Mighty and Not So Mighty in the Forest
Disclaimer: I do not own Rosario Vampire or any part of its franchise. I would also like to thank lord of the land of fire for giving me permission to write this.
This is a sequel to The Unsealed Vampire story by lord of the land of fire and The Unsealed Vampire: Tsukune's Revenge by yours truly.
I know what you're all thinking: Moka as a Dark Lord? Too many things wrong with that to even begin to enumerate them. I promise to explain how something so abnormal could even take place in a Rosario Vampire fic in the next chapter or maybe the one after that.
In the meantime, please do not let that discourage you from reading this story.
Now that I am done wasting your time with author's notes, let us move on to the main attraction.
Enjoy:
This was turning into quite the long trek across Japan. Tsukune was currently traveling through the uneven terrain of some forest and had been doing so for the last few hours, mentally flogging himself the whole way for not even trying to convince the Bus Driver to take him to his destination. It would have been a good guess to say he would have refused and chuckled in front of him before puffing a cloud of smoke into his face but it would have been better than simply going in blindly like he did. What in the world possessed him to go off like that? It felt like he had temporarily lost his sanity and decided to charge into things like a mad beast.
On top of that, he felt a cold chill crawling up his spine every so often which always made him feel as though he was about to suffer terribly. The only explanation he could come up with was the following: Inner Moka found out he left and was getting ready to beat him into the next century for not telling her that he was leaving beforehand. The cold dread would only amplify once he realized who it was coming from. There was no doubt in his mind that his triumphant return was going to end with him soaring through the air, screaming for Moka to relent before he became a bloody pile on the floor.
Of course, that could only ever happen if he did manage to make it back alive, something he was doubting more and more the closer he got to his intended target. Why not turn back? Well, he felt like he should carry on towards his objective. It would be the right thing to do, right? Besides, it wasn't all bad, that most hated alter ego of his had finally stopped talking. Then again, he hadn't said anything since he left the Academy, since he was inspired to go on this little trip of his. The ability to simply walk in silence was good enough to keep him somewhat in a good mood and in the right direction. He was also pretty certain that if he tried to go back, Reaper would start talking, so all the more reason to press on for a noble goal.
It was sometime in the afternoon. What time exactly? Tsukune had long since lost track, relying now solely on the sun's position to tell him if he should be resting or moving forward. He could have gone the easy way and asked for shelter over in the nearest town but odds were that would attract unwanted attention. He could see himself at a police precinct trying desperately to explain that there was something he had to do out in the wild that involved a terrorist organization and possibly monsters. They would either hand him over to the Americans who would send him off to Guantanamo on suspicion of having been a terrorist, which wouldn't have been completely false, or they would send him off to the nearest psychiatric ward because he was talking nonsense about monsters. Either scenario was less than promising and better to avoid altogether instead of tempting Fate, he knew first hand it didn't need any help to screw him over which would undoubtedly happen sooner or later.
He continued to walk further along the path he knew led to the barrier surrounding the invisible mountain, how they were able to shield a barren wasteland in the middle of a forest in Japan was beyond him. Instead of searching for a answer he knew he would never come up with, he focused on his walking through the uneven surface so he wouldn't end up face first in the mud from the recent poor down of rain the countryside had experienced.
He continued to walk a ways until he came to the edge of the barrier which was elaborately camouflaged to look like no more than a naturally created wall of trees. On the other side, he knew there to be little to no chance he would be able to catch his breath so he decided to rest up before crossing over and marching into what he knew to be the wolf's den. It was a good bet that no one among the common troops would recognize him, seeing as how they had never met him for the most part. He would have to fight until he got to the higher ranking personnel, the Scythe, who would most probably remember him. Would they listen? Doubtful, but it was worth a try.
He settled his stuff down and took a seat, he knew he would have to move quickly before his courage left him and he went back to the school with his tail between his legs. For him to even be thinking that was proof enough that his rational mind had already noticed the awfully flawed plan it's host was planning to execute and was currently pleading to abort.
Just as he got comfortable and was about to justify for what might've been the thousandth time his plan to himself, he felt a surge of killing intent directed at, guess who, his very being. He cursed himself for his negligence before quickly rising to his feet and taking up a defensive stance. This was the headquarters of the HLF, of course Fairy Tale would have this place watched 24/7. He slightly bended his knees and brought his hands up to defend his core just as a familiar shadow dropped down from the trees and approached him, he didn't need to see his assailants face to recognize the way she moved, the way she prepared to pounce and rip through her opponent's body.
Pretty soon, the shadows revealed what it kept hidden. A black cloak and equally black hair emerged with eyes a mix of crimson and purple peering at the fearless boy. Akua Shuzen stood ready to attack, this would most certainly be fun.
Before Tsukune could even say or do anything, she disappeared from his sights only to materialize behind him after having inflicted a superficial cut to his right cheek. He turned around just as a sliver of blood dripped down his face. Dammit, she was playing with him. He looked over to the row of trees standing right next to him, if he could just make it through before she caught him, he would be able to let the HLF take care of his problem.
Unfortunately, she had long since guessed his next course of action and positioned herself in front on Tsukune's last hope, the worst part was that she was flashing that predatory smile of hers at him. Maybe trying to reason with her would bear fruit. Who was he kidding? At best, it would distract her just long enough so that he could make it through the barrier. Perhaps it was indeed worth it if it could get him across.
"Something the matter? You don't look too happy to see me." She began the conversation by lightly mocking him with a small fake pout, that same hurt tone was there, just like she had back at the school, during the recent event. This reeked of bad news, she was feeling extra playful today judging by the way she talked and acted. Were anyone to come upon this scene, they would notice a number of startling similarities between this showdown and a cat playing around with it's prey mouse. No matter, if she was going to play pretend, he would match her game to buy his plan time.
"Considering you just cut me, I think that just speaking is a good sign." It was a weak reply but he had to keep this going, it was essential to his survival that he play her game lest she decide she had played enough and move on to the main event: spraying his guts all over the forest.
In an odd change of pace not synonymous with Akua's usual tactics, she was the first to end a previously engaged stare contest by casually beginning to walk around and by observing the fauna and flora with an appearance of mild interest. Tsukune wasn't fooled by this change in behavior, she was baiting him into making a run for it. The way she kept turning her back to him while examining a bunch of flowers was proof enough. In fact, it was almost becoming insulting that she would think he would fall for such a pathetic ploy.
"I've been assigned to watch this place for a while now. You have no idea how boring this assignment was." She sighed before turning back to Tsukune with a renewed smile. "That is, until you showed up." She approached him and looked over to something that caught her eye, it was the gleaming of his seal that made her turn her gaze away from the boy's face. After examining the seal, she lightly tsked before looking back at her prey in the eye. "I didn't get the opportunity to examine that nice piece of jewelry you have around your wrist the last time we met. It looks a lot like Moka's seal, minus the dual soul part."
He was about to speak out to contradict her statement but decided against it, she was going on a roll. He just had to let her talk a little more and he would have enough leeway to go for the home run. As soon as she looked like she was losing herself in dialogue, he would move. She took his silence as a cue to keep talking. "So you can't free your powers and you obviously can't really stand up to a vampire such as myself even if you weren't sealed so I'm going to tell you exactly what's going to happen from here on out." She paused to give him the chance to say something but he stayed silent. "I'll give you a ten second head start to run before I hunt you, catch you, pummel you and execute you. Does that sound fair to you?"
Did she really plan on killing Tsukune? Of course not, she had bigger plans for him. However, she really wanted to see that spark one more time. That same cold and calculating demeanor he had when he entered the Snow Village, that same darkness that had nearly destroyed an entire civilization. That gleam in the pit of those eyes that told her she wasn't the only one with such a darkness inside of her, that another matched her in that respect. She wanted to provoke him, to goad him into using his hate to drop that foolish mask he had put on. To show the world that he wasn't nearly as human as he wanted everyone to think. If she could only see that gleam now, if he could only show her that he was nowhere near what Humanity considered to be a paragon of their species, it would comfort her in her choice and she would be able to proceed without any second thoughts.
Her sense of fairness was not linked to any Tsukune had ever known in his short life. The brown haired teen was scared, he didn't want to die. The idea that it would all end on a fool's quest did little to brighten his mood. He couldn't die like this. But what could he do? He knew full well that he wouldn't be able to outrun a vampire. What alternative did he have? Alas, another horrible thought crossed his mind: he would be separated from Moka again. He would lose her, for good this time. No, he couldn't accept this, he couldn't allow this. He would have to do something. Anything. He wouldn't let anyone keep her away from him and him away from her.
Flashes of his incarceration in the Snow Village resurfaced, he could see his captors clear as day. Never, he would never let something like that happen again. He won't run, he will fight and it will end with Akua's bloodied corpse on the ground if necessary. If he had to torch this entire world to get what he wanted, he would do so gladly.
He fell to the ground right next to his backpack just as Akua began counting down. To the casual observer, it would look like he was cowering away. But Akua wasn't anything like a casual observer, her eyes were trained beyond the abilities many of the greatest assassins could ever hope to possess. Where we would've seen an accidental trip and lose of balance, she saw a calculated fall. Where we would've seen him cowering away, she saw a careful examination of the surrounding areas. And where we would've seen an accidental bump up against his backpack, she saw a careful tap on the top which let her know he had an ace up his sleeve. What could that ace be? Her hearing picked up something, the ever so slight disturbance of liquid caused by the tap, he had a water bottle in that pocket and was planning on using it.
After having tapped to make sure he still had his insurance policy, he got up and seemed to have resolved himself to fighting. Akua wasn't fooled, he had planned to fight ever since he fell. The distance he had gotten between them was expertly measured: It would allow him to dodge once and take out his weapon before she would be able to plunge back at him, giving him the upper hand in a conventional fight. Unfortunately, Akua had been excelling at warfare since before he even threw his first punch, a trick like that wasn't going to get the better of her.
Instead, she got what she wanted, her suspicions were confirmed and her choice had been validated. Tsukune would get to go through this day with only the minimum required injuries for he had proven he wasn't merely a cowardly beast like those he came from. Truth be told, she was slightly fearful that his time back at the Academy might have brought back some less than desirable traits but he proved to be stronger than that. In fact, his senses didn't seem to have dulled at all and his cold ruthlessness was nowhere near extinguished, it was simply hibernating within the core of his being. His place was no longer at the feet of his betters, for he had become better. The mind was there, all that was necessary now was for his body to follow suit. The sooner it happened, the better. She had plans laid out for his future and didn't particularly relish the prospect of waiting.
Finally, she finished counting and ran towards him. By rapidly taking cover as soon as he had heard her stop counting, he was able to miss her near bone breaking strike and had since taken the bottle from it's hiding place just as Akua stopped behind him. By the time she had come to a complete stop and had turned around, Tsukune had already positioned himself and had emptied the bottle at his foe. Tsukune saw the water heading towards Akua. Alas, he had forgotten one overly crucial detail: Akua's fabled dimensional shift ability.
In lieu of hitting her head on and weakening her as was planned, the water passed right through her and landed on the ground, thus proving to be utterly ineffective against the supernatural foe. As soon as Tsukune observed that phenomenon occur, his mind went into overdrive to figure out a plan B. Mere micro-seconds later, before he could come up with a suitable stratagem, she stood before him with her fingers extended at his throat. She couldn't help but chuckle at the teen's earlier ploy: It was bold, to be sure. It might even have given him a very slight advantage against the average vampire arrogant enough to not have considered he would retaliate. Of course, as you may suspect, Akua was neither prideful beyond what her abilities could back up nor a normal member of the vampire community.
However, her next move was not at all what Tsukune expected. Normally, once someone defeated you and held your life in their hands in mortal combat, they would end you immediately. What did she do? She gave him a, what was by her standards, very gentle punch that left him flying a few feet back with the air inside of his lungs violently ejected without prior warning.
Seeing him being pushed back by such a small love tap left her with a furrowed brow, they had done him a disservice by sealing away his powers and keeping him in such a frail and human-like condition. That last thought left a bitter taste in her mouth as she picked up the boy's weakened body and held him by the shoulder so that he would stay at her level and not risk falling over while she was thinking.
Then again, those Dark Lords couldn't be expected to do anything right. How could they be so ignorant as to believe peace with those pigs was even an option? Touhou Fuhai was a master in martial arts and magic but lacked foresight in all other domains, a probable side effect of him becoming senile. Akasha Bloodriver was too gentle and caring to see those pathetic humans for what they really were. As for Mikogami Tenmei, she didn't have nearly enough information to properly ascertain what his great flaw was which bothered her to no end. She knew all the information she required on just about every body she ever had to deal with as an enemy except for that last Dark Lord, she didn't even know his species. Whoever he was, he was most interesting opponent of them all since he was also the one responsible for handling Tsukune for close to a year and a half now.
Noticing that Tsukune still had that same defiant look made that metaphorical taste vanish without a trace, he never ceased to exceed her expectations. Besides, all that brainwashing they had him go through to make him love those pigs could just as easily be undone with a little time and a strong will. Granted, her perception of what was a little time did extended over several centuries but vampires were immortal beings after all. What was a couple centuries or even a millennia to them?
To her great chagrin, that also meant he wouldn't be awake for the next part. It was a shame, really, she looked forward to seeing the realization dawn in his eyes after she had accomplished and explained what occurred. Oh well, there would always be time for that little guilty pleasure of hers at some later date.
As for the present moment... Akua made sure to wink at him while extending her free hand and balling it up into a fist before hitting his cheek as gently as she could manage, the resulting blow she had delivered sent Tsukune into blissful unconsciousness which made sure that he would no longer put up a fight or be able to contest what was about to ensue. That was always the problem with these kinds of things, you always had to make sure there was a clear winner to proceed with ancient vampire rituals.
After making sure he was out cold, she brought the hand that had just deliver the finishing hit to her beloved up to her mouth and bit down on the index finger. That move effectively tore a hole in the fabric of her glove just as it punctured her skin and allowed the precious crimson liquid to leak out of said newly torn hole. She brought the finger up to his forehead and allowed a few drops to fall just as she whispered the binding incantation. After that, she kissed his unconscious form on the lips and threw him over her shoulder just as she began to move away from the border.
She had perhaps gone no more than ten meters when something else caught her attention. Some fool decided it would be a good idea to call out to her. She was mildly surprised that she hadn't sensed him coming. Perhaps she just wasn't paying attention.
"Miss. Miss. Is everything alright?" An elderly voice came through to her just as she rested Tsukune's form comfortably on the ground. She had planned on carrying him back to a safe location so as to avoid any further complications but did not exactly relish the effort it would take to bring him to the aforementioned location. This fool might just end up being a suitable way for her to channel her frustration.
Pretty soon, an old man clothed in a dark robe with a hood covering the majority of his face could be seen. He was having difficulty walking through the forest, even though he navigated with the aid of a wooden cane. The light gray of a very long beard that reached down to approximately the upper part of his torso seemed to be glistening with the sunlight.
She could sense a tad bit of monster energy radiating from him, couple that with his unique hermit appearance and it wasn't hard to guess what species the elderly man belonged to. "Begone, witch. This is vampire business."
Despite her warning, the elder man ventured a few meters closer before halting and answering the assassin's warning. "I have not come to fight. I merely have come for that child over there." He replied as he lifted his cane to point at Tsukune's still inert form. Before Akua could inquire further as to what motivations this man may have had or to threaten him to leave while he still had his lungs inside his body, the man raised one of his decrepit hands in a show of submission. "Far be it from me to rob a vampire of it's prey but I will assume that your business with him is concluded if he is still breathing as we speak. I sense that you may want to keep him for a little while yet you do not relish the idea of transporting him. May I be so bold as to ask to be of some assistance to you, miss?"
The fossil had a way with words, a silvered tongue is probably what kept him alive for this long. He wanted to be of some assistance? He may have been a half breed but he still was part monster, she would hear him out before deciding how to deal with this mess. One look back at her victim assured her that he would still be out for the duration of this chat which gave the man a little bit of time to convince her.
"Speak your mind, old man. I'll decide after I've heard your request." She spoke flatly while crossing her arms, her attention was almost completely set on Tsukune to inform her if any change in his slumber had occurred.
"Leave the child in my care." The man's voice still sounded as respectful and the sentence came out as though a mere suggestion to an afterthought. This prompted Akua's full interest to turn to the elderly warlock, he had better have a good explanation for what he was proposing.
"He would only be a burden to you and I'll guarantee his safety while in my care." This was ludicrous, how was she supposed to trust a complete stranger with what was undoubtedly the answer to both her solitude and her dreams? He was sinking himself ever deeper and practically insuring his request would be denied. How could he even expect this to work out in his favor?
Of course, before she could flat out refuse his idea, he had the urge to speak once more to change her mind while he still theoretically could. "I would never dare harm one who is both betrothed to a vampire and in line to becoming one himself. I simply wish to impart some of my knowledge unto the boy. It will greatly benefit and serve him in the future."
His last attempt chilled the blood in her veins. How did he know? How could he know so much about Tsukune and yet remain unknown to her? She did not like this at all and was going to voice her reservations and her questions.
Alas, he beat her to it once again. "Let us simply say that my branch of magic specializes in affairs that concern blood. Hence, the boy falls squarely into my range of expertize. Who knows, I may perhaps even be able to bring about his transformation. However, I will need to keep the boy for a little bit. You will like what comes of this, I swear upon my honor and the blood that flows through my veins."
What was she to say? She could deny his request as he had clearly stipulated that this was up to her to decide all on her own. Despite her urges to say no, her curiosity had been peaked. He wanted to teach Tsukune something? She could hardly see any knowledge that would not benefit him at this point. Besides, this would be enough of a justification to herself to not have to haul him all the way back to the safe house and cover up all traces of his whereabouts to throw off Fairy Tale's suspicions, the Academy's search and the HLF's curiosity as to the disturbance on their border.
Akua nodded and then left the old man and the unconscious boy alone to go back to her post, it would definitely cause the lest amount of problems and worries when it cam to her situation. Her current superiors were already quite hesitant about keeping someone so closely affiliated with Gyokuro Shuzen out on the field without proper supervision, there was no need to rock the boat any more than necessary by inexplicably disappearing for a few hours from her designated surveillance post.
Once she had disappeared, the old man let loose a sigh in relief that he hadn't been ripped to shreds for angering her. A lot of attention was set on the boy so it wasn't easy to get close to him, Fairy Tale on one side and Mikogami and the other Dark Lords on the other. Still, he had succeeded in the first step of the plan. Now, the teen just had to wake up from his slumber and they could finally be on their way to a more adequate place for learning.
When he was finally done, the boy would have all the freedom to do as he chooses and to associate with whomever he desires. The old man was simply here for a single reason: teach this miracle child the ancient arts so as to make sure it doesn't vanish off the face of the Earth. If all went well, the teachings might even persist for as long as the boy was destined to live...
So he sat himself down on a large rock next to where the boy laid limply, he waited for the boy to wake up as he softly hummed to himself. If he was right, the boy would be well worth the little song and dance he had to perform for the vampire. In fact, he would be what the man had been waiting for for so many long years: one worthy of becoming a Blood Mage.