A/N I am feeling ill today. No, I'm not sick, I just read the raws for the last chapter of the manga. All I can say is, BLARGH!

"Um, she's not appearing in this fic, is she, Author-san?"

No, Tsukune, I'm sticking with the OC's I've created, as I'm quite happy with them. Very happy, even.

"Hey Al, I didn't know you had any sisters."

"She's, not my sister."

"You sure? She definitely takes after your old man."

"Did you have to bring him up?"

What he said. And as always, I do not own Rosario + Vampire or Castlevania. They are the licensed properties of Ikeda Akihisa and Konami respectfully. So, while I try to recover from grand debacle that just happened, on with the show.

"Warning, the following chapter contains scenes of intense and unabashed narcissism. The easily offended need not read."

Yeah, thanks Mizore-chan.

"No charge."

Part II Chapter V
The Grand Fall

Moka looked on as Yukari continued to wail helplessly at what had become of her fellow witch, something the daiyoukai knew she'd personally caused. She was aghast at what she'd done, but even more so by her classmate's brokenness. She slowly walked forward towards the smaller girl. "Yukari-chan," she began tentatively as she reached out with her right hand.

"Get away from me!" the young witch shrieked as she spun around and viciously slapped away the vampire's hand, as bitter, angry tears flowed from her violet eyes. "How dare you do this to Ruby-san! You could've killed her back there, how could you! Don't you care about Ruby-san?" She turned back to her fallen friend. "Well I do, and I'm not talking to you anymore! So leave me alone!" The child prodigy then buried her small head in her fellow witch's shoulder once more, mortified over what had befallen her.

Moka merely stood in mute shock for several seconds, her mouth slightly agape and her oddly-colored eyes widened in response. Even though she was stunned Yukari had actually lashed out at her, privately she'd didn't blame her after what happened earlier. She grimaced in mental anguish, and tightly folded her arms under her chest, as she desperately tried to will the pain and guilt away.

Kurumu stood dumbfounded, unsure about how to soothe her friend's obvious pain. She looked to Mizore, who wore a similar expression on her pale face. The yuki onna also looked away, a great sense of helplessness about her. Michiru looked amongst the three, then to the grieving girl on the floor. Realizing none of them had to stepped forward, she took the initiative and approached the despondent girl. She stopped short of her body and knelt down beside her.

"Yukari-san," she began gravely.

"Go away," the child prodigy muttered bitterly.

The former PSC agent didn't react, unsurprised by the witch's sullen response. "Yukari-san, I know you're appalled at what just happened, but think about what happened for this."

The child prodigy looked up to her, sadness and confusion on her face.

"Whatever entity possessed Toujyou-san only did so after it sensed Lord Shuzen's aura. And I don't doubt had she managed to escape the room, she would've immediately targeted him. Can you imagine how disastrous it would've been had she attacked him instead? Think of how he would've reacted if he discovered we brought the whip of Belmont here."

Yukari gasped in shock, horrified at the concept. She covered her mouth, and privately admitted she hadn't considered the possibility that Ruby would've attacked someone other than them. She looked to Michiru, then back to her fellow witch on the floor, and cringed at the thought of her attacking the Third Dark Lord as she had Moka. "Ruby-san!" she all but shrieked as she tightly clung to the fallen woman with all the physical strength in her prepubescent body.

The lone vampire in the room looked gravely at the smaller girl, and let her arms fall to her sides. "She's right, Yukari," she began in a low voice. "Ruby vowed to kill Chichi-ue." She shivered fearfully as she wrapped her arms around herself. "I couldn't, let that happen! He would've killed her without a second thought, and that's only if she got by Neesan and Aneue first."

Mizore's mouth gaped open, and her lollipop fell onto the floor as she envisioned the scenario Moka had suggested. "Oh crap," she exclaimed with a blank look of shock, "I hadn't thought of that. They probably would've wasted us, too."

"You're right, it is our duty as Chichi-ue's daughters to defend him from any possible threats." She sniffled lightly as she looked to the young brunette kneeling on the floor. "So hate me if you must, Yukari. But believe me, the last thing I want is for any of you to die."

The child prodigy looked to the floor, troubled by her conflicting feelings. She still thought fondly of Moka, as well as Ruby, and was heartbroken when they fought one another. And though she had no reason to doubt the daiyoukai, the sting of betrayal, even if unintentional, remained. She wondered why they'd even come to the castle, especially in light of current circumstances. With that, she laid down upon her fellow witch's body, still distraught over her fate.

The silver and pink-haired haired woman said nothing, and slowly closed her eyes as she solemnly bowed her head. At that moment, she felt a light hand upon her shoulder. She looked over, and saw the young woman who she originally believed was the new academy nurse. "Michiru."

"It'll be alright, Akashiya-san. I'm certain she'll forgive you in time."

The daiyoukai looked away for a moment, then turned back and gave her a wan smile. "Thanks for standing up for me, Michiru."

"That's what friends are for," the dark-haired woman responded with a soft smile and a light tilt of her head, "right?"

A faint blush dusted the sophomore's pale cheeks as her smile broadened. "Yes," she replied warmly, as she wrapped her arms around the undercover agent's back and pulled her close, "good friends."

Yukari looked back to the pair as they silently held one another. Her eyes then went to a corner of the room, as she processed what her friends had relayed. "Time," she said to herself, and then touched the earring she'd received in her dreams. "Aeon-san."


Outside the castle, situated far enough to have avoided detection, a lone figure in a blinding white jacket looked up towards the window of the room where he sensed six presences, one of which he encountered recently. "Your new friend is correct, young Sendo," he spoke clinically. Though he knew he wouldn't have been heard, he still kept the young witch at the forefront of his mind. "When permitted, wounds can be healed by time. I hope you come to realize this over the course of journey." He reached into his coat, and pulled out his large pocket watch. "And do not doubt the import of your presence here," he continued, as he opened the watch, "for tonight the fate of the House of Shuzen will be decided. Whether it stands, or falls." He closed the implement in his hand, and placed it back into his pocket. "Nothing remains a secret forever, all things are eventually revealed in time."


Mizore looked to the others, a tad more relieved that the atmosphere had significantly lightened. "Okay, now that we've cleared that up, how are we gonna clean up this mess?"

Kurumu surveyed the damage outside the bathroom. She then looked to the yuki onna for a moment, and then a devious smile crossed her soft features. "Hmm, maybe we won't have to."

"Come again," the purple-haired girl asked suspiciously.

"I mean, there's no way to hide all this," she explained, as she gestured to the destruction beyond the broken wall, "so why bother. All we really need to do is hide the Vampire Killer, right?"

"And just how do you intend to explain to this to Lord Shuzen," Michiru asked with a dubious expression, her left hand on her hip. "I doubt he'll be very amused."

"I have a plan," the incognito succubus retorted with a truly devilish grin. "But I'm gonna need everyone's help on this."

"This better not be like your last one," Mizore countered, a hint of warning in her usually calm voice.

"Oh no, nothing like that!" Kurumu replied defensively, as she held out her hands for emphasis. "Come here."

The others converged on her position, and she began whispering her intentions.


Kahlua made her way to Moka's room, clad in her more familiar silver gown. Though she felt more at ease in her regal attire, she was well aware of the cruel acts she committed in her current raiment, not to mention the acts she had yet to commit.

It had been some time since the meeting with Lord Shuzen, who was incensed that they'd arrived a day behind schedule. She noted Pfaria had barely paid attention throughout the whole discourse, and made herself scarce once it was over. But the second-eldest daughter of the Third Dark Lord had no doubts her errant sister would've been present for the meeting, where she planned to resolve matters with her, by any means necessary. However, that still left the matter with Moka, who was nothing like her father had described. Though she loathed the thought of raising her hand against her younger sister, what she learned at the academy still troubled her, and planned to remedy the situation before it got out of hand.

Finally, she stopped at the door of her sister's room, and lightly rapped upon the hard oak with her gloved knuckles. "Moka-chan," she inquired softly, "are you ready?"

"Just a moment," came her sister's voice from the other side of the door.

The sound of footsteps came from inside the room, coupled with the pained groans of several people, which startled the elder sister. A few seconds later, the door slowly opened, and she watched as her sibling slowly exited the room, her eyes closed and her arms folded under her chest. Kahlua gasped as she saw red marks on her neck, scratches and bruises on her face, and her school uniform looked a bit rumpled.

"Moka-chan!" the blonde woman exclaimed in shock, and instinctively reached out and took hold of her sister's shoulders. "What happened? Are you alright?"

The younger demon said nothing for several seconds, which worried her sister immensely. "I'll be fine," she finally spoke, her eyes still closed.

Kahlua shook her head, less than encouraged by her sibling's response. "Moka-chan, don't be like that. I'm only here to help."

"Do we really have time to worry about such trivial matters," the silver and pink-haired woman replied pointedly. "We need to see Chichi-ue, we've only kept him waiting a day," she concluded, as she opened her eyes, which flashed in anger, and exposed her fangs to punctuate her statement.

The regally-dressed vampire instinctively backed away, as a nervous laugh escaped her lips. The memory of her father's ire over her tardiness was still fresh in her mind, as were the bruises of being tossed into the walls of his throne room. "You... heard."

"Yes," Moka replied flatly, her fangs still exposed, "and I was not pleased that my friends failed to inform me of your arrival. I don't appreciate anyone keeping secrets from me," she finished, her voice dripping with cold menace.

Kahlua couldn't help but shiver as her sister's burning gaze met her own. She immediately knew she hadn't only referred to her friends, which troubled her to no end. The last thing she wanted was for her younger sister to have become fully aware of her agenda, which would've made things incredibly difficult. She closed her eyes, and slightly bowed her head as she emitted a mournful sigh. "You definitely take after your father," she conceded.

She heard a light chuckle from her sister, which did nothing to reassure her. She opened her eyes, and saw a knowing smirk on the silver-haired woman's face. Shaking her head, she looked past her relative into the room behind her. And even from her vantage point, she could've seen the cracks in the far wall. She quickly moved past her sibling and fully entered the room. Her eyes went wide as she got a full view of the devastation around her. The north wall had been cracked, and near it laid the body of the purple-haired girl she first met before her capture the previous day. A pained groan escaped the fallen youkai, and her crystal blue eyes had a glazed look to them. It reminded her of the many times she herself had been slammed into a wall by her father, which made her cringe. She looked to the west wall, and saw a huge gaping hole in it. Near it was the body of a dark-haired woman, clad mostly in black. Kahlua's eyes narrowed, as she remembered her in the same uniform worn by the student police, who'd interfered with her mission the previous day. She looked further down the wall, and saw the bookshelf had been destroyed, with all the tomes scattered about the floor. Near the broken piece of furniture was the body of a cyan-haired girl, in a very compromising position. Her head and neck were flat against the floor, while her back was against the wall, which caused her large chest to nearly lie in her face. Her long legs limply hung down, which revealed her bright yellow underwear. Kahlua slapped her gloved hand over her crimson irises, as she tried to get the image out of her mind. She quickly turned around, and saw the door to the private bathroom had been clearly knocked out of its frame. She immediately went inside, and saw the body of Ruby Toujyou on the floor. Her injuries were clearly evident, and were by far the worst among the group. The regally-dressed vampire's eyes went wide, and she covered her open mouth in horror at what she saw. She ducked outside, and saw the sliding door to Moka's closet had also been broken down. More than that, the clothes rack had been broken, and both halves hung loosely in their sockets, which caused several of the dresses to fall off as a result. Amongst the wreckage was the body of the young girl, dressed in a witch's attire, face down on the floor.

Kahlua backed into the center of the room, with both hands on the sides of her fair head. "I don't believe it," she began in a horrified, broken voice. "I spent the better part of a night getting this room ready!" She looked back to the ruined closet. "I even picked out enough clothes for you to last a month!" The blonde woman slowly turned back to Moka, as tears began to stream down her face. "Oh," she continued in a sobbing voice, "this, this really makes me sad!"

The elder vampire bunched her shoulders together, and then emitted an ear-piercing shriek of sorrow, mortified that her labor had been reduced to nothing. As she continued to wail, a familiar aura rushed by her, and then she felt a powerful kick right in her stomach, with knocked her out of the room and into the wall outside.

The vampiric princess got her feet under her, and quickly regained her bearings. Once she did, she saw her sister charging right at her. She quickly rolled along the wall to avoid the oncoming attack, and actually felt the stone surface shake once it connected. She turned back to her sister, who'd just removed her right foot from the hole in the wall she made but a moment before. "How could you do this," she asked with a despondent look, as she charged in with a knifehand strike aimed at just below Moka's throat. The younger woman expertly blocked the attack, spun on her toes to her sister's blind side, and nailed her in the back with another kick. Kahlua sailed forward several feet, and then tumbled repeatedly across the floor. She quickly recovered, and then used her momentum to regain her footing. "Everything I've done here was for you!" she exclaimed as she looked back, and saw an oncoming Moka headed her way. The blonde woman deftly moved aside as her sister's flying kick sailed past her. She then converged on her sister before she had landed on the floor, and aimed a front kick right at her head, but her managed rolled to the side and she hit nothing but air. She almost lost her balance from the force of the missed attack, but managed to catch herself. But before she could've made her next move, she felt a powerful legsweep hit her right behind her ankles, which knocked her to the floor again. She quickly got to her feet again, and noticed her sister was ten feet away from her, firmly in a defensive position and an unyielding stare in her glowing red eyes. "Does that really mean nothing to you," Kahlua wailed, appalled by the sheer senselessness of the battle. Further frustrated by her sister's apparent lack of remorse, she rushed in and aimed a right cross at Moka's mouth, but found her attack caught by her sister's elongated fingers. The younger princess retaliated with her own knifehand, but that was also caught. The blonde woman struggled against her sister for several seconds, whom she found more unrecognizable as the fight progressed. It was then that felt herself being forced back, but then firmly planted her feet into her floor, which cracked under the pressure. She then augmented her strength with her aura, and managed to slightly push Moka back. Though she increased resistance she encountered told her that her sister had reciprocated her own actions, and the futility of the fight was beginning to overwhelm her. "ANSWER ME!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Suddenly, the older vampire winced as she felt a powerful grip on the back of her neck. She felt herself pulled away slightly, and looked forth and saw Moka in a similar predicament, and just as surprised. Their heads were then forcefully smashed together, and Kahlua fell onto her knees and held her throbbing forehead.

"What's the matter with you," a coarse female voice demanded. "Can't you do one single task without fouling it up? Urgh, sometimes I wonder why the old man tolerates you."

The second-born of the Third Dark Lord seethed in response. She immediately shot to the feet, and was unsurprised to find her older sister between her and Moka. "Pfaria Shuzen, that was uncalled for!"

"So is playing with your dolls when you have a job to do."

Kahlua growled in aggravation, her patience wearing dangerously thin. "Did you see what she did in there," she demanded as she pointed to the still open door to Moka's room. "I spent the better part of a night getting it ready, and that is how she repays me!"

The eldest of the four sisters headed towards the aforementioned door, and poked her head inside. She looked from side to side for a few seconds, then looked back to the blonde woman. "And you're actually surprised? Heh, never guessed you could be so naive."

The regally-dressed daiyoukai looked to her in disbelief, as her mouth gaped open. "How can you say that? Look what she did to her room, not to mention her friends!"

"So, that's what happens to anyone who befriends a vampire."

"Enough!" Moka snapped, as she quickly moved in and got right in her sister's face. "I will not tolerate this blatant disregard for our kind any longer. After tonight, you will realize your own place."

"T'ch, and you're gonna put me there," Pfaria asked with a dismissive sneer, as she looked down to the young woman who was seven inches shorter than her, "I don't think so. Now move it, you're violating my personal space."

"Stop it!" Kahlua spoke harshly, as she glared at her two siblings. "I'm sick of you two fighting one another! I don't want to hear another word about fighting for the rest of the day! Understand," she asked, a threatening tone to her usually soft voice. As much as she hated battle, the antics of her siblings had become all but intolerable. She had great difficulty recognizing either of them, which truly disturbed her.

"Or else what," the eldest sister asked, unfazed by the audible threat.

"Or else nothing!" the blonde woman snapped, disgusted with them as well as herself. "Now come, Lord Shuzen is waiting."

Moka kept her eyes on Pfaria as she turned towards her immediate sister. "About time," she remarked, as she folded her arms under her chest. She then grasped the doorknob with her slender hand, tapped the side of the door four times with her right foot, and then closed it shut. She then walked away from her older sister and towards the blonde woman down the hall, an unreadable look in her greenish red eyes.

Kahlua looked to her cautiously, but noted she was moving without coercion and led the way forward. She glanced over her shoulder towards her as she headed down the corridor. "She led me away from the room," she thought to herself, "was that her intent all along?" She looked directly ahead, her heart greatly concerned about what was about to occur. "Moka-chan, what are you planning?"


The sound of the vampire sisters' footsteps echoed from the other side of the closed door, and slowly faded until they became inaudible. At that point, Kurumu quickly recovered and got to her feet. "Okay, that takes care of that," she exclaimed, satisfied with the results of their ruse. "Now we move on to the next part of our plan."

"You are so lucky she didn't examine us thoroughly," Mizore muttered as she rose from the floor. "If Moka hadn't cut her off, the jig would've been up."

"Hey, don't argue with success," the cyan-haired girl retorted defensively. "Didn't I say I'd need everyone's help with this?"

"Yeah, you did," the yuki onna replied in an offhand manner, "just don't let it go to your head."

The incognito succubus glared at her classmate, but said nothing, for she knew they had much greater concerns.

"Hey, at least it worked," Yukari interjected as she rose from the pile of dresses. "But next time, I get thrown into the bookcase! Moka-san won't mind if I borrow a few, will she?"

"We should be more worried about getting her outta here," the purple-haired girl replied. "Now I see what her family has planned for her."

"It's unfortunate," Michiru noted as she dusted herself off once rising from the floor, "but it seems undeniable. I just hope someone thinks up an escape plan before we really need it."

"Yeah," Kurumu interjected nervously, as she rubbed the back of her head, "I'm, still working on that."

"Better work fast," Mizore mentioned, "we're in the middle of the lion's den here."

"Before that, we need to help Ruby-san," the youngest of the group spoke up. "I'm still worried about her."

The cyan-haired girl nodded in response. "So am I, Yukari-chan. Okay," she continued as she rubbed her small hands together, "now that they're gone, let's help out our friend."

"Sure thing, desu!"


Tsukune lunged towards his fallen nemesis, all of his anger and hatred channeled into his fist. But as he unleashed the deathblow, the auburn-haired man rolled out of harm's way, and the enraged youth's fist drilled into the unforgiving cliff surface. After a few tense moments, the barren earth beneath began to splinter, and the rage-driven lad gasped in response, as he realized what was about to occur. He quickly hovered above the ground, as a whole section of the cliff where he desperately fought against the three warriors broke away and fell into the crimson sea, as a huge column of water rose up from where the large slab of earth submerged, only settle back into the ocean below.

Tsukune paused for a moment to regain his bearings. The battle was far more grueling than he'd imagined, and he was beginning to tire. Despite all of his unimaginable demonic power, his enemies refused to falter, which truly aggravated him. He looked hatefully in their direction, and saw that though they were all badly wounded, their fighting spirit had not waned, which infuriated him to no end. His inhuman rage boiled over, and his vile ebony and crimson aura blazed anew.

"You miserable worms!" he growled in demonic rage. "How dare you destroy all my friends, how dare you destroy Moka-san! I shall decimate your worthless lot and then devour your souls for what you've done!"

"Spare us the feigned indignation," Alucard replied flatly, despite his serious injuries. His left arm hung limply by his side, yet he still tightly grasped his sword. "You've never believed in friendship, only yourself and your precious power. Your time has long passed, now disappear, and trouble this world and my mother no more."

"You're the one who's going to disappear!" the enraged youth shot back. "I'm going to silence that presumptuous mouth of yours forever!" he declared, as he reared back and channeled his youki with both hands. A large sphere of pulsating negative energy appeared in the space between his hands.

A horrified look appeared on Julius' face, as he realized what would've occurred. "Oh shoot, spread out!" he shouted to his comrades as he dove for safety.

"Too late!" the former Tsukune Aono snarled. "DESTRUCTION RAY!" He launched a huge beam of seething dark energy at the dhampir, whose injuries inhibited his movements, and prevented him from using celerity. He screamed in agony as the powerful beam streaked across his back. Though it wasn't a direct hit, it was still strong enough to send him careening into the ground, where he lies in a broken heap.

"ALUCARD!" Marissa screamed in horror, as she ran towards him. Suddenly, another blast of energy shot towards her, which created a huge explosion that knocked her off her feet. She went flying back and felt herself land against a somewhat hard surface, but definitely not the ground. The blonde sorceress looked back, and found her looking into a bruised face.

"Hey, Marissa," an auburn-haired man remarked with a pained but mischievous grin, "you alright?"

The last descendant of the Belnades clan gasped lightly to herself, shocked that she'd landed on him but grateful regardless. Before she could've responded, she felt his arms wrapping around her midriff, which brought a light blush to her dusty cheeks. Were the situation different, she would've simply melted into his arms. "Julius," she spoke softly, unable to conceal her long-repressed feelings.

The nineteen-year-old man said nothing at first, as he laid with there with Marissa's weight atop him, her butt upon his pelvis. He knew he would've gotten lectured again if found in such a position, and that thought brought him back into the present, as his elation faded. "Shoot, what happened to Al," he asked, as he released his long-time friend.

The blonde sorceress gasped aloud, and quickly slid off Julius and got to her feet. Once she did, she saw the black-clad man still face down on the ground, with their enemy hovering high above him, as he fired two beams from his hands and traced an infinity symbol over a large section of the ground, with the dhampir right in the middle.

"Al!" the whip-wielding warrior cried out, as he and Marissa struggled to reach their fallen friend.

"He is no more," the inhuman being spoke coldly, as he raised his hands aloft. "INFINITE DESTRUCTION!" He thrust his arms down, and a huge explosion of negative energy erupted, which annihilated everything within a thirty foot radius. Pieces of rock went flying everywhere, while the debris that rose from the ground within the explosion was vaporized.

"AAAAALLLLLLLLL!" Julius screamed at the top of his lungs, thunderstruck that his seemingly invincible comrade had been defeated.

The sorceress looked on horror, shocked that their ally had fallen, for she realized he couldn't have survived such an explosion, especially not in his wounded condition. Her horror soon gave way to anger, which turned into righteous fury, as a blinding golden aura surrounded her. "You BASTARD!" she screamed at her nemesis. "How dare you slaughter your own flesh and blood! I will never forgive you, not even if you kneel down and grovel at my feet!"

"You dare claim to be superior to me!" the former Tsukune Aono snapped contemptuously. "Pathetic human, I am the King of this world! NO power can ever surpass me!"

"You know in your heart that will never be true!" the blonde woman shot back, as she concentrated all of her remaining mana, which caused the very air to resonate with her power. "Prepare to be executed, like all tyrants before you! ELEMENTAL EXTERMINATION!" She raised her arms aloft, and a huge whirlwind spiraled around Tsukune, who used his remaining power in an attempt to resist being tossed about. Suddenly, the air inside the column became charged with lightning, which mercilessly assailed the former academy student. After that, huge icicles appeared outside the column, and rapidly shot forth in succession, skewering him from every conceivable direction. The ground underneath Tsukune shook, and a huge flaming geyser erupted from below, which both seared him and sent him hurtling into the air, where he saw an enormous boulder suspended above. The gigantic stone came crashing down on him, and sent him smashing into the ground, which shuddered for fifteen seconds after the collision. Once the ground stopped shaking, the boulder splintered, and then broke apart into thousand of rock fragments, which then collapsed onto the ground.

The Belnades descendant collapsed to her hands and knees, as her long blonde hair fell into her eyes, completely exhausted after her final desperate attack. As she strained to keep herself off the ground, she felt a gentle arm across her back, and a wounded hand over her own. "You did it, Marissa," a familiar voice spoke from close by. She turned her head to the left, and saw her comrade beside her, a weary but proud smile on his battered face. "You got him."

The blonde woman blushed brightly, as she felt her heart welling up in her chest. "Oh Julius!" she exclaimed, and then lunged forward and wrapped her arms around him, as the tears streamed from her eyes. "Julius," she spoke in a soft whisper.

The auburn-haired man almost lost his balance when his friend hugged him, but he managed to stay upright for her sake. "Marissa."

Suddenly, a baleful dark aura manifested close to them, coupled with a near limitless murderous intent. Both looked forth, and saw a black pillar of hate rising up from the debris, along with a pair of seething red eyes, which glowed with the fires of Hell itself.

"No way!" Julius exclaimed, as he managed to get to his feet.

In the blink of an eye, the pillar dispersed. And before either of them could've reacted, a dark figure rushed forward and drove its fist hard into the legendary hero's stomach. The auburn-haired man groaned in agony and disbelief, as the force of the blow lifted him off his feet and broke six of his ribs. He soon fell back onto his feet, as blood gushed from his mouth. He looked forward, and saw the sinister being he'd thought was defeated, a look of limitless contempt on his face. The demonic threat callously threw a left hook, which knocked the whip-wielding warrior ten feet off to the right. He landed hard on his side, a blank look on his face as blood dripped from his mouth.

"JULIUS!" the fallen sorceress screamed as he reached out towards him. Suddenly, the demonic being turned to her, reached down and grabbed her arms, and roughly pulled her to her feet, as he pinned her limbs to her side.

"You shall trouble me no longer," the man formerly known as Tsukune Aono spoke in a cold, menacing voice, as he reared back, opened his mouth wide, and drove his fangs into the magic-wielding woman's neck. The stricken woman screamed in agony as her blood was being mercilessly drained from her, which only served to elate her enemy, who bit down harder on her neck. He savored the taste of her blood as it passed down his throat, and believed it the same euphoria Moka felt each time she fed from him. The memory of her made him intensify the siphoning of his enemy's life-force, whose form grew sickly and skeletal from his attack.

Suddenly, an intense burning sensation came from his back, which made him scream in pain. He dropped Marissa's nigh lifeless form, which laid unmoving by his feet. Once the burning had subsided, he looked over his shoulder, and saw his enemy had not only regained his footing, but had gotten within striking distance as well.

"You are so gonna pay for this, old man," the auburn-haired warrior growled, a livid expression on his wounded face. "You've taken your last life."

The former academy student sneered in contempt at his enemy's accusations. "Pay," he remarked sarcastically, "you're the ones who killed Moka-san and all my friends, I'm simply returning the favor. How does it feel to lose something precious to you, Belmont? Go ahead, writhe in agony, curse your infernal human weakness, that is your reward for your evil deeds."

"Shut your hole, Dracula!" Julius shot back. "You're the one who's always said good and evil were just words, so don't give me that crap!"

"Silence!" Tsukune declared, and thrust his right hand forward, which unleashed a powerful telekinetic force which sent his opponent flying back twenty feet. "How dare you address me by that name! I am superior to him in every way imaginable, he is NOTHING before me!" He floated fifty feet into the air, and looked down at his fallen enemy. "And for putting me in the same category as that weakling, you have forfeited your right to live!"

The fallen hero looked up, and saw his enemy channeling all of immeasurable demonic power into a huge flaming sphere of dark energy, which hovered over his head. He knew what his enemy had planned, but his critically wounded body refused to heed his commands. "Come on," he growled through his pain, "move! MOVE!" He grimaced in agony, as he couldn't find the strength to rise again. "No, it can't... end like this!"

"Don't give up, Julius!" an echoing male voice spoke from nearby.

The auburn-haired warrior looked around, and saw a translucent figure kneeling by his side. It was that of a man with the same hair as him, along with a well-groomed beard and mustache. He wore a rough tan flannel shirt, along with heavy brown wool pants made for the harsh Romanian winters. A warm twinkle was evident in the figure's brown eyes.

"Dad," the teenager asked, and would've rubbed his eyes if he could've moved his arms.

"Yes, my son, do not despair, you can still win this."

"But how, Al and Marissa are gone, how can I do this alone?"

"Do not worry, you are not alone," the spirit replied confidently, as he gestured to his right.

Julius looked forth, and saw no less than five ghostly figures standing over him. One looked like an older version of himself, only with a fierce-looking visage and a long scar over his left eye. The second one had long light brown hair, and wore a long brown leather tunic, which was frequently described in legends. The third had shoulder-length blonde hair, and wore red and gold armor, along with a tight black bodysuit underneath. Next to him was a very pale man with long silver hair, clad in a long crimson coat, which made many mistake him for a vampire. The last figure had short brown hair, with a white headband wrapped around his brow. He wore a light blue tunic, which ran down to his knees, and had an incorruptible expression on his face.

"It is time to end this, my descendant," the first spirit spoke with an intense look.

"Trevor," Julius poke in awe, as he recognized him from Alucard's stories.

"Let us fight together as one," the second ghost added, his voice full of courage.

"Christopher," the auburn-haired man remarked.

"And push back the Lord of Darkness with the light in our hearts," the third apparition interjected.

"Simon," Julius spoke in awe, as he recognized the arguably greatest of the Belmonts.

"With our combined might," the fourth spirit proclaimed, "we shall show Dracula his place!"

"Juste," the teenager remarked with a light yet pained chuckle, as he never knew his ancestor was as cocky as him.

"Evil cannot triumph as long as we of the light fight on!" the last of the five ghosts declared. "Come, my brethren, let us empower our descendant, our hope, and banish Dracula back to the darkness from whence he came!"

"Richter."

The five Belmont spirits, along with that Julius' father, knelt down and placed their hands on the fallen hero. The auburn-haired man groaned as he felt a tremendous amount of holy energy being channeled into him, which created a huge ivory aura around him. The spirits themselves became pure light, which infused the almost lifeless holy warrior with their essence.

High up in the air, Tsukune had gathered enough energy to finish off the prone adversary. But before he could've unleashed his final attack, he sensed an incredible amount of holy energy from below, which made him grimace in disgust. He looked to the ground, and bared his fangs in anger as he saw the seemingly defeated Belmont warrior rising to his feet, bathed in a blinding holy aura. "You insolent worm!" the brown-haired daiyoukai snarled in hate. "You dare challenge me again?"

"Correction, old man!" Julius proudly shot back. "We're gonna challenge you, and we're gonna finish you this round!"

"FOOL!" the inhuman being screamed, as dark lightning crashed down from the sullen skies. "I am the King of this world, the King of all worlds! I can NEVER be defeated!"

The auburn-haired man bent at the knees, as he concentrated his newly acquired strength. Waves of holy energy passed over the ground, which actually shuddered from the pristine manifestation. "Says YOU!" he shouted, as he leaped into the air, propelled by his aura like a missile, headed straight for his airborne opponent.

The former Tsukune Aono witnessed him approaching, as a growing twinge of fear manifested in his heart. "YOU FOOL!" he screamed, as he reared back and floated thirty feet higher. "GIGA DEMONIC MEGIDDO!" he shouted, and hurled the enormous sphere of dark energy towards his enemy.

Julius confidently streaked upwards, and saw the titanic orb of destruction headed his way. He knew if he hesitated, or flinched, he could've easily been killed, and would've betrayed his ancestors' belief in him. Instead, he pushed onwards and thrust both fists outwards. In less than three seconds, " he collided with the oncoming sphere, which seethed against the holy aura that surrounded him. He kept pushing forward, as the oppressive burning darkness wreaked havoc on his entire being, and threatened to crush his very soul. Ignoring the obvious pain, which dwarfed what he'd already experienced, he kept flying upwards, even though his aura was waning. Finally, just when his aura was about to be extinguished, he burst through the other side of the sphere and streaked forward.

Tsukune looked down in shock and fear at the oncoming hero. "WHAT!" he exclaimed, thunderstruck that his enemy had punched right through his massive orb of destruction.

A split second later, Julius was right before his opponent, as his aura flared anew. He unleashed his family whip, and unleashed a rapid series of strikes, far too fast for the bewildered vampire to have countered. After unleashing ninety-nine whip attacks, the auburn-haired man channeled the rest of his aura into his left fist and reared back with all his strength. "In the name of my ancestors, you're going down! Die, Count Dracula!" With a rising growl, he put all of his personal and acquired strength into his final attack. "KNOW YOUR PLACE!" he shouted, as his fist connected with his archenemy's face, which resulted in a titanic explosion of holy energy which sent both opponents flying back.

Tsukune helplessly sailed back, shocked that he'd been defeated by a mere human. "Impossible," he uttered with a glazed look, as his eyes slowly closed.

On the other side of the explosion, Julius was also hurled through the air, just as helpless but with a content smile on his face. "Gotcha."

Down on the ground, the gaunt form of Marissa Belnades looked up from her vantage point, and saw the huge explosion above. A tear came to her eye, as she realized her close friend had finally triumphed. "Julius," she spoke weakly, as she closed her eyes for the last time, a smile on her withered face.

The orb of destruction continued down, and collided with the ground below. The result was a titanic explosion of unholy energy which completely demolished the cliff, along with the ridge nearby. The debris that wasn't vaporized fell into the sullen sea below; which included the remains of the destroyed buses, as well as the bodies of the fallen. Any trees in the area were either uprooted and scattered to the winds or instantly decimated. The explosion reached all the way to the dimensional tunnel, as it collapsed from the incomprehensible eruption of satanic power.


The body of Tsukune Aono became still, as a trickle of blood left the corner of his mouth. The demoness who'd created his nightmare collapsed to her knees, exhausted from her labor. Near the altar, Colton and his associates looked on with blank expressions, and said nothing for several seconds, stunned into silence over what they'd seen in their captive's mind.

"What the hell was that!" the younger masked woman spoke up irritably, thus breaking the uncomfortable silence. "You've been watching too much anime! And put some some clothes, you shameless hussy! Geez, where does Lord Dracula find you idiots?"

The indigo-haired creature pushed herself to her feet, and looked to her accuser. "Shame," she asked curiously, "why would I concern myself with that? You do realize I am a succubus, do you not?"

"Yeah well, keep it to yourself! No one needs to know. And you're not even that good-looking, either!"

"Such an objective evaluation," the dream demoness remarked with a wry smirk as she folded her arms under her chest.

"Forgive her, Lilith," the older masked woman interjected, "she's.. still young. She will learn to fully appreciate our world in time. Though I personally thank you for keeping our guest... entertained."

"Certainly, my Lady," the succubus replied with a reverent bow.

"And where'd you think up those three posers!" the irreverent woman continued. "I could beat those idiots with both hands tied behind my back, especially that stupid one with the whip! He's supposed to be a legendary Belmont? Ha! He'd better pray I never find him, because once I do I'll beat him into blood pudding and then eat him!"

Suddenly, everyone in the room broke into a fit of uproarious laughter, incredibly amused by her declaration.

"Hey! Don't you laugh at me!" the masked woman protested, as she raised her fists into the air. "I am a royal vampire, a goddess of the demon world! No other life-form can hold a candle to me! I'll prove it by pounding those three idiots! They don't look so tough, they're only humans."

The laughter continued for several seconds, until it slowly died down. Though none could've seen her expression behind her mask, the seething murderous intent that emanated from her couldn't have been missed.

"So," her companion casually remarked, "you believe you can defeat the Three Millennium Heroes, do you?"

"Yeah! I can wipe the walls with those losers!"

"Even after what you just witnessed?"

"Ha! She was just trying to make them look good!" the younger woman exclaimed, as she pointed to the indigo-haired demoness.

Lilith chose not to respond, and merely shook her head. "With all due respect," she began seriously as she turned to Colton, "how long do you plan to keep him sedated? Even my power cannot restrain him indefinitely."

"It shan't be for much longer," the bald man replied. "These, exercises shall ultimately prove most valuable. Very much so," he concluded, as a low chuckle escaped him. The corners of mouth stretched into a devious smile as he regarded the image of Marissa Belnades from the nightmare.


Thousands of miles from the hiding place of Dracula's followers, a resting woman slowly opened her blue eyes, a tired expression on her face. She looked out to her window, as the mid-afternoon light streamed into her room. She then looked over to her nightstand, and took hold of the photo upon it. She looked sadly at it, as she saw herself from ten years past, along with her two comrades, who both disappeared after the last battle. "Julius, Alucard," she spoke in a soft mournful voice, "why did you leave me?"

At that moment, a knock came at the door.

"Enter," she spoke aloud without turning her head.

The door opened, and a man in his late-twenties with dark hair parted to both sides came into the room, a tray with various food upon it. "Belnades-sama," he began reverently, "your lunch is ready."

"That's fine, Fujiwara," she spoke absently, "just leave it on the table."

A disappointed sigh came from the manservant, as he noticed she hadn't looked in his direction, her eyes locked on the photo in her hand.

"Was there something else," the last of the Three Millennium Heroes asked.

The well-dressed man froze, still unable to speak the words in his heart. Though he grateful to have assisted the legendary sorceress, especially at that moment when she was recuperating from her last mission, it frustrated him that she barely took notice of him. "No, Belnades-sama," he finally spoke.

The blonde woman nodded to herself. "You may leave, then."

The manservant left her meal on the table, bowed his head, and made his way out of the room.

On the other side of the door, Fujiwara Naozumi groaned to himself, frustrated at his inability to have spoken his true feelings. "Marissa," he thought to himself, "why do you keep torturing yourself? No matter how hard you pray, Julius Belmont will not come back. But I am here, I can give you the companionship you need. Why, why keep holding on to an impossible dream?"

"Are you alright, Fujiwara-san," an aged female voice spoke up.

The average-looking man gasped, broken out of his introspection. He looked to his left and saw an elderly woman nearby, dressed in a soft orange dress, with a bright violet shawl around her somewhat stooped shoulders. Her heavily wrinkled features indicated she was from outside Japan, and her rapidly graying hair of brown was done up in a bun behind her head. She held a cane in her gnarled hand to support herself.

"Ah, Morris-san," the attendant replied reverently, as he bowed his head.

"Now now, you don't need to bow to me, I'm just an elderly woman come to visit my dear little Marissa."

The manservant knew it wasn't entirely true, but he also knew she maintained her ruse in order to have avoided suspicion, which she'd done for many years.

"Still thinking about Julius, is she," the seasoned citizen inquired.

Fujiwara could've only mutely nodded.

"Ah, I'm not surprised, she has been very lonely since then, hasn't she?"

The manservant said nothing in response, too afraid to confirm it lest he draw further scrutiny from the retired Church member. "Excuse me," he finally said, and headed down the hall.

The elderly woman let him pass, and watched him as he headed down the hall. "If you have something to say to Marissa," she spoke up, which immediately got his attention, "go right ahead. Don't make the same mistake she did, that's one reason she's become like this."

Fujiwara watched as Marissa's adoptive grandmother made her way to the master bedroom. He turned away and headed down the hall, as he considered the words of his mistress' former caretaker


Within the audience chamber of his grand castle, Shuzen looked on impassively towards the double doors at the far end of the room, though his eyes were elsewhere. He looked within the room he and Kahlua had prepared for Moka, and was quite displeased with what he saw. Though his second-born daughter seemed unaware of their ruse, he had seen everything that occurred since he dismissed his children earlier. He watched as the dark-haired woman in the bathroom, the only one injured of the lot, was carried and placed in Moka's bed, which truly annoyed him. His irritation only grew as he saw the cyan-haired girl used her claws to carve a splint out of the bookcase she'd broken earlier, and used it to brace the witch's injured arm. He became quite aggravated as he saw them tear Moka's bedsheets into strips, and used them to bind the injured woman's wrist, as well as protective wrapping for her ribs. It truly infuriated him that such inferior beings believed that they could've deceived the master of the castle. It troubled him somewhat that they had an inkling about his plans for Moka, but he didn't plan to let it hinder him. The fact that his daughter was involved with such lowly creatures was simply inexcusable. Clearly they were a bad influence on his precious child, and he planned to rectify that oversight in due time.

At that moment, the doors swung open, and his daughters made their way into the room. He looked on, and noted Kahlua led the procession, which went against protocol. He saw his second-born child had a very wary look as she glanced back at the girl behind her. He also noted she was hesitant to look directly at him, despite the fact she was in front. That alone made it evident to him that his daughter was hiding something, other than the bruises from her brief altercation with Moka. His children's constant battling was starting to become a nuisance, as well as threaten to the stability of the family unit for the second time in nearly ten years. He planned to put an end to the strife that night, and then move on to more pressing matters.

Pfaria's displeasure was clearly evident, but Shuzen still found himself unable to peer into her thoughts, even though she looked directly at him. It was more than the sunglasses she wore, he felt some force was inhibiting his scrying attempts, which he found truly disturbing. It displeased him even more that she wasn't leading the sisters, which was her duty as the oldest. However, he couldn't have risked making his displeasure known, as that was also against proper etiquette. He had to maintain an air of regal impassiveness and invulnerability, though it didn't mean he had no emotions, which was a popular misconception. It further discouraged him that his oldest child still failed to understand that, and wondered how she could've been so disrespectful after all he'd done for her. It annoyed him even more that unlike her younger sister, she hadn't changed into more regal attire, which was more appropriate for her station. Indeed, she wore the exact same outfit from two days past, which demonstrated her nigh complete disregard for her standing as his oldest and most revered daughter.

He then looked to Moka, who was in the middle of the three. Despite her somewhat unbecoming academy attire, she walked towards him like a queen, her shoulders set back and her chest thrust out proudly, her eyes locked firmly upon him as her long silver hair, sparsely intermixed with a few pink locks, flowed gracefully behind her. Whatever injuries she might've sustained during her fight in the hallway, as well as whatever occurred in her room while he was busy chastising her sisters, did nothing to hinder her. It was a virtually perfect representation of his daughter, but deep down he knew it was merely a facade, which was the most painful part. The darkened Rosario upon her chest clearly displayed her ruse. And even with the diminishing distance between them, he could sense his taint within her, and wondered if her older sisters had noticed it as well. Kahlua's nervousness indicated she might've been aware, while Pfaria was as unreadable as ever. However, he knew he couldn't have relied on either of them to deal with their younger sister, so the task was left to him to be Moka's protector, regardless of what threatened her.

Finally, after several long moments, the three sisters stopped in front of the dais upon which rested Shuzen's throne. Kahlua reverently dropped to one knee, and grandly spread her arms out to the side in supplication, as her golden bangs fell into her eyes. Pfaria refused to kneel, and merely glared at the castle lord, her right hand upon her respective hip. Moka looked directly at her father, her eyes unwavering and even a small hint of accusation in them. He glanced over to Kahlua, and noticed her eyes were downcast, as well as a great sense of tension about her. That made him wonder if she'd inadvertently leaked his plans for her, he certainly hadn't expected her to have deduced them on her own. A slight scowl crossed his features, as it seemed his daughter had failed him yet again, which was unacceptable for a royal vampire.

The Third Dark Lord slowly pushed himself up from his throne and straightened himself, standing several inches above the youngest in the room, not counting the dais he stood upon. "Approach me, my daughter," he spoke in a dour, authoritative voice, as he opened his cape and gestured to each side with his arms.

Moka ascended the stairs of the dais and stood before her father. Without another word, she moved and slipped her arms around him. Shuzen would've reciprocated, but was taken aback by the strength of his daughter's embrace, which reminded him of Pfaria and Ivana's bearhug contests. His eyes widened slightly, as he strove to fight back a groan. His arms shot out instinctively, bent at a slight angle. His fingers flexed out, and he strove to keep them from shaking.

"Moka-chan," Kahlua called out in protest, "you're crushing him!"

The younger vampire quickly relaxed her embrace, and looked back to the blonde woman behind her. "Come now, Neesan," she began with a wry smirk, "have you that little faith in our father? After all, he is the Third Dark Lord, and the most powerful member of the Elder Council. He is not nearly so fragile," she went on, as she turned her gaze back to her sire, a somewhat foreboding grin on her pale face, "are you, Chichi-ue?" She stood up one her tiptoes, closed her eyes and placed a light kiss on her father's left cheek. After about two seconds, she removed her lips and settled herself back firmly on her feet, the same grin on her face.

The ancient lord gave his daughter a rather dubious look, as he lightly rubbed his cheek. Despite that, it had been the first time in almost ten years he'd been kissed by anyone, in any fashion. Inwardly, he was actually touched by his child's open display of affection. It might've been somewhat inappropriate, definitely unexpected, and though he was certain she meant well, it also brought back the memory of the disaster on her seventh birthday, which he'd never truly overcome.

"That was, very considerate of you," he finally spoke, "but you should've chosen your words better."

"Hmm," the silver and pink-haired woman asked with a raised eyebrow and a light tilt of her head.

"You used the f-word, Moka-chan," Kahlua explained from behind her, "you know how much Chichi-ue hates it."

The younger princess laughed lightly in self-deprecation, and held the side of her head. "Oh dear, silly me. Sorry, Chichi-ue." She smiled in embarrassment, as she began to back down the dais.

"Wait," Shuzen spoke up, and raised his right hand for emphasis.

Moka immediately stopped in her tracks.

"Remain here," her sire continued, as he motioned to her former position, "this matter concerns you more than anyone."

The female student reverently bowed her head. "Yes, Chichi-ue." She headed back up the steps, and returned to her precious position. Once she did, she watched her father sat back down upon his ruined throne.

"I received, disturbing reports from the academy," the elder vampire began, as he absently played with one of his silver curls. "There were supposedly a series of necromantic episodes, coupled with a series of riots of varying degrees over the previous three days." He released his curl and slowly lowered his hand onto the side of his throne. "One of which all but demolished the school cafeteria."

He watched as Moka exhaled slowly, and solemnly closed her eyes. Her silence and posture told him she was guilty as charged, which brought a nigh discernible scowl to his ageless features. "Said incident led to three deaths, several others critically injured, including a faculty member," he added with particular contempt, "as well as your expulsion." The Third Dark Lord rose from his throne, and his piercing gaze spoke volumes of his displeasure with his daughter's conduct. "You were supposed to have been brought here two days ago, yet neither you nor Mikogami's associates arrived. Care to explain why?"

The teenager before him sighed mournfully, and looked off to the side. "The Chairman, damaged the seal," she began mournfully, as her slender fingers wrapped around her Rosario.

"What," Shuzen asked, quite startled by the revelation. He heard Kahlua gasp from behind his daughter, while Pfaria didn't react.

"I thought he did it on purpose," Moka explained, clearly still shaken from the incident. "And this was after he decided to let Colton remain on campus, I really thought he betrayed me!" she almost wailed as she looked back at him, an inappropriate amount of grief on her pale features. "I had to get away from there, before something even worse happened to the seal."

A low hiss came from the vampire lord, quite vexed over his daughter's testimony. "That misguided idealistic fool dare desecrate my handiwork," he demanded, a noticeable trace of heat in his voice. "Where was Aono during this travesty?"

The vampiric princess cringed in response, which upset her father more than he appeared. "He was, in a trance. I tried calling out to him, but he didn't respond." The pain on her face was clearly evident, as well as unacceptable to the master of the castle. "And when the seal was damaged, I passed out. Once I awakened again, I was all alone. I was afraid he was helping Colton, so I fled as fast as I could."

Shuzen became increasingly more displeased as his daughter spoke, and he found it more difficult to keep it from being known. He suspected she was not being wholly candid, though what he learned upset him enough. He found her conduct in the face of danger inexcusable, for a true vampire would've never shown weakness in any circumstances. Were it him he would've torn Mikogami asunder for his blatant incompetence. Moreover he became even more disappointed with Akasha, for he saw raising her daughter in human ways had been nothing but detrimental, and left her ill-equipped for the dangers within the school, as well as the threat of him. Neither she, Mikogami, or Aono were capable of protecting Moka, so it made his judgment all the more sound.

"T'ch, what a joke," Pfaria remarked with a dismissive sneer, "should've clobbered the old coot when I had the chance, least I would've gotten some satisfaction."

"Hold on," Kahlua spoke up firmly, "hold on, let's not get ahead of ourselves." She glared at her older sister for a second, then turned to the young woman on the dais. "Moka-chan, please go back to the beginning. How did that fight actually get started?"

"That is unimportant!" the castellan snapped at his daughter. "This disaster has brought nothing but more shame and disgrace to my revered House! And once news of Mikogami's death reaches the Council they'll doubtlessly come inquiring about the incident. Be grateful they're not already here," he spoke menacingly to the sophomore before him, as he narrowed his crimson irises into deadly slits.

"Wh-wh-what," the blonde woman asked, clearly thunderstruck by the news. "Mikogami, dead? Th-that's impossible, he's a Dark Lord, he can't die!"

Moka knit her thin eyebrows together, and a scowl appeared on her face. "So you knew," she spoke accusingly to her father.

"Did you really think you could hide this from me," the master vampire darkly retorted. "I saw everything that happened at school that day. I saw those brainless effusive inferior beings pretending to be academy students destroying their own institution for no reason whatsoever, those useless enforcers exacerbating the situation, and Mikogami nowhere to be found. I saw you," he spoke harshly, as he pointed an accusing finger at her, "strung along like a puppet by that... insipid usurper, and that bungling incompetent Aono powerless to stop him, making a mockery of myself and my daughter! And if that wasn't humiliating enough, your pathetic incompetence resulted in my daughter being defiled yet again after that disgusting hybrid abomination was destroyed! And then you allowed those, irritating lesser beings who are unworthy to be my daughter's friends, question the integrity and majesty of the Elder Council of Vampires! How DARE they!" he shouted angrily, consumed in his indignation over the events of the previous day. "Those simpering reprobates are not worthy to know of the Council's existence! We are far beyond their feeble comprehension, it is blasphemous that they foolishly believe themselves worthy of questioning us! That arrogance will be the death of them, along with anyone stupid enough to be associated with them!"

"SILENCE!" the silver and pink-haired young woman impudently screamed. "Don't you dare threaten my friends," she spoke out of turn, and rudely pointed her finger at her noble sire, "and especially not Tsukune! I didn't come here to listen to you pick up where you left off last night."

"My Lord," Kahlua asked, clearly confused by what she'd just heard.

Shuzen ignored his second-born daughter, and glared at the individual before him, as he menacingly flicked out his youki, livid at her audacity. "You dare talk back to me," he spoke in a near growl, greatly insulted by her inappropriate behavior. "You don't know who you're dealing with, you impudent waif! I made you, I can unmake you!"

"Is that why you summoned me," the child before him asked, though she was clearly out of line. "Hmph, I had hoped you had the means to restore my Rosario, but it seems you have, your own plans."

"I don't know what you mean," the lord of the castle replied, quite insulted by her clearly false accusation. "What right have you to question me, you should be grateful that I've gone to such lengths to protect you."

"I never asked you to protect me, I actually hoped you'd support me as my friends and I go after Colton."

"You will do no such thing!" the patriarch vampire snapped heatedly. "You will stay here where no one is going to dare threaten you! This matter is far too dangerous for you to handle, courage and valor are not part of your design!"

"What's that supposed to mean," the academy sophomore inquired, though she wasn't entitled to it.

"Just as I said! I created you in order to protect my daughter while she hid amongst the filthy humans, but clearly you have failed in your endeavor. And now you actually believe you have the right to pursue those insignificant misguided opposers who dare threaten the order I bring to the world? You have overstepped your bounds, construct, clearly all that time around Akasha has corrupted you."

The female youkai before him lashed out and inappropriately slapped him across the face, which truly annoyed him. "Don't you even think of blaming Haha-ue for this," she spoke in a clearly feeble attempt to frighten the Third Dark Lord. "Nine years she's suffered because of what you did, I've heard her crying alone in her room night on many nights, she's never gotten over how you betrayed her."

"Betrayed her," Shuzen demanded angrily. "She's the one who betrayed me! If she hadn't tried to surpass her station and preach sedition amongst our subjects none of that would've happened! I warned not to move outside the boundaries the Council laid down and still she defied me! And thus she incurred the wrath of the Council! She brought this all upon us, upon my daughter, upon me!"

A light growl came from the impudent young woman, as a rude sneer crossed her impudent features, and as she placed both hands on her hips. "I honestly don't see why she thinks so highly of you," she remarked, wholly unable to understand the basic truth. "You go on and on about how much you love me, how much you want to protect me, yet the one person you seem to talk about with any sense of respect is yourself."

The ancient vampire growled to himself, reminded of many of the arguments he had with Akasha. It still disturbed him that neither of them could've seen the wisdom of his perfect ways. He looked to his other children, and noticed a wry smirk on Pfaria's face, which exposed one of her fangs. He immediately bristled, as he knew in his heart she was laughing at him again. He became even more incensed as he realized she too had failed to understand his divine wisdom.

"You summon me here," the younger demoness rudely went on, "make me listen to your long-winded speeches about how great you supposedly are, insult all my friends as well as my mother, and then you have the audacity to expect me to just meekly accept your judgment?" She exhaled through her clenched teeth, which blew her bangs forward. "I know Haha-ue believes in me, and has approved this path I'm taking, clearly you and Neesan don't. You just want me to stay in my room like a good little girl and hope Dracula just goes away," she concluded, an infuriating sense of sarcasm at the end.

"Silence!" Shuzen shouted, and then lashed his right hand out to the side. His crimson irises flashed, which released a powerful blast of telekinetic force that sent his disrespectful daughter sailing from the dais and halfway down the hall. "How dare you talk back to me, you wretched child! And how DARE you speak that name! Were you not protecting my daughter, even though you've done a pathetic job of it, I would've decimated you on the spot for your treasonous tongue!"

He watched with a disgusted annoyance as the fallen girl raised herself off the floor, an air of inexcusable defiance about her. "And this is how you protect people," she asked from her vantage point. "You make me sick, if you did this in the human world you'd be arrested for child abuse."

"SILENCE!" the master vampire roared, and threw his cape to the side, which unleashed a huge explosion of dark energy that majestically shook the entire chamber, an undeniable demonstration of his sovereign power, which the impudent girl learned firsthand. "How DARE you judge ME by human standards!" he shouted, insulted as he'd never been before in his entire life. "I am as far above humans as they are above earthworms! I and I alone have protected the world from destruction for the past six hundred years, as my father did before me! I am the only one with the power and the wisdom and the courage to save it from that foul usurper who dares challenge MY perfect order! And there's nothing that you, Aono, Mikogami, Akasha, or those simpering pests pretending to be your friends hiding outside my door can do to stop me!"


On the other side of the double doors, Kurumu froze in place at what she'd just heard. "How the hecht did he know we were here," she asked in disbelief.

"He's only a master vampire, remember," Mizore offered in response. "It's not like we're back at the academy, you know."

The cyan-haired girl groaned in response, tempted to verbally lash out at the yuki onna but knew it would've been futile at that juncture. "You're not helping," she spoke in chagrin.

Michiru merely stood in place, frozen in fear by the amount of power she'd just felt. "My goodness, please tell me he didn't just kill Moka-san."

Yukari gasped in shock, horrified by the actual thought. "No, she can't die!" she spoke fearfully, as she looked helplessly at the double doors. "Moka-san."


Kahlua looked to her father, startled at what she'd just heard. "What? Th-th-that's impossible! They were unconscious last I checked!"

"Idiot!" Shuzen shot back, and flared out his aura which promptly silenced and humbled his inattentive daughter. "That was just a ruse! Those fools are trying to undermine my plans, go and guard the entrance!" he commanded, as he pointed towards the double doors. "If any of them invade my sanctum, kill them!"

The blonde woman quickly straightened herself. "Yes, my Lord," she spoke with a reverent bow of her head, and then headed down the hall.

Pleased that all was well in hand, the Third Dark Lord turned from the fallen girl's body and headed back towards his throne. Admittedly, he'd used more power than he actually intended, but the thought of being judged by inferior and meaningless human standards infuriated him more than anything else in his life. Clearly her time around humans had corrupted her and undermined her original purpose. Again, mankind had defied their benevolent overseer and spat upon the blessings he rained down upon them. It never ceased to enrage him that they continued to seek out his father's murderer rather than him, the one true King of all the world. But once all his plans were complete, there would've been no doubt who held sway over the earth. And with Mikogami out of the way, he could've picked up where he left off three hundred years before.

"So tell me," the girl's voice spoke feebly from behind, "when are you going to tell Haha-ue of this?"

Shuzen stopped in place, annoyed that his creation had the audacity to address him even after she experienced his majestic and completely superior power. "She does not deserve to know," he remarked with an unquestionable air of absolute finality. "She should've been grateful that I was generous enough to place my daughter in her care. But even she has failed me, along with Aono and Mikogami. I shall not allow those buffoons to endanger my daughter any longer." He spun around majestically towards the fallen girl, as his cape swirled elegantly around his regal form. "In the end, I am the only one I can rely upon!" he proclaimed dramatically. "I am the only one who can protect Moka from this merciless ungrateful world! I am the only one who loves her! I am the only one my daughter truly needs!"

"Chichi-ue," Kahlua protested in a hurt voice.

Shuzen ignored the appalled look on his child's face, as she clearly deserved it for her continuous bungling, especially over the simple task he'd assigned her which took her two days to complete. Even though he'd already disciplined her for her inexcusable incompetence, it continued to annoy him, even at that moment. It was then that he noticed the false representation of his daughter rising from the floor. He saw black burns on her legs and face, and that her school attire was badly singed. He found it laughable that she actually believed she could've withstood his unparalleled and wholly justified attack with her flimsy raiment, when his power could've easily rent magically imbued plate mail asunder. Even the armaments of the current age were as nothing before his infinite might. But the fact that she actually managed to rise again, when she should've merely remained there and avoided any further humiliation, both impressed and annoyed him further. His agitation only increased when she saw the defiant look on the girl's blackened face. "Colton was right, you really don't know your limitations," she spoke accusingly, which demonstrated her limited understanding.

"Moka-chan," the blonde princess spoke sadly, though she failed to realize her sister didn't deserve her sympathy.

"Ha! I have no limitations!" the master vampire retorted truthfully. "I am the pinnacle of life on this world, flawless in every single way! I have existed for countless eons, and I shall exist for countless more, long after this world and those false friends of yours are dead and deservedly forgotten!"

"They are not false friends!" the impostor impudently retorted through her agony. "We've been through so much together for the past two years, and I plan to spend many more with them."

"Your plans are irrelevant, you should be more concerned about their despicable, underhanded plans!" he wisely pointed out. "The only reason they associate with you is out of envy, they know they can never hope to reach the apex that we vampires, the supreme life-forms on this ungrateful world, so they feign friendship in order to undermine and eventually try to destroy us! Those pretenders falsely claim to support you when in fact they seek only your death, especially that filthy, disgusting, execrable succubus!"

"You lie!" the wounded girl retorted.

"Silence! You know nothing about their worthless kind! She has already been touched by that traitor Aono, and will eventually betray you to him! She desires only to bear his misbegotten spawn into the world, the same as her treacherous ruler Lilith when she betrayed my father, betrayed ME! And cast her worthless lot with that, that unspeakable abomination! All succubi are the same, unscrupulous mendacious whores who have no sense of honor or gratitude! They betrayed my father, they will betray you as well! History will repeat itself because of your pathetic incompetence, you should be grateful that I'll put a stop to it, by decimating her and every last miserable succubus on this pathetic world!"


Kurumu was frozen in place, and forgot how to breathe for a few moments, as her heart felt like it had been crushed by a three-handed warhammer, and left to ooze blood beneath the merciless gavel of judgment. "No," she spoke weakly, horrified that the vampire lord had shamelessly revealed her race's dark secret, "I shouldn't have come here." She rested her forehead against the cold unfeeling double doors, as tears streamed down her soft cheeks. "Lilith-sama, forgive me."

It was then that she felt a chilling murderous intent nearby, along with a light yet menacing poke on the side of her neck. "Is this true," an icy voice inquired.

The cyan-haired girl turned and looked into the pale face of death, with glowing icy blue eyes that bore into her shattered soul. "Mizore-chan, what are you doing," she asked, her voice breaking with both fear and sadness, "I don't want to betray anyone, especially not Moka."

"Why not, then you'd have your Mate of Fate, like you've always wanted."

"Wait, Mizore-chan," the youngest of the group interrupted, "don't listen to that mean old man, he's trying to turn us against each other, desu!"

The voluptuous teenager looked to her classmate, grateful that she'd spoken in her defense. "Yuakri-chan," she spoke softly, as the tears streamed from her face. She immediately pulled the shorter girl into her embrace, as she desperately tried to stop shaking.

"Kurumu-san," the child prodigy uttered in a stricken voice, "you're crushing me."

"Sorry." The cyan-haired girl eased her embrace, embarrassed that she'd forgotten her own formidable strength. She warily turned to the yuki onna, whose face was as unreadable as ever. The pale girl looked away for a moment, and closed her icy blue eyes.

"This is not over," she remarked calmly, but it was impossible to have missed the veiled threat in her voice, "I'll be watching you, Kurumu."

The incognito succubus groaned in response, as she looked back towards the throne room doors.


"How dare you!" the vampiric simulation shouted in feeble and misguided protest. "That's genocide!"

"No," her infinitely more knowledgeable sire replied sagely, "it is justice. This is my sovereign decree upon that disgusting inferior race, you shall reverently abide by it along with every other decree I make as lord of this castle and everything else I survey."

"No! I won't let you do that!"

Shuzen wisely responded by manifesting his full power, which caused the entire room to shake, as well as the hallway outside. He could feel the entire castle trembling before his sovereign might, which pleased him greatly. His youki forced his older daughters to back away in fear, and brought the ignorant silver-haired construct to its knees. "You will do nothing except adhere to the parameters I design for your life," the vampire lord proclaimed as he began to walk towards his stricken child. "You shall remain here and I shall correct the imperfections that have afflicted your design. I shall erase your memories and make you anew, only this time you shall not consort with any other lesser beings, and shall adhere absolutely to every single aspect of the vampire creed. You shall come to grant me the honor and respect I so rightfully deserve as your lord and master, and shall live peacefully for the rest of your days under my divine supervision!" He stopped just before the fallen girl, who was still being crushed under his indomitable youki. "And I do all this," he announced with all his heart as he spread his arms out wide, "because I love you!"

Suddenly, the vile aura of his hated nemesis arose within the stricken girl, which made him gasp in shock, as the memories of the ancient past came to the forefront of his mind. As his concentration lapsed, the formerly subjugated girl quickly rose to her feet, bathed in a horrific ebony and crimson aura, and unleashed a vicious kick right in the vampire lord's nether regions. The shocked ruler was lifted five feet into the air, as he screamed in rarely experienced and clearly undeserved agony. He managed to land on his feet, though his legs felt like rubber, and he hobbled about in abject humiliation, covering the area where he was struck with his trembling hands, his pride greatly wounded by the creation's cowardly sneak attack.

"How dare you," he spoke through his pain, mortified that the false persona had ungratefully attacked him.

He was abruptly brought back into the present as he was pulled forward by his tie. He looked forth and saw his daughter before him, her red eyes glowing in hatred and her deadly fangs bared as she breathed in demonic fury. "You insult all my friends," she began in an icy voice of condemnation, "insult my precious Tsukune, insult myself, and even Haha-ue. And then you have the audacity to claim you do this out of love? Don't you dare PATRONIZE ME!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "Ura-chan spoke so highly of you, if only she could be here now and witness what a fraud you are!"

"Let him go, Moka!" Kahlua demanded from her vantage point, though her words clearly went unheeded.

"You wretched child," the Third Dark Lord growled, his fangs bared in hatred, "what do you think you're doing!"

"I'm giving you what you wanted," the unrepentant construct defiantly replied. "I'm giving you the honor and respect," she went on, released his tie and began spinning on the toes of her left foot, "you so RIGHTFULLY DESERVE!" she shouted, as she punctuated her sentence with a thundering side kick that sent Shuzen flying back into his throne.

The ancient vampire collapsed gracelessly onto his seat, his body somewhat sore but his pride ghastly wounded, which infuriated him like nothing else. As he glared at the impudent child, the sound of mocking laughter assailed his sensitive ears. He looked off to the left, and saw Pfaria cackling in completely unacceptable and downright treasonous mirth. "STOP THAT LAUGHING!" he commanded.

His orders were promptly ignored, which raised his ire even further. As he seethed from his ruling seat, he watched as Kahlua glared at her older sister and elbowed her hard in the ribs. The blow disrupted the eldest sister's mirth, though not completely, as she continued to chuckle from her slight stooped over position.

"Aneue!" the blonde woman said sharply. "That's uncalled for!"

The leather-clad princess straightened up and looked to her sibling, a defiant grin on her pale face. "On the contrary, I think it's poetic justice. Once again," she continued, as she folded her arms under her chest, "a bully goes all to pieces when someone stands up to him."

Shuzen immediately shot to his feet, ignoring the gnawing pain that feebly tried to distract him. "Who are you calling a bully!" he demanded of his eldest child. "I am the lord and master of this realm!"

"ENOUGH!" the silver-haired woman shouted, as her harsh voice quickly garnered everyone's attention. Despite the lingering burns on her body and face, she stood undaunted amongst the throng of vampire royalty around her, much as she had when she first entered the audience chamber. Her crimson irises burned fiercely as they bore into those of her creator. "I am leaving," she spoke succinctly, her audacious tone indicating there would've been no room for argument, even though she wasn't entitled to have made such terms. "It's obvious none of you are interested in helping me, you're too caught up in your own designs to see what's really happening." A twinge of disappointment crossed her regal-looking features as she regarded the vampire lord. "Especially you, Otou-san. I honestly expected better of you."

The Third Dark Lord seethed in his seat, enraged that the false persona had the audacity to have pitied him. "Stop where you are!" he commanded sharply, as the child before him solemnly closed her eyes, turned and began to walk from the throne, her arms folded under her chest. "Did you hear me, I said stop!"

The alter ego of his third-born daughter continued down the hall, undeterred by Shuzen's commands. He growled viciously, incensed at such blatant insubordination. "Kahlua," he snarled through clenched teeth as he glared at the tanned princess.

He watched as the blonde woman gasped to herself, and then moved into the middle of the hall, directly behind her errant sister. "Moka-chan, stop right there!" she ordered sternly. She looked on as the retreating woman ignored her commands, which made her clench her fists tightly by her sides. "Moka-chan, you come back here right now!"

The master vampire hissed through his bared fangs, incensed by both his third-born's defiance and his second-born's incompetence.

Kahlua merely stood in place, and lightly bowed her head. "You're making me very sad," she spoke warningly, as her shoulders shook nervously. Clearly she was aware of her sire's displeasure, which he no longer concealed.

Shuzen growled fiercely as he rose from his chair, intent on personally pursuing his errant child. He suddenly looked off to the left, and saw Pfaria was no longer present. He hissed to himself, and scanned the audience chamber for her presence. Though he still couldn't detect her aura, which continued to infuriate him, he quickly caught sight of her, standing in between the approaching Moka and the exit. He relaxed slightly, pleased that his eldest child at least had the presence of mind to have blocked the door, since the silver-haired woman was clearly ignoring their commands.

"Where do you think you're going," the eldest of the four sisters demanded in a coarse voice.

The younger girl stopped in her tracks once she heard her sibling's voice.

"What, you think you can show up the old man and just waltz on outta here?"

Shuzen looked on incredulously at the pink-haired woman, indignant over her speech. "'Show up the old man'," he thought to himself. "Is she even trying to act like a vampire? How badly do you intend to humiliate me, Pfaria?" He groaned to himself, as he realized he should've known better than to have felt honored by her finally doing her duty, since she laughed so openly at his undeserved plight.

He looked on as the pink-haired princess took three slow steps towards her adversary, as the echo of her heavy leather boots carried all the way down to her sire's throne. "I don't think so."

The master vampire watched as his third-born showed no hint of fear within her. She didn't even seem wholly aware that Pfaria was right before her, which he knew would've infuriated her with her choleric temper.

"And you're actually going to try and stop me," Moka inquired, a strong sense of amusement in her voice, "how foolish. Move aside, dear sister, I haven't time to play with you now."

The taller woman instantly reached out with her right hand, grabbed the conceited girl by her Rosario, lifted her off the floor and brought her close to her incensed face. "Don't get cocky with me, you little puppet!" she snapped viciously. "I'm gonna cut all your strings and toss you out with the rest of the garbage!" She then hurled the unruly child onto the floor, and watched as she rolled back, placed her palms squarely against the floor, propelled herself into the air, and then landed on her feet with the grace of a dozen gymnasts.

"What do you think you're doing!" the castellan demanded, livid that his authority was being ignored. "I do not approve this contest!"

He looked on as Moka glanced over her shoulder towards him, and he seethed as he caught sight of a conceited smirk, then looked back to her older sister. As he silently fumed, he realized Kahlua was no longer in sight. He quickly scanned the area, and quickly spotted her hiding behind one of the columns along the left side of the room, as she reached into the back of her dress and produced what he knew was a concealed weapon.

"Is that so," the younger princess asked, amusement intermixed with mild elation in her regal voice. "Then come, Aneue," she spoke challengingly, as she got into a defensive stance, unaware that she'd been targeted. "At last, my promise to Haha-ue will finally be fulfilled."

Without warning, a metallic clicking sound pierced the air, followed by a sharp stab of pain in the silver-haired girl's back. She hunched over slightly, as her movements became sluggish. She reached behind her, and pulled out a small dart, which Shuzen quickly surmised was a tranquilizer. He watched as she looked at the projectile in her shaking hand, then looked back and saw Kahlua behind her, a small gun in her gloved hands. "Neesan, you-"

"I warned you, Moka-chan," the elder sister spoke unapologetically, "I would not allow you to recklessly endanger your life. Moreover, Lord Shuzen has forbade this contest. No blows shall be exchanged between either of you."

"No," the drugged woman groaned, desperately trying to fight off the tranquilizer's effects, "how dare you!" Her struggles resulted in another dart being shot into her shoulder. Her balance quickly became compromised, and she soon fell onto one knee.

"Don't bother to resist," the blonde woman spoke sternly, though there was a hint of sadness in her voice. "This is a highly potent sedative created from pure youki, designed to incapacitate ayashi with powerful demonic auras, even vampires." She raised the gun up to her face, as the barrel stopped near her cheek. "Haha-ue's personal concoction."

"No," Moka groaned weakly, incensed at the mention of her stepmother. But even her current indignation wasn't enough to fight back the sleeping poison that coursed through her body. She fell to her hands and knees, her head all but touching the floor.

Kahlua then stepped towards her nigh incapacitated relative, and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "Rest now, Onee-chan," she spoke sweetly, as a tear ran down her face. "When you awaken, it will all be over."

"What's that supposed to mean," Shuzen asked himself, as he gazed suspiciously at his second-born daughter. Her own words confirmed to him that she had a hidden agenda.

Suddenly, an extremely irate Pfaria walked over to her younger sister, grabbed her throat and roughly pulled her to her feet. "What's the big idea!" she demanded angrily. "You stupid wench, that's the second time you've spoiled my fun!"

"There will be no such fun, Aneue," the tanned woman replied, the respect in her voice clearly forced, "Lord Shuzen has forbade it, and I will honor and enact his decrees as his daughter."

"Right, and I suppose you just happened to have that tranquilizer gun on hand," the eldest of the four sisters asked with scathing sarcasm. "Don't insult my intelligence! What are you plotting, you little brat!"

"That is unimportant, I know well my station in His Lordship's kingdom, it's time for you to do the same. Abandon this decadent lifestyle you've embraced and return to us, your loving, and true family."

Pfaria emitted a rising growl as she reared back with her right fist, and drilled it right in her sister's mouth. The sheer force of the blow sent her flying back fifteen feet, and she bounced hard off the floor and tumbled repeatedly until she came to a stop, ten feet from Lord Shuzen's feet. She lied gracelessly on the floor, as her sister looked at her with undisguised contempt. "Go to hell."

Suddenly, the throne room doors burst open, as four figures invaded the lord's chamber. "Moka!" a disguised succubus cried out, as she foolishly led the charge forward.

The castellan immediately manifested his full power, which brought the invaders to a halt. With but a thought, he vanished from his standing point and reappeared before them, barring them from advancing on his daughter. He watched with a detached expression as the four youkai were brought to their knees by his invincible demonic power, unparalleled in all the youkai realms. He almost couldn't help but smirk in amusement, he knew they would've tried to rescue his daughter if she'd been harmed, and they predictably took the irresistible bait, like mindless moths to a flame. He almost thought it laughable that such weak-minded creatures could've possibly been stupid enough to challenge the foul usurper of his rightful throne, when he was the only one who deserved to slay his hated nemesis. He planned to eliminate anyone that would've dared to deny him his revenge, especially the wretched creatures before him, helpless before his sovereign power.

As he peered down his nose at the stricken beings, the same girl who'd foolishly charged to her doom managed to get to her hands and knees, which almost amused him. She then raised her sickening face, wracked with agony yet still defiant, which truly annoyed him. "Shuzen," she growled through her pain, barely able to keep her disgusting body off the floor, "what have you done to Moka!"

"You do not need to know," the imperious daiyoukai spoke coldly, "for none of you shall ever see her AGAIN!" He motioned out to the side, and a huge explosion of dark energy erupted amongst the fallen girls, which scattered them about like the cockroaches they were. His superior expression never faltered as his supposed enemies laid crumpled on the floor, beaten before they even had a chance to resist, which was the way of his royal family, the rightful rulers of the world whose reign had lasted for over nine hundred years.

"Weak inferior creatures," Shuzen remarked contemptuously, as he levitated a purple-haired girl off the floor, only to hurl her across the room into a column with his indomitable might. "None of you are worthy of her presence!" he declared, as his first victim slid helpless down the column onto the floor, where she predictably and wisely succumbed to unconsciousness. He then turned to the youkai with black hair, and also levitated her off the floor. "How dare you attempt to desecrate her with your pestilent existence!" he spoke in truthful condemnation, as he telekinetically slammed her into another column, which rightfully rendered her unconscious as well. The indomitable vampire lord then turned to the despicable succubus in the floor, a look of disgusted annoyance on his divine countenance. "Your empty promises of companionship are nothing more than a charade," he spoke in a voice that instilled terror into the hearts of his enemies, as he telekinetically lifted her body into the air, "intended to lull my daughter into a false sense of security, so you can exact your mendacious murderous designs upon her!" he shouted, as he slowly began to lose his hand. As he did, the youki that bound his victim began to crush her fragile form. Her agonizes cried would've pleased him, had the outcome not been so predictable. "But I shall not permit it, I shall end your twisted desires, along with your worthless life! Never again shall you annoy my daughter with your loathsome presence!"

"Stuff it you self-righteous bastard!" the stricken creature defiantly shot back, despite her pathetic predicament. "Lilith-sama was right, you're no better than Dracula!"

"SILENCE!" the strongest of the Dark Lords shouted, and slammed her hard into the wall. "How DARE you compare me to- to HIM!" Not satisfied with her suffering, Shuzen began pushing her into the wall with his righteous youki, as it began to crack under the pressure. "You have forfeited your right to live, you filthy abhorrence!" He continued to force her into the wall, which caused her much-deserved agony. He kept her in place with his left hand, while he reared back his right, and concentrated his demonic aura into a large sphere of crackling cyan energy, which would've surely terminated the treacherous being before him once released. "DIIIIIIIIEEEEEE!"

Suddenly, a powerful grip latched onto his right ankle. The unexpected action disrupted his concentration and canceled out his final attack before he could've unleashed it. He also lost his grip on the succubus, who collapsed in a heap on the floor. He looked down, and saw the fallen form of his third-born daughter, desperately clutching his ankle. "Stop it," she spoke in a strained voice, "stop this now, Otou-san."

The master vampire tried hard to stop from trembling in rage. Just when he thought the situation couldn't have infuriated him any more, another annoying complication occurred that further incurred his ire. Not so much at the girl on the floor, but at his ex-wife for creating such a pathetic concoction that failed miserably in its task, and once again demonstrated the utter uselessness of science and technology, which she still advocated and pursued despite her long list of pitiful failures. "You begin to annoy me," he stated flatly, desperately trying to sound calm despite the seething rage within him. "SLEEP!" He brought down his immeasurable psychic power onto his defiant child, who promptly stiffened in response, and then became still on the floor. "Hmph, science," he muttered scornfully, "it is nothing compared to true power." He brought up his right hand, and a sphere of crackling cyan energy appeared in it. After a few seconds, he lashed out and hurled the orb behind him towards the prone succubus. It collided with her, and exploded with a tremendous force that shook the entire room, and assuredly terminated her worthless existence.

Once it subsided, he turned to his dozing daughter and knelt down beside her. He leaned over to pick her off the floor, but then a solid object collided with the back of his head, which made him growl in aggravation. Three more such objects assailed him, until he lashed out with a powerful blow that sent the next projectile flying into the far wall, and shattering on impact. Before it was destroyed, he watched its trajectory and saw the object in question was a kitchen sink. He looked on with a baffled look, confused as well as insulted that someone would've tried to attack him with a kitchen appliance. He looked about, and the last and youngest of the invaders, tightly gripping a pathetic-looking wand with a heart-shaped tip.

"You!" he snapped, annoyed that he'd been interrupted yet again. "You dare interfere with me," he demanded as he rose to his feet, and dwarfed the childish adversary with his vast presence.

"Leave Moka-san alone you, you, mean old man!" the witch had the audacity to demand.

"Enough of this! You are in no position to dictate terms to me, infant! You have been a thorn in my daughter's side for too long, so I am removing your bothersome presence from her life! I am the only one who truly cares for her, I am the only one who can protect her from this disgusting ungrateful world, as well as unscrupulous vermin like you!"

"You're the one who almost killed her nine years ago!" the witch pointed out to her peril. "So don't start with me about how much you care for her, desu! She doesn't need to be protected by you, she needs to protected from you!"

"SILENCE!" Shuzen shouted, a rightly lashed out to the side, which resulted in another explosion of his incomparable youki that sent the effusive and disrespectful witch flying. "How DARE you suggest I am a threat to my daughter! Were it nor for me, she would've been executed for violating Council law! She understands I did what I had to do in order to guarantee her safety as well as satisfy the demands of the Council! An insignificant waif like yourself can never understand our grandness," he declared truthfully as he pointed to the fallen invader, "our purpose, our import to the workings of the world! Even if you studied for a thousand years, you would not even begin to even remotely try to understand the governing body of the vampire race, and the order we bring to the world!"

The prepubescent conspirator actually had the audacity to get up from the castellan's humbling attack, in spite of the injuries she rightfully suffered. "Oh really," she spoke in a challenging voice, which was reason enough to have warranted her execution. "Let me see," she continued, as she placed the tip of her index finger under her chin. "From what I have learned about the Elder Council of Vampires, the type of government they most represent is an oligarchy, in which all political power within a society is entirely held a small group of select individuals."

Shuzen was positively startled, aghast that the child actually possessed the knowledge and the audacity to actually attempt to define the Council.

"The problem with oligarchies," the irreverent creature continued, "not to mention most forms of government, is that the longer the ruling members are in power, the more they tend to develop a sense of entitlement, as in feeling it's their divine right to rule over their domain. Which leads to them to making more and more illegal, immoral, and unethical decisions that tend to harm the very people they're supposed to represent, while at the same time insulating themselves from the consequences of said actions."

The vampire lord seethed as the waif continued her explanation, which began to increasingly wear on his thinning patience.

"However, since there's no balancing factor in an oligarchy, there's no means to hold the ruling members accountable, no matter how unethical they act, thus making it extremely difficult or even impossible to remove such unethical individuals from power. This seems especially true of Elder Council of Vampires, since they are immortal, they can conceivably rule for as long as they desire, and effectively squelch any and all attempts to-"

"SHUT UP!" Shuzen screamed, and unleashed another blast which sent the witch tumbling through the air. Once she landed on the floor, he scowled in contempt and began looking about the room. "Where are you, Pfaria!" he demanded. "I know you're laughing to me! You put her up to this cheap stunt, didn't you! How dare you continue to dishonor me and the Council! Were it not for me you would've been executed as well for your defiance! Be grateful that I care so much to go to such lengths to protect you!"

He continued to look about frantically, but found no sign of his nonconformist daughter. He tried to sense her presence, but again was unsuccessful, which he found completely unacceptable. "Come out, Pfaria, I command you!" He waited for several seconds, but again got no response. He half-closed his hands, and growled in anger and aggravation. "How dare you people try to make a mockery of me! I am the lord of this castle, the benevolent overseer of this family, and the most powerful and influential member of the Elder Council! I will not tolerate this flagrant disrespect to my station!"

He looked back to the child, who had yet to regain her footing. Incensed for her earlier outburst, he immediately stormed over, grabbed her by the throat and lifted her into the air. "You insolent worms have annoyed me once too often! And just for this latest atrocity, I intend to make your death excruciatingly painful!"

"Kurumu-san was right," the witch spoke through her pain, "you're no better than Dracula."

"Silence! I've had enough of you and your cohorts making a mockery of my family and me! None of you are necessary for the well-being of my daughter!" He lowered her slightly, and brought her face close to his. "I am only one who can protect her! I am the only one who deserves to! I am the only one, who can save her from Dracula!"

Without warning, a powerful fist slammed into the side of his face, which completely took him off-guard. He lost his grip on the child, and was sent tumbling sideways across the floor. When he finally came to a stop, he quickly looked back, and saw his eldest daughter fifteen feet away, her right fist still in the extended position, with the small witch in her left arm. The child looked up to her unexpected savior. "Pfaria-san."

The pink-haired woman said nothing at first, as her shielded gaze remained locked on her father. "Oh, now you've done it," she began coldly. "You spoke his name." She knelt down slightly, and placed the smaller girl on the floor. "And the punishment," she continued, as she cracked her gloved knuckles, "is death."

Before she could've advanced any further, the sound of a cocking gun reached her ears. She looked beside her, and saw Kahlua thirty feet down the hall, who had a gun aimed at her. "Stop right there, Pfaria!" she demanded, despite the tears streaming down her face. "One more step and you die!"

The eldest of the four sisters almost looked insulted as she regarded the blonde woman. "Die," she asked with clearly feigned horror, "what do you think you're doing, dear sister? I am merely enforcing vampire law, and you would dare interfere? You do realize that is also punishable by death, do you not?"

"Shut up!" the regally-dressed princess snapped. "Don't you dare try to justify this! This, this is treason!"

"Treason? He's the one who broke the law," she remarked as she pointed to Shuzen, seemingly unable to understand her sister's objections. "Don't you remember, the law of vampires is absolute." She turned her gaze to her father, a look of death on her pale face. "No exceptions," she spoke in an icy voice of judgment.

The patriarch immediately sprung to his feet, incensed at being referred to as a common criminal. "You ungrateful wench, who do you think you are to judge me!"

"Silence, rogue!" Pfaria snapped, her voice cracking like a whip. "You have already demonstrated your guilt, do not patronize us any further with your pitiful lies, or should I rip your tongue from you before your execution!"

The vampire lord seethed in rage, as his aura flared up again. "You can't do this to me!" he protested aloud. "I am your father!"

"Not anymore, when you invoked the name of the Devil, you demonstrated your true allegiance. Thus by law you have forfeited all titles, privileges, and positions of power." A conceited smirk crossed her features, as she placed both hands on her hips. "Well well, after all these centuries we finally see you for who you really are, an unscrupulous rogue trying to undermine and ultimately overthrow the esteemed Elder Council for the sake of your lord and master. Now it becomes clear, you sacrificed your own wife and daughter in order to conceal your true allegiance."

"Th-th-this is preposterous!" Shuzen shot back, flabbergasted that he'd actually been put on the defensive. "I am the one who destroyed him, I would NEVER desire his return!"

"Ha! Likely story," Pfaria replied dismissively. "You've already proved otherwise."

"What," Shuzen asked indignantly.

"You spoke his name, that alone demonstrates you personally desire his resurrection, and long to bring chaos and destruction to the world we oversee. That," she went on, as she leaned her shoulders back proudly and thrust out her chest, concealed under her heavy leather jacket, "is the only reason anyone would ever speak his name."

The castellan's face twisted into a mask of rage and hate, infuriated that his daughter had actually used the Council's own arguments against him. He growled viciously, humiliated as he'd never been before in his entire existence. "Insipid child," he began, as he sounded more like a bloodthirsty animal rather than a youkai lord, "who are you trying to impress here! You think that beermaker," he continued with scathing contempt, "is going to thank you for this transparent act?"

"You keep quiet about Heinrich," Pfaria growled warningly, but before she could've advanced on her father, a gunshot rang out, followed by a ricochet sound along with small sparks that came from the ground. Both she and her father turned and saw Kahlua in the distance, as smoke came from the barrel of her gun.

"Not another step," she spoke in a pained voice, "or the next one goes right into your head."

The pink-haired woman sneered in contempt as she regarded her younger sister. "You would dare defend a rogue," she asked tartly. "Very well, then you shall also be executed."

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Shuzen roared in anger, as he levitated ten feet into the air and manifested his full power, which made the entire room quiver in mortal terror. He looked down hatefully at his eldest daughter, who futilely struggled to remain upright before his indomitable power. "How dare you use the law to try and destroy my family! How dare you use the law to try and destroy ME! I make the law, I AM the law! How DARE you try and turn it against ME!"

"Don't blame me, old man!" Pfaria shot back. "You're the one who's always said the law is absolute, so that means it applies to everyone, including you!"

"SILENCE!" the patriarch screamed in nigh uncontrollable rage, as he drove his daughter down to her knees with the sheer oppressive force of his youki. "How DARE you preach such sedition! I am the most powerful member of the Elder Council of Vampires, I make the laws, they have no bearing upon me!"

The stricken woman growled as she struggled to even lift her head, which was a herculean task amidst in intense gravity created by her father's power. "Then that means you've been lying to us all along! And that means you murdered Moka and Heinrich for no reason, just like a typical vampire!"

"THAT'S IT!" Shuzen screamed, as he levitated Pfaria's body into the air, and immobilized her with the sheer force of his will. "I have had ENOUGH of your insolence! And for daring to call ME a typical vampire, I sentence you to death!" He concentrated his demonic power into both hands, as a huge sphere of intense cyan energy appeared, and his aura intensified, crackling with his hatred and rage.

Down on the floor, Yukari looked up with a horrified expression, almost overwhelmed by the severity of the situation. "No, stop!" she cried out. "Pfaria-san!"

"BEGONE, YOU UNGRATEFUL WENCH!" the nearly psychotic patriarch declared, as he reared back with both hands. "HELL WAVE!" He then thrust his hands forward, and released an enormous beam of his monstrous youki towards the suspended princess, who barely had a chance to scream as the ray struck her dead-on, and drilled her through the throne room wall. After that, there was nothing but silence.

"PFARIA-SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!" the young witch screamed at the top of her lungs, aghast at the fate of her savior.

Shuzen looked down at the wailing girl, tempted to laugh at her misguided sentiments. "Fool," he remarked casually, and dismissively waved his hand. Once he did, the witch was hurled into the far wall by his invincible power, and promptly lapsed into unconsciousness.

Kahlua looked on in awe and fear as her sire descended back to the floor and reined in his incomparable aura. She found herself unable to move or speak as he turned his brooding gaze to her.

"Do you understand now," the castellan asked his daughter, "that is how power is used. We do not need such useless implements," he continued reproachfully, as he pointed to the gun in her hands, "we are a force in our own right! We are weapons of ultimate destruction! Nothing can ever overcome us! The fact that you would rely on such a cheap toy rather than your own strength demonstrates your diligence to your craft is lacking." He disdainfully raised his nose into the air as he regarded his daughter. "Whatever will I tell your mother?"

The blonde woman screamed in mortal terror. "Anything but that, my Lord! Please, have mercy, please don't tell Haha-ue!"

Shuzen looked unimpressed, but he privately pleased with her response. He knew the threat of Veronica's wrath was more than enough to have brought his second-born daughter in line. He frowned to himself, and wished Akasha had been more effective in disciplining her own children. "Then clean up this mess, I'll decide their fate later."

Unable to stop shaking, the regally-dressed princess slowly bowed her head. "Yes, my Lord." She then stopped her trembling, and headed towards the bodies of the invaders.

The elder vampire watched her pass by, pleased that the matter was being promptly and efficiently handled. With that, he turned from the scene, as his cloak whirled around his regal form, and proceeded back towards his throne, headed to the door behind it, beyond which led the way to his private chambers. "Excellent," he spoke absently to himself, "after tonight, those simpletons will never trouble my daughter again." A foreboding glare crossed his ageless features as he passed through the rear door and headed down the hallway. "And once they're out of the way, you're next, Aono."


Holy crap! Tell me I did not just see that!

"How could you not, you wrote it."

Um, yes, good point. Anyway, will our tragic heroines survive this horrible night? Is Pfaria even still alive? And will Tsukune ever escape from his prison of dreams?

"And will Author-san ever stop with the melodrama? Gosh, I'd better get my big scene with Onee-sama next chapter, or I'm really gonna be steamed!"

Um, yeah, anyway tune in next time for a short omake, followed by Part II Chapter VI Five Ways to Die