Disclaimer: I do not own Owari no Seraph (Seraph of the End). I write this for your enjoyment only. This fic is an alternate retelling of the Nagoya Arc with differences from the original; please refer to the footnotes at the end. Once again, I would like to thank my beta reader, ResidentialPsycho, for her help in making this fic possible. Enjoy and please review!

Chapter 20: A Puppet Master from the Shadows

Nagoya City Hall

"Chess, dear, I really think you should stop before you suck that poor thing dry…" Horn Skuld, a voluptuous blonde vampire woman of Swedish descent, said to her younger companion. Who was gorging herself on one of the soldiers they captured earlier.

"Hmm… What was that?" the "girl" in question asked in a muffed voice. Even so, she showed no signs of stopping despite the fact that the young man she was drinking from was growing weaker in her arms. His face grew deathly pale as he whimpered in pain and his breathing grew shallower.

Although Chess Belle appeared no older than a maiden of eighteen, she was just slightly over a century of age. However, she was still considerably younger than Horn who was nearing her second century of life. Or "unlife", as humans often called vampire existence.

Horn sighed. Judging from Chess's childish behavior, she guessed it was true that in addition to vampires ceasing to physically age once they were turned, their psychological growth was halted as well. At least in Chess's case. *1* Since Horn herself had not been turned until her early thirties, she was far more mature than Chess Belle. Like Lacus, the French-Italian vampire girl had little control over her thirst and often ended up killing the humans she fed from.

"I said you really should stop before you kill that poor thing…" Horn repeated with a hint of impatience in her voice.

Were she still human, the blonde vampire would have been slightly frustrated at her younger companion's stubbornness.

At times, Horn felt like she was baby-sitting Chess by constantly having to remind her to at least attempt to control her thirst and behave.

Knowing that the stubborn vampire girl wasn't going to listen until it was too late, Horn sighed and quietly walked over to grab Chess by the scruff of her neck before yanking her away from the hostage. And just in time to save his life.

"Hey, what the hell, Horn?!" Chess yelled angrily after being thrown to the other side of the room by the older woman. After hitting the wall and landing on the floor with a thud, she wiped her bloody mouth and glared at Horn.

"Don't get mad, dear. It's your own fault for not listening. To lure the other humans here, we need to keep these ones alive: at least for the moment. Got it?" Horn answered coolly.

Chess crossed her arms and stuck her tongue at the blonde childishly.

"Fine! I swear, you're so bitchy sometimes, Horn! So what if I killed the human? There's plenty more where he came from. Isn't that right, Lord Crowley?" she asked as she turned to the maroon-haired vampire lord who had been sitting at his desk reading papers.

Without looking up, Crowley merely said, "I agree with Horn; it wouldn't hurt for you to try and restrain yourself from time to time, Chess."

The vampire girl frowned in disappointment, her jaw dropping at her lord's casual answer.

"W..what? Not you too, Lord Crowley!" she pouted.

Pleased with her small victory over Chess, Horn decided to change the subject once the moment had passed.

"My lord, if you don't mind my asking, do you really think the commander of these human soldiers will take the bait and show up? I'm sure he's smart enough to realize we've set up a trap for him."

Crowley's lips curved into a slight smirk as he set the papers he was looking at earlier onto his desk.

"Oh, he'll show up, all right. Make no mistake about it. After all, he was bold enough to lead an attack on a vampire stronghold like Nagoya, right? A man like that wouldn't abandon his subordinates so easily, no matter how hopeless it may seem. I should know…"

"Because you used to be just like him, correct?" Horn surmised. *2*

Crowley nodded before giving his blonde aide a look of acknowledgement.

"It looks like you know me too well, Horn. In any case…"

"Yes?"

Instead of answering right away, Crowley got up from his desk and quietly walked over to the comatose hostage whom Chess had nearly drained earlier. Although the young man had been greatly weakened by the loss of blood, his breathing was steady and even, indicating that there was life in him still, thanks to Horn's intervention.

But that wasn't the vampire lord's concern now.

"Hey, what're you doing, Lord Crowley?" Chess asked curiously after she stood up and brushed herself off.

"I just want to test a little theory of mine," Crowley began after unsheathing the sword of the unconscious human soldier lying on the floor. Even though the young man still lived, he was barely clinging on to life as his body struggled to replenish the blood that was stolen from him. "Would you mind coming here for a second, Chess?" he asked politely.

"Yes, of course. What do you need, my lord?"

"You'll see…"

The younger vampire blinked for a moment but obeyed and approached Crowley. When she was finally close enough, a sword swung at her face. Startled, Chess drew her blade. The clash of steel echoed throughout the room and sent her, ironically, flying back to the same wall Horn had thrown her against earlier. And this time, with enough force for her to make a hole in it.

Chess felt the wall crack behind her as the wind flew from her lungs. Even with her vampiric speed and reflexes as an eighteenth progenitor, she could barely react in time to block Crowley's blow.

"Owwie! What's the big idea, Lord Crowley!" Chess pouted even though she wasn't seriously hurt and they both knew it.

"Just trying to keep you on your toes, my dear!" Crowley answered good-naturedly before becoming serious again. "So, what do you think of this human's weapon? Could it be superior to ours?"

Chess shook her head as she slowly got up and dusted herself off.

"No, I don't think so. Any weapon is super strong in your hands, Lord Crowley!" she answered. Like Horn, Chess adored Crowley and could never stay miffed at him for long.

"I thank you for the praise, but that wasn't the answer I was looking for, Chess," the vampire lord replied with a hint of amusement.

"Then may I ask, what exactly were you thinking, my lord?" Horn asked as she approached with her arms crossed.

Crowley turned his back to his blonde retainer as he examined the cursed katana, turning it in his hand this way and that.

"I was wondering how it's possible for the humans to gain this much power in so short a time. You see, humans are willing to go to any lengths to gain power, even at the risk of their own destruction. Even so, I doubt they were ever as strong as they are now."

"What are you getting at, my lord?" Horn pressed.

Crowley lowered the katana slightly. "Call me crazy, but I have the feeling that someone, somewhere, is leaking out information to the humans."

"So, you're implying that one of our own has turned traitor?"

"The thought has crossed my mind. And not just anyone, but someone high up with access to classified information."

"W..what? No way!" Chess protested. "How is that even possible?"

"Well, how about I demonstrate?" Crowley answered mirthlessly as he sliced open his palm with the human's weapon. To the amazement (and shock) of his retainers, the resulting cut did not heal.

"My lord, how could this be?" Horn gasped as she deftly grabbed Crowley's injured hand and examined his bleeding palm.

"Simple. The human's weapon has some sort of enchantment on it that prevents my injury from healing. "It's also safe to assume that even more powerful versions of it exist… High-ranking cursed demonic weapons, which even nobles cannot take lightly" the vampire lord answered calmly.

"D..does it hurt?" Horn asked in concern.

"A little," Crowley answered, touched by his retainer's concern—at least, as much as a vampire could be. "But not much. You can drink from it if you want, my dear…"

At the offer, Horn blushed while Chess almost literally turned green with envy.

"Hey, no fair!" the purple-haired vampire girl protested.

"That's enough!" Horn said sharply. "You already drank yourself silly on that human's blood today, Chess. Now, it's my turn to drink."

"Hmph!" Chess scoffed as she crossed her arms and looked at the other vampire woman with disdain. Horn may be right, but that didn't mean she had to like it.

Without another world, Horn raised Crowley's hand to her lips and started licking the blood off his palm in an almost erotic manner.

As he watched his blonde retainer indulge herself on his blood, Crowley turned his head slightly and looked out the window of the office, his thoughts on who the mysterious vampire traitor could be.

Could it be Ferid? Or Queen Krul? Or maybe… No. It can't be. No human could be behind all this. It's just not possible. Or is it...?

SSSSSS

"Shinoa, what time is it?" Yuichiro asked while palming the hilt of her sheathed sword, a habit she had picked up from Guren whenever she became restless or uneasy. And like her mentor, waiting wasn't Yuichiro's strong suit.

After eliminating Lucal Wesker, Narumi, Shinoa, and Satoshi's squads gathered at an empty plaza with a large water fountain located near an abandoned subway entrance to await their other comrades as well as their superior and his squad.

And to Yuichiro's and everyone else's surprise, their squads were the first and only ones at the designated meeting place. Not one word had been heard from the other teams, including their commander's, as of yet. This alarmed Yuichiro since she expected Guren and his squad to be the first to eliminate their targets and be waiting here for her as well as the rest of their comrades from Narumi, Shinoa, and Satoshi's squads. All fifteen of the gathered MDC members looked around the plaza with growing unease for any hint of Guren's squad while secretly fearing the worst.

Judging from the concerned expression on Shinoa's normally cheerful face, the ravenette could tell that her squad leader was of the same mind as herself regarding Guren. Even so, Shinoa could not resist the urge to tease Yuichiro a little.

"You asked me that just a moment ago, or don't you remember, Miss Hyakuya? In fact, this is the third time." the purple-haired girl answered light-heartedly though she still pulled out her pocket watch to check the time, if only to pacify Yuichiro for the time being.

Yuichiro was startled and slightly embarrassed at her squad leader's revelation.

"No, I didn't," she insisted while turning slightly away from Shinoa so that her squad leader couldn't see her blush.

"Yes, you did. You may not remember because your mind is preoccupied by other things, but I do. What's the matter, Yuu? Are you worried about Guren?" Shinoa teased with her usual impish grin.

"W..what? Of course not!" Yuichiro protested furiously while trying to hide the blush that just would not go away no matter how much she willed it to. "Why would I worry about that baka? You know as well as I do that he can take care of himself."

"I'm not denying that, Yuu," Shinoa said. "But just because we know our comrades can take care of themselves doesn't mean we'll ever stop worrying for them, even Guren. It's called 'caring,' and you're obviously closer to him than any of us."

Yuichiro shot Shinoa an irritated look. Like her favorite brother, Shinya, the purple-haired brat had an uncanny way of knowing everything.

"I really don't think that's any of your business, Shinoa…" Yuu began as she tried her best to keep her voice down so that the others wouldn't overhear the sensitive topic she was discussing with her squad leader.

Shinoa looked like she wanted to laugh but resisted the urge by biting down on her lip slightly. As much as she would love to keep teasing Yuu about her affections for Guren, Shinoa knew that now was not an appropriate time. Instead, she decided to change the subject and finally answered the other girl's question despite it being the third time she had asked out of concern for her mentor.

Even if she denied it.

"Well, if you must know, its 14:13, Miss Hyakuya. And all teams were given until 14:15 to exterminate their targets before re-grouping here."

"And what if they don't show up?"

Shinoa closed her eyes for a moment before finally releasing a sigh and snapping her pocket watch shut.

"Then we'll just have to assume that they're dead and continue the mission without them," she answered simply.

"I think that would be easier said than done without our commander…" Yuichiro muttered before she realized what she was saying.

At her subordinate's words, Shinoa finally couldn't resist anymore and her face split into a wide grin.

"See, you are worried about Guren! I knew you cared!" she teased.

Realizing that Shinoa had easily interpreted the true meaning of her words earlier, Yuichiro felt her face growing even hotter and was about to tell Shinoa to shut her trap when suddenly, her ears perked up at the sound of footsteps in the distance, and she immediately withheld her intended scathing remark

Turning, all three squads gathered near the water fountain saw a young dark-haired woman leading little more than half a dozen wounded soldiers, many who were limping in pain, to the designated meeting spot upon completing their mission. Incredibly enough, the other soldiers arrived exactly on time despite their painful-looking injuries.

"Where is Lieutenant Colonel Ichinose?" the team leader, Aiko Aihara, asked. Although she appeared to be in just as much pain and discomfort as her subordinates, the young woman still maintained a good posture and air of dignity while paying no mind to her injuries, something Yuichiro found impressive and admirable.

"He isn't here yet," Shinoa answered. "How are you faring, Sergeant Aihara? Did you complete your mission?"

The older woman shot Shinoa a look as if she were daft.

"Do you think my team and I would have made it back here if we didn't?"

Kimizuki frowned after he took a quick glance at what was left of Aihara's team.

"If I recalled correctly, the other squads took on their targets in groups of three with fifteen people each…"

"Yes, that is correct, Kimizuki," Narumi affirmed quietly to the pink-haired boy as he, too, made a cursory glance at Aihara's team. Judging from the fact that the other sergeant came back with half the soldiers she left with earlier, it didn't take him long to figure out what happened to the rest of them. "But from what I can see, there are only eight or so people here, including Sergeant Aihara herself."

Although Narumi had not meant for his comments to be heard, the other sergeant had sharper ears than he thought. Aihara sighed, crossed her arms, and closed her eyes before turning away from Narumi and Kimizuki.

"You don't have to rub it in, Makoto Narumi. Yes, its true, I lost half of my soldiers, but at least we completed our mission. Not all of use are lucky enough to do that without losing anyone."

Despite the fact that Aihara was doing her best to control her emotions as was expected of an MDC officer, it was painfully obvious that she was devastated by the loss of her soldiers.

Narumi frowned, eyebrows furrowing in concern with sympathy apparent in his eyes for his fellow team leader and her subordinates who were not as fortunate as himself and the squads under his command.

"I'm sorry, Miss Aihara, that was very insensitive of me," Narumi apologized. "I should have known better. My condolences to you and your crew."

Aihara shook her head. "No, there's no need to apologize. It was my flawed leadership that costed my subordinates their lives."

Before Narumi could reply, Yuichiro cut in as she approached the older woman and pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket and offered it to Aihara.

"I disagree. Even with the best leadership and intentions, there will always be unfortunate circumstances beyond our control. Trust me, I know all about it…" Yuichiro said, her voice growing quiet and solemn as she remembered how the escape attempt from Sanguinem by the Hyakuya orphans under Mikaela's leadership ended in disaster.

Aihara blinked and stared at Yuu for a moment before finally accepting the handkerchief and used it to wipe the blood off her face.

"Thank you…" she began before trailing off. "I'm sorry, but I don't believe I got your name."

"It's Yuichiro… Yuichiro Hyakuya."

The older woman lowered Yuu's handkerchief and gave her a look of surprise.

"Yuichiro? Your parents actually gave you a boy's name? Why?"

Despite having heard the question countless times, the ravenette rolled her eyes before answering.

"It's a long story, one I'd rather not get into if you don't mind."

"I see… You're the girl who was dueling with the lieutenant colonel earlier, weren't you?"

"Yes, that's right. I'm glad you remember, but that's not important now. If you don't mind my saying so, I really think you and your soldiers should get some rest. You all look totally beat."

Aihara snorted. "Really?" she asked sarcastically. "What gave us away?"

Normally, Yuichiro hated sarcasm. Especially since she got it from Guren constantly, but decided to let the older woman's slightly rude remark slide knowing what she had just been through.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up," Yuichiro apologized.

Feeling a twinge of guilt for her lack of courtesy towards Yuichiro when she was only showing concern for her, Aihara apologized.

"No, it's not your fault. I'm the one who was being rude. I appreciate the offer. I think my soldiers will be happy to take you up on it too."

"It's all right, there's no need to apologize," Yuichiro insisted. "I'd imagine I'd feel the same if I was in your shoes."

Relieved that Yuichiro did not take offense at her earlier remark, Aihara finally smiled, her eyes showing her gratitude.

"Thank you for understanding, Miss Hyakuya. I'd offer to return your handkerchief, but I assume you won't be wanting it back anymore," the older woman joked.

Under normal circumstances, Yuichiro would have laughed at such a statement, having seen similar situations with borrowed handkerchiefs in western movies, but refrained from doing so out of consideration for the other woman. *3*

"It's ok. I don't need my handkerchief back; you can keep it. I recommend that you and your crew take a break. My squad and I can keep watch for the time being," Yuu replied with a touch of humor that indicated that she never actually expected to get her handkerchief back.

Aihara was about to say something else when both young women heard a merry laughter coming from behind Yuichiro.

"My, who died and made you squad leader, Miss Hyakuya?" Shinoa teased.

Satoshi, who followed close behind, found his eyes rolling at her remark.

"You know, it's funny you say that, Miss Hiragi, because there are times I really think Yuichiro would have made a better squad leader than you. At least she's serious enough not to make two squads late for an important briefing and then get them hazed in front of the entire MDC."

Instead of getting defensive or even taking offense at Satoshi's chiding, Shinoa merely brushed it off with a wave of her hand.

"Now, now, Mr. Hiwatari, no reason to dwell in the past. After all, it worked out, didn't it? That hazing we got from the lieutenant colonel and his squad significantly prepared us for the fight against Lucal Wesker."

Satoshi crossed his arms. "Hmm… I guess I can't argue with that," he admitted. "But I suppose you're right; we shouldn't be dwelling on it right now."

Narumi watched the exchange between the younger squad leaders in amused silence for a moment before turning to Aihara.

"Don't mind them, Miss Aihara. Just take your crew and get some rest. The rest of us will watch over things for the time being."

Grateful that the other sergeant was giving her an excuse to leave, Aihara finally tucked Yuichiro's handkerchief in her uniform jacket and said:

"Thank you, Narumi. We will do just that."

Narumi nodded his approval and all three of his squads watched as Aiko Aihara led her remaining soldiers away to get some much-needed rest.

After the sparse group was gone and out of earshot, Yuichiro's smile faded until her expression grew more solemn. Although the ravenette said nothing, her squad leader was quick to notice her change of mood.

"What's wrong, Yuu?" Shinoa asked in concern.

Yuichiro was silent for a moment before answering.

"This happens frequently, doesn't it?"

"What does?"

"You now what I mean, Shinoa. The Demon Army has a very high mortality rate, specifically the MDC, doesn't it?"

Mitsuba scoffed even though her expression mirrored Yuichiro's own.

"You mean you just figured this out now, Yuu? Of course, people die; that's the reality of war."

Yuichiro looked about to make a snarky retort before Shinoa cut in.

"I think what Miss Hyakuya means is that she didn't realize how frequently we can lose our comrades. She may have been raised and trained by the lieutenant colonel himself, but I can tell he still kept Yuu sheltered by not letting her join the MDC and sending her out to the battlefront until recently."

As much as Yuichiro hated to admit it, she knew Shinoa was right. She also knew that Guren's decision to keep her out of the Moon Demon Company until she was truly ready was the correct one. Ironically, the ravenette was starting to miss the ignorance of war she once had. However, she tried to get her mind off it by changing the subject. *4*

"Speaking of Guren, where is he?" Yuu asked. "As the leader of the best squad in the MDC, he should have eliminated his target and been here first."

Shinoa and Mitsuba looked at each other as if not sure how to answer Yuichiro's inquiry. Fortunately, they did not need to for not long after Yuichiro mentioned the name of her mentor, the answer presented itself when they heard heavy footsteps coming from the entrance to the underground subway. Turning, everyone saw Guren and the rest of his squad slowly emerge and make their way into the plaza.

Judging from the way the older squad squinted and shielded their eyes briefly upon having the sunlight hit them, Yuichiro surmised that Guren's squad had taken longer to eliminate their target than she had originally expected. Either that or they probably got lost in the dark subway for a while before finding their way back to the world above.

Unable to resist the temptation to tease her mentor, Yuichiro grinned at him.

"Glad to see you could join us, sir!" she greeted in a tone she knew would annoy Guren. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to make it!"

Guren shot his ward a look of annoyance while ignoring the perplexed glances Narumi and the rest of the three younger squads were sending him. No doubt they were wondering why he allowed Yuichiro to speak to him in such a way. But instead of answering her question, he gave one of his own.

"So, did you take your target down?"

"Of course. We wouldn't be here if we didn't. What about you?"

Guren gave Yuichiro a look as if she had just asked him the dumbest question in the world.

"Duh, it was a piece of cake."

Yuichiro's grin grew wider. Knowing that all four squads present were watching them, including Guren's own, the ravenette couldn't pass up the opportunity to push her mentor's buttons further.

"Oh, really? Then would you care to explain why you look like shit, sir?"

Not wanting to give Yuichiro the satisfaction of knowing she caught him in a lie since it was quite obvious by the dried blood, debris, and tears on his uniform as well as the dirt smudges on his face that he had indeed struggled in his fight against Mel Stefano, Guren simply said:

"No, Yuu, not really."

As both of them expected, Yuichiro's audacious question prompted mixed reactions from everyone present. Mito, Sayuri, and Shigure rolled their eyes while Goshi and Shinya clapped their hands over their mouths to stifle their laughter. Narumi and his squad were quite shocked by the ravenette's boldness while Shinoa and Satoshi's squads merely gave Guren and Yuu blank stares since they were slightly more used to seeing this kind of interaction between them.

Yuichiro was about to press the subject just a little further, but her mentor swiftly avoided it by turning to Narumi.

"So how was their teamwork?" Guren asked. "Did the rookies prove useful after all?"

The brunet sergeant shot a glance towards Yuichiro. Despite the fact that he had to jump in to assist the younger girl when she found herself in a pinch between Lucal Wesker and his servant, Esther Lee, the look Yuichiro gave Narumi told him that she would make his life a living hell if he dared to mention it to Guren. After careful consideration, Narumi decided not to risk it but still stayed as close to the truth as he could regarding the performances of the younger squads under his command.

"They all did very well. You'd never knew they were rookies. But I'm sure you can already tell since all of them have managed to return alive and in one piece."

After taking a brief glance at Shinoa and Satoshi's squads to make sure all ten members were alive and accounted for, Guren nodded his agreement.

"I'm glad… No doubt the newbies gave it everything they've got, but I also commend your ability to keep them in line as well. You have my gratitude, Narumi."

Narumi was about to tell Guren to think nothing of it when both men heard a quiet female voice coming from behind them.

"I'm sorry, Lieutenant Colonel. Am I interrupting anything?"

Turning, Guren and Narumi along with the rest of their squads saw Aiko Aihara standing alone in the distance with a solemn expression on her face. Despite being in pain from the injuries she had sustain on her mission earlier, the young woman still managed to maintain a good posture and salute her superior officer.

Although her soldiers were not with her, Guren could tell from the look on Aihara's face that her team had sustained casualties. Being an officer of the Demon Army for as long as he had, it was a look the lieutenant colonel knew all too well.

"Sergeant Aihara… report…" Guren ordered softly even though he already had a very good idea what the younger woman would say.

"I'm sorry, sir. Eight soldiers have lost their lives under my watch because of my incompetence. Please forgive me!" Aihara cried as she took a deep bow before her superior.

Guren frowned and shook his head, having heard similar apologies from other subordinates who fell short of his expectations in the past, including the late Eita Kusunoki.

"You've no need to apologize, Aihara. I am the one in charge of this mission, so their deaths are on my hands, not yours," he replied calmly.

"B..but sir..!" she protested. However, Guren quickly cut her off.

"No buts!" he said sharply. "You still managed to bring at least seven of your solders back alive on top of completing your mission and for that, I commend you."

"R..really?" Aihara asked as she fought back tears.

"Yes…I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it," Guren replied before turning back to Narumi. "That's three vampire nobles down, but we still have five left to go. Where are the other teams? Any word from them?"

Narumi closed his eyes and shook his head.

"No sir. Not one of them have returned and we've not heard any word from them either," he answered regretfully.

"I see… we have no choice but to assume that they're dead and even if they weren't, we can't afford to wait for them; we need to begin our next mission as soon as possible."

At her mentor's revelation, Yuichiro raised a brow.

"What? We have another mission?"

"Indeed," Guren answered. "I just got a report from my higher ups that there are currently three vampire nobles staying at Nagoya City Hall. I believe you've met them before: a thirteenth progenitor named Crowley Eusford and his retainers, Horn Skuld and Chess Belle. I'm betting that they were the ones who defeated that thirty-person team we sent to city hall and took twenty as hostages. "

Yuichiro rested her chin in her hand and pondered the thought for a moment.

"Crowley Eusford… Yes, I remember him! He was the noble with the build of a football player that we ran into on the way to Shinjuku and saw again when he joined with Ferid on the field!"

"Correct," Guren affirmed. "Our next mission is going to require a lot of people, so we must save the hostages. Therefore, I am ordering all four squads present here to go and eliminate Crowley Eusford as well Horn Skuld and Chess Belle. The three of them together will be our toughest opponents yet, so I need you all to stay sharp. We can mourn our fallen comrades later. Any questions?"

Before anyone in the other squads could ask the questions on their minds, Shinya raised his hand to catch Guren's attention.

"Guren, might I have a minute of your time?" he asked politely while making a slight beckoning gesture with his hand.

Guren wanted to tell his best friend that now was not a good time but, since the other squads were watching, he decided it was better to grant Shinya's request and excused himself.

"Yes, what is it, Shinya?" he asked quietly once he and the other man were out of earshot of the others. "Please make this quick, we need to be moving as soon as possible."

Ignoring his friend's semi-harsh tone, Shinya simply smiled and asked:

"Are you sure you want to do this, Guren? I don't think I need to tell you that this is a trap; the vamps will be expecting us for sure. Especially you. So why risk it?"

Shooting Shinya the same look he did with Yuichiro when she poked fun of his less-than polished appearance, Guren answered.

"We don't have a choice. Even with nearly five squads, including Aihara's, we still don't have enough manpower to complete our objective. So we must rescue the hostages."

Shinya sighed and frowned but approached his friend until they were standing side by side, shoulder to shoulder, and facing opposite directions.

"That's not exactly what I asked you, Guren," he began quietly as he gently gripped the other man's arm. "Yes, we do need the hostages if we want a better chance at success with our mission, but I know that's not the only reason you're willing to walk into a trap to save them. We lost a lot of good people today. And, even though I know this is not the first time you've had soldiers killed under your command, I also know that you've never been good at coping with it when it happens. I guess all I'm asking is if you're sure you want to go through with this? You know I'll support you either way, Guren."

Guren fell silent as he allowed himself a quick glance at the four and a half squads under his command, of which many members were hardly more than children, out of the corner of his eye. *5*

"I'll be fine, Shinya," Guren insisted. "It's not myself that I'm worried about. I don't care what happens to me as long as I can get everyone home alive and in one piece."

At his friend's answer, Shinya finally allowed his lips to curve into a small smile but refrained from grinning too much considering their current situation.

"I thought you'd say that, Guren. Well, if you ever need a shoulder to cry on, just know that my door is always open," he joked.

Irritated and embarrassed, Guren slapped Shinya's hand away.

"No, thank you! If I'm gonna do that, I'll do so in private!"

"Oh, so you're admitting you would grieve for our fallen, even though you're always trying to act so tough? You big softie!" Shinya teased.

"Hmph! Don't be ridiculous!" Guren snorted as he tried to straighten out his jacket. "Anyone with a heart would grieve for fallen friends and comrades. But there's a time and place for that, and this isn't either of those."

Shinya looked like he wanted to say something else, but Guren, not wanting to prolong this uncomfortable conversation with his best friend, quickly took the chance to walk back to where his subordinates were waiting for him.

"Listen up, everyone! We're going to be staging an attack on Crowley Eusford that will last ten minutes, no longer. If, by any chance, we cannot eliminate him and rescue the hostages in that time, we must leave them and move on to our next mission with the numbers we have now. Since we don't have time to dally here, I'll be explaining the plan while we're on the move."

"But what about the other teams that haven't reported in yet, sir?" Narumi asked while Shinoa and Satoshi looked at Guren in silence as if the same question were on their minds.

"As I've said before, if the others are not here by now, we must assume that they're dead and move on."

At their commander's seemingly cold answer, the four squads gave disappointed looks, even though no one questioned him. They all knew that once the commander of the Moon Demon Company made his decision, the discussion was over. But despite what others might think, Guren did value the opinions as well as their lives of those under his command and chose to give them a ray of hope. Turning to Aihara, he said:

"Aiko, I need you and your team to stay here for at least the next half hour to see if the other teams show up. If they do, I want you to relay my orders to them."

Aihara was startled at Guren's unexpected order, especially after hearing him say that he would not wait for their other comrades to catch up with them if they survived.

"But sir!" she protested. "Don't you need our help? Please take us with you!"

Guren shook his head. "No way. I can't allow anyone who cries on the battlefield to tag along."

At her commander's unexpected words, Aihara blushed and quickly wiped the tears from her face with her sleeve. Until Guren mentioned it, the young woman had not even realized she was crying.

"I..I'm sorry…" she began but Guren cut her off.

"Relax, Aiko. I was only joking. I can tell you and your team are exhausted, and I need you all to conserve your strength for the next part of our mission as well as wait for the others if they are alive. Stay here for at least half an hour. If nobody shows up by then, you can consider them dead and meet us at Nagoya Airport. Understand?"

Aihara released a sigh of relief and her face brightened at the notion that she could still yet be of use to her commander.

"Yes, sir! Thank you!"

Glad that at least one of his subordinates was in good spirits again, Guren allowed a small smile to tug at his lips briefly.

"That's the spirit. Remember, I'm counting on you and your crew. Don't let me down."

"Understood. We won't, sir."

"Good…I'm glad," Guren replied before becoming serious again and turned to Narumi, Shinoa, and Satoshi.

"Narumi, Shinoa, Satoshi, all of your squads will accompany me and my squad to Nagoya City Hall to exterminate Crowley Eusford and his minions and save our comrades!"

Excited as well as hopeful, everyone raised their weapons into the air to show that they were with Guren. With four squads working together in the fight against Crowley and his retainers, they all knew that their chances of victory were much greater.

"Yes, sir!"

Now that he was certain everyone was with him, Guren turned to Shinya, who gave him a nod of approval. They both knew that going after Crowley was no joke and that it was imperative that Guren had everyone's support and cooperation if they all wanted to return alive.

(And in one piece.)

Footnotes:

1. While observing Krul's, Lest's, and Chess's behavior in the anime and manga, I've noticed that vampires turned at a young age can behave childishly at times as if their mental as well as their physical growth has been stunted, probably because they never had a chance to experience adulthood as humans. Even among demons, Asuramaru can behave childishly at times.

2. In his human days, Crowley Eusford was a knight who fought in the Crusades during the Middle Ages and it was against the code of Chivalry for knights to abandon their comrades no matter what. Because of this, he knows Guren would willingly walk into a trap to save the hostages he took.

3. In western pop culture, there are many TV, movie, and cartoon scenes regarding handkerchiefs where one character offers a handkerchief to console another who uses and sometimes offers to return it but the person offering the handkerchief is put off by the snot and tells the recipient to keep it for comedic purposes.

4. Like male!Yuu, fem!Yuu used to be naive about war and possible casualties. Guren was aware of this so he kept fem!Yuu somewhat sheltered by having her guard the walls until he deemed her ready to join the Moon Demon Company.

5. Since Aiko Aihara lost at least half of her team, I referred to them as a "half squad".