Welcome back! Hope you enjoy! Oh, and please read the note at the bottom; it'll explain some things.

Disclaimer: DGray-man isn't mine. It's Katsura Hoshino's. But I own Akicho! ... Not much of an accomplishment, huh?

Reckoning
Chapter 4
mourning sunset

-YU KANDA-

At dawn, Marie and Kanda found Daisya's golem. He was crucified upside-down, bound by his feet. At the bottom of the lamppost was the Akuma-Exorcist, Akicho. At first, Kanda swore to himself she killed him. She looked as if she was asleep, but an oversized cut on the side of her head said otherwise. She'd been attacked, too? The Finders began to surround the bodies of both Exorcists, one dead, one alive.

Kanda and Marie decided to go after the remaining Akuma, leaving Daisya and Akicho in the care of the Finders. Little did they know who they would find.

The Akuma were surrounding General Tiedoll. They were coming from all sides, but when the two Exorcists arrived, all of them were gone. The General was standing there, drawing. When Kanda called for him, the man was calm. "Ah, Kanda! It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

"Master, we have grave news," Marie said lowly. "You may want to sit down for this."

As soon as Daisya was mentioned as "dead," the General lost all self-control and began to sob for his student. "He was such a good kid, even though he used to break my glasses with his Charity Bell."

Kanda piped up, "His body is being shipped to the Order. We're supposed to accompany him, and we'd be honored if you'd join us." Tiedoll didn't reply; simply asked for confirmation about Daisya's hometown.

A shadow stood behind them. "Sorry I'm late. We lost a lot more people than I originally thought." Kanda and Marie turned to see Akicho. "We lost almost a hundred of our people, not including Daisya. All of them are being shipped to headquarters later today." Noticing the sobbing old man who was burning a picture of Bodrum, she asked, "This is General Tiedoll," she said in surprise.

"Yes," said man replied. "I'm honored that you'd ask me to accompany you and Daisya to the Order, but I'm a General. We are at war, and we cannot afford for me to step off the battlefield. If God hasn't forsaken us, we should be on the lookout to discover and train new Exorcists." Both Kanda and Marie sighed resignedly. They knew he would say something like that. Akicho, however, was somewhat shocked at his reply.

She looked up at him. "I don't understand, sir. There are other Generals, and the Akuma are going after the Heart. Because you're a General, they suspect you of having it. You're in terrible danger, sir!"

General Tiedoll looked at her in surprise. "How do you know about the Heart? No one outside of the Order knows about it." She looked down. "You are not human, I suppose?" She shook her head to affirm his guess. "Well, it seems that you have more than a few things burdening you. Why don't you talk about it?"

She glanced at the other two Exorcists nervously, but nodded. "I guess I've been hiding my life for too long. Kanda has heard parts of my past, but I didn't tell all of it. If you want to hear my past… you should know that it's not very pleasant."

After getting a nod to go on from Tiedoll, she took a deep breath. "Kanda, you know that when I was ten, I woke up with no memory of who I was. I was lying on a wide beach. No one was there but me. I wandered around for so long that I lost track of time. But after a while, a man appeared to me. I think you know who he is. He said that my name was Akicho, and that I was part of his family." She shook in her trauma and continued, "The Earl took care of me. I was introduced to the Noah Family. They became my reason to live. All of them were so kind to me, but I guess it was all just an act. Once I was healed and trained, the Earl sent me out on an important mission to kill a group of Exorcists and take the Innocence they were after as well as their own. I failed. I lost over half my regiment of Akuma and the Exorcists got the Innocence they were after." The tremors in her body continued to get worse as her memories flashed in her eyes. "He hit me for the first time. It wasn't even a hit, but more like he was trying to kill me. I continued to get weaker and weaker as I failed more missions. If it wasn't for the Noah, I wouldn't be here right now."

Tiedoll glanced at the shaking girl. "You have nothing to hide. I understand why you wanted to kill people now. You had no choice in the matter if you wanted to survive. I won't blame you for this, as long as you decide that you are on our side."

She stood up shakily. "I'm going to try and get this blood off my uniform. Please excuse me." Walking away, she stumbled a few times.

Kanda crossed his arms. "She's hiding something from us. That isn't at all everything that she knows." Tiedoll nodded in agreement.

"We're not going to let her know that now. Let's wait a few days."

For Kanda, the days passed by fast. No real Akuma battles, just Tiedoll being very patient with the Akuma-Exorcist as she tried to activate her Innocence. She wasn't able to activate it. All she knew was that she was a Parasite-type Innocence and that the anesthetic was supposed to have worn off. But knowing Komui, it lasted longer than that.

On the third day of trying, she was about ready to give up. "Face it, General. I'm not going to be able to activate it!" she cried out in frustration. She shrugged off Marie's hand. "I'm useless…"

Tiedoll laughed. "Just keep trying, Akicho."

Kanda looked up sharply, as did Marie. "Akuma are coming from the west," the blind Exorcist informed his comrades.

"Innocence, activate!" The General, Kanda, and Marie all activated their Anti-Akuma weapons, Akicho hiding behind a large tree.

The Akuma charged forward, cutting the Exorcists off from each other. Kanda found himself battling alone, Akuma surrounding him from all directions. He growled as he tried to slice all of them. Those damn things just kept coming, surrounding him from all sides.

-AKICHO LAMURIA-

I couldn't stand it. I could hear Kanda's growls and Marie's grunts. General Tiedoll's shouts were heard over the Akuma explosions. I shook in fear. I really was useless. Kanda was fighting all by himself. I couldn't stand being all alone with no weapon to fight the Akuma with.

Allen told me that he could see the souls of the Akuma. He told me that they were crying, weeping for the ones they loved. They were sad, tormented. I wondered if my soul felt that way. Allen wouldn't tell me. But if what he said was true, then all of those Akuma that Kanda, Marie, and General Tiedoll were battling were crying for their loved ones. I wanted to help them. Both the Exorcists and the Akuma.

Innocence… activate.

-YU KANDA-

Those Akuma were like cockroaches. They either wouldn't die or they just wouldn't go away. It seemed like there were more than there were in Barcelona. Kanda growled again, raising Mugen in a defensive position.

Boom.

One of the Akuma exploded, leaving it in smoke. A single figure stood in the smoke, one arm raised. A group of fireballs lashed out of the smoke, hitting several Akuma and destroying them. "If I were you, I'd stay away from my teammates," a feminine voice spat dangerously. "May your souls find their place in Heaven," Akicho said, raising her arm again.

Several more fireballs shot out of her hand, destroying all the level ones around Kanda. Her hand closed, and a spear of ice formed in her hand. She lunged at the last Akuma, a level two, as Kanda rushed to help Marie. A loud boom rang through the air as Akicho stood up, the ice in her hand melting.

-AKICHO LAMURIA-

The Innocence was telling my brain what it could do and how to do it. I could use types of magic involving fire and ice. My blood, which Akuma, like me, gained after killing, fueled the magic that I could use. That was how it worked. I panted a little; using the Innocence was more strenuous on my body than I though.

Tiedoll was standing over me. "I knew you could do it, Akicho. Nice job, too."

That praise was all I needed. I continued to fight the Akuma as the gathered in smaller numbers as we continued on our way to the next town.

-ALLEN WALKER-

Lenalee and Allen were sitting on the stairs in the middle of the Barcelona, grieving for the lost Finders they had found in the once-beautiful city. The Akuma had struck, killing dozens of members. The two teenage Exorcists weren't in time to fight in the Barcelona fight, and their friend, the Finder, Devon, from Germany, died in Barcelona.

"Hello you two." It was General Tiedoll, with Akicho, Kanda, and another Exorcist that Allen didn't know. He rushed down to hug Akicho.

He pulled away and asked, "Are you alright?" She nodded. "You're not hurt, are you?" he demanded, looking her up and down.

Akicho laughed. "Allen, I'm fine. But…" she broke off, gazing around, "I'm afraid I can't say the same for one hundred and forty-eight members of the Black Order. Six Exorcists were killed, according to Komui, and one hundred and forty-two Finders died, too."

General Tiedoll nodded. "That means that four of the Generals have been attacked. My unit lost Daisya, Socalo lost Reed and Lavon while Suman Dark is missing, and Klaud's unit was obliterated completely. I guess you can figure out who the Akuma are going after next."

Nodding, Allen confirmed, "My master." Tiedoll nodded in confirmation, and then gave them a helpful hint about Timcanpy. Tim had a tracking device for Cross. It pointed them east, and allowed them to go on their way to find General Cross Marian.

-AKICHO LAMURIA-

Tiedoll and Marie were conversing, leaving me to walk with Kanda.

He kept glancing at me, then looking back at the other two in front of us. "So," he began, "you're an Akuma."

I giggled inwardly, knowing he'd probably decapitate me if I laughed. "And you're human," I pointed out. "Want to swap?" I suggested slyly, looking up at him.

"No."

Well, that was blunt. "You know, being an Akuma isn't so bad sometimes." He looked at me skeptically. "I mean, I know now that I have nothing to lose if I die. That way, I can devote my whole being to this cause, and only this cause."

Kanda scoffed. "You're pathetic. Losing everything isn't a good thing. Dying isn't a good thing. You've already won over the bean sprout and Komui. If you died, you'd hurt both of them."

I looked up at his face. His eyes were hard and his mouth was set in a straight, firm line. "I understand, but, and I know that I should live for the people that I care about and who care about me, but I just can't help it." I sighed and looked back in front of me. "You wouldn't understand. You know about your childhood, what happened to you since you were born. All I know is that when I was little, I died."

Stopping in his tracks, Kanda lowered his head, his bangs covering his eyes. "You have no idea who I am. You don't know anything." I looked at him again. His face was contorted, as if in pain. What happened in his past that could have made him like this? "Let's keep going. We slow down, we're getting left behind." I stared at his back as he kept walking.

I wondered how long this journey would take us. "General Tiedoll… do you think we're going to find new Exorcists in empty towns?" I asked skeptically, looking around the deserted village we were stopping in.

He shrugged. "Who knows? Perhaps there are some survivors. If there are, we're going to try and get a ride. We're going to be taking the long way around to help Allen and Lenalee to find General Cross."

So that's what he's really doing… I thought to myself, laughing sheepishly.

General Tiedoll looked up into the sky and pointed to the east. "We're going to be going down and across the sea. To China," he continued. "And after that, perhaps we'll have to go even further, to Japan."

I'd never been to Japan before. The Village of Skulls was somewhere in northern England. But my family was originally Japanese. Kanda seemed to be Japanese, and I noticed that he froze when Tiedoll mentioned us going to Asia. Was being in Asia part of his past? It seemed to trigger some sorts of bad memories for him.

Looking at him, I asked, "Is something the matter, Kanda?" He looked towards me and scoffed. "Don't scoff. I just want to help you, if I can. I won't try and say that I understand, because I probably won't. But I want to know why your eyes are full of sorrow and torture."

He looked away and down. "I'm going to tell you one last time; you just wouldn't understand. I'm not going to tell you until you know a little more about me."

I smiled softly. "Then I'll wait. I'll wait until you're able to trust me."

-ALLEN WALKER-

He and Lenalee met Lavi and Krory along the way to Asia. They only confirmed what Akicho had said; one hundred and forty-eight people had died, not just in Spain, but in other battles, too. Then the bodies were all burned in a cremation ceremony. The shock of the loss put Lenalee into a deep depression as she sobbed for a long time. She kept staring at her hands, still sad.

As they went to the Rose Festival, Allen looked up at the sky. Akicho… with so many already dead, I want you to stay safe. Then again, you're with Kanda and a General. You'll be careful, won't you?

-AKICHO LAMURIA-

More Akuma were coming towards us. I learned the name of my Innocence; Reckoning. General Tiedoll helped me to name it. Fire and Ice were my current abilities, but the General also said that Reckoning would evolve over time and allow me to use more abilities.

My training had paid off well. I landed on the ground as my ice-sword melted away to water. The last of the Akuma screeched and exploded as Kanda sliced through it with Mugen. Marie's Innocence, Noel Organon, and General Tiedoll's Innocence, Maker of Eden, were being put away by their accommodators. I breathed in slowly and sighed. That was another battle over and done with. Kanda sheathed Mugen and looked to the east again. We were on the border to Asia, going into China. General Tiedoll had six pieces of Innocence, seven if you count the Maker of Eden, and ten if you include Kanda's, Marie's, and mine. That just made him an even bigger target for the Akuma and the Noah.

"I'll see you later…"

Tyki's words rang in my ears and I shook my head violently. Kanda looked over to me. "I'm okay," I replied to his look. "I'm just a little distracted today." Tiedoll looked over in worry. "I'm thinking about how it'll be to see where my family came from. I'm Japanese, and my parents and sister were, too."

Tiedoll nodded. "I understand."

After sparing him a small smile, I looked up into the sky. There would have to be at least one Noah going after Allen's group, and at least one going after us. I didn't want to have to fight one of them. Despite everything… they were my family.

The one thing I would never do is betray my family.

A/N:

Laytha, you mentioned something about the "Innocence Wave" being... nonexistant. Well, in order for the last bit of plot to work, I need to put that in. I'm sorry if it confused you, but no worries; I finished my elaborate plan for this amazing (not) story! The last bit of plot goes AU, so that might confuse you, too... But oh well!

And don't worry; Akicho/Allen is minor. It's a brother/sister pairing. But yeah... so yeah, reviews?