Disclaimer: Why do I still write these, I don't own anything.

Chapter 13

"So how do you plan on rescuing this witch?" Moka asked, her curiosity peaked by the two spellcasters.

"Currently I believe that it would be best to avoid any contact with the building as I search for her presence" Cecile said as she took in a few deep breaths.

"I don't think that will work" Tsukune cut in. "If the mistress of the knoll is a nature witch then she will have thousands of contingencies set up to prevent you from searching out any presences within the building."

"You have youki correct" Moka asked before an argument could start between Tsukune and Cecile.

"Yes. Why?" Cecile questioned as she looked at the pink haired vampire.

"Well, if you're willing to release my seal then I could sense out the youki of the two within the mansion" Moka answered.

Tsukune's eyes lit up as Moka's idea was processed through him. "That's perfect Moka-san."

His enthusiasm was contagious as a smile spread across Cecile's lips as well. Moka couldn't help, but feel proud of herself for being the one to solve the issue of beginning their mission.

Tsukune walked over to her and placed a hand around the rosary pulling it off easily and bracing himself for the immense wave of youki that burst from the vampire. When the storm died down the silver haired woman replaced her pink haired personality. With a smug grin she stepped towards the mansion and began to search out the youki.

"Found them" her sultry voice stated within moments of her search starting. "They're on a level below the basement."

Tsukune gave Moka a brief hug for her speedy assistance. This action stunned the vampire princess and sparked jealousy from the succubus who was standing in the background. However nothing past that could be done as Tsukune rushed towards the mansion.

"Alright now we just have to get in there" Tsukune said as he reached the mansion. Just like the previous time he was sent flying back by a field of energy surrounding the building.

"What just happened" Kurumu asked as Mizore cautiously approached the building.

"There's some sort of force field in place" Mizore stated.

"Yeah, that's quite obvious" Kurumu yelled at the Yuki-Onna.

Unfazed Mizore stood in front of the mansion and gave it a once over before turning around and facing the others.

"Can either of you break the field surrounding the building?" she asked.

Tsukune let out a slight groan while Cecile smiled as best she could under the circumstances.

"Mizore-san, there is only one spell that could break this field and sadly only Tsukune-kun can perform it. Even then he can't perform it at its full power so we may only open part of the field" Cecile said.

"Oh, I know what spell you're talking about" Tsukune said as he clued in to what he was needed to do.

"Exactly, now please begin" Cecile beckoned as Tsukune found himself an empty spot on the ground and took a position.

The girls watched with interest as Tsukune appeared to be taking what could be seen as a martial arts stance. However the primary difference was the fact that the watch that had been mentioned before was now positioned within one of his hands. As the girls watched Tsukune cross his arms over one another they felt a temporary rise in temperature before they witnessed a silver liquid flow from his position and envelop the mansion.

"Silvercraft: Barrier Break" Tsukune said.

Upon those words being stated the silver liquid burst away from the mansion and returned to Tsukune's clenched fist. He then returned to a normal position before walking towards the door, unfazed by what had happened. The others however were not so unfazed.

"What the heck did Tsukune-kun just do?" Kurumu asked, confused by what she had seen.

Cecile just stood there grinning at the impressive display she had just seen. Moka however was more determined to get an answer than Kurumu so she walked up to the spellcaster and tapped her lightly.

"What is Tsukune-kun?" the silver haired vampire asked.

"He's a form of alchemist. It's the only thing that he can truly excel at without aggravating his necromancy" Cecile answered. "As such he decided to focus on Silvercraft. It's an ancient form of alchemy that was used for many purposes. It's also very dangerous."

Moka nodded in as best an understanding as she could. There was something that she wasn't being told, but now was not the time to hunt for an answer. Now, they needed to break into the mansion and rescue this witch.

Kurumu and Mizore had elected to stay outside. If something serious was going to happen then they at least needed a couple of people outside in case anything went on. Agreeing to this Cecile led Tsukune and Moka into the mansion.

Upon entering Cecile was amazed by how elegant it was. Nearly going off on a discussion about the architecture she forced herself to remember why they had come in the first place. Leading the way the best she could, Cecile decided it would be better to have Moka take the lead.

The silver haired young woman agreed and soon they were progressing cautiously towards the basement of the mansion. Tsukune had been holding up the rear and was pleased to do so as his thoughts were given time to sort them out. Ever since he had returned home things had been moving insanely fast, it was as if this was part of a game and he was just one of the pieces. He knew exactly who he would be a piece for, but after playing chess numerous times (and failing each and every one) against Fai, he was sure that none of them were sacrificial pawns.

'There's go to be something I'm missing' he thought just as they arrived at the door to the basement.

"Tsukune-kun, we need you to open the barrier again" Cecile said with a smile as Tsukune was forced to the head of the group.

"Alright, just give me a moment" Tsukune replied as he once again took up his position. "Silvercraft: Barrier Break."

In no time the barrier was gone and they could proceed. However Tsukune could feel that something wasn't right. Stomaching the feeling he followed the others.

The room they had come into was dank and dark. Waves of malicious magic energy washed over them as they continued onwards and it was quite evident that Mizore and Kurumu had never experienced this form of power before (at the very least not in this quantity). Even Moka was struggling to stay focused with the immense magic energy.

As they made their way cautiously to the bottom step of the stairway, voices became audible. Actually it was more like screaming became audible. Cecile clearly noticed Tsukune cringe, before anger spread across his face at the sound. Anger wasn't usually something Tsukune bore, so when it came up there was clearly hell to pay for whoever invoked it.

'Tsukune-kun don't do anything rash' Cecile stated through her telepathic link.

'Of course I won't...I just can't stand this anymore' Tsukune replied. 'We've come this far and I want to just rush in and help her...argh! This is so hard!'

His yelling caused Cecile to blink in shock a few times (unnerving the girls who didn't know what was going on). Refocusing herself the female spellcaster placed a hand on Tsukune's shoulder and gave him a smile.

'Don't worry about it. We'll save her. Please just trust me on my judgement here' she requested.

'Alright, Cecile-sama, I'll trust your judgement on this' Tsukune conceded before turning his attention back to their location.

"Moka-san are we in the right location?" Tsukune asked.

Standing still for a moment Moka allowed herself to feel out the youki before giving him a confirming nod.

"Okay, Cecile-sama what's the plan?" the question was aimed at the emerald haired spellcaster who had been starting to feel the rush of magic.

"Hmm, wait...what was that Tsukune-kun?" she asked as she shook her head.

"I asked what your plan was" he repeated, irritation appearing slightly in his voice.

"My plan...yes...what was it anyways?" Cecile could feel her mind slipping as she tried to focus.

"Cecile-sama are you alright?" Tsukune asked, noticing his aunt's declining health.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?" she retorted with a bizarre half smile on her face.

Tsukune felt a wave of panic pass through him as he twisted around to see that Moka was starting to act up as well. However she was able to show him that she was still struggling to stay conscious and sane.

"Tsukune-kun, why are you unaffected?" she asked, her voice becoming as loopy as Cecile's.

As Moka asked the question, a feeling of dread spread throughout Tsukune's body. He now knew what sort of magic was permeating the area. It wasn't nature magic, that was quite clear...he was facing a magic style comparable to the necromancy buried within him.

"Moka-san you just stay right here...you and Cecile that is. I have to go see what I can do to stop this" he told her with a, hopefully, comforting smile.

"Hurry back, I'll be waiting" the vampiress said as she stumbled slightly, almost as if she was drunk.

Grimacing at the sight of his friend (and a member of his family) Tsukune pushed onward. Moka was still struggling, he was certain of that, but she wouldn't be any help in that drunken state. The only thing that was comforting to the young alchemist was the idea that Cecile would get a reprimanding from Lelouch over what occurred here, well as long as they all survived she would.

Pushing that dark thought from his mind Tsukune approached the door. Twisting the knob he was pleased to find that it wasn't locked. That at least was a good start. Taking in a deep breath he opened the door slowly, revealing the room within.

'Shit' he mentally swore as the sight of the room overcame him.

It was the last thing he would have expected. Despite the majority of spellcasters using their abilities for the benefit of mankind (usually in the background) and the numerous conflicts from that, he never expected to see what he saw before him.

The room was essentially a torture chamber, filled with both human and magical items that shouldn't even be allowed to exist. By now he was also feeling the energy that turned the others loopy, but to his relief (at least at this moment it was a relief) it was energizing him.

"Ruby" he hissed out, hoping not to disturb the mistress if she was still down here.

"Oh, welcome good sir. Our mistress wishes to speak with you" the familiar voice of the witch appeared in the room.

Tsukune glanced over and was thrown off by what he saw. Walking towards him was definitely Ruby, but at the same time she didn't have any of the energy that she had before. Her eyes were empty of all life and emotion and she seemed to be very subservient.

"Hurry up necromancer, we must not keep the mistress waiting" she said monotonously.

That one word caught Tsukune off guard. He knew that he never told her about his necromancy. Hell, he hadn't even told her about his Silvercrafting. There was something seriously wrong here and he was soon going to be forced to face it.

Fai had returned to Lelouch's location in a hurry, Gin following behind as best he could (shockingly Fair was able to move quicker than the werewolf). Once the two had come to a stop Fai rushed into the building and made his way to Lelouch's office. He even burst in on the war meeting without a single thought for what that would do to his already rocky reputation.

"We need to prepare an attack right away" Fai gasped out. "There's no telling what Lady Oyakata has prepared for us."

Gin was shocked by the panic in the young man's voice. He knew everything was serious, but to this extreme it was unnerving. Deciding it would be for the better he stepped back out into the hall to wait.

"Where are Cecile and Tsukune?" Lelouch asked as his attention shifted to his brother.

"They're at the mansion on the knoll right now" Fai stated as he gasped for air once again.

Lelouch's eyes darkened as he was given the news, but decided that Fai was free from blame in this account. Turning his attention back to Koji and Fujiko he resumed the meeting.

"As we have just heard from my brother, Lady Oyakata is preparing to launch her attack. As such I need the two of you to gather as many spellcasters as possible from the district and get them prepared for a fight. I don't know what her plans are and from the looks of it Fai does not either. We'll be going in blind so make sure you've said your farewells" Lelouch requested.

He knew that they were all at risk with their positions in the world. Though, he had hoped with all his might that it would never come to this.

"Alright, I'll get on that as soon as I've spoken with Kasumi" Koji said, breaking the silence.

Fujiko seemed to agree with the idea and the two soon left the room, leaving only the brothers in the room. Beckoning for Fai to take a seat, Lelouch stood up and began pacing.

"What are they doing in the mansion?" Lelouch asked, anger lacing his question.

"Tsukune refused to leave unless he could help Lady Oyakata's apprentice. It's a very noble thing for him to do" Fai said as upbeat as he could.

"That's not the point" Lelouch growled. "They walked right into enemy territory with little idea of what they're going up against."

"Tsukune's a member of that territory, he has every damn right to go in there to assist a fellow spellcaster" Fai was angry now as well. "My apprentice is showing a care for human life that you clearly lost ages ago Lelouch. Why else would I make sure that Cecile is blinded with a hatred for me and be going out and playing a game that you had set up. I've lost a lot as well and I don't want to see anyone else suffer like I did. Tsukune would clearly suffer if he failed this witch."

Anger was heating up the room as the brothers stared one another down. Finally Fai relented and collapsed back into his seat, his grey eyes showing how tired he really was.

"You and I both agree on our steps in life, no matter where they lead us. I just want you to know that I won't always be there to protect Cecile from your anger and hatred Lelouch. And I definitely don't want you passing that role onto Tsukune, he doesn't deserve it. However right now that is not important. Now we need to focus on making sure that Lady Oyakata does not pull off her plan. You and I both know first hand the consequences of failure."

Lelouch listened intently to his brother before sitting down as well. Taking numerous deep breaths the raven haired spellcaster spoke again.

"I truly appreciate your willingness to run this deception for me Fai. I just wish you would trust me with your own plans. This conflict could expose us to the world and soon we'd have Tohou Fuhai breathing down our necks."

Fai let out an annoyed sigh before standing up.

"Facades are what I do best and you and I both know that we'd never let a conflict come to exposure" he began. "However now, I shall go gather spellcasters to assist us. We'll need all the help we can get."

Lelouch nodded as Fai left the room and beckoned for Gin to follow him. Once Fai and Gin had left Lelouch's range of hearing, the spellcaster spoke up.

"Don't tell anyone about what you heard. My appearance as the black sheep of my family is needed. I don't even want Tsukune to know the truth. At least not yet" Fai requested.

"But, your brother was the one who was...oh this is confusing" Gin mumbled in response, eliciting a smile from Fai.

"Yeah, that's the number one rule of being a top ranking spellcaster. No one can understand what you're up to" Fai replied with the smile still on his face as they left to gather forces.

Following behind Ruby, Tsukune was given a better look at the numerous bizarre devices that littered the basement rooms. Most of them were disturbing, though some clearly showed a style of craftsmanship that he had not been expecting. Granted most were still disturbing and he'd rather not dwell on them.

Arriving at their destination he bore witness to a sight that he truly did not understand. A dark throne was located at the back of the room, spell books were piled all around it and plants were moving as if they were people. Back and forth they were carrying items, cleaning and organizing. As he stepped forward (beckoned by Ruby) the plants all stopped and seemed to be watching him. It was almost as if they recognized him and were pleading for assistance.

This was nerve wracking as he was led directly to the front of the throne.

"Welcome necromancer. We have much to discuss about your role here" the mistress of the knoll stated with a feral grin. "Yes, we have much to discuss."

End Chapter 13

A/N: Finally finished Chapter 13. I really don't want to write that much here as I can't think of much to say that won't spoil anything. Anyways I do have a few points to cover. First is the names, to start Koji is the name I decided to give Tsukune's father. And that's about it for names. I know very terribly short author's note, but I really don't want to discuss much. Although I do hope you like my choice of magic ability for Tsukune (bonus points to all who can name exactly where this ability comes from) I decided to go with the unconventional. I really am tired of the basic fire, ice, lightning, wind combinations so I thought I'd try something else. Now I really have to prevent myself from spoiling things, but this chapter is made to speculate on. As most people know (who have been reading this) I plan this as a three part story (one I will actually finish). As such there are hints to plans I want to expand on in this chapter and the previous one. Then there's the Fai and Lelouch conflict. I know it may seem odd, but I needed that scene there for a reason. Oh and I'm changing the style of magic that Ruby's mistress uses. I won't say more on that matter, but it's necessary for my plotline. Anyways I hoped you enjoyed this chapter and I am definitely not giving up on this story. Thanks go out to the reviews and story alerts that I received (especially in the past week) they help me to know that I still write enjoyable stories. Please review if it suits you, or if you're a new reader please story alert or favourite and until next time (which hopefully won't be as long),

Nanashi Wanderer