"By myself?" Sin blinked a couple of times, pointing to herself in surprise. "I have to go on a mission by myself?"
Komui sweat dropped at her reaction. He expected something along the lines of 'Oh! Yay!' and happiness, rather than this.
But during this time...Komui's gaze hardened, but he regained composure as he tried to act normal for the exorcist.
"Well, it's not an actual mission that you're taking care of by yourself, but rather a meetup with Allen and Lavi for the General recovery missions." Komui said.
Sin nodded slowly, "I see...so they're not coming back to the Order?"
"No. Apparently they're stuck somewhere in Romania. Lenalee and Bookman were with them, but it seems like they got separated. I want you to meet up with them." Komui requested. "And help them with the General recovery missions after the situation in Romania is solved."
Sin stared at the Chief for a moment, pondering.
It had been a rough past couple of weeks, not just for herself, but for the rest of the Order as well. The Noah family had cut down one of the exorcist Generals, specifically Kevin Yeeger, and destroyed 6 Innocences, as well as declared war upon the Order and its exorcists.
While the other exorcists had gone out on General recovery missions, Sin was forced to stay behind on word from the Chief. It puzzled her as to why everyone was out and doing her job, whilst she stayed in the safety of HQ.
The only thing she'd been doing was training and expanding her knowledge with books from the library. There wasn't much she could do.
Is it because I'm weak? Sin narrowed her eyes at the ground then looked up at Komui.
"I will go. But, I'd like to ask why I'm going now, of all times." Sin took a step forward, her blue eyes focused. She was going to get a satisfactory answer. No, she will get a satisfactory answer.
Komui and her eyes met. His eyes narrowed slowly until they closed. He intertwined his fingers on the table and rested his chin on it, then released.
"Hevlaska was the one who requested that I not send you out to retrieve the Generals, and to stay here for a little bit before going." Komui finally spoke.
"Hevlaska?" Sin's eyes went wide. "Why would she request that?"
"Hevlaska, has got something of a 6th sense. You could say it's because she's worried about you." Komui gave her a light smile.
"But why me? I'm not special." Sin shook her head and placed a hand on her chest, "If I'm not going to help out the Order, doesn't that mean I shouldn't be here in the first place? What would have been the point for my being here?"
Komui was silent. He let it sit for around a minute, before he sighed, "I'm not sure either. But Hevlaska has been keen on keeping an eye out for you."
Komui stopped himself there. He wasn't going to say anymore.
Sin pressed her lips into a thin line, clearly dissatisfied with Hevlaska's intervention.
Why would she do that, though?
"Is she keeping an eye out for me because I'm weak?" Sin pressed. She stayed calm and composed through this.
Komui looked a little stunned, "Weak? I wouldn't say that. I don't think she's doing that for that reason."
Does he know the reason? Sin observed Komui, seeing if he was acting suspicious in any way. Just what does he know?
Sin decided to let it go for now and focus on what was at hand. She was going to need to get some more information about her upcoming rendezvous with the others.
"What are the details for the rendezvous?" Sin asked.
"Meet at this train station." Komui pulled down a map of Romania and pointed to a part of it with a steel stick. "This is where Lenalee and Bookman currently are, and they'll be waiting for you there before proceeding to where Lavi and Allen are. A Finder will accompany you, so you won't be alone." Sin nodded. "But be careful on your way, Sin. The Earl has declared war on exorcists, so there may be Noah that you run into." He looked like he wanted to say some more, but hesitated.
"What should I do if I run into a Noah?" Sin asked. She had a feeling that she knew what Komui was going to say.
"...in a situation like that, you'll have to see what your available options are." Komui said.
So he's telling me to think about what I should do if I run into them. Be it run away or fight, Sin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened her eyes again, "I'll do what I can."
Sin clenched her hand, I'm not sure what I can do.
-----
"My name is Toma, I'll be the Finder accompanying you today, Lady Exorcist." A Finder with a bandaged face, leaving only the eyes, came up to Sin.
They were getting ready to leave to Romania.
The Chinese girl smiled, "It's nice to meet you, Toma. Don't worry about calling me 'Lady Exorcist', just call me 'Sin'."
"I can't possibly do that, Lady Exorcist..." Toma shook his head, adamant about not disrespecting her.
Sin sighed and did a light karate chop on his forehead, "Just call me 'Lady Sin' if you're so hesitant."
"Alright. Lady Sin, let's go on the mission now. We don't have much time to spare." Toma went to the boat in the underground river that flowed outside. "We have to catch a train after this."
"Yosh! Let's go, then!"
-----
"...in the end we're waiting." Sin chuckled hopelessly and pushed back her just above shoulder length black hair.
It had started to become longer now that she'd let it grow out, from recommendation by Lenalee and her own desire.
Still pretty short though, she hummed to herself. Though, I haven't had it long in a few years.
"Bookman and Lenalee should be arriving soon." Toma glanced at the clock at the station. It was about 3pm.
Sin and Toma had arrived at the station not too long ago, earlier than Lenalee and Bookman, who were still on their way there.
I would've thought that they'd arrived by now. Maybe very soon, Sin shrugged to herself, doing some stretches while she waited.
She hadn't seen Bookman in a long while. She did get answers about him from Komui when she asked what he specialised in (or rather, what all the exorcists specialised in), and Komui had told her that his Innocence was called 'Heaven Compass', which used acupuncture needles as a form of offensive. That interested her since she wanted to know a little more about Eastern medicine, and even found out that Bookman knew how to use acupuncture needles for medicinal purposes.
But will that really help Eeez? Sin thought with doubt. She didn't know what illness the kid had and didn't like that she didn't know. I'm not even a doctor...should I even be doing this?
No...? Yes...? Just gathering knowledge shouldn't be a problem, but putting it into practice is the hard part, Sin sighed through her nose.
"Toma, I'm going to the bathroom, I'll be back soon." Sin waved at the Finder and went off.
-----
Lady Sin hasn't returned yet? Toma glanced at the clock, seeing that over 30 minutes had passed. Maybe she needs this time. The golem should be with her.
Lenalee and Bookman haven't arrived yet, either, Toma thought for a moment, deciding to check up on Sin.
He headed towards the bathrooms and stood in front of the women's. He called into the bathroom, "Lady Sin! Are you still in there?" He waited for a little, then repeated.
When he realised that nobody had responded to him, he took a look around, seeing that there wasn't anybody in sight. The Finder headed inside the women's bathroom, calling Sin's name and asking if she was there. All the stalls were open and there wasn't anybody inside, which was odd.
Toma headed out and calmly thought about the situation at hand. If Sin had already left the bathroom, why didn't she go back to where he was?
Where would she have headed off to? There's nothing around here, Toma glanced around, did she get kidnapped? His eyes narrowed at the thought, but it was a possibility.
His eyes spotted something under one of the waiting chairs. It was shiny. Taking it out from under the chair, he examined it, but then realised that it was a silver button from Sin's uniform, one that had ripped fabric at the back from being roughly torn off.
Toma's dark eyes narrowed and he contacted HQ with his golem, slightly panicking at the aspect of Sin's disappearance. It had happened almost out of nowhere, and there wasn't a sound to be traced, either. It was suspicious.
"Chief, it's Toma." The Finder spoke first when the video call went through, seeing the Branch head's face.
"Toma? How's the mission?"Komui questioned, from the other side. He was lazing off and not doing his paperwork, which was evident in his messy workspace.
"About the mission, Chief, Sin's disappeared." Toma broke the news, then took out the silver button to show to Komui. He placed it closer to the golem's eye so that Komui could see.
Komui narrowed his eyes at the button, "What were the circumstances?"
"She went to the bathroom but didn't come back in half an hour, so I went to check. She wasn't inside the stalls or around the area. I found the button under a chair." Toma responded.
"Have Lenalee and Bookman arrived?" Komui questioned, gaze hardening.
Toma shook his head, "No, not yet."
It was then that Toma heard the train coming from the distance. The horn was loud and distinctive, which even allowed Komui to hear it.
"That should be them. Just before, they informed me that they were about to arrive."
"Toma!" Lenalee was the first to step out of the train when it stopped, followed by Bookman.
She looked all smiles, waving at him and coming over. She was caught by surprise when she saw her brother's face on the video projection from the golem.
"Good afternoon, Lady Exorcist, Bookman." Toma nodded his head at the two exorcists.
"Where's Sin?" Lenalee questioned almost immediately after greeting him, seeing that she wasn't around. She almost had a bad feeling about this.
Bookman stood there calmly, where is that little brat?
"Lenalee, Bookman, continue the mission with Toma." Komui instructed.
"Brother?" Lenalee looked at him with a doubtful expression, "Where's Sin?"
"She's disappeared." Toma explained, showing the button to Lenalee. "She may have been kidnapped."
Her eyes widened and she stared at Komui, then Toma, then back at Komui. "Shouldn't we search for her then?" She held an expression of worry.
First Allen and Lavi went off by themselves, and now Sin suddenly disappearing...Lenalee clenched her hands into fists.
Komui was silent for a moment, but shook his head. "No. You three will continue to where Allen and Lavi are. I'll be looking into where Sin is. We'll use our sources to locate her."
The female exorcist nodded, "Please find her as soon as possible!"
"Sin's wearing a coat over her uniform because it's cold." Toma informed.
"Alright. Report to me if anything happens." Komui nodded and the video switched off, signalling the end of the call.
"How did Sin manage to go missing?" Lenalee questioned Toma, "Did you hear anything?"
"I didn't hear a thing, Lady Exorcist. That's what's puzzling me." Toma clenched his hands around his backpack straps, "I'm sorry that this happened. It was all because I was too incompetent."
"No, Toma, it's not your fault!" Lenalee shook her head, "It's possible that if she really was kidnapped, which is most likely what happened, she would have done something about it to tell us. In this case, it's that button. Only she would been able to rip it off if it was under her coat."
Bookman kept silent, taking a whiff of the air. The air is different here. There's traces of chloroform.
"Let's leave my brother to find where Sin is. We'll have to catch up to Lavi and Allen now." Lenalee turned to Toma, "You have the map, right?"
-----
"Sin's missing?!" Allen and Lavi exclaimed at the golem that connected Komui to them.
"Who's Sin?" A tall man questioned. He almost looked like Dracula with his high collared coat and vampire-like features. Even though he looked like that, he was in fact, a really kind hearted and naïve fellow.
Lavi closed the video call and sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He couldn't possibly imagine why Sin was kidnapped, which confused him all the further.
Allen, however, was worried. He wanted to go and find her, but due to being completely clueless about where she disappeared and all the other important information, he couldn't do anything to help.
"Sin's another exorcist that was going to meet up with us. But apparently something happened along the way and now she's disappeared." Lavi explained to the Dracula like man, Arystar Krory.
"I guess we'll just have to leave it to Komui." Allen sighed. "I just hope she's alright."
"That's horrible!" Krory gasped, "Was it because of the vampire's curse?!"
Allen and Lavi laughed, shaking their heads at the man's worry. Allen said, "No, no, it's not because of that."
Lavi observed Allen and Krory bickering back and forth, smiling a little. His thoughts went back to the sudden disappearance of the Chinese girl, Sin, and he wondered what was up with that. It sounded pretty suspicious to begin with.
She doesn't seem like the type of person to involve herself with dangerous people or groups, Lavi thought with a thoughtful expression, maybe slave traders?
Lavi's green eye widened when he thought of that possibility, that's a highly likely chance. Komui said she was wearing a coat over her uniform, so they wouldn't know that she was from the Black Order. They could have just mistaken her as a Chinese girl going around Europe.
Considering Sin, she can probably take care of herself though, Lavi knew that thinking to himself wouldn't do anything, but slave traders could come from anywhere. That's black market stuff we're dealing with if it comes to it.
The red head then remembered having watched a couple of Kanda and Sin's lessons and sparring matches, and needless to say, Kanda was still probably scarier than many people in the outside world.
Lavi sighed, Sin's an interesting piece of history I feel I should record, but at this rate things are going to get complicated.
-----
Sin sneezed herself awake. She blinked a few times and shook her head, surprised and shocked that she had woken up that way. She wrinkled her nose and glanced around, feeling the ground against her face. It felt like she was touching wood, and it felt like she was on something that was moving. She could feel the external movement reverberate through her body.
Looking around, she found that it was quite dim, and that only little rays of light shined through from the outside.
That's natural light, so we're outside, right? Sin pushed herself up off the ground and into a sitting position, adjusting her vision.
She was surprised to see that there were about 5 more people in the same position as her, but they were all unconscious save for one. They were all Asian.
Why just Asians? Sin thought with knitted brows. She looked through the gaps in the wood that allowed light to seep through, looking to see what was outside and hoping that it gave her a clue as to what was happening.
Bamboo? Sin quizzed. However, she realised what was happening. China...? Why are we in China? Moreover, we're travelling through the bamboo forests! We're in a wooden carriage, too.
I was at the train station before, what happened?! Sin freaked. I didn't get asked to get shipped to China!
She thought back to what happened when she was waiting at the train station with Toma. She was waiting for Lenalee and Bookman to arrive, so that they could meet up with Allen and Lavi later at a different stop.
But what happened...? She tried to remember, but only when the wheel of the carriage that she was stuck on hit a rock, did she jolt and remember something vital.
Chloroform! She gasped silently in realisation, pressing a closed fist to her lip. I had gone to the bathroom and came out quite quickly, but then someone pressed a cloth to my face...then I ended up here.
Sin sat still for a moment, then glanced around again at all the women that were sprawled unconscious on the carriage floor, except for one of them that sat to the side looking deathly pale.
Doesn't that mean I got kidnapped?! Sin mentally swore in her head.
The female exorcist moved to the area where she could hear other voices from the outside. She could hear the sound of a couple of horses' hooves hit the ground, the swish of liquid and two different male voices.
Listening closely, she hoped she could find out who they are and what they were after. She pressed her ear closely to the wood.
"...some good ones this time." One voice, a masculine one, spoke. He was speaking in Chinese.
Some good ones?
"Yeah. Seems like they'll fetch a high price. The girl with the coat seems like she'll be worth a pretty penny." Another chuckled, and the sound of a liquid swishing could be heard, and a gulp. He was also speaking Chinese.
That must be water. And...the girl in the coat...? Sin paused for a moment, eyes trailing around, isn't that me?! Are they going to sell me?!
Sin started to panic, she had never dealt with a situation like this before, but she had heard of stuff like this happening. Never did she imagine that she would get caught up in something like this.
She took a silent deep breath, knowing that freaking out wouldn't be helping her situation at all.
Got to stay calm. That's what they taught me.
"Which brothel was it again?" The deeper voice one asked.
Brothel?! I'm an exorcist, not a prostitute!
"The one in the Tian province. The red light district." The 2nd one answered.
The Tian province...? That's closer than I thought it'd be. Wait...Tian province...that means...
"The highest rated one?"
"Yeah, we'll sell them for more than they're worth."
"We'll reach there by the end of the day, though. That train ride was tiring." A sigh.
Judging by the sun in the sky, there's approximately 6 hours or so until we reach the Tian province. If that's so, then by that 6th hour we'd already be at the red light district and sold to that brothel, Sin pulled away from the wood and turned to face the girls.
Another one had woken up, and she looked frightened when she saw herself in this situation. She stared at Sin with fearful brown eyes, threatening to cry.
Sin pressed a finger to her lip to tell her to be silent, then glanced over at the one that had been awake before her. She was looking over at the exorcist now.
The female exorcist moved forward and crawled over to them, making sure her voice was quiet, "Were you guys taken too?" She whispered.
Following her quiet voice, the other two girls nodded, one quite fervently, and the other, once.
The deathly pale woman spoke first, "They took me when I was taking a walk."
"T-they...I, I don't remember..." The 2nd girl wailed, clamping her hands over her mouth.
"I was taken at a train station." Sin sighed and patted the wailing girl on her back. "There are 3 more that need to wake up." She tilted her head to the other three that were still on the floor. "I don't have any intention of being sold to a brothel of any sort, so I'm going to get us out of here."
"How...?" The pale woman seemed to pale further, if that was possible. "We're stuck in this carriage and we don't have anything that can help us get out of here."
"Yes we do." Sin was serious. She unbuttoned her coat and showed them the inside, where she wore the Order's uniform. "I'm an exorcist. I have a weapon that can get us out of here."
The two others seemed to stare at her in awe.
"...do you have a plan?" The pale one asked.
"Yes, I do." Sin answered confidently.
Except, I've only figured out half of the details...
"What's your plan?"
Sin paused for a moment and stared at the other three girls. She would fill them in later, but she'll tell the first two.
"Of course, my plan is to escape. I don't want anyone to be sold anywhere against their will. First, I'll give a little background as to where we are and what's happening.
"Right now, we're in China, specifically the bamboo forests that are on the edges of the Tian and Jin province. While eavesdropping on the two people at the front of the carriage, it seems that we're going to a high ranking brothel in the red light district in the Tian province, which will take until the end of the day to arrive. So putting it simply, we'll arrive at nightfall. At that time, they'll be selling us all into that brothel, so we can't do it right there when it'll cause too much of a disruption." Sin paused for a moment, observing the expressions of the two that she explained to. They nodded to tell her that they understood.
"So, my plan is this. We'll get out of here before we get to the red light district. Around evening, before nightfall and before we enter the red light district, we'll get out. I'll destroy the cart and you all will escape." Sin explained.
"Where will we go if we escape?" The previously wailing girl had calmed down and looked interested and worried at the same time.
"The people that live in the area separate to the red light district are very nice people, and they'll help you if you are in trouble. If you're in doubt about them, go to the Huang estate. They'll help you." Sin assured.
"You seem to know a lot about this place." The pale girl pointed out.
Sin tittered, "I grew up there, so I know my way around it."
...and many other parts around China, too, Sin kept to herself.
"I see. That makes sense," The pale girl sighed, "It's a relief that they got someone like you, though, or we'd really be in trouble."
Sin couldn't agree more, but found that it was a little hard to accept the conditions in which she was taken for. It could have been something worse, like a murder.
Thanks the Gods that didn't happen, Sin shuddered at the thought.
"When the other three wake up, I'll inform them of the plan. They're bound to wake up soon. Unfortunately, we can't do anything until we reach a populated place, so all we can do is make sure we get the timing right when evening falls." The exorcist tapped her finger onto the floorboards. "How far into the evening; I'd say around halfway before nightfall. So it'll be considerably darker, but not so dark that we won't be able to see. It'll be dangerous, so I need you two to make sure that you are very careful."
The two Asian girls nodded.
"...you're definitely not just a normal one, are you?" The pale one half questioned half stated.
"Pardon me?" Sin blinked a couple of times. She was normal, no?
"Other women caught in this mess wouldn't be like you, with so much composure. I've watched you since you woke up. You don't seem surprised or at all shaken." The other elaborated.
"Is that so?" Sin raised her brows. "I guess I'm just trying to get myself out of this mess."
"You're almost like a hero." The woman let out a gentle giggle, which surprised Sin due to her stoic composure before. "I'm glad you're here with us."
"I'm...no hero." Sin shook her head. "I'm just another passer-by."
-----
"What about her golem?" Reever questioned. He heard the gist of the situation from Komui, who was working tirelessly.
It had been a while since he's seen him like that, but because it was like this that he knew that some things were currently not in good condition.
Such is the fact with the missing exorcist Suman Dark, as well as another missing exorcist, Sin Diae. Suman was a different matter altogether with different circumstances to Sin, who had disappeared.
"I tried contacting her through her golem but it wasn't turned on. If she remembers that she has the golem she'll turn it on and we'll know where she is." Komui shuffled through some papers on his desk.
Reever sighed through his nose, feeling even Komui's stress build on his own.
It had been a couple of days since Sin had disappeared. During that time, there were many casualties of both exorcists and Finders, the result of the Earl's forces. Six Innocences were destroyed, six exorcists and 142 Finders were killed.
Needless to say, the Order was currently doing everything it could.
"Branch Chief, Hevlaska would like to see you." Komui's golem buzzed through the intercom. It was one of the Great Generals.
"I'll be right there." Komui sighed heavily to himself when the intercom buzzed off. He headed to the lower levels where Hevlaska lay, using the huge machine to arrive.
"What did you want to tell me, Hevlaska?" Komui walked up to where the giant exorcist was, seeing her familiar glow.
"Do not worry about Sin. She's alive." The Cube's protector informed.
"She's fine? How do you know that?" Komui questioned.
"Her Innocence...I can feel it..." She spoke, almost as if she were in slight discomfort.
"Hevlaska?" Komui worried. She didn't respond, but seemed to be back to normal within a moment.
It seems as if she's always keeping an eye out for Sin? Komui thought for a moment. He already knew that, but judging by how Hevlaska acted like this, it seemed more than just being worried for her.
-----
Tyki let out a long, long sigh. Although he enjoyed his double life as a Noah and human, he felt as if he just wanted to stay with his human friends. He'd been gone from them far too long.
"Why the long sigh, Lord Noah?" One of the akuma that was with him questioned the male. He was nervous about being around a Noah, but forced himself to calm down for the sake of his master.
"It's nothing." Tyki responded. He felt bored, to be very honest. Right now, he was taking a walk through China. Normally he'd take the ark because of convenience, but right now, all he wanted to do was walk mindlessly.
"You can go now." The male instructed for the akuma to go with a wave of his gloved hand.
"Okay, Lord Noah!" And with that, the akuma went off.
Finally, some peace and quiet.
Tyki arrived at the city of the Tian province. He was going to go through it and to the Jin province, where he believed Suman was currently.
It shouldn't be too long before he becomes a Fallen One.
"Hm?" Tyki stopped walking when he heard a loud noise, seeing a crowd form around something. He was taller than most people, which was advantageous in situations like these, where he could see what was happening.
Is that a carriage? Tyki walked a bit closer.
Indeed it was a carriage, led by two horses. However, the carriage had been sliced into a few pieces, leaving it to crumble to the ground in a heap mass of wood. Two men were shouting at each other in Chinese, pointing in every direction angrily.
What happened here? Tyki wondered. He shrugged and continued forward, but someone bumped into him as he advanced. He glanced down, seeing that the person was much smaller than himself, but taller than Road.
"Ah, sorry." The person nodded their hat at him in apology before going off in a fast paced walk opposite of the crowd.
He wasn't able to see their face, but their voice struck familiarity.
The Noah watched as the person went off, discarding their hat and making a run for it, looking back once.
She had gone too far for him to see her face, however, there was a gleam of blue from her earring, before she turned around and continued running.