Telluric

Chapter XXVIII: Up and Out; the Golden Ratio

And with that, Diego clutched Noah's hand as Noah and Death faded into the stars, shining brightly and directing others up and out into the abyssal and horrid truth of death. And so it goes...

***

As the world melted and broke like a mirror, revealing the others to be inside the base of the clock tower, in its Graywood form. But none of the group cared; Clary and Mayla were watching Diego crouch in a child's pose where Noah once stood with Death. The tears dampened the ground, to the point where it would seem like one might need to put a 'caution: wet' sign.

Then Mayla sniffed and looked up through the clock tower and its winding stairs, to where the bats hung and the clock rung. The tears spilled down her face, but she didn't care. All she could think about is Noah's words... to carry on up and out through the endless void.

"We have to go on... we're not done yet." Mayla told the others through a hoarse melancholy voice. "We still have more to do... the world doesn't stop for death." Clary stood up after her nodding, while Diego didn't even look up. Mayla squatted next to him and began to rub his back, though his crying didn't cease at all.

"We have to kill the last witch," Mayla whispered in his ear. "Or else all of this would have been pointless. We have to continue on, up and out." The words hung silently as Diego picked his head up and turned to Mayla.

"Up and out..." Diego whispered hoarsely. "We have to continue on." That did the trick, and Diego took Mayla's hand. Pulling him toward Clary, Mayla stared up at the tower they found themselves in, the spiraling stairs in a pattern much like the Fibonacci Sequence.

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21... and so on.

Fibonacci... for some reason Mayla couldn't shake the name out of her head. Thinking about it more... it felt just as if she were on the verge of connecting some dots...

1... 1... 2...

2 coins? Coins... C...

You've almost got it! Melliculus whispered in excitement. Think about the placement... two is the third number... the third letter of the alphabet is?

"C," Mayla gasped aloud.

And what letter of the English Alphabet does my sibling's name start with? That's right... C. C for Cruor.

"What could all of this mean?" Mayla wondered privately. (Not really privately, as Melliculus was still listening.) "What could C have to do with anything? Why does it keep connecting everything?"

That's exactly right, Melliculus cooed to her. It is Connecting everything. What else have you found are connected? Noah and Graywood, Parvati and her coin... I'll tell you exactly what it means. It means my sibling is trying to etch her mark in Graywood, so they could never be forgotten.

"Why etch it on Graywood then, why not New York, or something?"

Graywood is a curious town. Melliculus' voice was delicate yet malicious. A very curious town and I think the point of it is to create a connection to her, because no matter what, it will always come back to C.

"Mayla!" Clary called out from outside Mayla's day dreaming. Looking up, Mayla saw the gray and dismal, but otherwise familiar, looming mansion of Elizabeth Graywood. "We're here." Clary's voice seemed uncertain; as if she was positive something would go wrong. The mansion stood behind a large and looming graveyard that was built shortly after the last houses' owners' death. It was the first place Mayla remembered the zombies being, so of course this had to be the location of the final Gray Lady.

The monochrome world seemed to become even grayer as they stood by the gates; there was an obvious and looming energy inside. Everything told Mayla that she shouldn't go inside, but she knew she had to.

That's some great determination you got there, kid, Melliculus complimented. But you should probably channel it into not getting killed by that witch in there.

"Thanks for the tip," Mayla scowled.

"Alright, I guess it's time then..." Clary opened the gate and led the group inside to what was almost certainly their doom (possibly). In any case, darkness seemed to swallow them hole as they approached the house, as if inside the bubble of Monotory was its own bubble; the Graywood Manor.

Upon the grave stones were etchings of names and dates; deaths, births, appreciations, even some R. I. P.'s. Causes of deaths were listed under each of the names. No one recognized any of the names, so they didn't linger on the graves. The gray grass blew softly as they approached the swirling mist that seemed to be coming from the chimney of the mansion. A dark aura was thick like fog, though it may have actually been fog.

"Do you know who the witch of this place is?" Mayla suddenly inquired of Melliculus, who had been silent for a few minutes. A chuckle echoed in her mind, sweet with a voice of maliciousness.

You already know who it is. That sent a shiver up her spine. Who could it possibly be, that she would know who it is? Clutching her bat and the strap of her bag, she stared at the large, dark windows, feeling as if they were being watched. They probably were, but whatever. The feeling was still there.

Finally they reached the door, and Clary stood silently in front of the dark wood. Carved into the wood was a golden C... Mayla scowled and shook her head. She had the strange feeling that Ms. Ramona, Cruor, had been here. No... it was more than a feeling. It was some sort of sense, as if she was positive. Had the demon planned this entire thing out? No, they couldn't have.

As Clary turned the knobs on the dual door, Mayla's heart pounded fiercely. Looking over to Diego, she took solace in his crimson eyes that seemed so human but looked so evil.

Looks can be deceiving. She told herself.

She remembered when they first met Diego, and how nervous he had been, cautious of his eyes and how people perceived him. Now he seemed lost... a despairing soul, unsure of what to do or where to go. His eyes were cloudy and melancholy, the color of a human's blood. Noah's death had seemed to take a heavy toll on him, just as it did for each of them. But she knew that they had to keep going, and Diego knew that too.

The doors opened with a slight creek, and the group entered slowly. The house didn't look much different than its Graywood counterpart. A parlor with a long staircase stood at the base of the hardwood floor. Portraits of Graywood family members hung on the walls, and Mayla realized who it was that they would be meeting here.

The founder of Graywood.