Broken Soul:
Linali sat alone next to the sleeping Allen. Rabi and Bookman had gone out for a patrol after they had a taken turns sleeping. Allen had trouble falling asleep earlier because of his wound, so when he finally fell asleep they left him to sleep. She looked down at his boyish face. Gently she brushed aside the strands of white hair covering Allen's left eye. The ugly red scar made her sick. It was not the scar that scares her; it was what is concealed beneath the scar. Allen's cursed eye that has the power to reveal the suffering spirits trapped as an akuma. She has never seen the souls of the akumas, but Rabi had, and he had told her about it earlier when it was their turn to keep watch. Rabi had admitted that he nearly threw-up when he saw that grotesque figure. Her heart aches for the boy sleeping in front of her. She could not imagine seeing these souls all the time. It must be hell. Allen shifted slightly and a small moan escaped his lips. Linali smiled, as a sense of dejavu surfaced. The last time she sat watching him sleep was in the library at the head quarters after Komurin, her brother's invention, had destroyed half of the head quarters. Allen had sacrificed himself to save her from the rampaging robot. He was so sweet.
"I'm sorry…" Allen murmured in his sleep. "S…sorry Linali… I… didn't mean it…" Those words brought tears to Linali's eyes. She had been angry with him for putting himself in danger, for acting on his own, and for throwing his life away to destroy an akuma. She told him so, very clearly. That was when she didn't know what he saw everyday. It was before she knew what he was fighting for. She was snapped out of her thoughts when she felt a hand touch her cheek.
"Are you… crying?" Allen's voice made her look up, their eyes met then she quickly looked down again to hide her tears. "Please don't cry." Allen said lifting her chin up until she was looking into his eyes. "Everything will be okay." For a moment they looked at each other in silence. BANG. The door collapsed. When the dust cleared Allen was shielding Linali, with his anti-akuma weapon invocated.
"Whoa… chill out man." Linali could see Rabi shaking nervously at the end of Allen's arm.
"Rabi you really shouldn't come in like that." Allen sighed, his eye and arm inactivated. "Even though this house is abandoned you shouldn't knock it down. You could have hurt somebody." Allen frowned slightly annoyed, not only because Rabi's choice of transportation tend to destroy the buildings, he had wanted to talk to Linali alone, and he wanted to find out what was bothering her and apologize to her some more.
"Sorry." Rabi said scratching his head, "I go too far and got lost, it would have taken me too long to get back." Rabi looked at Linali; her cheeks were slightly flushed. Was that kid making a move on her? Rabi quickly dismissed that though. Allen was too naive and too much of a gentlemen to do something like that.
"Where is Mr. Bookman?" Linali asked dusting herself off. Before Rabi could say anything an akuma came flying through the wall towards Linali with a loud bang. It was coming towards her too fast; she doesn't have time to innovate. She squeezed her eyes shut bracing for impact, but none came. She felt something warm and sticky spray onto her. It was Allen's blood. He had thrown himself in front of her and destroyed the akuma, but his right shoulder had deep gashes that were bleeding profusely. The sight of Allen's injury made her freeze.
"Invocate!" Allen screamed at her, fending off another akuma. "Linali! Invocate!"
"Miss Linali!" Mr. Bookman's voice warned her of the akuma attacking her from above. Linali invocated the dark boots, and like a butterfly flipped out of the way at the last second making the akuma crash head on into the ground. Then she landed hard on the prone akuma destroying the demon.
As the battle expanded outwards Allen found himself surrounded by akumas. Allen had changed his weapon to the gun form and began blasting at the akumas charging at them. A level two akuma with a monstrous claw came charging at him. Allen jumped back to avoid the claw and then fired at the akuma destroying it, but he turned around too late to see the jaws of another akuma lunging at him. A second before the teeth made contact a large hammer flattened the head of the akuma, crushing it into dust.
"Thanks." Allen said to Rabi as they checked the perimeter for more akuma.
"No problem, we are a team right." Rabi laughed, "You saved my ass tones of… Oh God ALLEN!" Rabi didn't have time to finish his sentence; Allen had collapsed onto the debris the pain and blood loss finally caught up to him.
"I'm… okay…" Allen gasped struggling to get up leaning on his weapon arm, which was twitching so badly he collapsed again. Rabi knelt next to the younger boy to assess the damage. Allen's right shoulder had a long gash from which blood was spewing out, dying his black exorcist uniform an even darker black. His weapon arm was once again crumbling. Allen seemed to have trouble breathing, so Rabi undid Allen's coat, against his friend's protest of pain, to see that the wound on his chest, that he had sustained in the morning's battle had reopened.
"Shit." Rabi muttered as heavy rain began to pour.
"Allen! Rabi!" Linali's voice called out to them. Rabi didn't need to reply because Bookman and Linali had rounded the only piece of wall left standing and saw them.
"Allen!" Linali cried as she dropped to her knees by his side. Bookman had joined them as well. The old man took one look at the boy and frowned.
"Let's get him out of the rain." Bookman ordered. "We need to find new shelter."
Within a few minuets they found another abandoned building that was only partially damage. Rabi was able to find some linins for them to wrap themselves in and to lay Allen on. Bookman got right to work bandaging Allen and working his magic with his needles. Allen's wounds were dressed and the bleeding had stopped, the boy's slow and steady breathing told Rabi that he had fallen asleep. Bookman seemed satisfied that Allen's life was in no danger. Linali, however, did not seem so optimistic. She had stayed by Allen's side since they found the shelter, even has Bookman bandaged her cuts. Rabi could see, even in the semi-darkness of the early dawn that she had been crying.
"Linali. He'll be okay." Rabi said approaching her. She did not turn around or respond. "He's been through worse and lived."
"Why is Allen always so keen on throwing his life away?" Linali sobbed still not looking up. "He got wounded yesterday trying to destroy the akuma before it could get to you." Linali looked up at Rabi, not bothering to hide her tears anymore. "And today he… he threw him in front of me… and now he…" Linali broke down crying.
"Allen always gives his all in everything he does." Rabi said comforting the crying girl, "He is fairly new at this still. He has only been doing this for less time then all of us combined, and is still a rookie. He's very good for a rookie, but sometimes you get hurt. That's just the way our job works."
"I know that." Linali said quietly. "I just don't like seeing him hurt because of me."
"He fights to protect people." Rabi said wiping away Linali's tears, "especially people who are important to him. People like you."
The pain in his shoulder and chest woke Allen from his dreamless sleep. When he opened his eyes at first all he could see was a blurry mess of gray. After blinking he saw that he was in another abandoned house, lying on a makeshift bed. Through the pain he felt someone holding his right hand. When he looked over he found Linali asleep and holding onto his hand. She looked cold, having fallen asleep sitting up beside him. Allen struggled to get up and drape a blanket over her, but the pain got the best of him.
"Take it easy kid." Rabi's voice made him turn. "You don't want those wounds to start bleeding again." Rabi came over from his post by the entrance. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I've been ran over by a train." Allen croaked out. "But I can take a shift and take watch if you want." Allen offered as he saw the fatigue in his friend's eyes. Rabi shook his head.
"You rest up." Rabi said ruffling his hair then laying him back down on the makeshift bed. "Besides what can you do if an akuma was to show up? Bleed all over them?" The two friends shared a chuckle. Then Rabi followed Allen's gaze to the girl's sleeping form beside him. "She really likes you, you know." Rabi laughed as Allen's face reddened at those words. "Get some rest kid."
When Linali woke up later that day it was almost noon. Allen was still sleeping beside her. The smell of food being cooked turned her attention to the two men by the small fire.
"Good morning Miss Linali." Bookman said noticing Linali was awake.
"Breakfast?" Rabi asked holding out a cooked fish. "Very fresh I just caught them a few hours ago." Linali accepted the fish gratefully. She was hungry. As they ate they discussed the next course of action.
"I say we go to the nearest city so we can get Allen to a hospital." Rabi suggested glancing over at Allen's restless form.
"No." Bookman said firmly. "We don't need to go where there are people. People mean there are akumas. Right now I don't think we could handle another attack like last night."
"But he is developing a fever." Rabi argued. "And we need to contact head quarters. The finders must have reported us missing by now. They must be looking for us." Bookman pondered Rabi's words for a moment.
"Alright, Miss Linali you will take Rabi with you into town." Bookman instructed. "Try and get some medication and make contact with head quarters." Linali looked at Allen and hesitated. "Miss Linali, I assure you he will be fine when you return." Bookman told her as if reading her mind. Linali nodded and stood up. "Wait. Leave your exorcist uniform here." The two nodded, remove the coats that marked them as exorcists, and used some linen as a cloak
"Innocence Invocate!" Linali cried, "Come on Rabi let's go, we won't be gone long."
When they reached the town Linali instructed Rabi to go purchase pain medication and something for Allen's fever, while she found a phone to call head quarters.
"Hello?" Linali heard Squad Leader Riba's voice on the other line.
"Hi, Linali reporting in." Linali didn't quite get to finish her sentence before she heard Bard shout in the background "they are safe" and a series of loud cheers.
"Linali how is everyone?" Riba asked.
"We are okay. Some cuts and scrapes." Linali explained then she paused. "Allen got hurt really bad." Her voice cracked. "He has gotten worse; we think he has an infection."
"Abort mission. We will send a recon team right away." Riba told her, his voice filled with concern. "You have Bookman with you, he will be fine." Riba reassured her.
"A recon team won't be necessary," said Linali, "We don't have teams to spare. However, there is some new information we have managed to discover." Linali said steadily. The image of the events from the past few days began flooding back. "The Noah family made contact. "Linali paused then continued, did a perimeter scan to make sure there wasn't anyone around, then continued; "They are now targeting Allen, myself and Rabi. I think they want our innocence. Its' no longer just the generals." Before Linali could hear Riba's reply a loud crash erupted behind her.
"Hang in there, back up is on the way." Linali could hear Riba's voice as she dodged an attack from the akuma that was hacking at her. "Hide, don't make yourselves a target. Stay safe." Then the transmission was abruptly terminated. However Linali didn't have time to worry about that, she was preoccupied with the akuma with scythe like arms slashing at her. With lightning speed she shot toward it, avoiding the arms of blades and sliced the akuma in pieces with the tip of her boots. Another crash came through the walls, followed by another.
"Linali?" Rabi's voice called out. Linali turned just as Rabi smashed the akuma he was fighting.
"Rabi I'm here." Linali told him as she kicked back another akuma. Soon Rabi was behind her. They fought back to back covering for each other. The speed they were destroying the akuma was not as fast as the speed of akumas coming at them.
"Shit, there are too many of them!" Rabi swore. He was out of breath. He must have killed over thirty of these things, but they were still coming. "What? Has this whole town been turned!"
"Rabi did you get the medicine?" Linali asked as she dodged another hit. She too sounded exhausted.
"Yeah, just before these guys showed up." Rabi replied, patting his pocket to make sure they were still there.
"Then let's get out of here." Linali told him grabbing him by the arm. A moment later they were flying out of town. Rabi began to panic as he saw that Linali as going the wrong direction. Then it quickly occurred to him that she had not wanted to give their hide out away.
"They shouldn't have seen us." Linali said as they landed a few feet away from the abandoned building that they had taken shelter in. "Oh god." Linali exclaimed. Rabi followed her gaze to see that half of the building was destroyed. There was a cloud of dust rolling out of the building. The two of them began running towards the building, their anti-akuma weapons innovated.
"Mr. Bookman! Allen!" Linali called out with worry as she entered the building.
"They are gone now Miss Linali." Bookman replied. Linali's eyes did a quick scan around as she heard someone cough. She saw Allen leaning against a pillar; his weapon invocated, breathing heavily.
"Allen!" She cried rushing to his side. He collapsed against her, and she slowly lowered him to the ground.
"Linali." Allen said with a clearly concerned look on his face. "Are you alright?" He asked reaching up with his, now deactivated; he touched the scratch on her cheek gently. Tears came to Linali's eyes. Stupid Allen. He was bearing heavy wounds yet all he could worry about were other people. Bookman and Rabi had joined them. Bookman placed some medicine into Allen's mouth. Allen swallowed it then coughed.
"Miss Linali." Bookman turned to her. "What did the head quarter say?"
"They are sending reinforcements." Linali said trying to make Allen more comfortable as he leans on her lap. "We are to stay hidden. They are coming to take us back to head quarters."
"We have to move, find somewhere new to hide." Bookman told them. "Allen, can you walk?" Allen winced and nodded shifting himself into an up right position. Rabi had to practically lift him.
"I'm sorry to have become a burden for all of you." Allen said quietly as the group walked into the near by woods.
"What are you talking about Allen?" Linali said pretending to be cheerful.
"We are moving far too slow." Allen said labouredly, "The akuma will catch up with us, and everyone is too tired to fight." No one disputed because they knew that Allen was right. On the next step Allen tripped and fell against a tree. "Leave without me." He said as Rabi bent to pick him up. "You will make better time that way."
"No!" Linali cried, horrified. "We can't leave you behind. Not like this."
"Yeah!" Rabi joined in. "If we left you like this we are leaving you to die."
"Be reasonable." Allen cried with all the force he could manage. "Linali they are hunting you. You have something they want. It's not just the generals anymore!" Allen's words were taken over by a fit of cough.
"You are being hunted too Allen!" Linali cried angrily. "It's not just me, Rabi is too!"
"Its better if they get one of our Innocence than all three." Allen told her. "Besides, that will not happen if you take mine with you." Everyone looked at him horrified. Allen took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
"He makes a good point." Bookman's statement made Rabi and Linali turn to him in shock.
"You cannot be seriously agreeing with him!" Linali cried in disbelief.
"If we were to be attacked again, the chances are your Innocence will be taken away." Bookman said calmly. "We cannot allow them to have anymore innocence."
"If we take his arm he will die!" Linali cried, not bothering to conceal her tears anymore.
"Please calm down Miss Linali." Bookman said in the same calm tone. "We can't afford to lose anymore Innocence, but more importantly we can't afford to lose anymore exorcists." The small old man said scooping Allen off the ground. "Let's go."