Disclaimer: Trinity Blood nor any of its characters belong to me.

Silver and Blond

Chapter 10: Ato modori wa mou dekinai

(I cannot turn back anymore)

Alliance Aerospace Navy Fortress

Abel rushed into the fortress, ignoring the gasps from those whom he knocked out of the way in frenzy. He was sure he looked a state; silver strands streaked with blood, his clean spacesuit spattered in red, his eyes wild and searching.

Abel sharply turned at the corridor, wishing to see familiar faces. His breath was hot against his own face, and the muscles in his legs screamed in protest of his fast-paced movements.

Abel cared not, for at that moment, all he wanted to do was to touch Cain's face and hold on to him for dear life, and let Cain soothe the pain that consumed his spirit.

As soon as he reached the door that opened to Cain's room, he stared up at the tiny black machine and let his DNA register in the machine's database.

"Major Cain Knightlord is absent at the present time. Access denied," chimed the machine.

An officer whose rank was lower than his came rushing up to Abel, and told him of the perilous situation they were placed in. Abel could only configure the whispered words as the officer briefed him through. As astonishing as it was, the Terran army had gained an upper hand in the battle, under the leadership of the 'Black Madonna', as they called the patron of the Terrans.

Cain's army had suffered a terrible blow, thus he and the rest of the War Council were currently in the midst of a meeting to find a way to solve the worst-case scenario that now fell upon their unsuspecting faces. No sooner had the officer finished his words, he vanished in the blink of an eye.

Abel could only stare at the closed doors, torn between blasting them open and leaving in peace. Abel finally chose the latter, after concluding that the former would get him nowhere near Cain, but instead to another War Council meeting as a result of Abel's violation of the security.

Desperate in venting out his rage, Abel channelled a bolt of bioelectricity towards the identification machine. The machine gave a few blurred beeping sounds, but otherwise, it was not severely damaged.

Abel felt as though someone had punched the lights out of him. He needed to confide in someone regarding the terrible sin- no, sins, Abel corrected- that he had recently committed. An image of a young girl with short, cropped hair of a dark green shade with a pearly white smile flitted in his mind.

"Seth," Abel whispered to the unhearing silence.

He set off as fast as he could towards her room, and he distinctly heard his name being said within the sea of muffled voices that followed his lingering steps. The way to Seth's room was long and winding, and Abel pleaded for time to pass quickly. All he wanted to do was to see Seth.

He had so many things to talk to her about, mainly to apologise for his rude conduct from the days before. Abel had been so adamant of the wilful wishes of the Contra Mundi and the promises and vows that lifted his spirits to avenge Cain's death.

Now, it seemed that everything he had thought was a true cause to fight for turned out to be a nasty way of weakening an adversary, through the attacks on their young and hapless innocents. The sharp smell of blood mysteriously drifted into his nostrils, and Abel let out a cry of rage and frustration.

Did the red trail of death linger on his very skin?

As soon as Abel had reached Seth's door, he could only do so much as to stare upward, letting the machine verify his identity. The moment the doors slid open, Abel darted into the room and fiercely looked around. He heard a simultaneous gasp from two voices he knew very well.

"Abel-niisan?" a familiar voice countered.

Abel looked to Seth with anguish swimming in his teary eyes, full of horror he had just witnessed. Seth could not help from giving a little shriek at the sight of so much blood that covered him. She rushed to him concernedly, her arm going about his waist, giving him as much comfort and support her small, lithe form could.

"Abel-niisan, what happened?" she asked. Abel could not answer, but let his head roll back in exhaustion.

When he had taken in a few deep breaths, he sat down with much grace as he could muster in a chair that Seth had pulled out for him. A hologram figure with sunken cheeks and worried eyes met his gaze. Abel bolted upright from his chair, his hair flying about his face, his finger pointing unbelievably at the hologram before him.

"Lil- Lilith," he said in disbelief.

She looked so different, as though she had never been the woman whom they had always encountered on the Ark. Now dressed in a long white dress of elaborate embroidery, she stood as graceful and poised as a goddess could, beautiful and terrible in her beauty. Her hair was now done up in an Asian style, and her eyes were lined with blue.

She was- Abel had to admit- the most beautiful woman he had ever laid his eyes upon. At seeing Abel, she gave a comforting smile, and simply stood calmly even as he suddenly pushed his chair back, startled at her appearance. Abel came closer to her, drinking in her goddess-like beauty like a thirsty man.

When the recent events came flooding back into his memories, Abel abandoned the thought of asking her what had caused her sudden change. Abel decided to be as frank as he could.

Mustering all the courage within him, he confessed in a small voice, "I killed them."

He heard Seth muffling a cry behind a faked cough, but Lilith seemed to give no reaction. She only shifted slightly, her expression unreadable.

"All the children, those mysterious killings. It was me behind it, I joined the Contra Mundi to avenge Cain," came out rushed.

A few seconds passed in silence between the three of them. Abel could hear Seth's breaths in and out as she tried to calm her racing pulse. Then, finally, Lilith spoke.

"I knew it was you."

Abel looked up at her wonderingly, and even Seth was clearly shocked. The two of them fixed their eyes on Lilith, who now nodded very slowly.

Her voice came out evenly, "I heard of these killings for a long time. Mostly, the culprit would leave behind a few trails. The security forces would track them hurriedly, only to receive sheer disappointment when encountering a cold trail which then stopped at a dead end."

She looked at Abel, and he guessed what she had silently said. Lilith's explanation had just proven the truth of Magus' words. The Contra Mundi had existed for a long time.

"Then," continued Lilith, her voice suddenly hushed. "A few days ago, I heard of a mass killing of Terrans, all killed in the explosion of buildings that housed numerous families. The strange thing that differed this case from the others was that there was no trail left behind."

Lilith's and Abel's eyes locked onto each other, while Seth sorted out the bits of information slowly, concluding what she had been picking up from both Abel and Lilith.

"The killing would always be the same; many deaths, normally families or children, like the recent massacre of the orphanage," said Lilith, and paused for a moment when Abel stiffened in his seat.

"The killer was undoubtedly proficient, always executing the missions when the lights were off and when everyone was asleep and unaware of what happened around them." At this point, Abel's face had drained off all colour, and Lilith decided that it was enough that she told about the killer.

"Seth always contacted me in secret, ever since Cain changed drastically, and she told me of what had been done unto her," said Lilith, her head swivelling to look in Seth's direction. Abel followed suit, now fixing his eyes upon the young girl that stared at the floor nervously.

"She always told me that you were out during the night, and Cain sometimes mysteriously disappeared. I used to convince her not to dwell on bad thoughts, but I could not help feeling suspicious. Why were the times when you seemed to be out were the times when the killings were done? I pieced the pieces of puzzle back together. No one could kill that efficiently, leaving behind no trail, not even Methuselahs."

Abel now faced Lilith. Cautiously, Lilith stated, "Except for a Crusnik."

The room was quiet for a few minutes; even Seth had stopped rocking her chair as though acknowledging the tenseness of the situation, and now stared from Abel to Lilith and back again. She seemed to expect one of them to say something. Finally, Abel raised his elegant head and stared sorrowfully at Seth and Lilith.

"I'm so sorry," he said softly. Lilith gave him a sad smile, but Seth was still badly shaken from knowing the full truth. "I just- I just-"

"You just wanted to avenge Cain because he died for the both of us," finished Seth, when she found that Abel could not complete his statement. "But, Abel-niisan," came Seth's gentle voice again. "You don't need to take your revenge on the Terrans by consorting with the Contra Mundi and killing innocents."

Abel flinched at the last word, but his attention was still fixed on her. "I believe that if Cain was still himself, he would not want you to barge into buildings and kill all those within it."

Seth's words struck a chord in Abel's soul. He looked to Lilith, expecting an accusing gaze, but was shocked when he saw a light smile on her face. The three of them exchanged glances, and the steel in the air vaporised, but returned once more when Lilith sat up in her chair, her expression fierce.

"When we are here talking, I treat you as I would treat my own family," said Lilith. "But after this, I will have no mercy on you; your army has done enough to my people. Seth," Lilith's firm voice resounded, her eyes firmly fixed on Seth's face.

"Please do realise that your obsession with Terrans becoming a race under Methuselah will only meet a dead end. Terrans have their disadvantages, so do the Methuselahs. That is the way of the world, no race is perfect."

"But the Terrans refuse to bow down to our rule," Seth reasoned. "They will not admit who is the more superior of the races."

"And indeed, neither is superior," Lilith spoke with a clipped tone. "I know what you have managed to do, that temporary cure against sunlight and silver for the Methuselahs. But I tell you it's causing much damage than it reaps benefits. Ask the Methuselahs on the battlefield, and you'll know the truth of what they speak. Or has your experience with Cain taught you nothing?"

At this, Seth involuntarily flinched. "This coexistence you speak of is an ephemeral dream. It cannot be achieved," Seth stated.

Abel's eyes swivelled between Lilith and Seth. He knew that the both of them had put aside their caring exterior and now donned on the responsibility that lay on their shoulders. Lilith was the Dark Saint who fought for the sake of the Terrans, and Seth was the Lieutenant of the Alliance Aerospace Navy, one loyal to the cause of the Methuselah.

"So you say. But if I win this war, it will no longer be unreachable," Lilith said promisingly. Seth glanced at her angrily, but breathed out slowly as though to calm herself.

"Don't worry," Lilith's voice had taken on her usual soft tone, and Seth's eyes looked up, hopeful once more. "I only hope the rightful side will win this war, so that we can go back to being together once more." At this, Seth could not help the smile that rose to her face.

"During my stay with Terrans, I learned one important lesson," said Lilith. Abel and Seth waited for her next words, curiosity getting the better of them.

Lilith's smile widened as she added, "One must learn to be loving and forgiving." Abel found his own lips curling into a smile, thankful for the second chance Lilith offered to him.

A device on Seth's outfit started to beep, and she gave a bashful look as she muttered an apology before heading outside, heeding the call of her superior.

Once Lilith was alone with Abel, she gave him a sad smile. "Seth still does not want to believe in the dream of peace. I see it in her eyes," Lilith said slowly.

"She's still so fascinated with the truth that science beholds. It is true that Methuselahs may be superior in physical state, may live a longer life, may seem the more powerful of the two races, but has she forgotten that Methuselah once used to be Terran? Why are we fighting our origins? Is it because we feel that we no longer need them, because they are weak and we are strong? If she believes it to be true, then I have no choice but to make her my enemy, as Cain is now."

With those words, Lilith's form on the hologram faded away, leaving Abel to the silence of the now empty room. Abel looked at the spot where Lilith's form was previously. He frowned slightly.

"She's still the young girl you love," he whispered to the nothingness. "But now she's torn between choosing the dream she always treasured, and taking up the new but alien dream you offer her."

Abel's sigh then echoed the walls of Seth's room, as he remembered the intensity of the pain he had felt when he gazed upon the young girl's face before he had violently ripped her life away from her small body.

"War destroys us all."

Hello! I'm so sorry for the terrible delay of this chapter, but as you all know, I'll be going to college soon! Yeay, I'm no longer a schoolgirl, but sincerely, I miss school a lot. I'll have to be away from home then;( So yes, this chapter was delayed by the numerous preparations I had to do. But I'll not abandon this story, it's the air I breathe in;)

A very big thank you to all my reviewers! I'm sure to those of you who've not reviewed, you must be pretty busy too, like me, LoL;p don't worry, but I'm so happy to those of you who took your time in reviewing, thank you so much!

Jhanna555: I love Abel too! I hug him every night;p as if, I really wished I owned a plushie of him and Cain! I'll have them on my bed each day, and stare at them for an hour, drooling;)

GoddesOfWrath: Abel's always torn between following Cain or himself, cuz actually he's so good inside, he can't bear to hurt anyone, luv him!

Giggle-gaggle: Poor Abel too! I do wish I'd stop victimising him, but otherwise, his love for Cain would not have proof that it's super strong… Don't worry, he'll survive, for Cain;) Thank you for reading all the chapters! I really appreciate it:D

Naturally morbid: I love being descriptive, and that's the main reason I put my story rating to 'T' now, I think I'm making the killing scenes quite gory:S Cain's disturbing isn't he? Well, this chapter is sort of a getaway before… heheee, I'll post the next chapter soon!:)

RoseofSilence13: Adorable Abel, yup, that's him! But I wanted to put his hidden character in my story, the one that they showed towards the end of the anime, he's actually aware of everything, and he's so serious inside:S but I like him being naïve!:)