Rosario + Vampire

Out of Nightmares…

Prologue

Nightmare Ending, Nightmare Beginning

"Learn your place."

As usual, the silence punctuating Moka Akashiya's trademark coup de grace lasted only so long as it took for the unconscious form of her foe to reach the pinnacle of his skyward arc and then fall limply onto the ground, lying still as a broken toy as his dark blood oozed onto the dusty ground. It was obvious that the silver-haired vampire had not bothered to restrain herself against this enemy, and had perhaps even ended the battle with even more force than could be considered necessary. Red eyes narrowed as she stared for a moment at the fallen monster, her fists clenching in rage as she took a step forward towards the body, murderous intent apparent as her sneer bared her fangs.

An unnatural growl made her draw up short, and she turned her head to stare at her next opponent. If bloodlust had radiated from her crimson eyes as she had gazed upon the fallen monster, it was now regret that dominated her expression as she turned to face Tsukune Aono. Her eyes flicked past him to the two still forms beyond him; obviously Mizore and Kurumu had failed in their efforts to restrain him. She would be alone in this fight, not that she needed any aid. Tsukune had never been able to rival her power and skill, though at this moment he would likely come close. Her classmate stared at her, the vertical pupils and crimson irises so different from his usual soft brown eyes, just as the primal hunger in his expression was a far cry from his typical kind smile and warm demeanor. Once again, he had been consumed by his inner demon, the ghoulish form that she had inadvertently imparted onto him over a year ago in an attempt to save his life from severe injuries he had earned trying to protect her.

"I don't suppose I can convince you to surrender." The ghoul that had been Tsukune said nothing, instead taking a shaky step forward, hands curling into claws. Moka smiled bitterly, her eyes flicking once again to the still form of Kurumu, the blue-haired succubus that had risked her life over and again for both the vampire and Tsukune. It was good that she wasn't conscious, as it would spare her the pain of witnessing the upcoming fight. No one deserved to see someone they cared about hurt in such a manner, but it was the only way. Moka saw no way to stop the ghoul, other than hurting him until he could no longer fight. Even then she would be lucky to restrain him, but she had run out of options.

Moka's eyes jerked open as Tsukune's form seemed to disappear from in front of her. Instincts screaming at her, she frantically dodged aside as the ghoul attacked from behind, a blow that would have opened her back. 'So fast! He's never-' The ghoul didn't pause, lashing at her with several remorseless strikes, each narrowly avoided. Snarling, Moka took advantage of his lack of defenses, striking with a powerful side kick. The ghoul had neither chance nor desire to protect itself, and the resulting collision sent him sprawling to the side. Even as Moka felt relief at taking back control of the fight, a sharp chill traveled up the leg that had struck the ghoul, manifesting as a blast of paralyzing fear as it reached her core. The vampire dropped to one knee, eyes wide at the unnatural panic. This had never happened before, and would undoubtedly serve to make an already difficult fight worse. As she struggled to overcome the fear she heard the ghoul returning to his feet, and forced herself upright.

In the instant that it took the ghoul to reach her, Moka realized that something had changed. She had fought Tsukune before, even in his ghoul form and out of control, but he had never been this ferocious. When she had trained Tsukune to fight using his repressed inner power, he had always been reserved, all but afraid to hurt her, as absurd as that notion was. Now, he fought with the power he had gained from that training, but without the concern for her safety that he had never been able to overcome. But that was not the extent of it, not by far. Dodging one swipe, and then another, she recalled something from the conflict that had led to this fight: an image of the monster she had just defeated holding Tsukune aloft, fingers pressing tightly against the then-human Tsukune's temples.

"Allow me to show you a true nightmare."

Moka realized that the monster had somehow changed Tsukune, and since she no longer knew what to expect from him she no longer had any choice. Subduing him quickly and thus brutally was the only path that could guarantee her victory. Her outer persona, the softer, loving Moka Akashiya., would grieve her friend's pain, but hopefully she would understand the necessity of what the vampire knew was the only way to end the fight. Carefully she analyzed the ghoul's attacks, watching for another opening, intending to end the fight with a single blow. She felt a surge of triumph as the ghoul overextended himself with a downward swing, leaving himself exposed. She moved around him, staying out of his vision, and then preparing to leap into the air, where she would-

Moka had not expected the second swing, a brutal roundhouse that had lost most of its momentum by the time it reached her, but still tore through her school uniform and into her side.

The vampire desperately flung herself away from him, hand falling to her wound while the other rose to her eyes. She felt another surge of fear, but this one was more easily understood. The second the ghoul had struck her, her vision had gone black, leaving her unable to fight back with her full power; no doubt this was another effect of the monster's attack upon Tsukune. Thanks to her ability to sense the killing intent of her opponents, she was capable of fending off the ghoul blind for a while, but her concern over the end of the battle grew. Faint light began to show at the edges of her vision, giving her hope that the unnatural blindness would quickly fade, but still there was the problem of avoiding attacks that-

Too fast! The ghoul was suddenly in range, her now-heavily-blurred vision revealing him drawing back for the fatal blow. She drew back, but felt her heel catch on a stone behind her; the ability to sense killing intent did nothing for her situational awareness, and she had made a fatal error in trusting the uneven ground. The vampire smiled grimly as she fell back, waiting for the end to come. It was only justice, that she be destroyed by the boy whose normal existence she had ended with an infusion of her own blood.

The final strike never came. After a moment, the silver-haired vampire rubbed desperately at her eyes, trying to restore sight to them as she listened to the ghoul growl in impotent rage. When her vision finally cleared enough, she looked up to witness the ghoul straining to reach her, bound from head to feet with thick cords of darkness. Beyond Tsukune she could see a person standing with head lowered, chanting an incantation that kept the ghoul constrained. The dark-haired witch seemed barely able to keep the ghoul in check, but Ruby poured her energy into it, eyes tightly closed in concentration. Beside her was a man all in white, face hidden underneath his cowl, whose hand was rising to the crucifix he wore at his throat.

With a flash of light, a bubble of scintillating energy appeared around Tsukune, and he instantly froze in place. Ruby slumped in exhaustion, her efforts to contain the ghoul's power no longer necessary. Moka watched as the man in white, the Headmaster of Yokai Academy, turned to speak to the witch. "We will deal with him in a more suitable location. I will entrust you with the care of his friends." His eyes darted to the side, seeing Moka rise to her feet with an indignant expression. "But first…"

With a gesture from the Headmaster, the vampire's rosario, removed and cast aside early in the battle, rose from the ground and flew towards her. Moka barely had time to realize his intent before the cross-shaped pendant, the seal upon her vampiric powers, returned to its usual place at the base of her throat. As Moka returned to her accustomed form, the cloaked figure turned back to Ruby. "They are in your hands. I will see what can be done for the boy." With a wave of his hand, an explosion of light erupted from the dome that surrounded Tsukune, dispelling the thick fog that had hung over the battlefield. When the light faded, both the Headmaster and the ensnared ghoul had vanished.

Ruby gave Moka a remorseful glance before running towards the still forms of Kurumu and Mizore, hoping that she was not too late to rescue them from their serious wounds. The now-sealed vampire paid her no mind, however, instead staring at the bare earth where Tsukune had last stood. "Tsu… Tsukune?" Tears rolled unnoticed down her face as she tried to will him back to her, to see his smiling face again, to hear his confident voice. He would not appear, had been taken from her, and his last words echoed in her head as despair began to overtake her. "TSUKUNE!"

Then silence reigned over the emptied battlefield, interrupted only by the occasional heart-wrenching sob.

Author's Note: First of all, though it hardly be so as this comes at the end of this section, let me offer fair warning: I am despicably lazy. What has begun here is a new project of mine, started tonight as a matter of fact, and one that I will pursue with my usual diligence… a rather depressing notion, that. This prologue, begun in media res, is the first chunk of a rather large story that I've plotted out over the course of a day, though I don't hold much optimism that the rest of the project will proceed with such haste. Perhaps, I say with all the false humility of most authors scrabbling to scrape the bottom of the bowl of praise, feedback will offer me the impetus I need to push further into this project, though I curse my honesty when I must admit that not even that is guaranteed (See: Despicably Lazy).

On to the story itself. I have grand-ish plans for this nascent story, which may or may not be a two-parter: the first, rather elaborate section being focused upon the action and romantic conflict that occur both before and after this prologue, emphasis on romantic conflict, while the second one would be a matter of self-indulgence and sap, with perhaps (le gasp) a little citrus, if you know what I mean. I am a writer who tends to be rather obsessive about staying as close to the canon as possible (which ultimately will not be entirely possible, considering my goals for this tale), so the only major new character that will be introduced for this will almost certainly be the villain, who, I lament to add, is not due all that much character development (Honestly, this is based on a villain-of-the-week styled manga, what do you expect?) Instead, that development will be focused on some of Tsukune's potential paramours. Oh, and for the sake of not losing those who have not sought out all of the manga available, a note on the chronology: this story will take place after Part 2, Ch. 17 at least (The Orchid Dream, a very significant moment in Kurumu's development and one I will be alluding to; The Snow Priestess arc is similarly crucial for Mizore). If you have not read this far, and hate spoilers, abandon all hope ye who enter here. I don't intend to hold back, starting with the very next section.

And, for the sake of transparency, a note on the intended pairings, should this infant tale ever reach puberty. Well. Let me note that the true inspiration for this project is a rather depressing conclusion I've reached about this manga, being that Tsukune will ultimately end up with Moka, only. Monogamy. In a harem anime. BLECH, depressing. (Imagine Kurumu or Mizore going away in tears as a 'happy' ending. Not for me, I say.) Being unsatisfied with that notion, and a card-carrying wielder of The Tenchi Solution, I have resolved to handle the matter with my favored Kill(Marry,rather)-'Em-All approach to anime romance (which tends to involve far more cuddling and conflict than a single pairing, and for many of us, that's the guilty pleasures that drive us to these stories.) So, Tsukune x Moka/Kurumu/Mizore. Ruby and Yukari will not be included in the shipping, though I won't specifically aim to cast them off; its more a matter of neither of them being developed enough for my tastes in shipping (and by developed, I mean something different for both of them). Pulling off the rather daunting task of marinating a semblance of the series' status quo whilst still developing three separate and 'slightly' conflicting romances? Again, no guarantees of success, or even good progress…

But, if it was easy, why bother?

Oh, and of course: All characters and settings contained within this story belong to Akihisa Ikeda and his publisher. Should my humble work offend those great beings, I offer only my apologies, as a quick glance at my bank account will reveal I am capable of surrendering little else. Imitation is praise, so let me offer that as my motive.

~Wynn P.