The Lost Book of the White (The Eldest Curses #2) - Cassandra Clare Page 0,82
miniature bursts of thunder and lightning when they collided.
As the minutes passed, most of the Shadowhunters relaxed their grip on their weapons and walked more casually. Only Alec refused to drop his guard, circling the group restlessly, his sword out as if daring any of the demons to come and get them.
Magnus understood. It was its own strange kind of agony to have to walk down this long, long path, thinking of their friends in danger, of their enemies moving forward with their plans, while they could do nothing but traverse the space between. He felt Alec’s nervous energy. Alec wanted to run down the path, charge ahead toward the inevitable fight, but the way was too far and they needed to preserve their strength.
They walked in near silence. At one point, Alec said to Tian, “Are you sure this is the best way to go?” Tian didn’t answer, just walked on.
An hour passed. The iron road wound on.
Two hours.
Finally the smooth road ended, and a massive suspended bridge, of the same iron as the road, crossed a deep crevasse that blocked the way to the pit. On the far side of the bridge, two huge red que towers rose, forming a gate to an endless staircase that descended the mountain toward its reversed peak, disappearing into a haze beneath them.
“At least it’ll be downhill,” Magnus remarked.
Tian nodded. “I’ve made the walk up the real Mount Tai. It is more than six thousand steps to the top. Except at the top of Mount Tai is a beautiful complex of temples.”
“Rather than the deepest pit in Hell,” said Magnus.
Tian just looked grim.
Before they could reach the bridge, dark flashes began to burst on the road, like the afterimages from looking at the sun. When Magnus blinked to clear his vision, he saw that two demons had appeared in their path. They had the same greenish skin as the Jiangshi, but where the Jiangshi were gaunt and ragged, these two were massive, heavily built, and well-muscled. One had a human body, but the head of a horse; he carried a chain whip, its links each the size of a human fist. The other, also human in form, had the head of an ox and bore in front of it an enormous, double-bladed battle-ax. The ox let out a tremendous bellow, shattering the strange silence that they had become accustomed to.
The Shadowhunters drew their weapons.
* * *
ALEC REFLEXIVELY LOOKED OVER TO Tian and was shaken to see that a look of terror had passed over his face. “Niutou,” he said, “and Mamian.”
“Friends of yours?” asked Magnus.
“They are called Ox-Head and Horse-Face,” Tian said. “They were the messengers of Yanluo, and guardians of Diyu. There are many stories of Shadowhunters fighting them, in the time when Yanluo still roamed the world.”
“If they fought them, we can fight them,” said Clary.
Tian shook his head. “They are much weaker in our world. The legends say that they cannot be defeated in their own realm.”
“So we turn back?” said Clary.
“It’s five against two,” Jace said. “I like our odds.”
Tian said, “If we want to go forward, we have no choice.” He stepped away from the others, giving himself room, and with a few deft turns, unwound the rope dart from his body, grasping its diamond-shaped adamas head at the base. Magnus slowly and uncertainly drew White Impermanence from his back and held it before him. It was very strange to see Magnus wielding a sword, Alec thought. It seemed wrong, even perverse. But they were severely underequipped for this fight, and they needed every asset.
“Clary, you’ve only got a dagger,” Jace said quietly, “so you can’t get inside their reach. Alec and I will try to tie up the cow and you go behind. Tian, your job is to keep that chain whip off us. Magnus, any protection you can offer…”
It was too late for any further planning. With a roar, Ox-Head charged them.
Jace might have been right that it was five against two, but Alec was pretty sure the two were each bigger than all five of them put together. They had no choice but to try, of course—Alec let Jace go ahead to receive the charge with his spear, and he stood ready to slip underneath and strike when an opportunity arose. Out of the corner of his vision, he saw Tian leap at Horse-Face, the rope dart unfurling and bursting out toward his foe like a snake rearing to strike.