Chapter 9: What am I?

Sarah wondered what was happening to Chuck and Casey. She heard the pendulum drop three notches in the last twenty minutes and it continued to swing. She struggled all along with the leather braces over her wrists and they ground into her flesh. These were one of those rare times when she wished she had sweaty palms, just so she could force her hands out. She was very worried about Chuck. Joseph and his father were maniacs. The entire Dracon order was screwy and she couldn't believe that Bryce had ever agreed to membership. All she could do now was wait and put her hopes on Casey.

-O-

This time Chuck let Casey open the next doorway, but stayed close. This was much to the Agent's displeasure, but Chuck ignored the grunts. One of them was the grunt of approval anyway. After the door slammed behind them, a chill crept through the air. Casey did not like the atmosphere at all. The room was damp and the ground was soggy. The room became awash with light and Chuck yelped. The area could barely be called a 'room.' It was more like the size of a large warehouse with tall cement walls and bulwarks with grotesque gargoyle carvings throughout.

"It's…Its a maze, Casey!" Chuck stammered.

"I can see that genius…don't move, we'll wait for the old bat's instructions."

Right on cue, Falconetti Senior's voice crackled over a hidden loudspeaker.

"So glad you decided to come in. Now take your time, I'm sure you will do swimmingly! Some mood music, an engaging Russian piece by Smetana Ma Vlast! The German's call it 'Die Moldau!"

Chuck pulled on Casey's shirt. "I know that one from Music Appreciation in high school! The River, the music builds up softly like a stream and then it continues until it's a raging…"

"Brilliant, Chuck, will it help us solve this maze in any way?"

"Uhh, no."

"I didn't think so, the King of useless information strikes again!"

Casey rolled his eyes and the classical music started. He knew this piece well. The tune was actually pleasant and sure as Chuck said, it built up into a thundering refrain. Casey kept walking forward. His eyes were glued everywhere for hidden wall traps, but the stone was smooth. It seemed nothing more than a boring maze. He heard Chuck counting behind him.

"What are you doing, Chuck? It's getting on my nerves."

"Shhh! I'm pacing, Casey! I feel like I've seen this maze before online or something…wait…don't turn down that way!"

Casey ignored him and they metal screeched. They were already in the middle of the passage. Chuck pointed ahead frightened.

"Uhh, why is that wall moving toward us…with spikes! Aughhhhh! There's bones on it!"

Casey pushed Chuck to go backward. "Move, Chuck! Run!"

The wall of spikes gained on them, Casey shoved Chuck into an adjoining passage and they landed on the floor. Chuck jumped up and backed against the stone. The wall of spikes stopped at the edge of the passage and slowly moved itself back into it's place.

"That was just like the movie Labyrinth! I am not taking the blame this time! I told you don't go down that way!"

"Oh, yeah, Chuck! Then maybe you'd like to lead, go ahead!"

"Maybe this time I should! Every time we spring a trap, Sarah is this much closer to being cut in half! Or did you forget? Or do you care, NSA Special Agent Major Casey? Why should it bother you, you have orders to kill me, what does it matter if she goes to?"

Casey was tired of Chuck berating him. He picked him up by his collar and slammed him into the wall.

"Shut up, Chuck! Those are my orders, but I never said I was going to kill you, did I? If I had a chance to explain before, I'm not…"

They suddenly heard the sound of rushing water and Falconetti's voice again.

"Uh oh! Looks like high tide, boys! Have fun!"

-O-

Freezing ocean water poured in from the open mouthed gargoyles throughout the passages, Casey dropped Chuck and he ran ahead.

"I think I got this figured out, it's a Roman maze! Just keep following me, oh God! The water's rising fast!"

"Don't talk, just lead! Try not to make any more wrong turns, we don't know how far that pendulum is on Sarah!"

Chuck made his way quick through the maze; the water reached their waists. Something clammy slithered past his leg.

"Uhh, Casey, was that you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Did you just brush past my leg?"

"Now how the heck did I do that, Chuck? I'm behind you! If this is from the tide, it was probably a fish."

Chuck gulped and stroked through the water. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Chuck made another sharp turn right and felt the slithering again, this time, he froze and turned around to Casey.

"Casey, I know there's something down there and you said it wasn't you. But I'm hoping it is you, but it doesn't feel like a human or a fish…what? What?"

Chuck watched Casey's eyes widen in shock. He closed his eyes. This was it. Whenever something like this happened, there was always some bloodthirsty, saliva-dripping creature ready to pounce the victim from behind. Chuck turned and screamed as four giant tentacles waved through the air. He leaped behind Casey in a panic and grabbed his shoulders. The water had reached their chests.

"Damn! Chuck, tell me we can go another direction!"

"No! I was following it carefully, we're almost out, and this is the only way!"

"Okay, it's only a squid, we can make it, flat against the wall now!"

Chuck followed Casey's direction. "Only a squid? Those things can grow up to fifty feet, right? They'll tear you up!"

"Hold still! Cephalopods can sense orientation and motion and the largest size a squid ever grew was twenty feet."

"Oh, that's real comforting, Casey! So, he's only fourteen feet bigger than us!"

Casey and Chuck inched their way across the wall. They tried to make limited motion in the water, as it lapped against their necks. They were nearly home free when a tentacle dipped under the surface, and slowly twined itself around Chuck's waist. Chuck remained calm and tapped Casey.

"Umm, please…help!"

Chuck disappeared beneath the surface. Casey dove under yanked on it, while Chuck struggled and tried to flip around. The squid was trying to bring its prey closer to its beaked and sharp mouth. Casey bit down hard on the tentacle and it loosened Chuck, allowing him to burst out of the water. The squid released a dark cloud of ink, blind siding Casey, and then it propelled further down the maze. Casey broke the surface sputtering.

"Chuck! Are you alright?"

"Yeah! I thought he almost got you!"

"Not yet! He's still around, but he might leave us alone. Falconetti must be controlling it to make him attack that way. Come on, we have to swim for it!"

Chuck and Casey reeled through the passages. When they got to the last turn, the water was ready to cover over them.

"I see the ladder, Chuck! Deep breath!"

They gulped a mouthful of air and submerged. Chuck swam voraciously until he hit the ladder and started to ascend. He came to the door on the top of the ceiling and pushed it. It popped open and he climbed out gasping, suddenly he realized Casey was not behind him.

-O-

The squid yanked Casey's leg and dragged him. Casey thought quickly, he kicked at it and removed his belt, diving further down. He quickly wrapped the belt around its head and squeezed as hard as he could. The squid's eyes bulged and it thrashed around violently. He tugged harder on the belt and the squid soon became very still. Its tentacles settling on the bottom. Casey was dizzy and feebly swam to the ladder. The last of his air was spent as he grabbed it. He suddenly felt someone pushing him up. His head surfaced and he forced himself to crawl out. He reached down and grabbed for Chuck. Chuck tumbled on top of him and they laid there out of breath.

"Good…good…job…Bartowski! I owe you one!" Casey gasped.

"Hey, you've been saving my butt this whole time, it was my turn! Man! How did you do that? I would have died, I know it!"

"I had a chance to get some hardcore Marine training, but I never faced anything like that!"

"And the squid, what happened?"

"He'll make a great calamari if you fish him out!"

"Alright, Casey! We rock!"

"Yeah, Chuck, do you mind?"

Chuck realized he was still lying on the agent's chest and rolled over on his back. From below, the water drained and the loudspeakers came back on.

"Well done! Good show, Agent Casey! I got that one recorded! You're right about the calamari, maybe when all this is over we can enjoy a hearty seafood dinner!"

Falconetti's tirade was interrupted by a fit of coughs. "Blahh!…Your Agent Walker is still alive thanks to your quick thinking, that squid would have dropped the pendulum right through her. Now for the next…"

"Dammit, Falconetti! No more of this! You're liable to kill Chuck and where will that leave you? Do you think the Dracons are going to tell you anything about their organization that you aren't privileged to know?"

"I am privileged! I helped bring this organization to the peak in my days!"

"Your days are long over you old hack! They only used you as a stooge to get in with the Mafia, but you and the old Dragon pushed them. They played you like they play everyone else, you don't know any more than the next guy and you never will."

"Shut up, Casey! Don't forget who's running the show here! Don't forget what I said about that rocket launcher!"

Chuck nudged Casey to keep quiet and Casey threw up his hands. He paced the room and wrung out his shirt.

"Alright! What next, Falconetti?"

"I knew you would see things my way. Believe it or not, you're very warm my friend!"

-O-

Sarah was going mad with the straps and the blindfold, she continually rotated her wrist and felt the buckles warp. She tightened her hand and fingers and attempted to slip it out. Her knuckles were halting the strap. She squeezed harder and with a painful jerk, pulled out one hand. That was all she needed. She threw the blindfold off her eyes and went to work on the buckles across her other arm and feet. After jumping off the table she immediately went to the direction Falconetti did, twenty paces to the right. She faced a large bookshelf.

"Oh great, it's one of these gags." She muttered, and went to work pulling out the books.

-O-

The lights came on inside the room and it was empty, save for a shiny wooden floor and dozens of kitschy throw rugs placed about.

"Does he really expect us to fall for this one? We step on the rug and fall through the floor, how obvious can you get?" Chuck noted.

Casey's gaze followed the wood panels along the floor.

"Wait, Chuck! Don't walk! It's not what you think!"

Chuck raced ahead, deliberately avoiding the rugs. He stepped on a plank with a nearly unnoticeable crooked line. The wood fell in. Casey ran and slid across the waxed floor and grabbed for Chuck's waist. Chuck screamed, hanging upside down inside a large pit with spikes on the bottom.

"Oh my…Casey! Dragonetti's down here! Pull me up! Pull me up! Help!"

Casey used all of his strength and hauled him up, Chuck grabbed the floor and rolled onto a rug, panting.

"What the hell just happened?"

"You moron! I told you don't walk ahead, it's a trick floor, and we have to stay on the rugs, not the wood, look at the planks!

Chuck was too much in a fright to answer him, but nodded profusely and tiptoed on the throw rugs with Casey behind him until they made it to the other side. The dark wooden door on the opposite end creaked open. The piece of floor he and Casey were standing on lifted and tossed them inside. They were both too worn out to even be surprised and they landed at the foot of Falconetti's desk.

-O-

Sarah wanted to scream as she plucked each book, but nothing worked. She finally came to one called 'The rise and fall of the Roman Empire.' She slapped her head. "Damn! Rise! Fall! Roman! Elevator!"

She pulled out the book and the wall slid open, however when the elevator doors opened, Joseph was there with a gun pointed on her.

"I think you better come with me, pretty girl! I had a feeling you'd escape. Your friends are upstairs! It's a shame they didn't come through the other doorway."

Sarah's eyes followed his gesture and she noticed a chain to the doorknob that connected the pendulum. If anyone had opened it, she would have been dismembered instantly. She raised her hands and stepped inside. She kept her glance on his snake-skin shoes, trying to come up with a plan of action. She moved closer to him and stroked his hair.

"You know, Joseph, you're pretty cute for a man twice my age. Tell me, can we stop this elevator for a few?"

Joseph narrowed his eyes and waved his gun around. "Hey! Whaddya think? I'm stupid? Get back to the other side."

That was enough of a diversion for Sarah. She promptly kicked him in the gut and punched his face. The gun fell to the floor and she grabbed it. She lifted Joseph up and kept the gun to his middle. The elevator doors opened to Falconetti's study and she pushed Joseph inside. Casey and Chuck were tied and gagged to wooden chairs. Agent Pagiano stood by Giorgio's chair; and both had sly smiles on their faces.

"Come in and join us, Agent Walker. Yours and Casey's skills are wonderful, I can see why you and Bryce made such a good team as well. Now let Joseph go."

Sarah heaved Joseph to the desk. "No, you let them go first, or else he gets it!"

Pagiano sighed and pulled out his weapon near Chuck and traced the cold steel of the muzzle on his face.

"It would be a shame to see all those secrets go to waste, wouldn't it? Do not test me, Agent Walker, let him go."

Sarah reluctantly dropped her ace and Joseph ran behind his father's chair. Pagiano pushed her down in the third chair and proceeded to tie her up. When he was finished he walked up to Chuck and undid his ropes, then pulled him toward the desk.

"Now! We finally have the Intersect! The Dracon order will surely put our names in the Hall of Fame for this!"

Chuck looked oddly at Casey. He was grunting and gesturing his head back and forth. Chuck put his head down in submission and spied where Casey was trying to draw his attention. The floor where Pagiano was standing was slightly distorted. Giorgio was an old school trickster. The access button must have been by his desk. Chuck forced a few tears, which wasn't too hard, considering his twisted stomach and the scares he encountered in the last few hours. He fell to his knees at Giorgio's feeble legs.

"Please! Please, Mr. Falconetti! Take me! But don't hurt Sarah and Casey or his family! I'm the one you want!"

Chuck sobbed and threw his arms around the old man's waist, resting his head on his lap and gagging from the stench of him. He noticed five small buttons–red, yellow, blue, green, and black. He felt Giorgio's twisted hand stroke his curls.

"There, there! Sarah and Casey have to pay for what they've tried to do, especially Casey. He betrayed my trust."

Giorgio gave Pagiano a nod and the crooked Agent picked up his cell phone. Casey's chair rocked violently and Chuck heard him yelling through his gag.

"NO! DON'T DO IT!"

Chuck had to act quickly; he shut his eyes and pressed down hard on every button at the same time.

"No! You ingrate! What did you do?"

The floor under Pagiano opened up and he disappeared with an echoed scream, his call never went through. The paintings on either side of the room lifted up. Chuck leaped over the desk and Joseph tried to chase him. Chuck knocked both Sarah and Casey to the floor just as sprays of bullets shot from the hidden artillery behind the paintings. Joseph crashed to the floor in a dead heap. The mansion went into an uproar, furniture rattled, lights flickered on and off and trap doors opened and shut. It had become a virtual war zone. From deep in the basement, the tide rushed in again and sprayed against the heavy duty fuse boxes that controlled the old man's nightmarish pranks. Everything fizzled and fire filled the maze, spreading quickly throughout the entire basement.

Chuck undid Sarah's ropes and snatched a letter opener from the desk to help Casey with his. All the time Giorgio sat in shock and he clutched his chest as his kooky empire fell apart around him. The trio stood up, and Casey pulled his wallet and gun off the desk. The picture of him and Julia was still inside and he managed a quick smile. The den was destroyed by the gunfire and from outside floors whirled and the front door slammed open and closed. Dense black and white smoke filled up the mansion and flames licked up at the floor from where Pagiano fell. Giorgio slumped over his desk in a cold sweat, his wicked deeds caught up to him in one cruel moment.

"NO! NO! I NEED TO KNOW! WHO RUNS THE DRACON ORDER! IT'S IN THE HEAD! IN DRAGON'S… head…"

The old man breathed his last and Casey spit at him. "Good riddance you dirty, old bastard! Oh man, Beckman and Graham are gonna blow a gasket."

They ran across the rotating floor in leaps and bounds and Casey smashed the windows, because all the doors were locked. He helped Sarah and Chuck out and then Chuck stopped by the front door.

"Casey wait! The doorknocker! It's the head! The Dragon's Head! Hurry!"

Casey tore it off the door and a rolled up parchment fell out. Sarah was way ahead of them.

"Come on! Run for it!"

Falconetti had stored more than tricks in this house of horrors. He threw Chuck over his shoulder and raced to the shoreline, but didn't stop. The three of them dove into the water just as the entire mansion exploded. They popped up out of the waves and watched a fantastic display of fireworks cascade and sparkle into the twilight sky. Chuck hobbled onto the surf and opened the parchment, before the water ruined it. Casey and Sarah followed and they all crashed on the sand.

"What does it say, Chuck?" Sarah demanded, rubbing her wrists.

"It's a riddle."

"That figures! Read it!" Casey urged.

'Concealed and shielded behind much, difficult to spot. I am like bug and sickness; I am contagious, not always wanted, though I am small, they fear me greatly, for I might leave them haunted. At times I am tough to keep, my master forced to let me free, then I rupture and soar around and they converse regarding me. I may be friend or foe, servant or teacher, I am like a bird; I want to be a free creature. What am I?"

Chuck laughed deliriously and tossed his arms up. "Oh this is so simple! This was the answer Falconetti wanted all these years? The answer he thought Dragonetti was keeping from him?"

Casey looked at Sarah and they shrugged in confusion. "Well, what's the answer then?"

Chuck stood up and tossed the paper into the waves.

"What am I? I'm a SECRET!"

The End.