Lolo Cres

The Real Nazareno • 5

As Intramuros faded into night, Lolo Cres and Rafa walked towards the Parian Gate. Lolo Cres took one good look at the lock at the gate and snickered. 

"It's locked, Lolo." Rafa said.

Lolo Cres turned slowly towards Rafa with an almost resigned look on his face.

"Wow, Rafa. How observant. Now make yourself useful and watch out for people."

Lolo Cres fished out an ornate key from his satchel. It looked too big to fit inside the lock, Rafa thought, but Lolo started twisting the parts of the key around, folding it into itself until it was smaller. Sort of like a steampunk Transformers toy, Rafa grinned to himself. Lolo Cres then inserted the key into the lock and opened it with no effort whatsoever.

"That was amazing, Lol-"

"Keep quiet. We might be heard." Lolo admonished. "Lock the gate behind you and follow me."

+++

During the Spanish period, the Puerta de Parian was one of Intramuros' busiest gates, where most people would enter and exit the Walled City. When the Americans came to town, however, they determined that the original seven gates of Intramuros were too small and narrow to accommodate the motorized vehicles that they were about to bring into the Philippines. They then closed down the original gates and made new ones, wide enough for the cars and trucks and trams that were about to criss-cross Intramuros and the rest of Manila. The old roads and the moat was then filled in and smoothened out to make way for a makeshift park and a municipal golf course, which exists to this day.

"Back in the day, the Revellin de Parian didn't quite enclose this area, not like it does nowadays." Lolo Cres stated as they made their way to the steps of the Revellin. "It was really just the Revellin and the Gate. The Revellin was scheduled for refurbishment sometime in the 1930s and the Church took advantage of that to make a new home for the Real Nazareno. "

"How did they manage that without making the authorities suspicious?" Rafa asked. 

"Easy," Lolo Cres answered. "They offered to 'sponsor' the refurbishment in secret."

"Hay naku. Nice to know graft and corruption was a thing back in the past," Rafa sneered.

"Don't you know it," Lolo Cres retorted. "Okay, here we are."  

Lolo Cres and Rafa were at the base of the steps of the left side of the Revellin. Lolo put down his satchel and laid out an array of items on the ground.

"I am about to cast a complex spell, hijo." Lolo Cres said. "Please, make sure I am not disturbed."

Rafa watched as Lolo Cres started tracing symbols on the side of the steps. The symbols looked very similar to Baybayin, but Rafa couldn't read them. After he completes the pattern, Lolo starts murmuring chants almost to himself. Rafa was half-expecting the very earth to start rumbling, but after a few minutes he concluded that it wasn't going to happen. Lolo did look satisfied after casting the spell, though.

"What was that all about?" Rafa asked as Lolo finished with the spell.

"I had to find the gate and determine how to open it," he answered. "And I did. Now come, we must make our own preparations first before proceeding."

Rafa approached Lolo Cres, almost too excitedly. Lolo then opened a small bottle. Muttering to the bottle, he placed the bottle under Rafa's nose. A musky, woodsy scent wafted into his nostrils.