The Exceptional Clockwork Journey of The Perpetually Alone Hugo Gerard (NaNoWriMo 2012)

Chapter 12

Don't freak out, there will be an epilogue! :D

-

Chapter 12

Hugo was woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of a scream.

It was a low scream, barely audible to the human ear, but with his advanced senses he was able to hear it, only a quiet ringing echoing throughout his eardrum. Sitting up in his bed, Hugo lifted his legs off of the mattress and looked around, cocking his head to the side like a dog.

“Hello?” he called, still confused as to why someone had screamed in the middle of the night, at three o’clock no less, but when the scream came again he leapt from the bed and looked threw the cloak lying on a chair next to the bed over his shoulders and traveled.

After a flurry of time flew past, Hugo ended up in the main hall. The first thing he noticed was the absence of guards guarding the entrance and a huddled black shape near his feet.

As his sight adjusted to the darkness, Hugo realized it was not a bird, as previously thought, but the body of a dead Gear, the hole in his heart still leaking Ambrosia. He wasn’t dead yet.

“Gear?” Hugo asked, tapping on his forehead in an almost calming gesture.

“Yes?” Gear croaked, weakly turning his head to the side to see Hugo. “Hugo, it’s you. I am going to die soon, you know that, right?”

Hugo nodded.

“You,” Gear hacked into his first, a wave of shivers flowing over him. “Need to,” cough. “Find him.”

“Who?” Hugo pressed.

And with a weak smile, Gear burst into golden dust and all that was left of the kind guard was a pile of golden flakes.

Hugo was too overcome with shock to cry. A Clockwork had just died right in front of him. Turning away, Hugo knew he needed to move on and find who had released the scream before it was too late.

And with a turn of his cloak and a flick of his wrist, Hugo burst into a flurry of ravens.

-

It seemed his mind was running on his own accord, ordering his which was to turn as he navigated the hallways of the manor as a flurry of ravens. Left, right, right, left, the same pattern continued on for what seemed like eternity, but what was really only a few minutes.

Hugo finally became himself again when the ravens became him again and he was halted in front of a stained glass door.

The door was carved and painted with many different symbols that flew over Hugo’s head, but the thing that intrigued him was the picture engraved into the stainless steal.

It was the picture of a young man sitting on a throne, a gold and silver crown placed atop his head in a straight and orderly fashion. His golden hair fell into his eyes, but the flash of silver just peaked from beneath. Under his throne were two boys that looked suspiciously like a younger Oblivion and Time. The scepter of the king was placed in between them.

In a way, it meant something to Hugo; it was sort of symbolization. Would that be him someday, looking over two sons? Would he be a good, honest king or a wealthy, greedy one? There was no way to tell. Pushing his confidence and curiosity to the brim. Hugo shoved open the door.

Inside was a chapel. The rows of wooden benches were perfectly organization, five on each side. The ceiling was covered in similar stained glass slabs as the one on the door, all scenes of the great king doing different deeds. What both interested and terrified Hugo, however, was the sight of the same two brothers as in the stained glass slab fighting.