Before long, the once friends entered a small out cove, two large slabs of a dark stones blocking their way forwards, headed with carved messages.
"Now I believe this is our stop." John said, coming to a stop before the one the furthest away.
Looking at the top stones, Watson folded the map away. "Two Latin inscriptions almost identical in meaning." Gregory always loved Latin.
John dug his fingers under the bottom and heaved, straining to lift it even an inch but failing, "Almost."
""Truth lies"," he pointed to the one on the left, then right as the other man moved towards the other door, "Lies Truth" a... slightly different turn of phrase."
"Both… doors…" yet again he failed to open the door, "apparently with no means of opening them and yet, behind each of these doors lies or keys. Logically."
"Logically." Watson set his bag on the floor, "Both our names were set for these doors which implies that Gregory intended for us to work together."
"So we cannot retrieve one without the other." He turned to face the smaller man.
"Putting the analytical genius and the cold blooded killer in the same place. There must be a reason beyond cruel irony."
"He designed this, he knew us as friends James, not as enemies." John approached his old friend, "It was before our…"
"Yes yes…" he stepped around the human wall, "Doors that won't open. Yet their shape suggest something exists beyond, a chamber perhaps…"
"Which I alone can access but which door do we believe? Perhaps both? Neither?"
The famous detective was silent for a moment, turning to look at the bald man with a serious look on his face, "I don't know but I am convinced of one thing. If we chose wrongly and you teleport behind the wrong door… I'm sure you will find… solid rock."
"Well then. You'd best choose carefully, old… friend."
Meanwhile, in the central room, Methos sat considering his options. He'd been watching doctor James Watson and listening very carefully to what the others had said about him during the past few days.
Watson was a certifiable genius, and he was a vital part of this Sanctuary group, but there was a big problem. The machine that was keeping him alive was breaking. Ever since they had entered the cavern he had been using John as a human walking stick, and the pistons were creaking a lot more than usual. Even if he was careful, it was obvious that he wasn't going to leave the tunnels alive.
Methos had a sneaking suspicion that if it broke, he would probably die of old age. The chemicals keeping him young would be unable to get to their destination, and so he would rapidly age.
He couldn't let that happen, but there was only one thing he could do to stop it, and it went against all the laws of the immortals.
Leaning against the pillar behind him, he decided what he had to do.
"The seventh girl you murdered. April 1888," James said, folding the map up again after re-evaluating some minor details, "they found her body under a bridge near Whopping. Why move her from White chapel? It has tormented me." He began to step towards him, "But why taint your calling card why change the rules? I remember… I asked your opinion at the time over brandy's at the reformer club and you said, "perhaps the old boy's losing his taste for the sport". But were you?"
John turned to face the curious man, "My actions were not of my own. They were… thrust upon me… by an irresistible force. Oh, it must have been quite a blow to your ego when you finally learned the truth…" the last few words were said with a bit of a smirk on his face, though it wasn't as menacing as he'd hoped it would be.
"It was not, just that I failed to see the clues laid out before me. It was that it was you, John. For God's sake! It was you!" He remembered how he'd felt. The grief, the betrayal… the anger.
Watson turned back to face the puzzle, "Veritas laket!" He pointed to the left door, "Truth lies, that's it," he pointed at the right then turned back, "veritas lies truth! Now the subtle, but vital, difference is that this epigram translates as lies buried as in dead where as this, this means lies at rest, a much more benign expression, and thus it follows that we must chose between life…" he motioned to the right, then the left, "and death."
"That's it? That's your unassailable logic?" surely that can't be it he added in his mind.
"Gregory and I shared a passion for Latin, it follows that he would hide the clues… in the subtleties of the language."
"So… either a chamber lies beyond that, or a perfect chance for you to exact your revenge for my past actions." Roughly, he grabbed the folds of James' jacket, forcing him to hold John's arms, "Care to reconsider your choice?"
James said nothing, looking into the eyes that were mere inches away from his own.
They both looked at the door and dematerialised, rematerialising in a small room on the other side of the door with a table holding the key. Watson released his grip that had tightened in the brief fear that he was wrong, allowing Druitt to retrieve his prize.
"The uh, second key is undoubtedly within the second door indeed this key may unlock it outright." Watson looked at his friend, eyes full of realisation, before turning away, "In which case you might leave me here to die."
"Yes." The once murderer replied, as if the thought hadn't crossed his mind, "I might."
"Well why don't you?" The two turned to look at each other.
"Well as I once said. "I have lost the taste for the sport"."
Sadness, thankfulness and relief covered James' face as the tall man put his hand lightly on his shoulder, the grip far more supportive than anything else and he looked into the eyes of his friend.
As they reappeared back in the out cove, the second door slid open, revealing the second key which the mechanical man then retrieved. "Release the first key, the second is frees as well." He held it up and John followed suet.
How could he resist? "Elementary my dear Watson."
"Oh shut up!"
Druitt began to laugh and picked up the bag.
After about ten minutes, the first sign that Methos received that anyone was doing anything was when the ground began to shake. Soon after that, he began to hear voices.
"Move your legs old man!" came the unmistakable voice of his once kidnapper before the he and the near crippled man suddenly appeared before him, shortly followed by a scarcely dressed Will on the other side of the room.
"Clara!" he shouted back down the passage he'd just come from, holding the clothes he had in one arm, "Oh no she was right with me!"
At that, they began to move by themselves, "Relax Will I'm right here." Clara reappeared soon after, adjusting her bra strap, "I asked you not to drop my clothes and look, they're filthy!" she began to pull on her skirt, "Nice job Will."
"Interesting." John stared at them, several images coming to mind, none of which had anything to do with invisibility.
"Well done William." James congratulated, though for what Adam was unsure, but he wasn't paying much attention to that. It was the way that he was slumped against the pillar. He didn't have much time left.
"Thanks" Will replied, pulling his own clothes on.
John looked around the room, "Where's Helen?"
Adam shrugged just as Tesla and Magnus scrambled out of their chamber, out of breath. She looked at Will who gave her a shrug, then held up her key, which everyone else who had one soon did.
"Perfect timing," Adam said, dodging a piece of falling rubble, almost falling over from all the vibrations.
Helen smiled and made her way to the pedestal, "Well then… shall we?"
Adam backed away as the five stood around the table, taking note on how much help Watson needed to get there, and they put their keys into the slots provided. Almost immediately, the ground stopped shaking and a pillar in the wall rotated, revealing a hole where the vial was held.
Everyone walked over there, paying no attention to their dying friend, leaving Adam with enough time to talk to him.
"How long would you say you have left?" he asked.
James looked at him, surprised at the bluntness of the question, but answered, "About a minute. This thing's going to give out soon." He winced, "It wasn't going to last forever."
Methos nodded. "I know how to save you, but I can't explain it now. You'll just have to trust me."
He frowned, but nodded, "Do what you must."
The ancient man set his teeth and drew out a dagger. "I'm sorry."
The blade struck true, right through the heart. It was a clean wound, and would easily be recovered from, but it still made him feel guilty when he heard the sharp intake of breath and saw his widened eyes. He pulled the knife out and he slumped to the floor. He had seconds left.
"Watson!" Will suddenly yelled, running over to the two identical men, though unable to do anything other than stare, shock paralysing his limbs as he saw what was happening. Tesla and the others soon followed, and he knew it wouldn't be long until someone acted.
"I need your hand," he explained, cutting a deep gash into his own, making sure it was too deep to heal instantly.
Weakly, the twin complied and hissed slightly as his own was sliced open.
Quickly, Methos pressed their wounds together, hoping that this would work. Almost five millennia previously, one of his friends had been sickly during their first death, and one of his mentors had done the same thing for her in order to stop her from being the same way for the rest of her long life. It had worked, the immortal's quickening within his blood removing any toxins and making her as strong as she had ever been.
Unfortunately, he had no idea if it would work for this man, as the chemicals were artificial, and they were the only things keeping him alive. He just hoped that he wouldn't have to use it for the rest of his life. The only thing he was certain about was that he was going to come back. Ever since the first time he'd met him, because of the pre-buzz (or tingling sensation) he knew he was a pre-immortal.
Suddenly, Adam felt himself getting weak, his quickening flowing into the barely conscious man who wheezed in pain as he felt it pass through his body, but his features weren't changing. Methos smiled. It was working.
Then there came the sound he'd been waiting for. The last breath.
"How could you?" Adam felt hands trying to pull him away, but he remained firm.
"It was the only way I could save him." Adam explained, knowing that they wouldn't believe him, but remained with the dead man, hand still pressed against his in order to remove every bit of now harmful toxin from his system. "You have to wait."
"Save him? You killed him! Or hadn't you noticed?"
Methos couldn't help but smile, "You have no idea what I've done." He felt himself growing weaker with each passing second, his quickening, though there was still plenty left, was being drained at an alarming rate.
Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it stopped, and he released the man's hand, removing as much of the exoskeleton as he could before he was dragged away.
When John hauled him to his feet, the only pieces left were the tubes on his arms. He just stared at the corpse the others were crowding around. Helen tried to feel for a pulse but found none, tears beginning to flood from her eyes.
Tesla turned to him, his eyes turning black, "I really should have killed you when I had the chance."
Adam smiled faintly, looking over the vampire's shoulder, "I suggest you step back." They looked at him in confusion and hatred, "I don't think he'll like coming back with so many people around him."
Clara was the only one who complied, but it was enough.
Seconds later, Watson's chest heaved in a mighty breath, everyone taking a step back. As he became aware of his surroundings, he frowned, "What…?" he patted down his chest and legs. Finding nothing, he looked at his clone, "What did you do?"
Adam shook John from his arms, the man too shocked to say or do anything to stop him, "I just saved your life."
