Disclaimer: Just a friendly reminder that I own neither nor The Kierra Series. This is just my fusion of them both. The plot changes with the introduction of new characters, so if you're a fan of the Kierra Series don't be alarmed by the new directions.

This is an update, not a new chapter!

My name is Allen Walker.

I'm 21 years old and under the employment of the Vatican Police Department as a police constable.

I have been an official police officer for all of 18 months. On completion of my initial training I was posted in a small town called Noah's Innocence.

I had heard rumors that the post was a difficult one to fill, but I would take any excuse to get away from my instructor at headquarters. Plus they did make me an attractive offer, free accommodation and the allowance of £50,000 a year.

When I told my fellow recruits that I had accepted the offer, some laughed nervously, stating that the force paid the wage annually as no one had stayed long enough to collect it.

My shift pattern was scheduled as a constant series of night shifts that started every night at 7 and ended at 7 the following morning. Looking back now, I can understand the raised eyebrows of my classmates, but at the time I didn't want to refuse the post.

I thought if I did, I would be viewed as inflexible buy my superiors and I had aspirations way beyond the rank of constable.

Like me, most other recruits were young, and knowing that the town Noah's Innocence was pretty remote, I suspected they were more concerned about their social lives than their future careers.

After packing a suitcase, which consisted mainly of my smart new uniform and a deck of cards, I set off in my old burgundy VWVortex and headed from the dorm to the desolate town of Noah's Innocence.

I remember the day clearly as I made my way by a series of deserted country lanes headed towards the town. A few miles out, the sky clouded over and it started to rain.

The day almost seemed to turn to night, as the rain lashed out against my windshield faster than my wipers could keep up.

With my headlights on full blasts, I carefully navigated my way to the town. Several times I had to pull over, off the narrow roads, and park up by the entrance to some field to check the map I'd been given by Master Cross at the training academy.

I knew the town was remote, but it wasn't until I had tried to reach it that I noticed how isolated from the rest of the world it really was.

It seemed to me that Noah's Innocence didn't want to be found. Realizing I was just spooking myself, I shook off any regrets I might be having, and carried on through the rain and gloom.

In an attempt to lighten my spirits, I turned on my car radio, hoping to find something I could sing along to. I settled for Trumpets by Jason Derulo.

The road seemed to get narrower as I headed towards the town, which spread out in front of me like a horseshoe.

Wiping the mist from my windshield with the back of my hand, I could see the sea and it looked black and angry as it crashed along the cliffs.

As I near the town the radio began to hiss and spit with static until I lost the signal completely. I made the rest of my journey nervously humming under my breath.

I reach the town just before 5, but the sky was so dark that it seemed much later. Driving my car through the ragged streets, I peered up at the tired-looking buildings that lined each side of the road.

There were a row of shops that had been shut down for the day, and the streets were deserted; I wondered how they stayed in business. Master Cross had said the room had been rented for me in an inn called "Noah's Ark", but I couldn't find it.

Over and over again, I drove up and down the same streets, the wind and and the rain hammering down on my poor car.

Then, just ahead, I saw a lone figure shuffling along the pavement ahead of me. I slowed my car, bringing it to a halt. The engine rattled and rain bounced off its burgundy hood.

Winding the window down, I rolled down the window and called out to the figure that walked stopped forward, a black hood pulled over its head.

"Excuse me ", I called out my breath creating tiny clouds in the cold.

The hunched figure stopped dead in its tracks, still not facing me.

I tried again, "Hello?"

Slowly, the figure turned on the spot, the hem of the long coat and scarf it wore trailing in the deep puddles that filled the cracked pavement.

One gleaming green eye stared at me from beneath the hood, as the figure adjusted it's ridiculously long orange scarf. I shrank back in surprise at the sharp frown peering out of the shadows beneath the hood.

It was difficult for me to guess the man's age, as his face was well hidden in the shadows of the overly large hood.

The corners of his thin chapped lips were twisted in what looked like a hateful snarl. But even though his face was thoroughly hidden, his eye was sharp and keen, shining a brilliant emerald from beneath his hood. He continued to glare at me and say nothing.

"I'm looking for a place called Noah's Ark," I said, inching the window closed so only the smallest of gaps was left for me to speak through.

Still glaring at me from beneath his hood, the stranger raised one calloused finger and placed it against his cracked lips. "Shhh!" he almost seemed to hiss. Then, lowering his head, he turned away and continued to shuffle forwards along the street, rain dripping from his scarf.

I closed the window and from the safety of my car, I sat and watched the stranger until he had disappeared into the gloom ahead.

Once I was sure he had gone, I started my car again and crept forward. I reached the end of the street, slowed and looked left and right. I couldn't see him in either direction. It was like he had vanished.

Indicating right, I turned into yet another narrow, cobbled street, where the houses and shops stood crammed next to one another.

It was then, I noticed that same hooded figure watching me from the darkness of a nearby shop doorway. Looking forward, with goose bumps crawling over my skin, I sped up.

It was just before 6 when I noticed a small side street that I hadn't seen before.

Turning into it, my car bounced and lurched over the cobbled road until in the distance, I could just make out the glow of a blue lamp attached to the front of a white-washed building.

Any anxiety I had felt earlier disappeared upon seeing it. I knew I'd found the police station where I had been posted to.

They would be able to point me in the right direction of my lodgings, and it would give me a chance to meet with some of my colleagues before I started my first night shift the following evening.

Parking the car just outside, I pulled my jacket tight about my shoulders and ran towards the old, wooden door below the blue lamp.

Pushing against it, I stumbled into the station and out of the howling wind and driving rain.

I must have looked a right sight, my white hair matted in gray, wet streaks to my forehead and cheeks, my face pale with the cold. Topped with my unusual face tattoo, I'm sure I made quite the impression.

"Can I help you?" someone asked me.

Looking up, I could see a large front desk, covered in paper. Sitting behind it was a police officer. He had short, black hair, glasses falling off his face, and was clean-shaven.

He looked vaguely chinese and was about 35 to 40 years-old. He was dressed loosely in his uniform and was glutting down a huge cup of coffee.

"Can I help you?" he asked again.

Straightening my hair and pulling it from my face, I gave my most charming smile and said, "I'm Allen."

He looked back at me as if he didn't have the slightest idea as to what I was talking about. Holding out my gloved hand for him to shake, I stepped towards the front counter and said, "I'm Allen Walker. The new recruit?"

Again he looked at me as if I were speaking in a foreign language. Lowering my hand, I added with narrowed eyes, "Vatican headquarters sent me. I'm to be stationed here, starting tomorrow night."

Then with a sudden look of recognition on his face, he stood up and came towards me. It was then I noticed he wasn't in full uniform at all, but was wearing a pair of jeans and pink slippers. He appeared to sway as he walked, as if he had no balance.

"Walker," he said, thumbing through some paperwork on the other side of the desk. "Walker. Allen. Here we go," he said, plucking my file from beneath a mountain of paperwork. Then, looking back at me, he said, "You know you're getting old when the new recruits look younger than your darling baby sister."

Then his whole demeanor changed and he slammed down the giant coffee mug. He turned with such loathing in his eyes and said, "Don't you even think about laying a head on my precious, adorable, oh so lovely baby sister! You hear me, you nasty octopus?!"

Shocked by his sudden hostility, I backed away slowly. "I don't know her and even if I did, I don't swing that way." He immediately calmed down, and smiled. Tilting his head to the left, he says, "Welcome to the team." Not seeing any noticeable hostility, I sighed in relief.

Noticing the three stripes on his shoulders, I asked, "Are you in charge here?" all the while hoping he wasn't.

Placing my file to one side, he smiled back at me and said, "Kind of, but not really. I'm Sergeant Lee – 'Komui' to my friends," and thrust out his hand.

Taking it, he pumped my arm up and down until I thought it might just fall off.

"We do have Chief Inspector Leverrier, but we don't see him much. He pops his head in from time to time and that's the way we like it. Don't want the boss nosing around," he said, winking at me as he sipped on his coffee.

Pushing the fringe from my eyes, I noticed Sergeant Lee was wearing a small pin in the shape of a crucifix.

I thought this was a little odd as we'd had it instilled in us at training school that we were only to wear police insignia on our uniforms, nothing else, especially not anything that was religious or might cause offense.

Sergeant Lee saw me looking, and his fingers went straight to it. "I know what you're thinking," he said. "You're straight from the academy, where you've had your head crammed full of all the things you should and shouldn't do."

"No," I said, shaking my head, not wanting to offend my new sergeant within the first few moments of meeting him.

"Well, just between you and me, young lad," he said leaning over the counter towards me, his voice dropping to a whisper.

"This little cross here will offer you more protection than any can of pepper spray, a baton, or a taser . Things are different in Noah's Innocence."

" Don't listen to the stupid old man," someone said from behind me. Spinning round, I saw another police officer step into the station out of the rain.

His raincoat dripped water all over the floor, and it ran from the brim of his helmet. Taking it from his head, he wrung the rain out of his long navy hair. Unlike Sergeant Lee, this police officer was younger, no older than 27.

"I'm sorry?" I asked, taken aback by his sudden presence. He had navy blue eyes, a strong pointed chin, and a surprisingly oriental look about him.

" I said, take no notice of the fucking idiot,'" he smirked, looking over my shoulder at Sergeant Lee.

"Kanda show some manners," Lee said, but he didn't sound angry, it was as if it were a routine he shared with this officer.

Taking off his black raincoat and draping it over the desk, he turned to me and said, "I'm Kanda Yuu." Then frowning, he added, "The one who does all the damn work around here."

"You don't know the meaning of the word," Sergeant Lee scoffed, going back to his seat where he propped his slippered feet up onto his desk and sipped on his coffee.

"So you must be Constable Walker?" Kanda asked.

" Allen," I replied, raising my gloved hand to shake his. He ignored my extended hand with a smirk.

"You're short and pale," Kanda said, and I couldn't help but notice that he held my gaze just a little too long, long enough to make me feel uncomfortable. Looking away, I began to take a good look around.

I was immediately struck by the lack of professionalism Sergeant Lee showed, and it felt at odds with the almost military-style of policing instilled in me at the academy. The whole town was strangely biblical, obsessed with the story of Noah in particular.

"I thought you started your shift with us tomorrow night?" Kanda said, cutting into my thoughts. "That eager, huh," he grinned, and it seemed to light up his whole face.

"I can't find my new digs," I told him, slightly embarrassed.
"Where are you staying?" he asked boredly.

"Noah's Ark," I said, and I couldn't help but notice the knowing look that passed between Kanda and Sergeant Lee across the counter.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked, mildly suspicious.

Shaking his head, Sergeant Lee said, "No, there's nothing wrong. Kanda'll show you where it is." Throwing on his overcoat again and grabbing his helmet,Kanda headed outside while I followed.

As I swung the police station door closed behind me, I could just see the top of Lee's head on the other side of the counter.

"Welcome to the god-forsaken town of Noah's Innocence, Allen Walker. Show up tomorrow night at seven for the start of your first vampire shift." Not knowing what he meant, I let the door swing shut and I stepped out into the rain again.

"Is this piece of shit yours?" Kanda growled, looking at my old burgundy VWVortex. "Yeah, got a problem?" I snarled, feeling proud of my little wagon. "Nothing, soccer mom. It's in nice condition" Kanda grinned, going to the passenger side.

Opening my door, I got in. Throwing his helmet into the back, Kanda wedged himself into the front seat.

His legs were so long that his knees seemed to rest just beneath his chest. Smiling to myself, I put the car into gear and we rumbled off up the street.

We sat in silence, and I felt uncomfortable. "So where is this Inn?" I asked, trying to start a conversation.

"It's a mile or so up the road from here. Just take a right at the top," he said boredly.

"So what's with the crucifix and all this stuff about starting my first 'vampire shift' tomorrow night?" I asked above the sound of the wipers as they squeaked back and forth in the rain.

Glancing sideways at me, Kanda said, "Look dammit, some strange things have happened here in the last few years or so, that's all."

"What do you mean by strange ?" I asked him, adjusting to the dark.

"Well,some of the new recruits that have been sent from headquarters have gone missing, we've also had our fair share of grave desecrations and murders for such a small ass town," Kanda said, glaring back into the night.

"What do you mean by missing ?" I asked, feeling more intrigued than scared.

"Duh- they don't show up for work. One day they're here and the next they're fucking gone. Not even so much as a goddamn goodbye," Kanda explained.

"But why?" I asked, slowing down to steer the car around a rather sharp bend in the road.

"How the fuck would I know, maybe they weren't expecting so much damn paperwork,'" he shrugged.

"But you can't have that much paperwork out here," I said. "It can't be that busy."

"You're right," he said. "We don't have a burglary problem, robbery problem, or even a loitering problem. But like I said, we do have a murder problem, and they create mountains of fucking paperwork."

Speeding up again, I asked, "So how many murders are we talking about?"

"Well if you exclude the 30 or so people that have gone missing, as no one really knows what's happened to them, we've had about 20 murders in the last 3 years or so.

"20?" I gasped, nearly crashing the car into a nearby hedge. "Some cities in the UK don't even have that amount in five years – let alone a small little town like this!"

"They started slow at first," he sighed. "The first year we had 3 murders and a couple of disappearances. In the second year we had 6 murders – but this year they've escalated like crazy."

"Are they connected?" I asked, still reeling from what he had just told me.

"The M.O. is the same in each case, if that's what you mean," he said.

"So you have a serial killer in Noah's Innocence?" I asked him, not being able to comprehend what he was telling me.

How my colleagues had been dumb enough to turn down a posting like this was beyond me. Some officers could wait a lifetime before they came anywhere close to even getting a whiff of a serial killer case and here I was right in the middle of one, just days out of the academy.

"I don't think it's a fucking serial killer," Kanda said, narrowing his eyes at me.

"But you said the M.O. was the same in each murder," I excitedly reminded him.

"It is the same," he said, then added, "but there is more than one killer."

Gripping the steering wheel so tight that my gloves rip a liitle, I asked, "How can you be so sure?"

"There are always more than one set of prints at the scene and the…" he trailed off.

"And what?" I asked, almost ready to pee in my pants.

"Forensics say the tooth marks come from different sets of teeth," he sighed.

"Tooth marks?" I almost screeched.
"Yeah, tooth marks," Kanda said in a grim tone. "At first we thought that they were the tooth marks of an animal because -"

Kanda was suddenly interrupted as the airwaves radio that was attached to his coat began to talk in the sound of Sergeant Lee's voice.

"Echo One to Echo Three, receiving?" and his voice came through, mixed with the sound of static.

Speaking into the radio, Kanda said, "Go ahead, baka – what you got?"

"I hate to be the one to tell you this," Lee's voice crackled back over the radio, "but Farmer Chaoji reckons his dog has just come across the remains of the Hearst kid who went missing a couple of days ago."

Taking a deep breath, Kanda seemed to placate himself, then said into the radio, "Tch, baka, I'll make my way there."

Then looking at me he said, "You starting your duties a night early?"

"You bet," I told him, my stomach beginning to buzz with nerves and excitement.

"Okay then," Kanda smiled, "Welcome to your first vampire shift."