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.
and by now I'm so far off of the manga, I should just warn you that most of what happens, never happens in the manga XD. It stopped doing that around act 1's conclusion.
A Chrno Crusade fanfic by Nightelfcrawleryahoo.com
Chapter Eighteen: Shattered Hearts, and Shattered MindsCold… so cold. She felt so empty…and cold…
Why? Why did she feel so cold…? Her limbs wouldn't move… everything felt heavy, as if she were frozen in place. Her mind moved sluggishly, as she tried to push past the dark fog that clouded her vision… something was beyond it, she knew. Something…
The intense aching in her chest, tugged at her, as she finally managed to open her eyes, only to behold a dreary sight… endless wasteland…dark, gloomy, and empty, a bone-chilling fog clinging to everything like heavy dew.
Why had she fought so hard to open her eyes…? There was nothing here to see.
She began to close her eyes again, and let the warmth of sleep overtake her, but something tightened in her chest, and she began to remember why it was she had fought so hard to wake… the aching longing in her chest was so strong, she almost cried out in pain from it.
Why…? Why did she long so hard? For what? There was nothing worth longing for anymore… yet still the feeling persisted, strong, powerful, and keeping her from drifting back to the dark oblivion beyond.
She had come this far…through immeasurable odds… for a reason that escaped her… but she knew she had to wait here, even if her immobile body could not move an inch further past the endless distance she had journeyed through to get here. Here was where she must wait…
Wait for the intense longing sensation to end…somehow…
--------------
Rosette woke with a start, gasping for breath, as she clung desperately to the sheets, drenched in sweat.
What on earth was that…?She closed her eyes, running a hand through her damp hair, and glanced over at the alarm clock. It was quarter to five in the morning, and the sun was just barely beginning to lighten the horizon outside of her window. The curtains swayed gently in a soft breeze, that caused her to pull her bed sheets closer, as she fought a shiver.
Her eyes strayed lightly to the bedside table, where a familiar shape glinted dimly golden in the early morning twilight. Tears threatened to rise once more, and Rosette angrily threw the covers aside, grabbing her bathrobe, and stepped out onto the balcony outside her window, and draped her arms across the stone railing, her eyes scanning the grounds beneath her with an empty reflection.
How long could she keep going through the motions…? It had been three days, and every time she turned the corner, she swore that she saw a glimpse of purple hair, darting just ahead of her, out of sight. She saw his face out of the corner of reflections in the glass, and she heard his voice deep down a dark corridor she was passing by. It was pure torture… everything she did, everything she saw, reminded her of him.
She still didn't want to accept the fact he was gone. Everyone else seemed to have done so already, though they all were somber in reflection, but why was it that she seemed unable to just simply accept the idea?
She closed her eyes and stood tall against the balcony wall, pressing her palms into the railing to support her. She had to accept it soon, or she wouldn't be able to assist them in the upcoming battle. She needed to be strong, for she and Ion were the only ones who knew what to do in order to defeat these monsters. Still…if this was the only way, there would be many more deaths. It was only inevitable.
Her gaze lifted, as the first ray of sunlight broke through the clouds on the horizon between the tall buildings of New York City on the skyline. The pink and golden hues lit the clouds drifting lazily overhead, and cast a warm glow upon her face, as she closed her eyes, allowing a faint smile to pass over her features.
She had to be strong… after all, he had been strong for her sake. If she let him down now, she would never forgive herself. She remembered all the times she had prodded him to laugh, teasing him relentlessly, until he finally broke and smiled, joining her merriment…though always with a sad reflection in his eyes deep behind the cheerful mask. So solemn… It had been years before that sadness had finally lifted, not perpetually staining his eyes, but instead evaporating every time he laughed.
How could he do it…? How could he live day by day, hiding the sad feelings he had kept from her for so long?
A sudden cold clammy feeling clutched at her abruptly, making her bend over double, gasping for breath. The hell… what's wrong with me…? She stood there, as the feeling slowly faded, leaving her puzzled and confused. Something was strange here…
She straightened, and glanced once more across the grounds, before shaking her head. She had to move on… they had work to do… "I know you'd approve…" She murmured low, before turning back and re-entering her room to change.
A short while later, she was dressed, and heading downstairs, her guns strapped to her hip firmly, skirt swishing with authority. She held her head high, chin up, and eyes locked with the determined fire she had so long used to hide behind. There seemed nothing different about the strong-willed gait of the Sister, save for the missing time-piece at her chest which she had forced herself to leave behind.
Surprisingly, more people were up than she had anticipated, as she strode into the dining room, which had been converted for the time being into a war room.
They glanced up as she entered, and a hushed silence fell through the great hall, as she made her way towards the table where Remington, Kate, Elder, and Ion stood with other order members, plans and maps in front of them spread over the table.
"Rosette…" Remington seemed slightly surprised to see her. "You don't need to be here this early…"
"I couldn't sleep." She said shortly, and took her place across the table from them. "So I figured best get an early start. How are the repairs?"
The four blinked at her matter-of fact manner, and all but Ion seemed clearly taken aback and worried at this turn of events. "Sheda's about finished repairing the gate." Elder spoke up finally after a pause. "It will be ready today."
"We plan on maneuvering our Militia through the gate this afternoon, and putting them in a place for a good frontal attack. It will take time to maneuver all of the Testament cannons into place, but we don't think the Destroyers would have hung around after one of their numbers was destroyed."
"Are we SURE it was destroyed?" Kate asked quietly. "You fled an explosion and didn't see the result."
Ion shot her a venomous look. "We can't be sure of course, but not very many things radiate that kind of after effect. You can be fairly certain it's dead. There are still four more to go, however."
Kate inclined her head and sighed. "Then… we have to figure a way to make this work… Can you bring them close when the time comes, Ion?"
The platinum haired demon just shrugged. "We can try. There are only a few of our numbers left who are willing to fight. The rest left when Dufou fell. Whether or not Dufou is still alive is unknown, and to them, it's not worth the risk. So, my lady, you have just us Sinners to work with, I'm afraid."
Kate shook her head. "It's more than we can hope for… Who would have thought such an unlikely team of individuals would be assisting us…"
"What happens if the Testaments don't work?" Remington asked quietly. "Rosette had to get up close to one of those monsters… from such a distance the effect will be lessened."
"We have to try… After all, the only other option is…" Kate's eyes rose and met Ion's briefly, before she shook her head. "…we can't afford to lose anyone else."
Rosette averted her eyes to stare at the other Sinners sitting at a table off to the side. Sheda was not there, as she was busy working, but Vid, Rizel, and Jenai were talking quietly amongst themselves, occasionally throwing glances in their direction to see if their attention was needed. What did they think of this, she wondered. Were they willing to help as Ion was, or did they simply want to go their own way, and say to hell with the other demons?
She closed her eyes and leaned against the table, listening as the battle plans continued to be lain out. It had been three days. Three long days, filled with mourning, grief, and grim strategizing for the inevitable battle to come. How she had made it through those long three days, was still torturing her mind. Yet… she knew somewhere deep inside of her, that she had no intention of going out quietly. Whether this worked or not, she would be going out with a blast.
A cold icy feeling lanced through her once more, causing her breath to pause, and her eyes to snap back open. No one else had noticed, and they continued their planning. She stood there, however, suddenly feeling a very weak, sick feeling in her gut. It must be something wrong with her…after all, she no longer had her soul being re-fed… though… it had been over a year, and she had been recovering better each day, she would have thought a good portion of her soul would have regenerated… so then why this sudden grasp of death around her heart?
Rosette…What? She blinked once, and glanced around her, a frown on her lips. She swore she'd heard her name…
"Rosette? Rosette…?"
She blinked and whipped her head back around, to see the four staring at her. "Um… yeah sorry, what?"
Kate frowned disapprovingly. "I asked if you were certain you wished to come with us? It's not necessary, and I know how difficult this must be for you."
She shook her head quickly. "I'm going. This is my fight, as much as anyone else's… more so now." Her lips pressed together in a very Kate-ish way. "I'm not going to let everything I've fought for go away in vain. I'm in this through the end, no matter what."
Kate smiled faintly. "I see." She glanced over and shared a knowing look with Remington, before nodding. "So be it then…"
----- ----- -----
"Well, here goes nothing…" Sheda muttered, as she slammed the switch upwards, holding her breath as she watched the dials began to rise slowly higher as the power was channeled into the machine.
The whole Militia was gathered in the courtyard, waiting to see the result of the final test, as they prepared for battle.
Rosette stood nearby, watching with a passive face, as the gate slowly began to light up, until the ring exploded in brilliant green light once more, strong and whole again. So, this was it…
"Rosette." She turned as Remington approached. "Are you ready?"
She nodded. "Let's go."
Without a pause of hesitation, she turned and followed Ion and the other Sinners through the gate, Remington on her heels, followed then by the entire Militia, as one by one they entered the vast glowing expanse, traveling the rifts between the two worlds instantly, to arrive in the desolate plains of dreariness that spread out before them like an old photograph.
Rosette brushed her hair back slowly, as she stood glancing around. There was no sign of the Destroyers anywhere, the black ominous forms were no longer in direct sight from the gate. The clouds were as gray and heavy as before, the wind chill and clammy, and the air heavy with stillness, except for the occasional heavy metallic clinking as the cannons were pulled one by one out of the gate, and maneuvered onto the ground around them.
It was ironic… when they came unprepared, there the monsters had been… when the came prepared, they were nowhere to be seen.
A sudden cry of alarm off to the right caused her to turn her head, idly scanning the horizon to see what had alarmed the Militia there. Nothing was in sight, only the occasional boulder and scrub brush, no sign of any demons or threat. What were they squawking about… probably a skeleton or something…
"R..Remington…" A Militia stumbled up to the priest, gasping for breath, his eyes wide open, and face pale as if he had seen something horrendous. "I… I think you should come look at this…"
The priest frowned, and glanced off in the direction the Militia had pointed, and saw nothing out of the ordinary… yet there were several people gathered around a large boulder that sat a few yards away.
He made his way over, with a slight sigh. If they were getting this jumpy over something small, there was no telling what…
His breath caught sharply, and he froze the moment he saw exactly what had drawn the attention of the ranks that had been positioning one of the cannons nearby.
Dear God, and all that was holy in the Virgin Mary… He had never seen anything so heart-wrenching as what lay before him.
At first glance, the still figure that was slumped up against the rock appeared to be nothing more than the scavenged remains of something long gone… but as Remington had a far more trained eye for detail than the Order members around him, he saw the truth of the situation quickly.
He closed his eyes and slowly turned around, lifting his gaze to lock on the single blonde-haired young woman standing off to the side, staring at some distant object with a wistful look upon her face.
Is she strong enough to handle this…? But even as he asked himself that, he knew that even if the answer were no, he couldn't keep it from her. He straightened his shoulders, and forced his voice to remain calm.
"Rosette… You need to come here for a moment."
Rosette made her way over towards the priest, not altogether concerned what he had to show her. After all, she had seen worse things than she would find here.
However, as she approached, he turned, standing in front of her, blocking her from continuing, placing two hands down on either shoulder, and looking deeply into her eyes, his own blue depths serious, and troubled. "Rosette…There is nothing I can say, aside from…" His voice cracked. "…you may not like what you see."
She frowned, but sharply brushed past him, leaving the priest standing there in silence, back turned for a long moment, before finally rotating around to watch.
Rosette knew who it was the moment she lay eyes upon him, her heart stopped, and turned cold in her chest, even as she kept a neutral expression on her face, eyes cast down on the reclining figure that was propped up against the rock for support.
Half his face was obscured by his hair, and what was not was drenched in blood, so that where the exact wounds were could not be determined. She could clearly see, however, that a blow to the side of his face had taken off a good portion of it. The limb that had been severed by the Destroyer's deadly touch had attempted to re-grow, then stopped as if it had just run out of energy to complete, leaving a hole in the side of the leather vest that gaped eerily. The whole front of the vest, had it not already been black in color, would have been vividly stained a new shade, as it were, she could see the shine of liquid that had congealed over the thick material. No clear wound was visible, aside from the ragged tear of fabric near his mid-section that she clearly remembered. Lacerations and gashes were plenty, and deep up and down his legs, which were laying flat against the ground, trails of dark spots leading back the way he had managed to come, before collapsing against the firm stone and earth behind him. The only remnants that remained of the ebony black wings that had carried her so far on many occasions, were small extensions of torn membrane that only barely cleared from behind his shoulders.
Rosette stood in silence, regarding the fallen figure of her comrade, with a wistful sadness that seeped into her face softly, that invaded her eyes the longer she stared down at him. If only they had come sooner… if he had managed to come this far…?
She slowly knelt down next to Chrno, and scooped his whole arm up, grasping his hand tightly in her own. Beneath her grip, it was cool and unresponsive, but soft in her grasp, and drenched in red. She closed her eyes again, and rose the hand to her cheek slowly, feeling hot tears splash down her cheeks. It was worse, seeing him like this, than simply thinking he had died quickly, painlessly… How long had he lain here, suffering in silence…?
She leaned forward, and scooped his head into her arms, not caring anymore if she stained her clothing… All she could think about was him, as guilt and an aching loneliness of regret filled her heart, at the anguish of seeing him so helpless and alone. Dear God… why? She could think of nothing more she wanted at this very moment, for this to have never happened….
Suddenly, a very clenching cold chill clutched at her heart again, and she felt an icy touch of something suck the breath from her once more, just the same time as she felt a very faint noise against her ear, as her head reclined on Chrno's chest, near the receptor that gleamed dully in the dim light, it's face cracked and shattered.
Her head jerked up sharply, eyes wide in alarm, as her mind slowly began to connect the dots… the dream… the voice…. The feelings…My God, I've been blind! She wanted to scream at herself in absolute fury, but that would do her no good at the moment. Instead, she peered forward intently, eyes scanning his features intently for recognition of a sign she could latch solidly onto. No one else seemed to have noticed her plight, for they were turned away in respect, allowing her time alone. She held her breath, waiting, watching, her face inches from his, until her heart nearly leapt out her throat when she saw a faint flicker of his eye beneath the lid, almost so slight she would have missed it had she blinked.
For the first time, Rosette realized something. He had told her earlier before, that he was able to sense her… sense where she was, when she was sad or happy… that the connection had always existed for him, and he had always found it re-assuring. She hadn't realized such a thing had existed, certainly she had never been aware of it… however now that she knelt here, she had felt the wavering of the connection that had always remained there. She hadn't even missed it until it was gone… and now it was struggling to return.
She surged to her feet wildly, causing several of the Militia around her to jump with surprise, as she whirled towards them, the front of her dress stained red from leaning against him. "REMINGTON!"
The priest whirled around at her bellowing shout, hand going instinctively towards his belt where his cross sword hung, clearly afraid she was under attack. "Rosette?" He hastened to her side, alarm on his face. "What…?"
"He's alive." She stated flatly, her eyes wide and sparkling with newfound hope, as she stared up at her mentor. "He's still alive!"
At first, she clearly saw Remington's look of resigned sadness, and knew he wasn't taking her seriously, but rather though she was delusional out of desperation. "Rosette… I think this is proving a bit too much for you…"
"NO!" She growled, and grabbed his arm, holding fast even as he tried to pull her away from the scene. "I'm not imagining things." Her gaze rose, and snapped over to the demon off to the side, speaking with a couple others of his kind who had appeared to assist them. "ION!" Ion turned, and with a swift apology to his comrades, headed their way, fixing her with a rather irritated glance. Rosette didn't give him a chance to speak, before she grabbed his sleeve, and yanked him over towards Chrno's unconscious form. "Is he, or is he not still alive, tell me!" At Ion's widened gaze upon his stricken companion, Rosette's tone softened. "I FELT something for a brief moment…"
Ion knelt down and put a hand to the side of Chrno's face that was least injured, and knelt motionless for a long period of time, before a slow smile began to cross his face, wiping the long lines of fatigue from his face. "Well I'll be damned…"
He lifted his gaze to meet Rosette's and in that instant, she felt a wash of tingling relief, hope, and newfound determination swell up through her body like adrenaline.
Remington's face mirrored shock, but his blue eyes also reflected the hope that everyone else around them shared. "How…? He's so critically wounded…"
"He must have sealed his own self up into stasis." Ion murmured, pulling back a bit and glancing their way. "He put himself to sleep in order to slow his body down…that way the damage wouldn't spread… such things are not unheard of…it's one way a demon can slow a potential death… but it's very dangerous, because if the demon had not enough energy to pull himself out of it, he will die anyway." His gaze sharpened. "We need to get him out of here and tended to immediately, or he truly will die."
Rosette whirled around, and bent down, immediately grabbing hold of Chrno's torso. "Help me." She demanded of Ion, who was in no position to argue, and gently lifted up the other half of his body, then shifted it out of her arms. "Allow me." He nodded to her. "Quickly now… before it's too late. Get your brother and the other girl, and have Sheda get the Elder."
Rosette didn't hesitate a moment, as her heart pounded deafeningly in her ears. She practically threw herself at the glowing gate, dashing through it before she heard Remington's cry of protest.
Upon bursting through, she immediately threw herself at Sheda, whose back was turned to her. "SHEDA!"
"UWAHHHA!" The feline demon was thrown flat on her face as Rosette tackled her from behind. "R..Rosette! What on earth…" Her nose twitched in alarm suddenly. "I smell blood! Are you injured?!"
"No, not me. Ion's coming with…"
"Ion's injured?!" Alarm was spreading like a wildfire, as the other Sinners surged over towards them, abandoning their own planning.
"No!" Rosette gasped, feeling her blood pounding through her ears harder. "He's coming with…"
Just then, no explanation was necessary, as Ion came stepping through the gate, the battered form of his comrade scooped carefully in his arms, tail dragging on the ground, and arm limply dangling at his side.
There was complete silence, before everything exploded all at once.
"My god… is that…?"
"Where did you find him?"
"Poor bastard…. After all this… waitaminute!"
Ion didn't pause in a single step as they swarmed around him, but instead was heading straight for the Order main building. "Sheda, bring your tools. Rosette.. if you please."
"Hai!" Rosette gasped, and dashed as fast as her booted feet would take her, through the gardens, across the lawn, and into the hallways. The whole world was spinning by her madly, as her mind was focused on one thing, and one thing alone… seeing his smiling face again.
She burst into the library like a whirlwind, sending books scattering from their tedious perches in piles along the floor, and lining the shelves as the door slammed open. "Joshua! Azmaria! Medical ward, NOW!" She barked, not giving the two Apostles time to protest or ask questions, before she had them by the elbows, propelling them forward as fast as she could run.
"Rosette! What's going on?" Azmaria squeaked as she stumbled a few times, and nearly fell flat on her face. "What's wrong?"
But Rosette couldn't answer them, as her inner monologue was drowning out anything that anyone might ask. Hurry…there's still time! He's lasted this long, just a little longer, Chrno!
They burst into the hospital wing, sending the doors flying and knocking splinters of wood off of them as they banged into the stone walls on either side.
Ion, Sheda and Elder were already there, gathered around one of the beds where Ion had lain the still figure. Sheda and the Elder were rapidly rigging some strange contraption together, as Ion stood by with a towel and cloth, attempting to wipe clean the mess that covered their fallen friend, without much luck.
Azmaria's breath caught the instant she saw him, and a small squeak of fear escaped her lips as she stopped dead still in her tracks.
Joshua's breath caught, and he stared at his sister in fear, eyes wide with alarm, before narrowing with sudden understanding as he grabbed Azmaria's hand. "Hurry!"
Together, they joined hands from either side of the bed, and everyone else backed up a small step, as the bright blue glow began to emanate from the two of them, surrounding the bed and it's precious contents. As people continued to pour in from the halls, desperate to see what was going on, and whether the rumors that had exploded were true, Rosette's eyes remained riveted upon the figure on the bed, not even tearing away to blink.
At first, she was afraid nothing would happen…after all, he was grievously injured, and such extensive damage couldn't be completely healed even by the two Apostles working together at full power… but then, as she watched, her heart leapt for joy, seeing bone and flesh begin to knit together, re-forming the missing arm, spreading across his face, and the blood began to evaporate from his body, leaving it nearly whole once more.
Finally, the glow began to die off, as both Joshua's and Azmaria's shoulders drooped with exhaustion as their powers gave out. They had used everything they had, and as they stared down at him, they saw it had been enough. No blood welled out any longer, instead his limbs had the warped appearance that severe regeneration gave a demon's body…but it was generally whole once more. His arm was sharply taloned with the bone-like plating that ran up and down in rivets along and through his forearm, into his shoulder. The side of his face was roughened likewise, and his ear and horn on that side whole and undamaged once more. Though Rosette could clearly see the strange scaring that the demon's body displayed, she felt immense relief to see the very faint rise and fall of his chest re-assure her.
She approached the bed slowly, and grasped his deformed hand in her own, running her palm over it gently. "Chrno…" She spoke softly, her tone warm and hopeful, as she gazed down at him. "You're safe now… you can wake up."
However, still he did not open his eyes, and Rosette felt a soft nudge at her elbow. "You need to go 'find' him, Rosette…" Sheda was peering up at her with gentle green eyes. "He sealed himself away to survive, and now you need to fetch him back. Only you can do it… you have the closest bond, he'll respond to you." The feline smiled warmly and put an encouraging hand on her shoulder.
Rosette nodded firmly, and clasped her hand around his tighter, closing her eyes, and surged her mind forward, finding that small link that had been tentatively wavering ever since they had been separated. She grabbed it tightly in her consciousness, and gave a very strong yank.
Instantly, she found her mind spinning nearly out of control, along a thing stream of brilliant light…and she was strongly reminded of 'Diving'. But this time, there was nothing holding her back!
She grinned widely as she spun down the spiral of light, until she saw the end of the chamber, where two familiar doors were closed before her. She touched down lightly, and pushed through the grave's entrance, light spilling out in every direction, bathing the tomb with it's cheerful brilliance.
She half expected to see him in the same position she had found him in twice before… hugging his knees leaning against the coffin with a somber expression.
This time, however, was different.
The coffin was no longer there. Instead, inside the chamber, was a field of wildflowers, spreading out in every direction, sunshine spilling from the blue sky that existed within, still contained inside a small room, yet expanding beyond it in a paradoxical way.
Sitting in the middle of the flowers, a peaceful expression on his face, was Chrno, hands clasped in his lap calmly, sitting there for all the world as if he were just enjoying a sunny day, long hair tangled in the stems behind him, dressed in his familiar red coat in his older human guise.
"Mou… you know it really irritates me…" Rosette snorted, as she walked forward towards him. "Here I come charging in on my white horse to save the day, and I find you stopping to smell the roses… Geeze."
Slowly, his eyes opened, smiling back at her with a twinkling expression of something near giddiness. "About time you showed up. I was beginning to wonder if you were taking a vacation or something."
She folded her arms and glared down at him, tapping her foot impatiently. "Excuse me? It just so happens that SOME of us have busy work to do… saving the world and all… not like you, snoozing away all day."
He just smiled up at her, a look of amused interest on his face. "Oh? Seems you've been busy."
She sighed, and plopped down on the green grass beside him, picking one of the flowers and twirling it between her fingers, as she glanced up his way. "Chrno…you really scared me. I thought…that…well…"
His hand cupped around her face, bringing her chin up, as she glanced deeply into his sparkling crimson eyes. "Sorry Rosette...I didn't mean to scare you… I did try to reach you though… you were pretty hard to find."
Rosette snorted lightly. "And here I thought I was hallucinating…"
He chuckled, and held his hand out to her. "Not quite." She grasped it firmly in her own, and felt a sudden surge of warmth flood through her as the connection between them was re-established in full. "Now…let's go home."
"Right." She grinned brightly, as tears ran down her cheeks, out of pure joy at having him back with her. She leaned forward, and met his lips with her own, as the light surged around them brilliantly, and she felt her consciousness being dragged back into reality, as the warm feeling continued to flood through her, and her eyes slipped open.
She was leaning over his body, lips lightly brushing his, as slowly his un-injured eye slipped open, meeting hers for a long moment, as she felt his hand around hers tighten re-assuringly.
"You're back…" She breathed lightly, brushing a lock of his hair out of his eyes.
"Ah…" He breathed softly back, his voice sounding slightly hoarse and faint, but still warm and encouraging.
"Chrno! Maa… you're just full of surprises lately, aren't you?" Sheda's energetic voice cause the pair to slowly separate, though Rosette didn't let his hand go for a single moment, and noticed his own grip didn't loosen either.
Ion smiled warmly down, and put a hand on Chrno's shoulder, as the dark-haired demon lifted his gaze to meet his own. "Welcome back."
Azmaria was crying again, but this time as her smile brightened her face. "Thank goodness… you're alright…"
Joshua wiped his eyes with a sleeve as well, unable to stay completely calm, and threw a shaky grin down at the demon. "You always were one for dramatic entrances…"
Chrno's smile warmed more, and he shut his eye with good humor. "I believe….Rosette outshines me on that…"
"Heyyy…"
Everyone's laughter rang through the room, and out into the hallway beyond, spreading as the word passed on that Chrno was indeed, alive and well. It was amazing how quickly the rumors spread…
Sheda began rummaging about, and pulled out some tools and turned towards Chrno. "I'm not completely convinced you're all right… Let me try a few things first…"
She reached a hand out to remove the damaged receptor at his chest, but his arm quickly caught her wrist before she touched it, as his gaze shifted towards her suddenly. "Wait." His gaze darted back to Rosette, his grasp on her hand tightening. "Have they begun the assault yet?"
Rosette blinked. "Well, we kind of got distracted when we found you… but that was the plan."
His gaze sharpened more. "Tell them to stop."
"What? Why?" Rosette exclaimed with surprise, as Ion frowned heavily off to the side.
Chrno shook his head faintly, a troubled look crossing his face. "They can't be destroyed by simply using Testaments…something else is needed."
Everyone exchanged looks. "What is?"
Chrno closed his eye, and sighed softly, then began to explain.
----- ------ ------
The moment the tendril of darkness latched onto his arm, he knew that he was done for. If it had just been the injuries he had received from the journey towards the Destroyer, it wouldn't have been so serious. But the aftermath, after realizing that one of the Destroyers limbs had lanced out and pierced them both at once, that was a different matter. He was in absolute agony, and the shock of holy energy surging through his body as he healed Rosette with a power he hadn't even known he'd been able to use correctly, had sent him reeling in a world of pain.
His last thought, as he desperately sought to meet eyes with her as she fell away beneath him, was that he had managed to at least cheat the sad fate he had seen play over and over in his mind… His dreams had been plagued with the same scene, which had come to realize with some sadness, was not just a dream, but a premonition. The Destroyer would take Rosette from him at the very last moment, because he hesitated after allowing her to be injured… His life would then be forfeit along with hers, just as the world was consumed in blackness…
Luckily, he had avoided that fate… Rosette would live, thanks to his fleeting glimpse of white in the corner of his eyes, as he watched Ion dive for her. Chrno smiled and closed his eyes, resigning himself as he felt the crackling blackness wrap around him, smothering, and draw him into it's mass.
He had never quite been sure what death would be like. From what he had heard, and from what he had read, he imagined it would be like falling asleep…first there was pain, and then there was none.
However, he never expected death to be so long and drawn out.
His eyes slowly slipped open, through the veiled mist of pain, wondering what was taking so long, and abruptly his eyes widened in surprise. The blackness was all around him, but separating him from the roiling mass, a bright blue barrier of astral energy was erected, encircling him, and pulsing with each beat of his heart. He stared at it, confounded, since the pain shooting through him was so intense that it couldn't get any worse, and it even seemed to dull out as more time passed. The holy energy was shielding him from the Destroyer's touch…. That was the key, he realized… but was it too late?
Abruptly, the darkness around him faded away, leaving him floating in mid-air, able to move easily all of a sudden, despite the fact his wings were completely useless and damaged behind him. He gazed around, and was floored by what he saw.
The inside of the Destroyer's body was a peaceful calm interior, light eerily by a glowing red light that emanated from a very small concentration of light at the dead center of it's being…
Not many people… no… no one.. had ever been able to see this before, he realized, with some sadness. They were always destroyed before reaching this point… it was only his strange existence of opposing power that made it possible for him to be here, seeing what was not meant for his eyes…
This was the true result of what the Destroyers had become… Their miasma had extended far beyond their beings, which had been reduced to a mere ball of what had once been their bodies and soul… now only existent in the form of a surging globe of red light… all that remained of their existing self.
Chrno slowly moved towards the glowing red orb, all pain pushed aside, as his mind curiously latched onto the need to understand this… He was well aware that all around him, the black walls were surging in turmoil, rolling and bucking, as cracks began to form in the inside… but he still sensed that though the Destroyer was damaged…it was not possible for it to die…
Not from the outside.
His jaw set, and he knew then what he had to do.
He reached forward, ignoring the searing heat that wrapped around him the closer he got. He was past caring about anything other than one goal, stopping this creature before it could harm Rosette.
He reached out with his whole arm, and with a defiant bellow, slammed his claws into the orb's center, and felt the object within shatter under his talons like fine pottery. Instantly, a fiery wash of energy shot up his arm, and into his veins, as the red light exploded all around him, blinding and deafening him, as an explosion so fierce that he felt his body strain, fighting to block the effects of the blast that radiated out around him like a surging storm.
Had he been fully conscious, he would have marveled at the result of the concussion that shot out from the epicenter around him…however, the burning through his veins was so intense, that he could focus on nothing else.
Hours seemed like days… and minutes stretched on for weeks, as all around him the explosion began to dissipate, and he finally opened his eyes, to find himself laying flat on his back, staring up at the gray sky above him, the land all around completely blackened and reduced to nothing but ash…
Yet… miraculously he had survived.
His gaze slowly lifted, as he felt more blood obscure what little vision he had left, and he took a good look around, seeing no one anywhere. He could spot the distant horizon where the gate had been, and did not see the brilliant glow that indicated it's activation. That meant… hopefully…. Rosette had escaped…
Yes.. she had. He could feel her there… distantly. It was as if he were reaching through a deep fog to find a single needle on the ground, but he could sense her there… It must be the result of using so much power, combined with the destruction of the receptor at his chest, and the separation of realms they were now in.
He felt desperation set in. So far away… they probably didn't think he had survived…
Well then… there was only one thing he could do… wait for them where they would find him… after all, he needed to tell them the truth… the true key to destroying the Destroyers….
--- --- ---
Everyone sat in silence, as the soft thrumming of Sheda's machines filled the silence, as she finished hooking them up to her patient, who was now reclining in bed, not protesting to her administrations as he finished.
"I see… so that's why…" Ion murmured quietly, eyes distant. "Pure miasma. That would explain it… So concentrated even we demons are harmed by it… And inside it all, that which holds the key to their end." His violet eyes lifted to meet Chrno's slowly. "But how are we to get inside to destroy their center being? You were able to do it, barely, due to your unique physiology… we cannot do such a thing."
Chrno's head inclined slightly. "I was thinking about that…and I think I have a solution."
Everyone's attention was riveted on him, as Sheda gently lifted his hair from the side of his injured face, and inspected him. "If you were able to create a holy barrier capable of being carried, and completely containing a demon within it as a shield….that might do the trick… because just a barrier alone to shield a human won't be enough… a demon's power is needed to destroy the mechanism within… because otherwise…" He trailed off with a thoughtful frown.
"What exactly did happen within there?" Remington's quiet voice spoke up from the back of the group where he had been standing through Chrno's explanation. "You destroyed it simply by shattering the globe? What happened to all the miasma and astral energy then?"
Chrno's eyes suddenly glazed over, and a slightly guilty look plagued his features, causing Sheda and Ion to exchange sudden knowing glances, before Ion adjusted his glasses and sighed. "I see…"
Sheda leaned forward, and gently lifted the bangs from Chrno's forehead, and peered intently forward, before letting out a low whistle.
"What?" Rosette asked, from sitting on the edge of the bed. She didn't want to get to far from him, but she'd had to back off to give the scientist room to administer her healing methods. "What is it?" She peered over with a frown, and abruptly her eyes widened at what she saw.
Ion looked faintly amused, and disgusted. "Honestly… Of all the people it happens to, it's the one who least wants it."
Remington and Kate exchanged puzzled glances. "What happened?"
Sheda lifted Chrno's hair back for them all to see clearly, the gem studded indents on his forehead. "Each of us has one." She explained tapping her own two with an index finger, and nodding over at Ion with a tilt of her head and three fingers up. "They indicate power level in demons… That coupled with horns, that is. For example, Chrno and Ion are well matched, because they have the same number of gems, and approximately the same size horns. Me, I'm pretty low on the power scale since I have fewer, and smaller." She grinned cheerfully. "Besides, my talents are best put to other skills." Her smile faded a bit. "However, there are weird combinations. Dufou for example, he had larger horns, but no markings. Pandemonia on the other hand, had two, and yet she has the largest horns of all. My only summation of what the structures mean, are that each are a different 'job' if you will. Pandemonia and myself, we weren't fighters but rather ones who were behind the scenes helping run things." Sheda nodded once. "Vid also, while he can fight, prefers defensive actions to offensive. Rizel was marked differently as well, since she used guile, trickery, and mastering other's weak wills to do her bidding…" Sheda tapped her chin. "Jenai's brash and crazy, and had all sorts of weird stuff around him." She flashed a saucy grin at the said demon who just glowered. "Chrno and Ion both use their power offensively and defensively, and are focused on the ability to do specialized talents." She paused, and glanced once more over at Chrno, and tugged at her right ear thoughtfully. "It's possible to increase and 'power up' if you will by destroying other demons and absorbing their life force and astral… but it was never done in Pandemonium because Pandemonia didn't want anyone rising above her and overthrowing her… hence the tight reign she kept. But that's why the Pursuers were so hot to kill us, so they could go up in rank." She paused again thoughtfully. "I've only seen a four mark rank once, on a demon whose horns had been removed. He was still extremely powerful, and I wouldn't have wanted to go up against him."
"But…I've never before seen a five mark rank…" Her eyes slid over to Chrno's forehead. "Especially coupled with your specialty and the fact you still have your horns… plus looking at who you received the astral from… AND doubling the fact you have half a holy soul floating around in that empty noggin of yours…"
She shook her head and sighed, studying the two extra gems that now adorned his forehead. "You're not going to like to hear this… but if anyone were to challenge you, I don't think they would be able to defeat you on a one-one battle, Chrno. And I think you're the only one who can put a stop to the other four."
Rosette let out her breath, a bit uneasy by all this. It made some sense that he had grown stronger from the horrendous battle they had just been through, but it didn't make her feel any better, watching him lay there, still visibly injured, and likely to be spending a long time recovering, increased power or not. "Now wait just a minute… he's not gonna go back in there fighting the others like this!"
"Rosette's right." Chrno said softly. "There's no way I can survive going through another one of those things… Not now, and likely not ever."
"Then who?" Rosette's eyes lifted to Ion questioningly, but Chrno interrupted her thoughts with a soft laugh.
"Well…have you ever seen a cat fly?
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Author's note: there, you see? It's not so bad. For all you who thought I was gonna end the chapter with the last one, for shame! You should know better I'm the Queen of Cliffhangers mwhahaa
Anyway… probably only a couple chapters left folks! Then I'm ending it for good! Enjoy it while it lasts.