A/N: Thank you to those who took the time to leave a comment.

Shiro-chan1827: I thought of taking this route but, unfortunately, it is impossible for Kanda to join the Order as an official exorcist, now. Before they discovered about his special seal, that could happen… but now, he has far more use as a test subject than as an accommodator. As for Kanda's past and his year of birth, I have thought that up too, I just hope I will be able to fit it in this story… Ah, thanks for telling me about the uniform colors, I've corrected that paragraph.

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Synthetic Soldiers

22 – Whatever it takes: Kanda (2)

The job of a gatekeeper was a coveted one in every city. The salary was quite fine, so as to be compatible to the critical nature of their work. Despite the great responsibilities the position entailed, however, it did not involve very challenging tasks. All procedures, without exception, were carefully drawn and drilled into every operative's head. Should any complication arise, they were to contact the Black Order guards or, in case of Akuma sightings, the Exorcists.

What to do, however, when a gatekeeper found himself in a situation not mentioned in any rulebook they had ever studied?

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It started around half past five in the afternoon. The gatekeeper's shift would end in about thirty minutes, and he gazed morosely towards the horizon, filled by dark pine trees and decorated by a large, snow topped mountain. A beautiful sight, specially as the sun touched it and slowly disappeared, turning the sky into a myriad of beautiful colors that would last only for a short while. He always thought himself lucky for being able to see it – should his shift end any earlier, he would have already returned home by the time the sun set, and the large walls that circled their city didn't allow them any sight of the sun as it arrived or departed.

His pleasant thoughts were interrupted when he saw something approaching. Picking the binoculars they were always to keep close, he realized it was a Black Order carriage. The distinguishable crest of Central was visible, and he stiffened. Today's visitors were clearly important, and he couldn't remember being informed of their impending arrival. Usually, whenever officials and Exorcists from Central arrived, they were supposed to follow extensive procedures both of security and of welcoming, that would be supervised be the city's chief himself. Worried about that, he decided to contact his superiors, but something strange made him pause.

Now that he paid closer attention, the carriage did seem to be approaching them in great velocity. It was not normal, and he wondered whether the rider had lost control over the horses. He was just about to call for others and ask for instructions when he saw it.

The trees behind the carriage shook, as if strongly impacted by something large and powerful, and a few fell to the ground. Emerging from it came a giant bear like monster whose clawed hand tore yet another piece of greenery from its way, and the gatekeeper almost let his binoculars fall.

"Akuma," he whispered, before grabbing his telephone and dialing the main hall's number with trembling fingers. Akuma were a troubling occurrence, but not truly rare. Every gatekeeper and wall security guard with some years of experience had seen quite a few, and to this day, not a single one had managed to invade their fortress. The science division's barriers against Dark Matter did a good job in stopping the monsters from getting closer than three hundred meters from the walls and, should that fail, the Exorcists were always ready to act and eliminate the threat of the enemy before it even managed to touch the walls.

The problem today was the fact that the monster seemed quite close to getting to that carriage. Until now it only ran and no one left it to fight, so he supposed there was no Exorcist inside, and that was a bizarre situation in itself. They had to take these people from Central inside the walls as soon as possible, but the Akuma seemed too close and too fast, and he doubted they would be able to save their allies in time. Still, they had to try.

"This is Madison from G3," shouted him to the phone as soon as someone picked it up. "There is an Akuma approaching, and one of our carriages are outside. We need Exorcists immediately!"

"How many Akuma there are?" asked a voice that seemed far too calm for the gatekeeper's liking. He opened his mouth to say there was only one but, as he raised his eyes to confirm it, he immediately his voice.

A horde of Akuma was approaching from the forest. The disturbance that was composed by nothing more than a few misplaced trees had given place to a burning hell. The forest ahead of them was being ruined by the flames and an enormous cloud of smoke and dust rose up to the sky, staining what he had once declared a beautiful twilight with an ominous mass of black.

"There are… there are ten… no, scratch that, twenty… they keep coming! Send someone!"

The person in the other side of the line agreed quickly before hanging up. The gatekeeper could do nothing but watch in horror as the army of monsters approached the carriage, and now he did not fear only for it – the people inside were undeniably condemned to death – he also feared for the city itself, because never before had he seen such an enormous amount of monsters marching against them at once.

When he thought things could not get any worse, he saw a flash of light that almost blinded him, before enormous humanoid figures in white rose among the ashes. He watched, terrified, as the behemoths also marched in the direction of the city, wondering whether they were all hopeless. The figures in white, instead of marching together with the other Akuma, however, started tearing them apart. He watched in fascination and realized they were not Akuma – no, considering the way they were finishing the monsters with ease, they had to be exorcists – or rather, an exorcist's Innocence.

He had never imagined any exorcist could be strong enough so as to kill so many monsters with mere swipes, but it was happening before his eyes. Perhaps they had a chance – the city, at the very least. There was nothing that could be done for the carriage. Many Akuma were getting closer to it already, and the exorcist was busy fighting a long distance behind. Madison watched with a heavy heart, waiting for the moment when the people inside would be killed. And they were so close to the city, too, but it was far too late.

The carriage's door then opened with a bang so loud he could hear it from his position. Whoever was inside would now try to flee by foot, he thought, until, to his immense surprise, the figure – donned in the unique red and black they knew so well – turned towards the monsters and, with a flash of light, attacked.

Another exorcist then, thought Madison, trembling with relief. No one else seemed to be inside the carriage, so perhaps no one would die today. Still, despite the fact the person had an anti-Akuma weapon, their small figure seemed far too defenseless before the numerous horrors that marched towards them.

Despite the direness of the situation, the gatekeeper had already done what he could, and would now wait for help. So he decided to watch the fight – he expected this one to be a fascinating thing to see.

He was right.

It was a show of light and colors. Hours later, he would chastise himself for ever finding beauty in such a terrible scene. Still, right then, he could only be a fascinated bystander, watching as the newly revealed exorcist held the monsters back, and even killed some, with shining slashes that liberated ethereal creatures that ate away at their enemies. This, thought he, was why they had hope; these people's existence, that they should protect no matter what. Never before he agreed with the Order so badly, and he cheered on the two powerful exorcists with his whole heart.

It did not take long for him to realize, however, that all was not well. Despite the obviously rare skill possessed by both fighters, it was obvious the one that executed the illusions was slowly being overwhelmed by the monsters. His released energy became weaker even to the gatekeeper's untrained eyes, and he could see the Accommodator being hit more than once. When his blood started marring the ground, Madison finally left his trance, and grabbed the phone once more.

"WHERE ARE THE EXORCISTS?" He screamed, forgetting any sort of protocol. "Our men are dying! Exorcists are dying!"

Whatever the obviously fearful person on the other side of the line was going to say was drowned by a multitude of people that entered the watching room. High ranking officials, some Madison had never seen before, ran towards him and grabbed the binoculars, swearing profusely.

"Where are the reinforcements?" Shouted the gatekeeper, uncaring for ranks or for the fact that he was screaming at his commanders. Exorcists were dying out there and today of all days, the city's exorcists had disappeared?

"They were going through a health check, but there was an accident in the medical corps. They are coming immediately."

"Was it grave enough so as to keep them for so long? This is an emergency, they aren't going to make it," Madison said weakly.

They watched as the exorcist who had invoked the humanoid giants finally defeated his foes and ran towards the other, in a flash of black and gold. The sword wielding Accommodator had clearly lost all his energy and fell to the ground; though it was impossible from the great distance, he almost heard the wet thud of shredded flesh hitting the blood soaked ground. The General wasn't going to reach him in time, he just wasn't –

They passed by the watch room's right like shadows, so fast it was almost impossible to be seen through naked eye; two exorcists from the city jumped from the walls and to the outside in what had to be a painful maneuver before they proceeded to unflinchingly attack the remaining monsters who were ready to finish killing the sword wielding warrior. Madison fell to his knees in relief, unable to deal with the tension of the day. Around him, he saw the other officials and commanders shout in triumph as another exorcist left the city through its gates and finished lending aid to his companions.

Madison forced himself to his feet. The ground in front of Gate Three was a ruined mess, torn apart by explosions, slashes and fire, and now polluted by the acrid dark smoke that rose from the Akuma's corpses. The city's exorcists ran towards the fallen person, but seemed to hesitate to move him. It was understandable, as his condition must be very grave indeed.

Remembering his function, he quickly grabbed the phone and dialed once more, this time for the medical corps. "Bring the emergency equipment. We have a mortally wounded exorcist in the grounds outside gate three. The entrance is going to be opened in sixty seconds – I am giving you two meters. Come now!"

It had not been the perfect speech he had been taught but, today, he could hardly care. As soon as the medical team was positioned by the gate, Madison typed the security code and allowed the gate controls to read his retina and fingerprint. With the added permission from the city's chief, the gate was opened, and he watched as the battered body – corpse? – of the exorcist was placed in a stretcher and quickly brought inside.

The gate was closed as soon as the other exorcists also joined in. The officials left Madison and quickly ran towards the General in a procession of questions that were presented in murmurs and shouts.

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Kanda's world was filled by pain, but that was not a new situation to him, and was hardly unbearable. A body that had already taken damage that would have killed hundreds would hardly be unable to withstand today's ordeal and, despite the fact that he had been quite literally torn apart, the pain was but a small thorn in the very back of his mind.

Indeed, it was quite meaningless. What made his heart clench, however, what made his pulse beat accelerated and made his body tremble not with pain, but out of sheer terror, was the fact that he was inside a walled city – hardly for the first time but, this time, he was being escorted by the Black Order itself.

Staying unmoving in the stretcher was one of the most difficult things he had done in his whole life. It went against his every survival instinct to remain still as he was carried towards the very heart of the city, under the watchful eyes of guards, doctors, and perhaps even other exorcists. He wanted to jump, to slice his enemies and flee; to return to the cover of the forests outside, the forests that were far from safe, but at least didn't promise him imminent imprisonment or death.

He dared to open his good eye, even if just slightly. Around him, people spoke hurriedly, shouting commands even as they ran with him to what had to be a medical facility or laboratory. And as the strangers in white discussed his medical condition and examined his body, he was taken back to the horrible moments he lived in his last days inside the laboratory he had been reborn in, as the people who had tortured him during his whole lifetime envisioned ways to keep him alive.

This time, however, he was not in danger of dying – not from his actual wounds, that is. His seal, as per usual, was working perfectly. Even now, he could feel it repairing his body in a hurry, and he could only pray that no one would notice. His face was a disfigured mess, but soon it would also be placed under the healing spell. Kanda knew he had little time before he would be recognized – either because of his seal or because of his features that, according to Tiedoll, were stamped in walls of cities all around the world.

His hands clenched tightly around his weapon, holding it as a lifeline. Nobody tried to take it from him and, for that, he was grateful. He watched and felt it as he was placed inside a vehicle and it started moving. He should wait until he was inside an hospital – it would be the one inside the core of the city, Tiedoll had explained, and from it he would be able to reach his next destination. Still, as his clothes started being cut by the doctors, he knew he wouldn't have all that time. Before they managed to uncover his chest, he turned around violently, falling from the stretcher and over the moving vehicle's floor.

"He's awake?" Shouted an astounded woman.

"Get him!" urged another, and Kanda felt as gentle but firm hands tried to guide him back up. He started fighting against them, without leaving his position on the floor. His whole body was being slowly healed despite his own resistance, and he couldn't allow them to see his chest or face.

"He's convulsing," whispered a doctor, "we need a tranquillizer-"

"Nothing we have can be applied to someone in this state!"

"Hold him down!"

Despite his wounds, Kanda was far stronger than the doctors around him, and did not allow them to move his body, pretending to be thrashing due to pain.

"We are here," whispered a female, and Kanda felt the vehicle stop. This was where he needed to be – he needed to be taken inside. Hoping for the best, he started resisting, and felt himself being dragged – and tied – to the stretcher, as people brought him to the emergency room.

"Bring in the sedatives," called the one who seemed to be the head surgeon and, by then, Kanda knew his time was over.

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Sixty seven Akuma. That had been the number they had been able to round up, both by chance meetings in their search and through Tiedoll's own sensitiveness to the presence of Dark Matter.

Yuu had assured him he would be able to deal with them all. They were mostly level twos, the young man had said, and he had fought worse battles. There had been confidence in his dark eyes, and a promise to stay safe in his lips. And so, he had allowed their admittledly precarious plan to go on, because there was simply no way to smuggle someone inside a city with a security as high as Wales'. Yuu would have to enter through the front gates – no disguise or secret passage were available to help him.

So Tiedoll had played his part, and allowed the boy to play his own – until, after a few minutes of their charade, as he finished his share of the enemies and turned to his adoptive son, he saw him splattered in the floor, looking, after all was said and done, as if he had been already gone from the world.

Never before had he seen Yuu so hurt, in his entire life.

Yuu's life had not been an easy one. Actually, his fate had been, until now, one of the worst Tiedoll could think of. As the Japanese exorcist grew up and… warmed up to the General, somewhat, he had explained the ordeals he had gone through in the laboratory in detail. Listening about these events had left him utterly horrified and, even then, he felt his adoptive son had been trying to shield him from the worst of it. Even after they parted ways, Yuu's life had been incredibly harsh; as they talked to each other in the eight days they took in their journey to Wales, Yuu had opened up about the hardships he had had to face, from broken bone to burnt flesh and consuming disease.

And even then, despite the heaviness of his heart, he had not been prepared for such a sight.

For a moment, he thought the boy was not alive, anymore.

Exorcists came from the walls, in order to aid them – and the General cursed himself, because not only he could have helped Yuu easily, he also had been the one responsible for the women's delay. And now he stared at his charge, who was a sick mixture of black and red in the ground, not moving even to breathe. Forgetting everything they had agreed upon, he ran towards the boy, uncaring about any emotions his face had been displaying right then. His son could be dead – and it would be his fault. Because Yuu had promised he would be fine, he had promised he could handle it, but he could very well have miscalculated –

Men in white approached, and took his son away, with care but with haste. They passed by the gates once more and Tiedoll joined them, knowing that, despite his great prowess as an Exorcist, any medical worker would be able to do more for Yuu than the General himself could.

He had wanted to smuggle his boy in – now he just wanted him to stay alive.

"General? Sir, are you listening?"

Tiedoll blinked and managed to leave his stupor. Such weakness would usually be intolerable but, right now, he felt like he was slowly losing whatever control he still had over himself.

"Of course, Chief," he forced himself to say. "I do apologize, but this whole ordeal is weighing heavily in my mind."

"I am sure, General. But you can be sure our surgeons are doing their very best to save the young exorcist."

"He seemed fatally injured," said the General, and the horror in his voice displayed itself despite his attempt to hide it. "Does he even have a chance?"

The elderly man in charge of the city seemed astounded at the raw pain coming from the General. That only seemed to make him more determined to answer, however. "Yes, General. Please believe me. I have been informed Mr. Galen was still alive once he got to Emergency, and they were ready to stabilize him before beginning the operation. Such wounds would usually mean certain death, but… this is the city were the last member of the Chan family lives, sir. The young man will be well. Bak will make sure of it."

"Yes… I have seen the lad once or twice," said Tiedoll weakly, ignoring the hot chamomile tea that was placed in front of him by a maid.

Han Won seemed to look uncomfortable with Tiedoll's statement. "I know he is very young, General, and not very… invested in the Order," admitted the man, flinching slightly, no doubt at mentioning something so dangerous in front of the organization's General, "but he is incredibly talented in the medical field. He has acquired the knowledge from his family and has always helped us… at least when it comes to medicine."

"I see. Make sure he will put his knowledge to good use today, then," said Tiedoll, raising serious, implacable eyes. "We would not want an exorcist to die here."

The chief's face tightened under the strain of stress. "Of course not, sir."

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"I found Mr. Galen living with exiles in a forest close to one of our smaller cities. His condition was, naturally, precarious, and he was mostly incoherent. It took me many days to get him to be able to converse somewhat coherently. Whatever ordeal he has been through since his disappearance, it has clearly broken him."

"I see," answered the Great General through the phone. "And why have you decided to take him to the city you are in now? Would it not have been better to have him treated in a place closer to where you were a week ago?"

"His greater wounds are of the mind," said Tiedoll, the answer already prepared ever since they started thinking of this wretched plan. "As of his physical state, the only problem was a slight start in malnutrition. They would not have been able to help him there, not like a greater city would."

"I wouldn't expect someone who got lost in the outside for months to be so physically well."

"As an exorcist, Mr. Galen was the only one who could keep the group of exiles safe from the Akuma. Naturally, they would provide him with whatever food and shelter they had. They seemed quite… reluctant to allow me to take him away."

The questioning continued, as thorough as Tiedoll had expected. With the events being as relevant as they had been – a powerful city almost being invaded, the recovery and subsequent almost-death of a lost exorcist and the involvement of a General – it was obvious they would not wait for answers. The General stuck to the story he had elaborated.

Seven months ago, an exorcist named Samuel Galen had disappeared when escorting a travelling group. The carriages had been destroyed and no one, no officials or civilians, had survived. Galen's body had not been found. Despite his death being almost granted, an exorcist was a precious asset to the Order, and so extensive searches were made for him.

After a couple of months and a great waste of resources, the Order called off the searching, but insisted any officials and exorcists kept his face in mind and looked for him when they were working on their own tasks.

Tiedoll doubted very much the poor young man would be alive, but he did find an opportunity in the disappearance to have Yuu enter a city connected to Rome. Considering Yuu's own status as a high priority fugitive, however, and the fact that the city knew its lost exorcist well, they had needed to create a commotion large enough so as to distract the Order personnel from following the usual protocols or paying much attention to Yuu's features. The solution to this question had been provided by Yuu himself, as they travelled together to their targeted city.

Tiedoll had just explained how difficult it would be to enter the city; there were no blind spots in the walls, a large shield prevented any attacks inside a close perimeter and the general had no traitor guards on his side. Moreover, the security procedures carried there were extensive, regardless of the time they cost.

"I have made successfully made contact with someone that can shelter and transport you, but that is only once you are inside the city," Tiedoll finally said, pondering on a way to solve the puzzle. "We must think of a way to safely take you inside by the time we reach Wales."

"Don't worry about it, General," said Yuu, and he looked more confident than he had ever be since they met. "I already thought of a way."

The general had been surprised, back then. Despite his determination, Yuu seemed like he truly would not be able to enter the city without help. "And that would be?"

Yuu smirked, looking sure of himself. "I go right through the gates, while forcing them to skip protocol." At Tiedoll's confused expression, he clarified, "How could they take the time to carefully probe the identity of a grievously hurt exorcist who is in need of urgent help?" He pointed towards his chest and continued, "they have given me an advantage. It is about time I use it for more than escaping."

Tiedoll had protested immediately, but Yuu had been unwavering. He insisted that this would be the only way to impersonate the disappeared exorcist; by allowing himself to be hurt in a battle and using the short window of time he would have to enter the city while not being recognized.

"My use of Innocence before the gatekeepers will already prove I am not an Akuma. They will take me in. I just need to get inside, right? Once I do that, according to you, I should be able to disappear."

This had all started because Tiedoll mentioned Galen's disappearance, and lamented the fact that they couldn't simply have Yuu pass as him due to the Japanese exorcist's newfound notoriety in the Order, that would make sure he would be recognized. Once Yuu proposed his solution, however, Tiedoll had denied it vehemently. Giving the boy to the authorities was already unacceptable, but doing so while he was hurt? And still, as Yuu insisted more and more and Tiedoll could not come up with a better solution, he had to eventually accept, but only on the condition that Yuu would be very careful, that his wounds would be superficial and just enough to have him pass by.

They had gathered Akuma, something that was easy for anyone in an Exorcist uniform; the creatures despised and hunted exorcists as much as exorcists hunted them. Instead of fighting them, they drew them towards the city, in a number that the General knew would be enough to cause a mayhem to destabilize the Order, but small enough that he would be able to destroy.

He had held back, of course, fighting only a part of them and allowing Yuu to play his part.

And look where that trust had gotten him, he thought with a heavy heart, even as he continued answering the Great General's incessant questioning. He just wanted to be by Yuu's side and be sure the boy would be fine, but had to remain inside the chief's office with a phone by his ear.

"Mr. Galen, as I said, was in an incoherent mental state. He seemed to have temporary panic attacks. One was long enough for him to leave my grasp and be seen by Akuma. As I had given him an uniform and the creature saw it, it was inevitable that it would attack us with all it had. It ran away, however, apparently to alert its many companions, that followed us until we reached the city."

There was a long, silent pause on the other side of the line. Then, "these things seem to be growing more intelligent. The Order must be put on alert. Very well. We will continue this later, General Tiedoll."

"As you wish," answered the man tiredly, before hanging up.

He allowed himself to cover his eyes with his hands for a few moments, before he got up from the chief's chair and opened the office's door, signaling the others could enter. During his conversation with Central, even the chief himself had been excused from his office.

"What is Central's position about the situation, sir?" asked Han Won, taking his place behind his desk once more. Tiedoll remained standing.

"I am sure they will wish to investigate the matters properly before taking a decision. This city has already lost an exorcist on a campaign, and now is almost losing him again due to the lateness in taking action. I'd say their… position will be quite unfavorable, chief." The man nodded gravely at that, looking troubled, but not surprised. "Now, what of Mr. Galen? Have you had any news of him until now?"

"He is having seizures of a sort, sir, but doesn't present the unresponsiveness we would be afraid of. I will call the hospital at once," he said and, at Tiedoll's curt nod, he did so. Tiedoll tried not to look very tense as the man held the phone to his ear. Nobody answered, however. Han Won frowned and dialed again.

After a tense minute and the third tentative, someone finally picked the phone. Tiedoll heard the man chastising whoever answered the call, before asking about Yuu.

The employee's voice could be heard from where the general was, and it seemed to carry a great urgency.

"What? How could this be?" asked Han Won, and his large hand almost crushed the telephone. "No, no… but how many doctors were in there?" he exclaimed, before covering his face with a hand. "Alright. You do that – immediately. We are going there."

As the damning words were spoken, Tiedoll's hands clenched hard, and he could hear his own heartbeat, and the pulse of it reverberating through his body. He felt weak and groundless; he leaned forward as soon as the chief let go of the phone.

"What happened to him?" demanded the general. No, Yuu could not have died. He said his seal was working well, he promised he would be fine.

But what if… what if he had lied?

Tiedoll distinctly remembered Yuu had said Allen's seal had been spent; it did not work anymore, not after being used for too long. Clearly, it wasn't infallible. But Yuu had also assured the older exorcist his seal had been working properly, he had pointed to it as the solution to their problems. This should not be happening, he thought desperately.

What if Yuu had lied, however? What if, in his desperation to help Allen Walker, he had tricked the general into believing he still had his regenerative abilities, just so the man would allow him to go through with his foolish plan?

If that was true…

If that was true, Yuu would surely die. He had been torn open; Tiedoll was sure his adoptive son hadn't been put inside a body bag then and there only because the medics had miraculously found a pulse.

"Sir? General Tiedoll?"

"What is it?" asked the man, unconscious of his already weak façade breaking apart.

"I've been informed that the exorcist… has disappeared, sir. I deeply apologize. I swear we will track him, no matter what."

"Disappeared?" repeated the general weakly.

"Yes. Apparently, he has attacked two doctors, and the remaining ones fled from the room. He was impossible to control, they said. We are ashamed of what happened, but we had not expected the need to keep anyone to restrain him nearby – he looked to hurt to properly move. Now he can't be seen anywhere, but just give me half an hour or so-"

Tiedoll's heart finally stopped beating so fast. He felt the colors returning to his vision, and allowed his tired body to sag on one of the chairs. Yuu had escaped. Things were going according to the plan.

As the city's chief continued trying to assure him of the exorcist's safety, Tiedoll could only think that Yuu was alive.

"What of the boy?" he asked finally, having gotten a hold over himself. It was only Han Won's own deplorable state that allowed him to believe he would not realize his strange behavior. "What of Bak Chan?"

"Sir?"

"Was he also hurt by the exorcist? It would not do to have the city's best medical specialist unavailable."

"Ah… that is…" Han Won also seemed to collapse on his chair. "The young Chan has yet to appear. He has not been found as of yet. Perhaps he was involved in the ordeal that also made the exorcists late… I don't know, sir, but we are also looking for him right now-"

Tiedoll raised a hand. "Enough. I understand. The inefficiency in this city's works is worrying me, chief, but I suppose it is fortunate that Bak Chan was not anywhere near the exorcist when he attacked. So long as the boy is there to help Mr. Galen when he is found, it will be fine."

"He will, sir. I promise you," said the other man, who didn't seem to have the strength to look desperate, anymore.

Meanwhile, Tiedoll finally allowed himself a moment of peace. It would be long before he would be able to meet Yuu without raising any suspicion, but at least things were going as they should: the unavailable exorcists, Yuu's escape from the hospital and Bak's own temporary disappearance. He supposed he could allow a small amount of optimism to take root on his heart. Still, what a surreal situation, to have his boy in the same city as him and to have to stay inside this office, pretending to be worried about a stranger, pretending not to know anything about the confusion that was taking over this place.

With a sigh, Tiedoll ordered a cup of coffee and readied himself for one of the longest nights of his life.

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