Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [258]
“What will you do?” Elza asked quietly.
“I’m going to Cistina Cathedral.”
“By yourself? What will you be able to accomplish?”
“I don’t know. But I have to find out the truth. If there are that many people down there held without investigation or trial, I can’t let that stand. I’ll expose the truth, get branches in other towns involved. Maybe there is something we all could do then.”
Elza clung to the curtain, barely able to stand. The words left her trembling lips. “Toni might already be dead. My father told me. He said I’d never see Toni’s face again…”
Wataru looked up at her. “It’s too early to give up.”
A tear ran down Elza’s face. He touched her cheek with his hand.
“If you give up, they’ll be no one left waiting for Mr. Fanlon. Don’t give up hope.”
“But…”
“And besides, I need that wyrmflute, and he’s the only one who can make it. I’ll save him, I promise.”
“But you’re just a boy. What can you do?”
Wataru drew his Brave’s Sword and made the cross in the air. Before Elza’s eyes he vanished.
When he released the barrier and reappeared, Elza’s dark eyes were opened wide, and her face was so ashen he feared she might collapse on the spot. “Wh-what was that?”
“A little magic. It will help me.”
Elza staggered, and Wataru jumped to keep her from falling. She was trembling and her shoulders were heaving with every breath, much as Wataru’s had moments before. When she stood, she held his arms. “W-wait, just a second. Don’t leave.”
Elza walked over to a small drawer next to her bed, retrieved a small wooden box, and clutched it to her breast. It was small enough to be held in one hand.
“Take this with you.”
Wataru took the box and looked it over. There was a small cloth belt attached to it. There was also a lock keeping the lid closed.
“Open it.”
Obeying her wishes, he lifted the lid and discovered a bundle of neatly arranged craftman’s tools.
“Toni’s toolbox. He used it for all of his delicate work. He carried it around with him always, but before they set fire to his house, he gave it to me. He said that even if his workshop on Bricklayer Street was destroyed, he could use these tools to work anywhere. They’re as important as my soul, he said.”
“Are you sure?”
Elza nodded. Her eyes were still moist with tears, but her gaze was firm. “I believe you. Save him, and he will make your wyrmflute. Tell him that I will be waiting for him. Please.”
“Understood,” Wataru said, fastening the toolbox around his waist. “I’ll give this to Mr. Fanlon when I see him. Soon.”
Chapter 36
The Cathedral Cages
As it happened, Wataru arrived just in time for afternoon worship at the Cistina Trabados Cathedral. Believers sat on long pews arranged on either side of the center aisle. Standing at the altar, Father Diamon wore a heavy-looking embroidered silk shawl over his white vestments, and in his hand he held a leather-bound prayer book. He was reading in a loud, clear voice.
With his sword, Wataru formed an invisible barrier around himself. Once inside the cathedral, he stood at the far back of the room behind a row of burning candles. The long, slender tapers provided a blue smoke screen for him to hide behind. He released the barrier and took a deep breath. The air smelled of wax.
Wataru estimated there were about a hundred people praying. He had expected to find only ankha, but much to his surprise, there were several beastkin praying, as well. Their heads were lowered piously as they listened. The prayers themselves were palatable enough—Father Diamon urged his flock to give thanks to the Creator, and prayed for the swift recovery of those who had been harmed in the riots. But when Wataru thought about the real purpose of the cathedral here, he couldn’t understand why beastkin would willingly participate in any worship.
Could it be that they don’t know?
The reading of prayers ended, and Father Diamon began to give a sermon in a voice that echoed through the room. This too focused on the recent troubles