"Alec! Where are you?" Isabelle screeched over the cell phone.

"I'm on the steps, relax. It's just a ravener nest, there isn't a huge rush." I rolled my eyes. Isabelle could be so overly dramatic at times.

"You said you'd be here five minutes ago!"

"You only called five minutes ago…" I mumbled before I snapped the phone shut and stepped onto the elevator. She'd be mad that I hung up, but I wasn't wasting my minutes talking to her when we were in the same building. I had better things to use my minutes for, like listening to Magnus rant about how he couldn't choose what kind of cake we should have at our wedding. That was much more interesting then Isabelle's ranting.

I strode quickly to the library expecting to find my brother and sister waiting for me impatiently. Jace would probably be sprawled on the couch with a board expression on his face, Isabelle would be behind the couch with her arms crossed and scowling. I chuckled quietly at how predictable the two of them could be.

Carefully I pushed the door in only to find a dark and seemingly empty room.

"Jace? Isabelle? I think we're a little past hiding in the dark to jump out at each other…" I mumbled, but I didn't get an answer. I frowned and turned to go see if they were in the training room, or maybe the kitchen.

"Personally, I don't think anyone is ever 'a little past hiding in the dark to jump out at each other', It's quite fun to watch them scream when you jump out, after all." A voice sounded from in the library. I tensed and slowly went for the dagger at my belt, hoping that whatever it was wouldn't notice the action.

"It's more fun when the person doing the jumping gets their head cut off for their trouble." I replied tensely.

"Maybe, but technically, I didn't jump, just spoke."

"Doesn't change anything." I finally slipped the dagger out and held it tightly in my hand as I tried to pinpoint where the disembodied voice was coming from.

"Not," without making any noise the voice was suddenly right in my ear, "a good idea." It finished. Before I could spin to attack something brushed the back of my neck. My body locked up and I dropped to the floor with a hallow thud.

My entire body was tensed up and locked in place; I couldn't even move my fingers. My mouth though…

"Who the fuck are you?" I snapped, the threat was greatly diminished by my position on the floor.

"The High Warlock of Manhattan, if you really must know." He smirked. The most I could make out was his rough outline in the darkness. He wasn't as tall as me, and didn't appear to have much muscle either. Sadly though, that didn't mean that he didn't have much magic. This was a high warlock after all.

So what did this guy want with me? I was just a twenty-one year old shadowhunter, and not even a good one at that. I'd killed what, five demons? Maybe?

"Curious? I can see it on your face." He chuckled, "You know, none of this would've happened if the Clave had just listened to me. All I wanted was a seat on the council, nothing hard about that right? Well they just kept saying no. So now, we're going to see how they do without their best hunters. I'm going to collect a fair amount of the exceptional shadowhunters, and keep all of you until the Clave listens to me.

"You though, you I want for another reason other than your exceptional skills." Exceptional skills? "I'm taking you as a way to punish Magnus Bane for stepping into my territory. He should've just stayed in Brooklyn, and maybe I would've left you alone. But no, he has to come running in here all the time to take care of his little pet shadowhunters."

Territory, territory!? This was about freaking city boundary lines? This guy was taking me to punish Magnus for walking around in Manhattan?

Before I could finish off my internal rant my vision started to blur before I passed out completely, my body still frozen in place on the floor.