Cross My Heart
Quick Author's Note: Thanks to everyone that reviewed! I didn't expect any feedback, so reading your suggestions (while few in number) was very helpful. I appreciate it! :) So, here we go into the world of Allen's dreams...
Chapter 2: Crossing the "T"
"Moyashi!"
Allen's skull exploded with pain a moment later, and darkness curled around the edges of the British exorcist's vision. The world turned sideways as he fell to the ground, and his ears rang with the amount of force that had collided with his head. His remaining strength seeped from his body along with the blood from his chest and side, and he was on the verge of giving in to the welcoming darkness that promised no pain or responsibility.
"Moyashi, get up!"
Blood splattered across the ground as Kanda slipped to his knees a few feet in front of Allen, and the white-haired exorcist's gray eyes widened when Tyki Mikk appeared behind the wounded Japanese boy. The Noah smirked while kneeling down beside Kanda, and Allen stared in horror as Tyki slid his hand into the Japanese exorcist's bloody back. Kanda's dark eyes widened, and Allen bit his lip when blood began to escape from the Japanese exorcist's slack mouth.
"I wonder if destroying his heart will kill him," Tyki murmured while resting his chin on Kanda's shoulder. "He said that he couldn't die, after all."
"Stop it!" Allen hissed at the Noah. Kanda's back arched when Tyki's hand slid out of his chest, and his eyes glazed over as his life-blood flowed from his body.
"I guess he wasn't immortal after all," Tyki said with a shrug. He pulled his hand out of Kanda's body with a sickening 'pop,' and Kanda's body toppled to the ground a moment later.
Allen's eyes widened when Kanda didn't immediately get to his feet and begin attacking the Noah. "K…Kanda…?" the boy whispered. Kanda didn't respond. He only stared lifelessly up at the sky as blood pooled underneath his body. "Kanda, say something!"
"You betrayed us, Allen," Tyki Mikk said while tapping Kanda's body with the tip of his shoe. "This boy paid for your sins with his life."
"Kanda, say something…anything!"
Tyki Mikk began to laugh. The silky sound was filled with malice and amusement, and the only thing louder than the Noah's laughter was Allen's agonized scream.
"KANDAAA!!!"
Komui frowned as he watched Allen sleep. Despite the heavy sedatives in his system, Allen was still reduced to feverish, fitful dreams that slowed his recovery rate to an agonizing crawl. His constant thrashing reopened his ghastly wounds, and as his fever continued to rise, the medical staff had no choice but to use restraints on the unconscious British exorcist.
With his right wrist and his ankles attached to the edges of the bed, and his Innocence bound with a powerful ward, Allen seemed even more vulnerable than ever before in his sleep, and Komui wished he could allow the boy to move about freely once more. In the seventy-two hours since Kanda's kidnapping, Allen's condition had grown progressively worse, but Komui refused to just let the boy fall into madness. Komui's persistent optimism paid off, and later in the afternoon of the third day, Allen's fever broke, and the nurses removed the restraints once the boy fell into the restful sleep he desperately need.
"Have you received any more word from Toma and Chloe since they entered the Ark this morning?" Reever asked that evening. They sat on opposite sides of Allen's bed, and they spoke in hushed tones in order to not disturb the sleeping British exorcist.
Komui shook his head. "Nothing. Chloe's wireless communicator signal was lost the moment they finished contacting us, so I have no idea where they are or how they're doing right now."
"I guess we'll have to trust them, as Chloe asked us to," Reever murmured with a chuckle. A soft groan from Allen instantly quieted the two men, and they turned their attention to the boy as his eyes slowly opened.
"…Komui-san…Reever-san…where am I…?"
"You're in the infirmary, Allen-kun," Komui replied while leaning over the boy. "How do you feel?"
"…Tired…sore…thirsty…" Allen muttered as he began to push himself up.
"Take it easy, Allen," Reever said, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder. "I'll go find a nurse. She'll know what to do."
Reever disappeared from view, and Komui turned to Allen with a relieved expression on his face.
"I'm glad you're feeling better, Allen-kun," the Chinese man said softly. Allen managed to bring a weak smile to his lips, and he let out a jaw-cracking yawn while leaning back against the soft white pillows.
"…What about Kanda…?" Allen asked as his eyelids drooped.
"We think that the Noahs may have taken Kanda-kun aboard the Earl's new Ark. Toma and Chloe-chan entered the Ark earlier this morning in search of Kanda-kun."
"Chloe-chan?"
"That's right," Komui said with a chuckle, "you and the other exorcists haven't met Chloe-chan yet. I'll have to introduce her to all of you when she returns with Kanda-kun."
"What is she like?"
"Well…" Komui thought for a moment on how to describe the new exorcist. "Chloe is about your height with wavy red hair, blue-green eyes, and—,"
"I didn't mean her appearance," Allen interjected.
"Oh. In that case, Chloe-chan is very intelligent and mature for her age. She grew up in Andorra, which is a country on the French-Spanish border, so she can speak French and Spanish fluently, as well as English. She is dependent and aloof like Kanda, but she's also pleasant like you and my Lenalee-chan!"
Allen chuckled at Komui's antics. "What's her Innocence like?"
"I have absolutely no idea," Komui answered without hesitation. "Inspector Leverrier was the one that brought Chloe here, and, other than the Grand Generals at Central, no one else has seen her activate. Even Hevleska was baffled. The Innocence is in Chloe-chan's body, but where remains a mystery. Her maximum synchronization rate was over one hundred percent, though, so…we'll see."
"When can I leave?" Allen asked after a long silence.
Komui sent the boy a confused look. "Leave for where?"
"The Earl's new Ark, of course," Allen stated matter-of-factually.
"Allen-kun, you cannot leave yet," Komui said firmly. "Your wounds are still far from healed, and your body cannot handle any stress or you'll relapse again."
"But Kanda—,"
Komui silenced the British exorcist with a glare. "Allen-kun, I understand that you want to get Kanda back. Believe me, I do. However, I will not allow you to jump headlong into something you cannot handle."
"But I can—,"
"You can barely keep your eyes open, let alone stand. What good would you do trying to search for Kanda-kun in your condition?"
"But Komui-san—,"
"No buts," Komui stated while crossing his arms. "You are to remain at Headquarters unless I summon you for a mission. Are we clear, Allen-kun?"
Allen's gray eyes were full of betrayal as he nodded, and Komui bit his tongue to keep from taking back his orders at the downcast expression on the British boy's face.
"We have to believe in Chloe-chan since she is a part of our family now," the Chinese scientist said with a smile.
"I guess you're right," Allen said, returning the gesture with one of his own. His stomach let out a loud growl a moment later, and he and Komui laughed at the irony of it all. "I wonder what's taking Reever-san so long…"
"Toma, get back!"
The finder immediately dove behind the remains of one of the many white houses lining either side of the Ark, and he watched as Chloe battled the level 2 that had appeared out of nowhere. Since entering the Ark, Chloe and Toma had been constantly encountering akumas, which meant that their entrance hadn't gone undetected by the Ark's inhabitants. That wasn't what worried Toma. What worried him were the obvious signs of fatigue that Chloe exhibited with each akuma she came in contact with. She used no visible weapon to destroy the mechanical killing machines, which forced her to get within a dangerous distance of the akuma and left her vulnerable to attack. The only wounds Chloe had received were minor cuts and bruises, but the longer she fought, the more time it took for Chloe eliminate the akumas. She was obviously expending more energy than she truly had, and without rest, she was going to collapse from exhaustion no matter how strong she was.
"Bellerose-dono, are you all right?" Toma asked once the level 2 was defeated. Chloe stumbled towards the finder's hiding place, and she smiled weakly while leaning back against the ruins.
"I'm fine, Toma," the red head replied as she slid down the crumbling brick wall until she was sitting. "Any word from Komui?"
Toma shook his head.
"Lovely. Well, it seems that we are truly on our own then," Chloe murmured grimly. Timcampy crawled out of his hiding place in the hood of Chloe's torn black coat, and he circled her head a few times before settling down in her hair once more.
"What is our plan, Bellerose-dono?" Toma asked after a long silence.
"Finding Kanda is top priority, and I get the feeling that the moment we manage to find our way out of this crude imitation of a town we'll be attacked once again. We'll have to play it by ear, whether we like it or not," the red haired exorcist replied with a sigh.
"Should we continue moving through the town?"
"That sounds…"
Toma glanced at the red head when she trailed off in mid-sentence. Chloe's blue-green eyes widened a few seconds later, and she dove towards the finder with a curse. The wall Chloe had been leaning against exploded as the exorcist and the finder crashed to the ground, and debris flew in every direction as a cloud of dust billowed from the ruins. Chloe winced as she shook pieces of brick and wood off her clothing, and she let out a few harsh coughs while climbing to her feet.
"Well, well, you aren't the one I was expecting to see."
The voice was a familiar suave baritone, and Chloe let out an involuntary shutter while turning to face the newcomer. Her blue-green eyes narrowed at the sight of the grinning Noah standing only a few feet away, and she silently reached into her coat as Timcampy scampered into her hood once more.
When Lavi heard that Kanda was missing, he didn't know whether to believe the news or not. Kanda and getting kidnapped just didn't belong together in the same sentence. However, Lavi quickly found out that the Japanese exorcist was not just missing—he had been taken by a Noah onto the Earl's new Ark. The moment the Bookman apprentice returned from his mission three days later, he made his way to Komui's office, ignoring the fact that he had wounds that needed to be treated and a report that had to be written by the next morning. Such petty things could wait. He needed to know exactly what was going on.
As soon as Lavi burst into Komui's messy, paper-strewn office, the Bookman apprentice flung questions at his supervisor left and right, hardly pausing to breathe in the process. Komui and his secretary stared at the red head as he babbled on and on, and once Lavi finished, he collapsed unceremoniously onto the couch sitting in front of Komui's (oddly) clean desk.
"To make the story short, Kanda was kidnapped by Tyki Mikk and Lulu Bell, and Allen-kun was injured by Tyki Mikk before Kanda was taken," Komui said softly.
"Is Allen okay?" Lavi asked while sitting up.
"He is still recovering from his wounds, but now that his fever is gone, he should make a full recovery quite quickly."
"That's good to hear."
"He hasn't gotten much rest since he was admitted into the infirmary, so try not to rile him up when you go see him," Komui said sternly.
Lavi smirked while giving his supervisor a mock-salute. "Aye, aye, Captain!"
"Shut up, Lavi."
"Anyway," the Bookman apprentice began in a serious tone, "how's the investigation going?"
"The newest exorcist, Chloe Bellerose, was sent to investigate the scene, and after finding a hidden gate, Chloe and Finder Toma entered the Millennium Earl's new Ark. We haven't heard from them since they entered the Ark forty-eight hours ago," Komui stated with a frown.
Lavi stared at Komui in confusion. "Did you say that they entered the Earl's Ark? Do you plan on getting them back in one piece?"
"Even though she is a new exorcist, Chloe's synchronization rate with her Innocence was well over the critical point, and even if I wanted to call them back, it's out of my hands."
"Inspector Levellier?"
Komui grudgingly nodded in conformation.
"Is there any way to get us into the Ark?" Lavi knew it was a long shot, but he had to try nevertheless.
"No. Allen can only create a gate when he is physically at the location he wants to connect a gate to. So, unless Chloe can somehow create one to get out—,"
"—Yuu, Toma, and the Chloe girl are all stuck on the Ark."
"Well, not exactly. Chloe has the ability to create a gate like Allen does even though she isn't a Noah." Komui glanced over at his secretary, and she let out a frustrated sigh while heading for the door. Once the door had slammed closed and her footsteps had faded, the Chinese scientist leaned forward and continued. "Chloe can use a long forgotten sorcery that allows her to freely move between dimensions and time itself."
"No wonder Leverrier wanted her on our side," Lavi mused while taking in the new information.
"Among other things," Komui murmured in agreement.
"So, until we get word from Toma and Chloe, we can't do anything but wait?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
Lavi glared at the floor as silence settled over the office after Komui's grim response. The Bookman apprentice had never felt so powerless when it came to aiding his comrades in the war against the Earl and his akuma, and despair gripped his heart in its numbing grip.
"Was Yuu…injured when the Noah took him?" the red head finally asked.
"From Allen's and the finder's testimony, as well as the amount of blood found at the scene, it was concluded that Kanda-kun was heavily wounded when he was taken," Komui replied in a voice barely above a whisper. Lavi slowly got to his feet as his brain processed all of the information he had been provided with, and he headed for the door with a dark gleam in his emerald eye. Komui opened his mouth to call the red-haired boy back, but the Bookman apprentice had already disappeared down the hallways before the door fell halfway closed behind him.
The first thing he saw was absolutely nothing. Darkness pressed against his battered body from every direction, and he couldn't tell whether his eyes were even open or not. What was up? What was down? The total darkness robbed him of his sight, and his remaining four senses were not aiding him much at the moment.
He hurt everywhere. Every inch of skin, every joint, every muscle, every bone, everyone ligament—pain assaulted his senses to the degree that he couldn't help but let out a groan. His wounds were still trying to heal; he could feel bones scraping, blood vessels clotting, and skin stretching over his vast multitude of injuries. The experience was not enjoyable, especially since his hands had been chained above his head, stretching and pulling at the deep, slowly healing gash across his back.
A loud explosion suddenly echoed through the darkness, and he winced as pain flared in his throbbing skull.
"Tyki found the intruders," a clearly feminine sounding voice practically sang from beside him. He couldn't help but jump at the proximity of the disembodied voice, and the movement jarred his wounds and ripped a strangled yelp from his dry throat. "I really hope he doesn't kill them. I want to play with them too."
Kanda flinched as a cold hand slid across his left shoulder, and a shiver ran down his spine when he felt warm breath against the back of his neck.
"Who are you?" he whispered.
"Do you really want to know?" the voice asked as the hand slowly moved down his bare chest.
"Who are you?" he growled out through clenched teeth.
"I'm not important like Rhode or Tyki," the voice murmured. "I'm just the lonely Noah of despair."
The Japanese exorcist inhaled sharply when pain tore through his left side, and he heard a soft chuckle as blood poured from the new wound.
"I'm sorry about that. I just got a little excited."
With the apology, Kanda felt the object that had pierced his flesh being removed, and he thought that he could hear a faint licking sound from beside him. The Japanese exorcist took deep breaths as the wound began to heal itself, and he grimaced when the pain momentarily increased before fading to a dull ache.
"She's finally here!" the voice exclaimed a moment later. Kanda was tempted to asked who "she" was, but the voice cut him off before he could open his mouth.
"Tyki, your turn is up! It's my turn now!"
The exclamation echoed in the darkness, and Kanda was left alone as the explosions continued to grow steadily louder and nearer towards his sightless prison.
Well, that is all for now. It took me a little longer than I had originally expected to update, but in the middle of last week, I decided to completely scrap everything that I had written and start over. Then, I had work and school and soccer and...no one probably cares in the least, so I will stop making excuses now! Anyway, hope you liked it, and feedback, whether positive or negative, is welcome.
If anyone has wondered (or really cares at all) what the chapter titles mean, then I'll give you a quick answer. I decided to go with military terms, such as M.I.A. (missing in action) and Crossing the "T" (tactic where ships literally cross a line of enemy ships). Don't ask me why. It just sounded right.
Also, to all Allen Walker fans reading my story: I promise that I won't turn Allen into some weak little brat that can't even defend himself. For the purpose of the plot, Allen had to be weakened in the beginning, but, of course, he will not give up and will come out the victor in the end.
And now, I bid everyone a fond farewell. Until I update once again...
