Chapter Eleven
Author's Note: OMG I AM SOOOOO SORRY THIS TOO TILL NOW TO UPLOAD! I was vacationing n Florida for a whole month and my dad didn't have internet or cable. When I came back home, just my luck that my mom's internet and cable got cut off! UUGGHH I almost shot myself! But I am back in college and taking advantage of the wifi and acthing up with projects I couldn't do.
I really hope you enjoy this chapter and again...I'm REEEAAAAALLLY sorry this took forever ^^;
"Now that that's settled, we should head out now." Kid stepped in. "We're wasting time standing here."
"You're coming too, Kid?" Blood asked.
"Why do you think we're here?" Liz chimed in, her hands folded underneath her breasts. "Misao's like a sister to us."
"Besides, this'll be fun with all of us together!" Patty jumped around in excitement.
"I'm going to warn you now Blood." Kid got into Blood's face with a serious look in his eyes. His gaze nearly petrified Blood. "This mission requires composure and precision. If it comes down that you have to fight Misao, don't let your emotions get the better of you. Understand?"
Blood nodded his head before Kid, Liz and Patty walked past him and out of the Death Room.
"That's my boy!" Lord Death exclaimed, holding up a peace sign. "Just like his old man! He makes me so proud." His comment completely broke the tension that lingered around them.
"Get yourself ready, Blood." Stein said, placing a hand on Blood's shoulder. "We'll head out in five minutes. Like Kid said Blood; you have to stay focused. Lose yourself once and you'll die."
Blood headed to his room in the dungeon to gather what he needed for the mission. As he packed, he came across an old photo of Misao when she was two. She was with her father and him. In the photo, Blood was about five or six years old. Blood fought back the tears as he looked at Misao's happy smile. 'Hang on a little longer, Misao. I'm coming for you.'
"Umm, Blood?" Maka called from the opened door. "Stein and the others are waiting."
"Okay, I'm on my way. Did they send you down here to get me?" he asked.
"Sort of. I'm visiting a friend who lives down here. But since I was on my way here, they told me to get you."
"I see."
Maka approached him and held his unnerving hand in hers. "Everything will be okay. We're all behind you all the way."
"Thanks Maka. You all have been very good friends to Misao and I." Blood smiled while looking out the window. "Ever since we lost our home, Misao has had a hard time making new friends and opening up to people. Because of you and the others, she's able to smile and be herself. I've tried for years to get her to smile and free herself from her own darkness. You all seemed to pick her up with no problem."
Maka chuckled. "The DWMA are like family. We stand together no matter what gets in our way. You better hurry. Misao is waiting."
"Don't worry. I'll bring her back safe and sound." Blood ran past Maka to join Stein and the others at the front entrance of the school. Once they were all gathered, they began their journey.
They all headed for the train station to board the 2:15 pm train to the village. "The train will be here in twenty minutes." Stein said, looking at the clock. "Looks like we have to sit and wait. How about we get some refreshments from the shop?"
"Oh oh! I want some candy and juice! Let's go, sis!" Patty drug Liz to the food court while laughing cheerfully.
"Kid, are you coming?" Stein asked.
Kid shook his head. "I already packed some refreshments. I'm fine."
"What about you, Blood? You want anything?"
Blood was silent for a while. "Green tea please."
Stein nodded as he walked off.
Blood continued to stare off into space as he took a seat on a wooden bench outside the station.
"I hope you're keeping your focus." Kid came and sat next to Blood with his emotionless expression. "Listen, I'm sorry if I'm being harsh about this situation. But it's only a matter of time before Asura regains his power. We all have to be on our guard, or the entire world is doomed."
"I understand." Blood spoke softly. "I'm trying to keep my cool. But…it's hard to. Lately I've had dreams where Misao is calling me. I try to reach out to her but then…she vanishes. It's not just Misao I'm worried about. I don't want anyone else to suffer like Misao's father and all of our old friends did. If Asura gains the power of that orb…not even your father will be able to stop him."
"All the more reason to get Misao away from Asura." Stein stepped into the conversation, handing Blood his bottled green tea. He watched Blood take the bottle and stare into the liquid. "If we proceed carefully, we'll be able to save Misao."
Blood opened his drink and took a long sip from it, feeling its magical healing powers upon his mind. His hands stopped shaking and his head became clear with their main goal. After waiting a while, their train finally arrived and they boarded without a moment's hesitation. Blood and Stein sat next to each other, across from Kid, Liz and Patty. The ride was quiet as they all took the time to rest their souls.
Blood got lost in the scenery that blurred around the train. Thinking about Misao being abused by Asura's followers made him bite his lip. He sank his teeth in his skin, releasing a thread of blood that flowed down his chin.
The ride took an hour and a half before they arrived. The first thing they did after leaving the station was contact Lord Death, to report that they had made it to the village and were beginning their investigation. "Dad, we've reached the location of the disappearances. We're going to gather information from the people."
"I'm counting on you! Good luck son!" Lord Death waved a peace sign before disconnecting the line.
"Okay, let's begin our investigation." Kid led the group across the street and into the town.
As they walked, a familiar voice rang in Blood's ears, halting his feet. He turned his head and thought he saw the short blue hair and warm smile he knew and missed. 'I could've sworn I saw her.'
"Blood, what's taking so long?" Stein called out to him.
Blood took one last glance at the spot he saw her, then joined the others. "Sorry about that."
Kid stopped in front of a middle-aged woman carrying a shopping basket. "Excuse me ma'am. We'd like to ask you some questions."
"Oh, you're new here aren't you?" she asked them. "What can I do for you?"
"We're from the DWMA. We've come to investigate the strange murders that have occurred here recently. Can you give us any information on the subject?"
The woman was silent for a few moments. "Ahh…I see." She nodded. "Yes, there have been murders occurring here. The victims are mostly young men around the ages of sixteen and twenty-four. We've even had three women found dead as well. All the male victims were seen with a young woman. Then come morning, they were dead."
"Can you tell us more about the girl?" Blood interjected. "What does she look like?"
"I haven't seen her myself. I usually don't come to this side of town. I only came because I needed some fruit and ingredients. But if you want more details, you should go to the baker just down the street. From what I've heard, his son was the latest victim. He'll be happy to help with your search." The woman walked off in the opposite direction while the gang headed for the bakery like she told them.
"Welcome to my shop." The baker greeted them from the front counter with a smile. "What can I do for you folks? You don't look like you're from around here."
Stein adjusted his glasses and spoke. "We're from the DWMA. We got reports of strange killings in this town and have come to put an end to them. We passed a woman outside saying your son was the latest victim in these series of attacks."
The baker sighed as he stroked his beard in silence. "Yes, Mark was found early this morning by the paperboy. We had a small service for him and then as the father, I buried him in the cemetery." The man fought back his tears as he recounted the image of him burying his own son.
"If it's alright, we'd like to ask you a few questions about your son. Will you answer them?"
"Of course. If you're here to help us, I'll tell you as much as I know." The baker cleared his throat.
"Thank you. To start off, was your son with anyone?" Stein began.
"Yes, he had brought home a young girl with him he met in the market. He said the girl was being harassed by some troublemakers and he went in to save her. After that, he brought her back here to rest. She seemed shaken up by the attack; her eyes were almost soulless with a hint of trauma."
"Do you remember what the girl looked like?" Blood asked calmly. He quietly clenched his fists by his side, hoping his answer would be the one he wanted.
"How could I not remember? When she regained her senses, she was quite a charming young lady. She had dark skin and the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen. For a moment I thought she was an angel. She also had strange markings underneath her eyes."
'There's no doubt about it.' Blood thought to himself. 'It's Misao.'
"Did she happen to mention her name?" Stein asked. He and Kid kept a close watch on Blood to make sure he didn't react if they gave a name they were all expecting to hear.
The barber thought hard about the girl's name. "I'm sorry. I'm afraid I'm terrible with remembering names. Even with a cute girl like her, I don't remember."
Blood didn't dare to move a single muscle. Liz stepped next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"It's fine." Stein said. "Since you only met her for a short time, it's not surprising that you would forget her name. Anyway, let's fast forward to your son's death. Was there anything out of the ordinary when his body was found?"
"Actually yes. He was cut up beyond recognition. It took us a long time to clean up the blood that had spread. Another strange thing was, during the funeral service…I saw the woman he was with. She stood there with a blank face. She didn't even seem shocked at the sight of Mark's body. After I began to bury him, the girl slipped passed the crowd and vanished from sight. Then later in the afternoon, I got another glimpse of her with another man. I was surprised that she had gotten over my son so quickly."
"Did you get a chance to talk to her again?" Kid asked.
The baker nodded. "She and the new man came in and asked for some bread. I asked the girl if she recognized me, but she denied ever meeting with me. I then brought up my son, but she didn't answer me. The man she was with took his order, paid me and they left without a word."
"Let me guess. The next morning, the man she was with was found dead as well." Kid said.
The baker nodded. "You got it. He was killed the same way my son and the others were."
"Thank you for all your help." Stein said. "We'll do our best to stop whoever's behind this."
"I don't believe that girl is the one committing all these murders." He said before they left. "It seems impossible for one person to kill a large number of people and not be noticed."
"I agree completely." Stein said. "We have to get going now."
"Be careful. If she hasn't found a victim yet, she might pray on one of you."
They walked out of the bakery and back onto the streets. "Well what do we do now? Should we split up and look for Misao?" Liz asked.
"I'm surprised no one has been able to spot Misao." Patty chimed. "Her blue hair definitely makes her stand out, you think people would recognize her."
"You're right, Patty." Kid stopped. "Misao is the type to stand out in a large crowd."
"If you stop to think about it, this town is a lot bigger than what it seems." Blood pointed out. "The station had different maps of different parts of the town. This small marketplace is part of a large town."
"But this is the only place the murders have happened. Everyone here seems to be close to one another, once again making it difficult to just pass by someone and not recognize them. So why is it that none of these people can identify Misao if they claim to have seen her? They all walk on, thinking she's just another visitor."
"Maybe we'll get our answers soon." Stein said, looking up at the sky. "It's almost dark. From the reports, the murders are likely to take place after dark and once all of the stores close. If we wait around long enough, we just might be able to stop the next murder."
They all spent the rest of the day gathering more information on the murders. They were able to talk to other people who had their sons taken from them. Most of them didn't even meet the girl and others had a similar story to the baker's: they only met the girl for a short time and then she just vanished. But still Blood was concerned. How could they not identify her even after meeting her and seeing her with other potential victims?
That's all for now ^^ Hope you enjoyed! The next edition will be posted up in two weeks at the earliest.
Please R&R