Hello! I took so long updating I'm so sorry, there's no excuse.

Here I am again with a new chapter of The Dark One, I would like to thank all my readers and especially my reviewers and once again I urge them to give me their honest comments about my story.

Once again I do not own Chrno Crusade, to my eternal regret.

WARNING: This Chapter is in no way connected to the previous one. This is basically the first chapter in Chrno's point of view.

I actually started to write this for fun but then it took so long to update and I really liked this extra chapter so I decided to go ahead and publish it.

Please enjoy.

Darkness…

It surrounded him, consumed him, cruel, cold and without mercy. How long had he been in this emptiness? How long since he had spread his wings and felt the wind on his body, how long since he tasted food and drink, how long since he had the company of another living being? How long had it been since there had been any light?

"Light? What is light?"

This question surprised him, even when it came from his own mind, of course he knew what light was, light was the opposite of darkness, the main thing lacking in this hell. But what did light look like, was it warm, was it cold, how did it felt like to be in its presence?

He couldn't remember… not anymore. In the back of his tortured mind he knew that there was a time where he had been in the presence of light, his brother's playful teasing, his sister's never ending energy, soft green eyes and a kind smile, but those were the memories that hurt the most, the deep pain that shot through this chest made this punishment even worse. They were gone now… all of those happy moments could never return, now there was just him in this place and there would always be.

"And maybe it always was…"

Why not? All that time trying not to go insane was probably useless, maybe he was already insane, all those happy memories were just a product of his tired mind, a way to escape from this torture. It wasn't real! The smiles the kindness were all lies!

This was his past, his present and his future.

How he wished for death… for pleasure… for pain, anything that would change this desert.

How long had he been her? Had it been years? Or maybe decades? A millennia?

He no longer knew. Perhaps in the middle of his confinement he had died and this was actually the famous hell the church liked to go on about.

What would he give for the chance to sleep, to dream again maybe he would have more of those happy dreams filled with warmth… how amazing it would be to feel the sun on his skin once again, he could only imagine.

There was a slight change in the cold air, so small and pointless that for anyone would have been unnoticeable if he didn't knew that nothing ever chance in this emptiness, except something just did… something kept changing. But it was impossible nothing could change, this was not part of his prison, it was just him losing his mind, finally giving in to despair…

"What is this?"

The emptiness was stirring, moving, something was slowly breaking apart in the darkness, a little dot of something that was not darkness or cold.

"It couldn't be?"

Light! It was light and warmth, it felt so good, it had been so long! He tried to move to reach it, but still stuck in the same place. The curse was still there, but now there was something else, a way out…

"A human soul?"

Realizing what it would take to leave the emptiness made him shudder and cry at memories and his very being shivered with fear and shame but still his desperation would not let him fall into the pits of guilt, this was his chance, his only chance of being free. Either he took it now or he would stay here forever and he wanted so much to feel the wind again.

Calling fourth the rest of his power, he send it towards that small light, urging it despite the uncertainty and fear, after all who was on the other side a worshiper, an enemy, an ally? Too many questions and so little time, he could be about to bound himself to the most despicable being on Earth, but what choice did he have? All he knew was that he wanted to leave this place, he wanted to fly again.

"I now make a Contract with you…"

He felt the bond take over, as a crack appeared in the emptiness of the holly magic that surrounded him, the ball becoming bigger, closer and started to take form.

It was happening the Contract had been forged; a part of him was now connected to whoever had bleed on the watch. But something was wrong the shape had stopped growing it should be taking the form of his new contractor but instead the form just reached the middle of his chest, but its features were becoming clearer by the second, blonde hair, blue eyes, his new contract was unmistakably female but she as just a child!

"…Rosette Christopher."

The moment he took in her name there was no turning back, in a single second he was filled with her presence, her feelings, and her memories. He felt an instant sympathy for the orphan girl, so small and fragile but bravely standing up to the world, a hidden strength made her keep walking forward even when all sides were against her.

He wanted to protect this little life, still so young but already so aware of the cruelty of the world, she was now his Contractor and therefore under his protection. He would take care of her, and of her precious brother, he could feel his strength returning, the wholly magic receding and his own taking over experimentally he tried to close his fist, amazed and delighted when he felt the movement he gave a roar of delight and listened with glee as the sound echoed around him.

His senses were slowly returning, he could now hear the movement of the humans above and waited until everything went quiet to rip of the band that was keeping his arm prisoner, ignoring the sting caused by the alchemy imbedded in them he ripped out the other, the ones on his feet, torso and finally the one on his head, opening his eyes only to be immediately blinded by the light of the torches he tried to walk but his limbs were weak and he fell on the floor, still joy ran through him and laughed and cried euphoric for he has free, even weak and confused he was free.

His eyes got used to the light and he finally had a good look at the room he had been trapped in, carvings all over the walls, the alchemy used to keep him trapped, cracks were his own powers had broken them it was cold and humid and the air had the distinct smell of mold and ancientness. All these made him wonder how long had he been trapped, he gave the metal cross a dirty glare. The oppressive energy still radiated of the walls and he was still too weak to not to be affected by it.

He crawledout the room, shaking in excitement, for soon he would be outside and his senses would come back and now then he could find his little Contractor and search for any others of his companions. He began to walk unsteadily throughthe corridors out to the monastery it took a while but finally his feet left the cold harsh rock ground and touched the cool prickly grass, with that single feeling at his feet he broke down, falling full body on the grass laughing, crying, rolling in the fresh cut grass, smelling the dirt and night air, to any stranger who passed on the road, this man clad only in black pants rolling on the ground laughing and moaning would seem deranged and dangerous. But there was no one in sight, it was just him and Nature, he looked at the stars till he could remember the name of every single one, if this was madness, he wondered, why did he ever fought to remain sane?

He got up, proud of the way he stood without trembling, and transformed his wings stretching in the open space, an inviting breeze tempting him to dive deep into the star filled sky, a temptation he succumbed quickly. Still delirious from joy and adrenaline he shot to the sky like a lightning only to discover that he didn't quite remember what had once been instinct, after almost crashing into a tall tree he realized that he had to slowly get used to moving again. This time instead of just shooting off he let his body follow the wind moving softly with it instead of against it, he also stood close to the ground and only when he knew he had total control of his movements did he, carefully started to go higher, until he could see all of the great expanse of land. Only to almost go right back down with the shock.

"What? How?"

The sky was tainted an orange-yellow from the millions of little lights on the human settlement, the fresh air was polluted with smell of the chemicals from a type of metal chariot, everything was filled with light, smells, noise and life. He landed the nearest he dared to the town and observed everything, the things, the behavior, the clothes of these humans, he was shocked, overwhelmed. It was so much to take in all at once, his Contractor was now having dinner, she was safe and comfortable so that gave him time to explore this new world, he wanted information, the year, the place, everything and anything that would make him seem less lost.

This was alarming, he had no idea where he was, when it was and now he had his Contractor to think about. How he could protect her in this new place if he didn't know the dangers there were in it, did his enemy's still existed like always or had they assumed another shape, or maybe they had died out and if there were others that he should be concerned about. Tired of looking into the fake lights he flew back to the old monastery, now calm enough to notice the with lights that shone upon it so he could take in its crumbling state, no guards, no anything, it had long been abandoned, if his enemies still lived they would had protected this placed to keep off worshipers, the holly magic would never allow other demons to find him either.

He needed to think carefully and plan his next move, he could go down the town in his human form but he had no idea how to act, the language was English from what he observed but with changes, he couldn't go to his Contractor in this pathetic state, she was a child an orphan that needed someone to rely on instead of having the burden to teach about this new world, but that might be his only chance.

Tonight was no time to make such decisions, he was tired after breaking away from his prison, confused by this world, lying under a close by three he prepared himself for a proper night's sleep, craving for dreams, although he was afraid to find himself again trapped in the world of nothing. And while he was this afraid, his mind refused to sleep no matter how much he tossed and turned, soon it became clear that another was as worried as him, his little Contractor was confused and worried, her meeting with him had been unplanned and she had no idea of what she had actually done.

"This is real; I could never feel her like this if it wasn't."

His fist closed around the ticking watch, the symbol of their bond, right now he was unworthy of presenting it to her, and she was too young to understand it. A Contract, to him, was a serious thing; it brought him memories filled with sadness and happiness and always guilt, after her he had never wanted to enter another one, no matter how weak it made him. But he was now tied to this girl, unaware she may be Rosette had put her soul into his hands dirty of blood of both friends and enemies, putting herself into great danger, and he was too much of a selfish bastard to let her go. He owed her everything, and he would protect her till his dying breath, never again would the mistakes of the past be repeated.

With these assurances he felt confident enough to send her a wave of calm comforting thoughts to lull her to sleep, and that selfish dark part of him could not help but to promise he would come for her. One day surely she would wear the symbol of their connection around her neck with pride.

And then finally after two hundred years he slept.

He woke up in terrible pain.

"Was the sun always this bright?"

Putting his arm over his burning eyes he waited to get used to the light, the warmth of the sun melted the ice that he was still feeling in his bones after years in the cold cellar it seemed like all of his senses had sharpened, hungry for any kind of feeling they could get. And speaking of hunger…

While demons didn't need food like humans did, he had to admit that during his time spent with humans he had grown quite fond of having meals and he longed to use his sense of taste again. He wondered if he should go to Rosette and find help in her, maybe he should take the form of another child as not to scare her. He paused to give thanks to his good fortune, not only was his Contractor a good person but her soul had a fire in it, it drawn him to her.

Viede had once said to him that those who are missing something are drawn to each other….

A bird flew off interrupting his train of thought; it would do him no good to ponder on these questions when there were still more urgent matters to attend. He was in his human adult form but he would have to change to reach his Contractor and now in broad daylight that made him weary. He still didn't know enough about this world to know what risks were worthy of being taken and which ones to avoid.

He walked around the park to clear his head and stretch his limbs, following the path he crossed a few humans, a strange man running a couple sitting on a bench, they attire shocked him, the tightness of their clothes were scandalous, but from the lack of attention he received he could conclude that his poncho and pants were still acceptable. Reassured he sat in a bench overlooking the city.

"What a strange screwed up world I woke in."

It was starting to seem that he truly had no choice but to depend on his Contractor no matter how much it shamed him. He could not go forth in this world without some sort of guide.

His body tensed when he heard soft footsteps on the grass, using his long hair has a cover he turned his head slightly to the two approaching figures, two females… human?

For a moment it seemed like they something else, something he had never seen, his instincts must still be confused from his rest but those woman where coming straight for him, step by step without hesitation they made their way towards him, one of those horseless chariots this one longer and shinier than any of the others he'd seen. The posture, the clothes, the jewel, their whole manner spoke of money and power, he smiled inwardly.

"No matter how many turns the world gives, the basic nature of the humans remains the same."

His body tensed and he prepared for battle, they were not demons but that didn't mean they were harmless in the early times he spent with Magdalene she often warned him about demon's tendency to underestimate humans. His memory summoned her image, always so peaceful and gentle looking at him, in his solitude with pity.

"Go to them, watch, mingle and learn and I'm sure you'll see what you miss."

He missed her, he needed her calmness and wisdom in this alien world, she would knew what to do… but it was no use longing and wishing she was gone and he had to accept it and try to move on.

The women were practically by his side by now and he could take in their appearance. The short one was dressed in a demure manner, one that he was more accustomed to, she made a perfect contrast with the tall, voluptuous red-haired. They stood side –by-side, one looking at him solemnly with her dark eyes; the other was wearing glasses with black lens making it harder to read her expression.

-Chrno, the Dark One.

There. They had said his name, any small hope that they did not knew his identity was extinguished; now there was only one question were they a part of that idiotic society and soon enough an whole army would come down upon him like the plague, or they were worshipers who in their obsession and quest for power would harm his little Contractor. He got up and flexed his clawed hand, his transformation complete, the women did nothing more than blink at his change and in an instant the red-haired had pulled on strange jeweled gloves and called on a language that he recognized as German.

If the sudden appearance of a demon didn't faze them, the sudden appearance of a giant crystal knight sure as hell shocked him! Had he been right and these were no ordinary women or was this merely one of the consequences of human development. The black haired one put her hand on her companion's shoulder as if saying for her to relax and bowed a little to him.

-Your sister, Shader, sends to you her regard and is sorry that she couldn't be here to get you.

Another shock, a glimmer of hope, someone he knew, cheerful Shader, his sister Sinner alive and well in this world. But he didn't know if they spoke the truth, while he could easily read his Contractor's mind to do it on another creature outside of Pandemonium would leave him tired and disgusted.

-Shader is alive? What do you know of her?

How he wished his voice didn't tremble, to show weakness to an enemy could be fatal and now that they knew what affected him he was in danger.

-We are the Harvenheit sisters, Florette and Satela, we are friends of Miss Shader. She felt you're awakening and sent us to get you.

He looked at the chariot, it seemed small and confined and he had been trapped for too long to abandon willingly the open air. The red haired called Satella was obviously getting impatient at his hesitation since she called off her knight and huffed.

-Listen you can either get in the limo - she pointed at the metal chariot – or fly after us, I don't care but if we don't bring you with us that cat-woman will whine and cry till my ears bleed so hurry up.

He spread his wings and nodded, he always knew that all women had a fire in their soul that beat any man's, just Rosette's soul was prove of that but never in the human society he was used to would a woman talk like that to a man. He smiled and wondered when had humanity had finally come to its senses and stopped repressing its females and what other changes had humans suffered.

He waited till the two humans took off in the… limo with an amazing speed before he followed them in the air at a considerable distance. He followed them as they travelled in well-built stone road filled with smaller vehicles the smell of the fumes made him a bit sick at first; they entered an isolated road going in the direction of a mansion surrounded by pure green woods. He wondered if he as flying into a trap but he had to know if he was the last of the Sinners.

Of the thousands that tried to escape Pandemonium only a handful got to taste the freedom that they craved, he had seen his brothers and sisters die and saw how the Order hunted them down if he was the one of the strongest of his race and he had still been captured he shivered at the thought of what could have happened to his brethren, he had already lost Aion and Rizzele to lose the rest would just increase the scars on his soul.

The car stopped and he landed swiftly by its side, Florette came to him and bowed again in her demure way, much to her sisters protests.

-This way please Master Chrno.

She lead him trough the huge house, it was a solemn house it did not seem like Shader's type of place, suspicion grew, he observed the young woman by his side she was short and there was something familiar about that necklace, it looked like a collar…

-You're Shader's Contractor!

-Yes Master Chrno, since I am the oldest I decided to take the burden.

It was impossible that they were enemies; Shader always knew how to choose her allies and the bond of a Contract was never to be taken lightly, he put a hand over the precious watch.

-Miss Shader wished she could have gone to get you herself but her experiment was at a very sensible point and she could not leave.

She stopped at a beaten-up looking door there was a loud sound of motors and the buzzing of machine on the other side. It was a familiar sound, he pushed open the door and he was in a smaller replica of Shader's lab in Eden, machines, planes of machines scattered on every available surface, and there she was… Shader bent over a machine, muttering exactly like she had been on Eden making the watch he now wore around his neck.

-Shader…

Her body tensed, her ears perked up and tail froze, fur raised she slowly turned and stared at him through big round, thin glasses, her eyes wet with unleashed tears. Soon enough she was jumping over tables, for the first time uncaring of her precious inventions to jump into Chrno's arms and throw her own arms around his neck, squeezing tightly. And for once he didn't mind the bone-crushing hug and answered back with by tighten his own arms around her.

-I knew it was working! I programmed it to sound an alarm as soon as it felt your energy since I couldn't find you. That means you've found someone to make a Contract with! Who is it? Is he with you? – She looked around as she expected a second person to walk through that door – You know I was planning on making Satella your Contractor if I could find you, but the Order didn't left many clues…

He put her down softly, they had much to talk about and she knew it, quickly grabbing two wooden chairs she put them near the window, they sat in silence for a while, unsure who would start first.

-Shader how long have I been in that prison?

-About two hundred years…

-Two hundred years!

-They hid you really well! Now tell me where's your Contractor?

He called fourth all of his strength to calm himself down, his whole body claimed for revenge first his brothers, and then Magdalene and now himself, they took away everything, that Order…

-My Contractor is a child by the name of Rosette Christopher.

-A child?

-She didn't know she was entering a Contract, it was an accident, and I want to wait until she's older before explaining to her.

Now it was Shader's turn to be surprised, this was not what she planed, ideally she would have found Chrno before his awakening and Satella would be his Contractor… but a child, a stranger even! But what's done is done! Chrno didn't seem to mind to be bound to this Rosette Christopher and if she had no idea, then things might work out for the best…

-Shader… This Harvenheit sisters… what are they? How can they summon those knights?

Shader smiled brightly and leaped off the chair giggling and sending him sly looks, she stepped out of the lab and urged him to follow, he stumbled behind her, how this took him back to his youth in Pandemonium! The most shy and broody of their little group he usually followed or got dragged into trouble by his more energetic siblings.

-Shader what's going on?

-Wait! Wait! You're going to flip when you see this!

"Why the hell should I do a flip?"

He followed Shader up the stairs through a mingle of halls until she darted into a room. Inside there were paintings, some quite ancient, and on the other side of the room a painting of her, he averted his eyes it was too soon for him, he could not face that gentle face knowing that he would never see it again. Shader seemed to feel his pain and grabbed his hand leading his attention to a different part of the room, this part was obviously family portraits, generation after generation. One of the portraits caught his eye, like many others it portrayed a family and the man, the father, the one that had his arm around his wife's shoulders looked so familiar, those eyes…

His heart gave a jump, like it wanted to leap out of his chest and then stopped for a few seconds. Those eyes, that expression it was unmistakable, that arm so lovingly wrapped around that human had been the same arm that had corrected him the first time he held a sword, those eyes that looked at him, young and reluctant to learn to fight, with a mixture of pity and amusement.

"You are kind Chrno, too kind… Pandemonium deemed you a warrior so you have to leave your kindness behind and be what you're supposed to be."

He had been one of the few who managed to escape from Pandemonium alive, last time he heard of him, he had decided to travel across the world and enjoy his new freedom. Following his train of thought Shader grinned slyly, he didn't like that grin…

-Apparently he decided to give new meaning to mixing with the locals…

It couldn't be, it just wasn't possible, those two women were…

-That's right Satella and Florette are his descendents, in fact Satella has a bit of his temper. The jewels for summoning where his doing too…

That above anything else, blew his mind, never before had a demon mated a human even more to breed with them.

-Where is he now?

-Dead. When she died he couldn't take it so…

Silence, love was a cruel emotion, even crueler when you had such a long life ahead of you when your partner had so little. When Magdalene… when she… it was hard to carry on, many times in the emptiness did he wished he had followed her in death, even when she had been alive it did nothing to stop his pain, there was always a sense that doom was approaching, he never gave in to his feelings.

"Enough! You'll not mourn here, wait till you're by yourself and then try to pick up the shattered remains of your dreams."

He insisted on to start learning about this time that very day, Shader wanted him to wait a few days; after all he had suffered a lot of shocks in the last twenty-four hours, Floette agreed with her, but Satella had agreed with him and since Satella was stubborn enough for the both of them and allied with the fact that he almost destroyed a TV from shock at seeing people in a glass was enough to convince them that some lessons were better now than latter.

In the next few months he struggled and studied as he had never before, read all of the history books in the Harvenheit library; he trained his body relentlessly in the cellar, Shader had told him how the Order still survived, and he… that priest still lived, he didn't want to believe it but both Shader and Florette assured him that the priest still lived. He had been the ashamed at wild thrill that he felt, his hands itching to rip out that perfect little blond head from its body.

But as much as we wanted to kill that fool he had to face the fact that he had been just a puppet, it was the ones pulling the strings that he wanted to kill… Not to mention the fact that soon enough the Pursuers would be trying to bring back his horns and heart (and only that) to mommy dearest. He did not deny his crimes; he felt guilt for killing his siblings but he didn't regret his freedom or the things he learned while in the Human world, but he still felt the blood in his hands and the guilt like a permanent pain, he couldn't forget, he didn't want to forget, those who died didn't deserved to be forgotten, no matter on which side they were on they had been his brothers once.

In that time he always thought of his little one, she was his main motivation, he had to be strong to protect her and her brother. He had Shader and Satela and Florette, not to mention the money and power of the Harvenheit family helping him, Rosette was a child, and she and her brother had no one to help them, compared to them he was doing great. Rosette was his role model and motivation, he needed to protect her and be brave like she was, otherwise he would never be worthy. After being overwhelmed with her memories and feelings he had grown a brotherly attachment to the little orphan, no matter how tired or emotionally worn out he was every night he checked her mind for any signs of danger or misery, for she deserved to have somebody watching out for her.

When had his feelings for Rosette started to change he didn't know. It started with such small things, he didn't even noticed it until he had been pacing in Shader's lab one morning, much to her great irritation, and what was the motive this time for his pacing.

Flashback

- What is it this time? Is she failing in school? Got into a fight?

-Worse, it's that kid again… Billy, he keeps bothering her, teasing her, acting so stuck up…

-He's a kid; he probably has a crush on her and wants her to notice him.

-Don't you think I know that! He's a punk! Not worth her time, besides she's way too young to date.

-She's sixteen. One day you'll just have to face the fact that she's a big girl and one day she'll want to find a mate.

-Don't even consider that! And even if she was old enough to think about that stuff, she should have better taste than boys like that. She needs someone more mature, someone who understands her, someone…

-Like you? You're acting like a jealous boyfriend; this is not like the human olden days where girls married at fourteen with the first guy that they showed interest or that gave a better dowry to her family. If Rosette wants to date this boy, him being a douchebag or not, if she doesn't like him she'll break up with him.

-She doesn't want to date him. She finds it annoying and not to mention she has better taste then that.

-Then there's nothing to fear. Let nature run its course, and if that's too hard for you… you could always turn human and seduce her yourself…

End Flashback

He had stopped bothering Shader after that sentence, his reaction to it had confused and ashamed him, the fact that that idea had for a second been pleasant, that he actually considered it seriously, and that his body had for a moment thrummed with pleasure at the thought. He felt disgusted with himself at this, he was betraying Magdalene and even more he was betraying Rosette, she might have never known of his existence but he still had watched out for her since she was a child, it made him feel dirty that he was having those sort of feelings towards her now that she was becoming a woman…

And Rosette was going to be such an amazing woman, already so strong and full of life, she was so different from anyone he had ever met, she was like a light calling to him…

It was then that he realized exactly what kind of thoughts towards his young contractor. After he stopped banging his head against the wall, he worked his body till exhaustion and sat in front of Magdalene's portrait for hours, trying to clear his mind. Everyone told him who Magdalene would not want him to hold on to the past but to live, how she would have been happy if he loved again, how she would've liked Rosette, and at first furious he denied their words, but then he realized that to do that would be to deny Magdalene's personality, her very soul. Magdalene would have liked for him to fall in love again, but still with Rosette, the one he was supposed to protect…

He fought his feelings with every fiber of his being, but at night when he fell asleep and his inhibitions weaken he always found is dreams interweaving with hers, to see her back in that place, to know that she never forgot him, he was a permanent part of her life and he had never even talked to her! The pride he felt when he realized that, and the pleasure, the absolute and undeniable pleasure were his downfall, in the dreams he let himself go, holding back nothing he touched her, teased her, tasted her…

He fell deeper and harder and he came to decision, Rosette was his Contractor, he was bound by duty and honor to protect her, they were bound by soul, no human man could offer her as much as he could or had suffered in the search of happiness as much as him, as such no male was more deserving of having her than him.

History would not repeat itself; Rosette will be safe and his.

Once again I'm sorry for my lateness.

Please review.