Chapter 10

The Power of the Golden Innocence

There were so many akuma flying around him. Laia and Kanda have been tasked to go to Switzerland and pick up Innocence there. They are to reach there as soon as possible so that the Noahs would not start on them and destroy the Innocence. Laia had leaded the way, and Kanda was to follow him. He trusted her instinct, and knew that she is leading the right road because 10 out of 10 times, she had been right on her instinct.

He liked people with instinct. It at least allows him to live another miserable day.

Then, the akumas came in out of nowhere. They had no time to hide, and started an all out war with them. They kept on coming, and they had been bombed, shoot, sliced, and all sorts of way with Laia's multi changeable Innocence weapon. It was useful, but it did not help in decreasing the rapidly increasing amount of akuma.

Then he heard a scream. He slices the akuma in front of him and quickly tries to get to Laia. But he is blocked again and again by another akuma. Laia screams again, and this time, he panicked.

"Nigentou!" Kanda activated his Mugen into its second level power. The akumas in front of him is destroyed in a second in a large blast of power and dust, and Kanda quickly flew through it and saw…

He saw a figure lying on a pool of blood. He'd recognize that hair anywhere he goes, and that pair of gold and silver bangles pulling back the twin silver chokuto slowly into the moonstone gateway had him hurriedly ran towards her. He had heard it from her, when she is sleeping or fainted, the weapons would get back into its gateway. Its specialty is that way, so as to not get used by Akuma or other non apostle people. It is a dangerous weapon, and only Laia or Kanda could wield it, seeing as Kanda is also a sword holding user and an apostle as well.

Turning her over slowly, he is overcome by her bleeding abdomen and her tattered clothes, seemingly sliced away along with her skin. Her wounds appeared almost as if someone had skinned part of her abdomen's skin. Tearing her clothes away, he found the source of the bleed and stemmed its flow with the same clothes he had torn away from her body.

"Laia, don't you dare die on me," Kanda said angrily, slapping her face, trying desperately to wake her up. She had once told him that she could only heal herself when she is awake, and that if she happens to sustain any injury while she is fainted or sleeping, she could very well bleed to death since she has a rather unique blood disorder. That unique blood disorder causes her to be unable to donate blood, and also causes her to be unable to receive any blood from anyone at all. Nobody seems to have her blood group, and whenever one tries to insert their own blood into her veins, she would convulse. He has seen it once, and she suffers from it very painfully.

"Don't you dare die on me, Laia! You gave me your word you won't die until the war ends!"

When her blood continues to flow profusely even with his efforts to stem its flow and wakes her up, Kanda gritted his teeth and closes his eyes, knowing that he had no more choices but to do so. With his teeth, Kanda forcefully tears the vein of blood on his wrist and puts the bleeding wound into her mouth.

"Drink it!" Kanda called out. "Drink it and wake up!"

He watches as his blood flows out uselessly down her cheek. Deciding that this way would be useless, he promptly bites down hard on his tongue and kisses her deeply, feeding her blood that bleeds directly from his mouth.

Slowly, he felt her licks his lips for more blood. He knew she is soon to be awakening, and he held the back of her head. It had been a while since he kisses her. The first time is when he gave her life oxygen under the water through his lips, kissing her softly and transferring the oxygen to her mouth. He had felt that her lips are soft and warm then, even with the icy cold water surrounding them. Now that they are kissing on the surface, he felt that it is like kissing someone he loves...

Someone he loves…

"I love you…" Kanda said to her, appearing to be surprised himself. She awakens, and her eyes fluttered softly.

"What…?" She mumbles, her eyelids threatening to close again.

"I said… I love you, Laia Elfreya… so don't you dare to die on me and leave me here alone while you go up to heaven…" Kanda said to her, and with that, he kisses her again. This time, Laia responded to his kiss softly and shyly.

"Yuu…" Laia called him. "I never knew one day you would tell me this with your own mouth… because I have loved you for so long… so long… until now…" she said to him. With that, she passes out peacefully, slumbering into his arms.

The akumas came at them, and Kanda braces for the impact they are going to inflict on them. They would explode, and they would die. No, Kanda couldn't die. He is the Second Exorcist project. He couldn't die. He could survive even though he has been reduced to a drop of blood. He could reform, but what about Laia? She would die…

She would die…

Die…

Die…

And leave him alone…

"No…" Kanda mumbles, holding her close to him. If he were to fight them, he would expose Laia to their blast. They were too close… too close…

Too close…

Suddenly, Laia's hand shoots up into the sky. There was a sudden light that came out from her Innocence moonstone, and a strange golden net came out of her moonstone, weaving a net of safety ball around them. There was a strange musical sound accompanying the net, and it sounded like bells ringing. She is asleep, and yet her Innocence is working against her will.

"It's protecting us…?" Kanda said to himself, watching in awe as Laia's Innocence forms a huge barrier surrounding them, and the Akuma were destroyed upon touching the golden glowing net. It was a magnificent sight to behold, and the net gave out drops of golden liquid. Upon receiving it on his wounds, it heals immediately in a golden glow…

"This is…?!" Kanda mumbles to himself, and watches as Laia continues to slumber on. He realizes that the Innocence is acting against her will and her power and protects the both of them with its absolute power. What kind of Innocence could protect its accommodator with such powerful barrier that the akuma couldn't even penetrate?

All Innocence is unable to react this way, apart from Allen's Innocence… but his is not as magically powerful as Laia's Innocence. It all seems too good to be true. She being all powerful, and gains her powers again and again on each battle. She becomes more powerful, and her hair becomes longer faster as well. She grows too fast, be it her power or her aging process.

Only the rumored Heart is able to react this way. It protects the accommodator, because it needs the accommodator to defeat the Earl of Millennium. With the Heart, all of their synchro rate could be activated and increased at will. They could all be generals, and all the empty Innocence and the Innocence without an accommodator could be found easily as well. They would no longer need to be afraid of the Earl. Innocence could be found anywhere, and she could even forge back the lost Innocence.

If she is the Heart… if she is the Heart…

If she is the Heart…

The Heart…?

Could it be…?

Laia Elfreya is the Heart!?

"Laia…?" Kanda calls her, touching her face. "Laia?" He calls again, stroking her face and wipes the drop of golden liquid onto her wounds, healing them in the blink of an eye in a golden glow of light. "Are you what I thought you are? Are you the Heart? Laia? Wake up please… tell me…"

But she did not wake up. The golden net of barrier continues to protect them perfectly well. Kanda is bringing her back to the house, and while he took her into his arms, the barrier surrounded them perfectly, and slowly, Kanda starts to feel that he is floating.

The net barrier brought him back to the small house they are staying. Once they landed safely and softly on the ground, it goes back to the moonstone obediently, and slides back without a trace. With that, the golden barrier stopped surrounding them with its protective barrier. The akuma is all destroyed, and they are safe once more.

"Laia? We are home. We are safe now. Please wake up… explain to me… are you hiding the fact that you are the heart to me?" Kanda asks, patting her small cheeks softly in an effort to wake her up.

She continues to slumber on. Her sudden gain of the new power makes her fatigue more serious. Kanda did not disturb her afterwards.

Kanda ponders the reaction of her Innocence towards protecting them. He watch the scene back on his golum, replaying the scene again and again when her Innocence seems to glow and shoots up into the sky with her hand that is wearing them as bangles. Then he noticed something

He paused, and rewinds the scene. He plays it and heard the sound, clear as a bell. There is a strange water and bell like sound emanating from her moonstone Innocence, and when it did, it glows brightly before shoots up into the sky with her hand while she is still fast asleep in his arms.

"So the Innocence truly did protect us…" Kanda said to himself, watching the scene unfolding in front of him.

He sends a private copy to Komui, and hopes that he could discern the myth and the questions behind whether she is the true Heart or not. He believes it is so, because unlike the others, Mugen reacts to her as if she is him, and does not rebel against her touch. He has seen it once, and she did it easily with ease. It is rare for someone to be able to touch the violent Mugen this easily, but she touches it with her gentle fingers so smoothly. Nothing happened. And he is amazed.

The moment her fingers come into contact with Mugen, the violent weapon of the Innocence calms down and becomes quiet. Usually, it would prod and push inside Kanda's mind, thus the use of meditations. He needs it to focus. The Innocence would interrupt him and pleads for him to go to war, fight all the akuma and kill all of them. He did not expect that someone so fragile like Laia would be able to touch it so fearlessly.

And so harmlessly as well.

"Kanda…?" Komui's voice echoed from the golum.

"Yeah. I'm here…" Kanda replies, and Komui begun to tell him of his discoveries.

"She might just be the Heart. Escort her back. I need to see her Innocence. It is truly strange and a miracle for an Innocence to protect its accommodator with those kind of powers, and a golden net at that that heals your wounds. It is such a feat to accomplish to be able to be such in sync with the Innocence. No one has ever live to tell the tale, apart from her…"

Kanda shuts off his golem and walks towards Laia. They did not have many things to carry, seeing as they constantly wore their Exorcist outfit that serves to be a ticket to everywhere they are going. The Black Order is a powerful organization. No one dares to interfere or ask them what they are doing. They all knew that the Black Order is an order that helps people and humanity, and in thus, no one questions their doings.

Laia is still fast asleep, and he needed to escort her back as quickly as possible. If there is any harm or akuma again, her Innocence would protect them again. He fears not for her safety now. He knew that she is far better protected than he himself is with his Mugen. He doubts his Mugen would protect him like the Innocence did to her.

He kicked the bed, but she did not stir. She remains fast asleep.

"Wake up, oi!" Kanda calls, not knowing how to wake her up from her apparent deep slumber. Not once did she stir or move. But he knew that she is alive and well. Just sleeping.

Just sleeping.

Without another thought, Kanda clicked his tongue and heaved a long sigh before he decided to lift her up into his arms and carry her to the train station. It's not far from the little inn they are staying at, and it would be peanuts to carry her. Her Innocence gave a small tingle of bell-like resonance at the close proximity Mugen and her Innocence is causing.

Like a wedding bell sound.