedroom by Isabelle herself. Alec and Adrian had both lectured her for that one, since there was no way for Max to get out of the room since his stele had been taken away, and they didn't know how long they were going to be gone. Isabelle had just waved her hand dismissively and said that she had food all around her room and that Max would be fine. With a scowl, Adrian pushed Max to the back of his mind and skirted around another tombstone. He felt weird walking through the graveyard, like his footsteps were waking up the abundance of people sleeping in peace below him.
"This place gives me the creeps," he murmured, tired of the silence their small group had descended into the second they had arrived at the graveyard. Clary and Alec were ahead; it looked like they were trying to beat each other to the Silent City's entrance. Isabelle and Adrian were at the back. At his words, Isabelle hummed and strolled closer to him, linking their arms together.
"It's a graveyard," she said, sounding amused, her black hair falling heavily around her face and past her shoulders. Her smile was bright. Adrian could tell she was hoping for a fight. "It's supposed to give you the creeps." Adrian rolled his eyes and mumbled something incomprehensible under his breath. Isabelle's grin grew wider. Up ahead, Clary and Alec had come to a stop in front of a stone statue. Adrian and Isabelle stopped behind them, waiting. Alec was the first to speak.
"They should have sensed our presence by now," he said, studying the statue with a frown, as if it would come alive and give him all the answers to his questions. They waited another moment in silence, none of them willing to enter the Silent City if the Silent Brothers were on their way. Eventually, Alec reached for the dagger at his belt and used it to slice open his palm, holding his hand out and letting the blood flow into the cup the statue was holding. Clary was staring in confusion, and Alec answered her unspoken question with a calmness he hadn't had toward her before. Adrian hoped that meant they were warming up to each other. "Blood of the Nephilim. It should work as a key."
As if responding to his words, there was a loud groan, like stone sliding against stone. All of them looked around uneasily at the sound, as it sounded as if it were coming from all directions. A few seconds later, Clary let out a startled shriek and flew backwards, stumbling over her own two feet to avoid falling into the hole appearing in the ground. Adrian caught her by the shoulders and helped her regain her balance, draping his arm over those same shoulders and giving her a side hug when he noticed her face start to turn red. Adrian, Isabelle, and Alec had all remained completely calm while the entrance to the Silent City opened in the ground, and Clary seemed embarrassed by her reaction when she realized. She must have entered the Silent City in a different way. There were probably dozens of other entrances around New York, in various different graveyards.
Isabelle only had to peer into the inky darkness of the entrance for a few seconds before she said, "Something's wrong." She paused, waiting for Alec to draw a healing rune on his cut palm, before she took a witchlight out of her pocket. Clary, Alec, and Adrian all drew out their own and willed them to brighten. Isabelle nodded toward the entrance, suddenly looking excited. "Let's go."
"I'll go first," Alec quickly said when Isabelle took one step down into the darkness of the Silent City. He slipped past her. "Izzy, bring up the rear. Dri, keep an eye on Clary." Adrian and Isabelle both nodded, and Isabelle moved to let Clary and Adrian go ahead of her. Adrian was suddenly very glad that they had witchlights with them. The darkness was so thick that it felt like a second skin. He could see unlit torches in brackets on the walls as they walked lower and lower. Dread seeped into his stomach when he thought of all the reasons as to why they weren't lit like they were supposed to.
Alec seemed to sense it, too, because when he spoke, his voice was quiet, more subdued. "I never thought I would enter the Silent City," he said, voice as solemn as it was awed. "Not even in death." Adrian winced. He knew why. He doubted there wasn't a Shadowhunter who wasn't straight that didn't. Not being straight wasn't illegal, but when people didn't even talk about it, like none of them even existed, it might as well have been. Adrian didn't know if there was anyone like him or Alec buried in the Silent City. There wasn't some historic figure they could look up, wasn't an icon to read about and be comforted that they weren't alone, that they weren't the firsts. No one came out in their world. They stayed silent and kept it behind closed doors.
Clary, sensing the sudden sadness emitting from both Adrian and Alec and Isabelle's protective anger, attempted to make them feel better.
"I wouldn't sound so sad about it," she said weakly. Adrian appreciated the effort, but she didn't understand what being buried in the Silent City meant to Shadowhunters. It was like Adrian suddenly lecturing her about how art was a waste of her time and talent. It wouldn't do anything but make Clary feel awful and discouraged. "Brother Jeremiah told me what they do to the bodies. They burn them and use most of the ashes to make the City's marble."
"It's considered an honor," Adrian told her gently, hoping she would realize how sensitive this topic was. She understood immediately and mouthed an apology, but he just shrugged. She had to learn her own culture eventually. Adrian blamed Jocelyn for the lack of knowledge, though he would never say that out loud.
"Besides, it's not like mundies don't burn their dead and keep them in vases on their shelves," Isabelle added behind them, scoffing in amusement. Clary opened her mouth to argue, but then paused and snapped it shut, shrugging her shoulders in a way that suggested Isabelle was right. Adrian snorted. They had finally reached level ground, and they all spread out to walk toward the main hall. They were halfway there when Adrian smelled it, and he gagged, placing his hand over his nose and mouth. Isabelle did the same. "Alec," Isabelle murmured, voice muffled from her hand.
"I know." Alec switched his witchlight to his left hand and used his right to pull his seraph blade free. "Arathiel." Bright light erupted from his blade, so bright that Alec had no use for the witchlight anymore. He put it back in his pocket and crept forward, following the smell into a room with a large table. Alec came to an abrupt halt. There was a long table in the center of the room, and on top of it was a puddle of something dark.
"Is that blood?" Isabelle asked, voice rising into a squeak. Alec let out a shaky breath and walked closer, getting his seraph blade close to the puddle. His face looked grim when he turned back to them.
"Looks like it," was all he said. Adrian slid closer to Clary out of instinct, glancing around as if whatever had put the blood there would jump out of the shadows. He didn't like being down there. They stood no chance against something that was strong enough to take out the Silent Brothers. Alec tilted his head, and they all followed him out of the room.
"What could have happened?" Isabelle demanded as they walked deeper into the Silent City. "I thought the Silent Brothers were indestructible."
"Apparently not," Alec responded. He came to a halt again, and this time no one had to get closer to know why. There, impaled on what appeared to be part of an iron gate, was a Silent Brother. For a few very long seconds, everyone was completely silent. And then Alec said, "We need to find Jace," and suddenly they were all moving. Adrian didn't know who broke into a run first—maybe it was Clary—but all he knew was that they ran for a few minutes until Clary disappeared into a cell. The bars had sprung from the hinges with a touch of Clary's stele. They all gathered inside, and Adrian rested against the wall, weak with relief, when he saw Jace. He was beaten up a bit, and his wrists were bloody from where he had yanked at his manacles too hard, but he was alive. Clary bent to open the manacles with her stele. They popped open, and Jace winced.
"Are you alright? What happened?" Alec asked quickly, staring at Jace's wrists. Jace winced again, one hand going to the side of his head, eyes squinting at the witchlights Isabelle was still holding in his hand.
"One question at a time, Alec," Jace begged, sounding extremely weak. He winced again, fingers sinking into his golden hair. "My head feels like it's going to explode." Isabelle pointed at his wrists.
"Who did that to you?" she demanded. Jace glanced at his wrists.
"No one did anything to me." He waved a hand at the manacles now lying uselessly on the ground of his cell. "I did it to myself trying to get those manacles off. Kinda freaked out when Silent Brothers started dying." Alec took his stele out of his pocket and knelt by Jace. When he stood back up, healing runes were on both of Jace's wrists, and the tender skin slowly started stitching back together. Jace sighed in relief. "Thank you. Brother Jeremiah, he's—"
"Dead," Clary finished when Jace broke off, his voice cracking. Jace winced.
"He was murdered."
"By what?" Clary asked. Jace stared into space for a moment, then shook his head.
"I don't know. Something. God, my head—"
"Maybe we should go before whatever killed them comes back," Isabelle suggested, sounding uneasy. She kept glancing back out into the hall. Jace shook his head, his hand going out to grab desperately at the wall as he climbed shakily to his feet. Or rather tried to climb to his feet. He swayed, and Clary and Alec both shot forward to catch him. He landed heavily against the wall, and that's where he stayed, eyes slipping shut as he took deep breaths.
"I think it's gone," he said eventually, opening his eyes to look at Isabelle. "But I guess he could bring it back."
"Who could bring what back?" Clary asked. When Jace only tried to stand on his own again, she sighed in exasperation. It was clear to all of them that Jace couldn't stand on his own. "Jace—" Jace coughed and braced himself against the wall with one arm, waving the other at Clary dismissively.
"I'm fine," he lied through gritted teeth. "I can stand." Adrian scoffed at his words, and Jace raised his head to send him a grin that was more scary than friendly.
"Yeah, if you use the wall," Adrian pointed out. Jace heaved a heavy sigh.
"I'm leaning," Jace corrected. "Leaning comes right before standing." Adrian's lips twitched. He couldn't help it when he grinned back.
"No, it comes right before falling on your face," he replied. This time, Jace's grin was actually genuine. Adrian was relieved to know that he was well enough to genuinely smile. It took a huge weight off of his shoulders. Isabelle sighed, making them all look at her. She raised her eyebrows and tilted her head toward the cell entrance.
"Stop bickering," she ordered. "We need to get out of here. If whatever killed the Silent Brothers comes back, we won't stand a chance." Adrian nodded and pushed himself off of the cell wall.
"Izzy's right," he said, going to help Alec prop Jace up on his own two feet. "We should go. Jace, are you okay to walk?" Jace swayed on his feet, and Adrian felt like that was as good an answer as any. He and Alec took positions on either side of Jace, and Jace threw his arms over both of their shoulders. They moved quickly, only stopping long enough for Isabelle to cover Brother Jeremiah's face when they came across his body. There was a moment of silence.
"I've never seen a Silent Brother afraid," Isabelle whispered, staring at Brother Jeremiah with an unreadable expression. Adrian swallowed. "I didn't think they could even feel fear at all." Jace coughed again.
"Everyone feels fear," he croaked. Isabelle pursed her lips and nodded, leading the way back through the Silent City. None of them looked at the Silent Brother that had been speared, nor did they look at the table covered in blood. They just continued walking until they came across the stairs leading back up to the graveyard. They were halfway up when they noticed the light filtering from the top. All of them stopped. Isabelle cocked her head to the side.
"Wasn't the sun going down when we got here?" she asked. Alec shook his head, shifting on his feet when Jace suddenly got heavier, like he was trying to hold up his own weight but failing. Adrian glanced at him in concern, seeing sweat sliding down the side of his face. They needed to get him back to the Institute, where they could check over his injuries properly.
"We couldn't have been down there that long," Clary said. Jace mumbled something under his breath. Clary turned to frown at him. "What was that?" Jace cleared his throat.
"Witchlight," he said, voice weak and shaky. Isabelle and Alec both cursed. Adrian didn't bother. They technically hadn't done anything wrong. He just hoped it wasn't Valentine and his followers waiting for them. Fortunately, it wasn't Valentine.
Unfortunately, it was the Inquisitor and Maryse Lightwood, with a large group of Shadowhunters waiting behind them. They all froze at the sight of all of them. Adrian hadn't seen such a large group of Shadowhunters since the year before, when he had been visiting Idris.
"By the Angel," a man said in disbelief. "Maryse, there were already Shadowhunters down there." Maryse nodded. Adrian didn't like the look on her face.
"I know, Malik," she said, her voice tightly controlled, her face unreadable. Adrian and Isabelle shared a glance with each other before they both looked for a gap in the large group of people they could dash through. Adrian didn't want to get into trouble with the Inquisitor. If she was displeased, she would tell the Consul, and then Adrian would have to deal with yet another adult that did nothing but lecture him day and night. "These are my children." Maryse shook her head. When she spoke next, she sounded just as disbelieving as Malik had. "By the Angel, what are you doing here? There was a distress call from the Silent City—"
"We answered it," Alec explained quickly. Jace had shook both Alec and Adrian off, wanting to stand on his own two feet in front of all these adults currently watching them and taking note of every single detail. Like the blood around Jace's wrists and the fact that Clary was with them when she was untrained, and therefore was not actually cleared to go on missions. She technically needed permission from the head of the Institute. Adrian hoped Maryse wouldn't let the Inquisitor know that she didn't have permission. Adrian already had one friend thrown into jail, he didn't need another.
"Alec—" Maryse started. Adrian couldn't help interrupting.
"It doesn't matter," he said impatiently. Jace was swaying slightly again, and they could answer these questions back at the Institute after Jace was healed. "All of the Silent Brothers are dead. They were murdered." Murmurs swept throughout the group of Shadowhunters surrounding them, and Maryse's eye widened.
"Dead?" she echoed, taking a step closer to them. "What do you mean, they're dead?" Adrian heaved an impatient sigh and gave her a bored look.
"I thought my meaning was pretty clear, Maryse," he said, breaking off when Jace swayed again. He slid closer and let his hand hover a few inches from Jace's back, prepared to catch him if he had to.
"It it quite clear," the Inquisitor said. Adrian searched his brain desperately for her name, and he was relieved to know that he remembered it. Imogen Herondale. It wouldn't help any of them if he had insulted the Inquisitor by admitting he didn't know her name. "They are all dead? You found no one alive in the City?" Adrian shook his head.
"Not that we saw, Inquisitor." He kept the tone of his voice respectful. He wasn't like Jace; he didn't fancy spending a night in a Silent City jail cell, especially since everyone down there was dead. His skin crawled just thinking about it. He shot another concerned look at Jace, wondering if he was alright. He certainly seemed alright, aside from the swaying, but Jace had always been very good at convincing everyone he was fine when he actually wasn't.
"That you saw," the Inquisitor repeated, turning toward Maryse. There was a coldness to Imogen Herondale that made Adrian a bit uncomfortable. "There may be survivors. I would send your people into the City for a thorough check." Maryse nodded and sent the Shadowhunters surrounding her into the Silent City. Adrian, Jace, and Alec all went in a different direction to get out of the way, and Isabelle and Clary went the other way. Once the Shadowhunters had all disappeared into the Silent City, they hurried back toward each other. Isabelle linked one of her arms with Adrian's, and the other one was looped through Clary's, who seemed surprised but pleased with the contact.
"Why would anyone murder the Silent Brothers?" Maryse was asking. "They're not warriors, they don't carry battle marks—"
"Don't be naive, Maryse," Imogen Herondale interrupted, sounding as condescending as Maryse usually did when she spoke to any of the children under her care, except for perhaps Max. "This was no random attack. The Silent Brothers might not be warriors, but they are guardians, and very good at their jobs. Someone wanted something from the Silent City and were willing to kill the Silent Brothers to get it."
"What makes you so sure?" Maryse asked. Imogen Herondale let out a long sigh, like explaining was the biggest chore she had ever been given. Adrian narrowed his eyes at her.
"The wild goose chase that called us all to Central City? The dead fey child?"
"I wouldn't call that a wild goose chase. The fey child was drained of blood, like the others. These killings could cause serious problems between the Night Children and other Downworlders—" Imogen waved a dismissive hand in the air, cutting Maryse off.
"Distractions." By that point, Adrian and his friends were looking back and forth between the Inquisitor and Maryse like they were all watching a very intense game of ping-pong. Adrian would have been amused if he hadn't heard about yet another child being murdered. "He wanted us away from the Institute so that no one would respond to the Brothers when they called for aid."
"He?" Maryse asked, annoyed.
"Valentine," Jace responded. Adrian, Alec, Clary, and Isabelle all turned simultaneously to look at him in disbelief. He pretended like he didn't notice. "He took the Mortal Sword. That's why he killed the Silent Brothers."
"You didn't tell us that," Alec said in an accusing voice. Jace offered him a sheepish shrug.
"You didn't ask." Alec, Adrian, and Isabelle all made identical sounds of exasperation, making Clary snort before coughing to try to cover up her small laugh. Isabelle shook her head.
"He couldn't have killed the Brothers," she argued, frowning at Jace. "They were torn apart. No one person could have done that." The Inquisitor nodded.
"He could have had demonic help. He has used demons to aid him before, and with the protection of the Cup on him, he could summon very dangerous creatures. More dangerous than Raveners or the pathetic Forsaken," she said.
"I don't know about that," Jace said once he noticed her looking at him like he was at fault for this mess. "But it was Valentine. I saw him. He had the Sword with him when he came down to the cells and taunted me through the bars." Adrian, noticing how fast Jace was suddenly speaking, slid closer and placed a hand on his shoulder. Jace swayed into him, and let Adrian keep him balanced on two feet as he spoke to the Inquisitor.
"So you're saying Valentine told you all of this?" Imogen asked. They all shot her irritated looks. Jace let out a small, tired sigh. "What else did he tell you?" When Jace shook his head to tell her that he didn't have anymore information to give her, her face grew even colder. Adrian hadn't thought that were possible. "I don't believe you."
Jace nodded. "I didn't think you would," he muttered. Alec bristled.
"Jace is a lot of things, but he isn't a liar—" he started, only to get rudely interrupted by Imogen. Adrian gave her an ugly look when he knew she wouldn't be able to see it.
"Use your brain, Alexander," she said in exasperation. "What's the likelihood that Valentine stopped by his son's cell for a paternal chat about the Sword, and didn't mention what he planned to do with it, or even where he was going?" Jace mumbled something in another language. It sounded vaguely familiar, but it wasn't until Imogen turned toward Jace and responded to it that he realized why. "Dante. The Inferno. You're not in hell yet, Jonathan Morgenstern, though if you insist on lying to the Clave, you'll wish you were." She turned toward everyone else now, as if to convince them of Jace's crimes. "Doesn't it seem odd that the Sword should disappear the night before Jonathan Morgenstern is supposed to stand trial by its blade, and that his father is the one who took it?"
Jace made a sound of exasperation. "My father didn't take the Sword for me," he argued. "He took it for himself. I doubt he even knew about the trial."
"How convenient for you, regardless," Imogen sneered. Adrian bit his tongue to keep from snapping at her. "And for him. He won't have to worry about you spilling his secrets."
"That's ridiculous," Adrian burst out. Jace nodded beside him.
"Yeah." His voice fell flat, holding little humor in it. "He's terrified I'll tell everyone he actually wants to be a ballerina." The Inquisitor stared blankly at him. Either she didn't find the joke funny or she didn't realize it was a joke at all. Judging from her personality, Adrian assumed it was the latter. "I don't know any of my father's secrets. He's never told me anything."
"If your father didn't take the Sword to protect you, then why did he take it?" she demanded. Adrian nearly groaned.
"I'm pretty sure we've already made it clear that Jace doesn't know," he pointed out, irritated. Jace was starting to sway again, only a little bit.
"It's a Mortal Instrument," Clary suddenly spoke up, sounding thoughtful. When everyone turned toward her with furrowed eyebrows, she elaborated. "It's powerful, like the Cup. Valentine likes power."
"The Cup has an immediate use," Imogen argued. "He can use it to make an army. The Sword is used in trials. I can't see how that would interest him."
"He might have done it to destabilize the Clave," Maryse pointed out, surprising them all. "To sap our morale, to say there is nothing we can protect from him if he wants it badly enough. The fact is—"
Before Maryse could finish whatever she was going to say, Jace raised his hand as if to speak, mouth parting but nothing coming out. He blinked twice, swayed once, and then started to fall. Adrian barely caught him before he could slam into the ground.
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edited: 10.1.19