The Darkness Unveiled [DGM Wattyaward 2015 Winner]

Chapter 1

The Earl ran his fingers down the lid of the casket. It seemed to burst to life under his touch; he chuckled. "A few more days my precious Akuma. A few more days. ♡"

It had been sixteen years since he had finally captured it. Sixteen years of keeping it secret. Sixteen years suddenly about to be worth it.

"Earl-sama!" Road complained as she walked into the room, "I'm bored!"

"Then go play with Lero. ♡" The Earl said, too deep in thought to give her the time of day.

"No lero!" Lero screamed in a panic. Road pouted.

"But I wanna play with the exorcists."

"Road. You know the plan-♡"

"I know but still-"

"You can play with them all you want when they fall to their knees in surrender. ♡" The Earl removed his hand from the coffin and faced Road. She was smacking Lero's head against the floor.

"Stop! Lero! Stop!" The little umbrella had no control over the Noah's actions. She smirked at Lero. The coffin began to disappear amongst the shadows, back into its hiding.

"Road, go bug someone else." Tyki walked into the room. He was prepared for an assignment. She looked at him and brightened up a bit, only to become gloomy again.

"Aww Tyki, why do you get all the fun?" Road whined. She dropped Lero and proceeded to mess with Tyki. He sighed and looked towards the Earl for help.

The Earl laughed once more. "Road, there is plenty to be done to the game. Why don't you go fix it? ♡" Her face lit up again as she bent down, grabbed Lero, and ran off towards the direction of the Earl's new plan.

Tyki smiled and sat down. The Earl took up his knitting and continued on his project. "What would you like me to do, Lord Millenium?"

The Earl knitted on for a moment before stopping and looking towards Tyki. "Well, we need to invite the exorcists first. ♡"

***

Allen lay by the fire, curled up in the fetal position. 'Why do I feel like this?' He thought to himself. 'I'm no longer a child, yet I feel helpless all the same.' His friends lay asleep in various corners of the collapsed building. Lenalee was curled up as well and she seemed to be having a nightmare.

'I could just go comfort her, but what good could I be if I need comforting myself?' He rolled over and saw Cross. Tiedoll's story filled his head. A woman. Cross had fallen in love with one, single woman. In a way, his behavior made sense, but in another, it didnt. If he truly loved her, wouldn't he try to stay loyal to her, even in death?

Allen looked carefully at his master's face. It was sad and it appeared as though he had been crying. Pain that would have been seen in his eyes could be seen in his sleeping expression. Crinkled eyes, pursed lips, and the way his eyebrows came together. He moved his hand and carefully touched the Grave of Maria. A tear came to Allen's eyes.

For the first time, he was feeling remorse for the man that had beaten him and left him for dead. 'He is still a human.' The sudden thought entered his mind. Of course he was still human, otherwise his eye would have detected it. But still, who knew something so set in its ways could break down over the mention of a long forgotten memory?

Sitting up, Allen looked at his friends. Lenalee had calmed down and now looked as peaceful as the others.

"Can't sleep, Walker?" Allen turned and met eyes with Bookman. He was sitting upon a rock, watching over them. Making sure no harm came there way. Allen nodded; Bookman looked up at the sky. "I've been trying to make sense of the story. Something about it seems off."