Chapter 2:
William stood perched on a high branch of a nearby tree as he stared down at his accursed destination. By his very nature, he was the type to follow the rules and to create order out of chaos, but a tiny part of him was tempted to not do as he had been instructed just this once. If he could be successful in the overall mission, perhaps he could avoid any reprimands from refusing a direct order, but he knew that he couldn't take that chance. No matter how much this twisted his insides and grated his nerves, he had to complete this task. Adjusting his glasses more out of habit than necessity, he leapt from the tree gracefully and landed on the front lawn of Phantomhive Manor.
He had been ordered to ask the demon for assistance.
With a determined stride that disguised just how much he wished he could run away from this task, William walked to the front entrance, but the door was opened before he had a chance to knock. Like a contemptable piece of art painted by deranged artist, Sebastian stood framed by the doorway as he calmly looked eyes with the reaper. "Ah, Mr. Spears," he began in faux cultured tone, "To what do I owe this extreme displeasure? No one has died, and that red disgrace of a subordinate of yours is not here either."
William gritted his teeth but sought to keep his face calm. He had already been annoyed and disgusted, but the demon's casual insult towards Grell only added to those feelings. "I have been instructed," he began, ensuring that this beast didn't think he had come here of his own accord, "to request your assistance in a matter concerning an increase of demonic activity."
Sebastian smirked. "I offered my assistance to you before," he said, "and you denied it rather rudely." His hand flashed and William barely had time to react before silverware was expertly flung at his head. The reaper dodged as he extended his scythe, but Sebastian's movements were equally quick. He jumped to the side, and William's scythe pierced the door instead.
"It is quite annoying how every time a reaper makes an appearance here I'm forced to make repairs," stated Sebastian as he twisted in midair and prepared another assault.
"I didn't want to come here, demon," William said, "but Upper Management foolishly thinks you might have some information."
"Even if I do," returned Sebastian, "why would I hand over such information so readily?"
"Because it concerns that child with whom you have a contract," William answered, "or rather, it concerns his family." His scythe stayed firmly in his right hand, but he reached into his jacket to pull out the folder with his left.
Sebastian eyed the folder for a moment as if expecting this to be nothing more than a trick, but then he stepped forward and retrieved it. Scanning the contents quickly, he chuckled much to William's annoyance. "I'm surprised that would trust, as you put it, a foul creature such as myself with such valuable information."
"It wasn't my choice, demon," William growled.
"As I can see," Sebastian replied as he tucked the folder beneath his arm and gestured to the door, "I will share this information with my young master. Step inside while I speak to him, although I do request that you endeavor not to damage any property."
William didn't trust himself to answer verbally, but he nodded slightly and stepped inside the manor. Sebastian led him to a room to wait, instructing him to take a seat if he liked, while he went off to show the boy contained in the folder. William decided to stand while he waited, and he wondered how the boy would react that, according to the information gathered by Upper Management's spies, that both his parents and his paternal grandmother's souls were among those being hoarded by these demons.
William didn't have wait long until Ciel quickly entered the room and stood before him. "Do these demons really have the souls of my parents?" he demanded without any sort of a greeting. The boy crossed his arms as he spoke and stared at William with something almost of pure rage blazing in his visible eye. Of course, it was what was glistening in his concealed eye that infuriated William. This child was reason this demon was even in this place or somehow seemed connected to all of the recent mishaps.
"According to our information, that is the case," William answered, but he hated saying so much. Usually, this sort of information was classified, but his instructions had specified to give these details to the young earl.
Ciel's face darkened. "Is Undertaker involved?" he asked.
For a brief moment, William was flummoxed. No one had heard anything from the deserter for quite some time, although there was a task force assigned with finding him so that he could be brought back to their realm to face punishment. He hadn't even considered Undertaker's involvement, but he couldn't deny there could be a connection. "I have no information concerning him presently," he answered honestly, "although it would be foolish to completely rule it out."
"Of course," the boy turned away from William. "Sebastian," he began in a commanding tone, "you are to assist William and get to the bottom of this. Now, let us hurry to this abandoned church."
"Do you wish to go as well, young master?" Sebastian asked, "It might prove to be quite dangerous."
"I'm going!" Ciel shouted, "You will take me to this church. This is an order, Sebastian."
"Yes, my lord."
((x))
Grell walked through the empty halls of the library and listened as the sound of her own footfalls echoed off the walls and high, arched ceilings. Other than her own footsteps, it was unusually quiet and it made her feel rather alone. Of course, it seemed that she was usually alone these days.
With a sigh, she sat down on a bench as she stared up at all the records. There were some rather salacious records stored in here, although it took some effort to find them, and she remembered sneaking in here as a student to try to find the more intriguing ones. It had been a bit of a game back then, but so much had changed. In fact, the only thing that hadn't changed was her feelings towards William and his continual rejections. Oddly enough even if she could tell her heart to stop loving him, she probably wouldn't have done so. There were times when they had spoken bluntly, removed their masks to reveal their true selves, and she had seen something in the depths of William's normally cold eyes that urged her to keep trying. At the same time, she couldn't help but wonder how long her heart could take the constant rejection.
As she sat there, engulfed in her own thoughts, a strange noise reached her ears. It was faint, but it sounded like glass cracking and breaking slightly. More curious than anything else, she stood up and made her way towards the noise.
((x))
William closed the portal as Sebastian and Ciel made their way through, but this situation still infuriated him. He knew he was traveling into a possible nest of demons, but he would have far preferred to do so with some reliable agents. He truly didn't think Sebastian had anything to offer, and he knew that he couldn't fully trust him. However, he had to focus on the task at hand, so he pushed those feelings aside as he turned his attention to the ruins of the old church.
The stench of demons intertwined the area like poisonous thorns, but William could not get a sense of how many were in the vicinity. Swallowing his pride, he turned toward Sebastian, who was still holding the child earl in his arms like a dog protecting his bone. "So, demon," he began, "what do you make of this situation?"
Sebastian set the boy down, and William noticed that he wasn't smirking. "There is a strong presence here," he answered, "but I can't get a good sense as to what. There is something else here as well besides demons. It would appear we have a bit of a mystery on our hands."
"Honestly," William mumbled, adjusting his glasses. It made no sense to him why Upper Management would have ever sent him to such a location with only a trustworthy demon as his ally. While he prided himself on not taking unnecessary risks, he couldn't see a reasonable course of action.
"The one thing I am certain of," Sebastian added, "is that the epicenter is within the desecrated rubble of the church."
"Of course," William said, "I suppose it is much too ambitious for me to expect that you are willing to take a closer look."
Sebastian only smiled. "After you," he offered.
((x))
The tiny cracking noise that Grell had heard suddenly erupted, and she recognized the sound with something of dread. It was the sound of a holy barrier breaking. She had recognized the barrier when she had entered the library, although she had passed through it without incident. In fact, no one in this realm should have any reason to break through such a barrier, and the realization caused her heart to beat a little faster as she hurried to the noise.
She was not surprised when she saw the demons spilling through the entrance in a desperate search for souls.
The demons must have thought she was retreated when she ran to a far wall, but she simply hit the alarm before summoning her chainsaw. Even with her impressive strength and skills, she knew she had no chance against a massive hoard of demons, but she might be able to hold them off until backup arrived.
Smiling dangerously, she leapt into the air as she prepared to fight. After all, William had given her this assignment, and she was determined to do it correctly.
((x))
William could feel the sweat creeping down his shoulder blades despite the cool evening air as he inched closer to the church. The stench here was so strong that William had to struggle not to gag, but he wasn't going to show any weakness in front of Sebastian. Slowly, he came to the crumbling wall and peered through an opening that might have once been a window.
Inside were a dozen or so low level demons that had possessed a variety of humans – much like the demon that Grell and he had encountered on their early mission together. The bodies they were inhabiting were beginning to degrade slightly, and there posed no real danger outside of the fact that William was supposed to spare their lives if possible. There were other items scattered about the room which carried the stronger scents that both Sebastian and he had noted previously.
"Not precisely what I was expecting," Sebastian stated, "It appears that your information was not entirely accurate."
William shook his head, although he made no attempt to answer verbally. There were no stronger demons here and there were no souls. In fact, this almost seemed like a set-up, because someone or something had taken great pains to make this place appear to be a hotbed of demonic activity. That made no sense, however, unless it was to draw him here and away from the real target.
Suddenly, a thought erupted in William's mind and he felt his eyes grow wide. The library! It was assumed that it might be targeted, but no one had taken it seriously. That's why he had assigned it to Grell, but now he feared that it wasn't so safe after all. "Grell," he said softly, creating a portal back to his realm. Behind him, he heard the boy shouting something about returning them to the manor, but William didn't pause. He'd let the demon worry about his and the child's transportation.
((x))
The moment that Grell felt her scythe ripped from her grasp, she knew that she was in trouble. She had taken out quite a few demons on her own, and had been able to protect all the stored souls so far, but the massive number was just overwhelming. Soon, she felt the blade jammed deeply into her cut and the metallic taste of blood spilled from her mouth.
She wasn't ready to give up so easily however. Ignoring the pain, she spun around and jammed her high heeled boot straight into the demon's gut, and smiled as he doubled over and made a strangled noise. Clawed hands grabbed her arms, and cut her skin through her coat and shirt, as the other demon recovered and attacked her again with her own sharp-toothed friend.
The pain became overwhelming, and she felt her legs give out. They dropped crudely in the floor in a crimson pool of her own blood, but she took some comfort that she had spilled her share of demon blood as well. Her records begin to spill out, but she watched in amazement as the seemingly floated up to the ceiling only to vanish. Was this because she was in the library?
Or was it because she was dying before her redemption?
Sound had become vague, but she heard some familiar shouts and realized that other reapers had finally arrived. She was dying, but she had managed to complete her assignment. She had protected the library.
((x))
William arrived just outside the library, but his heart dropped when he saw it already crawling with the other agents, and he could feel no sign of a holy barrier. Ignoring the shouts of protest, he shoved through the crowd and fought his way to the interior where he was met with a horrific sight.
Dead demons were strewn about; their horrific wounds baring Grell signature style. Dark, demonic blood were splattered from ceiling to floor like some bizarre art project gone wrong, and the stench was even worse than what William had experience in the church.
And in the middle of it all lay Grell in a crumpled heap.
Ronald was by Grell's side, and William could see tears in the blonde reaper's eyes. He had probably been closer to Grell than anyone else, and William felt strangely envious as he hurried over them and knelt on the other side of Grell.
"Mr. Spears?" Ronald said questioningly. Perhaps he was confused by the look of grief that was now painted on William's normally cold features.
At the sound of his name, Grell slowly opened his, or rather her, eyes. William recognized how horrible it was that this revelation was coming on what could very well be Grell's deathbed, but Grell proclaiming herself to be female wasn't a cry for attention, confusion, or just some phase. Grell's soul and heart had been that as a woman, and William had to be here on the precipice of losing her forever just to see that.
"Will," Grell managed, her lips painted red with her own blood. Even the gash down the side of her face didn't detract from her beauty.
"Sshh," William hushed, "Don't try to talk. We're going to get you to the infirmary."
Grell smiled strangely. "I've made a…mess of the lib…library, darling. Are…you…you going to yell…at me?" Her voice was hoarse, and he could hear she was struggling with each word.
He tried to smile back. "Not this time," he said.
"It's…not so…b…bad when…you yell," Grell managed. She reached for him, but her hand only made it part of the way, so William took her hand in his. "Remember…me," she whispered, as her eyes closed.
"Of course," he replied, but he knew the moment the words left his mouth, it was too late.
Grell was dead.
William ran his fingers through the long hair, made redder by all the blood, as he tried to ignore the knots and tangles. He knew how silky her hair usually felt, and that was the memory he was trying to desperately hold on to as two senior reapers stomped into the room. From his position on the floor, William couldn't see them very well, nor was he trying to do so as his attention was focused on Grell's torn and bloodied form.
"We've caught the culprit responsible for breaking down the holy barrier and allowed the demons to enter," announced one of the agents.
William stood quickly and crossed the room toward the agents. He felt only anger when he saw that they had managed to capture Undertaker, who was now bound by a series of chains and shackles designed to contain even the strongest reaper. He was smiling his normal half-mad smile as William approached, and it took a lot of restraint for William not to smash him in the face.
"You killed her," William said in a lone tow, "and I will see you will pay for this crime."
Undertaker's smile mysteriously faded. "Her?" he asked. Without his glasses, he probably couldn't see Grell's body, although he no doubt was aware of the blood and gore.
"You killed Grell Sutcliff," restated William, "and you are aware the penalty for the murder of a reaper has a stiff penalty.
"No one was supposed to be in here," Undertaker said, frowning slightly.
While his words made very little sense, William decided not to dwell on that for the moment as he looked towards the agents. "He needs to be properly detained," he said, "take him to the maximum security cells in the detention center immediately.
"There is no need for that," announced a stern voice.
Several members of upper management walked into the room with identical cut black jackets and dark rimmed glasses. If not for their varying hair colors, it would be possible to think that they were all simply clones of the same man. "We've come to take the criminal known as Undertaker," announced a tall man with short, blonde hair, "His crimes have exceeded all expectations with this latest incident, so he will be put to death."
"That seems like a rather unusual course of actions as there has been no trial," William said. He struggled to keep his voice steady and to speak as he normally would, but it very difficult. In truth, he wanted to slam his fists into Undertaker's face in hopes of breaking his straight, white teeth or busting his nose, but he had to appear to be in control. Besides, if Undertaker was to be put to death, it should be specifically for killing Grell and not just the accumulation of his crimes.
"The decision has already been made," the man replied, "Step aside Mr. Spears or you will be written up for hindering the transportation of a criminal."
William saw he had no option as the men took Undertaker, created a portal, and left. During this time, the room was completely silent as everyone seemed to be trying to comprehend what was happening. Without a word, William turned and slowly walked over to Grell's body, which he effortlessly picked up from the floor. How she would have loved to be in his arms while alive, but sadly the only time William had ever truly held her was after she had died.
He carefully held his emotions inside, but his heart was shattering a little more with each pathetic beat. Death among the reapers was rare, but there were still rites and procedures to be attended to, and William was going to make sure that Grell had a proper funeral and burial. What nagged at him was the uncertainty of Grell's future. William had no way of knowing if this final act had been enough for Grell to receive redemption. If she had not, then she would not be allowed to move on. At best, she had simply disappeared as if she had never existed. At worst, she would be forced to suffer in Hell.
Either way, he would never see Grell again.