At first, there was only one other Akuha/Tsukune story up and it hasn't updated in quite some time (two if you count the cancelled one). Not long after starting this story, other Akuha/Tsukune fics have been popping up. Not saying I inspired them though, as it's most likely due to the manga focusing on Akuha more in recent chapters.
Redwarrioroflight, Xagzan, if either of you are reading this, keep writing, you're doing a great job so far… and I love competition.
Unrelated: This is the first chapter title that doesn't follow the usual theme. This is due to being centered on a different character.
Tsukune's House
Akuha thought to herself: what was it that Tsukune just told her? "Only you can remove this Rosario you say Moka wears?" she asked, taking in what she heard a moment ago.
"Yeah, that's exactly it." Tsukune said bluntly.
"Uh, Tsukune? That kind of sounds like something important. Do you think it's wise to have told me that?"
"Well, it's not something I would tell to just anyone," Tsukune made a guilty look, as if reminded of a past mistake he once made, "not anymore anyways."
"And yet you told me anyways because of what?"
"I told you because I trust you. Like the others, I'd even trust you with my life."
Akuha frowned at this. Tsukune admitted to trusting his life to someone who was sent to kill him. "Are you sure trusting me is a good idea?"
Tsukune smiled. "Of course. If you were up to something, then you would have done it by now, right?"
"But there's still so much you don't know about me. You don't know where I came from, how I was raised, or what else I've been doing with my life besides traveling."
"Akuha, I know what most vampires are like. Usually they're solitary, prideful, and don't care for those that are weaker than them," Tsukune stared straight into Akuha's eyes, "but up till now you've acted sociable, respectful, and you even went out of your way to save my life twice. That's not easy for a vampire to do. I know that you've shown kindness to me, and that is all that I need to know." Once again, it wasn't anything romantic to him, he was just talking to a friend he deeply trusted, whom was going to help him save Moka.
Akuha took in the situation entirely differently. She didn't know if she felt passionate and wanted to hug him, or if she wanted to slap him and call him an idiot for trusting too easily… it was both. On one hand, Tsukune was very good-natured and he acted with bravery when his friends were in danger. One the other hand, he was too good-natured and he acted with bravery only when his friends were in danger. "So you trust me just because I've been nice?"
"No, it's because I've gotten to know you," Tsukune said, "and I know that the kind of person I've understood you to be would make the right choice."
Akuha was starting to lean more towards slapping Tsukune. 'The right choice' he said? A murderer is the kind of person she is. Tsukune didn't know how terrible and ruthless she could really be. She was a fiend even among other vampires, a monster of monsters. True she had acted kind around Tsukune, but only to further her own agenda.
The importance behind any act is not the act itself, but the reason for it. Akuha had acted social so she could investigate Tsukune better, she had acted kind to avoid suspicion, and she had saved his life because it would inconvenience her mission if he died. Tsukune was either a horrible judge of character or… a great one?
A gambit of emotions echoed through Akuha's mind. The importance behind an act is its reason isn't it? Why then did she not feel convinced? Maybe there was even more to an act than just the reason, but also the truth. The truth was that she actually enjoyed chatting with Tsukune, she didn't need to put on a false expression to act kind around him, and she would never… never want to see him die…
Perhaps deep down, Akuha was exactly the kind of person Tsukune said she was, and at the same time, the complete opposite. Like how she felt about Tsukune's speech, she didn't feel one emotion and not the other, but she felt both at once. What kind of person would she be like if she were raised differently? If she were raised the same way Moka was, without a care or worry in the world.
"I didn't tell the others where we're going." Tsukune said, "sure I don't want them to worry, but I'd hate to see them get hurt even more." He then noticed the mystified looked on Akuha's face, "Is there something wrong Akuha? I'd say you look concerned but…
"It would be an understatement." Akuha laughed.
"Well, if you want, we could take a-
"No no no! We're not going to delay our rescue just because of a measly headache."
"Well, I guess we better get moving then." Tsukune said with optimism. He began to fast walk away.
Akuha looked on at Tsukune, not knowing what to think about him. How has Tsukune lived this long, trusting others as readily as he has? It could be because he's so good at making friends. The traits Akuha admired about Tsukune were the same ones that she looked down upon. "Wait up Tsuk." she said as she ran to catch up to him.
XXX
Abandoned Subway Station
Moka sat on the right side of a couch, trying to stay calm and quiet. Things seemed quite boring down here, but she hoped for her own sake that it would stay that way. Earlier Sheckley asked if he could 'have some fun' with her, but Nightcry declined his request. For some reason, her captor was treating her fairly well.
Nightcry moved over to Moka, "Eat," he said as he gave her a paper bag, "You haven't had anything since you were brought here."
Moka opened the paper bag, finding a ham sandwich as well as a small carton of juice inside. "Th-thank you." she said nervously.
Nightcry sat down at the left side of the couch. He bent forward and clasped his hands together, resting his elbows on his knees, his hood casted a shadow over his face. Moka looked over at him for what felt like an eternity. There were so many questions she wanted to ask him, but she didn't want to aggravate him either
"Why are you being so nice to me?" Moka asked him, "I can tell that you healed me earlier."
"I said I wouldn't hurt you as long as you didn't give me a reason to." Nightcry said calmly without looking at her, "I kept my word."
Moka took the plastic wrapping off the sandwich, deciding to do what Nightcry told her. Having a snack was a small matter anyways. After she took a few bites out of the sandwich, she gathered the courage to speak again. "What do you want from me? Why did you just bring me here and decide not to do anything to me?"
Nightcry slowly turned his head towards Moka.
Moka felt what little courage she gathered escape, "You don't have to answer if don't want to!" she said in panic, putting her hands slightly up.
"Something very important to me was lost, and I want it back."
"Huh? Something important?" Moka felt comfort from that answer. At least his end goal wasn't to kill anyone. "Am I somehow responsible? Someone in my family or somebody that I know?"
It was if Nightcry didn't hear her. After a short moment passed by, he instead answered her with another question, "Tell me Moka, do you enjoy living the life you have now?"
Moka felt nervous again, his response seemed like a threat the way it was worded.
"I speak not of simply possessing life, but rather how we live it. Being happy, angry, relieved or frustrated… being able to feel life, that is what makes one truly 'alive'.
Moka nodded, understanding what he meant. "Yes, I am grateful for the life I have."
"Of course you would." He spoke in a cold, impassive tone, "You have a family that loves you, close friends to turn to, and a school to attend. For a vampire, you live a very simple lifestyle, without a care or worry in the world. How could anyone not appreciate a life like that?"
"You sound sort of… envious."
"Envious? I have more power than even you, a vampire, could ever imagine, and yet you accuse me of being envious?"
Moka just sat there, too petrified to say anything.
"I am so powerful… and yet I am dead, unable to feel anything." Nightcry brought up his hands, starring at his palms as his hands closed into fists, "Too long have I been dieing and haven't died, too long have I been living as a lifeless empty shell. You will never realize the true worth of an uncomplicated life until it is lost. You'll never forget the experience."
The tone Nightcry spoke in didn't sound sad, but something about his wording suggested otherwise. The more Moka heard, the more curious she felt. "You once lived a normal life?" she asked, "Well, normal for a monster I mean."
"That part of me is dead and gone."
XXX
9 Years Ago – America, West Coast
Inside a small looking home sat a ten-year-old human boy named Alistair. Everyone just called him Al for short. At the moment he sat on the couch watching the original Star Wars trilogy. He got it as a Christmas present from a relative across county a short while ago, and watched all three movies quite often. For some reason, they just never got boring to him.
Al really liked the protagonist, Luke Skywalker. It wasn't that he could relate to him, but Luke just felt like a real person. In 'A New Hope' he saw Luke's problems, hopes and dreams, his frustrations, and then even felt his sadness when his Aunt and Uncle were found dead. The slow build up in the movie added depth, emotion, and anticipation, which made the rest of the trilogy so enjoyable.
One of Al's favorite scenes from 'The Empire Strikes Back' was when Luke tried to lift his X-Wing out of the swamp.
"Size matters not." Yoda said after Luke gave up, "Look at me. Judge me by my size do you? Well you should not! For my ally is the Force. And a powerful ally it is."
What Yoda said to Luke next really spoke to Al.
"Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us… and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter!" Yoda nudged Luke's arm, "You must feel the Force around you. Here, between you, me, the tree, the rock… everywhere! Even between the land and the ship."
Al loved the idea of 'The Force' in Star Wars. The ultimate point of Yoda's speech was that 'The Force' was beyond the physical. The idea just seemed so magical and fascinating the way it was presented.
"Al?" his mother called as she opened the front door and came inside, holding bags of groceries, "I'm back."
Alistair paused the television and came over to his mother, "Hey Mom. Need any help with those?" Just the two of them heaved the grocery bags into the dinning room.
No one else lived in this house, just Al and his mother. Father died when Al was only two years old, and so Mother worked to support them both with her minimum wage job. Al's uncle from his Father's side of the family offered them money, but Mother refused. She just seemed to prefer working hard and earning what she got.
While Alistair didn't live the best life, he was still happy, living with only his Mother.
XXX
Present Time – Abandoned Subway Station
"Alistair? So that's your name?" Moka asked, "and you're… human? I thought you were some kind of western monster I wasn't familiar with."
"I was human," Nightcry said impassively, "I once had a carefree life, like yours is now. I grew up as a normal child, but became the malevolent killer I am today." He paused for a moment, "Are you disappointed?"
"No, of course not!" Moka said quickly, "But… I am curious. What could possibly have happened to you?"
"An American black operations unit took me away, that's what happened."
"And the American government just let that happen?"
"Officially, the unit doesn't exist. Their activities are not overseen as long as they get the job done."
"What job? Who are they?"
"Supernatural Suppression and Elimination, or SSE for short. They're a private heavily funded military created to combat monsters."
"Combat monsters? But I thought human governments didn't know…"
"You don't really believe that do you?" Alistair adjusted the headband he wore over his eyes, "Think about it, monsters have been traveling back and forth between their world and the human world in great number, not all of them have been keeping a low profile. What's to stop a dim-witted Cyclops from going on a murderous rampage if given the chance? There are almost seven billion humans living in this world today, of course one of them would have noticed all the activity by now."
Moka shrugged. The battle in the public park yesterday was pretty destructive, and no one noticing it was nothing short of amazing. Luck like that couldn't happen every time monsters fought in the human world.
"The SSE covers it up, and they work hard to preserve the ignorance of the public. They have been allowed free reign when it comes to dealing with monsters running amuck, only on American soil thankfully."
"But you said you were human. Harming you had to have been breaking some kind of rule."
"No, it wouldn't matter to them as long as they got what they wanted." Alistair looked at his right arm as it morphed into a spiked tentacle. "They abducted me in the middle of the night, drugging me to keep me out. The next thing I knew, I woke up in a research lab on an isolated island. Their experiment was already ready for me before I got there."
"Why did it have to be you? What sort of experiment was it?"
Alistair hesitated, there were a lot of details he didn't talk about. The panic from not knowing why he was there, all the screaming he made while being experimented on, how much he missed his Mother…
XXX
7 Years Ago – SSE Research labs
A number of scientists looked through a large bulletproof glass window, overlooking a sizable testing chamber. In the testing chamber was a twelve-year-old Alistair, restrained to a steel chair. He struggled a lot when he first woke up, but after being here for a week and given many sedatives, he stopped trying to fight back. Dozens of injectors hung over his arms, legs, and chest, all just inches away from stabbing him. They contained heavily modified vampire blood.
"There really isn't anyone else?" asked one of the scientists behind the glass.
"Indeed," said another scientist, "among the 50,000 DNA samples we've recovered and tested, his is the only one that properly bonded. Theoretically, only one person in every quarter-million would be compatible."
The last ten years, the SSE spent a lot of time and resources trying to find better ways to overcome more powerful monsters. Guns, explosives, and other conventional weapons worked fine on A-rank monsters and below, but others like Phoenixes, Werewolves, and especially Vampires required much more to bring down. Taking advantage of their natural weaknesses sometimes worked, but that alone wasn't something to keep relying on. They needed to find some other kind of solution.
Vampires are known to be the strongest of natural occurring monsters, they knew that if a human were to be given some of their blood, it would grant him comparable strength without the weaknesses, but at the cost of going berserk until his body tares itself apart from the inside. If they figured out how to keep the injected human from going out of control as well as how to keep his body stabilized, they would have the perfect soldiers to fight S-rank monsters with. With the cutting-edge technology they had, they could even extend their abilities further than that of natural vampires.
They conducted endless amounts of research on vampire blood, uncovering what it was capable of and exactly how it worked. They discovered that it constantly generated and accumulated large amounts demonic energy, and then was capable of converting the accumulated energy into another form, naturally being raw strength. This was quite similar to the already-known Shadow Claw, which could also generate demonic energy in their blood, but only in the absence of light. This similar ability suggested very distant, yet common ancestry. The eyes of a vampire resembled that of a snake, and Shadow Claw were reptilian-like, so it made sense if they branched off in opposite directions from the same ancestor.
Deciding that converting energy to only strength was limited, the SSE sought to go even further by adding more abilities. While Shadow Claw were significantly weaker than vampires, the similarities in their blood allowed them to mix well. After replacing, mixing, and modifying various properties of the vampire blood with substances taken from Shadow Claw, they created very different vampire blood that could both generate energy naturally as well as draw even more from the dark. Its ability to store energy was exponentially increased, and it was able to convert energy into many more forms than just strength.
The powers of both, the weaknesses of neither… There could be no greater monster specialist than a vampire with enhanced abilities and without any weaknesses.
The SSE scientists had also found a way to sterilize the psychological parts of the blood, keeping the injected human from losing his mind. The sterilization had side effects however, it completely deleted every mental feature that made someone a human, leaving whoever it was used on to be as blank as a machine. Perhaps that could be perfected with a little more research.
Alistair was a prototype, not meant to see any action, but only a test subject to see what would work and what wouldn't. He was the only one the SSE currently knew of that would properly bond with modified blood, everyone else it was used on quickly died.
One other property that was added to the blood, allowed the SSE scientists to control the test subject. Once the blood's effects were properly tested, just this part would be removed when given to compatible operatives, not that they've found any yet.
The experiment began, and the injectors stabbed into Alistair. He screamed as he felt his body begin to change drastically, quickly inheriting the many powers and abilities that the modified blood stored. As vicious as the physical changes were, what felt far worse were the mental changes. He felt his mind get ripped apart and destroyed beyond all recognition. Any emotions of fear quickly vanished, along with the ability to feel any other emotion. These enormous changes happening instantaneously were just too much for a human mind to take, let alone that of a twelve-year-old.
The scientists looked on at Alistair. Despite at first looking scrawny, his body bulked up and looked fairly muscular. He didn't grow bigger, but looked very healthy and fit.
Black mist seemed to be generating from out of Alistair's eye sockets. "What's wrong with his eyes?" One of the scientists asked.
"It's quite possible that we mixed in a little more Shadow Claw DNA than we thought." Shadow claw generated black mist from where their eyes would normally be. They saw differently from other creatures, sending out small ripples of energy out in all directions to tell where everything was, how it was shaped, and even what color it was. It worked like a sonar, but used energy instead of sound.
"He seems to have inherited more abilities from Shadow Claw than we would have liked." Said another scientist.
"But how is that a bad thing? Don't we want him to be stronger than natural monsters?"
"We don't want them to be too powerful. Shadow Claw are weak, but they compensate for that by having a lot of useful tricks. Amplifying these 'tricks' to a vampire's league is like going from a grenade to a nuclear bomb."
Alistair fully transformed and finally felt the changes stop. His mind was broken, and all that was left were a few of his memories. He could still remember his name and that he was kidnapped against his will. He remembered who his Mother was, but he couldn't recall a single experience he had with her. The memories and images from his entire past life were erased.
"It seems we made another miscalculation." one of the scientists said, "His mind isn't as empty as we intended. He still has free will."
"It's a good thing we played things safe then. Those ultraviolet lights we have shining on him prevent power accumulation, and he hasn't already stored up any."
Alistair could hear them, but now he didn't feel like he cared. "I want out…" he said coldly, like a completely different person. Without looking around, he 'saw' his surroundings through his new kind of vision. Though it was the first time he used it, it felt natural, as he also inherited the Shadow Claw's instincts. He didn't have any demonic energy stored in his veins, but he could feel out any dark places around him. Suddenly from out the one of the scientist's own shadows, a burst of energy shot up at the overhead lights, completely darkening the room they were in.
Energy manipulation at long distance, neither Shadow Claw nor Vampire could do this, but with the powers of the former at the magnitude of the latter, it could be done easily. It was one other thing the SSE scientists had gravely miscalculated on, what new abilities would be made when the two were mixed?
While Alistair was still under ultraviolet light, he had great influence over the dark room that the scientists were in. It was if he were in there as well. Black tentacles emerged out from the floor, all made of energy drawn from the dark and made tangible. Alistair tore off the scientist's heads one by one, he felt nothing as he had no emotions, but was reminded by what few past memories he still had. He knew that he should have been awestruck by what he just did. It was like his powers went beyond the physical. The idea just seemed so magical and fascinating.
Alistair manipulated the buttons and switches in the room, turning off the ultraviolet lights. Energy filled his entire body, allowing him to easily break out from his restraints. He quickly tore right through the steel wall and began to rampage through the facility.
The SSE military personal were incredibly quick to respond to the new threat. They weren't expected it, but they were so well trained that they may as well have. They skipped using mere assault rifles, and attacked with explosives, .50 cal anti-tank rifles, and even unconventional advanced weapons that were in their testing phase. They hit Alistair with everything, even a full-fledged vampire would have a lot of trouble, but Alistair was beyond even that.
After a long fight, the creature that was once a twelve-year-old boy killed most everyone and escaped the facility.
XXX
Present Time – Abandoned Subway Station
All the scientific explanations Alistair made weren't easy to comprehend, but Moka was very book-smart. She got good grades in science class, as with all the other subjects she studied in school.
"I see, so that's why you seem so unique, you're one of a kind." Moka said. She took a moment to piece everything together, "So… you're a ghoul that isn't going berserk, armed with Shadow Claw abilities, right?"
"Enhanced by human engineering, I was made to be a weapon for them," Alistair said, "something capable of fighting S-rank monsters head-on and beating them, but the SSE were careless, they were dealing with forces beyond their imagination. They could never comprehend how dangerous it was until it was too late. Some things are just best left untouched."
Moka didn't know what to think about Alistair anymore. Part of her felt sorry for him, but another part of her still felt afraid. In a strange way, she felt both at once.
"Everything they did to me, this is why I hate humans, even if I once was one."
"Hate humans?" Moka felt a twinge of sympathy, "I once did too, I was treated badly by some a long time ago." She thought of Tsukune, "But those cruel acts don't represent their entire race. Recently I've learned to judge a person for who they are, not what they are."
"How very touching." Alistair's arm changed back to normal, "That is why I only enjoy killing one type of person, one that devotes himself only to personal power."
XXX
Akuha walked through the underground station passages, accompanied only by Tsukune. She tried to discourage him from coming with her, but to no success. Tsukune was too persistent, too determined, and Moka was in danger. Had this been to rescue anyone else, Akuha would never have given in. Eventually, she decided that she would instead hold nothing back and work as efficiently as possible, casting aside any desire for enjoyment from a fight. She would go through any lengths to save Moka while keeping Tsukune alive at the same time.
The two of them began to approach the door to where Moka and Alistair were. Sheckley stood guard just outside, sitting down on a folding chair while reading a newspaper. His eyes lit up at the sight of 'The Black Devil'.
"Wow, you found us a lot faster that I thought." Sheckley said in surprise.
"After finding out what tormented your friend, it wasn't difficult getting the information I needed." Akuha took a martial arts fighting stance.
"Something that can torment Griggs? You've got to tell me what it is," A demonic aura began to surround Sheckley, "after I beat you to a pulp of course." Fur began to grow all over him, his nose extended into a snout, and his teeth grew sharp while his mouth reformed. He transformed into a humanoid wolf.
"A werewolf?" Tsukune said in surprise. He remembered how fast and formidable Ginei was back at Yōkai Academy. Sheckley looked much bigger and stronger though, and he had sharper claws and teeth. "This could be trouble."
"He's a Lycaon," Akuha said, "a much stronger variety of werewolf." It was just like there were different kinds of vampires, Shinso being an example of this.
"Don't think I'll go down as easily as that stupid cow." Sheckley said as he bared his enormous claws.
Akuha readied the Jigen-Tou attack with her right arm, she didn't have time for this. It would be a dirty trick, but it was necessary. She suddenly pointed behind Sheckley as her eyes went wide, "Holy s***!" she shouted as if in great shock.
Sheckley looked behind himself for a second. What could possibly have spooked someone like 'The Black Devil' that much?
While Sheckley wasn't looking, Akuha abruptly slashed his lower half off with the Hogetsu Jigen-Tou attack. "Suuuuuckeeeeer!" she yelled. She just pulled a Jigen-Tou equivalent of a sucker-punch.
Tsukune felt daunted by what he just saw, "A-Akuha! Was it really necessary to just kill him like that?" He never liked to kill others, even his opponents.
"It got the job done." Akuha said as she looked back at Tsukune, "Do you want to save Moka or not?" She wasn't angry, but she always acted fiery whenever a fight was on her hands.
"Well, yeah but…" Tsukune felt uneasy. Akuha was usually quite cheerful on her pastime, but killing seemed to mean nothing to her. "I guess that just can't be helped, its something natural to vampires."
XXX
Alistair felt Akuha's energy nearby, she finally came, and she had brought the boy 'Tsukune' with her. Why did Sheckley try to fight them? He was supposed to stay out of their way until Moka's Rosario was removed again. He probably didn't listen to instructions again…
"I still don't understand one thing." Moka said to Alistair, "You never told me what involvement I have in this."
Alistair didn't answer for a moment again. Was he thinking of a way to phrase it? Did he not want to tell her? He was impossible to read. "Remember what I said about losing something important to me?"
Moka just looked at him, both curious and afraid of what the answer may be.
"I found a way to get it back…"
XXX
To be continued in next chapter.
Why does Alistair want Moka's blood? It's not for power, I'll say at least that right now.
Unrelated: Lycaon is the name of an Arcadian king that tried to test Zeus' immortality. He was changed into a wolf as punishment.
Unrelated: No, there's no romance between Alistair and Moka.
Unrelated: Using traditional monsters that we've already seen before would have been boring and without tension. That's why I've been using things like science fiction and gods. The bad guys have got to be strong.
Unrelated: Not the longest chapter, but the most challenging one to write so far.
Unrelated: A very special thanks goes to Cooking Samurai. While I gave life to Nightcry's back-story, Cooking Samurai came up with the original concept for it.
Unrelated: The name "Shadow Claw" came from an attack move in… Pokemon.
Unrelated: The term 'monster' is used a lot instead of 'Yōkai' due to the SSE being American.
Unrelated: Right before this update was made, I got an average of 4.77 reviews per chapter.
Unrelated: This 'unrelated' gag is getting overdone.
Unrelated: And then I take a breath.