Marly S03E10: The Eye of Carly’s Hope: Chapter Three

The sisters, Susan, Kerri, Marcy and Stacie, were up in the flat. They were not up there casting but rather, discussing the power Sam and Rihanna revealed. Collectively wondering where they got them and how they could control them. How were they able to force them to leave and, seal, a room?

“How can Rihanna pull things out of the air?” Kerry asked, looking intently at her hand hoping something would appear, but nothing did.

“Yeah,” Stacie said, “I’d like to know that too.”

“Get in line,” Marcy said.

Susan had been trying to stretch her mind into the casting room to see if she could talk to Tess, but got nothing.

“Something’s off,” She said.

“Well, der,” Stacie said.

“If you would let me finish,” Susan snapped, and Stacie took a seat. “I’ve been locked out also—”

“We all have,” Kerri said, but Susan’s look spoke a thousand rebukes.

Kerri took a seat next to Stacie. Marcy was in the kitchen making coffee. She also took a moment to see if she too could pull a cup of tea out of thin air, and grumbled when it didn’t happen.

“You right in there, Marcy?” Susan asked.

Marcy walked in carrying a tray with 4 coffees and a plate of biscuits on it and sat it on the table. Susan waited before continuing.

“What I’m saying is, even I can’t reach Tess... telepathically, and I don’t know what to do?”

“We could try another spell?” Terri suggested.

“What kind of spell?” Marcy asked. “I tried the coffee out of thin air and got nothing.”

“Don’t know,” Susan said.

They were sitting around the table contemplating what was possible and how it was possible when the door opened.

“Who’s there?” Terri asked in shock.

The sisters stood and prepared to take a shot, with their combined powers, at whoever it was. They were a hand gesture away from casting when Frank, Millie, Abbey and Marly walked in.

A collective sigh filled the room.

“Oh,” Susan said. “Thank goodness it’s you, Mill’s.”

“Yes,” Millie said, visibly shaken. “Thank goodness, now what’s going on? Tess called for me. Said something something Eye, and I keep hearing her name in the ether. Where is she? What’s happened?”

“Well, that’s the problem, Mill’s,” Susan said, “she’s downstairs in the casting room, and we can’t get in.”

“What?” Millie asked. “Why can’t you get in?”

“It’s Sam and Rihanna,” Marcie said. “They blindsided us.”

“What?”

“It’s true,” Susan said. “I don’t know who, or what they really are, but they’re extremely powerful.”

“But,” Kerri said, “Tess is really powerful.”

“Yeah,” Marcie said.

“It’s true, Mill’s,” Susan said. “Just before they bound her, and locked us out, Tess threw Rihanna out into the middle of the street with just a thought… I think. Never seen anything like it before.”

Frank took a seat and picked up a biscuit and listened to the sisters talk about their situation. They were trying to find a way to get, even just a message to Tess, but the spell over that room was indeed powerful. They were working blind.

“The rooms right below us?” Frank asked.

Everyone stopped and turned to him.

“Yes,” Susan said, “but we can’t get in—”

“What about the chimney behind the steel fabricated fireplace?” He asked. “Does the chimney come up from the room below?”

The steel fireplace had never been lit. It acted as a heat sink for the fire, whose flames rose from below. That's how it heated the flat.

“Well, yes,” Susan said, “but—”

“Anyone tried to get in that way?” Frank asked.

The sisters were dumbfounded. They were looking around the flat, staring at each other as though they were conversing telepathically, but they weren’t. All of them were working on a different plan to save Tess, but they all amounted the same thing, how do they use the chimney to get a message to Her. It was Marly who broke the silence.

“I can try,” she said. “I can shift into a cat and climb down. See if I can get in... and 'cause I’m not a witch, they probably won’t even know I’m there?”

Marly stopped talking. The room remained silent. Frank and Marly took the opportunity to check out the old fireplace.

“Looks pretty simple,” Frank said. “Think you can do it, Marly?”

“As a cat, yeah, and if I can’t get in, I might be able to see what’s going on?”

“What do you think, Mill’s?” Frank asked.

Frank, although knowing they were witches, did not know about their insect selves,. He only knew about Marly and Mark because Millie had to tell him what was happening when Marly went missing. He just went with it as he always does.

Shifting into a dragonfly wouldn’t help anyway. They’ve likely created a repellent, Millie thought. And, Marly’s smaller than when I shift.

“I think it’s worth a try,” Millie finally said.

“It’s our best option, Mill’s,” Susan said, and the others quickly agreed.

“Have another biscuit,” Marcie said to Frank as he took his seat again, “do you take sugar in your coffee?”

“Oh, yes please.”

While Frank had another coffee, and Marcie topped up the biscuits, the sisters went about their plans.

“Now?” Marly asked.

“Yes… oh wait,” Millie said. “You don’t have telepathy, but I can read your mind, see through your eyes. You’re a cat after all.”

“'kay,” Marly said. “Here goes nothing.”

Marly shifted into a ginger cat and Susan removed the firescreen.

“Exstrasio,” Susan commanded, and the steel heat sink silently pulled out to expose the chimney.

Susan floated it into the room until it came to a rest against the brick surround. The chimney was filthy, but Susan stuck her head in and looked down the dark shaft.

“It’ll be a tight squeeze,” she said, to Marly.

Marly rubbed up against her ankles then climbed into the chimney. She began her climb down and the witches held their breath. Charcoal and sap fell down the chimney, and she worried Rihanna and Sam would hear it in the fireplace. She didn’t need to worry. In their rush to seal the room, Sam and Rihanna also sealed off their ability to see out, or, to hear what was going on outside the room.

"How you doing?” Millie asked.

Fine, Marly said with her mind. I don’t think they can hear anything.

"How's she doing, Mill's?" Marcie asked, and was twisting a tea towel in her hands.

"Fine," Millie said, "now shush."

Marcie took a seat next to Frank, and picked up a biscuit.

Good, Millie said, directly into Marly’s mind.

Almost there, Marly said, then Millie heard a meow, a hiss and a whine, then realised Marly had fallen through the smoke chamber.

The smoke chamber was a lot smaller than any other part of the chimney. Marly squeezed her smallest self through, but had nothing to hold onto beneath it. She hit the firepit below with a bang. A plume of ash rose and fell around her, and she started sneezing.

Stop it, Marly, she was thinking, but couldn't help herself.

It’s all right, Marly, Millie said. Just calm yourself. Did they hear you?

Marly stood in the ash and coals and looked through the firescreen. It was a flat one that hung off two screws attached to the outer bricks. She pressed her little nose up against it, and at first, saw nothing. Though, ever so slowly, her cat senses started to heighten her abilities. A cat can see beyond veils, and that meant Marly could see through to the ether, through their spell.

Doesn’t look like it, Marly said.

Good, what are they doing? Can you hear them? Millie asked.

I can see Mrs Moltari, Marly said, but I can’t hear them properly… It’s like mumbling.

Just call her, Tess, Millie said.

Well, Tess’s tied to a chair, but the ties have an odd knot—

A blood knot—

Whoa!

What? Millie asked. What happened?

Tess, Marly said. She just looked at me.

You sure?

Certain of it.