"EARL?!"

Wisely jumped for the falling form of their leader, who was being unwittingly pulled down to the floor of the canyon. Cyril reached, panicking as well, to grab onto the Earl's coat. The two managed to yank him back onto the plateau. Lavi reached forward, grabbing on as well, hoping that the strength of three would counter the pull against them and the Earl's own massive weight.

"So heavy~~" Wisely complained, yanking some more. Somehow the thin wiry human form of the Earl turned into a dense weight whenever he took this form. The logic seemed backwards, as the Earl moved about as if he weighed little more than a feather, hoping onto buildings and balancing on umbrellas. And yet here he was, feeling like a lead weight as he tipped forward over the edge of the cliff.

A quick glance down the ribbon and Lavi immediately saw the source, Allen and his Innocence. How was he back to being able to use Innocence after the 14th had very clearly taken over him? It was baffling, really. Allen's power as an Exorcist was unfathomable and incredibly destructive. He'd seen what it could do to Tyki and even the emotional toll it caused on the family, but this was the first time he'd really seen it in action. Ribbons didn't seem all that threatening but the sword he'd been swinging around clearly was.

The Earl suddenly flipped over onto the three of them. "Ow~~~" Lavi grimaced. His arm was hurting once again. This movement was terrible for an open wound.

Allen flipped himself up the side of the plateau to a higher perch as something huge shattered above them. It looked as though the sky had broken apart then disappeared, leaving another sky in its wake.

"What was that?!" Lavi shouted in surprise.

"They've broken the barrier!" Wisely blinked, watching the remains of the barrier above them simply break away. The Earl had created it so that no one in the Order could escape during their invasion but somehow their scientists found a way to break it. It had to be them as the only Exorcists were otherwise preoccupied. These people were crafty.

As Allen landed above them, a chill crawled down Lavi's spine. They were stuck under the Earl, and the Exorcist could easily attack them there without a proper time to react. And with the Earl tied up, defensive capabilities seemed to be at a minimum. But that was only what it appeared on the surface of the situation. The Earl wouldn't allow such an attack on his own family.

Allen created a gate above them, marked "?". It was an unknown gate to somewhere. Lavi knew that Allen had been linked to the Ark, thanks to the 14th. After all, it was the 14th's work that required the creation of a new Ark.

After allowing Kanda to take Alma through the gate, Allen caused the gate to shatter. It was a strangely beautiful sight, the shards of the shattered gate catching the light from the sun and glistening as they streaked across the sky before fizzling away into nothingness.

"I won't allow anyone, not Noah or Church, to interfere with them!" Allen announced. It was a bold statement, one which caught most of the audience by surprise. It was near impossible to tell if the Earl expected such a statement or not, as he continued to simply smile and stare, gleefully clapping his hands together, despite being still bound by the ribbons.

The two Noah and the Bookman managed to roll the Earl off them and push him back to his feet with great effort. While the Earl himself was pretty lanky, the moment he put on that earl-suit he became heavier than a horse. Lavi shook out his arm, trying to keep the pain from knocking him out. Cyril put a hand on the Bookman's shoulder to steady his human brother.

On the battlefield in the canyon, the former Third seemed to mutate into some large lumpy creation with the intent of destroying everyone in sight. Allen shifted his attention to protect the scientists and staff of the Order and to fight the Third.

"That thing is merely Alma's grudge walking this plane of existence~ " The Earl informed the Noah and the Bookman in a sing-song voice. "This just goes to show how extensive Alma's hatred was~ . Until Alma is destroyed, their rampage will never cease~ "

From this battle alone, Lavi was learning more about the Akuma than he had in the past few years. He had bits and pieces but it was incredibly hard to put them all together without actually seeing it. With the bounty on his head, Lavi had stayed in the background, avoiding battle until this opportunity had sprung up. He wouldn't miss it for the world. The pieces of history were all coming together in one epic battle.

He'd seen how akuma were created, when that skeleton pried open the Finder's mouth and simply took over from the inside back two years ago in France. That memory was enough to give him nightmares, if he ever really slept. He'd seen various level akuma and the akuma egg buried deep within the Ark. Creation was hardly a mystery anymore, but how they acted and moved was something entirely different. While these Thirds were only partly akuma, Lavi could clearly see the control the Earl had over them, orchestrating them with silent command like pawns on a chessboard.

The connection between the Thirds and Alma was something Lavi didn't expect. They shared the same hatred and uncontrolled anger. They felt Alma's pain, and as long as Alma was alive, they wouldn't stop feeling it and acting upon it. They were connected by the same dark matter than ran through their bodies. A frightening idea, really, but fascinating nonetheless.

"The Order is turning against him...?" Lavi frowned. He wasn't entirely certain if that were a question, surprise, or something to be expected. Spell papers had surrounded Allen, binding him and disabling him completely. Two-spot seemed to be commanding them, taking Allen captive at a critical moment in his battle with the Third.

"Hardly surprising. They don't have any respect for their own," Cyril frowned sourly, shaking his head. "They're afraid of everything they don't understand. After all, that's probably why they want to take away our precious little brother." He wrapped his arm around Lavi's shoulder dramatically. There was a hint of possessiveness in his actions, almost as if to say, no one was allowed to harm him any further.

"An act of survival~ " The Earl chimed in. "The same reason they created the Third Exorcist project~ "

It made perfect sense to the Bookman. He'd seen it before: acts of true desperation in order to survive a losing battle. It never ended well for the desperate, and the Bookman hardly expected anything different here.

The Earl wiggled his fingers and the Thirds were pulled into gateways to the Ark. A gateway appeared behind the group on the plateau and Maashiima, the muscular Noah of Pity, stepped through, carrying the unconscious body of a Third in his arms. Tyki landed on the plateau next to them with a smirk drawn across his features.

"'We must kill everything in the name of 'God''," the Earl mocked. "'Anything that strays from the path will not be tolerated.' Isn't that right~ ?"

The Earl had put into words everything Lavi had been thinking.

"I'll be making the Thirds into my pawns~ " the Earl added. "They'll follow my rules now~ "

The Noah stepped through the gateway one by one, Lavi taking a glance over his shoulder before following them.

"Oh~ " the Earl added in conclusion. "For you, the one who has done nothing but break the rules. I will come for you soon~ "

….

Author's notes:

This chapter parallels the original manga issues 199-201