Ch. 3 – To Pursue, or not to Pursue?
Ch. 3 – To Pursue, or not to Pursue?
Rosette sighed, unsure how to go about the situation. On the inside she was sad for the people no one went to help.
Chrno glanced at Rosette's face in wonder as to how she was taking her emotions toward the story, and was afraid she might take action, "That truly is a sad story Elder."
The Elder gently stroked his stub of a beard, "Yes. However, Sister Kate is right. There is nothing we can do to help them."
A whoosh of wind blew Rosette's hair forward, hiding her face, although it was not difficult to tell she was crying. "It's still wrong, that we didn't even attempt to help the needed. How can I be a part of a force who selectively choose who they save and who they leave for dead.
Chrno and the Elder's eyes focused themselves back on Rosette, who now refused to look at either of them. It was true; she no longer had the respect she once had for the Order.
"You don't plan on going there do you?" The Elder asked, clearly afraid he was influencing her decision.
"I am part of the Militia, capable of going out on my own to complete individual missions. If I can take part in saving lives, elder, you know I will," she finished with a smile.
The Elder sighed, there wasn't much else he could do once Rosette made up her mind, and the pleading face Rosette gave was another reason he couldn't find the heart to protest any longer, "Sister Kate will not be pleased with this."
Later that day, it started raining with a few thundershowers here and there, the perfect setting for an unusually dark day.
Rosette and Chrno sat on the lounge in front of the fireplace, keeping warm and very quiet. The setting was tense and every little movement implied a different thought to the other such as the shift in Rosette's posture making Chrno believe she was in a thinking state.
As the time went by, nothing but little notions was mentioned. Sister Kate was due back at 8pm while it was only 6pm and they had plenty of time to kill.
By the time she arrived Rosette was the first to greet her, holding the piece of parchment in her hand. What Rosette didn't expect was Reverend Remington beside her.
"Sis…ter…Kate…and...Rev…er…end…Rem…ing…ton," she stumbled, "…I'm so pleased you've both arrived."
Remington noticed her stressful state more so that Sister Kate and place a hand on Rosette's shoulder," Something the matter?"
"Actually I need to talk to Sister Kate please." Rosette answered politely, but firmly.
Remington nodded, "If you don't mind I would like to be present. I have a feeling I know what this meeting pertains and I can't say I wasn't involved." He replies, looking down at Rosette's hand, grasping the parchment.
Rosette froze, unable to believe the words just spoken to her.
"We were summoned by a group of individuals within a village in Romania about the deaths and attacks from evil creatures from the land. They kindly asked for our help and we sought out to help them as much we could. We sent four of our best Militia to the village to help save the people from death and mutilation. However, within a week of trying to exterminate these beings two perished in a fire, one was stabbed to death by a wooden cross, and the last was never found. "
From than on she learned about the involvement Sister Kate, Remington, and the entire Order had in the misfortune in Romania and the horrible decision made to stay out of the situation.
In the end, however, Rosette was still willing to go and Chrno knew this.
After finding out about the secret the Order was hiding, Rosette and Chrno, decided to make their way to Romania in order to save the remaining survivors from the little village. They had packed the car, the next morning, and were just getting ready to leave when they were approached by Sister Kate and Reverend Remington who were followed by lots of Familiar faces of other Order members including the Elder.
Rosette quickly looked around the group, searching for Azmaria but was unable to locate her.
Sister Kate realized Rosette's anxiousness and believed she knew exactly what she was looking for, "The last place I remembering seeing Azmaria was up in her room. She was in tears because of our choice on not allowing her to accompany you on your mission."
Rosette sighed and nodded because she really wanted to say farewell to her companion. Mainly, just in case she did not return from her trip in one piece or at all.
After a brief goodbye from all her friends and close loved ones, Rosette and Chrno sped off in the Henry Ford car at a pace Sister Kate would deem 'reckless'.
After half an hour of silent driving and tense atmosphere they arrived at the pier, willing and able to board the ship to transport them across the sea.
The ship was huge, a cargo ship bound for the England harbor. From there they most likely were going to take a train to Romania and hike up through the mountains to get to the little village in Braşov.
After unloading the luggage and boarding the ship, Rosette and Chrno made their way to their meager quarters. They knew it would not be the type of living quarter they were used to and that space would be very limited but nonetheless they went to the room for the rest of their stay that would last two weeks.
On the night just before they were to reach the port they both lounged out in their bunk beds and chatted.
"Do you believe this is a smart thing to do, on my part?" Rosette asked curiously, looking over the edge of her bed down at Chrno.
"There hasn't been any word on the location of Joshua for months and I realize it also has become boring around the Order lately. What else are we going to do? I honestly believe since it is something you believe in that it shows how willing and able you are to continue doing what you do best." Chrno replied twiddling his thumbs.
Rosette hesitated, "You know, I'm not sure how much time I have left…"
"I know Rosette. I know how you can't sit still and do nothing, watching the time pass so quickly and knowing that the burden of time is revolving around you." Chrno interrupted.
"Maybe I'm kidding myself. This was a bad idea; it doesn't benefit neither you nor me."
"Still, you believe in saving people less fortunate than you or I. Its something to do that benefits others and proves you're not selfish."
"Yeah, thank you Chrno for coming with."
"You think I wouldn't come?"
"I didn't say that, I just am very grateful I have you" Rosette couldn't see it but Chrno gently smiled.
"I'm just sad Azmaria wasn't able to join us. We don't usually do anything without her." Rosette added.
Suddenly a pounding came from outside the door, echoing into their room. Rosette got up and went to investigate, finding it was the captain.
"Do you happen to recognize this young girl?" the captain asked, revealing behind him a young, scared looking girl who seemed to be crying.
"Azmaria!" Rosette exclaimed, rushing forward, allowing Azmaria to grasp her back into a hug.
Back at the Order
"Azmaria!" Sister Kate asked, pushing open the cracked door leading to Azmaria's room, "Are you alright?"
The absence of Azmaria took a few minutes to sink into Sister Kate's mind as she gripped the door handle with all her might, turning red and steaming from the ears.
Back on the Ship
"Azmaria, what on earth did you think you were doing when you stowed away?" Rosette asked her, allowing her to sit comfortably on the lower bunk bed.
At this point, the captain had left, leaving Chrno and Rosette baffled with their friend.
"This is very dangerous Az." Chrno stated, sounding quite serious.
"We left you behind because we knew the risk of the mission and how much we care about you." Rosette added.
The little girl sat in tears, unable to get up the nerve to speak because of how much she defied in their wishes.
"We're not mad Azmaria. We just wish that you could have understood the level of danger a little sooner." Rosette said, wiping away a rogue tear streaming down the girl's face.
For the rest of the night Az, Chrno and Rosette chatted about the mission and how they were going to explain to Sister Kate the stakes of their situation.
The next morning, bright and early as the ship docked, the three of them strode off the ship, walking down the pier and to the busy streets of South Hampton.
'In 1912, the ship Titanic casted off here, and here we stand in the very piece of land they last stood." Rosette said, "Did they know how much time they had left?"
Chrno quickly grabbed Rosette's hand and squeezed it a little with the only free hand he had due to the luggage he was carrying.
The awe of England had struck Azmaria during all of Rosette's babble. She had never been to England, yet the crowdedness matched that of New York, the buildings structure differed from those in NYC.
"Wow!" Azmaria exclaimed, watching the many people walking in and out of stores.
"We have a train to catch." Chrno announced, looking up at a clock on a building.
Rosette and Azmaria nodded grabbing their stuff and hurrying down the street to catch a taxi to the train station.
After the long wait to get on the train they finally boarded the steam engine transport.
During their trip they crossed many different countries and stopped at various train stations. Over the course of three days they finally reached Romania and realized it as soon as they crossed some of the Transylvanian Alps and the tallest mountain, Moldoveanu.
The snow in the mountains was the dead giveaway to their location and they knew it was a walking trip to the village from the end train station.
When they got off the train they made their way through the city, learning very quickly, people of Romania didn't take kindly to outsiders.
At the outskirts of the city the road leading out was barren, and all that stood was a sign directing them to the little village of Braşov.
The snow on the road would have blocked cars wanting to go in the direction, however, by the look of the location, Rosette and Chrno, suspected the village didn't use much transportation, like cars, or have much communication to the outside.
As they walked deeper and deeper down the road the scenery seemed to get darker and darker, as did the sky above them.
The silence started to surround them and not even the woodland creatures made any noise. The crunching of snow was all that was even remotely heard and recognized as their own footsteps.
It took them two hours to arrive at the village and their arrival wasn't welcomed. The village appeared empty…