Whoa, I got way much more response than I imagined I would. Also, 20+ favourites and follows after a single chapter, this is a new record. Thank you everyone!
Also thank you for the reviews Ryuakilover, Animejessi, Lol and XxxBellaBellaxxX, it means a lot to me, there's no better way to start a day than reading your comments.
After chapter 219 I feel so stupid. Did any of you guys realise that it was Neah who woke up from that flashback? I didn't. It's so embarrassing. I shall fix that. *khm* Well, anyhoo, this story will go on, trying to take the new chapter into consideration.
IMPORTANT! CHAPTER 220 RELEASE DATE IS 16th OCTOBER!
Review please!
Chapter 2 - Devouring Darkness
Two beige coated man stepped out of the train, their faces still bruised from the Second Exorcist's ruthless attacks. They were caught off-guard and had failed their mission miserably. They expected harsh punishment, but to their great surprise they were given a second chance. This could be used to our advantage, the words of their employers rung in their ears, let them go and find Walker.
It made sense. The more of them were together the easier they were to find. Allen Walker somehow managed to disappear from the radar, but having two people by his side would certainly make things harder for him. Those two could be used against him.
One of them were to return and report, while the other was sent on another mission. At first the command sounded strange, but they didn't question it, it wasn't their place to. If they were ordered they acted accordingly, that's how they were trained. So dutifully, he tracked down the given address. It was a small house just on the outskirts of a town. No one in close range. Perfect. He knocked on the door. In a few minutes a short elderly lady opened the door for them, heavily leaning on a staff.
"Ye- Oh, dear, what happened to you, sir?"
The man smiled at her. "Ah, do forgive my attire, I was mugged on the way."
"How horrible!" the woman gasped.
"Fortunately I managed to get away relatively unhurt. However, I was on the way to meet my little brother in the hospital, he might be worried why I haven't arrived already. May I use your telephone to tell him I'm alright, miss?"
"Certainly, please come in." she invited. "I'll put on some tea."
"Then, excuse me." The man said as he took off his hat, hiding his devilish smirk. This was too easy.
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Allen calmly swept his eyes over the seething ex-sailor in front of him. The man's form was extremely tense, his anger and hate were poorly-hidden. In the 3 months he haven't seen Chaoji, he finally had his Innocence forged into an Anti-Akuma weapon. It was a pair of gloves, that gave him superhuman strength, the proof was a quite large hole in the roof. He had to be careful or it might collapse under them. So he was another close-combat fighter. He could decrease the loss the Order suffered by losing a Critical Point Breaker. "It sure has been a while." He remarked.
"Quit the pleasantries, Noah scum, I came to fight you!" He spat as he lunged to give another punch. This time Allen blocked with his Innocence, the white cape absorbing the power of the punch. Chaoji let out an annoyed grunt seeing his attack was useless, but kept on throwing punches. Allen kept backing until the edge of the roof, then quickly spun out of Chaoji's way. Not expecting the loss of ground, Chaoji lost his balance and fell forward. In the last minute he caught the drain, so he avoided falling off. After making sure that the guy didn't fall to his death, Allen used the opening and jumped to the next roof.
"Wait!" the ex-sailor shouted as he pulled himself up, but Allen didn't listen. He managed to get a few roofs of head-start, but another attack from the side. Claws similar to his just grazed the edge of his cape, but it revealed his package to the onlooker, making him gasp, giving a clear view of his fangs. Allen barely had the time to jump away from Krory. "Careful Chaoji, you could hit Johnny!"
"Johnny?!" the Chinese asked completely baffled as he turned his enraged eyes at the scientist. "So taking care of your grandmother was just a lie?!"
Allen tensed hearing that. Grandmother? Johnny had family?
Oh shit. Oh god. This was bad. Really bad. With this not only Johnny's, but his entire family's life was in danger. That's the first place where they'd search for him. They might already be there.
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The Crow quickly took in the interior of the small house the woman lived in. From the size of the building, he guessed that she lived alone. Downstairs was the kitchen and the living room with the fireplace. She probably slept upstairs. There were few furniture, shelves and cupboards in the kitchen, a table with two chairs, a sofa in the living room and a sewing machine under the window still. He could tell it hasn't been in use in a long time.
His observation was cut short when a cup of tea was placed in front of him. "Is your brother alright?"
"He was starting to get worried, but it's alright now." He lied, then purposefully glanced at the picture sitting on a shelf. "Is that you in the picture, ma'am?"
She let out a small laugh as she glanced at the photo fondly. "Why, yes, that's me with my grandson when he was little." She sighed, her wrinkled fingers gently stroking the shaggy-haired boy in the picture. "Time sure flies fast, he's a grown man already." This time her sigh was weary. "Such a smart boy... he joined an organisation to pursue his dreams... I haven't heard of him for a long time..." she trailed off longingly.
"I'm sure he's alright." Her guest reassured her.
A small smile spread on the elder's face as she took away the now emptied mug. "Of course, I pray to God for his success and well-being. I just can't help but miss my grandson. You're right, Johnny is surely doing fine."
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Allen's body was on auto-pilot as he kept dodging Chaoji's attacks and Krory's attempts to catch him.
What could he do with Johnny? He couldn't defend well if he had to carry him. Not only that, now that it turned out that Johnny had family he knew that there was no way he could take the scientist with him. Who knows what the Church could do to them. He couldn't risk their lives and he can't let Johnny sacrifice his family for him. He had to part with him.
I'm sorry, Johnny, but this is for the best.
The only obstacle was that annoying bracelet. He needed to get away from the others, get rid of it and place Johnny to safety.
Allen slipped out of an attack that would have hit, but now its target was Krory. Krory was almost caught, but then an orange barrier flared up and stopped them. Allen gasped seeing that he was encased within yet another barrier with Chaoji and Krory. He glanced back to confirm the obvious.
There stood Miranda, protecting herself with a smaller barrier around her, her nervous gaze boring into his. The two males collected themselves and eyed him for an opening. If this didn't make things so much harder, he would have complimented them for their impeccable teamwork.
He didn't have time for this. He had to get out, hide Johnny and help Kanda, possibly before more Exorcists joined the fight. Miranda wasn't an offensive type, Chaoji was still a beginner and Krory hesitated so he could hold out on his own against them. But if more Exorcists joined the equitation, then he might not make it...
The Generals would sure be problematic. Avoiding Marie's stings would be hard. Same goes for Bookman's needles. He hoped Lavi wouldn't use his Fire Seal in such a densely populated area. These mentioned would be hard to avoid. Then came Timothy and Lenalee who-
A familiar shockwave like feeling ran through Allen's body as his Innocence deactivated. He unwillingly let go of Johnny and his mind sunk in the darkness.
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The three Exorcist and Johnny watched the white-haired boy with caution. His shoulders were oddly relaxed and his head lolled forward. All of them tensed up when he sprung to life. "I did it~!" the boy sang giddily, his silver eyes sparkling. "I caught, Big Brother Allen~!"
Miranda sighed in relief."Timothy." For a minute she was frightened that they would be counterattacked. She didn't want to hurt Allen any more than they probably did by now. But they couldn't let him roam around his own, tracked by the Noah. And she wanted him safe, not only from the Earl but from those dreadful Crows too. "Your body is safe, right?"
Timothy eagerly nodded. "Yeah, I left them with a bunch of Finders. Look, they're already here. Hey guys, whazza!" he shouted waving at the beige coated man, who carried his slumbering body.
"Capture of Allen Walker has been successful." Krory reported trough his golem.
"Good, don't let him escape this time." Was the curt reply.
"Timothy, can you keep him under control until we get back?" the Romanian asked.
The possessed boy snickered. "Sure thing!"he glanced down at Johnny. "Heya, Johnny I missed ya too. You guys been alright?"
"Timothy..." the man whispered stunned. He heard of the boy's abilities, but he was worried, and for some unexplainable reason, he had a very bad feeling creeping up on him.
Timothy just smiled at him from Allen's body. "No worries, we're gonna take you guys home! Eh?" He gasped in surprise when a monocle appeared in front of his left eye. "The colours disappeared?"
A heavy weight settled itself in Krory's stomach hearing that, his mind wandering back to the past, to the last days in that castle, to that devastating sight that changed his life. It couldn't be...!
"Whoa, I can see what's behind me too! This is awesome!" Tim shouted before his voice dropped again. "What are those strange clouds?" he wondered as he turned around, glancing in all directions. "Strange. Some kinda purplish mists are heading in our way... from all directio-" the breath was stuck in his throat seeing strange shapes emerge from the haze.
Krory's unease grew seeing the dread slowly spread in Allen's shaking body, the usually non-see-through eyes reflecting the horror the boy felt."Timothy?" he called out to the younger, but he was unheard. Everything was drowned out by the sound of Allen's heart accelerating. "Wha-what are these?" he asked in a trembling voice. Krory cursed under his breath feeling his teeth pulse in anticipation. "AKUMA!" he shouted out loud, just as he spotted the first one. He quickly glanced back at the frightened Timothy. "Tim, get away from here, we'll take care of this! Timothy!" he kept shouting at the frozen boy who was still rooted to the ground.
They were calling for him. Not for "Timothy", but for "Allen". Many pained voices and pained moans melted into one, Timothy could feel their desperate and cold fingers on his skin as they reached out to him.
AlLen.
ALleN.
BiG BrO.
MiSTer.
MasTEr ExOrISt.
APosTle.
HelP uS.
SaVE Us.
FREe uS.
DESTROY US.
They were pleading. They were begging to be released of eternal damnation, the souls imprisoned within the Akuma. To end the torture. Timothy felt like fainting.
Was this what Allen had to see every time?
But now that he was in control Allen was sleeping. He had to wake up. Timothy had to wake him up, but he had no idea how. He couldn't find Allen.
Big Bro, where are you?
Allen is not here anymore.
A violent shiver ran down on Timothy's spine as he snapped his head back to face Allen's reflection in the mirror. He felt his whole body shake from seeing an ominous shadow behind Allen. It was grinning at him, he could feel its icy breath scratch his skin. And then that malicious voice talked again.
Now set me free.
Timothy's hands flied up to his ears as he screamed out. Everyone flinched at the blood-curling shriek. He could feel the shadow close in on him, gripping into his skin, crawling up on him, ready to pull him down and feast on him-!
Timothy's blue eyes snapped open, his breathing laboured. The Finders around him asked if everything was alright, but he was still too shaken to reply. In the last second, right before he got devoured he was pushed out. It was Allen, he was sure of it.
Big Bro...
Meanwhile Allen, back in control quickly collected himself, picked up Johnny again and dodged an Akuma before slashing it in half. Apparently Timothy got him under control just as he was thinking about the boy. He cursed himself for letting his guard down enough to get possessed. This was close. Way too close. He almost lost to the 14th. This may be the last time that he could relinquish control. On top of that, because of him, poor Timothy saw something no one but he should.
He wondered how he managed to wake up, though. Was it his own screams? The Akuma? Or... Or maybe he developed some kind of immunity after battling the 14th within himself for so long? Well, that was good, since that shortened the not-to-encounter list to the Generals and Lenalee. The girl would probably wouldn't hurt him seriously, but it would still be hard to escape an opponent that was faster than the speed of sound.
Then just kill her.
The hair stood up on the back of his hair, hearing that. He only heard this voice twice, but he could recognise it without fail.
Neah.
The one and only.
Could we have this lovely conversation another time, I'm kind of busy here.
Such thing wouldn't be a problem for me.
But I am not you.
True. For now.
Allen resisted the urge to snarl, he knew it was useless. This guy just wanted to spite him, have him get angry and make a mistake, so he pounce on him. He had to keep his head cool.
Ignoring me, eh? You can try to run but you'll never escape me.
If you haven't noticed I'm being ambushed. If you keep disturbing I'll get captured and put under torture. I don't think you're ready to face the Order AND the entire Noah clan right now.
Thankfully Neah stayed silent, but Allen could practically feel the oozing amusement. He blocked another onslaught of bullets, that buried themselves in the roof instead. The weakened floor crumbled under him. Allen readied himself to jump on the next roof, when he heard a horrified gasp. Turning back, his eyes widened seeing Miranda sink. No, she wasn't sinking, she was falling. Without a second thought, Allen gave up his chance of escape - letting the Exorcists fight the Akuma while he ran away - instead he turned on his heels. He dashed past the two stunned males and threw himself after the screaming woman. To close the distance between them, he ran down on the wall vertically. He managed to grab the woman just in time to flip themselves over, since there was no time to extend his Clown Belt to hold on somewhere.
Despite Crowned Clown cushioning the impact, Allen could still feel a few ribs cracking. He let go of the stunned German and rolled away. He got to his shaky feet, ready to run another round, but he stopped sensing a wire-system stretched around him. As he was forced to stop, they curled around different parts of his body, so if he moved he'd get cut. Damn, this was the exact reason why he wanted to avoid confrontation with Marie. Not to mention the fact that he could easily track him down by the sound of his heartbeat. "Are you alright, Miranda?" the handicapped but skilful Exorcist asked.
Said woman nodded, still shaken from the fall that almost killed her. A Finder walked past him, shoulders tense. Allen recognised him, it was the same man who shot him. He still had his gun and raised it to Allen's temple. Though it would have been more effective if the man wasn't trembling like a leaf. His eyes were still hateful but had a tingle of doubt in it. "Back then... why did you spare us? Why aren't you taking on your true form? What are you fighting for?"
Allen didn't answer. What could he say? That he wasn't a danger, that he wasn't a Noah? As if they'd believe him. The reason why he was captured because he asked his friends to kill him if he posed as a threat.
He was snapped out of his thoughts when Miranda approached him with tearful eyes. She kept searching for something within his eyes. Then abruptly, she threw herself at him. Allen flinched feeling her grasp so tightly as she cried into his coat and he was ready to flee when a second pair of arm joined and wetted his collar.
"NO MISTAKE, THIS IS DEFINITELY ALLEN!" she sobbed loudly. Only Allen would be so careless to jump off a roof to save her!
Chaoji and the Finder unit openly gaped at the display.
The... two Exorcist... are hugging... a Noah. A traitor. An enemy of mankind. And bawl their eyes out.
The hell?
"I-I'm zo habby!" Krory wailed.
Miranda was next to flood Allen with her ramble. "Allen, are you alright?! You lost weight! You're not eating well?!" the questions flew out of the mouth of the female like and endless stream, Allen didn't even have the time to answer before the next round came. "You have dark circles under your eyes! You have insomnia?! If you have trouble falling asleep drink camomile tea or warm milk! Here, have this pear!" She urged as she practically shoved the fruit in the unsuspecting boy's mouth, making him choke. Seeing this, Krory quickly tightened his squeeze around the boy's middle, making him spit out the food.
Realising her mistake, Miranda instantly shrieked. "I'M SO SORRY! I'LL CLIMB BACK UP AND THROW MYSELF OFF THE ROOF THIS INSTANT!"
"No, don't do that Miranda." He spluttered, still trying to normalise his breathing. And then he laughed. He laughed as he haven't in a long time. He knew for outsiders he looked hysterical, and the two Exorcists were getting increasingly worried, but god, he missed them so much.
"Big Bro..." Timothy whispered. Allen perked up hearing the normally cheerful boy so silent. He tried to mask his regret and sorrow as he studied those petrified blue eyes. Timothy was touched by his curse. He almost got erased by the 14th. He smiled apologically at him, knowing that it was nowhere enough for the trauma he caused. " Forgive me, Timothy. I let you see something monstrous. I can never regret that enough. I'm sorry."
Timothy bit his lips hearing the apology. He walked past the Finders who attempted to protest, but they were ignored. Timothy ranked higher after all. He ignored Chaoji's dumbfounded expression and stopped just a step from Allen.
Allen had a really hard time keeping his face blank seeing the boy's anguished expression. He hated seeing the people he loved in sorrow, but he hated it even more when he was the reason of their sadness.
Why? Why did this have to happen? How did things become like this? Why did he always have to hurt the people he loved?
What have I become?
Become? What are you talking about? An all too familiar voice cooed.
What? You again?
The voice only chuckled at the insult, spiting Allen more. Can't you realise the truth, Allen? Nothing changed.
With every word, the insults, like his sins, his heart grew heavier.
Everything is the same, since history repeats itself. You just turned a blind eye to the truth. They keep getting hurt, because you keep hurting them. Because you offer false comfort and lull them into a false sense of security. You are their hope. And when you disappear from this world, so will their fighting spirit get crushed. Cruelly. Miserably. Pathetically. They will curse the day they met you and the day you were born.
They would never do such thing. Allen was ready to scream out loud, but then Timothy latched himself on his left arm, shaking slightly. Allen immediately forgot about the voice in his head.
"Please... don't..." the boy implored in a choked voice, that made Allen's heart clench painfully. "Don't disappear. Stay with us."
You will damage them beyond repair. You will be their undoing. You will not kill them, but you'll destroy them. Because you're nothing more than a puppet of destruction.
Shut up. These guys are a lot more powerful than you imagine.
He was aware of the concerned glances shot in his direction, but he couldn't pay attention to them. He concentrated on keeping Neah's crushing weight off of himself.
No, you're not even worthy of such title.
Miranda placed her hands on his shoulders, her maroon eyes boring into him. Usually the shy woman would never be able to pull it off without an breakdown, but too much was on stake to doubt herself. Allen needed her, he needed them. "Allen, if you leave now, the Order will never forgive you. If you turn yourself in now, there's still a chance that you can avoid execution! Please, come back home with us!"
"No!" Chaoji shouted at her, making the German flinch. "He killed the Inspector and a lot of our friends died because of him! He's a monster, he needs to be gone!"
You're just a monster.
Chaoji was right. A lot of people died because of him. A series of images flashed through his mind. Mana, Cross, Link... everyone who stood close to him died. All because of him. Because he failed to protect them. He couldn't let anyone get close to him. He couldn't let any more of them die for him. He had to leave Johnny. He cannot go back to that place.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't go back. There was no point. Nothing would go back to the place it was.
You have always been one.
But he wanted to. God, they had no idea how much he wanted to but he knew what had to be done. "I can't go with you. I... have failed to become an Exorcist."
So disappear once and for all.
"Allen?"
Disappear...? Would it be for the best... if he didn't exist?
His smile turned sorrowful.
...Forgive me, everyone.
Inside, the Noah cackled with laughter.
"That's enough." A feminine voice ordered. All eyes turned to General Klaud Nine, General Sokalo and Lenalee entering the scene. The woman's expression was neutral, while Sokalo looked like a kid at Christmas. No doubt he hoped that Allen would put up some resistance, so he could sink his weapon in him. The girl looked terribly uncomfortable with the situation, her worried eyes seeking Allen's whose were covered by his white bangs. It was obvious that they heard everything. "He won't obey, so we'll take them along." The female General decided.
Just as she commanded her Innocence to activate, an explosion shook the ground under them. It felt close. Akuma showed up, all rejoicing the return of the 14th as they slaughtered the Finder unit. Miranda placed Timothy, Marie, Allen and herself in her Time Out, while everyone else engaged in battle.
Allen's body tensed upon sensing the perfect opportunity to run, but Marie's Innocence still held him in place. "Don't try to escape Allen, my strings can cut through Level 3s. Just stay put."
The white-head didn't listen. Even when the wires cut into his skin, making him bleed, he still didn't stop. He kept pulling, until he heard a distinctive sound of a string snapping, making Marie gasp in surprise. Then another and another and many, many more, until he was free. He momentarily stumbled forward, then regained his balance and dashed off, effortlessly slipping out of Miranda's shield.
"Damn, he escaped!" Nine cursed. "Lee! Follow Walker from the sky, we'll follow you shortly."
"Y-Yes!" the girl stuttered as she kicked off the ground, flying past the Akuma. 3 months have passed and despite wanting nothing more but have Allen back with them, she found herself unable to face him. She didn't fear that Allen was angry at her, he wasn't the type to hold grudge. Disappointment and the sense betrayal were another concern though. Instead of her boots, this time her guilt seemed to be the hardest to carry.
Allen who treasured his friends was hunted by them. He was running and hiding, all on his own while he was slowly consumed by the Noah within.
She had to find him first and tell him that it would be alright. Komui would find a way to separate the memories. She was sure of it.
Her eyes roamed over the streets, but they were too narrow to see anything properly. Another explosion went off, not far from her right or the group of battling Exorcists. Now that she thought of it, Allen only started trying to escape when he heard them. Maybe he knew what they were? Maybe he was heading that way? It was worth a shot.
She descended a few metres, only to jump back up, out of the way of an attack. Her eyes widened in horror seeing General Tiedoll's Innocence fight the Earl and Kanda battle the Noah of Pleasure, the houses surrounding them levelled. Impossible! What were they doing here! The Noah practically disappeared after the whole Alma Karma fiasco (the Akuma... not so much). Why were they returning now? Their situation looked bad, Tiedoll was wounded on his side and Kanda looked exhausted, the Noah clearly had the upper hand. Yet another building collapsed, revealing the two opposite forces to each other.
"My, my what a lovely get-together." Tyki chuckled in the Exorcist's stunned face. "Don't tell me you guys are after that lad. You're a little late with that, though. We're taking our wayward little brother home with us."
Sensing an Innocence from above, Tyki jumped back to evade the incoming Lenalee. "Ho, what do we have here? The little damsel in distress decided to join the fight?" the Portuguese mocked. Lenalee clenched her fists in anger, this Noah was referring to and was making fun of her helpless state at their last encounter. Not only that, he talked about Allen as if he belonged to them! "I won't let you take him too!"
Driven by anger, she lunged at him to land a kick, but Mikk could keep up with her speed. Damn his Noah genes. "Oh, you're still angry about Eye-patch?" he taunted as he countered her attacks with his stiff claw. "It's quite nostalgic don't you agree? That time he was the angry one trying to 'beat the shit out of me' out of revenge and now you're doing the same. I wonder if next time someone else will fight to avenge you? Hoop!" he let out a laugh as he dodged another kick. Thanks to his Noah instincts, Tyki sensed another Exorcist coming from behind to pounce on him, so he grabbed the girl by her Innocence and threw her at the vampire.
Meanwhile the other Exorcists engaged in battle, Kanda used the opportunity to catch his breath. Damn, he always related the stupid Beansprout to an old man, but now he felt like one. Living without his healing ability was hard. But now that everyone's attention was away from him, he could go after that stupid Bean. He had to be close, the Akuma were swarming here like crazy. Especially before a dark alley, it was so narrow and winding it was hard to see anything from the shadows. His instincts suggested that he was there.
However, before he could follow, he had to jump to the side to avoid being squashed by a large palm. He clicked his tongue in annoyance seeing the Earl battle the Exorcists with ease. At some point, the twins appeared and divided the group into four - one against the Earl, one for the Akuma, one for Tyki and one for Jasdevi. But despite their larger number and decreasing number of Akuma, the Exorcists were having their ass kicked, he could see that for the Noah this was nothing more than fun. Tiedoll too was near his end, leaving only General Nine and Winters. Even though all the Akuma present were killed by now, they were still at disadvantage.
"Marie!" two feminine voices called out, making Kanda's hear clench. The Austrian had trouble fighting off the Noah, his Innocence seemed to be harder to manage. When the blind man got pushed to the ground Kanda's body automatically moved, but was targeted by those annoying twins. Lenalee was stuck in that annoying green blob, while Chaoji was hit by Tyki's blast. Having gotten rid of all obsticales, Marie was defenceless to the Noah of Pleasure. Kanda shuddered at the predatory look in those golden eyes as he flexed his arm, ready to tear into his chest-
"That's enough." An eerily calm voice cut through the noise of the battle, muting it with two words. Everything stopped when a pair of boots, then its owner emerged from the alley Kanda eyed earlier. A pair of worn black boots with black pants tucked into them, a beige overcoat with black vest and white undershirt, a familiar bowtie. "Really, you guys never change." A familiar voice. Allen Walker's voice. Breaths were held back when a familiar crown of white hair emerged, but there was no reason to celebrate, not for the Exorcist. The biggest tell-tale sign of something out of place wasn't only the bloodied hands, but the facial expression. Instead of the gentle look they were met with a cocky smirk. "Not even in 35 years." The piercing silver eyes snapped onto the Exorcists, making most of them flinch. "Greetings, Exorcists." Those eyes didn't belong to Allen Walker.
They were too late.
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