(A/N): Well hi there. This time I updated sooner than I thought, maybe because I'm in the mood for writing. Ok, so here is your new chapter, I just hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: Maybe someday Chrno will be mine. I said someday and when I say that I mean in a remote future (sniff).

Chapter 18:

Dive

"What are you planning?" smirked the fortune teller when both Contractors ran in separate ways. She knew that whatever they tried wouldn't work against her but it would be fun to see them fail after they had gotten so far. Anyways, the jewel witch was down, the Apostle was on her side, and her major threat: Chrno, was useless in his sealed form. Everything went according to planned; perfect.

"GO!" screamed the Sinner as he took a drainpipe that lied on one side of the battlefield and watched his Contractor head to where her gun was, ´ Rosette be careful...´

´ Hurry! Hurry!´ thought Rosette as her feet thumped against the floor as she ran. Things would be easier if she recovered her pistol, one way or another, she would save Azmaria.

´ Just hand in a while longer Az! ´

Speaking of the devil... Azmaria who was under a spirit's spell turned to where the running militia was. She smirked as her silvery locks hovered about her face and then in the time a heart beat takes she had lunged herself against the blonde.

Rosette was just able to evade the assault, throw herself for her gun, take it, and roll back up. She pointed the weapon at Charity who eyed her nastily. Though she wouldn't pull the trigger. Even it was Azmaria's body it weren't her actions and she could really hurt her.

Azmaria chuckled, "Come on! Try and shoot me!" and after saying that she quickly vanished before her eyes. Rosette's eyes widened at this as she looked around in amazement, ´ Where did she...´

Suddenly she heard something behind her and turned, only to meet with the Apostle's dim eyes and a huge smirk which showed otherworldly fangs, "This is bad..." Then she saw rocks, which because of the spirit's power were levitated and aimed at her, just like earlier. Rosette jumped away from the material's reach and took as an advantage that a cloud of dust was making her invisible to her foe eyes. So she ran to where she wouldn't be spotted and when the dust dissipated Azmaria could only see the rocks that had crashed on the floor but there was no trace of Rosette.

She looked around angrily and trying to find her prey but she never expected Rosette to jump on her from the back and crash her against the floor, holding her tightly and her body pressing against the young girl's. "Control yourself Azmaria!" she screamed as the Apostle struggled beneath her and trying to get free from her grasp. Charity screamed and tried to kick Rosette from her as she tossed and turned but not being able to getting the militia from on top. She screamed and groaned with fury but then she felt a sudden pain in her body as if she was losing control of it by the sound of Rosette's voice. Rosette gasped when she noticed Azmaria's eyes returning to normal in an instant and then turning back into the dim pools they had become. She looked scared there for an instant and then turned back into the hostile creature she was at the moment. Rosette had taken the precautions of bringing with her some holy weapons besides from her gun and drew a cross barrier from her dress and placed it next to Azmaria's left hand. She repeated her action as she placed three more cross barriers around the girl's body and then when the four were in their places around the Apostle, blue rays of energy were aimed around her as a ray of light formed beneath the Apostle with the figure of a cross. Rosette jumped away from the energy rays and panted. She could see the girl struggling to break free but at every movement she was shocked and emitted a scream of pain.

When the girl finally stopped moving or trying to break free Rosette went closer to her, she could see her eyes had gone white and saliva was trailing down her mouth. A gesture of total pain and sorrow marked her features but the spirit inside Azmaria's body didn't leave.

"It's no good... I can't remove the spirit with angels... but if I use something more powerful her body won't... What should I do...? What should I do? "

She then heard a scream and a loud booming sound. She turned and gasped when she spotted Chrno's bloody body crashing against a wall after being hit by a ray of energy that the fortune teller had aimed at him.

"Chrno!"

The old woman chuckled and turned her attention to the girl, "The spirit is a ´mind eater´. It can read the mind of people that were possessed by it and become that person. At this point... the only option you have is... to Dive."

Rosette turned to Azmaria's stiff body, sweat streaming down her temple, "You mean the technique used to dive in other bodies to remove evil spirits..?" ´ Though I'm not good at it...´

The old woman nodded, "You will need to know the difficulty you will pass through... things won't be solved by just triggering a gun..." she smirked.

Rosette looked hesitant as she stared at Azmaria's face who apparently was in pain, sweat poured down her forehead and down her neck, she knew that Az was going through a harder time that she was right now, " But... this isn't the time... for me to whine... 'cause in front of me..." she looked at Azmaria carefully and clenched her teeth.

Chrno got up from the spot he had been launched at and called his Contractor, when she turned to face him he nodded at her, "Believe Rosette..."And after saying that he took hold of his weapon and ran once again to battle the fortune teller who forgot about Rosette and took her time to battle the devil.

Rosette whispered Chrno's name and then turned back to the moaning Apostle but then she felt her face drop, "But... I don't have the equipment here!"

She hit the ground with her fist and cursed loudly. How was she supposed to use "Dive" if she didn't have the machine that allowed her to use that technique?

Rosette then crawled to Azmaria's side and placed herself on top once again as she looked at her directly. She placed her hand on her chest and closed her eyes, "Az, can you hear me? It's me, Rosette, remember?"

There was no reply from the albino haired girl below her. Rosette sighed, "Listen Az ... I need you to help me here. I know you are strong, don't give up, just give me a little from your power, you'll see it's useful! Come on!"

Rosette shook her slightly and continued saying encouraging words until she heard the girl whisper her name with a weak tone, "Az!"

The girl's eyes recovered their crimson color as she turned to meet the militia's ocean orbs, "Ro ... sette... Is it... over yet...?"

The blonde smiled as she caressed her cheek, "Almost Azzy, but first I need your help... you must be strong and lend me some power... please... you'll see... your powers are able to help and bring good luck even to yourself too."

Azmaria forced as smile but then she grunted in pain and fainted once again as the mind eater's powers flooded her senses once again, the power of the cross barriers was weakening, she had to act fast. She then held onto Az's body tighter and closed her eyes, she could feel a strange current of energy to channel through her veins as she held onto the Apostle, then she took a deep breath and screamed, "DIVE!"

What Rosette saw next can't be really described by words, as a flash of light blinded her eyes she could feel herself less heavy in some way and found herself wearing no clothes. She looked at her body, it seemed slightly different, she couldn't quite describe how she felt... as if she was going to evaporate at any instant, and then she spotted a strange cordon surging from the back of her head. It was some kind of umbilical cordon, kind of. She frowned as she stared at her hands, they looked... a bit fuzzy and she couldn't make out her feet, if she still had. She then knew what had happened, she had made it. With the help of Azmaria's powers she was able to use Dive correctly and now, her soul had entered Azmaria's.

"Perfect!" she said clenching her fist and smiling victoriously. Then she looked around trying to make out where she was. She sweatdropped as she saw... nothing, "Great... now where am I supposed to go...?"

Suddenly she noticed some rays of light coming from below and illuminating the lower part of her body, the place where her feet used to be. She didn't think of it twice before plunging herself into the light, and then in the time a blink of an eye takes, the scenery changed before her eyes.

She could see a large valley, which seemed not to have limits and in the distance two tall mountains towered like buildings and looked blurry because of the clouds and fog covering their tops. Rosette's attention was spiked by the valley itself, whose dry wheat was covered with gravestones with the forms of crosses. The only way into the valley was by going through a black, rusted gate just as tall as the two mountains in the background and surrounding the, now Rosette knew what is was, graveyard was a fence made of stone. A damp smell reached Rosette's nose and she could see that it had been raining in there since there were droplets trailing down the bars in the gate, puddles were scattered everywhere, and the grass was filled with dew.

"So... this is Azmaria's inner conscience?" she said to herself. Then she spotted a figure standing in the graveyard before a grave while wearing a black tunic and covering itself from the raindrops with a broken and old umbrella, "There she is!"

Rosette landed softly before the gate, she could finally make out the figure's face, it was indeed Azmaria! She looked so pale and gloomy, her gesture matched the somber ambient too.

"Azmaria! Look over here! Azmaria! If you don't come with me you'll fully... hey, are you even listening!" she screamed shaking the gate with her hands.

A dark and rough voice reached her ears, "It's no use." She turned and gasped when she saw another Azmaria, though this one looked evil, just like she looked when she was possessed.

"Mind... eater?" ´It already read her memory and went this deeply into her conscience!´

Suddenly Rosette felt fingers beneath her and when she turned she saw hands surging from the floor, she gasped and struggled to free herself though those hands held her tightly and didn't allow her to break loose.

"That's because I like... this new body."

Rosette gasped and turned back at her foe, ´ New body...? Maybe... can this be the soul from the devil we fought earlier? I remember Chrno mentioned something...´

"This white skin, charming hair, and most of all, her hidden powers... but her soul is full of fear..."

Rosette returned her attention to the "evil version of Azmaria" as she brushed her long silver locks with her fingers, "What is she... afraid of?"

Mind eater smirked, "Herself."

Rosette gasped and turned to the other Azmaria inside the graveyard who seemed emotionless and didn't seem to notice their conversation.

"That child... somewhere in her heart she fears her own power... that's because it always brought misfortune to others. She was always alone because her ignorant relatives despised her... And now she wasn't able to help her comrades since she's weak..."

The other Azmaria now seemed to be hearing their conversation as she lowered her face, rain droplets trickling down her face and hair, Rosette couldn't take her eyes away from her.

" Oh I hate to see weak souls who only know how to fear... she doesn't deserve a body like this! Ha ha ha ha ha!"

Rosette was far beyond pissed now, how did that lousy scum dare insult Azmaria! She clenched her fists against the metal bars of the gate making them shake and snarled, "Shut up... I need to talk to Azmaria!" she turned at mind eater angrily, her cheeks red with fury and canines bared. Mind eater was taken aback by her sudden response and looked slightly shocked. The other Azmaria seemed to have heard her and looked back up. Rosette turned to her, " Azmaria... Azmaria are you listening? There are lots of things I'm afraid of, but in times, those can't be solved by yourself alone. You are strong! Remember? If it weren't because of your strength I wouldn't be able to be here and help you! I wouldn't have been able to use Dive and you see... that proves your powers can be used for good! You don't have to afraid of them or using them to hurt us! Come on!"

Rosette's eyes widened when the hands that had surged from the floor and held her feet continued coming out but it wasn't only hands thins time, it was also their body! They looked like Azmaria though their eyes were red and long fangs surged from their mouths. Many of those hostile spirits crept onto her body and held her captive against their grasp, making her lose balance and fall against the stony floor.

"Didn't I tell you it was no use!" whispered to her ear a smirking mind eater.

Rosette, resigned to her foe's words, crept toward the gate once more, the other spirits crowding over her and keeping her limbs captive. She forced her right arm away from a demon's grasp and stretched it through the bars, trying to reach Azmaria, "I'm... going to find my brother... going... somewhere far...! Just like you he had trouble solving his problems about his power... And Joshua lost... You two are alike...!"

Memories of Joshua with Chrno's horns reached her mind as she forced herself to reach Azmaria once again but failing miserably.

Mind eater stared at her dumbfounded, "You... can still move?"

"But... if you think how you used your powers was bad... then let's find a way to solve that. You can't stand there forever and stop!" she reached toward her with her hand and tried sending some sense into the girl's mind.

"I'll be by your side! Chrno and Satella too! So please come back!"

Two hands were joined when Azmaria turned, with tears streaming down her eyes, and took hold of Rosette's stretched limb.

What's important is... to accept your fear and overcome it...

Velvety wings surged from the Apostle's back and at the sight of that sacred sign, the spirits that held Rosette vanished with a cloud of black smoke and the graveyard and gate separating them was shattered into pieces like a window that reflects reality and divided it from fantasy.

The reflection of Azmaria's feelings, was now broken, and soon it would be fixed, but now the reflection would be different, it would show a happy and luminous valley, a new world.

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Chrno evaded with his drainpipe a ray of energy that was aimed by the fortune teller. Sparkles from the attack hovered around him as he panted and tried to not to be hurt gravely. Suddenly a ray of light coming from his right caught his eyes and he turned, the old lady too, and stared with surprise when a screaming spirit escaped from Azmaria's body which emitted a strong flash and her angel wings seemed to appear on her back.

"Too Bright! Bright! The light is... this power...! Vanishing... vanishing..."

The strange creature flew back to the fortune teller's side and seemed to be whispering something to her ear as its form seemed to be deteriorating. Though Chrno didn't care as he ran toward his precious Contractor and comrade.

He took the blonde in his arms and shook her gently, "Rosette... Rosette!" The exorcist's eyes fluttered open when she heard his voice and stared at him with wide eyes, sweat streaming down her face and past the swollen wound in her head.

All things seemed blurry at first but then two very familiar crimson eyes made her lips quiver, "Chrno..."

The devil smiled, happy to see she was alright but then she tried to get up in a flash, worry expressed in her face, "That's right! Azmaria...?"

Then she stopped dead in her sentence when she saw the albino haired girl standing before her, smiling, and covered by long velvety wings. Azmaria looked at Rosette as tears of happiness trailed down her face, "Thank you Rosette... thank you..."

She hovered toward her, with her arms outstretched and hugged her rescuer tightly. Rosette returned the embrace as she smiled with pride, "I'm glad... that you're okay Az... you are strong..."

Azmaria nodded, more crystalline tears streaming down her face and her cheeks flushed, "Yes Rosette, thanks to you..."

They finally got separated and looked into each other's eyes but then the laughter from the fortune teller made them turn back at her. The woman started clapping sarcastically, as an evil smirk was spreaded across her face, "Well done, you saved one of your friends but will that be enough?"

Chrno's eyes turned sharp as cat's, "What do you mean with that you old hag!"

Their enemy chuckled, "I mean, look at yourself. All of you are so weak and tired with all the effort of using Dive and you for fighting against me. This will be an easy battle, I'll kill you all one by one, starting with you... Rosette Christopher. You've become a major bother for my plans and me and it seems you are this Sinner's weak point," she said pointing at the blonde.

Rosette seemed a bit surprised at her words and turned to Chrno who was snarling, Azmaria held onto Rosette's chest protectively, ´I have to protect Rosette... just as she protected me...!´

"I'll get rid of you girl first..."

Chrno tightened his hold on his weapon, canines beared and stood before both females, "Over my dead body..."

The old woman chuckled, "Why that's what I was planning."

Mind eater's spirit turned to the fortune teller with a frown, "Hey... you said I would be able to get a nice and powerful body if I followed your orders, Well, now my real body's an empty shell thanks to you and I haven't become stronger. I want you to keep your promise!"

The old woman turned to the floating fume and eyes it nastily, "And why do you suggest I shall keep that promise if you couldn't even destroy that girl?"

Mind eater snarled and lunged itself toward the old woman "You traitor!"

"Fool..." she whispered as she aimed a ray of energy toward the spirit and after hitting it and followed by a earsplitting scream, it vanished before their eyes.

"She... killed her own comrade..." whispered Azmaria in shock.

The fortune teller returned her attention to them and smirked when she noticed their surprised expressions, "Why the gloomy faces?"

"You low life bastard! How could you... betray your own comrade?" screamed Rosette pointing her gun at her.

Azmaria stopped her as she placed her hands on Rosette's, "Wait Rosette! Remember that lady's possessed too! If you shoot her you will kill her not the demon!"

Rosette sighed in defeat and lowered her pistol, then she cursed, "Shit... but it will be impossible to use Dive on her... then what am I supposed to do...?"

Chrno noticed his Contractor's puzzled expression and but his lower lip, "Girls, you find a way to get rid of these barrier with the help of any of Satella's jewels, I'll get rid of her."

"But the jewels she has are not functional against Abundant October since they have other functions!"

"I don't care! You can use your Sacreds too but try anything. Use Azmaria's powers, anything! Just break the barrier!"

Rosette swallowed a knot in her throat, it was scary when Chrno got some angry, she didn't wish to piss him more so she compelled to his directions, "Okay, I'll try. I brought a Gospel so maybe it can help."

"Better save that until the end, if there's no other reason, then do it, but I'm afraid that if you use it, the whole place might explode, with us."

Azmaria gasped, "Then... what to do...?"

Rosette winked the Apostle to get her to cheer up, "Don't worry Az, that'll be just in case of a real emergency ok?"

The albino haired girl nodded relieved, "Okay, I'll try my best," and with that she headed to where Satella laid fainted.

Rosette got up too and was about to follow the young girl but stopped and turned back to Chrno, "Are you sure you'll be alright?"

He smiled at her, "Of course, you just have to believe in me, 'cause I believe in you."

She returned the grin, though she could feel as the heat covered her cheeks, he looked so cute when he smiled and sounded biblical, "I believe in you too, but I'll come to your aid if things get nasty."

He nodded and watched her head to where the two other girls were, the he turned their foe, "I will ask you one question..."

"Oh... and what could that be?"

"About that mind eater... what did you do to it? What did you promise, for what reason?"

The old woman chuckled, "I tricked it. That was a weak demon who wanted more power so I told it that if it was under my service I would give it a stronger body and so I used his other body as a puppet."

"The empty shell we fought earlier..." whispered Chrno more to himself than to her.

"Indeed and I thought it would be useful for him to have the Apostle's body so it would be strong enough and get rid of your precious Contractor. That way it would be easy to kill you since it would affect you. Though it seemed he was very weak and stupid to carry pout with that difficult task, it seemed the power of God was too much for him it weakened him more so it was way easy to get rid of it once and for all. I have the ability to aim rays of astral energy and us it as an attack at a great speed. I used it like a weapon against the jewel witch and then I placed mind eater's spirit on the attack's place and aim it at the Apostle so it would be easy for him to enter her body, if he had tried in another way, the sacred power inside that girl would have killed it. Though it seems he was worthless after all."

"You low life creep..."

"Calm down Chrno, you are next on my list! Ha ha ha!"

Chrno clenched his teeth but then he gazed at her foe in surprise when she stopped laughing and started coughing loudly. She moaned and held her throat tightly as sweat poured down her old features. He could see she was struggling against something in her inside, like Azmaria against mind eater, but what was it now?

Rosette also stared in awe at the scene before her, the fortune teller was fighting against herself and cursing someone silently as her condition got worse. Then she stopped moaning and moving and turned back at Chrno, though her eyes seemed different, they were dim, and looked, in some way... human.

Tears welled up in the fortune teller's eyes as the salty material trailed down her face, "Please... I beg of you... please kill... me..."

Chrno, Rosette, and Azmaria were speechless, did they hear what they just thought they heard? Rosette was confused as she looked at her demon companion in worry, ´ What the... Did she just ask for us to kill her? What's going on... Chrno... what will you do...?´

(A/N): Chan chan! And there I end it because I'm evil! Phew, I updated fast this time and hope this chapter was interesting and worth the wait. I'll try to update just as quick but I don't promise anything and don't forget to review! Maybe that will get me to write mwhahahaha...