Warnings: Hostage situations
Spoilers: For the Layton's Mystery Journey anime and Lost Future
Set: During the LMJ anime
Song: Little Lion Man by Mumford and Sons
Dragged Away (Luke, Layton & Marina)
"So, what? You're going to kill us?" Luke knows it's a cliché line. He sounds like a captured hero from one of Flora's mystery novels...
Ha, he wishes he could be that heroic.
His face is squashed against the cathedral floor. He's baring his teeth, trying to look brave for Marina, but he's actually sweating buckets.
Despite their dire position, the professor seems as calm and as dignified as ever. "No, that probably isn't the case," he mutters.
Luke glances at him. Is he trying to be reassuring or is he on to something...?
"Fortunately, we have two spare coffins for you to stay in," the priest informs them.
No thanks- Luke would rather take their chances at the local two-star hotel.
"I thought so," the professor replies. "That means that your employer... Earl Dellendar is already dead, correct?"
"Colour me surprised!" the priest exclaims. "You worked it out! So, does that mean you know what the Hidden Relics are?"
The professor smiles slightly. "For the most part."
Luke turns his head to him. "Really, Professor?" Really? How long have you been sitting on that one?
"Yes. The Relics were something mankind was never meant to touch."
"The Hidden Relics..." Luke echoes. "What are they?"
He and the professor have already discovered they were created by the Azran. (Of course.) The better question- what are they for?
Not another bloody doomsday device! Maybe it's just some magical healing coffin...
The professor's solemn reply shatters Luke's hopes.
"A door to the future that was never meant to be opened."
Time travel? Did the Azran master that too? Or are they going to end up like... like Claire?
Before the professor can elaborate, the priest orders, "Take them to the chamber, and take Mrs Triton to the crypt."
C-crypt...?
Luke meets Marina's horrified gaze.
"What use is she to you?" Luke demands as he's hauled to his feet. "She doesn't know anything about the Relics." He snorts, so convincing that the professor frowns at him. "She can't even solve puzzles!"
Marina gets the message. "Luke..." she whimpers, fake-hurt rising in her voice. (Was she just pretending to cry with Luke whenever they watched Finding Nemo?)
"Well..." The priest tsks. "She'll have plenty of time to practice while she's imprisoned. Perhaps one day she'll even join our congregation!"
He flicks his hand and the cult members drag Marina away.
Marina yelps to Luke over her shoulder, "Just keep swimming!"
Her captors exchange a confused glance.
Stuck between a laugh and a sob, Luke responds, " Just keep swimming! Someone will save us!"
Emmy, Flora, Desmond... Too many friends to count.
The professor had pinned his hopes on Kat, going as far as to leave her a hidden message outside the cathedral, but Kat is ten. How long does the professor think they'll be waiting?
The whole reason why Luke started investigating the Relics in the first place was so that Kat and the professor wouldn't need to get involved. Now, he, the professor and even Marina are done for.
Kat may never see her dad again.
The priest grabs a candle stick from the alter. This must be some kind of leaver; at the end of the aisle, a hatch slides open in the floor. Beneath, there's a secret staircase that descends into the darkness.
The priest goes first with the candle. Luke and the professor are shoved after him, through an endless tunnel, until they come to a dimly-lit room.
Before them is a stone chamber. It looks as if a giant has picked up a small house and inserted it into this room.
Judging by its size, shape and the grey blue-tinged stone...
"The Relics," Luke gasps, "from the Lestagiana Cave!"
Chuckling, the priest pushes open the chamber's doors.
Inside, the walls and the floor pulse with blue veins. Purple crystals light each corner. In the centre of the chamber is a pedestal like the one Luke and the professor saw in the cave. And facing the pedestal...
Are those the... coffins the priest spoke of?
The priest presses two buttons on the pedestal, releasing the coffins onto the floor. Luke clenches his teeth at the noise they make.
Turning a dial, the priest drains the coffins of their glowing liquid contents. The coffin lids open with a cold hiss.
"Youngest first," the priest says, smirking at Luke.
Luke gulps.
He isn't stepping forward to die, but he is entering the unknown. Somehow, that feels even more frightening.
How far into the 'future' will they go? Ten years? A century? Millennium?
Everyone they love could die without ever learning what happened to them.
Mum and Dad...
Emmy and Flora...
Alfendi and Kat...
How long will they be waiting?
Luke can't hold back his tears. He might as well be a terrified ten-year-old again.
"Remember, Luke..." the professor murmurs. Luke turns to him. "We must keep a clear mind."
Luke musters up a smile. "Right-"
The cult members shove him into the coffin, forcing him to lie straight like an Egyptian mummy. Luke shuts his eyes tight.
At least the professor will still be by his side-
The door closes.