Chapter 17
The End of the Arc
Laia's Innocence retreated into her body slowly, her weapons all slides back into the moonstone's gateway. The diadem she is wearing is also retreating into their lotus-shaped painting on the centre of her forehead. She felt the wind blowing against her skin, and she felt her hair rippling against the wind behind her powerfully. She felt like flying, and her Innocences has made her dreams come true by giving her the power of flight. She loves her Innocences more than anything in the world, and in return, the Innocences loves her as well. It is willing to protect her from harm, and gave her the highest status all Exorcist couldn't achieve.
The Heart Apostle General.
More powerful, more skilled, and more strength to fight akuma and Noah. She did not go against the Earl, for that is Allen's fate to defeat him. She is the Heart Apostle General. She is stronger than all Generals combined. She is powerful, and she is dying.
Laia is dying…
She deactivates her Innocence and lets herself fall through the air, weaponless and powerless. She fell from the skies to the ground, and then she saw him.
Kanda Yuu.
The one man she has ever loved so much as to give her life and some of her powers to him just so that he could live longer, like an Immortal. If fate is kind to her, perhaps she could live a while longer. Just so that she could see him… one more time…
She saw him running to catch her from falling, and he screams her name loudly.
"Laia!" Kanda screams, calling her name with an anxious expression on his face. She smiles at him, and she said quietly.
"I shall salvage all of your souls, Exorcists and my friends…" she said to them quietly, and Kanda, who is close to her, saw what she is saying, and a tear sheds from his eyes.
She waves her hands, and exclaims loudly to the wind, "Innocences! Hadsudou!"
Her Innocences came out from the moonstone and her lotus birthmark-like mark on her forehead and wrapped itself around her in all their silver glory. Completely enveloped in silver and white, she sang a loud chorus of music and she fell to the ground in one clean and graceful movement. Slamming her staff that appears in her hand on the ground, a loud squeak of a bird-like calling musical tone is released from it, and everyone is almost thrown back by the power of the staff.
The power that came from the staff is so powerful and immense that all the akumas in the field of battle disintegrated into mere dusts when it comes into contact with the power shield that is generated by the staff. Nothing is left on the battle field, and everyone is safe once more.
The exorcists stares in amazement at the power displayed by the Heart Apostle General. They stood up and stare at her, and at the field, and back at her again. Laia remains kneeling on the ground with the staff in her hand, and she is quiet and still.
"Did all the akumas…?" Lavi stuttered, staring in absolute disbelief at the scene in front of him.
"They all… disappeared…" Lenalee said to him, one hand covering her mouth in disbelief.
"No…" Allen said determinedly, one hand holding his sword and the other held his wound on his other shoulder. "They are all gone. Gone with Laia's powers… she destroys them with one hit of her staff…"
"Then… We've won the war…?" General Tiedoll said to them all in disbelief, watching the empty battle field with disbelief.
There is nothing left on the battle field, and Laia is still within her Innocence form. She stood up proudly and straightens her back. She has defeated the akumas with her Innocences, and she is rippling with power. She has saved everyone from their poor fate, and now, it is her turn to pay for the price…
Her Innocences disintegrated into thousands of silver scales like scales. She stood up there for a while with Kanda staring at her in front, and she fell down in a heap, losing her consciousness immediately.
"Laia!" Kanda exclaims from afar, rushing to her rescue. He sweeps her into his arms and held her close to him. Blood came out from her mouth and nose and she bleeds dark black blood, the texture running like a loose pipe.
"Quick!" Lavi exclaims. "To the medical camp!"
"Kanda sweeps her up into his arms and runs to the nearby medical camp. Her blood flows none stop, like loose pipe water, and it dripped to the ground and glows in a golden light of sort.
"Her blood…" Allen started. "It's glowing… why is it glowing?"
Allen touches her blood on the ground, and he had a sudden instinct that her blood is conjoined with her Innocences.
"Like mine…?" Allen mumbles to himself. He is surprised with the revelation, and is thoroughly shocked with it. How could Laia end up with her Innocence completely imbued into her blood till this stage?
Upon arriving, the doctors and nurses quickly went up ahead to try and save her. Before they could do so, she suddenly raises her hand up into the air and forms another barrier around the medical camp and around all the exorcists that has gathered around the medical camp. There is a squawk of a bird-like calling from her Innocence, and another one that calls for the sound of a bell.
"Laia Elfreya! Allen!" the Earl called, not dead from Laia's powers. Allen wields his Crown Clown and charges up ahead to the Earl, but is stopped by Lenalee.
"Laia has set up the barrier to protect us. It means that we cannot fight right now with our conditions like this…" Lenalee said, stopping Allen from going up ahead to fight the Earl.
"Everyone, come out," Kanda said to them all, and he leads them out of the camp and into the protection of the barrier with Laia in his arms. He exposes them to the barrier and, like last time, the barrier dripped healing liquid.
"The barrier made a kind of liquid that heals our wounds quickly…" Kanda said to them, and they stares in amazement at their wounds that heals rapidly after coming into contact with the healing liquid.
The Earl hits the barrier with his powers, but the barrier did nothing but held on to its stance powerfully. Even while dying, Laia is still able to exclude such powers.
"She is protecting us…" Lavi said to himself, one tear coming out from his eyes. "She's protecting us even when she is dying?"
"We are all she has right now…" Kanda said to Lavi, holding Laia in his arms. Her arms are still extended, with her Innocence making the barrier stronger and wider as time goes by. "We are all she has right now…" Kanda repeated the phrase, and strokes her head.
She is no longer bleeding out. Then suddenly, she is awake.
Her eyelids fluttered, and she is awake again.
"Laia," Kanda calls her. "You're awake?"
"Yuu…" Laia calls him, one hand reaching out to touch his face.
Hana mau anata no sora ni[The flowers dance in your sky]
Inochi yo ibuite yasuragi no iro ni[Oh life, breath into the color of peace]
Subete o ageru yo…[I'll give you everything...]
Nakanaide futari no toki ga hajimaru[Please don't cry, our time is starting]
"I love you, Yuu…" Laia said, one tear sliding out of her eyes. "In the next life, I would be yours completely… We'll see each other again…"
With that, she breaths her last breathe in his arms and faded away. Kanda's tears fell faster, and his tears fell onto her cheeks. She has faded away, leaving him alone in the world.
"Laia-san…" Lavi calls her, but she did not heard him. She cannot hear him… she is dead…
La_i… Obienaide[La_i...Don't be daunted]
Yasashiku watashi o yonde[Call upon me tenderly]
La_i… Deaeta kiseki[La_i... It's a miracle that we were able to meet]
Ai wa… kono sekai ni michite yuku[Love is... filling this world]
Everyone sheds a tear for the fallen Heart Apostle General. As strong as her person could be, she has died, leaving the rest of them to fight for the world's peace on their own.
Habataku futari no hoshi ni[I'll flap my wings on our planet]
Yururi to someteku utsukushii iro ni[In a beautiful color slowly dye onto me]
Nan de mo dekiru yo…[I can do anything]
Hajimari wa owari no naka ni mebaeru[The beginning sprouts within the ending]
Then, suddenly, she began to emit a strange pollen-like light. It came out from her, and it flew towards the Noahs, who had no way to chase it away. As soon as it settles onto the Noahs, the Noahs grey skin faded, leaving them in human form. They are defeated, and there are no more Noahs in the world…
Kaze ni takusu inori[Entrusting prayers to the wind]
Towa no omoi kagayaku[My eternal thoughts shine]
Zuutto zuutto soba ni iru yo[I'll forever, forever be by your side]
"Sonna fuu ni tanpopo no tane ga[If the dandelion seeds make up their minds]
kokoro o kimeru to shitara donna toki da to omou"[In such a way, then when do you think that is?]
After the Noahs are done in, the two Innocences came out of Laia's body. It forms a huge golden and red heart that pulsed with life. Slowly, the rest of the Exorcist's Innocence flew towards the heart, and it gathered around the heart and circles it in a never ending cycle.
Then, it burst into a shower of golden light, showering the world with its life powers and instills immortal-like powers on the Exorcists. Kanda, who is already an immortal with Laia's previous powers on his Lotus, stares on ahead as Lenalee, Allen, Lavi, Bookmans, Komui, and everyone else who are out there in the battle field becomes immortal, and glows with the golden power of the heart Innocence.
"What is this…?" Lenalee said, looking at her hands which are glowing with the power of the heart Innocence.
"Laia… she gave all of us immortal powers with the heart Innocence…" Kanda said in a quiet tone, and everyone marvels at their new found powers. They still retains their powers, and they finds that they have the power of flight. Laia has instills so many powers on all of the Exorcists, and they are surprised with their new found powers.
"Laia-san…" Lavi said to himself, looking at the dead Laia currently rests in Kanda's arms. Everyone mourns for the loss of their Heart Apostle General, and watches on as she laid there quietly in Kanda's arms.
La_i… Konna ni kirei[La_i...so beautiful]
Futari no mabushii sekai[Our dazzling world]
La_i… Egao misete[La_i...show me your smile]
Yasashiku kami o nadete[Stroke my hair tenderly]
La_i… Furueru kajitsu[Lai_i...the fruit trembles]
Ai wa… ima futari ni tokete yuku[Love is...dissolving in us now]
Laia, to inochi nosete kaze ga mau[Place life with Laia and the wind dances]
And as Kanda stares on ahead with Laia in his arms, he finally understood why the Heart would make everyone an immortal. They are to be a family, never to leave the other one behind while the rest is moving on. They are to become one, and a family, and wait for Laia's return to their side.
"Sore wa ne sono sabaku ni tatta hitori dake de mo[It was the moment when I knew that there's someone,]
hana o aishite kureru hito ga iru tte shitta toki"[even if he was the one and only in the desert, who loves the flower]