Fate [Harry Potter Next Gen x Shadowhunters x Winx]

Your POV
The smell of Demons always came first.
The abandoned apartment complex loomed over us like a prison, its unfinished, damp concrete walls giving way to the dilapidated view of derelict London. The smell of construction dust itched my nose as Ivy, Liam and I crept past the half-opened sandbags when suddenly, the wind changed. We froze, rooted to the spot as the underlying scent of rain and petrol flooded our noses. No one knew why Demons smelt that way; why they gave off the acrid, nauseant smell of fuel or the cool freshness of recently fallen dew - they just did. And its presence sent a flood of adrenaline through our veins.
Fingers twitching in anticipation, I unravelled the golden whip from around my wrist. Ivy transformed instantly, the sound of ripping fabric and the clatter of her wolf claws breaking the silence as her furred body hovered over my shoulder. With an almost unnoticeable clink, Liam extended his fangs. I gave him an exasperated look; he knew better than I did that biting a Demon would only get him poisoned - and that was at best.
Ivy took the lead, her nose to the ground as she tracked the Demon through the dank building, Liam and I flanking her from behind. Deeper into the building, the smell burned stronger, tightening my grip on my stele, and warming the ruby necklace around my neck.
We’d been tracking this Demon for months, spending weeks manipulating its movements just to get it to a safe location, which was no easy task considering it scored a Level Four on the Periculum Scale - just weak enough for the adults to let us handle it, but more than enough to kill the three of us effortlessly. Our sensors had told us that it wouldn’t reach our chosen location for at least a week after the Enotia Ball, so you could imagine my surprise when it arrived the day of. I could hardly contain my glee - I’d been trying to find a reason not to attend for months, and finally, it had arrived. The only thing I was lacking was my mum’s approval, and what sixteen-year-old girl would ever let that get in the way of a hunt.
Ivy stopped in front of a boarded-up doorframe, the full extent of the demonic stench breaking me out of my thoughts. There were two additions to the duad of rain and petrol: the overwhelming odour of rotting flesh, and beyond that, if I concentrated hard enough, death.
My necklace burned.
Removing each of the wooden planks was a painstakingly slow process, but stealth was key to making sure the Demon didn’t get the upper hand. With each nail levered and every plank lowered, we ran the risk of even the slightest noise sending some form of flesh and fangs shooting through the floor, rendering us dead in seconds - it had happened to Shadowhunters before.
After I pulled the last nail, Liam unscrewed the hinges of the door with his claws, and with me already in position to catch it, it fell noiselessly into my hands and I lay it on the floor. Left before us was a pitch-black staircase plunging deep into the dark basement. I stroked Ivy’s twitching ear - she always got nervous before the hunt. Liam, on the other hand, gave me his usual ‘I’m going to enjoy this’ grin. As for me, my veins were pumping with a familiar adrenaline-induced invincibility that only grew stronger as we started our descent.
Details of the concrete hallway faded in and out as my eyes adjusted to the impending darkness. It was narrow enough that we had to walk single-file, which was by far my least favourite formation, but we had no choice - we could only walk and pray that we were quiet enough to maintain the element of surprise. Puncturing the silence of our footsteps was the thick, laborious breathing of the Demon; every inhale echoed by the expanding tonnes of rotting flesh, every exhale joined by the unsettling gargle of blood clotting in the back of its throat.
The smell overwhelmed my nose as we reached the final step, my tattoo practically glowing beneath my armour as the air shivered with the Demon’s presence. From there, all we had to do was turn the corner and the beast would be in sight. Turning to Liam and Ivy, I gave them the signal. They nodded.
One.
Two.
Three! We turned the corner.
The Demon’s mass spanned the entire basement, octopus-like tentacles folding over themselves to fit into the large concrete hall - far bigger than we’d anticipated. Unsettlingly slowly, its eyes rolled in their sockets until finally, they landed on us. The reaction was instant. The tentacles thrashed around the room, shooting out to us with unnatural speed.
Fuck.
I dove out of the way, cutting in an upward arc to slice off the end of a tentacle, watching in horror as the dismembered limb crashed to the ground beneath me, writhing at my feet. This was no Level Four Demon. Judging by its speed, reaction time and implausible size - I took out another four tentacles, still no closer to reaching the torso - it was a Level Nine at the least: a Monolith Demon, an MD. It should have been impossible for it to get through to the Living Realms - we hadn’t seen any portals that big since the Resi Massacre of 2018. And yet still, there it was, right in front of me, having managed to fool every single one of our detectors. Again, impossible.
But if it was possible - which it appeared to be - then something was very, very wrong.
“Giselle!” Liam screamed from the other side of the hall. “What the fuck is the plan?!”
“Backup!” I yelled back.
Our shouting only urged the Demon on, another five tentacles shooting out to attack me. I managed to fight them off - only just.
“Yasmine!” I barked into my earpiece. With no response, my stomach plummeted. She was at the ball - along with everyone else in my fucking regiment. “Yasmine!” I shouted louder. “YASMINE!”
The background noise of a symphony orchestra flooded my left ear.
“Giselle?!” Yasmine exclaimed. My body flooded with relief - you could always count on her to have her earpiece in, no matter the occasion. “Girl, where are you? Your mum’s out for blood!”
“No time to explain!” I yelled, showering myself with blood as I carved my way closer to the beast’s torso. “My team’s stuck in a fight with an MD and-”
“But that’s not-”
“I KNOW IT’S NOT POSSIBLE!” I yelled over the Demon’s roar. “But it’s right in front of me - very real and very angry - and we’re unprepared and in serious need of some backup. NOW!”
The sound of heels thundered against panelled flooring as Yasmine no doubt ran across the dance floor to the Data Division.
“I think pretty much everyone is at the Ball,” She reported breathlessly. “Even the Elwoods,” She chuckled scandalously. “I’m checking your location now.”
A tentacle came uncomfortably close to grabbing my ankle.
“Got it! The Edwards triplets are running late so I’ve redirected them to your location.”
“Thank the R-”
But the celebration was short-lived, because the second the gratitude left my lips, a tentacle hurtled at me from behind, wrapping around my torso and dragging me through the air. The second the flesh grabbed me, I knew I couldn’t afford to spend more than a minute in its grasp. My brain slowed with the clouds of toxic fumes spurting from its suckers. Its grip tightened around my torso, crushing my elbows into my sides, making it harder and harder for me to breathe until I was left gasping for air.
Still, I knew there was only one way to survive. Waiting.
The Demon began lowering me to its mouth, the foul stench of death on its breath making me gag. Its mouth took up most of its head, the rows upon rows of jagged, needle-like teeth revolving with an unsettling click. Click. Click. Its tongue snaked out of the circular void at the back of its throat, reaching for me. Panic flooded my stomach as I realised its tongue would reach me long before I could make my move. Not good.
“HELP!” I shrieked.
That same second, an explosive flash of silvery-white light screamed into the room with a loud enough bang to make my ears bleed - the Edwards. With the Demon disorientated, one of the triplets - most likely Elizabeth, she had the best arm - hurled an explosive into the slimy, acidic flesh of the outstretched tongue. The Demon howled in pain, slamming its tongue into the concrete wall.
“Just a metre more,” I prayed. “Just a metre more.”
Finally, I was close enough. Making sure I still had a good grip on my stele, I pressed my left pinkie and thumb together, triggering a gentle gush as my suit coated itself in Holy Water - I made a mental note to thank Grandpa later. The Demon let out a strangled roar, its tentacle rushing to let me go as my lungs gasped in relief. Kicking the recoiling tentacle for momentum, I threw myself through the air, hurtling past the monster’s gaping mouth and onto, or should I say into, its forehead.
My outstretched hands plunged into the slimy flesh with a nauseating squelch. With no time to think about the tentacles battering around the hall or the head thrashing beneath me as the Edwards carried out an explosive onslaught, I climbed until I reached the crown of the demon’s head. Digging my feet into the stinking flesh, I anchored myself and pulled my scythes free, relishing being upright. Then, before the Demon could shake me off balance, I threw my stele into a tall arc above my head, screaming the incantation,
“Apage!”
And with a final burning beam of light, my stele plunged into the centre of its head. The Demon screamed tumultuously, the sound echoing like thunder against the concrete walls as light burned its insides, until the screaming faded into a low growl, and with a stomach-churning lurch, its body fell to the floor.
Silence.
“Is everyone alive?” I asked, the question sounding like less of a joke than I’d hoped as I slid off the rapidly dissolving head. My heart throbbed in those five seconds of nothing, when finally,
“Triplets, here and accounted for,” Elizabeth grinned, climbing out from behind the shelter of a fallen block of concrete, her brothers following behind in their now bloody black-tie attire.
“I’ll call the cleaners,” Nicholas winked.
“Here,” Liam groaned, breaking the merriment as he threw a limp tentacle off his body, Ivy whining behind him.
“Well thank the Angels for that,” I sighed, and finally let my knees give way.