A broken balance: chapter 2
"Annika Kirov, Ryne Ripley, Chloe Furneux, and Erika Langley. Those are the targets. A ruskie, a mick, a frog, and a nazi. Quite a selection."
"Hey boss?" The gang leader turned to his subordinate.
"What is it Sykes?"
"Correct if I'm wrong… but, isn't the Vatican the client?"
"Yeah, so?"
"Well then why is the Vatican putting a bounty on the head of four women? Don't it seem a little weird to you?" The leader thought about it for a minute before giving up and shooting the curious thug in the chest.
" Anybody else got any bright questions?" The remaining gang members shook their heads vehemently. "I didn't think so."
About an hour or so later…
"Come here little piggies!" Erika yelled as she chased her would be assassins, Waving her rocket launcher over her head.
"Honestly, Erika, Must you be so vulgar about everything?" Chloe asked with a sigh as she held a .9-millimeter pistol to the gang leaders head.
"I wouldn't call it vulgar," Ryne said as she and Annika watched form the sidelines. "It's a highly efficient way of intimidating your enemies."
"Who else wants a taste, huh!" Erika shouted as she rounded up the last of the gang.
"P-Please Miss Langley, Please spare our lives!" Said a thug who -only -has -one- line- and -therefore -doesn't -need -a-name.
"Yeah, we were just following the request of our client!" The leader shouted before being pistol whipped by Chloe.
"I thought I told you to be quiet!" The Frenchwoman screamed, at her wits end.
"And who would this client happen to be?" Ryne asked, taking over the questioning from the other two who she'd deemed clinically insane.
"W-We can't tell you" replied another nameless thug.
"Yeah we was sworn to secrecy," Said another one with a self-satisfied smirk that pushed Ryne over the edge.
Walking over to said thug with a growl she stooped down to where he was sprawled and put her claws under his chin, baring her fangs.
"Tell us who hired you or else I'll gut you like a fish and feed you to that hungry demoness over there." She pointed to Annika who blinked at her bewildered.
"Don't drag me into your threats, Rye" Ryne ignored the comment and turned back to the thug.
"Now I'll ask you again, who hired you guys?" The thug looked down at Ryne's claws then at Annika who snorted with indignation at having been referred to as a 'hungry demoness'.
"I-it was the Vatican. It was them that hired us. They said you all was blasphemers and that you'd defiled the church."
"The Vatican?" The four women exchanged puzzled glances before tuning back to their captives.
"I don't think they're telling the truth." Erika said, hefting her rocket launcher onto her shoulder (having stopped chasing the assassins to listen to Ryne's interrogation.) "Why would our own bosses want to have us killed?"
"I could see why they would want to have you to psychopaths killed but Rye and I have done nothing but what they told us to do." Annika said, her tail swaying lazily as she chewed a claw in thought.
"Well for starters, you are demons. I don't know why they would hire you in the first place given that." Chloe said, matter-of-factly.
"Why would they exterminate us when they've got us-"
"Annika!" Ryne growled warningly.
"When they've got you what?" Erika asked suspiciously.
"Never mind." Ryne said as she stood up. "You two can handle them. Let's go, Annika." Said Russian looked form their captives to her lover's back as she walked away from the scene of the previous events.
With a labored sigh she ran to catch up Ryne, leaving Erika and Chloe to clean up the mess.
"I'm so glad you decided to see it my way." Sister Marianne said as she calmly sipped tea from her favorite china, sitting across from her guest on one of the couches in her office.
"I don't see it your way at all. The Magdalene order has been trying to protect the apostles and keep them away from devils like Ion. Now you want to purposely kill four of them! What are you thinking Marianne!" Sister Cate yelled impatiently, slamming her cup back down to its saucer. "You've completely lost your mind!"
"Do you honestly believe them to be apostles! May I remind you, Catherine that two of them are demons, one is a murderer and the other is a witch! You're behaving just like Father Anderson! You're that these four are the exact things that both Iscariot and Magdalene were founded to destroy! How can you honestly say that we need to protect the very embodiments of evil!"
"Whether they're demons and murderers-"
"And a witch."
"And a witch," Sister Cate conceded through clenched teeth. "Is not the issue here. You know the signs that are irrefutable indicators of a person being an apostle. You know that they've all repented for the sins of their pasts. How could you possibly go through with your plan given all the evidence that suggests that your making a terrible mistake!" Marianne smirked and leaned back into the cushions of the plush couch she sat on and contemplated the woman in front of her.
Both her sister by blood and in clerical terms, Marianne's opinion of the younger woman was, to say the least, not flattering.
She thought that Cate was idealistic, naïve, and completely unfit to lead an order as prestigious as the Magdalene.
She employed a devil in her ranks for God's sake!
On the reverse side, Cate pitied her sister.
She thought that Marianne had succumbed to the dark side of having power and started to go completely out of control.
She was trying to execute Apostles for Christ's sake!
"Catherine… These four women are not apostles. You can make any argument you want in their defense but I stand by my decision to see that removed form this plane of existence and to send them screaming in the darkest parts of hell before the time that REAL Apostles of Fatima are needed." Sister Cate stood up and adjusted her navy royal blue habit.
"If that's how you fell about it Marianne, then you have left me with little choice but to stop you with any means necessary." Marianne's smirk grew wider as she stood up and followed her sister to the door, opened it and gestured to Cate to step out into the hallway and right in the middle of the icy silence that passed between the two priests that stood on either side of the doorway.
One in Magdalene blue, and the other in Iscariot red.
"Father Remington, how nice it is to see you. I do hope that we can have a chance to speak privately the next time my dear sister decides to drop by." Father Remington grimaced.
"I-I hope so too, Sister Marianne." He smiled forcefully, dreading the thought.
It wasn't as if Sister Marianne (Or Sister Cate for that matter) was homely but to put it bluntly she scared the holy shit out of him.
"And it's good t'see you as well Sister Cate." The blond (?) clergywoman ignored Anderson's greeting as she strode off down the hall, followed closely by Remington.
"Have someone set outside Magdalene headquarters. If anyone tries to leave detain them until further notice." Marianne said to her second-in-command as soon as her departing guests had turned a corner and were out of earshot.
"Aye, Ma'am." Anderson said.
"Have a few of the specialized militia watch Marianne and Iscariot. Make sure know one connected leaves Vatican ground without a tail." Sister Cate order after turning the aforementioned corner.
"I'll get right on it Ma'am." Remington replied as she pulled a cell phone out of his pocket to set up the necessary arrangements. "May I suggest someone ma'am?"
"You're thinking of Rosette and Chrono aren't you?"
"Well yes ma'am. It's been a while since they've had a real mission other running errands."
"While that is true and while I take great pleasure to have my sister know that she's being watched by a devil, I have something else in mind for them." Sister Cate smirked in a way that reminded Father Remington of her older sister so much that a chill ran down his spine as if someone had just walked over his grave.
"Babysitting! Sister Cate you can't be serious! Don't you think that such a severe demotion is a little…well severe? I mean it was only one building this time!"
"Calm down Rosette! This isn't a demotion and it isn't babysitting! Its body guarding that four remaining Apostles as well as Azmaria and Satella! (A/n: I've only seen up to the seventh episode in the anime so I don't know who that other five Apostles really but it seems logical to me that Satella would be one.) In fact I'd say that it's more of a promotion."
The redheaded exorcist folded her arms.
"You're just trying to give me a job that real keep me from seeing any real action. You're sticking me an desk duty!"
"Rosette, maybe you should just take the assignment. It might be a while before another one comes in."
"Be quiet, Chrono!" She said gruffly to the violet haired devil standing near to door. " Sister Cate doesn't think we can handle any top-priority cases! She's thinks that all we're good for is baby-sitting! Well I won't have it! I refuse!" Rosette turned to walk out. "Come out Chrono!" Said devil sighed lethargically.
"Iscariot is sending assassins after the Apostles."
Rosette stopped.
"Iscariot? But aren't they another branch of the church?" Chrono asked.
"Yes."
"And isn't your SISTER in charge there?" Rosette asked causing a sigh from her leader.
"Yes. Marianne thinks that these four women are too sinful to be Apostles."
"Too sinful?"
"You may have heard of them before. I hear they're somewhat famous in the underground." Sister Cate shuffled some papers around on her desk before surfacing with the desire one. "Ah, yes. The Apostle of Time, a Russian tiger demoness, Annika Kirov; The Apostle of Redemption, an Irish wolf demoness, Ryne Ripley; The Apostle of Judgment, a French witch, Chloe Furneux, also known as that Mistress of Magick; and the Apostle of Revelation, a German swordswoman, Erika Langley, also known as that Princess of swords." By the time Sister Cate had finished, Rosettes interest was fully peaked and she had rushed back to the desk.
"They're Apostles!"
"It would appear so."
"But how can you tell?"
"The same way we were able to tell with Azmaria, Satella and your brother (A/n: I have no idea how they did this in the actual series so I'm just speculating). They've manipulated the spiritual leylines of the planet when the power of Fatima was required. Iscariot's four, along with our two and your brother will make seven." Rosette's eyes darkened at the mention of her brother but she stayed focused on the assignment as she stroked her chin thoughtfully.
"And how exactly are we supposed to watch them all? They're are only two of us and six of them."
"If you want, I can call in a favor from a childhood friend who happens to the leader of a powerful original that has a personal vendetta against section eleven."
"Hmm…and this person will take orders from me?"
"Yes…"
"Hmm and how long am I supposed to watch them?"
" Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week until the threat of Iscariot has passed." More shuffling. " You'll be staying at one of Magdalene's personal properties in California and handed it to Rosette who, after reading it was impressed and infatuated with staying somewhere other than the convent for a change.
The house, located in Riverside, California, Had five bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms, pool, sauna, and fountain, as well as a large lawn and spacious living, family, and dining rooms and kitchen. All the furniture and appliances were included.
"We'll do it!"
Good. Now I suggest that you go and purchase some less conspicuous clothes. Instruct Satella and Azmaria to do the same. Father Remington will give you the means in which to do so."
"Yes, Ma'am!" Rosette saluted before grabbing Chrono and running at breakneck speed out of the office.
"You're just doing this for the house aren't you?" Chrono asked as soon as they out of earshot of Sister Cate's office.
"Don't be sill Chrono! I'm doing it for the clothes too!"
Back her office; Sister Cate was massaging the corners of her eyes with her thumb and forefinger.
She was seriously having second thoughts about sending Rosette and Chrono on such an important mission.
"Well I supposed it can't be helped now." She sighed to herself as she fished though her papers one more and finally surfacing with her cell phone.
Pushing a speed dial number, she waited a few seconds before a male voice picked up on the other end.
"Hello, Walter. Is Sir Integral in?"
Author's notes: Comments form my reviewers lead me to do the full crossover, which I originally wasn't going to do. In order to do it Chrono Crusade had to be pushed into the 21st century. I don't know. As for the house, it does actual exist which makes it easier to navigate the characters around for me, it's my Grandparents house in Riverside.