Chapter 2
The Missing Apprentice
Kanda resisted the urge to twitch as he sensed Lenalee creeping into his room and sitting by his side. Once settled, an oppressive aura filled the room, effectively messing up the Japanese Exorcist's meditation. He swallowed down his irritation and prepared himself for hearing the girl out.
"Leverrier isn't here," he observed calmly. The girl stiffened at the cursed name but did not say anything. "So if it isn't him, what is bothering you?"
Lenalee shifted uncomfortably under the intense gaze of the Japanese man. It was unexpected for her to remain so silent.
"Lenalee," Kanda prompted gently, although he was almost at the end of his very short patience. The girl bit her lip, speaking slowly.
"General Yeager is dead."
Kanda's eyes widened in shock. "A General?"
"Yes. He was killed by what Nii-San thinks is a Noah. In other words, a human ally of the Earl." She shuddered. "They drove him insane, and then carved the words 'God Hunt' onto his chest."
Kanda's face became grim as he deciphered the meaning behind the words and the actions. "The war has finally begun to move. They wouldn't do something like that just to screw with us. The Earl wants to manipulate us in some way."
Lenalee nodded in agreement. "He has begun the race for Innocence," she explained. "And he is targeting the Generals."
Kanda suddenly realized where this conversation was going. And he did not like it. Not one bit.
"All the Exorcists have been dispatched to go after and protect their teachers." It was a statement, not a question. "And I have to go after Theodore."
Lenalee cringed at him.
"Not exactly, Kanda," she said. "There was a problem in locating General Marian Cross—"
"There is no way that I'm going after that womanizing debtor!" Kanda exclaimed with a scowl. The girl's expression became more uneasy.
"That isn't it. Cross contacted us yesterday. His Apprentice went missing two days ago. He said that unless his apprentice is alive and in our hands, he won't come back to the Order." She scratched her neck awkwardly. "So while I try to locate Cross with Bookman and Lavi's help, you are supposed to find and recover his Apprentice."
"Why can't you just force him to come back with you?" Kanda growled, thoroughly displeased by the idea of going after some greenhorn newbie.
"This is Cross we are talking about. He has serious debts that he lets lovers pay for rather than the Black Order (that means no receipts to follow). He is also a user of magic and a master at disguising himself. Our chances at finding him are as great as actually being able to force him to come back with us."
Kanda leaned back against his bed and 'tched'.
"Damn womanizer," he muttered. He reluctantly gave Lenalee his full attention. "So who is this Apprentice and what happened to him?"
The girl shrugged. "Don't know much besides what I observed about him when we met once. His name is Allen Walker, he is a twelve-year-old boy. He has parasitic Innocence in his left arm. He is nice enough. Very polite."
Kanda didn't think there was anything particularly interesting about the boy from what Lenalee had told him. Being Cross's Apprentice made him suspect there was something special about the boy. To actual be traveling with such a legendary figure...Kanda just knew there was a reason behind it, or something that made the boy stand out from all of Cross's other Apprentices. But perhaps not.
"Nii-San is gathering information to put into Walker's portfolio. He can give it to you after you eat dinner," said Lenalee. Kanda acknowledged her with a grunt. The girl got up to leave. She paused halfway out the door and looked back at the Japanese Exorcist. Her face had become solemn. "Please find him Kanda. I had a dream...and he was dead. Please find him. He was too kind to die like that. He at least deserves to be buried properly."
Kanda saw a few tears running down her face as she closed the door behind her and wondered just how horrible the boy's death had been in her dream.
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Kanda sighed, finally opening his dossier after hours of trying to destroy Komui's Komurin bot. Despite it being a mission way beneath his area of expertise, he was eager to begin. ANYTHING to get away from the Order.
He skimmed through the papers quickly, coming across the last sighting of Allen Walker.
"Ah Hell," Kanda muttered when he finished the summary. His mission suddenly seemed like an impossible task.
No one had mentioned the fact that the boy had been personally targeted by the Noah, and supposedly executed. He was just chasing after a ghost.
That knowledge filled Kanda with anger and bitterness. He had just read all about the boy's life, and now it all seemed like there had been no point in even doing that.
Allen Walker was an orphan abandoned because of his arm, a part of a circus at one point, adopted by a clown at another. When his foster father had died the boy made a foolish deal with the Earl, turning Mana Walker into an Akuma and being cursed with an eye able to identify Akuma by seeing their souls. After killing his father the boy was then thrown into a life of gambling and debts by Marian Cross. Allen Walker had a pitiful history. What was even worse was that after the Noah had destroyed the Innocence, they had killed him and took his body.
Kanda frowned. That didn't sound right. Or rather, something about the 'facts' did not add up.
Walker would have been a threat to the Earl because of his curse and the Innocence. The moment that Walker killed his father, he should have died by the Earl's hands. But he was left alive then.
So why wait a few years to kill him? Why not do it as quickly as possible?
Kanda worked through the problem. The Noah had destroyed the Innocence, killed the boy in a similar fashion to Yeager (supposedly), and taken his body.
Wait, taken the body?
Kanda's eyes widened in horror as realized why Cross wanted his Apprentice found.
The Japanese Exorcist jolted off of his bed, running towards Komui's office at record speed. He ignored the panicked faces of Finders and scientists as he rushed by. He had to tell Komui what he had discovered, because not only did a life hang in the balance, but the possibility of a leakage.
Kanda burst into Komui's office, glad that for once that the sister-complex was not asleep. In fact the Chinese man looked startled at seeing one of his Exorcists enter without warning.
"Kanda...?" Komui asked.
"Allen Walker is alive," he blurted out. When the Branch Head did nothing but stare, Kanda repeated himself. "Allen Walker is alive. And the reason why he is the only one who can find Cross is because he has the General's golemn."
Komui's face grew solemn. "Kanda, how did you come across this information?"
The fourteen-year-old quickly explained his thinking. "For whatever reason, the Earl has never killed Walker, despite all the chances he has had. So why would he take the opportunity now, as well as keep the boy's body? There is nothing special about an Exorcist's body.
"The Earl has him alive somewhere, and he is planning on using the boy. Walker is no use to him dead."
"And the golemn?" Komui asked.
"I think it snuck into Walker's clothes in order to keep an eye on him. Either way, they both have the potential to leak vital information about us. That golemn more so than Walker."
The Chinese man was silent for a while, accepting the likelihood of the twelve-year-old Exorcist being alive. Well, the boy was technically a civilian now.
"Can you imagine what kind of Hell he must be going through?" Komui asked. The room was full of silence, both horrified by the idea (not that Kanda would ever admit it). "Thank you for the insight, Kanda. We at least have more reason to believe he is alive."
" But you can't fully confirm it," Kanda finished. The Branch Chief nodded.
"Exactly. How do you know that the golemn is with Walker?" Komui asked curiously. The Japanese Exorcist blinked.
"General Cross said in his letter that Timcampy had been out with his Apprentice as a chaperone. When he saw Allen being carried off, he mentioned that 'Tim' was nowhere to be seen." Kanda stared at the Chinese an, wondering how he couldn't remember that. "General Cross even mentioned that he was sure that his golemn had gone with Walker."
Komui suddenly seemed to recall that particular piece of information. "He sure did! Good work Kanda!"
"It's not like I'm stupid," the Exorcist muttered darkly. But inside he had a bit more hope that he could successfully complete his mission.
Hey everyone! I just wanted to thank everyone for following my story. I really appreciate it and I am glad that you're enjoying this story!