Cassandra Clare: The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare Page B

They’re not very bright or capable on their own,” explained Hodge. “Did it say what its master was looking for?”
    Clary thought. “It said something about a Valentine, but—”
    Hodge jerked upright, so abruptly that Hugo, who had been resting comfortably on his shoulder, launched himself into the air with an irritable caw. “Valentine?”
    “Yes,” Clary said. “I heard the same name in Pandemonium from the boy—I mean, the demon—”
    “It’s a name we all know,” Hodge said shortly. His voice was steady, but she could see a slight tremble in his hands. Hugo, back on his shoulder, ruffed his feathers uneasily.
    “A demon?”
    “No. Valentine is— was —a Shadowhunter.”
    “A Shadowhunter? Why do you say was ?”
    “Because he’s dead,” said Hodge flatly. “He’s been dead for sixteen years.”
    Clary sank back against the couch cushions. Her head was throbbing. Maybe she should have gone for that tea after all. “Could it be someone else? Someone with the same name?”
    Hodge’s laugh was a humorless bark. “No. But it could have been someone using his name to send a message.” He stood up and paced to his desk, hands locked behind his back. “And this would be the time to do it.”
    “Why now?”
    “Because of the Accords.”
    “The peace negotiations? Jace mentioned those. Peace with who?”
    “Downworlders,” Hodge murmured. He looked down at Clary. His mouth was a tight line. “Forgive me,” he said. “This must be confusing for you.”
    “You think?”
    He leaned against the desk, stroking Hugo’s feathers absently.“Downworlders are those who share the Shadow World with us. We have always lived in an uneasy peace with them.”
    “Like vampires, werewolves, and . . .”
    “The Fair Folk,” Hodge said. “Faeries. And Lilith’s children, being half-demon, are warlocks.”
    “So what are you Shadowhunters?”
    “We are sometimes called the Nephilim,” said Hodge. “In the Bible they were the offspring of humans and angels. The legend of the origin of Shadowhunters is that they were created more than a thousand years ago, when humans were being overrun by demon invasions from other worlds. A warlock summoned the Angel Raziel, who mixed some of his own blood with the blood of men in a cup, and gave it to those men to drink. Those who drank the Angel’s blood became Shadow-hunters, as did their children and their children’s children. The cup thereafter was known as the Mortal Cup. Though the legend may not be fact, what is true is that through the years, when Shadowhunter ranks were depleted, it was always possible to create more Shadowhunters using the Cup.”
    “ Was always possible?”
    “The Cup is gone,” said Hodge. “Destroyed by Valentine, just before he died. He set a great fire and burned himself to death along with his family, his wife, and his child. Scorched the land black. No one will build there still. They say the land is cursed.”
    “Is it?”
    “Possibly. The Clave hands down curses on occasion as punishment for breaking the Law. Valentine broke the greatest Law of all—he took up arms against his fellow Shadowhunters and slew them. He and his group, the Circle, killed dozens of theirbrethren along with hundreds of Downworlders during the last Accords. They were only barely defeated.”
    “Why would he want to turn on other Shadowhunters?”
    “He didn’t approve of the Accords. He despised Down-worlders and felt that they should be slaughtered, wholesale, to keep this world pure for human beings. Though the Downworlders are not demons, not invaders, he felt they were demonic in nature, and that that was enough. The Clave did not agree—they felt the assistance of Downworlders was necessary if we were ever to drive off demonkind for good. And who could argue, really, that the Fair Folk do not belong in this world, when they have been here longer than we have?”
    “Did the Accords get signed?”
    “Yes, they were signed. When the