Of Ink and Crosses |Mina||BITTER|

[B I T T E R Anodyne]

• Even if history is written by the heartless, only the winners can put the pages splattered with blood on the shelvesâ?¦​
  
  Panting, as steam rose from every breath he took, a black and red shape shot through the darkness, booted footsteps loud on the cobbled street. His sides ached from pain; one nasty Akuma attack could have taken his lower right stomach right out, leaving a gaping hole. How that wouldnâ??t be fun at all, nor healthy. Swinging around his hammer, the single bottle green eye narrowed in concentration; he was usually sent along with his mentor on missions, but still, they had to split up; apparently, there was some commotion in the town a few stops behind, an Akuma Infection that Bookman could deal with by himself. Or so he said that â??His stupid apprentice might as well get a backbone and a sense of responsibility,â?? and kicked him onto the train. So, now here the Bookman Junior was, dodging wild shots fired from Level I and the specialized attacks from Level II. So far, no Level IIIs or IVs, which was very, very good in his opinion.
  
  â??Heh.â? He muttered to himself, bowing a cloud of steam, wrapping his Exorcist jacket of black and crimson tighter around his body. â??Brrâ?¦Cold.â? He murmured to himself; fingerless gloves were not suitable for this kind of weather, but he couldnâ??t complain, as a bullet filled with Akuma poison hit the area that he was standing a heartbeat before. Returning the attack, he sent the head of his hammer through the metallic monster, spinning seals dancing around his head. â??Å?zuchi Kozuchiâ?¦Grow, grow, grow!â? Smashing down a Level II that oddly resembled a mold, the redhead landed on the mallet of his hammer, running his hands through the wild mane of red, held back by the bandana.
  
  â??Innocenceâ?¦Should be around here somewhereâ?¦â? The report spoke of strange phenomenon occurring near a statue in the middle of an Italian town, that the water in the fountain below the statue would remain unfrozen during the winter and frozen even in the hottest days of winter. And nowâ?¦ It was becoming agitated, creatures made of ice and snow would stalk the town, terrorizing the inhabitants. If it wasnâ??t Akumaâ?¦It should be Innocence, and with the number of pests right now, Lavi could safely conclude it should be Innocence.
  
  â??Man, couldnâ??t they send me to Egypt or somewhere in this weather?â? He grumbled to himself, heading towards the city square; at this dead of night and the weather, no one in their right mind would be out. His hand gripped the handle of his hammer, edging closer towards the abstract statue, made of curves and rings, though a glint of something in the middle of all the stone caught his eye. Could that be itâ?¦?[/list:u]