Hey guys! Hope you all like the chap! This is in response to those who asked how the devils had gotten away with kidnapping Chrono and Rosette without any of the defenses keeping them out.

Don't own Chrono Crusade, yada, yada, yada……….

Chap: Burning down the Abbey

The eastern half of the North American Order of the Magdalene was in utter panic.

Smoke and sounds of chaos filled the night sky, the glow of flames illuminating the countryside for miles around the Abbey. Fires raged throughout the complex, half the dormitories were already burned to ashes, and the chapel was in utter ruin. The remaining militia was still trying to rescue those still trapped under burning debris with some success, but it was slow going. They had been so ill prepared for this.

They had thought they'd have time. Time before the Sinners would find out about the baby. Time before the devils would scout them out. Time before Aion himself would dare to come down from the Sinners' haven of Eden for the Songstress of Vegas, blasting in and decimating their forces.

How? Was the question on everyone's minds. How had they known about the baby? How had they come so soon, without our suspecting? How did they get past the barriers and defenses without a scratch to show for it? How in the hell had this happened!

A terrible mistake had been made. The Magdalene Order had vastly underestimated the technological capabilities of its foe. They had underestimated the amount of information the Sinners had collected on them. They had made the fatal error of believing they were invincible in their home territory.

It was later found just how the attack had taken place with such ease for the devils. The Sinner Rizel had come in first to the nearest town, possessing one of the priests of the village and bringing him to the first of the barriers. She had forced him to help disable the holy device, systematically wiping out the long-range defenses of the Abbey. Her victim had later been found roaming the countryside, driven insane. The demonic possession and subsequent pain of the burns from exposure to the barriers had been too much for him to withstand.

Other victims of her possession had been suspected, but most likely had either been killed by the demoness or had not survived the following attack.

Dinner was being held in the cafeteria, the girls giggling and chatting as they always did. The discussion had mostly been focused on Rosette's baby, and what they would choose as a name. The Elder had been in the process of taking bets on the baby's size, weight, amount of hair, gender, and day of arrival. He claimed it was to start the baby's college fund.

No one had thought that the demons would dare come to challenge them outright. No one had even suspected the barriers were down. No one had suspected they were about to be under attack.

The assault on the Abbey had been swift and horrific. The Sinner Viede had led the first attack, summoning several lesser demons and charging the courtyard. They had used bombs and grenades to send up thick smoke to mask their movements and hamper the humans as much as possible. The Sinner had cut through their formation like a scythe, using a massive war-hammer like a broom to clear a path. Then Viede had sent out his demons among the Militia, having them target the captains, lieutenants, sergeants, and majors. It was the simplest strategy, really. Take off the head of a snake and the body dies. Take out the leaders of an army, and the army will fall.

The Sinner Jenai had been a one-devil wrecking crew, targeting strategic areas of the abbey to destroy with his energy attacks. The armory had been the first to go, the explosive force of the ammunitions alone taking out half of the surrounding buildings. The shockwave of the blast had been so great that it nearly knocked the devil out of the sky. But he'd simply regained altitude, easily dodging the wild shots of the apprentices below him to come back around and with his next shot, take out the Elder's workshop. The resulting blast from that had taken out the dormitories completely. Poisonous energies had seeped from the remains, the various experiments and toxic chemicals making the area too dangerous to try and take cover in.

Jenai had been blown out of the sky by that blast, landing somewhere in the midst of the surrounding forest. He had charged right back into the fray several minutes later, energy cannons blazing like six-shooters as he tore through the Militia.

Remington had barely managed to mount a decent counter attack with the remaining fighting forces still alive after the initial encounter. They had sustained heavy losses in the first moments of the assault, but now were trying to establish a defensive position in the chapel.

The reason why the chapel? The last remaining barriers were there, and that is where Sister Kate had evacuated the apprentices and other non-combative personal. Especially Azmaira. Under no circumstances could the Sinners take her, the last free Apostle. If she was stolen away, the world would be lost!

St. Justice was already working on the latest cases of the injured. The Apostle had tried to sing to help the wounded that were being brought in, but had been stopped. The astral lines would betray her hiding place and lead them right to her. The child had insisted on going out and acting as a ransom for the abbey, that if the Sinners would leave, they could have her. Kate had quickly halted that plan by knocking her unconscious.

A horrific blast had shaken the whole abbey grounds from the impact of the chapel roof being torn off by the Sinner Veide. The girls within had screamed in terror at such impossible strength as the devil had lifted the roof and tossed it like a child's toy across the grounds. The debris raining down had scattered the girls from their defensive positions and with such heavy damage, had demolished the last working barriers in all the Magdalene Abbey. He had retreated after that, bowing in mid-flight to the devil that was approaching.

And then Aion himself had come down. In the midst of the smoke and the fires he had come walking in with a simple smile on his face. The hot winds of fire fanned out his white trench coat, riffling his long hair and for the first time Kate noticed the resemblance between him and Chrono. They could have passed for siblings. It was greatly disturbing.

Remington had lifted his energy sword up in a defensive position, ready to charge the devil, but another demon steeped in. Jenai was grinning from ear to ear, a terrifying look on his face. He slowly shook his finger at the priest, scolding him like a child. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. I wouldn't do that if I were you. You might take one of us down, but there's no way you could get us both. You'd be dead and all your little girls too."

He laughed derisively. "I swear, you must make out like a fiend here with all these cute girls around." His sharp teeth showed as he smiled. "You know, there's a limerick I think would suit you just fine. 'There once was a sultan from Idoume'—"

"Now Jenai, we didn't come here just so you could make harem jokes," Aion cut in. "Forgive him, ladies, he's not been in polite company for some time and he's forgotten his manners."

He had actually sounded polite, damn that bastard. His golden eyes had glinted behind his wire-frame glasses as he spoke. "Greetings, noble fighters of the Order." He glanced over to where Azmaria laid, a slight smirk coming on his features as the apprentices still standing moved to try and protect her. "Have no fear; I have not come for the child just yet."

"Then why are you here?" Kate challenged.

"Ah, the Abbess. My apologies for the damage done here tonight, but we didn't want you out roaming around for a while yet." He tipped a non-existent hat to her with a mock bow as he turned to go. "We have already concluded our business with one of your sisters, and so we shall be going."

If he hadn't come for the Apostle, there was only one person left he would want—"Don't you dare touch Rosette! If you lay one finger on her, I will personally nail your demonic hide on my office door!" The abbess raged. "Have you no shame! You would attack a pregnant woman and unborn child!"

He glanced back over his shoulder at her. "My dear Abbess, we have no intention of harming them. They may just be the final element of my plan that I had never thought to conceive of. I assure you, neither Chrono, Rosette, or their child shall be harmed. On the contrary, they now have our complete protection."

He sent a cursory look at the unconscious Apostle. "Tell her not to fret. I know she'll miss her little friends, but she'll be joining them soon. I wonder how Joshua will take meeting her."

Remington tensed, every part of his being screaming at him to not let the devils go without a fight. But he held his place. The other Sinner was still primed to decimate the entire chapel if he didn't let them go without conflict. Jenai noticed his frustration and chuckled, casually flipping off the tall priest with both hands in sadistic glee.

With a dramatic flare of his coat, Aion morphed his black wings out of his back and took off into the night sky. He spoke a word and made two signs with his hands as he flew. With that, the demons that had fought in the courtyards and corridors disintegrated with hoarse scream as they burned into nothing more than smoky astral. His fellow Sinners followed after their leader, the smoke disguising their path.

Kate huffed an angry breath out her nose and spat in their direction. Without any of the Elder's inventions to help, they would have no way of tracking them. It would take months simply to restock the armory, let alone finish rebuilding all the damages done here tonight.

There would be no chance of mounting a rescue mission for a long time.

The sister hung her head. Rosette, Chrono, I'm sorry.

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Sorry, I know its short. Please review!