The ride back to the Institute was quiet, the exhaustion of the mission settling over the group like a heavy fog. Jace leaned against the window of the car, watching the city blur past, his fingers drumming absently against his knee. Alec was driving, his usual stoic focus unwavering, while Izzy sat in the back, cleaning the edge of her whip with practiced ease.

Then, the sky split open.

A burst of golden light, sudden and blinding, tore through the darkness above them. The streetlights flickered, the air humming with an unnatural energy. Jace sat up straight as something—someone—plummeted from the heavens, trailing embers and shattered stardust.

"Did you see that?" Izzy breathed, eyes wide.

Alec cursed under his breath, swerving the car to a stop as the figure crashed down in a nearby alley, the impact shaking the ground beneath them. For a moment, everything was still.

Then, Jace was moving.

He barely heard Alec calling after him as he sprinted toward the alley, his heart pounding. The smell of burnt ozone filled the air, and in the center of the cracked pavement, surrounded by scattered feathers that glowed faintly before disintegrating into nothing, you lay motionless.

Jace froze.

You weren’t human. That much was obvious. The remnants of luminous wings flickered at your back, fading in and out like a dying star. Your skin shimmered under the dim glow of the streetlights, and your hair was tangled with dust and gold.

You were breathing. Barely.

"Jace," Izzy whispered, coming up behind him. Alec was already pulling out his stele, his expression tense. "Is that—?"

"An angel," Jace murmured.