Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Gundam Wing and the Quest for the Holy Grail ❯ The Secret Room ( Chapter 7 )

Chapter 7: The Secret Room

Quatre did not skin Duo in the morning, much to Duo's infinite relief. He did, however, take Duo aside briefly before breakfast.

“I will take a dim view of it if you put my child at risk like that again,” Quatre said.

“He's my child, too!” Duo exclaimed. “You know I would never let anything happen to Roku!”

“Just see that you don't.” Quatre favored him with a long glare before taking a seat between Roku and Trowa.

They were having porridge with honey, and Roku was already busily licking his first bowl completely clean.

“May I have more porridge, Mama?” Roku asked when Quatre sat down.

Quatre regarded him with faint dismay. “Perhaps if you licked off the porridge that is currently coating your muzzle and whiskers, you'd be full.”

Roku licked Quatre's face, resulting in Quatre's face being pretty thoroughly coated with porridge, too.

“Oh, thank you!” Quatre muttered.

“I'm still hungry!” Roku insisted.

“Fine, I'll get you another bowl. And myself a fresh handkerchief.” Quatre went to the sideboard with Roku's bowl, where the inn-keeping staff had laid out a fairly sumptuous buffet breakfast including, in addition to the porridge, hard-boiled eggs, bacon, ham, fresh-baked bread, creamy butter, fresh currant jam, salt-cured kippers, sausages and bread pudding with apples and raisins in it.

“May I have some bacon, too? And maybe some sausages and eggs? And I haven't tried the fishy-things yet,” Roku added.

Quatre turned to stare at him.

“Please?” Roku tipped his head to one side and made big eyes.

Quatre sighed. “Very well, but if you make yourself sick, you'll get no sympathy from me.”

“Maybe he's growing again,” Trowa remarked.

“He certainly will, if he eats all that,” Heero said. “In the tummy, anyway.”

Roku grinned.

Quatre brought him another bowl of porridge, plus a plate with four strips of bacon, two sausages, a kipper and two eggs.

“Oh, goody!” Roku said gleefully, and he snapped up the bacon.

The party took their time over breakfast, making a show of talking about resuming their journey the next day.

“How many days' supply should we obtain, do you think, Sir Percival?” Hagrimore asked.

“Well, now,” Percival began thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. “We don't know for certain how long we'll be traveling, but this area is well-populated, so likely we will hit another town in a day or two.”

“True,” Hagrimore agreed, “unless our path takes us cross-country.”

“Also true,” said Percival. “But let's plan on four days, for even if we break across country, we should still pass a farm or other hamlet where a day or two's supplies might be had.”

“Very well,” Hagrimore said. “And after we shop, mayhap we will have time to stop by the church to say our prayers. It's been a while since I took confession.”

“Me, too,” Damodin said, and a few other knights echoed his comment.

“I wouldn't mind seeing the church myself,” Wu-Fei said. “It sounds very interesting.”

“Indeed it is,” Trowa assured him. “The construction is quite impressive.”

Their plans made, the group finished breakfast and set about the day's activities. Damodin, Duo and several knights went to the market to buy supplies. After puttering about the inn for an hour or two, Percival, Hagrimore and the other four pilots, with Roku tagging along behind, wandered over to the church.

Not surprisingly, there were a few people going about their business in the church, but Father William hurried to greet them as soon as they entered.

“Welcome back, gentlemen!” he cried cheerfully. “It is good to see you again. I had thought perhaps you'd traveled on already.”

“We leave tomorrow, Father,” Percival replied. “But we thought to see to the condition of our souls err we departed.”

“Always a good thought, my son,” Father William said. “I will be glad to give you my service, if you care to wait. There are a few others here for the same purpose and I was just about to start confession.”

“We'll be glad to wait, Father.”

Father William entered the confessional and the first of his parishioners entered on the other side.

“This is perfect!” Quatre said softly. “This gives us an excuse to hang about the church.”

“Can we investigate this alcove you told us about without attracting attention?” Heero asked.

“I think so, as long as all the people stay out front. The altar will block their view.” Quatre led the way toward the back, pausing frequently to examine stained glass windows, statuary and wall carvings along the way. Heero and Wu-Fei went with him. Trowa, Hagrimore and Percival casually drifted down the aisles and across the front of the altar until they were grouped directly in the line of sight of anyone who might come down the side aisle, blocking their view of the Virgin Mary statue in her alcove.

Quatre, Heero and Wu-Fei arrived in front of the statue.

“That's beautiful work,” Wu-Fei remarked. “The detail is exquisite.”

“Yes, it is. Now see if you can get behind it without anyone noticing.”

Wu-Fei slipped behind the statue. “It's a tight squeeze. I don't think any of the knights will fit, even without their armor. We'll have to move the statue.”

“I was afraid of that.” Quatre squatted down to examine the base. “It doesn't look like it's cemented in place. I think the base is just resting on the floor.”

Wu-Fei knelt down on the other side. “I think you're right. We should be able to shift it.” He stood up. “It's going to make a lot of noise, though.”

“I know.” Quatre looked around. “Where's Roku?”

“I'm right here, Mama.” Roku was sitting just in back of the altar, staring up. “You can see up into the tower from here. It has bells. But how do they ring them?”

Quatre walked over to him and looked up. “Oh, I see. Do you see the ledge there?” Roku nodded. “There're stairs in the south transept. I bet they lead up to that ledge, and the bell pulls are probably up there. Now, come over here, I need your help.”

“Ok!” Roku and Quatre walked back over beside Heero.

“Go in back of the statue with Papa Wu-Fei and see if you notice anything unusual.”

Roku slipped behind the statue and sniffed around the walls at the back. “I can feel air moving right here,” Roku reported. He was crouched in front of the same wall in which Quatre had found the shallow niche.

“Is it blowing in or out?”

“It's going in.”

Wu-Fei knelt down beside Roku and held his hand just above floor, right next to the wall. “I think I can feel it. There must be an opening in back of this wall.” He ran his finger along the join with the floor and up the rear wall. “It fits pretty tight, though.”

Heero leaned past the statue to take a look. “Hmm…” He looked the rear of the statue up and down, and then stepped back in front of it to continue his examination. “This will be a bear to move without damaging it. Can you levitate it Quatre, like you did the ogre cub?”

“I don't know.” Quatre rapped the statue experimentally. “It's solid marble. It must weigh a ton. I might be able to get it off the floor for a few seconds, but the rest of you will have to move it.”

“We can manage,” Heero replied with calm confidence.

Trowa drifted back to where they were standing. “Most of the citizens have left,” he said. “Percival's taking confession now. He's planning to tell Father William what we want to do during his confession.”

“Has anyone else showed up yet?” Quatre asked.

“A couple of the knights are here. They came straight from the market. They said the others have gone back to the inn to pack up our things and get ready to go.”

“Won't that make people suspicious?”

“Hopefully not. Apparently, Damodin has been telling people that we're planning to leave before dawn. He's going to leave the rest of the knights there and come over with Duo in a little while.”

“Good. I'm anxious to get started. We don't know what we're going to run into down there.”

It was getting close to sunset when Percival came into the nave with Father William, who looked very worried.

“Gentlemen!” Father William said anxiously, “I don't think it's a good idea to open the Secret Room. Even if nothing is there, the townspeople will be very upset.” He stared around nervously. “And in truth, I am not completely sure I disbelieve the stories.”

“All will be well, Father, I assure you!” Percival said. “We are on a quest for the Holy Grail. Such a pious endeavor can hardly bring misfortune on a House of God.”

Father William still looked uncertain. “I should bolt the door so that no innocent person might happen upon this endeavor.” He hurried toward the front.

“Hagrimore, go with him and make sure he let's Duo and Damodin in when they arrive,” Trowa said.

Hagrimore nodded and followed the unhappy priest.

The four knights who had already arrived came into the nave.

“What ho!” said one, “how shall we go about this?”

“We're going to move this statue,” Quatre said. “We're pretty sure the door is in the wall behind it.”

The knights stared. “That is a very big statue.”

“It won't be a problem,” Quatre said with a wink at Heero,

The knights didn't look like they believed it.

Rising voices announced the arrival of Damodin and Duo. The priest was trailing after the pair, ringing his hands worriedly, while Hagrimore walked along beside him with a comforting hand on his shoulder.

The four joined the rest of the group and Percival nodded grimly.

“Now then,” said Percival, “it is time to begin.” He looked at Quatre. “I assume you already have a plan to move the Blessed Virgin safely?”

“What?!” Father William cried. “Move the Blessed Virgin?!”

“She's in no danger, Father, trust me!” Quatre assured him. “Roku, get out of there for a second. Heero, you go in back with Wu-Fei. You guys push when I tell you. Duo, you and Hagrimore can pull from this side. Try to latch on to something solid. Don't grab any slender bits.”

Father William looked like he was going to faint as the four men positioned themselves around the statue. Percival wisely caught his shoulder to pull him back out of the way.

“We only need to move the statue about a meter,” Quatre continued, “I'll lift it off the floor, but that's not going to make it any lighter. It's still going to be hard to move.”

“Just get on with it,” Heero grunted.

“Do you want me to help you, Mama?”

“Yes, dear, that would be nice. We're going to lift straight up, ok? No tipping.”

“Yes, Mama.” Roku backed up a few paces and sat down with his tail curled neatly around his paws.

Quatre sat down next to him. “Ok, here we go.” He pointed at the statue and whispered an incantation. Beside him, Roku pointed with one paw and echoed the phrase.

“Oh, Lord!” Father William whispered as the heavy statue of the Virgin Mary shifted with a scraping sound and a sifting of dust. He covered his mouth in dismay and stared with round, terrified eyes as the statue slowly rose until a faint dark line could be seen all the way around the base.

“Move!” Heero commanded, and he put his shoulder against the base of the statue and pushed. Wu-Fei pushed with him and the statue nudged forward. Duo and Hagrimore grasped the statue on either side of the Virgin's carved robe and pulled. The statue tipped slightly and Father William's horrified gasp echoed all through the nave.

“I've got it,” Roku said, and he held up his other paw with the pads parallel to the statue. The statue straightened up.

Everyone heaved a sigh of relief as the statue slowly inched forward without leaning.

“That's it!” Heero said.

Everyone quickly stepped back so Roku and Quatre could let the statue settle back onto the floor. Father William was on the verge of tears. He scurried forward to inspect the statue, sliding worried hands over the smooth marble.

“She looks unharmed!” he breathed with relief.

Everyone else crowded around the small alcove.

“I need a torch,” Heero said. He was examining the small niche in the wall.

“Here's a candle,” Duo said.

Father William paled. “Not the ceremonial candles!”

“There, there, Father!” Hagrimore said. “What better than blessed candles to take into a cursed room, eh?”

Father William hung his head in his hands and moaned.

Heero took the key from his pocket. “I think I see how it goes,” he murmured, and carefully inserted it into a small slot in the wall. The horizontal wings on the end of the key slid into a crossing slit. There was a very soft click. Heero glanced over his shoulder at Wu-Fei, shrugged, and slowly turned the key. There was a louder click. And then a long, slow creak, followed by a deep, scraping sound. The floor shuddered.

The group exchanged glances that varied from excited (Roku), to concerned (Percival), to worried (the knights), to horrified anguish (Father William).

Starting at the bottom, the wall in front of Heero swung slowly away from him, creating a triangular space under the stairs and revealing a dark opening in the floor below. Steps could be seen receding into inky darkness, leading to the right.

“Well, that's interesting,” Heero said. He took the candlestick from Duo and started down. Wu-Fei followed. Trowa was waiting with another candlestick and went next, followed by Duo, Quatre and Roku.

Hagrimore looked at the worried faces of the knights, and Father William's pale countenance, and turned to Percival. “Why don't I stand guard up here with this lot and Father William? You and Damodin can go down with the others.”

Percival nodded. Damodin fetched another candlestick and they proceeded down the stairs into the depths below the castle.

The steps were steep and the knights went slowly. When they reached the bottom, they found the five pilots standing at the bottom in a semi-circle, with Roku peeking out from behind Quatre's legs. In front of them was a large room cut from the natural stone, with nothing in it but a pedestal with a thick, leather bound book lying on it.

It was dank, damp and very, very cold.

The candlelight did not reach all the way into the farthest corners of the room, and toward one of these corners, a faint breeze blew, indicated by the swaying flames of the candles.

And from that corner a faint rustling sound could be heard.

“This isn't good,” Duo said.

“Do you smell anything, Roku?” Wu-Fei asked.

“Just mold, Papa Wu-Fei. But I can see eyes in the corner.”

“Eyes?!” Damodin exclaimed.

“Green ones.”

“Great!” Duo grumbled.

Heero lifted his candle and advanced toward the corner. “What the hell is that?!”

Huddled in the corner, faintly illuminated by Heero's candle, was something that looked like a large, pasty-white slug, but no one wanted to believe that's what it was. Then it slid stickily forward and opened a wet, toothless maw. Heero backed up with a look of disgust on his face.

“That is totally gross!” Duo said. Then a look of complete shock crossed his face. “Get out of my head! That's just wrong!”

“What did you hear?” Quatre asked.

“It wants out.”

“Seems reasonable,” said Trowa. “I'd want out, too.”

“Even if you looked like that?” Duo shuddered. “Well, I'm not touching it. You take it out.”

“Fine,” Trowa said. He took off his shirt and advanced on the big slug. It stopped moving and reared up in alarm.

“It thinks you're gonna hurt it,” Duo reported.

“Well, tell it I won't. Tell it I'm going to take it outside.”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

“Think at it.”

“I don't think so.”

“Oh, just try it.”

Duo grumbled several uncomplimentary phrases under his breath, in multiple languages, and squinted at the slug. It slumped back onto the ground. Trowa approached it slowly, draped his shirt over it and carefully picked it up.

“This thing's heavy,” he grunted.

“Where do you plan to take it? I don't think the villagers will appreciate having a giant slug creeping through the streets,” Wu-Fei said.

“We'll just take it with us when we go and release it outside town somewhere.”

“You know,” said Duo, “his fondness for the lesser creatures has reached a new low.”

As Trowa headed up the steep stairs with the slug in his arms, Percival approached the book on the pedestal.

“It looks like a church record,” Percival said as he opened it to the first page. “See, here are recordings of marriages, baptisms, funerals and the like.” He turned the pages slowly, trying hard not to damage the ancient, crumbling pages. He stopped suddenly and peered closely at a page. “What's this? It makes no sense. Master Quatre, what do you make of this?”

Quatre studied the indicated page. “It's Latin, although the spelling is a little creative.” He sounded the words out to himself softly. “I think it's some kind of prophecy. Didn't Father William say Father Valentine had visions? It's not uncommon for prophets to be mistaken for madmen, or vice versa. Let's see if there are any more.”

Percival continued to slowly turn the pages. They found more of the scrawled Latin phrases scattered throughout the book, tucked in between reports of special services, important births and reports on the church reconstruction.

“Oh, listen to this!” Quatre exclaimed suddenly. “It says `The twelve virgin daughters of the stone-eyed duke guard the path to the Cup of Christ. Let he who is prepared to sacrifice all learn the secret that they hold.' That's it!”

“Well done, Master Quatre!” Percival exclaimed.

“But who is this stone-eyed duke?” asked Duo.

“I don't know,” said Percival, “but I am confident we shall learn it in good time. Let us leave this dank place. I wonder if we should give this register to Father William. It contains valuable records of the church.”

Quatre shook his head. “I think it would be better to leave it here. Some of those prophecies are very dark and I think people are better off not knowing them. Maybe that's why the place was said to be cursed; to keep people from reading this book.” He closed it.

Everyone made their way carefully back upstairs. Heero turned the key back the other way and the wall slowly swung closed, settling into place with a final boom. He removed the key and returned it to his pocket.

“Let's get this statue back so we can get out of here,” Hagrimore said as soon as everyone was out of the alcove. “People are starting to gather outside. The church door being bolted has made them suspicious.” He glanced at the giant slug still wrapped in Trowa's shirt. “Although how we're going to get out of here unnoticed with that thing, I have no idea.”

Father William was staring at the slug with a look of fascinated revulsion.

Quatre and Roku settled down to levitate the statue once more so Heero, Duo and Hagrimore could slide it back into place.

“Good enough,” Heero said after they had shoved it back into position in the alcove. “That's more or less where it was before.”

“Will that do, Father William?” asked Percival.

Father William dragged his eyes away from the slug, which was staring back at him with its lidless green eyes, to look at the statue. “Yes, yes, that's fine,” he said dazedly.

“Then we're out of here,” Quatre announced. He climbed to his feet looking tired and headed for the door.

Trowa picked up the giant slug and followed.

Percival took Father William's hand in both of his. “Father, we give you our deepest thanks. We have gained the knowledge we sought and now may continue on our quest. Your aid has been invaluable.”

“I would say you are welcome, but I am not sure what I will tell my parishioners,” Father William replied uncertainly.

“Tell them we removed the curse from the Secret Room through prayer and personal sacrifice,” said Wu-Fei. “For proof, you can point to that little beastie,” he pointed at the slug, “and tell them it's the embodiment of the evil, and that we're taking it away to destroy it in a ceremony of purification.”

“Whoa! That was good!” Duo exclaimed. “Did you just come up with that on the spur of the moment?”

Wu-Fei smiled faintly. “I admit it just now came into my mind.”

“I'm impressed.”

“Thanks.”

There was a good-sized crowd gathered in the fading light outside the church door.

“I don't want anyone harmed,” Percival said worriedly. “How are we going to get past them?” He was peeking at the crowd through a small transom in the door.

“Let me look,” Hagrimore said. He looked out through the transom. “Here come the others just now. They look to have all the horses.” Hagrimore stepped back from the door. “I think pure bravado should do. Draw your swords. We'll just bully our way through.”

And that is just what they did. The townspeople opened a path for them, because no one really wanted to stand up to an armed knight, and the group made their way safely to their waiting horses. Once mounted, they wasted no time in making a hasty departure, particularly since Trowa's slime-oozing slug was starting to attract quite a lot of attention.

They did not stop until they were well outside town and the smell of Beardley Bog was starting to fade from their nostrils.

“Trowa, I think that thing wants down,” Duo said.

They halted and Trowa hopped from the back of his horse. He carried the slug well off the road into the trees before setting it down and un-sticking his shirt from its skin. The slug looked up at him with eyes that glowed noticeably in the dark and Trowa stiffened in surprise.

“It talked to me!” Trowa exclaimed.

“I didn't hear anything,” Duo said.

Trowa turned to him in astonishment. “It said, because I have done it this favor, that it is giving me the gift of speech. It says from now own, I can converse with any living creature.”

“No shit?”

Trowa turned back to the slug and bowed. “Thank you.”

The slug inclined its head for a moment and then slowly slithered away.

“This is starting to turn into a real interesting trip,” Duo remarked. “At this rate, none of us is going to be normal by the time we get back.”

“You were never normal, Duo,” Heero commented.

“Hey!”