Monsters Make the Headlines
Disclaimer: I own nothing relating to or from Rosario + Vampire.
Author's Note: I understand that this hiatus was extremely long, and I never really meant for it to be so. But, having finished "A Hidden Truth", at least for now, I'll be focusing on this story. Especially seeing as I know that quite a few people have been waiting for me to pick up this story again.
(Tsukune's POV)
Tsukune's first thought was to check and make sure that Moka wasn't, in fact, pregnant, but after speaking to Mikogami, he learned that there was no way to tell right now. They had to give it time, and check when she was farther along.
Even still, the fear of being pregnant was deeply affecting Moka, and Tsukune was spending as much time as he could assuring her that it would be ok; a feat that was much easier said than done. Moka didn't stress about things often, but when she did, it was noticeable that she was under a lot of pressure. She was currently relieving said stress by pacing back and forth while explaining everything that could go wrong.
"Tsukune, I can't tell my father, because he'll either kill you and force an abortion, or just straight up ignore me until it's too late to do anything about it. None of my sisters can know, save Kokoa, because they'd instantly tell our father, which leads to the previously mentioned issues." she said, very clearly panicked. "I don't have the income to support a child, and I definitely don't have the type of house required for raising a child. I refuse to have an abortion, as I don't believe in them, and I could never live with myself if I abandoned my child by putting it up for adoption. I just don't know what to do, and right now that's exactly what I need."
Tsukune just walked up to her and hugged her, an action which she quickly melted into. He had noticed something in the way she was speaking, and had to clear up his suspicions. "Moka, do you want a child?" he asked simply.
Moka stopped her rant, and retreated into herself for a bit, before finally answering. "I do…." she said with total sincerity, "But I just don't know how I would support it by myself."
Tsukune angled her head up, and captured her lips in a kiss. When they parted, Tsukune just held her. "You wouldn't have to raise by yourself. I'd never leave you to raise our child alone, and I know our friends would help however they could." Tsukune held her flush against his body and pushed her down onto the bed.
"So if you want a child, then by all means, let's be sure that you really are pregnant." he said, before kissing her passionately. Moka reciprocated, rubbing her leg against his. Neither of them had gotten dressed during the time Moka had spent ranting, so clothing wasn't an issue for either of them; Tsukune had simply shut the blinds for their privacy.
Shortly after Moka pulled away, her hair messily splayed all around her. "Tsukune, are you sure about this?" she asked, "Once we do this, we can't ever go back on it."
Tsukune simply smiled and replied softly: "I'm never been more sure of anything in my life." That was when most any semblance of control between the two was forgotten. Moka pulled Tsukune into a heated make-out session, who happily reciprocated the action. Without him noticing, Tsukune's fangs had grown to full length, as had Moka's. As they kissed, their tongues found themselves running along each others fangs, which introduced blood into their kisses as their sharp canines cut the soft flesh of their tongues.
Tsukune, though it was a part of his diet that he usually tended to abhor, found that the mix of blood and saliva was an enormous turn on for him. He also, for the first time since he had met her, felt the need to completely dominate her. Tsukune was usually somewhat submissive in bed, although he always adapted to meet the needs and desires of his partner. This time though, Tsukune had to fight against his desire to all but own Moka. She was a person, a person he loved, and he didn't want to hurt her under circumstances. As such, he had to fight that desire with every ounce of his being, and he could only hope that he didn't get distracted. Moka, however, had other plans, having noticed his hesitance.
(Moka's POV)
Managing to pull herself away from the kiss, albeit with great effort, Moka questioned him.
"Why do you still hold back? You aren't going to hurt me Tsukune." she said, panting heavily as her arousal grew. She could see that he was starting to break, and just needed that last little push to give in. So she leaned in close, flush against his body, and whispered, "I want you to dominate me."
And just like that, Tsukune's self control was lost, gone to wind, having been ripped from his grasp by Moka's seductive ways. With a gutteral and almost primal growl, Tsukune bit into her neck. At the same time, he thrust into her and started to piston in and out of her with all his might. Moka gasped in pleasured delight, and arched her back instinctively.
For the first time in her life, Moka was being submissive to a man. Though it was a half-and-half mixture of voluntary surrender and forced submissiveness, she loved every second of it. Tsukune drank from her in long, greedy gulps as she had done to him for years. The force of his thrusts made the bed slam into the walls with enough force to shake the entire room. If Moka were a normal human, Tsukune would have killed her.
Moka felt Tsukune's sharpened nails cut into her skin, though the minor cuts healed almost instantly after they appeared. When he retracted his fangs, and pulled back, she could see the raw emotion in his eyes. He was enjoying this, on some primal level, but there was still resistance in his eyes; he was still holding something back through sheer willpower. So Moka did yet another thing she was not accustomed to; she stopped holding back and let herself be as loud as the situation allowed.
The room, now filled with Moka's pleasured moans and cries for more, caused Tsukune's willpower to falter and fade away entirely. Moka closed her eyes for a brief moment, and when she opened them, she was greeted by a completely transformed Tsukune. His skin had become black, almost scaly with red patches that rested over major muscles like Tsukune's abdominals and pectorals. His eyes were the same vampiric eyes that she had grown accustomed to, and his hair was completely silver, practically mirroring her own in all but length. Tsukune's new form had wings; long, black, bat-like wings that made Kurumu's seem tiny.
Moka had also felt him grow longer and thicker inside her, and she was clear in her approval of his new form. He was rougher, and stronger in his thrusts, almost to the point of bruising. Moka was now screaming from pleasure, as Tsukune's thrusts increased in frequency and intensity. The bed was completely broken as a result, and Moka could feel the springs in the mattress being pushed out of alignment. Parts of the wall were breaking off as the room shook with increasingly greater force.
Moka had already cum twice, and she felt another orgasm building already. Her mind was going blank, and her throat was hoarse from screaming. Tsukune's previous grunts had become primal growls that made Moka's hair stand on end. They were getting progressively deeper and more menacing, so Moka could tell that he himself was getting close. Suddenly, Tsukune let out a roar that shook the house and Moka felt him explode inside her. The force of the thrust itself had brought her to her third and final release. She practically had no voice left, so she simply squeaked in response.
Moka faintly heard police sirens outside the house, alongside the door being broken down, but she was too tired to really comprehend anything. She faintly heard Tsukune roar at the intruders of his domain, but only just before her world faded into black.
*several hours later*
Moka woke up dressed in a basic pair of grey underwear and a matching bra. She had obviously been moved from Tsukune's house, which caused her a lot of worry.
"Oh, Akashiya, you're up. We were worried you weren't going to wake up after being raped by that….thing." one of her coworkers said, catching her attention.
"Raped? Thing?" Moka asked in confusion.
"Yeah, we got a noise complaint that a woman was screaming at your friend's house, and when no one would open the door, we busted in. We found you unconscious underneath this strange….monster. There's really no other way to describe it." the same man replied. "Our bullets just bounced off of it, and it injured most of the people in the room. No one was killed, but it's still loose in the city; we're tracking it down right now."
Moka, upon hearing that, instantly jumped out of bed and felt the soreness in her legs. She easily ignored it, and got dressed in uniform as fast as she could, simply because it was the closest thing she had to put on.
"Woah, woah, you need to rest Akashiya." one of her friends in the police force said in a panic.
"Listen, I need to go find him and calm him down. He's agitated, and while he won't openly try to hurt people, he's strong enough that he could easily bring down a building while trying to escape, assuming he hits a support pillar." she said, pulling her shirt over her head and fastening the buckles on her boots. "I know this is going to sound crazy, but that is my friend Tsukune. His mind is trying to fight for control against another mind in his head. Right now, he will only lash out if he feels threatened, so the sooner I can find him, the sooner I can calm him down."
"Well….it sounds like you know more about the situation than we do, so I guess we have no choice but to help you. News helicopters have been following his path for awhile now, so this should help you track him down." her friend said, flipping on the news channel for her. Once she saw which block he was going down, she had an idea where he was going.
"He's going home; he's going to his mother's house." she said, frantically trying to find her phone. She managed to find it resting on her dress, alongside the rest of her belongings. Moka didn't know why Tsukune was heading to his mother's house, but she knew that his mother knew nothing of this form he had taken. She may know about monsters in general, but definitely not that Tsukune could appear like that.
Once she was outside, Moka took off in a dead sprint in the direction of Tsukune's childhood home. It was about a mile away, but considering she could easily out sprint a car going 80 kilometers an hour on the freeway, it didn't take her all that long to make it to the house; only a few minutes or so, slowed down by her attempts to dodge traffic and pedestrians. Very few people saw her, and any who did were more than likely extremely shocked, but she honestly didn't care. Monsters were going to hit the mainstream media soon, and she needed to show everyone that they could be reasoned with.
Once she made it to the house, she saw that the rest of the police force had formed a ring around the house itself, and she could sense Tsukune inside. Appearing beside one of her comrades, Moka inquired as to the situation's direness.
"What's the situation?" she asked, ever so slightly out of breath, startling her co-worker in the process. Moka made a mental note that she needed to do more stamina training, as that run would not have even remotely left her winded years ago.
"Akashiya, when did you get here?!" she asked out of confusion, before returning to the issue at hand. "Some monster's got the residents of that house trapped in there. We don't know how or why they're alive in there, but we think that if we don't do something soon, they will die."
Before Moka could say anything, she heard someone call out her name; it was Kyouko.
"Moka!" she said, getting out her car. "Kurumu called me and told me the situation after she saw it on the news. Is he in there?"
Moka was confused by how Kyouko knew of the form, but opted to ignore it for now. "Yes, he's in the house. Apparently he has your aunt and uncle trapped in there."
"He's probably scared, since he used to run to her whenever he was out of instinct." Kyouko explained, though she was obviously anxious
"Whatever his reason, we need to calm him down. He's agitated right now, and I'm worried he might bring down a building or hurt somebody if he continues like this." Moka said, before being cut off by the all the police officers pulling their guns on something. Moka and Kyouko looked over to see Tsukune's mother having emerged from the building, with her husband in tow.
Tsukune, to the fear of many, appeared in a window on the top floor. Once Moka locked eyes with her, she quickly ran over to her. The action confused quite a few of the officers, and a few made their way to bar her path. Moka was faster though, and quickly darted through the gaps in the lineup. Within seconds, Moka was next to her lover's mother.
"Are you alright?" she asked, checking to make sure Tsukune hadn't hurt her on accident.
"Shocked, to be frank," the older woman said, "and confused. I knew monsters existed, but I never imagined he could be like that."
"I doubt he even knew, or if he did, he wasn't sure if he could access the form." Moka said, looking up at her friend, who had disappeared from the window. "Did he seem agitated at all?"
Tsukune's mother withdrew into herself for a bit, seemingly in thought, before answering. "I don't know. He seemed wary of something, but I don't know what it was. He wasn't even particularly worried about the police officers. I saw them fire a few rounds at him and they just bounced off."
That information startled and surprised Moka; she didn't know what to make of it. Moka, out of caution, closed her eyes and concentrated on the energy signals around her. Before long, she found what Tsukune was worried about; there was a powerful yoki signal nearby. Moka was pulled out of her thoughts when Tsukune exited the building.
Upon exiting the house, he growled menacingly; an action the police took as a sign of aggression towards them. Moka followed his gaze, and noticed that it coincided with where she felt the yoki signal from. Someone from the Yokai realm had been following Tsukune, and Tsukune had gone to his parents' house to protect them. But who would try and go after Tsukune? Hokuto was serving as a spy for Mikogami, and Kiria wouldn't go against Hokuto openly. Moka found her gaze ending on Tsukune's physique; particularly, on his scars.
Looking at the scar on Tsukune's shoulder, Moka realized who was after Tsukune's parents; that damned fox, Kuyou. Taking Tsukune's parents by the hands, she guided them to the police vehicles.
Addressing her fellow officer, she instructed them on what to do in this situation as slyly as she could. "Take these two down to the station as fast as you can, we need to get them out of harm's…." Moka was cut off by Tsukune suddenly enveloping everyone nearby with his body, just before the line of police vehicles exploded.
After the chaos had resided, Moka took survey of the damage. Most of the squad was alive, from what she could tell, but those who were beside the barricade of vehicles had died instantly; the rest were either disoriented, or severely injured. And from the flames, Moka saw a figure approaching. Kuyou, walking through the flames, smiled evilly.
"Hello Akashiya. How has life been treating you? I thoroughly hope you enjoyed my little display; I always did enjoy a good fireworks show." he said, his eyes holding the same maniacal flame as they did almost nine years ago.
"Kuyou." Moka said simply, her voice and eyes full of hatred. She despised the fact that she had never beaten him herself; she had given up too much of her power to save Tsukune during their first fight. She also hadn't been training, which meant that he was likely more powerful than her now.
"What? You didn't like it? What a shame, though it was originally intended for Aono's parents." the firefox taunted.
"What are you doing here?" Moka demanded, choosing to ignore the quickly arriving news helicopters. "And why now?"
"Revenge, my clueless vampire friend. Aono stole everything from me; deprived me of my rightful position, and the school of my righteous justice." Kuyou explained. "He even stole your pride as an S-class. And for what, so that he could feel good about himself and disturb the order of our realm? He's a radical who has no place disrupting the rightful order of the world; the strong always have, and rightfully should rule over the weak."
"So all this simply over a grudge, all because you can't get over your own ignorant views of the world? Strength doesn't define a person, and it has wrongly led to the oppression of our people for millennia, all because of power crazed lunatics like you and Gyokuro!" Moka shot back, which very clearly upset Kuyou.
"Hmph! And what about your so called pride as a vampire, what happened to that? What happened the Akashiya who demanded respect and stood triumphantly against her opponents?" Kuyou retorted, "It's such a shame; you would have made a wonderful wife had you simply ignored the stupid ideals of that human behind you."
"Funny. As I remember it, you lost to that human and a werewolf; a human and a dog conquered a mighty god of the Yokai." Moka taunted back, though she had to admit, somewhere deep inside of her, his resonated with her. "If you didn't hide behind those flames of yours, I think you'd find that you wouldn't stand a chance against me."
For an instant, Kuyou's eyes flared with his yoki, and Moka could tell that her words had imbalanced him; he was not thinking clearly anymore. Before she could act on that however, another voice brought him back to his senses.
"Now Kuyou, you know that simply allowing her to provoke you like that will only ensure your defeat. Act calmly, and you'll find that you will be much less likely to succumb to her strength." Kiria said, appearing from behind the Yokō in question.
"Fuck," Moka thought, remembering her last encounter with Kiria. "Things just got a whole lot worse than before."
"Unfortunately, you also did not pay attention to your surroundings or you would have realized…" Kiria stated, before waving his hand and causing reality to seemingly shatter around them. "That you were in an illusion the entire time."
Having the illusion broken, Moka saw that not only had Tsukune's parents been moved away from the action, but someone had driven away with them, barely noticeable in the distance now. Moka vaguely recognized Sandy's car, and would have to thank her after this was all said and done. Moka also briefly noted that Kyouko had disappeared, but she would have to worry about that later. Kuyou, having seen the car, prepared to send a fireball launching towards it. Before he could do so, however, he found himself sent flying as Tsukune landed an explosive kick to his face.
Obviously no longer held back by the presence of his mother, Tsukune was now aggressively seeking a fight with Kuyou. Letting out a roar that all but terrified those in the surrounding area, Moka herself included, Tsukune gave chase to the Yokō.
"Things are becoming very interesting, don't you think?" Kiria asked Moka, closing his ever present book.
"They certainly aren't ordinary." Moka said, her voice filled with contempt.
"Come now, don't be like that. You know Aono will win, so why worry?" Kiria asked nonchalantly.
"Why would I care? Why would I care?" Moka asked, her anger rising, "How many innocent lives had to be lost today?! And for what, so you could be entertained?!"
"Why else? Do I need any other reason?" Kiria asked, revealing his scythe-like arm. "Enough talk, I'm starting to feel bored again; I imagine you'll be a great form of entertainment." Moka rushed Kiria in anger after hearing that, eager to beat him for real this time.
(Sandy's POV)
Sandy's day was not going even remotely according to plan. Firstly, Tsukune, a guy she had been pining after for a year and a half, had hooked up with someone Sandy just met; though, to be fair, Tsukune had known her for much longer. Next, she's late to work since she forgot to get gas on her way home last night. Then, her car broke down while attempting to usher Tsukune's parents to safety, which led to the fact that Tsukune had apparently transformed and is now fighting a yokō, all of which are practically revered as deities by most yokai.
To top all of this off, members of Fairy Tale were flooding the streets and wrecking everything. Orcs and ogres were out in the streets, doing what they do best: raping women, killing men, and destroying whatever they could. As much as Sandy wanted to help, she couldn't show her face without causing mass panic in the area. Her kind were like urban legend, and while she could fight, any monster that was S-class or higher would make it impossible for her to fight and guard the surrounding humans at the same time.
Unfortunately for Sandy, she had to take care of Tsukune's parents at all costs, and it was beginning to look like Sandy had no choice but to fight, seeing as a collection of yokai were advancing on the building she and Tsukune's parents were taking shelter in at the moment. Other families had taken refuge in the building as well, and while they tried to be quiet, the fear they all exuded did little to deter to the rapidly enclosing yokai in the area.
Realizing she had little choice in the matter, Sandy turned to Tsukune's parents and looked them in the eye. "I'm sorry you have to see this," she said, before turning to face the rapidly closing yokai, "no one should have witness this, but it's the only way y'all will survive."
Making her presence known to the yokai by walking into the view, Sandy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, her eyes were pupiless and completely silver, being so reflective one could almost see their souls reflected back at them; not unlike a spectral mirror. Reaching her left hand out, seemingly to touch empty air, she closed her hand, a scythe materializing in it.
Upon seeing the scythe, many of the incoming yokai stopped; a few simply turned tail and ran. The majority stayed however, though they remained uneasy. The few brave souls that seemingly felt no fear towards her stepped forwards.
"What's a shinigami doing here? I thought your kind fed on human souls; why protect them? Shouldn't this be akin to an all-you-can-eat buffet for you?" one particular soul said.
Ignoring the growing panic amongst the humans behind her, Sandy focused her attention on the yokai questioning her. She tried to hide the growing scowl on her face.
"Yokai who don't understand how my kind feed are annoying enough; I certainly don't need you questioning my reasons for my actions." Sandy said, turning her scythe to be perpendicular to the ground, before slowly spinning it in a counter-clockwise motion. "Even with that aside, one thing you seem to not understand is that I'm not a true shinigami anyway."
That proclamation took many of the remaining yokai by surprise. "You mean you're a hybrid? I thought shinigami were invisible to the human eye."
"My mother was a half-succubus; my father was a shinigami. I don't know how she managed it, but my mother seduced my father; nine months later, I was born." Sandy said, starting to spin the scythe faster. Several of the remaining yokai were starting to become uneasy, as reality seemed to warp around them; anyone paying attention saw that the distortion was particularly heavy at the scythe's center. "And one benefit that I have over either of my parent's," Sandy started, as reality seemingly began to melt away, leaving only darkness. "Is that I can consume any manner of soul, human or yokai."
The yokai attempted to turn tail and run, but were greeted by darkness in all directions. They turned back to see Sandy assume a striking stance, with a much larger spectral scythe forming behind her.
"Many of you have taken it upon yourselves to take the lives of innocent men and women. Your souls will be judged, and your consciences erased." Sandy said as she swung the scythe, cutting everyone caught in the swing of the spectral version in half instantly. The bodies of those caught in the scythe rushed towards Sandy, who seemed absorb all of them. The survivors watched as reality slowly phased back into existence, and then turned tail as soon as the opportunity presented itself. Once the action was over, the scythe dematerialized in much the same manner as it had come into being just a minute ago.
Without the scythe to fuel her, Sandy felt the full strain of her ability usage and promptly collapsed; her legs unable to sustain her and keep her standing. Falling onto her knees, Sandy gasped for breath as she felt a pair of hands steadying her. She looked up to see Tsukune's father, Koji, behind her to make sure she didn't lose balance.
"Are you alright Sandy?" Tsukune's mother, Kasumi, asked in a worried tone.
"Yeah, I'll be fine; I just need rest." Sandy clarified, as her breathing pattern slowly returned to normal. "Using my deathscythe takes a lot of energy and my body isn't as capable of withstanding the aftereffects as a true shinigami's would." Before Sandy could explain further, she felt a rush of yoki coming from in front of her.
"What a pity. You could have used that energy right about now. Not that it would have saved you anyways." Sandy heard someone say, off to her right. Managing to look around, even with the high levels of pain that her body was feeling right now, she nearly cried for how unfair life could be.
Coming towards them was Akua Shuzen, an adversary Sandy wouldn't have been able to beat even with her full strength and death scythe active. Akua's mastery of the Jigentou was too great a barrier for Sandy's method of fighting to overcome. Even so, she still attempted to stand and face her, though she couldn't quite muster the strength.
"No words shinigami? Unfortunate, I had expected for a member of your race to have the same level of pride as one of my own; it seems I've overestimated you." the eldest Shuzen daughter said mockingly, her cold eyes scanning the battleground that the city had become. One could hear gunfire in the distance, alongside large amounts of screaming. Fires had broken out along many of the roads, and a few of the smaller buildings had been knocked down. None of the monsters had been strong enough up to bring down any of the skyscrapers; until now, that is.
Sandy attempted to say something, but before she could, an unexpected voice broke out amongst the general chaos.
"I assume you must be Akua then?" Tsukune's mother asked, seemingly unafraid of the vampiress. That caught Shuzen off guard, as she eyed Tsukune's mother with inquisitive eyes. "Tsukune told me a lot about you after returning from China."
"Hmph." Akua huffed, crossing her arms indignantly, "What right does he have to tell others about me, when he himself knows nothing of my past?"
"On the contrary my dear, it would seem he did his research, since he even knew of your little sister Jasmine." Kasumi responded, causing Akua to recoil as if she'd been struck.
"H-how….how did he…?" Akua started, before gaining a look of unparalleled anger, "How dare you speak her name. You aren't worthy enough to speak her name!"
Akua moved to grab Kasumi, but Sandy intervened, slashing with her recently recalled scythe. Akua easily dodged the clumsy attack, but Sandy still managed to prevent any harm from coming to Tsukune's mother. The strain of summoning her deathscythe again left her gasping for air, and she was having trouble standing.
"Run….both of you….." Sandy managed to say between breaths, "I'll hold her off….as long as I can." Sandy was taken aback when Kasumi walked in front of her. "What….what are you doing!? She'll kill you!"
"Coming to face your death honorably? I suppose I must commend your bravery, as misplaced and futile as it is." Akua mocked, before she too was taken aback to see Kasumi bowing in a traditionally apologetic manner. "Perhaps I was wrong, and you wish to beg for your life? How shameless."
"I'm not here to either beg for my life, nor am I merely accepting death. I would like to live, but I also understand there is little I could possibly do to prevent you from killing me if it was your wish to do so." Kasumi said, continuing to bow, "I do however feel that this must be done. So allow me to be the first human to formally apologize for the atrocities that we have committed, specifically those that have personally affected you."
The scene around them grew still, the only sounds coming from far off in the distance. Time seemed to stand still, even the flames seemed slower as they continued to gently caress the air in their hot embrace. Sandy managed to catch her breath in this time, even as she continued to strain herself by keeping her death scythe active. She was currently using it to help stand, unsure if she would be able to move, even if she wished to. That meant that whatever Kasumi and Akua decided to do from here on out would be final; no way to back out once a course had been set in motion.
Akua herself stood stiller than the clouds in the tranquil sky, a dark shadow covering her eyes from view. Sandy briefly thought about the irony in the sky being tranquil whilst what was practically a warzone raged beneath it; how trivial it must seem to Mother Nature, all this death and activity. Sandy saw Akua twitch, and was brought back to reality by the minute movement.
"Is this some form of mockery?" Akua accused, her yoki beginning to swell dangerously. Kasumi hid it well, but Sandy could see that she was having difficulty standing under the immense pressure of the energy swirling around them and was naturally scared of the young vampiress before her. "Do you really believe that my struggle was so inconsequential that a half-assed apology will wash it away!?"Akua yelled in anger, kicking Kasumi to the side.
"Kasumi!" Sandy exclaimed, before Kasumi signaled for her to stop. Sandy watched as Kasumi forced herself to stand again, and almost immediately resumed the bow again.
"Sandy, I have to do this, so please don't interfere." Kasumi pleaded, even as Akua stalked towards the woman menacingly.
Akua kicked Kasumi again, grabbing her ankle as the older woman flew through the air to prevent her from having any respite. Akua slammed Kasumi into the ground, before kicking her in the side once more. She allowed Kasumi to skid down the street, beginning her menacing and anger fueled stalking once again. Kasumi forced herself to stand again, before resuming the bow once more. Akua closed the distance very quickly this time, and began pummeling the poor woman with a barrage of punches.
Sandy looked over and saw Kasumi's husband Koji simply standing there as his wife had the life beat out of her.
Anger swelled up inside her as she saw him do nothing to even attempt at helping his wife, the woman he's supposed to love. "Aren't you going to do something!? Aren't you worried that your wife might die!?" she yelled at him, not understanding how he could simply do nothing.
The man just sighed in response and looked at her with sad eyes. "Even if I could intervene and help her, she wouldn't accept it. You've met my son, and you know what he's like when he sets his mind to something. Kasumi is much the same; if she feels that she is obligated to do something, she will do it without complaint and without accepting help from anyone. She will see this apology through to the end, even if it cost her life, because she believes that this girl's life will be bettered by it."
Sandy just watched, hopelessly as she hadn't the strength to fight anymore, as her friend's mother was brutally beaten before her. As the pair watched, Koji seemed to notice something.
"Look at the girl's eyes; they're tearing up." Koji said, causing Sandy to pay more attention to eldest Shuzen daughter. He was right about the tears; Akua was starting to cry.
"Why would she be crying? There's no reason for this to affect her so much." Sandy thought, opting to start paying more attention the words coming out of Akua's mouth.
"What could you possibly understand about my life?!" Akua screamed at Kasumi, who she continued to pummel mercilessly, although her pace was starting to slow, "How could you possibly understand?! It wasn't my fault! It wasn't my fault. It wasn't my…. it wasn't….I…."
Akua merely collapsed as she sobbed uncontrollably as emotion overwhelmed her. Sandy gazed on in shock as the bloodied and beaten Kasumi slowly picked herself up and limped over to Akua before dropping to her knees and bringing the young woman in for a tight embrace. Akua seemed taken aback at first, before she buried her face in the older woman's now blood covered shirt and continued to weep.
The odd group stayed there for awhile, with Akua crying as she vented over a decade's of pent up emotions, and Kasumi whispering quiet words of assurance into her ear, not unlike the way a mother would comfort a child. Every now and again, Sandy would catch whispers of what sounded like an apology coming from Akua, but they were never directed towards Kasumi herself. Sandy heard a name that vaguely sounded like Akua was saying Jasmine, but the young half-shinigami had no clue as to why Akua was apologizing.
"Jasmine was apparently Akua's adoptive younger sister some 18 years ago." Koji said, looking much more relaxed but still holding that sad look in his eye. "Tsukune told us about her, he himself having learned the story from a woman named Ten-Ten Huang. She and Akua used to be in the same house, though Tsukune neglected to tell me and his mother which house that was. Somehow she ended learning the story, and passed that information onto Tsukune nearly a decade later."
"What happened to Jasmine for Akua to be apologizing to her?" Sandy asked, curious as the Shuzen assassin's past.
"We're not entirely sure," Koji admitted, "All we know is that Jasmine died somehow, and that Akua more than likely holds herself to blame."
Koji never got to extrapolate, as Akua chimed in, seemingly done with her uncontrollable sobbing, though tears still streamed down her cheeks. "That…..isn't the whole story," Akua said, bowing her head in what appeared to be shame.
"Jasmine and I had no relation to each other, but we were happy as sisters. We were poor, and more often than not, had to steal in order to eat, but we always smiled when we were together." Akua related, launching into her story.
Sandy questioned why the infamous Akua trusted them with this information, but also realised that the same infamous woman in question had also just been bawling into the shirt of a species she despised with a passion, so clearly she wasn't herself right now.
"Humans always treated us horribly, since we were homeless and filthy, but they never attacked us since we were children and hid our identities carefully. One day, she found a human boy that she began to develop feelings for; not long after, she revealed herself to him." Akua continued. "She never got to see his reaction, as I panicked and killed him before he could even move. I tried to rush Jasmine and myself to safety, away from the village, but she pulled away from me and ran back towards it to explain herself. I followed, a good distance away from her sight, before finally coming face to face with the consequences of my actions. The villagers had ripped her apart, and impaled her severed head and limbs on spikes for the ravens to pick at. The last thing I ever saw or heard from her, was that she hated me, with tears streaming down her face."
Sandy's hands had moved up to cover her gasp as she heard the ending to Jasmine's story. It took a lot to disgust Sandy, so it was especially impressive just how much disgust Sandy felt towards her human kin for their actions.
"How could they do such a thing? They were just children, how could they be so cruel?" Sandy thought to herself, before turning her attention over to Tsukune's wounded mother. Strangely, she seemed to be fine, though definitely exhausted. Sandy never got to dwell on it, as a powerful yoki signature appeared behind Koji.
Akua appeared to notice it as well, as her eyes widened and she seemed genuinely afraid. "NO! Kahl….." she started but was cut short when four, batwing-like blades erupted from Koji's chest.
The culprit lifted Koji off the ground, before the blades reverted a dainty hand covered by a white glove that was quickly stained red. Koji's body was tossed aside, as the culprit herself to be Akua younger sister, Kahlua Shuzen.
"My mother's orders are absolute." the younger Shuzen said, her eyes filled with tears as she entered her charmed state. Akua quickly engaged her younger sister, spouting something about how she owed Kasumi for comforting her in her time of need, or something like that. Sandy was too shocked to truly comprehend any of it.
Kasumi had crawled her way over to her dying husband, as tears streamed down her face. Koji gently reached up and stroked her face, wiping away her tears with his thumb.
"I'm sorry baby," he said, coughing up blood, "I didn't think it would come this soon, but it looks like I'm finished."
"No….no, you'll be okay," Kasumi sputtered out, in a vain attempt to keep her husband breathing and holding onto life. "I'll go get help, and they'll…..they'll….."
"No, they won't make it in time," Koji choked out, color rapidly draining from his face, "Listen, Kasumi…..make sure our son turns out alright ok? I know I wasn't the best father; I wasn't around all the time, and I rarely made it to any of his birthdays. But….even still…..he's my pride and joy, and I want you to make sure he's always got a place to go alright?"
Kasumi continued to sob, even as she nodded her promise to her husband. Koji had already passed by the time Kasumi had managed to give him her promise, but Sandy felt no need to tell Kasumi that.
Sandy managed to stumble over to Kasumi and her husband's corpse, before kneeling beside them. Placing her hand on his body, Sandy managed to coalesce his soul into a small sphere, and sent it on its way.
In the distance, Sandy heard a forlorn roar, which she assumed to be Tsukune. She turned her attention over to where Akua and Kahlua were fighting, only to find Akua on her knees before her younger sister.
"When?" she heard the older sister ask, "When did you grow stronger than me?
"I've been stronger Nee-chan," Kahlua responded, her body seeming a little off in terms of consistency. "I just never showed it. I don't like entering this state, so I typically keep at least one of my limiters active."
"Why?" Akua asked, perplexed. "Why hide your strength? Why disgrace yourself in such a way?"
Kahlua face darkened, as her yoki skyrocketed. "Why? WHY?!" Kahlua questioned angrily, "Because I hate this; I hate all of this! Life is beautiful; precious even! And yet, time and time again, I am forced to take it away to destroy that beauty because my mother asks it of me!"
"Then why listen to her; why follow Gyokuro is you disagree with her decisions!" Akua responded, finding herself growing angry. "Is your will so weak that you cannot function without her; her acceptance, her 'love?'".
"Love?! She loves no one but herself; I am not so deluded as to believe that I am an exception to that truth." Kahlua shot back, slowing regaining control over her powerful emotions.
"Then again, why follow her?! What reason do you possibly have to degrade yourself and your values if you truly hold them so dear?" Akua asked, accusingly.
"Pity." Kahlua said simply, "I pity her because I know that if I didn't follow her, she would be alone. She, just as anyone else, deserves to feel loved and not be alone. And so I stay by her side, not because I need or want to, but more so out of obligation."
"Hmmph," Akua huffed, both disappointed and disgusted with her younger sister. "Just go ahead and kill me then.".
Kahlua moved towards her older sister, with a sad look in her eyes. "I'm sorry, I truly am." she said, raising her newly transformed arm. Before she got bring it back down however, she found her being manhandled by a clawed, black hand. Tsukune roared as he flew forward, pushing Kahlua's head into the asphalt as he did. The shuzen vampire let out various grunts of pain before slashing at the arm holding her down. She managed to free herself, but only because Tsukune threw her into a building out of anger and/or pain.
(Akua's POV)
Akua was confused the appearance of this new yokai. The level of yoki that was emanating from it was far greater than the scans and surveys of the area done by Fairy Tale would dictate. Yet here he was, and quite clearly pissed off.
Whatever the case, his appearance gave Akua a chance to escape which she was glad to accept. Remembering the promise she made to herself, she found her way over to Aono's mother. The mother was seemed unharmed, remarkably, which was odd since Akua had done little to keep the woman from dying; in fact, quite the opposite.
Even more strangely, the woman seemed emanate a very small amount of yoki, which had not happened before. Realization struck Akua when she realised that the yoki being "produced" by the woman was nearly identical to the newcomer's. Akua felt an inkling of an idea making its way into her head, as to why the creature would take the woman as a familiar, which exude the same yoki as their master, but on an incredibly small scale.
Her first thought would have been Aono himself, since descriptions of his actions from Hokuto described him as a valiant hero, unwilling to watch people he loves die, even if it was only natural that they should die; with complete disregard for proper reasoning or strategy. In that moment, another description of Aono that Hokuto had given her came to mind.
"Aono would be easy to find in most any crowd, even he were to master the art of applying a glamour. You see, even if he were to change his face and hair, his yoki would be still be present and nigh impossible to hide thoroughly. Then all one needs to do create an accident where they trip into the one they suspect of being him and use it as an excuse to feel their chest." she remembered Hokuto telling her. "Aono has a large, x-shaped scar that goes from his mid-shoulder down to just above his ribs. All one would have to do is confirm that their suspect does in fact have yoki and such a scar, and it would be practically impossible to have anyone other than Aono. And should one find him shirtless, it would be a walk-in-the-park to identify him, since the scar is incredibly prominent."
On a hunch, Akua took a gander at the newcomer, and she was not disappointed. If one looked closely, they could faintly see an incredibly large, x-shaped scar fitting the description that Hokuto gave, though it was harder to pinpoint due to the discoloration of Aono's skin. She definitely did not remember anything detailing that Aono could transform, so this was definitely a new phenomenon. Akua did distinctly remember that Aono has had training with Touhou Fuhai, which meant that it was also a very real possibility that he knew the Jigen-Tou. Predicting that he did in fact know how to use the technique, Akua deduced that it would more than likely be suicidal to engage him now, seeing as she had lost her ace in the hole and would fail in a battle of endurance against either of the two combatants. Stealth and quickly disposing of enemies was her scene, not a fight which was decided by raw strength and endurance alone, though she was no slouch in said categories.
Something prevented her from leaving right away however; she was worried about Kahlua. Granted, Kahlua's recently revealed form was saving her for the time being, negating most any damage that Aono could have done. However, the difference in strength was preventing Kahlua from doing any damage in return, and as it was, Aono was far more likely to outlast Kahlua than she was him. And even if they were enemies for the time being, Akua still genuinely cared for her younger sister, and did not want to go through the agony of losing another. Fortunately for her, she was saved from that despair when both her father and Touhou Fuhai himself appeared before her.
"Akua, go find your sister, we will handle things here. Bring her to us when you manage to find her; be certain that no harm comes to her, understood?" her father, Issa Shuzen, asked commandingly.
"Yes father," Akua said, heading out to follow her father's orders. She was forced to leave Aono's mother behind, which did sting her pride a bit since it meant that she would unable to keep the promise she had made to herself, but she had no doubt that she was completely safe from harm with both her father and the eldest Dark Lord by her side.
With purpose, Akua set out for her dearest little sister Moka, a bit excited at the prospect of seeing her again.
(Moka's POV)
*A few minutes later*
Moka gasped for breath as the years of no training caught up with her. She had been able to keep without issue at the beginning, but as her fight with Kiria stretched onwards, she found herself beginning to tire. She believed that Kiria had planned for this, since he had been growing increasingly aggressive as Moka herself was forced to draw back from fatigue.
Moka found herself unable to dodge an incoming kick, and was forced on to the ground, before having a foot placed firmly on her chest to prevent her from moving. Kiria stood above a triumphant smirk apparent on his typically bored face.
"Tsk. Tsk. I expected more from you Akashiya; I thought you would rid me of my disinteresting life, but alas it is not so." Kiria taunted, hoping to get a response from the vampiress. Moka refused to give him the satisfaction. He merely sighed in response to her silence, "How disappointing, not even a reaction. Very well, might as well just take you back to Fairy Tale. Things are bound to get interesting if their plans come to fruition."
Kiria never quite got the chance to act on his decision as Akua suddenly attacked him from behind. Viciously kicking Kiria aside, Akua grabbed Moka and immediately ran off, leaving Kiria dazed and confused as to what had happened, and where his target had gone off to.
After they were a decent distance away from Kiria, which didn't take long thanks to Akua's incredible speed, she set Moka down on the ground.
"Are you alright? Can you stand?" Akua asked worriedly, obsessing in such a way that quickly Moka mad with annoyance.
"I'm fine! Now if you would kindly stop obsessing over my physical health and tell me WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Moka shouted at her older sister, who flinched in response. That was one thing that always Moka was always grateful to have inherited from her father: his powerful voice. None of her other sisters had it, and even though it was entirely likely that even Kokoa could best Moka in a one on one confrontation nowadays, Moka was still the most intimidating sister by appearance and figure. When she wanted to say something, people listened, end of story.
"It's difficult to explain, so all you need to know for the time being is that father wishes for you to be present with him and Touhou Fuhai right now." Akua said, recovering from the slight intimidation she had felt from her younger sister.
Moka recoiled in confusion after hearing that. "Father's here right now? Why? What could he possibly want from me after I've left the family?" Moka thought, before ascertaining that the best course of action would be to do what her father wants. She couldn't have him killing Tsukune after they'd just agreed to start a family together now could she?
"Very well," she said after a few more moments of reflection, "You lead the way." Moka was thankful that she was able to keep up, as she didn't need anymore embarrassment today.
They traveled in silence for a few minutes, until they caught sight of Issa and Touhou. That wasn't what drew Moka's immediate attention however; instead, it was the unconscious body of her lover beside them. She wasted no time in rushing to his side, instantly checking to make sure he was breathing and had a steady pulse. After confirming that both of her hopes were in fact true, Moka released the breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding.
Moka turned to the far stronger yokai and questioned them as to what happened to her beloved. "What happened to him?" she demanded, drawing a dry chuckle from her father.
"What? Not even a 'Hello' to your dear father?" Issa joked with a small amount of humor in his voice.
"What. Happened?" Moka repeated, trying to send as threatening a look towards her father as she could muster.
Naturally, he was unaffected, but even still he gave her the answer that she was looking for. "I knocked him out; nothing more, nothing less. He was attacking your elder sister Kahlua, and I could not simply watch as my daughter was beaten horribly, regardless of what she'd done. Afterwards, I promptly sent Kahlua back to her mother. I imagine Gyokuro will issue a retreat fairly soon."
No sooner did he utter those words, than did they hear a loud, powerful horn blare in the background. Very quickly, the sounds of fighting died down, and various familiar faces began to fall in line around them. Moka saw that most of their friends from the academy were there, covered in various amount of blood, though they all seemed unharmed; at least, they had no major wounds to speak of.
"Is he ok?" Kurumu asked worriedly, Gin appearing behind her in his wolf form. Her father showed some distaste at being in Gin's presence, but not nearly as much as would have in the past. Touhou was being very quiet, which was quite odd for the old man.
"He'll be fine," the old man said, finally speaking up. "I made certain that Issa did not go overboard with the boy." Moka felt Tsukune begin to stir at the mention of himself.
"In my honest opinion, the boy's better off dead." Issa said simply.
"FATHER!" Moka scolded, worried for the life of her mate.
"He's a ghoul; he has no discernible future, and for however long he does live, he will constantly be pressured by the presence in his mind. Why even bother keeping him alive?" Issa argued, "It will only result in more pain for him."
"Maybe so," Tsukune said softly, finally sitting up, "But it is still my decision to make; it's my life, and despite my unfortunate circumstances, I intend to see it through for as long as I can. It may seem odd, but the best times in my life have followed my ghoulification, as opposed to be ruined by it."
Everyone present eyed him with a grim sort of respect. They knew that it had to be an awful thing to go through, but he met it with a fierce determination that inspired many around him.
"Ummmmm….., not to make this any more awkward than it already is, but none of you would happen to have an extra pair of pants would you?" Tsukune asked abashedly.
Issa just rolled his eyes, while the other's hurried to find him some sort of clothing in the now wrecked city.
(Tsukune's POV)
*Two hours later*
Tsukune was not taking the death of his father well. It hadn't taken long for him to notice his mother's sobbing form once they had attempted to relocate. It had taken everything he had not to lose himself to the ghoul again, and he knew that he would have succumbed to it if he did not feel the instinctual urge to care for his mother while she grieved. Moka was also being an enormous help in keeping him grounded and in control. She was his pillar of support right now, and he could not have been more thankful for her support.
In odd twist of fate, Moka's father Issa was also being a great comfort, having lost his wife in the recent past (recent for him at least). Tsukune found it odd to see such an ancient being comforting his forty-something year old mother.
Tsukune didn't remember much from the time he spent as a ghoul. He did remember a feeling of unbridled rage, but not much else. Moka had clued him on what he had done, and while he was thankful he hadn't killed anyone-at least that he knew of-he was painfully aware that Kuyou was still out there in the city. He could only hope that the fox had left to lick his wounds rather than causing more havoc.
Tsukune was pulled out of his thoughts by Touhou drawing everyone's attention to himself.
"It would appear that we've made the headlines everybody." he said, referencing the news story showing on TV. Everyone stopped whatever they were doing, and turned their attention to the TV.
"That's right, only two hours ago, a full on attack was launched on Osaka. We don't know where the attackers came from, or where they ran off to, but the destruction left in their wake has left hundreds dead or missing, and thousands with minor, serious, or even life-threatening injuries. Perhaps even more than that however is the implications of this attack…."
Issa and Touhou made eye contact before Issa quickly asked, "Are you prepared old friend?"
Touhou merely nodded in confirmation, before he began chanting for a spell. Ruby silently confirmed that the spell had a huge area of effect which was being helped by the various spell receptors and strengthening beacons that had been placed in strategic places around the globe. Even Tsukune could tell that it was majorly complex, but didn't know what the spell was accomplishing until he saw Issa's face appear on the television.
"Hello humans of the world." Moka's father began, his voice magically shifting into japanese (the language Tsukune understood best), though Tsukune could hear him speaking in English. "Earlier today, in the japanese city of Osaka, a terrorist organization known as Fairy Tale launched a full out attack, murdering many humans in the process; men, women, and children alike. For the many of you who are distrusting of the event, I am here to tell you right now: it was not a hoax, and monsters do in fact exist. We have lived in the shadows in your society since the medieval ages. We can hide our energy and blend in with your people almost flawlessly. We have an offer for you; help us take down this terrorist organization, and we will retreat back into the night."
Tsukune could only imagine the panic that had onset in the wake of Issa's message, and he could only believe that it was getting worse as the message continued. Eventually, Tsukune could take no more and quietly shuffled over to where his mentor was concentrating.
"Teacher, I need you to let me say something to watching world. I need to reassure them that yokai aren't what they think we are." Tsukune pleaded, knowing that the yokai couldn't just retreat back into obscurity after this.
"Are you sure?" Touhou managed to say while maintaining his concentration, "There will be no going back once you are up there."
"I'm sure teacher," Tsukune reassured, "We can't just retreat into the shadows after an attack like this."
"Very well, it seems you are sure of your actions," Touhou said, before gaining his friend's attention. "Issa! I'm swapping the message over to the boy, he'll take it from here." Issa seemed confused and arched an eyebrow in response, but merely nodded and allowed the change into messengers.
Tsukune watched as Issa's face faded out and was replaced by his own. Tsukune forced himself to take a deep breath and steadied his nerves before he started his own monologue.
"Hello. I'm sure at least some of you recognize me from Osaka. For those of you that have never met me, my name is Tsukune Aono, and I am a yokai who was born as a human. I stumbled across the yokai realm by accident, and I'll admit, it scared me at first; much the same as I'm sure many of you are. But I feel that I need to set the record straight, and say this when no one else will. Monster-kind cannot simply disappear after something like this occurs, in much the same way that a nation could not turn a blind eye when they or their allies are attacked."
As Tsukune spoke, he felt himself get more confident in his words and became more sure of the validity of his speech; he could feel the truth in his words as he began to pour his soul into his message.
"But neither can we as a nation, as people, as humans, allow ourselves to be shackled by prejudice and hate. We have to look past our preconceived fears of the supernatural, and see the many races of people that lie beneath them. I've found that for every difference that keeps us, yokai and humans apart, there are more that bind us together. Just as humans feel love, kinship, empathy, happiness, charity; so too do the yokai races. I'm fully aware that such a conclusion includes emotions such as greed, hate, anger, and envy. But to those who say that alone disqualifies yokai from the same treatment as humans, I ask you: who is the real monster, a yokai who would risk their lives to save a child, or a human who would throw a child to the lions to save their own hide? We must never forget that the worst era in human history, the era of slavery, was only allowed to exist because man chose to ignore that which binds us together."
Tsukune felt his speech beginning to drag on, words leaving his mind as he found himself unable to further translate his feelings into well structured sentences. Deciding that it was best to end it now, while he was still on a good note, Tsukune decided to leave his audience with a piece of information to ruminate on.
"So, to all yokai who are out there, and have heard my message, I ask you to question this: 'Why hide from those you trust, regardless of race?'. And to any humans who feel that this has resonated with them, all I can ask is that you understand that who someone is as a person, not as a human or a yokai, but a person is only so because of how they act; who they are and what they want. And that if one of your friends should reveal themselves as a yokai to you, don't immediately turn them away; remember, they are your friend, and spells that hide appearance don't hide their personality. Your friends are still your friends, regardless of however they may look in contrast to you."
As Tsukune drew to a close, he saw the television go black, before returning to the previous showing news report, which was now staring at a large, blank telemonitor where Tsukune's face had previously been. Quickly afterwards, the footage was cut, leaving the TV as blank as the foreseeable future of world peace.