Chapter 32 – The Woman Beneath the Wall
They ran.
Brook barely felt his feet touching the stone steps.
Behind them, the ancient chamber shook with every impact against the enormous door. Dust poured from the ceiling, and pieces of stone broke loose and crashed down the staircase.
"Faster!" Henry shouted.
"I'm trying!"
The woman was right behind them.
Another impact came from below.
The entire staircase lurched.
Brook grabbed the wall to keep himself upright.
Henry nearly fell.
"Keep moving!"
They reached the upper passage.
Brook looked back.
The woman had stopped.
"Come on!" he shouted.
She shook her head.
"No."
Brook stared at her.
"What do you mean, no?"
"You need to get out."
"I'm not leaving you down here."
"You don't understand what will happen if that door opens."
Brook stepped toward her.
"Then explain it."
The woman looked at him.
For a moment, she seemed to be deciding whether he was ready.
Then the sound came again.
BOOM.
The woman flinched.
Her eyes moved toward the darkness below.
"They're trying to break through."
"Who?"
"The things beyond the seal."
Henry raised his sword.
"How many?"
She looked at him.
"Enough."
Another tremor.
This time, cracks appeared along the walls.
Henry grabbed Brook.
"We have to go."
Brook resisted.
"What about her?"
"She knows these tunnels better than we do. If she says we need to leave, we leave."
Brook looked at the woman.
She nodded.
"He's right."
Brook reluctantly followed them.
They ran.
The passage behind them began collapsing.
Stone fell across the staircase, filling the lower section.
The woman hurried forward.
"This way."
She turned into a narrow corridor.
Brook followed.
Henry came behind them.
They reached another staircase.
The woman pushed against a stone panel.
It didn't move.
"Help me."
Brook and Henry pushed beside her.
The stone shifted.
A hidden passage opened.
Cold morning air rushed inside.
They climbed through and emerged behind the ruined watchtower.
Brook immediately turned.
The entrance closed behind them.
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The western district was still quiet.
The Royal Guards hadn't noticed them.
Henry leaned against the wall, breathing heavily.
Brook looked at the woman.
"Who are you?"
She didn't answer.
Brook stepped closer.
"My parents."
The woman's expression softened.
"You really are their son."
"Answer me."
"I knew your father."
"You said that before."
"I knew your mother too."
Brook's anger faded slightly.
"What happened to them?"
The woman looked toward the tower.
"They came here five years ago."
Brook's breathing stopped.
"Five years?"
She nodded.
"Your parents discovered records concerning the original experiment."
"They believed the experiment wasn't an accident."
Brook stared at her.
"They were right."
The woman looked at him.
"The experiment was never supposed to create the Abominations."
Henry stepped forward.
"Then what was it supposed to create?"
The woman hesitated.
"A door."
Brook frowned.
"A door to what?"
"Something that existed before humanity understood what existence was."
Henry looked confused.
"That's not an answer."
"It is the only one I have."
Brook shook his head.
"No."
He pointed toward the tower.
"You know more."
The woman remained silent.
Brook's voice became harder.
"My parents disappeared because of this."
"I deserve to know what happened."
The woman looked into his eyes.
"They found the first Source."
Brook froze.
Henry looked at him.
"The first Source?"
The woman nodded.
"One of six."
Brook looked at his hand.
The blue symbol had disappeared.
"Where is it?"
The woman didn't answer.
Brook stepped closer.
"Where?"
"Inside you."
Silence.
Henry stared at her.
"What?"
The woman looked at Brook.
"You don't have the Source."
"Not completely."
"But it has already recognized you."
Brook felt a strange chill move through his body.
"What does that mean?"
"It means your parents were right."
"They believed someone would eventually be able to carry all six."
Henry's face hardened.
"That's impossible."
"Why?"
"Because the records say the Sources destroy their vessels."
The woman looked at him.
"That's what the records say."
Brook looked between them.
"So the records are wrong."
"They're incomplete."
"Everything is incomplete."
The woman almost smiled.
"Now you're beginning to understand."
A horn sounded in the distance.
The woman immediately looked toward the western gate.
"Someone is coming."
Henry frowned.
"Royal Guards?"
"No."
"Then who?"
The woman pulled her hood over her head.
"People who shouldn't know we're here."
Brook reached for his sword.
"How many?"
"Too many for you to fight."
Henry drew his sword.
"We don't have a choice."
The woman looked at him.
"You always have a choice."
Brook stared at her.
The words reminded him of something.
His father's notebook.
The six Sources.
The idea of limits.
Free will.
He didn't understand why, but the words felt important.
The sound of approaching footsteps grew louder.
The woman grabbed Brook's arm.
"Listen to me."
Brook looked at her.
"If anyone asks, you never saw me."
"Why?"
"Because if they learn you've found the passage…"
She paused.
"They will come for you."
Brook pulled his arm away.
"Who are they?"
"The people who have spent a hundred years making sure the truth stays buried."
She turned to leave.
Brook grabbed her shoulder.
"Wait."
She stopped.
"What was my father's final message?"
Her eyes softened.
"He told me something."
"What?"
She looked directly at him.
"He said that if you ever found him…"
Brook waited.
"…you shouldn't trust anyone who claims to know your destiny."
Then she disappeared into the narrow alley.
Brook stared after her.
Henry walked beside him.
"She knows more than she's saying."
"Obviously."
"You believe her?"
Brook looked toward the ruined tower.
"I believe my parents were involved."
"That's enough for now."
Brook nodded.
But neither of them noticed the figure standing on the opposite rooftop.
The hooded woman had stopped.
She was watching them.
And she wasn't alone.
A second figure stood beside her.
"You told him too much."
"I told him enough."
"You were instructed not to interfere."
"I didn't."
"You gave him information."
The woman looked toward Brook.
"He was always going to find out."
The second figure remained silent.
Then:
"He's changing."
The woman nodded.
"I know."
Brook and Henry returned to the palace before noon.
The King was waiting.
The moment they entered the throne room, he stood.
"Where were you?"
Henry looked at Brook.
Brook answered.
"Investigating."
The King's expression hardened.
"I ordered you not to enter the restricted area."
"You ordered me not to enter the tower."
"I also ordered you to stay away from the western district."
Brook stared at him.
"Why?"
The King didn't answer.
Brook stepped forward.
"Because my parents were there?"
The King's face changed.
Henry noticed.
Brook continued.
"They came here five years ago."
The King slowly sat down.
"Who told you?"
Brook ignored the question.
"They found the chamber."
"Yes."
"And the Source."
The King looked at Brook's hand.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he whispered:
"God help us."
Brook's expression hardened.
"Stop saying that."
The King looked at him.
"You don't understand."
"Then explain it."
The King stood.
"The six Sources are not weapons."
"I know."
"They are not gifts."
"I know."
"They are pieces of something much older."
Brook frowned.
"Older than the experiment?"
"Older than the Walls."
"Older than humanity."
Henry stepped forward.
"What are they?"
The King looked at his son.
"Nobody knows."
Brook stared at him.
"You've known about them your entire life."
"I've known stories."
"Stories aren't enough."
"No."
The King's voice became quieter.
"That's why your parents went looking."
Brook felt his throat tighten.
"What did they find?"
The King walked toward the large window.
"They discovered that the experiment wasn't the beginning."
Brook followed.
"Then what was?"
"The experiment was a copy."
"Of what?"
The King looked at him.
"Creation."
The word meant nothing to Brook.
Henry seemed equally confused.
The King continued.
"The scientists believed they were studying the origins of life."
"They weren't."
"They were recreating something."
Brook's mind raced.
"Something that already existed."
The King nodded.
"And when they recreated it…"
"The world changed."
"The Abominations appeared."
"Yes."
Brook looked toward the distant Wall.
"So the Abominations weren't the intended result."
"No."
"What was?"
The King didn't answer.
That silence told Brook enough.
"You're afraid to say it."
The King closed his eyes.
"Yes."
That evening, Brook returned to the Watchmen barracks.
Sera was waiting outside his room.
"You disappeared."
Brook stopped.
"I had something to do."
She studied him.
"You're lying."
Brook sighed.
"Yeah."
Sera crossed her arms.
"You know I can tell."
"I know."
"Then tell me."
Brook looked at her.
For a moment, he considered telling her everything.
The tunnel.
The woman.
The Source.
His parents.
But he remembered the woman's warning.
Don't trust anyone who claims to know your destiny.
He didn't know what it meant.
And he didn't want to drag Sera into something he didn't understand.
"I found something about my parents."
Sera's expression softened.
"Are they alive?"
Brook didn't answer.
Sera understood.
"You don't know."
"No."
She stepped closer.
"Then we'll find out."
Brook looked at her.
"You don't have to come."
"I know."
"But I'm coming anyway."
Brook smiled.
"You're stubborn."
"So are you."
She punched him lightly in the shoulder.
"That's why we're friends."
Brook looked away.
For the first time in days, he felt something close to peace.
Then Sera's expression changed.
"Brook."
"What?"
"Your hand."
Brook looked down.
The symbol had returned.
This time it was brighter.
Blue light spread beneath his skin.
Sera stepped backward.
"That's not normal."
"I know."
The light disappeared.
Brook stared at his hand.
Then a voice whispered inside his mind.
Not his father's this time.
A stranger.
Calm.
Ancient.
Almost curious.
You are carrying what should never have survived.
Brook closed his eyes.
The voice continued.
And when the others awaken…
A pause.
…they will come looking for you.
Brook opened his eyes.
Sera was staring at him.
"What happened?"
Brook looked toward the western Wall.
"I don't know."
Far beneath Shinokuni-01, the sealed chamber remained silent.
The massive door stood cracked.
One of the six symbols burned brightly.
Then another symbol flickered.
For the first time.
Two Sources had awakened.
And somewhere beyond the Wall, something ancient felt the change.
It opened its eyes.
And smiled.