Author's note: I do not claim to own any of the characters ^_^ they are a creation that is best kept by it's author. I hope he might read this one day and get inspired to write a sequel to Chrno Crusade.
If you have not read the manga, do so!!! It's good. ^_^ this fic is based roughly off the manga, interspersing some stuff inside of it, so if you're confused that's why.
Denizens of Darkness, Harbringers of LightA Chrno Crusade fanfic by Nightelfcrawler@yahoo.com
**
Chapter Eleven: Lasting LegacyThere were several very tense moments, as everyone tried to make heads and tails of the situation, then vaulted into action. There wasn't much they could do to stop the seizing Chrno's body had been thrown into, but at least the blue power surrounding him had vanished. They managed to drag everyone back inside to the restorative chamber, with a collective effort, and try to recover their scattered wits.
As Rosette knelt by the pool that Chrno lay in, she stared intently at him with a worried frown. Every vein on his body seemed to be standing out clearly, and already signs of his body trying to heal were evident on his skin, the scaled patterns faint, but visible.
Her eyes lifted to watch the others, as Joshua gasped for breath, tired from healing over the critical wounds the others had received. It was ironic to think that healing energy could be used against a demon, yet the holy energy itself was deadly… Sheda's explanation earlier helped her understand somewhat, but it still didn't explain one simple fact.
Why had Chrno channeled Holy energy instead of his normal power?
Sheda came up to stand beside Rosette as she knelt there, and peered down. Rosette rose to her feet slowly, mixed feelings weighing her shoulders down. "Is everyone else alright?"
"Mostly…" Sheda spoke in a muted voice, her ears drooping a bit. "No one's dead, that's a plus."
Rosette closed her eyes and put a hand to her head. If this was a mere taste of what the Sinners had lived through for fifty years, she wondered how they managed to get through so well before. "How did they manage to track you guys down anyway? I thought your shield made this whole floating thing untraceable."
Sheda scratched her head with a resigned look. "It does. The only problem is, in order to go down and come back up we had to disable it…they must have just happened to catch us at the right time. Either that or there's something we're missing. But it doesn't matter. They've found us before now with the shield up, and they will again if we're not careful. What matters is that we can't be caught unprepared like this again." She glanced down at Rosette and gave her an encouraging smile. "We thought we could manage without Ion, but I guess it's kind of hard to defend our home when none of us are strong like we used to be. Your gun could be a real asset… keep it handy."
Rosette didn't reply to that, since she really had no answer to come up with. She never inquired as to why all the Sinners were hornless, excluding Rizel. She had assumed that they had just become unlucky and lost them during the many battles they appeared to fight frequently. But now, she wasn't so sure.
Sheda's gaze fell back down to Chrno. "Well, he's stable now, which is a plus. But that still doesn't explain what happened." Her green eyes lifted, and fixed Rosette with a very strong stare, that seemed to scrutinize her inside and out. "What can you tell me about it? I assumed the feedback from my machine was caused by a malfunction, or a wrong connector in the wiring…but now I doubt that was the case. Then there was the burns on his hands when he fought Jenai... I couldn't even begin to explain that. What exactly is going on?"
Rosette pondered that. What was going on? Like Sheda said, the malfunction couldn't be used to explain what had happened on the battlefield. It had to be something else…
Her eyes fell on the cross glittering from it's position around his neck, and she began to wonder. It could be a side-effect of the battle, she supposed. After all he had handled an immense amount of power, and there was very little chance that something like that would not have had repercussions.
Repercussions…
Her breath caught as she had a brief, almost exciting thought. What if…?
She lifted her head and looked at Sheda thoughtfully. "There may be an answer…" Sheda just raised an eyebrow, as she punched some controls to re-route the power of the pools to help those who needed them. "Back during the…battle in Central Park…" Rosette began slowly, trying to word her choice of what to say carefully. "…in order to do what we needed to do, he channeled the raw Astral Line through his body."
The room got very quiet suddenly, as all chatter ceased at her words. Sheda fixed her with a very incredulous stare. "How on earth could he manage that?"
Rosette glanced around, and was slightly unnerved to see the Sinners all staring at her. "Erm…well he had help… I kind of helped him, and he had help from Magdalena as well."
The silence seemed to deepen even more. "From…Magdalena…" Sheda spoke softly, the only one who seemed to be excited, as her ears perked forward with eagerness. "So…it worked then! Your consciousnesses were stored! Excellent." She beamed happily, before coughing a bit, aware she was the center of everyone's stares. "Ahem. Right, well that's good, but it still doesn't explain how he channeled the Astral Line… unless…" She looked thoughtful. "Ahh…. I see. She helped him with her own power, is that it?"
Rosette nodded. "They merged souls."
Sheda choked, and dropped the small device she held in her hand, which dropped into Chrno's pool with a 'plink'. "Say that again?"
Rosette blinked, but scratched her nose. "You heard me."
Sheda drew a long breath. "I see." She took a long deep stare down at the still demon beneath them, then ran a hand through her hair. "That might account for it then. And it's appropriately fitting."
Rosette fiddled with her jacket, sensing the tense awkward silence that continued in the room. "What does it mean? I thought it was over with after that night…"
Sheda sighed and began to punch a few more buttons, reaching into the pool and fishing out her device and making a face as it was obviously ruined. "It's not as simple as that. Souls are more complex, you don't just use 'em and leave 'em." She pulled out another gadget and knelt down beside the pools' surface and placed it over the center, peering at it. After a few moments, she pulled back. "Well, whatever it was, it's gone now, with no residual effects, aside from burning the crap outta his body." She sighed a bit scratching her head once more. "For now, I guess we'll just have to wait and see what he does when he wakes up. But I'm not too reassured that this couldn't be a serious problem."
"A serious problem?"
Sheda just fixed her with a flat look, and a shrug. "Think about it Rosette. What kind of things went wrong when Joshua had Chrno's horns?" At Rosette's wide-eyed fearful look, Sheda nodded. "Yeah. My point. While an apostle's, or saints', power isn't something you can physically see, like a demon's horns, they're no less powerful…if anything their power is greater on a different level." Sheda looked very serious suddenly. "When you combine the two… well we're not sure what really happens. With Joshua it was a case of polar opposites… I'm not sure what will happen with Chrno, especially since if what you say is true, we can't UN-do what's been done to him."
Rosette sat there, in silence, thinking over that information with a worried crease on her brow. She glanced down at him, and bit her lip, chewing on it thoughtfully. "But if it were that dangerous, she wouldn't have done it in the first place."
"She may not have known." Sheda shook her head. "Even if she did, did you really have any other choice at the time? I know what you were up against." She lowered her voice slightly. "And given the situation, you came out better than I anticipated."
Rosette smiled tightly. "Well…I guess so."
Sheda put a hand on her shoulder. "Go get some rest. He's not going to get any worse right now. It only seems to affect him when we access his powers. It was small before, and now that he worked up to something large, the effect is greater. As long as he doesn't over do it, he should be fine, and I don't think he's going to be doing anything strenuous anytime soon." A mischievous glint lit her eyes. "Not only is he going to be sore, but he's going to have one HELL of a hangover."
**
Remington sighed, putting a hand to his head, to ease the throbbing pain there that had been present since this whole fiasco started.
It had been two weeks.
Two long weeks.
He had been sleeping when the news had come.
"MINISTER!" the door slammed open loudly, blowing harsh wind into the dark room, and startling Remington wide awake, as he jerked up from his bed. The page looked a bit awkward, as he stared off to the side rather than run his eyes over the scars and other apparatus visible on Remington's bare chest. "Um…Sister Kate asked you to come immediately. It's an emergency."
Remington didn't question the information, but slid out of bed silently, pulling on a robe, and immediately going down the stairs to the control room, a frown on his face. It was the middle of the night… no, correct that. Early in the morning. The sun wasn't even up.
He breezed into the room, and stopped instantly sensing whatever it was, it was far more serious than a demon attack. "What's the situation." He asked swiftly, walking over to where the Elder and Sister Kate stood.
Sister Kate's face was serious, and her eyes red from lack of sleep. "The cargo ship has gone missing."
A fear clutched at his heart as those words hit his ears. "Missing…? When."
"It fell out of radio contact an hour ago. There were reports of shouting and chaos ahead of time." Sister Kate's eyes lifted to meet his. "Could it be…?"
Remington frowned. "No… it must have been an outside source. Chrno is not the kind who would cause such a thing. And between Rosette and Joshua, they could handle any situation, unless something else happened…"
"Something else…?" Sister Kate's lips pursed. "You mean other demons?"
"Most probable." He turned to the Elder, who was frowning. "Could it be…those demons?"
The Elder nodded once. "There is no other possibility. The Pursuers no longer have any viable reason to seek Chrno, aside from just plain revenge. However, the Sinners do have more of a grudge."
Remington brushed his chin with a hand thoughtfully. "But what purpose would they have?" He sighed. "Have search parties been sent out?"
"Yes, but by the time they get there, I doubt much will be left." The Elder shook his head.
"We have no way of getting in touch with them, do we?" Sister Kate asked softly, a worried crease on her brow.
"None.. we'll have to wait until something comes up. Nor do we have means to locate the Sinners' hideout. We attempted to do so after the Battle, and had no luck. After all, Stella's older sister is still missing, and we aren't positive that there isn't some more offensive actions that they may be willing to risk."
A soft gasp from behind him, caused Remington to glance over his shoulder. He smiled faintly, and gestured at the young girl standing in the hall, with wide eyes. "Azmaria…come."
The small apostle came forward, in a light robe and bare feet beneath her nightgown, looking as if she wanted to ask a question, but was afraid to do so. Finally, she managed to swallow hard, and look up at him. "Rosette…? Is she ok?"
"I'm sure she is." Remington put a hand on the frail girl's shoulder and smiled. "She's strong. Besides, she has one of the 'special' guns with her."
"Ahh yes." The Elder smiled wider. "I'm hoping she can give me a report on it. It took some work trying to squeeze the power of a Testament cannon into a small gun one could hold in the hand. I blew up several before getting it right."
Azmaria's lower lip trembled a bit, but she stood taller. "Right..she's safe with Joshua and Chrno too."
"Yes…no doubt." Remington lifted his gaze slowly to the board where the blinking light indicating the ship's last position lay.
**
The sky was clear, with no sight of any clouds…very strange on such a somber day.
The tea cup clinked hollowly on the saucer, as Stella closed her eyes and sighed softly.
"You're worried, miss? About those three?" Steiner's soft voice broke into her thoughts.
"Yes…" She spoke softly, glancing across the table at him. "I can't help it." She smiled fondly. "It seems strange with them gone… they were such an interesting pair."
Steiner smiled and nodded. "Yes, they were…And that young man, her brother, seemed a nice boy too."
Stella snorted. "When he wasn't possessed. Honestly…" She blew a lock of hair out of her eyes, and brought her Juwel setting up, fingering the glove thoughtfully. "I could help look for them."
"It is too far a distance for you to do so, miss." He reminded her gently. "They are out in the ocean. And it has been several days."
"I realize that…" She sighed again, turning her gaze skyward. "Neesan…where are you?" Her memories flashed back to their last encounter.
**
"Neesan!" Stella turned her Juwel towards Fiore, and set her jaw, as the shorter-haired woman eyed her with a neutral expression. She doesn't remember me… Stella bit her lip in anger. Ion.. this is your fault.
Fiore simply summoned her staff, and with a bright flash of light, she lunged at Stella, taking the younger woman by surprise. She brought her own Juwel up and summoned the Ritter just in time. "Neesan! Stop this!" She gasped out, as the clash of metal on metal drove her back several feet. "Open your eyes! Remember me!"
Fiore spoke not a word, however, and continued to lunge at Stella… the Ritter Juwel went flying through the walls, with Stella at it's head, wincing in pain as her head smashed into something hard, causing her concentration to waver as the room swirled around her. She was no match for Fiore… because she wasn't fighting with the same tactics… She couldn't harm her! But maybe if she tried something different…
She set her jaw, and un-summoned the Ritter, causing Fiore to stumble a bit, taken off-guard, and fix her with a stoic look, that could possibly have mirrored confusion if the woman showed any emotion.
Fiore surged forward, and at that point, Stella rolled to the ground, and re-summoned the Ritter with a bellow of challenge, and slammed her first forward, the avatar's own sword smashing right into Fiore's collar around her neck, shattering it, sending her flying forward…and right through the hole she smashed in the side of the fortress.
Fiore's eyes were wide, and filled with shock…
"Neesan!!" Stella dashed forward, eyes wide, watching as Fiore fell straight down towards the earth…before vanishing in the clouds below. "NEIN!" But by the time she hit the edge, and was diving down with another Jewel summoned beneath her, Fiore was nowhere to be found…
**
Yes… it had been a trying two weeks, Remington reflected, taking a long draught of his coffee. They had found the ruins of the ship, and not much of it was left. Oddly enough, the threesome's luggage had been discovered in the only part of the ship that had not exploded, but no sign of where they had vanished to remained.
Their searches of course, were useless… how could they track any power use at all? Demons were plentiful, and Chrno may be powerful, but his signature was no different from the many others out there. They could only check so many leads before falling short. He was beginning to wonder if they would ever find them…it seemed hopeless.
"Ah!" A startled cry brought his head up sharply.
"What is it?"
"An… enormous power surge… of holy AND demonic energies!"
Remington was on his feet in an instant, and staring at the map. The spot was hovering over the coastline near the central part of the eastern shore. There was no cities in that immediate area… Could it be… "Assemble the Militia." He whirled around. "We're going."
**
The sudden dull explosion woke Rosette from a deep sleep, despite the exhaustion that plagued her body. Her eyes slid open, and she sat up, glancing out the window with some confusion. Explosions…? Had the Pursuers found them again? Her heart clenched, and she tore the sheets off, dashing to the door quickly and wrenching it open, just as Sheda reached it. The resulting collision sent them both sprawling onto the ground in a most awkward position, namely with Rosette kneeling on Sheda's face. "Ahh! Sorry!"
Sheda rolled over as Rosette scrambled off, her and rubbed her nose. "Maa, what a morning…" Her voice wasn't the usual joking tone that it carried normally. "Rosette." Her eyes turned serious as she fixed the young woman with a stare. "Your friends are here to get you… I suggest you get out there and stop them from blowing holes in my masterpiece!"
Friends…?
The Order!
Rosette surged to her feet, and grabbed her jacket, making sure her gun was in it, before splitting down the hall in a dead run. This could be bad! Very bad…!
The scene that greeted her was definitely not a very friendly one, as she tore across the grass. The shield was torn apart, crackling with green energy all along the south side, and a flock of blue and white uniforms were lined up in rows along the edge of the field, all with guns leveled directly at the three Sinners, as they standing there uncertain what to do.
"Where are Rosette and Joshua?!" Bellowed a familiar voice, and as Rosette whipped her head around, she spotted him in an instant. Remington stood at the head of the Militia, holy sword out and leveled directly at the row of demons in front of him, blue eyes burning with a cold inner fire. "If you have harmed them…"
"Oi!" Jenai whipped his head around, sensing Rosette as she ran up behind them. "This is YOUR problem, kid." His voice was tense, however, and Rosette knew instinctively that should a battle occur, he wasn't sure which side would be triumphant.
"Remington!" she called out, waving a hand quickly over her head. "Stop! We're here, and we're both fine!"
Remington's gaze fell on her, and brief surprise crossed his face, seeing her in good condition, gasping for breath as she slowed to a walk, and stopped right beside Rizel's left elbow. "Rosette…? What is going on here?" His voice was suddenly cold, and she could hear the tight anger beneath it. "They destroyed your transport, and now are holding you hostage here?"
"Well, it's not quite like that…" She started to say, though as she said it, she knew that technically what he said was true.
"Aww shaddup!" Jenai barked with a growl. "What the hell. We don't let God's dogs on OUR sanctuary… get the hell outta here." His hands warped into blades as he spoke, and his aura kicked up a notch.
"No!" Rosette grabbed onto his elbow, but Jenai simply shrugged her off. "Don't fight each other! There's no need!"
"I will NOT forgive them for murdering innocents!" Remington bellowed back, his face turning slightly red out of rage as he stared back intently at the three demons, the Militia all raising their weapons towards the group.
Rosette felt the control of the situation slipping quickly out of her hands, and she shoved her way forward, trying to get between the two so they wouldn't fire, but Vid stopped her, pulling her back protectively, and she fell on her rear behind him. "Remington!" She cried out, more as a warning to try and ask him to cease his actions, but the Minister didn't take it that way, and saw it as an attack on Rosette instead.
He raised his hand and pointed his finger directly at the Sinners. "Fire when I give the call, and NOT before!"
Crap…I need help with this! They can't attack one another! They just can't! Rosette thought desperately. Chrno…I need your help!
A rush of wind thrust her hair in front of her vision suddenly, and she fought to tear it back, her breath still wheezing harshly through her lungs, as she felt a strong hand on her shoulder, helping her rise to her feet. She glanced up, and her heartbeat quickened with surprise. "Chrno!"
The violet-haired demon smiled down at her distractedly, his eyes locked on the scene before him. Rosette could see he was fighting a headache, as he put his other hand to his head, looking slightly groggy. "This isn't good…" He murmured softly.
Rosette nodded mutely, turning her gaze upwards towards her companion. He still looked as if he wasn't at one hundred percent, she could see some of the healing marks on the very far recesses of his face, and on his upper arms poking out beneath his shirt. Apparently he'd woken up due to the commotion out here. She reached up, grabbing his arm for support, as she felt a wave of nausea sweep through her. What's wrong with me…?
Chrno turned his eyes down towards her, a worried frown on his face. "Are you ok, Rosette? You look pale…"
"Yeah… just tired I guess." She replied, standing straighter, refusing to show weakness. "We need to stop them before they start attacking one another."
"Right." Chrno agreed, wrapping his arm around her waist firmly. "We don't need this pointless battle." His jaw firmed a bit in anger. "If we continue this needless hatred we'll get nowhere!" He sighed, then tightened his grip a bit. "Hold on."
With a whirl of the scenery, Rosette felt her consciousness whip around as Chrno sped forward, holding her tightly to him. She opened her eyes, and saw where he'd moved to… they were now standing directly between the opposing sides.
Chrno held her close to him, but snapped his wings open and raised his hand in a signal to hold, aimed at the Order. "Stop this! There's no need to fight each other!"
Remington's gaze had briefly widened seeing the demon appear with Rosette, but at his words, his eyes narrowed to small slits. "Chrno…why are you defending them? Have you betrayed your loyalties from us?"
"No!" Chrno exclaimed, looking a bit distraught. "But there's no need to kill over this! No harm was done…"
"No harm!?" Remington exploded. "They destroyed a ship full of innocent lives, and you call that no harm!?"
"Hey! What the hell do you know about it?" Jenai snapped, taking a step forward from the other side. "This from the supposedly 'pure' group of people dedicated to saving lives!? Yet you slaughter our own kin left and right!"
"They attack and murder innocent civilians!"
"And you do no better, bastard!"
Rosette felt anger rise up. "ALL OF YOU STOP IT!" She pulled away from Chrno, spreading her hands towards either side, glaring about with frustration. "There's no need…"
"ROSETTE!" Remington bellowed. "Move aside!"
"NO!"
"Chrno! Let me at that bastard!"
"Jenai, stop it! You're not helping things!"
Rosette couldn't be sure who fired first…all she saw was the brilliant flash of light as something rocketed towards her, before a jerk pulled her back into Chrno as he wrenched her close to him, wings folding around her protectively just as the blast struck them both.
She felt everything burning around her, hot and searing, and at first she thought it was over, but then she realized the pain was more radiation effects of the blast, and her eyes opened slowly. The light was blinding and the roar of the wind intense, but Chrno's wings shielded her from the explosions that plowed into them from all sides, colors of red, blue, and white raining down all around.
Rosette shivered, and looked up fearfully, barely able to see Chrno through the hazy light that surrounded them, but their eyes met briefly, as she saw something that confused, and alarmed her… His eyes were glazed over, and shot through with veins of bright blue light, that throbbed slightly with the pulse of his heart, and seemed to be slowly expanding from the outside, in towards the crimson center of his eyes. She had never before seen something so dramatically different, and she had the sudden sneaking fear that it wasn't a good sign.
"Chrno…" She gasped for breath, feeling it come strained to her, as if she were choking… He just closed his eyes, and she saw veins creeping further down his face as he strained harder to block the barrage of demon and holy energies. An aching longing suddenly clutched at Rosette's heart, and she buried her face in his chest, praying that they would make it through this…God…please…I've had enough!
Somewhere over the dull roar of the explosions raining around them, she could hear Remington's voice bellowing. "STOP! CEASE FIRE! CEASE FIRE I SAID!!!!"
"Stop! What the hell are you doing!?" Sheda's squeak could barely be heard, but it had about the same force behind it as the priest's.
Suddenly, the explosions stopped, and for the longest moment, Rosette's ears rang with the sudden bout of silence. Her breath came quickly, and short, and she could see black spots on the edge of her vision with every gasp. Was it over? Her eyes lifted up, but as she tried to focus on the face that hovered protectively above her, her vision began to swim, and blackness crept slowly into her mind. No… She thought weakly, before she gave up the struggle, and let unconsciousness claim her.
The view from the opposing sides was somewhat different, however. Remington had glanced aside quickly as he saw Joshua running forward, looking horrified at the stand off, when the shot had been fired. Within the few seconds it took for him to focus back on the battle, the two figures were completely consumed in light. Rosette!!! Alarm swept through him as he whipped his sword and arm out. "CEASE FIRE!" But no one listened… The demons were intent on returning fire, as the Militia unleashed Gospel upon Gospel. It was a heated firefight, and with growing dread, Remington knew if he didn't stop it, he would have two deaths on his hands.
He darted forward, and threw his sword with great force, so that the tip plunged into the ground in front of the Militia, and glowed there brightly, causing everyone to pull back, and stop their firing immediately, realizing what they'd just done.
On the opposite side, the Sinners stopped their barrage, as the cat-demon scientist jumped in front, and caught their attention.
There was silence for a good long moment, as everyone's eyes slowly moved from their opponents, to the two figures in the center between the opposing armies.
Remington's breath caught in surprise, as he straightened, staring ahead with wide, incredulous eyes.
At first, when the glow began to die, he hoped that the two had apparated elsewhere…but as their forms became visible, his blood froze as he realized who had just taken the brunt of the attack. Joshua was already running forward, hands out and glowing blue by the time Remington joined his side, and stared down with a sick feeling in his gut, watching as the Apostle worked at healing quickly. He knelt down and gently moved Rosette out of the tight grip Chrno had her in, and gave her a swift appraisal. She was un-injured but pale and out cold… unlike her companion, who Remington feared, had Joshua not been there, would not have survived. The priest couldn't even bear to look at the fallen demon, reminded strongly just how many times Chrno had taken hits for Rosette, despite his own life being endangered.
Yet.. he had seen something strange just before the glow surrounding the two ceased…and his fears were confirmed even more so, as his eyes lifted slowly, and met with the piercing green ones of the small cat-demon, and they exchanged an understanding in that moment.
**
The gentle sound of beeping drew her consciousness back slowly from the foggy depths sleep had wrapped around her. At first, Rosette wasn't sure what was causing the beeping, as her eyes slid open to a white sterile ceiling with soft lights spilling down into the dim room.
Where am I… not in Eden…? Rosette slowly lifted her head, and felt exhaustion clutch her even as she tried to sit up. It took some effort, but she finally pushed herself up into a sitting position, and was able to glance around. She was in a hospital room, with an IV attached to her arm, and monitors by her bed. It was quiet, aside from the beeping, and no one was around. A quick glance out the window told her it was night, which explained the lack of staff members. And another quick sweep of her eyes, showed her that she wasn't as alone in the room as she had first thought.
The soft glow attracted her attention first, and she knew what she was seeing without hesitation, as she slipped out of bed, hanging onto the IV stand shakily as her legs nearly collapsed beneath her, and slowly shuffling her way over to the corner of the room where the other bed lay.
The shining cross field partitioned this section of the ward off, but she passed through it easily, as she half-stumbled towards the bed where Chrno lay. Though they had erected a holy containment barrier around him, Rosette could immediately tell that there was no danger of him attempting to break out, as tears came to her eyes.
He was breathing slowly, hooked up to a monitor like she had been, though the readings were somewhat erratic. Bandages were wrapped over a good portion of his upper body and head, though he was in human form at the moment. For whatever reason, they had placed a holy ward on his chest as well, to keep him in human form, though it was apparently not harming him, as he lay sleeping.
She felt a numb sensation flood through her, as she slowly lowered herself to sit on the side of the bed next to him, watching his chest rise and fall rhythmically to the steady beeping of the monitor next to the bed. She dimly recalled what had happened, and she supposed that while it wasn't her fault, she should still be angry at both sides for being stupid…
She closed her eyes, sensing the rage that lay deep down inside of her, but she just didn't have the will to bring it to the surface, and so she just consigned herself to feeling numb and drained.
A soft creek of the door behind her alerted her to someone
else's' presence, but she didn't turn her head, instead reaching forward and
scooping one of Chrno's bandaged arms up, and slipping her hand into his. It
was warm and comforting to feel his life force beneath her palm, however faint
it was. She didn't hear whoever it was that had stopped by leave, but after
several long minutes, she heard several footsteps, and felt a few additional
people enter the room from behind her.
A soft pair of arms encircled her, and she glanced back briefly, seeing blonde
tousled hair as Joshua tightly embraced her. "Neesan… I'm glad you're ok…" His
voice sounded slightly choked up, and Rosette had to sigh and smile lightly,
before turning around and embracing her brother.
"I'm fine…just tired, really." She replied, forcing her voice to sound enthusiastic, though it came across rather shallow. Joshua pulled back, and for the first time, Rosette saw the bags under his eyes. Apparently he had been worried sick about her. "How long has it been?"
"A week." Joshua replied, rubbing his face and stifling a yawn. "You had us worried."
"Sorry." She smiled lopsidedly, and ruffled his hair fondly, raising her gaze to meet Remington's and Sister Kate's behind him. "You know how I like to sleep in." There was some laughter, that helped relieve some tension in the room, before she turned her gaze back down to Chrno. "How is he?"
"He'll be fine given another couple of days." Sister Kate replied, folding her arms inside her sleeves. "He's been healing faster than we anticipated, even given his situation."
Rosette eyed the barrier and frowned up at Remington, the battle still fresh on her mind. "Why did you put a barrier up in here? He's not going to hurt anyone."
Remington shook his head. "It's not for our protection, Rosette.. it's for his." At her scowl, he held a hand up. "Initially, his own power was damaging him. Joshua healed the primary amount of damage he took, but even after he exhausted himself, there was too much for Chrno to handle alone. We stabilized him first, and after the effects wore off, we transferred him here and allowed him to heal himself. Without the barrier and ward, his own body would continue tearing him apart."
"Oh…" Rosette said rather mutely. "It's worse than we thought then…"
"Considerably." A new voice spoke from behind the Sister and Reverend, as the Elder stepped into the room, polishing some gadget in his hands. "And it will continue to get worse the more frequently he uses his powers, and the greater amount he uses. It's like combining Fire and Water. Water is stronger, though Fire may be more destructive."
Rosette made a face, not linking the comparison the Elder offered, but not able to protest that it didn't fit the situation appropriately.
"It's a good thing you didn't see what he went through, neesan." Joshua spoke quietly at her side, giving her shoulder a squeeze. "The Elder said, if we hadn't gotten him back when we did…"
Rosette stood up, and another bout of dizziness swept through her. "Ugh… don't remind me." She sighed. "Geh. This is the most time I've ever seen Chrno out cold since I've known him. And I haven't been in the hospital since I broke my arm…" She rubbed it in frustration.
There was an extended silence, that caused her to look up abruptly, and spot the worried looks on everyone's faces. "What?" She asked abruptly, not certain she wanted to hear the answer now. "What's with all the faces."
"Rosette…" Sister Kate sighed. "You have so much energy…even now."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Rosette snapped back, crossing her arms. "I'm fine!"
"Rosette!" Joshua chided with a hard edge to his voice. "You passed out in battle not because of the attacks… Chrno shielded you from that… You passed out because your life is nearly over."
Rosette bit her lip and looked down. "I know." She replied quietly. "I knew I was living on borrowed time when I woke up during the battle in Central Park." She lifted her head and fixed them with an even stare. "But I refuse to let it get the better of me."
The four people facing her smiled at the same time over her fortitude. "I figured you would say that." Sister Kate replied with a shake of her head. "Your spirit can never be doused, Rosette."
Rosette just grinned, and gave her a thumbs up.
"Saa, saa… So true." Came a new voice from the doorway, causing them all to turn.
Rosette's eyes widened in surprise, as she saw a very familiar shape appear in the doorway. "S…Sheda!?" She blinked in surprise, seeing the feline grinning there, hands stuffed in her pockets.
**
Author's note:
Since many people have now reviewed my fic ^_^ I figured it's a good time to do some replying to comments!!
Ahem ahem!
Simber: Thanks ^_^ I hope you enjoy the manga as much as I did, since it definitely is a far more interesting and comprehensive story than the *shudder* anime.
Arabella Silverbell: More CC fics would be awesome ^_^;; I feel weird having the only LONG one… I hope more people post em!
Ishi: ^^ yeah the anime does a good job of it, if you like the blatant relationships they draw. I prefer the subtle ones the manga pulls though myself
SxStrngSamurai13: Ah one of my compulsive fans ^_^ hehe You were my first stalker I do believe ^_~
Arabella Silverbell: Welcome back to commenting XD Please feel free to squeel at the door and leave your eagerness behind!
Arabella Silverbell: ^_^ yes, act 2. MUCH more interesting than act 1, yes?
Catfleas: I try to update as quickly as I can ^_^ Thanks for enjoying!
TekiStar: hehe well considering I can't see any other pairings… I mean honestly, Stella/Chrno or Az/Chrno would be WEIRD
Just a reader: ^_^ mwhaa scary ne? That's the mark of a good story when ya can't tell what's part of the manga and what's not ^_^ good luck reading it!
Grim Wolf: Thanks! They're pumping outta me by the dozen it seems o.o
Irisgem: ^_^ there's not enough romance fics for CC imo.
Ishi: well considering act 2 is kinda the sequel anyway… we'll see how I end it. Probably there's not going to be an act 3, since I'm gonna wrap it all up in act 2. but there's possibility for more always.
Irisgem: lol yeah.. you know anytime something nice and relaxing happens, chaos thus ensues.
Arabella Silverbell: ^_^ I love Ion too much to just kill him off.
Coolancelot: woot! Nice to see ya reading ^_^
Just a reader: hmmm well considering the manga didn't have too many touchy scenes, you never saw them cry too much. However whenever something went wrong, rosette was pretty quick to tears, specially when her brother and chrno are involved. ^_^ besides, blushing and crying make it more interesting and give it some drama.
Irisgem: hmmm I wonder ^_^ hehehe
Irisgem: from the start, I always pictured Rizel as someone who loved to drink… maybe it was the picture of all the Sinners in manga 6 laughing it up. Sheda's worse ! just wait till you see HER smashed! O.o As for swearing, in the translations of the manga I have, Rosette actually does swear up a storm ^_^; Plus I think she's got a Lina-Inverse-y personality, so IMO it fits ^,,^ Nun or not.
Simber: Welcome!!! Thanks for reading~!
…: ^_^ love the 'name' and so thanks!
Pol: Glad you like! XD
Saphiremirth: Thanks for that great review! Glad to see both sides of the question! As for the manga, Manga 8 has not yet been released, but the final chapters are about to be released in Dragon magazine in June I believe. Volume 8 should be out shortly thereafter and our lovely manga will have ended *sigh* I know what happens at the end, save the unreleased chapters though XD
LunaticPandora1: ^_^ I loved that line too. It just fit wonderfully.
Whew and that's everyone from FF.net ^_^ For all those on Astral Lines (Jenn, Kirei, Darksnow, ect!) Thanks for reviewing there too ^_~ I constantly look for assistance in ideas from you willing victem—er..friends. mwhahaaaa
Next Chapter! Coming up soon…and our MEGA PLOT is revealed DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN