TW violence, gore, injury, injury treatment, d*press*on, w*r, pov*rty, PTSD, fl*shb*cks, minor h*lluc*nati*ns(hearing and smell), discussion of OC character death, dystopian society, slight su*c*de ideation, body horror-ish stuff.
palingenesis • new birth; reincarnation; second creation
Kanda Yuu took a deep breath of the sweat and stink of the Shanties, the muck and rain-filled streets cobbled together like a poorly thought out piece of machinery. Lean tos and broken down shacks leaned against slightly less dilapidated houses, meandering down the sides of the street, the wood waterlogged from the recent rain. A river that the Divine Church dumps all of it's sewage in runs at the edge of the city. Kanda scowled. Typical.
Running his hands through his petal-like hair, Kanda shook his head to clear his thoughts, scowling in irritation.
Because right at this moment, Kanda was irritated. He was stuck in the worst damn part of the city chasing down a local legend that was more ghost than rumor, it had rained yesterday night while he was trying to track him down, and as far as he was concerned, it was all this "Masquerade" bastard's fault.
The Black Order had heard rumor about him on the streets. A rogue Exorcist called "Masquerade", lauded as the people's Exorcist, who patrolled the places the Black Order wouldn't.
(Of course, it was more like couldn't, as the Exorcists were under orders not to patrol the Shanties until the people living there, 'supplied the allotted resources'. Even Kanda could see that was complete bullshit.)
There were all sorts of unbelievable rumors about him. That he saved nearly ever person he came across. That he could see Akuma's souls, and mourned every life that he couldn't save. That he shielded people from Akuma bullets with his own body in order to save them.
Complete bullshit, basically. Most likely borne from too much gossip, too little sense, and an unhealthy amount of hero worship.
Nobody was that self-sacrificing. It was practically suicidal.
Though, if it were true, he would become a great asset to the Order, depending on if he survived that long.
It almost made Kanda wish he wouldn't find him.
As if to negate Kanda's wish, a flare of an unfamiliar Innocence signature popped up from about thirty-four metres away. Kanda's advanced hearing heard a large crash followed by an explosion, the crackle of magic humming against his skin, and then a scream split the air.
Dimming the light that he naturally emitted as much as he could, Kanda took off running towards where he sensed the unfamiliar signature, hopping from roof to roof in a blur of speed before coming upon the scene.
The scene was complete chaos. The explosion had blown apart two houses, smoking and burning bits of debris scattered or sticking up from the ground. The ground was blackened and had a small incline of earth blown out of the ground with bits of dirt scattered everywhere. Smoke and dust filled the air, making it hard to see and harder to breathe, Kanda's lungs burned from the smoke, his eyes achy and watering.
Che.
Annoying.
Off to the side away from most of the smoke, there were four civilians huddled behind a glowing blue-grey dome, about medium sized he'd say, so the caster either has a good sized magical core, though not enough to be considered powerful, or they're not showing their true hand.
Che. Better than having no magic at all.
Kanda could sense the fight raging on somewhere among the smoke and debris, the Innocence in perfect synchrony with it's partner, but he dismissed it as unimportant for now and went to check the civilians for injuries.
He jumped off the roof of the building, landing with ease of long practice. Reaching over to grab Mugen's hilt in case he needed to make a quick draw, he picked his way through the dirt and debris and approached the dome.
He didn't try to touch it, as he recognized it from Lenalee's magic. It was a Soul Name produced shield, something directed by the caster's intent and powered by both the caster's and the Named's willpower. The magic he felt emanating from the dome was powerful enough to make his teeth buzz and his curse ache, crawling under his skin like thousands of ants. Judging by that, he'd say there was enough willpower between the two of them that if he tried touching it, it would knock him back a fair distance, as well as try it's best to burn him to a crisp.
Well, others have tried harder to kill him.
Still, he doesn't try touching it. He wasn't an idiot.
"Is everyone alright?" He asked the civilians.
A girl with red hair and piercing grey eyes holding on tight to a girl wearing an Afghan looked at him. A light bulb seemed to go off in her head as she glanced at Mugen.
"You're taking him away, aren't you?" she said lowly, accusingly. The girl with golden brown skin wearing a red and black hijab stopped resting her head into the crook of the redhead's neck to look at him calculatingly. The Japanese man wearing way too many rainbow beads eyes widened.
Kanda nodded, grave. There was no point in lying.
Her eyes narrowed. "I hope you're happy. You're taking one of the only good things left out of this place."
Kanda smiled bitterly.
I'm never happy.
"Come out, come out, wherever you are Exorcist~! It's Suppertime!" The Akuma taunted in a saccharine voice, it's voice booming and echoing with the promise of the void. Well, at least it wasn't a Feral. Those ones tended to be unpredictable.
"Then where's dinner?" A male voice asked, as if actually curious. Then the Akuma screeched in agony, it's bird-like screech overlayed with millions of other voices.
"Right here!" The Akuma growled, and the dance resumed a more furious tempo. Even if Kanda couldn't see it, he could sense the Akuma's rage and hunger. He hated the ones that actually ate people. Along with the bad press reviews, even if it was just one bite, the Akuma virus would spread from the wound and into the rest of the body, turning them to dust, though at a slightly slower rate than Akuma bullets, most likely because blood was more infective than saliva.
Ever since the war was revealed, some of the Exorcists, especially the Finders, began hoping that they could bring their dead comrades home in something more than urns disguised as coffins. That, now that the war was out in the open, the Earl would feel no reason to hide, and would let them bring their dead comrades home.
But he didn't.
The Earl made a mockery of their efforts, by turning everyone who fought, everyone who knew, everyone who wished for a world without war, into cremains.
Everyone turned to dust, in the end.
(It was a foolish hope, Kanda had thought, to think the Earl cared about what the world wanted).
"Are any of you hurt?" Kanda repeated. They were really trying his patience.
He looked them over and saw a few scrapes and bruises, that was until he saw the redhead's right arm. It had been partially covered by the girl with dark hair and eyes and deep brown skin, but now he saw it clearly. It had been severed at the shoulder, and Kanda frowned.
Who or what could have done that?
"What happened to your arm?" Kanda asked with a frown.
The redhead glared, grey eyes flashing. "None of your business!"
The dark eyed girl put a hand on her unhurt shoulder. The redhead calmed. The dark eyed girl looked at Kanda and said, "It is nothing of import. She will be fine."
Kanda huffed. "Whatever."
Looking closely, he saw some sort of bandaging around the area that reminded him oddly of spiderweb, and there was hardly any blood compared to what he'd seen with field amputations, so that was good.
Shrugging it off for now, he decided to take them in for questioning later.
The fourth civilian seemed to have caught on to Kanda's thought processes. His sharp green eyes evaluated Kanda coldly for a moment. And then he winked, tossing back his long curly locks with a flirtatious smirk.
Kanda was so thrown by the action that when he caught the flash of steel in the man's hand as he darted forwards, he had a second's delayed reaction. That second was all the man needed to plunge the knife into the beaded man's stomach, and then he turned on his heels, Kanda's katana coming down on the shield straight over his head. It screeched against the top of the shield, and then Kanda got the feeling of being punched in the gut while a burning pain ran through him.
He blinked, suddenly awake when he hadn't fallen asleep, his curse burning liquid fire through his veins. He coughed, sitting up, to spot the criminal wonder hightailing it down an alleyway. Snatching Mugen off of the ground, he stumbled to his feet and gave chase.
Criminal Wonder must not know this side of town very well, because he gets himself cornered in a dead end. He turned, snarl already on his face. Kanda heard the scrape of claws on cobblestone, and then the man's form shifts and molds like clay, his glamour dropping to reveal a huge Nemean Lion, lithe body prowling closer with a rumbling growl low in his throat, and Kanda cursed under his breath.
Most people forget how big lions are. Bigger than a six foot man is tall length wise, and everything is made of lithe muscle and killer instincts. And hat Kanda is dealing with isn't any ordinary lion. No, it's a fucking Nemean Lion, know in Greek Mythology for having an impenetrable pelt.
Of course, in the real world, it's a bit different. An Innocence may be able to take down an Akuma, but when it came to something like this, only the strongest Innocence users, General level or very close to it, could take the heat.
Last time Kanda got an evaluation he was at 89% synchronization, and he had avoided getting evaluated ever since because he could feel he and Mugen getting closer to General level. Like hell he wanted that position.
The only problem with that was that now, he didn't know for sure if Mugen was strong enough to pierce that hide.
Well, only one way to find out.
Kanda bared his sword and dashed forward. They clashed, the Criminal Wonder taking a swipe at him with a huge forepaw, claws catching on his cloak as he stepped to the side, Mugen flashing downward to slash at his flank.
It screeched against his hide like it was made of steel, sparks flying. And then, all 21 tons of Nemean Lion twisted around and pinned Kanda to the ground, knocking the breath out of him until he couldn't breathe, grinding his face into the muck.
Kanda's anger lit, and the natural light that surrounded his species flared as bright as a flash bomb.
The Criminal Wonder yowled in pain, rearing up off of Kanda. Kanda twisted around onto his back, plan clicking into place, and then he's reared up off the ground and plunged his katana through the lion's mouth and up into his brain, Mugen breaking through his skull to the back of his head.
A fountain of blood and brain matter spilled down his arms and splattered his face and shoulders, running down the front of his uniform. The lion groaned, and his eyes rolled back into his head, and his breathing slowed to the point where his flanks barely moved in the act of breathing.
In a coma. Good.
Kanda braced his foot against Criminal Wonder's skull and pulled Mugen free, the blade pulling free easily, covered in gore. Kanda gave it a quick clean with his cleaning kit, though the sword still felt the slightest bit irritated even after that. "Later, I promise." Kanda said, knowing he's just hallucinating, feeling things from an object of all things, but it's not like it matters. He thought he felt a hint of exasperation.
Shaking his head, he reached into his pack and pulled out a silver knife, nearly as long as his forearm. He stuck it up the pathway he made into Criminal Wonder's skull, knowing the silver will keep the cut from healing as well as cause him severe to moderate pain.
…At least it's not Wolfsbane.
Sheathing Mugen and running back to the scene, he dismissed the two civilian's horrified eyes at his appearance and surveyed the beads man. Except…
"You pulled the knife out?! You idiots!"
"We needed to put pressure on it!" The redhead defended.
"But then it bled more. Quite profusely." The muslim girl said.
Kanda cursed profoundly in Japanese.
"Let me see." He ordered.
The redhead looked like she was about to protest on principle, but the dark eyed girl simply lifted up their makeshift bandage, the redhead's pants, and pushed him out of the shielding so Kanda could access the wound.
Kanda bit down on his wrist, making sure it was deep, and turned his wrist over, the green and red blood falling directly onto the wound.
Come on, please work.
There was a sizzling noise, and the stab wound on the man's stomach started to steam, the flesh knitting itself back together. When it was finished there was only one scar; the faint impression of Kanda's curse mark, the same one on Marie's forehead.
The redhead looked on with wide eyes while the dark eyed girl simply watched with an air as if this was to be expected.
Kanda met their eyes. "You didn't see that." He said warningly. The redhead snorted while the dark eyed girl just smiled.
Kanda was just shoving the beaded man back into the shield when the fight got a little too close for comfort.
The Akuma came flying out of the dust and smoke, It's black wings dripping black tar, multitudes of eyes that weeped black ichor moving and twisting grotesquely, dotted all over it's large raven-like body. "Come, little Exorcist~! Come play a game!" The raven cawed, the one lone eye on it's forehead pulsing, red pupil searching through the smoke.
Kanda drew Mugen and activated it quickly, feeling it hum with anticipation as he sharpened his mind down to a pinpoint and reached towards his core. The energy burned through his veins, and he slashed his sword, insects powered by nightmares themselves fading into existence, flying straight toward the Akuma, their sharp snouts leaving gouges in it's back and damaging one of its wings before disappearing.
One of the Akuma's eyes has focused on him. "Oh? Have you come to play? How nice!" It lifted its wings and shot dozens of razor sharp feathers in his direction. Kanda darted to the side, and when a feather came his way, he sliced it in half.
A bolt of destructive blue-grey magic suddenly pierced through the Akuma's breast, and it screeched. Kanda noticed it was already missing a leg and part of it's head.
Masquerade stepped through the smoke. "I'm afraid I'm not very fond of games." He said, white cloak flaring behind him, black and gold half mask over his face, four inch long metallic claws crackling with magic.
Masquerade tilted his head. "Where is your core?" He asked, sounding honestly curious. "It's not in your chest. That's rather impressive."
Kanda drew Mugen and narrowed his eyes. What was this guy's angle, complimenting the Akuma?
The Akuma puffed up like a peacock, cackling with glee. "It's impossible, you'll never find it! It's unseeable!"
Masquerade's lips quirked. "Is that so."
The next sequence of events only made sense to Kanda later, after the fight.
For now, he saw Masquerade's left eye go black and red, and then he looked up.
"Do you mind, Miss?" He asked the thin air above the Akuma. What? Kanda thought he heard something, the whisper of the wind maybe, and Masquerade's face softened. "Thank you."
Masquerade then jumped above the Akuma, standing on its head for balance. What the hell is he thinking?! But then his claw slashed down into thin air, and the Akuma let out a blood curdling scream. A rotted Akuma core phased into view, slashed to pieces, dropping to the ground.
The Akuma dropped, losing most of its being with the loss of its core, the soul tethered to it slowly leaving its body. Masquerade finished it off quickly, and then deactivated his Innocence.
Kanda could see his face for the first time, and it's infuriating to realize that Masquerade, the ghost of his nightmares, was a puny little teenager. He couldn't be, what, fourteen? And this was the guy who the Black Order had had him hunting down for months on end, following lead after lead?
He was just a little Beansprout!
Still. Orders were orders.
He stepped forward, sheathing his sword. "Masquerade, I have direct orders from Central to take you in. Please come quietly." Please don't come quietly so I can beat your face in.
Masquerade nodded. "Alright. But before I go, would you like to see her?"
Kanda snorted. "See who?"
Masquerade smiled. "The Akuma's soul."
Kanda scoffed and was about to cuff him right there and let Central deal with his ass, when Masquerade put a hand on his shoulder.
Kanda was suddenly flooded with feelings that weren't his, feelings of sadness and anger and guilt.
He looked up and instantly wanted to puke.
This… thing, whatever it was, was… rotted to the core. The feelings it gave off made him ill with feelings of nausea and clinging forebodings of hopelessness, a sense of being trapped, of too little space around him. The only thing left that wasn't eaten away was a weary half image of an old woman's face.
"Hello," she said, sounding tired and sad. "My name's Ariel."
Masquerade smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Ariel." His smile softened. "Is there anything you want to say, before you go?"
"Oh, well…" Ariel seemed to stumble for a moment. "It was my fault. I always smoked, no matter what Daryl said. And then, the cancer… we caught it too late."
Masquerade's face softened. "I'm sorry." He smiled and reached his hand out to her, "please have peace in the afterlife."
"Thank you." The soul said as it floated up, fading away with what looked like a relieved smile, tears running down what was left of her face before it broke apart with that small, thankful smile still on her face.
Kanda recognized it.
Kanda jerked his face down, glaring. He rubbed at his mouth to try to get rid of the phantom feelings of that smile, that fucking smile. He ran his hands through his ponytail, the touch on his petals grounding. He looked up at Masquerade, about to snap at him, only to see he wasn't even paying attention to him. He was patting his pockets, like he had lost something. His brows were furrowed.
"Shit. Timcanpy, you better not have eaten it, or I swear." Masquerade threatened. There was an insulted "grah!" from somewhere near Masquerade, and then a golden ball came flying out of his sleeve holding a letter in it's jaws. "Oh," Masquerade said, sheepish. "Sorry, Tim. If you could fly that over to him for me?" The golden golem huffed if it's possible to huff without a nose, turning around and smacking Masquerade on the head with its tail in a fit of vengefulness, and flew over to Kanda, landing on his palm and depositing the letter into his hand with a pleased "grah!"
Kanda quirked an eyebrow. He'd never met a golem with this much personality. Something about that pinged in his memory, but he focused on the letter, nodding to the golem in thanks and turning it over to read the address, the golem going off back to it's master.
To: Head of the European Branch; Komui Lee
From: General Cross Marian
Kanda cursed to himself. So he was Cross's apprentice. No wonder he hadn't been able to keep track of him. Cross Marian was practically untraceable, and if his apprentice had picked up even half his habits…
Well.
Kanda eyed Masquerade warily.
And not to mention this suspicious ass letter. He couldn't open it; it had a General's seal and everything, which meant it could only go to a Branch head or the person it was addressed to.
But General's seals meant big news, and big news meant bad business for the Exorcists.
Kanda glared at the letter, as if just by his glare he could develop laser vision and fix this problem before it even began.
Kanda sighed. Pulling out his golem, he made a quick call to Headquarters to pick up the civilians and the Criminal Wonder for questioning, reporting that one of the civilians needed serious medical attention. The Beansprout was over by the civilians, taking down the shield and doing who knows what else with them.
Once the call was finished, Beansprout headed back over towards Kanda, Timcanpy doing acrobatic loops above his head to amuse itself. Che. At least he had some sense in that head full of cotton.
"Come on, Beansprout. Let's head back to HQ." He said, and started walking, not bothering to shorten his stride for the smaller boy.
"The name is Allen!" The white haired boy objected, and Kanda looked back to smirk at him.
"So? Hurry up Beansprout. And pick up the pace. If you get left behind it's your own damn fault."
"I'll show you Beansprout." He heard the Beansprout mutter. But he picked up the pace to match his stride to Kanda's, nearly trotting to keep up. Timcanpy followed, doing ever circuitous routes around them, watchful.
Kanda smirked. "Hope you can keep up." He said, as he jumped up onto the roof. All the 'sprout did was huff and jump up beside him, however. The corner of Kanda's lip turned down. At least he wasn't completely useless.
"Keep up, 'sprout. It's a long way to HQ." Kanda said, jumping to the next roof.
The 'sprout snorted in disdain. "As if you could beat me!" He said, jumping three roofs in quick succession, not stopping to wait for Kanda. Timcanpy "graahed" in amusement.
Kand smirked.
So that's how it was.
(In the end, by long experience roof hopping in this part of town, as well as an advantage in acrobatics and a lighter body weight that allowed the precariously balanced roofs to tolerate his stunts, Allen beats Kanda by a narrow margin).
(Kanda couldn't be more pissed).
Komui Lee sat at his desk, drinking his habitual cup of coffee. Komui grimaced at the taste. He preferred cream and two sugars; currently they were out of both in the break room, and all of the scientists were either too tired or too lazy to restock.
(And he swore on the bunny mug that Lenalee had gave him for his birthday that some of that sugar had just up and disappeared. He'd be convinced someone was hoarding it if he hadn't checked everyone's work spaces in a fit of sleep deprived paranoia).
He would probably need to make another emergency call to one of the Exorcists again. But he could let it wait for awhile longer. They already had too many burdens on their shoulders without adding one more.
"Brother!" Lenalee strode into his office, a serious look on her face.
"Lenalee? What's wrong?" What's got her so upset? Her emotions were a roiling pit of fear and stress, and he sensed an odd anticipation from her, half determination and half dread, that he only felt from her before she went off on a mission.
"Kanda's back from his mission. He says he's got a new Exorcist in need of evaluation and a letter of high importance."
Komui frowned in thought, eyes narrowing. As he recalled, Kanda had landed the Masquerade mission, and had been in and out of the Order looking for him for more than half a year.
Respect for Kanda's strength in battle had been dropped quickly for disdain for his brains and overall attitude throughout Kanda's time with the Masquerade mission, as most picked up the notion that if Kanda couldn't track down one measly Exorcist, he must be lacking in the brains department. It didn't help that Kanda's overall attitude hid his perceptive and analytical mind.
People saw what they wanted to see, and Kanda had never exactly set out to make any friends. In fact, he'd done quite the opposite.
But if he'd actually brought Masquerade in, well, Komui would be delighted to meet him.
But that letter.
"Of high importance," Lenalee had said. He puzzled over it, tapping a finger on his chin in thought.
Of high importance…
It slotted into place with a detail that had been plaguing Kanda for months, and he laughed, before he felt a grim foreboding.
It looked like Cross had finally taken an apprentice.
But now, what was his game?
And what did it mean for Lenalee and the other Exorcists?
The Black Order Headquarter doors swung open for them both. Allen and Kanda strode in, met by a corridor with gleaming white walls, ceilings, and floors, with a long red carpet underneath their feet. They walked out of the corridor and into an entrance hall. The ceilings spread high overhead, a mosaic of the Black Order crest spreading across the ceiling. Allen shivered with the weight of invisible eyes.
The entrance hall widened into a good sized room, on one side of the room was a well worn couch, on the other a comfortable looking bed that must be used for any Exorcists that came in too tired or too injured to move after a battle, judging by the stretcher stored at the head of the bed. In the middle of the room was an ornate end table with heaps of food that looked either to be replaced regularly with fresh food or under a stasis spell. The stasis spell would be much more efficient, and less wasteful as well considering the times they lived in; but he wouldn't put it past Komui to pull out all stops for the Exorcists to be able to have fresh food after a mission.
Allen could sense eight active Innocences in the building, some on the ground floor and some on the second, two with unfamiliar signatures. Though one felt as if he should recognize it, or at least, the person attached to it. There was also the faint signatures of inactive Innocences being protected by Hevlaska that he felt underneath his feet.
Overall, it was a lot more like the second Headquarters from Allen's time and/or universe.
Timeverse?
Ugh. Whatever.
That's a stupid name, but it's the best he's got.
Allen glanced at Kanda, or BaKanda he supposed, to find him watching him intently.
…Does he have blood on his face or is he just being creepy?
Allen tried, for a moment, to remember if he got any Akuma blood on his face, and if not, just who's or what's blood it was, before he sensed two oncoming Innocences, one of them the one that should feel familiar, and discreetly wiped his face, just in case.
Komui and Lenalee Lee entered the entrance hall, and Allen glanced around for another person before he realized the Innocence signature was coming from Komui himself.
What the hell?
He hadn't changed anything so far as far as he knew. But he was in an alternate universe where there were literal demons and other supernatural creatures to go along with all the other problems.
Kandā was a glowing plant, for chrissakes.
And hadn't that been a surprise. He'd read about Iyasii before, of course. It was a bit relevant to his current situation. But most of Cross's books stated that the Iyasā were thought to be extinct, as most of them were thought to be extinct. They were said to be very magic reliant creatures, feeding off of magic and producing magic in return, and with the theorized decline in magic over the years, plus the hate crimes that destroyed the homes that sheltered them from winter, they had quickly faded into history.
But Allen supposed, with the second Exorcist project and all, anything could happen if you added science, magic, and desperation to the mix.
Not that Allen planned on knitting Kandā a sweater any time soon.
(Not that he knew how to knit, or anything. The knitting needles he used for his mediums were purely for practical purposes).
He met the eyes of Lenalee Lee. Smiling purple eyes and the sound of laughter from the past overlayed the future. Agonized screaming rang in his ears, the smell of burnt and blackened flesh permeating his nose, choking down his throat as he breathed the smoke filled air.
He blinked, and it faded. This Lenalee's eyes looked at him far too seriously and unfamiliarly to be his Lenalee. To be the Lenalee he loved and cherished. So, just as this Kanda would be Kandā, this Lenalee would be Lena.
He still loved them. But they weren't the same.
Lena is currently looking at him, puzzled. Allen realized he had been staring off into space right at her.
Allen sighed, rubbing the back of his head. He sent an apologetic glance at Komui. "I'm sorry. It's been a quite a long day."
Komui looked surprised, and then smiled. "It's quite alright. An Exorcist's job is a taxing one."
Allen rubbed the back or his head again, wishing he could run it through the length of his hair to relieve stress, but it was being pinned up by his mediums in a bun, with a few stray hairs escaping to trail down his neck. He scratched at his cheek instead, embarrassed and sheepish. "Thank you." He said sincerely. Thanks for always being so supportive. I'm sure a lot more Exorcists would have died without you stepping in.
Allen smiled, he reached out his right hand, though he knew it was the wrong one, he still couldn't get over the pervading sense of wrongness (fear) when other's touched his left hand. "My name's Allen Walker." Timcanpy got up from where he'd been sitting on Allen's shoulder, nudging Allen's cheek insistently. "And this is Timcanpy. He's Master Cross's golem." Timcanpy puffed up with misplaced pride at that comment.
Komui doesn't look perturbed, smiling in a friendly manner, reaching out with his left hand to shake. "Komui Lee, Head of the European Branch."
"Nice to meet you," Allen said, searching Komui for an Innocence. He doesn't see one, so he supposes either he left it somewhere (unlikely) or he's parasitic.
"This is my sister Lenalee, and I suppose you've already met Kanda." Komui said, gesturing from person to person.
Allen's mouth quirked into an amused smile. "I never got his name, actually."
Komui's mouth quirked up. "Ah," He said. "Well, if you'll follow me?" He gestured further
inside.
Allen agreed, and they departed for Komui's office, Komui offering to give him a tour later.
They entered the office, and Allen was amused (sad) to see that it was the same as always, papers covering every square inch of the floor and the stacks of paperwork piled up waiting to be signed. There was yet another Rose Cross emblem on a tapestry on the wall far wall, and Allen's skin crawled with the weight of an invisible stare. Komui gestured to the couch, and Allen waited until Kandā and Lena sat, sitting next to Lena.
"Alright, the letter, Kanda." Komui asked, holding out a hand.
Kandā retrieves the letter, Allen unable to tell where he was even keeping it from his movements, and hands it over, Komui breaking the seal and unfolding the letter.
An anxious tension circulates through the room in the time Komui takes to read the letter, and it's a tension Allen shares.
He has no idea what will be sprung into motion after this.
All he can hope is that it's to the benefit of his own plans.
After all, if you've gone back in time, back to the very beginning, back to the start of it all, where none of your friends are dead, why not go all out? Why not change it all?
It might be jumping the gun a bit, but if Allen was anything, he was reckless and willing to do anything to protect what was his.
Well, more like manipulative, cynical, and bitter, but you get the point.
Komui's scanning eyes got to the end of the letter, his eyes widening the more he reads. Komui looked up and stared at Allen with wide, hopeful eyes for a moment, before his face became grave, and he leveled them all with a serious look.
"Gather all Exorcists for a meeting in the rec room. We'll be covering a debriefing on new intel on the Clan of Noah."