Chapter three! a few people meet, and a few more fight.
In Memoriam Chapter 3
"So, what's the headquarters like?" Harry asks as the boat drifts down the river.
"It depends." Susan shrugs, "It's usually pretty lively, but sometimes it could be as dismal as Azkaban."
"It can also be pretty dangerous when the chief has a lot of free time." Daphne adds, "I've lost track of the number of Sir Komlins he's made."
"Sir Komlin?"Harry stares, "What the heck is that?"
"Well, Komui has a bad habit of completely overreacting to anything involving his little sister to the point that he's built many giant robots for the sole use of protecting her or destroying anyone who tries to date her. Each of these has been destroyed by exorcists and dismantled by the science division, only to be rebuilt even stronger the next month when Komui sneaks out of the office."
"On the up side, it's good for practice." Susan shrugs, "But it is rather annoying to get back after a long mission, only to be attacked as soon as you walk in the door."
"We're coming up on the entryway." Johnny says as the end of the river comes into view. Once the boat was stopped, they walked down a short hall to a massive set of stairs carved into the cave. They were so long that Harry couldn't even see the top.
"In the future, you'd be able to take an elevator, but first time you'll have to go through the gatekeeper to ensure that you aren't a spy." Daphne sighs, 'Believe me, they're even longer then they look."
"This is going to take forever." Susan groans.
"Well, since you two are here, I'll leave it to you." Johnny smirks as he presses the wall. It opens to reveal a state of the art elevator.
"Jerk." Susan growls as the door closes, "Let's hurry. I want to punch him as soon as possible for ditching us."
Both of the others nod, and they trio start up the stairs. Daphne wasn't kidding. It probably took longer to climb the stairs then it took the entire trip thus far from Kings cross. It took nearly two hours of walking to make it to the top, avoiding traps and the like along the way. At the top, all of them were panting heavily.
"I wish I brought my firebolt." Harry groans, "That would have been so much easier."
"But then you would have ditched us to." Susan glares, "And then you would have to endure my wrath as well."
"Well then we'd better hurry." Daphne laughs, "Before Komui sends Johnny on some errand."
Susan turned and the three walked a short way away, where they crossed a bridge. On the other side was a large, Black tower that reminded Harry of Orthanc from the Lord of the Rings series. The only entrance was an odd door that seemed to have some kind of picture engraved on it.
"Gatekeeper, please inform Komui that Harry Potter has arrived." Susan says to the door.
"Very well." It replies. A moment later, a black bat like creature flies out of an upper room.
"Hello, Harry Potter. I must say that I'm privileged to be able to meet with such a famous person. I'm sure you've got a lot of questions, but those can wait for just a moment. Before you are allowed to enter the Black Order, you must pass the Gatekeepers exam."
"I've got to take a test?" Harry stares at the door.
The stone face extends out, looking down on him as lights shine from its eyes, "SCANNING… Cannot read… wait… is that… He's got a pentacle! He's the earl's minion!"
Inside the building, alarms start going off. "I was afraid of that." Daphne face palms, "shut up." She snaps at the still screaming gate, "He's cursed, not an akuma, so give it a rest!"
"Sorry, little lady." A rough voice says from behind them, "But I'd rather listen to the gatekeeper on this one."
"General Socalo…" Daphne gulps when she sees the massive man walking towards them, his face hidden behind a mask, "Please, be reasonable!"
"No can do." He smirks as his spiked should pads move down his arms, forming a spiked circle with two serrated blades, "if the Gatekeeper says he's a spy, I'll treat him like one until I see proof otherwise."
"That's enough, general!" Komui shouts through the golem.
"You forget that I don't take orders from you!" The maniac laughs as he jumps towards Harry, about to impale him on the end of his weapon, "Now taste Madness!"
"Lau Jimin, stop him!" a female voice shouts from the first floor window. Harry closes his eyes, expecting the blade to kill him. The pain, however, never comes. Opening his eyes, his vision is blocked by something large, easily big enough to block his entire line of sight, with cream colored fur.
"General Klaud!" Susan sighs in relief as a woman with short blond hair jumped down from the window.
"General Socalo, if you were to kill this boy, an accommodator of innocence, the Great Generals would undoubtedly return you to death row. Or they might order me to finish you right now." She says calmly, grabbing the whip from her waist, "The boy will be checked by Hevlaska to ensure he is not a threat. Now then, leave before this escalates any further."
"You think you can kill me, Klaud?" he smirks, "I'd like to see that."
"Long Range Mode: Destruction Shell Lau Gunz." She says calmly and a loud blast sends the man flying, "That was a warning shot. You should realize that you're at a disadvantage here."
The man scoffs, but walks away regardless.
"Thank you, General." Susan sighs.
"Don't mention it." She smiles, "Gatekeeper, open up. The boy is coming with me."
"If you're sure…" it mutters as it swings open. The creature that had saved him disappeared, reappearing as a small monkey that climbed onto the general's shoulder.
"My apologies for that." She says kindly, "as a general rule, people with pentacles are either spies for the earl, or akuma, and we wouldn't want either inside of the headquarters. As I told Socalo, before we can let you see the chief, you'll have to check with Hevlaska. I trust Susan, but we still have to be cautious."
"I understand." Harry nods, "But who is Hevlaska? I've heard her name before, but that all."
"Hevlaska is our lead expert on innocence and she's also the only one able to confirm that you're a human without cutting you open." Daphne smirks as they step onto the elevator.
"She's at the very bottom of the headquarters." Klaud says as they pass many floors, "if you don't mind my asking, how you get cursed? The only people I've ever heard of being cursed before are Allen Walker and Daphne."
"I'm not really sure what that was even about." Harry shrugs, "That was the first I've heard of it."
"You receive a curse by being attacked by an akuma and surviving." She explains, "It's incredibly rare, and always leaves behind a mark and a power. Allen Walker's cursed eye allows him to see the souls of Akuma, whether they are hiding amongst humans or not."
"Two days ago, my godfather was killed." He sighs, "As I understand it, his akuma stabbed me through the chest before I somehow managed to kill it."
"I see… "She says as the elevator slows to a stop just above the very bottom. "Follow me." Klaud says as she steps onto the platform.
"Stand on the edge of the platform." She instructs, "Don't worry. Just keep calm and you'll be fine."
Nodding, Harry stands at the very edge and waits. A moment later, something wraps itself around his legs and lifts him into the air. For a slight moment, his first reaction was to resist, but Klaud's words eased him and he waits. Below him, a strange form rises, towering over him even as its tentacles held him.
"I'm impressed." its kind voice echoes in the room, "Most are surprised the first time."
"Well, I've fought Voldemort, killed a basilisk, drove off a hundred dementors, fought a revived Dark Lord, and nearly been killed by an akuma, so it takes a lot to surprise me nowadays." He jokes.
"I'm sure. I am Hevlaska. It is my duty to protect those pieces of innocence collected by the order until the can find those who are to possess them. I am also charged with determining how well an accommodator synchronizes with their innocence. Please remain calm for just a moment."
Taking a few calming breathes, he nods and waits. A tentacle rests itself against his neck. "Six… thirteen… twenty one… thirty four…. Forty four percent synchronization rate." She gently places him back on the platform, "There is no threat, General Klaud. The curse is true, but it has only just started to form. He is neither an akuma nor the earl's minion."
"My thanks, Hevlaska." She bows.
"I'm next." Daphne says as she steps forward, holding out her chain.
"Welcome back, Daphne." Hevlaska smiles, placing a tendril on the weapon, "fifty four… sixty two… eighty percent."
"And I'm last." Susan steps up, holding out her arms. Again the tendrils touch the bracelets, "Eighty two percent." She says after a moment.
"We will be taking our leave, Hevlaska." Klaud smiles.
"Be well, General. And I pray your continued success."
They return to the elevator, which rises into the air as Hevlaska disappears back to the very bottom of the tower. A few floors up, she stops it and leads them into a paper covered office room. On the desk in the middle was a man wearing a beret, who seemed to be sleeping. A man with a long white lab coat and spiky blond hair walks in with a huge pile of papers.
"General! And this must be Harry." He says as he places the papers on his desk, "Give me just a second to get the chief up." Walking behind the desk, he whispers something into his ear.
"No, Lenalee why?!" he yells as soon as he's awake, "How could you get married without telling me?!"
Klaud takes her whip and knocks his beret off, "at least try not to fall asleep when you are expecting someone."
"Right." He coughs, "sorry about that. I expect that he passed the exam?"
"Would he still be here if he didn't?" she counters.
"Great. Well, Reever, take care of my paperwork while I have a talk with Harry."
"You can do it yourself once you're done…" Reever growls as the five of them step into a side room.
"Well, sit down and relax for a minute." Komui smiles, "I'm sure you've got a lot of questions. Ask away."
"What exactly is this place?" Harry starts.
"The headquarters of the Black Order." He says calmly, passing him a map, "We are an organization bent on ridding the world of the millennium earl and his akuma. It's a little confusing once you first get here, so use this map if you need it."
"Can you explain this whole innocence/akuma thing? It's a little confusing."
"I thought that you would ask that." He nods, "it's a bit of a long story. First of all, over two centuries ago, a strange cube was unearthed, made from a material that had never been seen before. Inscribed on the cube was a tale from long ago. It tells of an ancient society that was nearly destroyed by the millennium earl. Using a substance called innocence, which was the same substance that the cube was made of, they fought and defeated the earls, ending his plans for destruction. However, they warned of the return of the earl, who would continue in his quest to end everything. True to their predictions, the earl returned. In response to this threat, the black order was founded.
The orders goal is the destruction of the earl, and like the ancients before us, that requires the substance innocence, which was scattered around the world during the great flood in the Old Testament. Each piece of innocence is crucial to our plan, as is finding the accommodators. Accommodators are the only people who can use innocence. It is the job of the generals to find accommodators and bring them here. That said, there are only one hundred and eight pieces of innocence in total, and over six billion people in the world, so naturally this is extremely difficult.
Within the order, accommodators are called exorcists. They are the only soldiers who can fight against the earl and the living weapons he calls akuma."
"So, what? Am I going to be forced to fight in another war?" Harry asks, glaring slightly at him.
"Once, that would have been true." Komui nods, "But that was before I took over. A soldier that fights because he's being forced to is useless. The choice is yours, whether to fight with us or not. I you don't want to, all information about the black order will be removed from you mind, we'll take the innocence coursing through your body and send you on your way. But I sincerely hope that you'll at least hear us out."
"I'll just come out and ask it. What do I have to gain from joining?"
"Quite a lot, actually." He smiles, "As you mentioned earlier, you are currently at war against You-Know-"
"Voldemort." Harry interrupts, "Call him Voldemort. Fearing to say something as simple as a name is giving him power he has no right to. He won't murder you just for saying it."
"Clearly you live up to Gryffindor's reputation." He nods, "Very well. As you mentioned, you are at war with the wizard called Voldemort. Innocence is incredibly powerful and its strength would certainly be of aid against him, if you can master it."
"Well, that's a good point." He admits, "Anything else?"
"In the future, assuming that we are successful, the order has an incredible amount of influence around the world. You could obtain any job you want. Also, the black order is affiliated with every government, Magical and muggle the world over. Bearing the Rose cross grants you access to any place in the world without exception. Those are merely a few of the benefits."
"Those are some pretty impressive benefits." Harry smirks, "What would be required if I do?"
"Well, you'd have to train under a general to control your innocence. This shouldn't take much time once you've mastered the basics. After that, you'd need to be available for missions, though you'd likely be assigned to Hogwarts with these two at least until you graduate. Other than that, you just need to protect the innocent from akuma. What you do outside of those jobs are none of my concern. Feel free to aid in the fight against Voldemort."
"I've got no problems with that." He answers, "count me in."
"Excellent!" he cheers, "Welcome to the Black Order."
"Who are you placing him under?" Susan asks.
"Well, his training should start immediately, so that rules out Cross and Tiedoll. General Yeager was killed, so that just leaves the two of you." He says, "I don't think that Harry would trust Socalo any time soon, besides which you have experience with a parasite type anti akuma weapon. So, Harry, you'll apprentice under General Klaud Nine."
Harry nods and turns to his new teacher.
"Well, this should be fun." Susan grins, "Because that means I'll get to help teach him a thing or two…"
"Before we get into training, I need to know everything that happened that night." Klaud says, turning to him, "The fact is that you were able to defeat an akuma seemingly without an anti akuma weapon. I need to find out what was the trigger. Is it always active? Or is there some trigger? Does it only work with that item, or will anything work? Until we can answer these questions, teaching you will be next to impossible."
Harry spends the next thirty minutes retelling everything that he could remember about that night, along with Dumbledore's thoughts about what had happened, which mostly fit with what the Order knew about it.
"So, when the passage in Dumbledore's office opened, you were pushed into the room." Komui says for clarification, "After that the most likely conclusion is that the innocence, sensing the presence of its accommodator, entered your body through the wound. Its power gave you the strength to stay alive, and eventually reacted to destroy the akuma even though you weren't conscious of it."
"Well, it isn't the strangest thing we've heard of innocence do." Susan shrugs.
"No, far from it." Komui agrees, "What are your thoughts, General Klaud?"
"His innocence is unusual. Most parasitic types show an obvious change on the body; either such as Allen Walker's left arm or the rare ones like my own Lau Jimin. Despite that, it hasn't changed him at all." She says thoughtfully, "And then there's the weapon he used to destroy the akuma. Somehow he turned a perfectly ordinary item into an anti akuma weapon."
"So, how do we start?" Harry asks.
"Tomorrow, we'll work on drawing out that power." She answers, "Since we already know that it will work with that knife hilt, we'll start with that. Maybe we'll learn what kind of power it could possess."
"We'll figure it out." Susan nods.
The door opens behind them, "Chief! The squad from Japan is back!"
"What!?" Komui gasps at Reever, "Sorry, Harry, we'll have to finish this later."
"Alright-"Harry says before Komui and Klaud run out of the room following Reever.
"Well, that was a shocker." Daphne says as she leads Harry and Susan out, "Come on, we'll show you around. This place is pretty confusing after you've been here for a while, so the first time is a nightmare. A lot like Hogwarts, just without the changing staircases."
"What did he mean when he said that the squad from Japan is back?" Harry asks.
"A few months ago, one of the generals, my old teacher, General Yeager, was killed by the earl." Daphne sighs, "Once it became obvious that the earl was targeting the generals, Komui sent Exorcists to find the Generals as backup. Every available exorcist was sent out. Only me and Susan weren't since we were stuck at Hogwarts. A lot of the exorcists were killed, including everyone in both General Klaud's and General Socalo's teams. But General Cross' team was looking for him in Japan, and apparently they're back."
"Even if we couldn't do much, we still made it a point to check in with the order every couple of days." Susan smirks, 'Remember back in February when you noticed that I was distracted? That was after me and Daphne found out about all the deaths."
"I'm sorry." Harry mutters.
"It's fine." She sighs, "Honestly, it's only made me even more willing to fight. So that Sol and the others didn't die in vain."
"Still, I can't help but wonder if they managed to find him." Daphne grins, "Last I heard, he was still missing."
"Daphne!" Johnny pants from behind them, "The chief said for you to show Harry around. He's got room thirteen for now. Also, all exorcists, Harry included, are being summoned to a meeting after dinner, in the third floor briefing room."
"Got it." They nod, "So, how is everyone?"
"Krory is in pretty bad shape. The others have minor injuries." he answers, "And they managed to find general cross."
"Wow." Susan laughs, "They got lucky."
"General Tiedoll is with them as well, so every exorcist is at Headquarters now." Johnny chuckles, 'So, I think this might be the first time since I came here that all the exorcists have been gathered."
"Same with us." Susan grins, "By the way, Innocence, Activate." Her bracelets turn back into their gauntlet forms as Susan cracks her knuckles threateningly. Daphne smirks as just stands there whistling a tune as Susan starts beating him upside the head, "That was for ditching us."
"Point taken." He mutters massaging his head, "Don't forget. Meeting in two hours."
"Right. We'll be there." Daphne says as the little man runs off, "Harry, you hungry?"
"Starved, actually." Harry answers, "I didn't have much of an appetite this morning, and we missed the lunch trolley during our chat on the train."
"Then a trip to jerry is in order." Susan says, leading them down the stairs, "Jerry's the head cook for the order, and he'll make anything you want."
"Great." Harry smirks as his stomach growls, "Let's hurry."
Five minutes later, they walked through the giant double doors leading to the cafeteria. At the front was a long line of people in cream colored robes. The people at the front of the line each received a huge tray of food, and left through a strange white portal on the side, and the next one did the same.
"Only one person could eat that much." Susan laughs as the stand behind the cream robed people, "Looks like Allen made it through alright."
"Allen?"
"Allen Walker. He's another exorcist who probably eats more than the rest of the Order combined." Daphne answers, "He's a parasite type, like you, in his left arm, and he's also got a curse over his left eye that allows him to see the souls of akuma. Very useful. Unlike the rest of us, he's almost never been taken by surprise. He'll spot the akuma before they spot him."
By that time, they'd reached the front of the line, where they met a man who was likely more feminine than half the women at Hogwarts.
"Susan! Daphne! Wonderful to see you again!" he smiles brightly, jumping over the counter and engulfing them both in a hug, "And who is your new friend?"
"This is Harry. He's a new exorcist." Susan answers, hugging him back.
"That's fabulous. Welcome to the Order, Harry. I'm Jerry, the Head chef. I'll cook up whatever you like." He says as he gives Harry a very manly hug before jumping back over the counter, "Sorry for making you wait in line. Allen's back and you know how much food he eats."
"True enough." Daphne laughs, "I'll have the usual, with a cup of coffee."
"I'll have the same with a glass of soda, no ice." Susan adds.
"Be up in just a minute." He says, and sure enough, the ingredients are thrown together magically and a moment later, two identical trays of food slide down to the girls, "And what can I get for you, Harry?"
"Fried Chicken, with French fries." Harry says, and the next moment he got his order, "Thank you."
"No problem. Feel free to come back any time." Jerry smiles as he helps another cream robed man.
"Susan, do you mind if I ask what's with all the cream robed people?"
"Oh, forget to mention that. Sorry." She blushes slightly, "The bulk of the Black order's personnel are Finders, who wear those robes. It's their job to help exorcists and investigate places that may have innocence. If they confirm it, they send us in to retrieve it. But since they don't have innocence, they don't have any way to defeat akuma."
"They're also in charge of protecting the population when we're forced to operate out in the open, usual by crating barriers or convince city officials to ensure that everyone is inside before the fighting starts." Daphne adds, "It's dangerous work though. The barriers they use can only do so much, and with those, their just sitting ducks without exorcists."
"Luckily, unlike us, the finders are relatively low on the earl's list. Even if an akuma spots them, they won't likely attack until they have a reason, whereas we'll be attacked on sight." Susan continues, "That's why finder casualties are usually pretty low. They aren't really attacked until they find innocence, and by then they've usually called for backup. Once we get there, they're job is basically done."
"I get it." Harry nods, starting his dinner, "What else?"
"Well, the ones in the lab coats are science division." Daphne says as she takes a sip of coffee, "They make all kinds of useful gadgets, including the communication golems you saw earlier. Unfortunately, they've also got a lot of paperwork, so they're kept up to all hours of the night, and still never get done."
"Then, obviously there's us. Exorcists wear a black uniform with silver trim, customized to each based solely on their own sense of fashion and fighting style. You'll have one made some time over the next few days. The material is really strong, and it can deflect most curses. I've even heard rumors that it'll stop a killing curse, but I've never actually tried, nor do I plan to."
"Exorcists with gold trimmed uniforms are the generals. They're the elite of the order, and get special assignments that have a major impact on the war, while also taking with them several pieces of innocence in the hopes that they can find new accommodators. They're outside the regular chain of command, hence why Komui couldn't call off General Socalo earlier."
"Those are probably the only ones you'll meet anytime soon." Susan shrugs, "I'd recommend getting to know some of the others while they're here though. The exorcists assigned to a mission could be whoever happens to be at headquarters when the mission is given, so you could end up working with anyone. For now, you'll be with me and general Klaud, but that might change in the future."
"What about you, Daphne?" Harry asks.
"Well, I'm on my own. My master was General Yeager, but he was killed a couple months back, so…"
"I see…" Harry sighs, finishing his plate, "I don't know why, but I'm still hungry."
"Parasite types generally have a bigger appetite." Susan says as she gets up, "Go ahead and get some more. You don't want to be hungry for your training tomorrow."
Half an hour later, after much conversation and a good meal, the three left to prepare for the meeting.
Next time is the meeting, and harry finally uses his innocence again. R&R