Chapter 3: One Silver Bullet
Alright everyone...prepare yourselves! This is Chapter 3! It's a doozy so hold on for a ride...by the way...does anyone know who runs the Eastern Snow Plains at the Moment? And I am soo sorry for how long it took me to update! Everything has been quite hectic lately... So stop listening to me drone on and on and on about random stuff you probably don't care about and read on...
Oh and thanks to everyone who reviewed and is now following my story! Lovies you all and NOW you may start reading...
Marcia watched the figure slowly approach the other. She was just close enough to see a few surprising strands of long blonde curls peeking out from the inside of the approaching figure's hood. The second Darke figure gives the first a small, palm sized red velvet pouch with soft purple drawstrings on the top. In exchange for this, the first gives what Marcia assumed was a sack of gold coins due to the fact that it jangled in that special, tinkly, rattling way that all gold coins do (she also recognized the sound because it's the sound that Marcellus makes when he moves). But what happened next is nothing that Marcia would ever have thought possible. The first figure opened the bag and drew out a small silver bullet with tiny engravings of initials that Marcia couldn't make out from her hiding spot.
"You sure this is hers?" the first figure finally spoke.
"If it wasn't, would it have her initials on it? Huh smart one?" the second snapped.
" M.O.," the first figure sighed, "You are finally correct about this one. But, do you have the other treasure? You said that this one would be much harder to get than the other. "
This made Marcia gasp loudly. Thankfully, the Unheard and Unseen were still working so the Darke figures did not hear and suspected nothing.
"They certainly mustn't be talking about me," thought Marcia, now beginning to panic, "Oh don't be a fool," she told herself more sternly this time, "You have defeated the Darke and it's victims in the past. You have done too much to anger them."
" That old batty ExtraOrdinary Wizard won't ever see it coming!" the first figure exclaimed loudly, though the other quieted him, not wanting to be discovered.
This was the last straw for Marcia. She immediately shot up off the ground and ran as fast as she could to the Wizard Tower. She had to warn everybody to be on their guard and on high alert. There was just so much to do and so little time that the feeling of panic stole over her again. Marcia rushed into the Wizard Tower entrance hall and called upon three messengers to her aide.
" I need you to go and get the princess and all her family that is in the palace right now to come and meet me in my rooms. Tell them it is extremely urgent and I require their presence immediately," Marcia spoke rapidly to the short, thin, dark haired, young messenger standing to her left.
" I need you to go and retrieve Marcellus Pye, the Castle's Alchemist at his address on Snake Slipway, please tell him the exact same thing," she told the second messenger; a plumpy young girl with small golden spectacles on. By the time she reached the third messenger, the first and second messengers had already departed at top speed, rushing to their recipients.
" Now you must go to the Manuscriptoriam, and find Beetle, the Chief Hermetic Scribe and also bring him to me. Again, say the exact same things as the others," and with that, Marcia stood, somewhat disheveled in the Hall for a few moments, collecting her thoughts, before hopping on the stairs and putting them on emergency speed; even though it was hard to hold on with her hands so shaky. Marcia flew up to the top landing, where her rooms were situated.
"Septimus! Septimus!" when he did not come, Marcia decided to yell at the top of her lungs (which has been known to break glass) and yelled, " Septimus Heap get down here this instant it is extremely urgent and I need you now!"
At the sound of desperation in Marcia's voice, Septimus practically leaped down two flights of stairs to where Marcia was now arguing with a screaming Jillie Djinn; who had woken up at the sound of Marcia's yelling.
"Marcia what's wrong?" Septimus screamed at her, trying to be heard over Jillie's insanely loud screaming that had virtually no meaning whatsoever.
Marcia was sitting cross-legged on the floor by the door covering her ears with her hands while a Magykal pen wrote what she was mind-speaking it to.
"Septimus!" Marcia looked up, "I need you to run this up to Search and Rescue for me and fast because people are coming over. Something dreadful has happened or is going to happen! Run as fast as you can then meet me back here." Marcia handed the folded note and handed it quickly to Septimus.
"Marcia what is going on?" Septimus asked. He was worried by the paleness of Marcia's face and the fact that her hands and most of her body was shaking out of control.
"I'll explain later just GO!" Marcia ushered him quickly out the door. And still, the ex-Chief Hermetic Scribe screamed on.
"Oh will you just SHUT UP ALREADY!" Marcia and Septimus yelled in perfect and somewhat creepy unison.
The few minutes alone were agonizingly long for Marcia. She was definitely becoming a little paranoid with this shocking news. Finally, however, there was a loud knock at the door. Marcia opened it without even asking who it was, just wanting to not be alone right now. Beetle and Marcellus stood there, completely out of breath, red faced, and panting hard.
"Marcia, whatever is the problem?" demanded Marcellus.
"Ya," gasped Beetle, "Why exactly did we have to run at top speed over here? What is so important?"
"I'll tell you both in a minute, just wait here for a few seconds so we know when the others have arrived," Marcia tried to keep her voice calm, though to Beetle and Marcellus, she was obviously very nervous, perhaps a little scared too. Seconds after Marcia spoke, Septimus barged in and slammed the door behind him. Panting just like the others, Septimus managed to get a out a few words,
" Mission accomplished," he said, coughing a little. It was then that Jenna Heap walked in, not even bothering to knock. She knew it was too urgent for that.
"Ok Marcia we're here!" she spoke loudly, clearly rather annoyed at the sudden interruption, "What could possibly be the problem THIS time?"
"I'll tell you all in a mo-Milo?" Marcia stared at him with a puzzled expression for a few moments, not believing her eyes, "When did you arrive back from your voyage?"
"Last night rather late, that's why I wanted you to come over this morning," he replied calmly.
"Oh. Well, it's really good to see you and we're all glad you're here," Marcia smiled up at him and he gave her a quick hug hello. While she had her arms wrapped around his neck, he made a discovery.
"Marcia, just a really quick question, nothing serious, but why are you trembling so violently?" Milo still spoke calmly however, Marcia could see the worry in his eyes.
"I'll explain soon," she spoke quietly and reluctantly let Milo go. Letting go meant that she was vulnerable yet again, "Alright everyone, I think you are all here. Let me just count you quickly."
Marcia counted all the heads, starting with Silas who was standing at the doorway, to Milo who had now stationed himself on her right.
"Ok, I think everyone's here," she stated matter-of-factly, trying hard to regain her old air, "Everybody file into my study please."
As everyone filed quickly and oddly quietly, Milo held back for a second.
"Marcia, is everything alright?" he spoke really quietly, Marcia herself almost couldn't hear him. As he spoke, he touched her arm lightly and looked her dead in the eyes. It took Marcia a moment to register what he was saying. She slowly shook her head.
"That's what I feared," he muttered and then grasped her arm tightly before letting go and walking into her study.
Marcia walked quickly over to her desk, clawing her way past everybody in her tiny and now extremely crowded (and rather stuffy) study. It was then that she noticed a man appear overhead, wearing slightly faded purple ExtraOrdinary Wizard robes with a crimson blood stain over his heart; he did not feel particularly fond of getting passed through at the moment, which is why he floated over Marcia' s head, before anyone got the chance to pass through him. The ghost was of a dead ExtraOrdinary Wizard, by the name of Alther Mella. He was friendly, kind, and patient; and was wildy popular throughout the port and castle.
" Hello Alther. So glad you could make it. I really need your help right now," Marcia said shakily and somewhat breathlessly.
"Marcia, what on earth could possibly be wrong? I haven't seen you this upset since Septimus fell through that glass of time a few years ago!" Alther said in his usual calm and collected manner.
"Well everyone, I have some news to share," Marcia got right to it and addressed everyone in response to Alther's question, " And I guess that most of you can already tell by the fact that I'm not squealing with joy-no, I don't really do that Silas it's a figure of speech please try and keep up with me for once- that it's most definitely not good news." Marcia tried to speak in her usual brisk and business-like tone, though her voice wavered in slightly. "Anyways," she continued, and she started her story starting with the precise moment that she left the Great Hall of the Tower this morning, and spoke in rather excruciating detail, up until her discovery with the object that the hooded figures had. She wanted to save the worst news for last, as to not cause mass panic during her story, so she toyed with her wording at the end. She mostly did this because the last time something dreadful had happened, she had had to wake up Sarah out of a startled unconsciousness using a pair of extremely smelly old socks found in Silas's room in the Palace. That was another nightmare she simply didn't need right now.
"-And so when I was squished behind that blasted prickly bush, one of the hooded figures pulled out a bullet," And with those words, nearly everyone gasped, and Marcia's voice cracked but still she ploughed on, "And it had my initials on it!" Marcia could not possibly stand the reality of the situation anymore and had to sit down on her well used high backed leather desk chair. "I think someone-possibly that wretched Hunter again-is out to kill me, and there's a great chance that they're out for one of you all too. Just because another bullet wasn't there, doesn't mean there isn't one." Marcia spoke quietly and slowly.
"OHMYGOODNESSWHATONEARTHAREWEGOINGTODO?" Naturally, Sarah Heap was the first to shriek and almost have a panic attack. Again.
"Well isn't it obvious? We must track whoever is doing this down and take the bullet from them before he kills Marcia!" Marcia and Alther spoke in strand unison, though Marcia said "me" instead of her name, because it would be even weirder if she started talking in the third person. Marcia and Alther (and well, everyone in the room really) exchanged surprised and utterly puzzled expressions.
"Creepy," muttered Beetle, though in the dead silence of the room, he was heard by everyone as clear as a bell, which, caused laughter throughout the room, amongst everyone except Marcia, Alther, and Milo; who simply exchanged small grins with one another.
Milo came over and put a protective hand on Marcia's arm, for he seemed to be the only one who had noticed that she was trembling violently again.
"We'll find out who is doing this and stop them, I promise," he whispered.
"You don't know that though Milo," Marcia spoke softly and rather shakily, "As much as I want it to be true, you can't promise that."
"But I do and I can," He reassured her, "Trust me."
This comment actually made Marcia smile for the first time all day; though she couldn't put her finger on why exactly.
