(The reason why I still refer to Markku as Rido is because like Shizuka in Maria's body, he still maintains Rido's face and body.)

Chapter XXII

Royalty United

Aido and Kain leapt back as every window of the building shattered into millions of fragmented pieces, a rain of glass pelted down in front of them. They bristled, for a mighty being had just overwhelmed them with his sinister presence. Aido winced inwardly, as he felt a powerful – but not as powerful as the sinister presence – life force was extinguished, a heart crushed by talon-like hands. When the scent of cherry blossoms faded into ashes in the wind, he mourned for the death of Hiou Shizuka. A Pureblood murdered was a life mourned for, no matter if her intentions were good or bad.

The new presence stirred an uncomfortable feeling in his gut. He had always respected and followed Kaname; the Kuran king was deeply respected by the entire vampire race, that was, including the Purebloods. Something separated him from the other Purebloods in the vampire society. It was as if Kaname belonged to a class even higher than Purebloods, his power over the entire race was deemed unmatched. However, when Kuroki Tsukiko arrived into the picture, Aido sensed that she, too, stood on the same level as Kaname himself. The unrivalled Kaname met an equal, and although Aido had never met Tsukiko before her arrival to Cross Academy, somehow her relationship with Kaname seemed to run deep and far back.

And now another with power that levelled with both Tsukiko and Kaname had made a grand entrance, and with intentions not so good. The wicked aura almost made Aido nauseas. Kain placed a comforting hand on his cousin's shoulder as he, too, felt the same sick sensations in his own gut.

"Hanabusa..." Kain murmured, and Aido shrugged off the hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah."

Mismatched eyes met deadly crimson ones. Kaname stood protectively in front of Tsukiko, his glare unwavering from his one and mortal enemy since ancient times. Here in one room were the kings of the vampire race, gathered here to settle and claim what was rightfully theirs. The battle of the kings was a battle to the death – only the last one standing was worthy of living.

It was common knowledge that the vampire society was organised in a pyramid, according to the purity of their blood. Everyone knows of the order in which they are positioned; Purebloods, followed by the Nobles (or Aristocrats), the normal-classed vampires, and finally, the least legitimate vampire in the system, the D class vampires (otherwise known as ex-humans).

But even amongst the Purebloods, some possessed powers that exceeded beyond those that were pure-bred. The blood of the kings, or the Royalty, as they were called. The Royalty descended into three bloodlines, and with it three heirs; Kuran Kaname, Kurogane Markku and Kuroki Tsukiko. Tsukiko, being the only female with Royalty blood thick in her veins, the Gods decided when she came of age, Kaname and Markku were to fight for her favour.

And now, the three Royal kings – and queen – of the vampire race had been pulled by fate together once again. Tsukiko could feel the murderous intent creeping up her spine, despite the calm, relaxed expression on Kaname and Rido's face.

"It's been a long time, Kuran Kaname," Rido sneered, although the smile on his face did not reach the coldness of his mismatched eyes.

Kaname said nothing. Tsukiko glanced from one to the other, and her gaze settled to Rido's hand, where he dripped the stump of where his missing arm should have been. Black particles appeared around him, and slowly assembled, creating a whole new arm to replace the one Kaname had just blown off.

It all happened so fast.

Tsukiko found herself on her knees, in front of the fountain that she once confronted Shusuke. The two kings were no where in sight, yet their presence still lingered in the air.

The night remained silent and undisturbed, yet Tsukiko's ears were deafened by the snarls only audible to the ears of vampires. Tsukiko could feel the fear and restlessness emanated in the air from vampires all over the campus.

In a blur two beings crashed in front of her, pieces of rock and cement sent askew into the air. Kaname had a minor gash on his cheek that was already fading, and Rido licked his healing cut lip. Neither seemed to be out of breath, and kept their composure straight.

Despite that even her eyes could not keep up with their speed, Tsukiko's sharp and widespread ability to sense the presence of another vampire -no matter how well their aura is hidden – picked up an all-too familiar identity that moved quickly to join the fray.

A flash of blue beamed overhead for a brief second, along with the sound of clashing nails. Shusuke landed gracefully on two feet, one hand rubbed the other where her magical barrier had burnt and deflected him from touching her. Amber eyes glowed beautifully, and his flawless face was illuminated by the moonlight.

In sync both Rido and Shusuke lunged forward. Kaname summoned the energy around him to gather in his hand, the speed of the rotating energy ball made it shine a bloody red. Tsukiko leapt backwards as Shusuke swiped at her, and with her power she forced the air to push him backwards. He sliced through the wave easily, but did not anticipate the second wave that swept him immediately afterward.

Yuki was frantic.

Kaname had left her at the dance; he was clearly distracted and something called to him with such urgency. And she couldn't blame him. The air was tense, almost suffocating, as the murderous aura released from the new presence brought a feeling of dread and fear to all the vampires. The humans were oblivious; the music was loud and the chit-chatter amongst them drowned out the noise as the windows of the abandoned building at the edge of the school exploded.

Despite knowing what dangers she could be faced with, and the posibility of getting killed, Yuki jumped off the balcony, and landed gracefully on her feet. She stepped into the darkness and disappeared, as if swallowed by the night.

By then, Ichijou stepped up into command. He was Kaname's right hand man, and the vice-president of the Night Class. It was his duty to cover up for Kaname whenever he was busy with his...appointments.

He nodded to the vampires of the Night Class, and they closed all the windows, all the doors. Seiren silently swooped into the last open window just before Rima closed it, fastened and locked.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said, a smile on his handsome features. The humans hushed to listen to the gorgeous senpai. "I fear that this lovely evening is soon coming to an end."

The crowd protested. It was only two hours from midnight. Ichijou held up his hand to silence them.

"Cross Academy is currently, in danger." His emerald eyes were dead serious, and the tone of his voice left no room for question. Whispers flew around, questions were asked amongst themselves. "But we, the Night Class, will protect you. Please do not be alarmed, and remain in this hall. Do not leave this building, or wander off alone."

The hall was quiet. The Day Class students huddled in the centre of the hall, their previously happy mood replaced with uneasiness, though they didn't know what. Seiren approached Takuma.

They're coming," she said in a hushed voice that escaped the ears of humans, but audible to every other vampire in the room. They tensed. "Our instructions are to prevent any harm to the humans. Use any means to protect them."

"We must kill?" the fact seemed to nag Ichijou.

"They are level E vampires. They have no mind nor heart, just an endless desire for bloodlust. We all had shifts in and out of the Academy to eliminate them. It should be no problem for you."

Ichijou nodded. If it was Level E, then there was no mercy nor guilt. They were a threat to the humans' lives and the vampires' reputation.

Yuki reappeared a few distance away from the shattered building. The ground was littered with splintered glass, and the building itself seemed to be in a wreck. There was on part of the building that was more damaged than the rest; the wall had been somehow blown apart.

"Yuki Cross!"

"Aido-senpai, Kain-senpai," Yuki greeted, surprised, as the cousins approached her. She was...different to the girl they had remembered. Aido had always thought that Kaname's affection for her was a little strange for a human girl, but the close resemblance they shared left no room for doubt. It all clicked. No way...

The brunette girl suddenly perked up. Without a word she ran into the ruined building, Aido's frustrated "Oi!" followed her.

Zero...

End of Chapter Twenty Two

Remember to review! A tad disappointed I got no reviews fo the previous two new chapters =( have I lost all my readers? I wouldn't been surprised...I am a lousy updater after all.