Disclaimer: I don't own Chrno Crusade, any of the characters in this story (With the exception of the un-named demon), etc.
Bleep. Bleep. Bleep. Bleep.
Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.
…And it was over. They were hoping to discover a cure in time to save him, but now there was no chance. He was their tester, Luckily, however, the doctor made it to the room to witness the incident.
He thrust the door open and skidded into the room, two nurses following behind him. Then… They saw it.
A bright burst of colours shone in the air over the bed. He couldn't look away… Its mystifying presence seemed to have a hold over him. Then… A sudden scream echoed through his head. He clasped his ears in pain to muffle it, but it was still echoing.
Then… The lights disappeared. The screaming stopped. There was silence. He ran over to the patient to check his vital signs, but…
"…He's gone." He announced mournfully. He was unsure of what he should be feeling… Anxiety… Fear… Anger… Questioning…
He started to pull the sheet over the patient's body to cover it should anyone walk in without knowing what had happened, yet as he did, he noticed a lump on the patients chest.
He fumbled to pull the patients shirt up, but curiously, all he saw was…
-
"A watch?" Rosette asked. Sister Kate nodded.
"I was curious about it too. I sent the Elder to examine it, and he was sure it was a sign of…" She started.
"A contract." Chrno said. Sister Kate nodded. "But why did we need to know?"
"…I want you to be extremely careful, Rosette. This may be a sign of much worse-"
"But only one person has died! I'm sure it was just a coincidence that he was a contractor!" Rosette protested. Sister Kate groaned.
"Please, Rosette. This is an unknown disease. It's too large a coincidence to start acting carefree over. Should you catch it, we'll be short two people, and we need all the help we can get." Sister Kate explained.
"But there are so many members here!" Rosette shouted.
"The majority are still in the academy, and the demons in the city have been gaining strength. We've lost ten people out there already… It's like the beginning of the Armageddon…" Sister Kate fretted.
Rosette groaned. "Fine… I surrender. But this doesn't mean I'm just sitting around here! I still want to go out on missions!" Rosette bargained.
"Agreed." Sister Kate said with a sigh of relief. "You are dismissed."
-
They were sitting alone in the cafeteria, as usual. Just Rosette and Chrno, accompanied by Azmaria.
"Why does Sister Kate treat me like such a child?!?! I don't need her to look after me like that!" Rosette yelled, wolfing down the food in front of her as she spoke.
"Now, Rosette… She just cares! If you died-" Azmaria started.
"It'd be a blow to the Order." Chrno finished. "And that's something we can't afford. You remember how strong our last demon was."
"Oh, please… It wasn't that bad! You're all over exaggerating…" Rosette replied.
"But…" Azmaria trailed off, but then sat silently for a few seconds before standing up and storming out of the cafeteria, stifling back tears. Chrno just shot Rosette a dirty stare.
"It's not supposed to be her you're angry with. If you must fight with Sister Kate, at least leave her out of it!" Chrno shouted. Rosette just ignored him. He growled.
"Fine, be that way. But one day, I assure you something will happen to someone you love, and it may just be Azmaria! Just imagine how you'd feel if that happened before you bite her head off next time." Chrno lectured. He then stood up and ran out of the cafeteria to look for Azmaria.
Rosette stared after both of them for a minute, then shook her head before continuing to force the food down her throat.
-
"Why does everyone treat me like a child…" Rosette mumbled. "I can take proper care of myself! I don't care what anyone else says! That bug won't catch me! I've bested stronger things than a disease, you can count on that!"
As she stormed through the hallways of the Order headquarters, she occasionally stopped to stare out a window, in case anything strange came up. 'Sister Kate's lecture is starting to get to me…' Rosette thought to herself. However, she shook her head as if hoping to clear the thoughts, then continued on.
Then, as she stopped at an open window on the second floor, she saw a shadowy figure. She could barely make out its knee-length shining blonde hair, and amazingly large sword resting on her childish shoulders. She seemed to be staring at Rosette, as if egging her to come down and fight. She flourished her sword as a taunt and bellowed.
Rosette grinned maliciously, and jumped right out the window, sliding down the side roof, and rolling as she reached the ground. She landed with her gun out and aiming at the girl. However, she didn't notice the figure was wearing dark armour, and the bullets simply rebounded and landed helplessly on dusty ground beneath their feet.
"…Who are you?" Rosette asked.
The figure just stared. "…The Bearer." She finally said. She thrust her open palm to Rosette, and it started to glow a strange shade of green…
She seemed a lot different from who she saw from the window… But before she could ask her next question, a sharp, stabbing pain attacked Rosette in the chest. She screamed, and doubled over in pain before passing out. The girl simply grinned before disappearing into thin air.
End Note: Well, that was definetely different from my first draft... It's definetely a change for the better, I'll give it that. I've had this idea for ages, and I've only just today managed to work it into words... I hope you all enjoyed it!