Hana: You just love reeling in trouble wherever you go, don't ya Allen?
Allen: No I don't. -huffs- It just...happens...
Wisely: You attract it. If it isn't obvious for all of you yet, XavierForest and Hanashi o suru do not own D. Gray-man.
Hana: -shrugs- We wouldn't be here if we actually did, y'know? Enjoy the chapter!
... ... ... ..
+ - Chapter 27 - +
Kanda sighed to himself as he took a look at photo after photo of Allen's arm and shoulder, as well as other snapshots of the crime scene itself where his young fiancé was attacked.
Allen had been right. There wasn't much evidence, and it was only making his job more difficult than it already was. Placing the papers down, Kanda picked up his phone, and answered upon its third ring. "What?"
On the other end, there was silence.
"Speak now or I'll fucking hang up."
There was then a scuffling noise coming from the other end, and he could just hear someone to tell the caller to give them the phone. "Kanda?"
"Two spot?"
"I would appreciate it if you didn't call me such." Link muttered. "I'm sorry about that. Kiredori doesn't speak to strangers as much."
"Who?"
"I was debriefing the newest CROW when my phone went missing." Kanda could almost imagine the German man glaring over at whoever this Kiredori character was.
"Che. Take better care of your things, baka."
The German sighed. "It's difficult when the person doing the stealing has the same level of training as you."
Kanda was silent, feeling as though a spear with 'Moyashi did that to me' was thrown right through him. Suddenly, he had an urge to punish said male...it was just a shame the brat was still in the hospital since the other day. Idiot tried moving when he wasn't ready, and reopened his stitches.
"Kanda?"
"Keep your shit away from pick pockets." Was all Kanda said before he hung up.
Fuck... The brat was gonna get it when he was released from hospital.
. . - * - . .
"Bored."
"Can't do much about it, now can I?" Wisely grumbled. "It's your own fault you nearly gave every doctor and nurse in the facility a heart attack."
"I was fine!" Allen complained. "I just…misjudged stuff…"
"So it seems." The other male sighed.
"Urg... When can I leave?"
Wisely pinched the bridge of his nose, eyes closed. "I. Don't. Know."
"Hey, Wisely..."
"No."
"Why not?"
"You're a cheater, and I'll just read your mind...making me a cheater by default."
"I bet I could still win." Allen stated with confidence. "I never lose at cards."
Quirking a brow, the bandana-wearing male eyed the younger, "You sound so sure of yourself, Walker."
"Because I am, Kamelot."
"Then your challenge has been accepted."
Pulling out a deck of cards, Allen cackled. "Let's begin, shall we~?"
(* - *)
"Call~!" Allen grinned, splaying out his latest win. Wisely blinked. Once. Twice. Before throwing his cards in the air in frustration.
"DAMMIT HOW THE HELL?!"
"That was almost too easy~"
"One more match, Walker!"
"Sure, I don't mind. But be sure to clean your underwear before you hand them over." The younger was shuffling the cards, his shark-like grin never leaving his face. They had gone through eight matches already, and Allen only lost three times. Hence his shirt, gloves and socks were lost. Allen wouldn't lie, it was harder to play against Wisely...however it was a small price to pay to create a new strategy that was officially fool proof against Wisely's ability. Which was why right this moment the other white haired male was wearing nothing more than his boxers.
It also helped that cheating in poker came as second nature, so, most of the time, he didn't even have to consciously think about it.
"I'll win this match!"
Allen's grin only grew wider and more sadistic. "Oh? Keep telling yourself that; it makes beating you all the more entertaining."
I should've fucking known! That little maniacal piece of — No Wisely, calm down. Getting pissed off isn't gonna do anything.
"Mr. Walker? I'm here to check up on your condition." A nurse called from the door.
"Ah, give me a moment, please." Allen called out, all source of his 'black self' vanishing in an instant. This always puzzled Wisely. How does he switch so quickly? Sighing to himself, he quickly redressed himself, just as the nurse entered, ready to check on the patient's arm and shoulder.
Still, he was lucky that the nurse came in when she did, otherwise he might've been stripped bare of all his clothes and belonging he kept on his person.
Allen grinned evilly when the nurse wasn't looking. Wisely shuddered.
I will never again play him at cards...
After reading the other ex-NOAH's expressions and catching on to the distress present there, Allen winked.
He most certainly would not after this experience.
"I've got good news, Mr. Walker." The nurse said, smiling at the young man, "Seems you'll be out of here sooner than we thought."
"Really? YES~!"
The woman nearly cooed at the look of pure joy on Allen's face.
Nearby, Wisely only scowled. Everyone's wrapped around his little finger...
No sooner did she leave, Allen looked like the cat which got the cream. "Wipe that smug look off your face, Walker." Wisely growled.
"I don't know what you're talking about~"
"You're just enjoying the torment of the guy that attempted to try and keep your sanity."
Allen merely shrugged. "I recall you giving me assignments...when have you tried keeping my 'sanity' in check?"
"Believe it or not." Wisely immediately started, "If not for me, your assignments would've been far worse than—GET DOWN!"
Everything happened before Allen could realize what was going on. He was shoved down just as something whizzed past where his head had been. Silver eyes stared up at very alert golden orbs. "Guess I'm discharged a little early?"
"I'd say you are." Wisely hissed. "How the hell do you attract so much freaking trouble?'
Allen could only shrug. "Same way I attracted Kanda, I think..."
"Well you need to stop. Now."
The younger gave Wisely a shaky smile. "I don't know if it's something I can just turn off..."
The elder glowered, before sighing in defeat. "Alright then. Stay down, I'm going to look around..."
"D'ya think it's the same guy that tried killing me at the store?"
"Somehow...I doubt it...he wouldn't have known where exactly you were."
"And considering he does..."
"How about a stealth mission? Up for it?"
"For once in my unlucky life, yes. Yes I am."
Wisely nodded his head in the direction of the door. Let's go. And be careful. You still haven't completely recovered yet."
"Yessir," the younger mumbled.
"Wait...wait...now!" With years of practiced ease, the duo managed to sneak out.
Looking around, Allen couldn't help but notice one crucial detail. "Wisely..."
"I noticed too...I don't like this." There were normally doctors and nurses sporadically walking these halls, and yet...everything was far too quiet. "Stay alert, Walker."
"Don't have to tell me twice..." Allen informed the other. "Let's try and not get you in trouble with Kanda."
Wisely paled. "If anything happens to you, I'm a dead man..." He shot the younger a pleading glance. "Please don't get hurt."
"I can't make promises."
"Figures." the ex-NOAH sighed in defeat. "Then be careful."
Allen mock saluted, "Aye-aye sir." He looked around quickly, eying his surroundings with a critical eye, "It's clear here...but I think it'd be wise to use the stairs...going up."
"Why?"
"My gut says so."
Wisely contemplated this, then nodded once, deciding to trust the boy's intuition. After all, he didn't have as much experience in the field as Allen did.
"We should first take the lift up to the top floor, and then from there we can use the stairs...I doubt they'd expect that."
"Fair enough." Wisely said. For some reason, Wisely felt as though things weren't going to be as easy as they'd hope.
(* - *)
How right he was. "Any more ideas, Walker?"
"We wait."
"Like sitting ducks?"
The shooting stopped, and Allen sighed, "What other choice do we have? I don't think this person has much experience...at all. They seem to have learned about gun use from TV and movies." He growled in annoyance. "This is the only time I wish I had a gun right now...this guy is a nuisance."
The shooting picked up again.
"So they believe that if they shoot enough, the wall will give in, and they'll be able to hit us."
"I know right? It's almost cute they think these bullets are powerful enough for such a thing." Allen leaned against the brick wall he and Wisely were ducking behind. Granted the term 'wall' was rather loose. It was literally a forgotten stack of bricks no one bothered to remove. It worked in their favor though. They had cover, and the guy was wasting ammo.
"We can't wait here forever," Wisely said, leaning against the wall just as the other Brit was doing. "Shouldn't we call someone?"
"Dead battery." Allen grumbled. "No one bothered to give me a charger...don't you have your phone on you?"
"No...I left it in your room..."
"Then there you go." The firing stopped, after a long while of silence, Allen nodded over to Wisely. "When I say go, we run for the stairs."
Wisely groaned. "More running?"
He almost missed his days with NOAH when all he had to do was stay sitting in front of a computer nearly 24/7. Almost.
"Yes more running." Allen said. "Welcome to the real world. It involves," He mocked gasped, "MOVING AROUND." He grabbed the ex-NOAH, and ran for the door that lead to a set of stairs that would lead to the other side of the building. By the time they made it to the door, the firing started up once more, but none were able to even scratch them, as they managed to get through the door, and out of range.
"My gods..." Wisely breathed, "Never, ever again with you."
"None of us where hit, so quit whining."
"But running..." The elder gestured back the way they'd come. "And bullets... Are you crazy?!"
"Don't be such a wimp," Allen remarked, scanning his immediate surroundings while the other semi-panicked. "And on record...in most cases, what did you expect to send me to, a theme park?"
"Ah. Touché."
Allen fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Exactly. Now be quiet so I can listen."
Sighing to himself, Wisely did as instructed, keeping an ear out for thoughts. "I don't hear anyone."
"Neither do I..." Allen muttered, "Not even shuffling of feet beyond this door..."
"I suppose we should get moving."
. . - * - . .
"WHAT?!" Miranda covered her ears when Kanda all but exploded. "What do you mean there's been a fucking shooting at the hospital?"
Shooting at a hospital? What was the world coming to? The German woman thought.
"WHY THE FUCK DIDN'T YOU CALL EARLIER?!"
Whoever was on the other end of that call, Miranda really pitied them.
"Che. Worthless little..." Kanda growled under his breath. "Lotto, call Link. Tell him to meet at the hospital in fifteen minutes, got it?"
"Ah! Yessir!" She fumbled for her phone, visibly cringing when she felt the Japanese man's glare redirect to her. "Inspector?" Miranda asked, "Yes, Miranda L-Lotto...K-Kanda wi-wishes y-you to m-m-meet him a-at the hospital...um...y-yes, th-that'd be the one...um...hello? I-Inspector? H-hello?"
The door slammed, and Miranda really did drop her phone. Confused, she looked around seeing she was alone in Kanda's office. She let herself sigh in relief. I really should get more vacation days after this...
. . - * - . .
Allen's breath was heavy as he leaned against the back of the desk. He was on the third floor, whilst Wisely had managed to — or so he hoped he should say — get to the floor below. It was confirmed they weren't after the ex-NOAH that got past them, so the question remained. Why did they want his head?
"Heh...there's only one way to find out." With his plan in mind, all he had to was disarm the men, and make sure they were all apprehended. How lucky was he there were linens to tie up the sons of bitches? Very, in all actuality. It was also apparent there was another party somewhere who ceased the camera feed, and cut off the alarms.
That's what brought him to his current predicament. He'd told Wisely about all this, and told him to take the control room. A task the Intelligence ex-NOAH was more than happy to oblige for.
"Wait for it..." Allen whispered, grasping hold of the make-shift linen rope. Just a little more..."Now!"
(* - *)
He stood looking up at the hospital. Face expressionless, but his eyes were full of displeasure. How unfortunate. He very much wanted to be the one to play with that kid. Make him beg for mercy, for his life. At the same time he knew, this was necessary.
Kill him.
Not yet.
Take away what matters to that ungrateful brat.
Soon.
KiLl HiM...bEfOrE tHe ChAnCe Is GoNe.
In the blink of an eye, the figure is gone. A siren can be heard coming closer.
(* - *)
Wisely sighed in boredom. He didn't kill the guy in the corner, Allen made it clear he was forbidden to do so. Not that it mattered much. The guy was already dying on his own. Rather foolish of him. He thought by taking his own life, he'd take the secret of his hacking with him.
Again, how foolish. Wisely was top-notch, putting the FBI's, CIA's, and whatever else to shame. Hell, this wasn't even child's play in comparison. "This is rather shoddy work. Not even an 'A' for effort...maybe an 'F-'. But that's being generous." Wisely said. "Now...let's fix up this horrid thing. Let's start with the hostages. Where, oh where can they be?"
The man coughed, "S-son o-f a bi-tch!"
"Oh? You can still speak, can you?"
"W-Wisely...Ka-Kamelot..." Fingers stopped, now only hovering over the keys. "H-heh...t-to think you're w-working for sc-scum o-of the ea-rth..."
The white-haired man chuckled dryly, before he returned once to the task at hand. "Seeing as you know who I am, you probably know who I used to be, so I'll let you in on something: NOAH was scum of the earth, and deserved nothing more than what they were given. As do you, my disgusting little coward."
"You'll... p-ay for th-is..."
"Lovely. And cliché, too, might I add." His face set stonily, he spared the dying man a glance, and scoffed at what he saw. "Now do the world a favour and shut up and die quietly."
"Y-you..."
"What did I just say?" Wisely glared at the man on the floor. "Some people actually have to work. Close your damn mouth already."
"H-Heh...thy h-holy father w-will br-bring fo-rth the ha-hammer of Go-d...h-is wrath...when I d-ie...a-at least it w-ill be...not in vain." The nameless man laughed, before coughing up blood. "I-I am...sa-ved...I w-will be...by his...s-side..."
Wisely glowered at the now lifeless man. "Took you too long to croak. Can't even do that right." Really, what was with these people? And suddenly spewing out all this religious nonsense? 'holy father'? 'Hammer of god'? 'His wrath'? "Apocryphos seems to think quite highly of himself."
And he'd brain-washed someone else into believing that crap. Great.
The British male stopped in his actions once again when that thought crossed his mind. The people Apocryphos killed...were they struggling at all when they were tortured to death? Or did they vary?
He'd have to worry about that later. There was still...oh? "What in the bloody hell is he doing here?"
On screen was one Yu Kanda, looking around, gun in hand. Link came on soon after. Neither he nor Allen called the station...golden eyes widened, as he quickly checked other surveillance feeds. When he found what he was looking for, his heart nearly stopped. "SHITE!" He ran out of the room like a bat out of hell.
(* - *)
Allen was almost disappointed. Almost. "Who are you, and why do you want me dead?" One of the men spit at his feet, but Allen wasn't in the mood for such tomfoolery. He started putting his weight on the man's leg, to the breaking point. "I don't take kind to stubborn bastards."
"Y-You little shit!" The man screeched through the pain. "Like...LIKE HELL I'LL TELL YOU ANYTHING!"
"Oh? A little shit, am I?" Allen sneered. "I bet you don't—"
"Allen Walker, isn't that right?" Silver eyes snapped over to the man on the right. "Our holy father wants you."
"He believes there's some kind of promise of salvation from your own damnation." The man on the left continued.
"But the Bloodied Angel doesn't think so." Right.
"The two of you speak too much!" The center man growled through clenched teeth.
Allen pressed just a little harder against the man's leg. "No, please. Enlighten me."
"You're going to hell!" One of the men proclaimed; Allen didn't really care which one it was by this point.
"So I gathered." Allen said in a bored tone. "Who is this 'holy father' you speak of? And this so-called 'bloody angel'?"
"You'll find out in time, I'm sure." The center one said, a malicious grin forming on his face. The other two followed suit. "If you survive...Crowned Clown." Allen cursed when he realized the man had a detonator in his hand. Wasting no time, he ran off, the men were cackling until the bombs they concealed started to explode.
. . - * - . .
"What the fuck was that?" Kanda asked, a feeling of dread at the sounds of explosions from within.
"Kanda!" Wisely's voice carried over, as he ran over to the duo. "What are you two doing here?"
"We got a call of some shit going down...you didn't make that call?"
"Neither me nor Allen were able to." Wisely explained. "His phone was dead, and in our haste to get the hell out of there, I left mine in the room."
"Link, send them out."
"Who are you-" Eyes widened when heard distant thoughts...but they were nearby if he could hear them...
"Madarao, can you hear me?" Link asked, placing his hand against his ear. "Find Allen Walker, get him here. Have Tewaku scour the vicinity for more men, or any hostages. Have Kiredori go with her."
"Those voices..." Wisely was still trying to pinpoint where he was hearing them for. "But weren't they...?"
"They're CROW." Kanda explained. "A division under two-spot, that works under my jurisdiction."
"They were AKUMA." Wisely stated.
"More like undercover as AKUMA." Link informed the ex-NOAH. "I suppose not even you were aware of their alliance."
Wisely nodded thoughtfully. "If they were working with you the whole time, they must be skilled to not have gotten anywhere close to being on my radar."
Link shrugged. "I've known them for a while." Something seemed to have clicked to the German-born male, "By the way, you remember that guy you wanted dirt on from the orphanage?"
"What about him?"
"His records are clean."
"WHAT."
"Ah, I remember that face." Wisely mused. "Rather unsightly fellow. He worked under Skinn Bolic, if I recall correctly."
"Oh?" Kanda's interest was piqued.
"I'll get the dirt on him, and...oh? There are two children you're wanting adopt?" That was actually a surprise to the ex-NOAH.
"Get the fuck out of my head." Kanda growled. "Yes. There are two kids Moyashi and I want to adopt. Timothy Hearst, and Lala."
"I take it I can focus more on the Apocryphos case now?" Link asked.
"Yeah."
"Ah! Right! Apocryphos!" The outburst from Wisely was unexpected.
Both men turned to face the mind-reader with confusion. "What about him?" Both German and Japanese asked.
. . - * - . .
Allen coughed, wincing when his chest hurt. "D-dammit..."
"It's you." Silver eyes widened. He looked up seeing the very girl he saw at the store just a few days prior.
"K-Kiredori?"
"Yes."
"Why are you-" He was interrupted with heavier coughing. Damn, the fumes were really getting to him.
"Let's go. It's not safe for you here." She really didn't need to point that out. "Tewaku already got the surviving hostages."
Who now? Allen coughed again, before his world became black.
(* - *)
"Kiredori, I've gotten the hostages out. Did you find Allen Walker?" Tewaku asked, as she carefully gave the mother her child. She was thanked profusely for saving the crying infant.
"I have. I'm bringing him to base now." Kiredori's voice sounded. "He's passed out from the fumes."
"Give him a mask. Neither Link nor Kanda will be happy if he's not breathing."
"Will do."
The blonde paused, looking over the people around her. "And make sure to check him over for injuries."
"Alright."
Tewaku looked around, before sighing. "This is rather unsettling for some reason. Do you think so too, Kire?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Have you heard from my brother?"
"No. I haven't heard from him or anyone else yet."
Tewaku hummed. "I'm sure they're taking care of loose ends then."
"Knowing them, they're doing exactly that," the other said.
... ... ... ...
This was a fun chapter...we got to Wisely doing his thing, and even get a little more insight with what the whole scheme of things is about~ I can't wait to show you guys more!
Now then! R&R ain't for Rest & Relaxation, but I'm pretty sure I need it. Don't forget to show the story some love, and favorite this work! Leave a review and let us know how we're doing, and hey, while you're at it, go check out my Co-Author's works too! You won't be sorry :D Following this story will also help you guys stay up to date faster on brand new chapters...IT'S FREE!
We'll see you guys next week on Fade to Gray!