Roanapur Nights

A Rosario+Vampire and Black Lagoon Crossover

Chapter 13

The harsh cold wind swept across Boris' features as he walked. The desolate area of the tundra stood out everywhere, but this was the location that she had been spotted, and it was where he had to look. The one benefit was that there was no one connected to the current government here. He wouldn't be questioned about why he was there. No, they weren't here because they weren't insane. It certainly made him question his own sanity, but he had been asked by the captain to do this. In truth, he would walk into hell, kill the devil himself, and hand the keys to it over to her if she commanded it.

He trained his hearing on the area around him, and he was thankful for the sunglasses that he was wearing. The brightness of the snow would have been completely blinding if not for them. As it was the brightness around him was just uncomfortable. He moved and then he heard it. The soft crunch of something in the distance. He stopped, prepared himself, and listened. He could hear the steps getting closer, and he stood ready.

"Baba Yaga," he said, his voice calm, "I've come to make you an offer."

There was silence, and then she stepped into his sight. He expected to see an ugly old hag. He'd expected to see something that looked like the witches portrayed by the old movies put out by the west. What he saw was a lovely woman with silvery hair standing before him. Her eyes were both the softest blue he'd ever seen, and she moved slowly, "What offer?"

Her voice was sweet, honeyed, and she spoke perfect Russian. He studied her beauty for a moment before he continued, "My captain knows about the existence of your kind, she understands what it is to be cast out, and she would give you and your sisters a chance to come and live in a city where all are accepted."

He watched as she looked at him, "My sisters would be welcomed, I would be welcomed, my it almost sounds perfect, but tell me, what does she get from it?"

He studied her, "A friend who is powerful," he answered, "Someone that is able to stand with us when needed, and nothing else."

She studied him, "Stand with you?" she asked her head cocking to the side, "Not fight your battles for you, but to stand with you? You will not ask what Joseph asked?"

He studied her, "Joseph?"

She nodded, her face took a darker tone, "Joseph, he came here, looking for me, and he found me. He told me that he would give me great treasures, all that I could want, but he wanted me to serve him. To come and crush the foolish Germans that dared to betray him. He wanted that I should rip the one called Hitler from his place of power and turn him into some small animal, perhaps a dog, and allow him to hunt him for sport."

He noticed her disgusted look, "He promised so many things, and then he used the powder on me," she shook, "he used it, took me to a place far from my sisters, had me poked and prodded by others, I screamed, my sisters came, they slaughtered them all, none left, all gone!"

He watched as her hair began to float in the air by an unseen breeze, "He fooled me!" she screamed, "HE FOOLED ME!"

Boris watched as she finally began to calm herself, "I swore never again," she said, "Since then I choose men, sometimes women, that I like. I take them, I change them, make them like the others."

She studied him, "But I have never been asked to simply come and only help. I've been asked to do, to crush, to destroy, but never to help," she said, her voice sounding curious, "It makes me interested."

She studied him for a moment, and then she shook her head, "I have no reason to believe, and every reason to doubt," she said, "What can you give that will prove that you are not lying? What can you show that you will not just take?"

He studied her, "I give my word," he said simply, "But more than that I understand that names have power, yes?"

She studied him, "Just so, names give power to those that know them," she replied, "The name you used is a title, it is enough to gain my attention, but not much more than that. My name as it is has long since been lost to time. Only my sisters and I know it."

He nodded, "I will give you my name," he said, his voice calm, "It is my understanding that when you have it you can kill me, release me, or otherwise bind me. If I am controlled when I return I will be destroyed, and I accept that."

She studied him, "Your captain would kill you?"

He nodded, "Yes, because she cannot trust that which no longer exists, but she would still honor her vow to you. She is honorable, and she would not betray that."

Baba Yaga looked at him, "Very well, your trust in her speaks well of her," she said, "And your willingness to face death just to set me at ease speaks well of you. Come, we will travel to my sisters, and we shall discuss this with them."

The two of them headed into the tundra, and he watched as a wind surrounded them. The powerful wind seemed to blow the snow around them in a blinding flurry, and then it dropped. What stood before him was a small village. To look at it was to see something from the past. It looked like the kind of place that existed when Lenin had been alive. The small village looked to be filled with people, and he could see the men and women that had disappeared over the ages, all of them looked to be whole, and all of them looked as if they hadn't aged a day.

"Where?"

She laughed, "Our home, come, we will explain to my sisters."

He followed her toward the village and took in the buildings as he walked. All of them were made in the old way. Logs that had been cut and fitted together. The process made homes that were built to last. It made use of the land, of the timber, and of the people that lived there. It truly was a place that belonged in the far past. Stepping into the home he was greeted with the warmth of a large fire. Two women were working near the fireplace itself. A cauldron sat above the fire.

The sound of something bubbling from inside of it echoed, and he could smell something from his childhood. The smell of Solyanka filled the room. He watched as one of the sisters looked toward him. Like Baba Yaga she was unnaturally beautiful. Her hair was a deep red, nearly the color of blood, and her eyes were the same color of a green field. She didn't smile, nor did she act as if she meant to end him.

"This one is different," she said, her voice calm, calculating, and reminding him very much of the captain, "He is himself."

"He brings us an offer, an offer that is interesting."

There was quiet, "What could they offer us?" the other asked from where she stood by the cauldron, "We have all we need here. We have many to choose from, we have our magic, and we have no need of their world."

"Sisters, stagnant, are we not?"

There was silence, and finally the one from the cauldron looked toward them. Like the other two she was beautiful. Her hair was a faint blue, the color of a clear sky, her eyes were a light purple, and she seemed to have the aura of a storm right before it burst open. She moved toward him, and he could feel the power radiating from her. It practically poured off of her like rolling thunder, and she seemed to command his attention without saying another word.

"He isn't weak," she said after a moment, "I will give him that, but that is all he is."

He watched as the red headed one studied him, "Tell me, what offer do you have?"

He swallowed, "A city that has no questions. A place where you can live among others, and be given residence there. We would only ask that you help us. We do not want you to crush our enemies, we can do that much ourselves, but if we need help we would ask that you help."

She studied him, "Tell us of this city," the red head spoke, "Tell us what is there."

He looked at her, and he began to tell her about Roanapur. The city itself, what happened there, and how the people there simply accepted the way the city was. His descriptions were that of a soldier. He told them what he observed, how he observed, and what they did. Still, in all of his explanation of the city he noticed the one thing they paid the most attention to was that it was a place where people didn't ask questions. It was a place where people simply existed together.

Finally he saw the silver headed Baba Yaga nodded, "I wish to see it."

The blue headed one shook her head, "No," she said, her voice stern, "We will not lose you again. We will not allow filth to reduce you to a babbling mess. It took us a great time to bring you back."

Boris studied them, "I have given her my word, and given a show of understanding. I do the same here. We will do all we can to protect all of you. We will not move against you."

She studied him, "And if it comes to fighting things that are stronger than us, will you do so?"

He looked at her, "We would stand and fight."

The blue haired one touched the sides of his face, and he watched as she leaned forward, "Tell me, all."

He felt the pressure, and for a moment there was nothing, and then he felt her. She was around him, inside of him, on him, and he was inside of her. They were one being, and they simply existed in the middle of nothingness and yet all of creation existed within them. He felt her hands as she touched his chest, "A war?" she purred, "Ah, you were abandoned by those you served, you remained faithful to the one that did not abandon you."

He saw her past as well, "You were young, a mere girl," he said his voice filled with wonder, "The one that found you took notice. He captured you, and he made you little more than a plaything. He used you badly, until your younger sisters came looking for you. He was slaughtered as a hog, left for the animals to pick clean."

Slowly she withdrew and he felt her leave him. He could see with his own eyes, and her face was flush. He noticed that her breathing was hard and ragged, "We will travel with you," she said, "But we will also return here. It will take some time, but we will connect the two."

He looked at her, "Connect the two?"

She nodded, "It is an ancient magic, one that allows two places to exist in the same place, but not at the same time. It usually is in the form of a door, a hall, a tunnel, or a storm," she said softly, "We will connect it to a door in your hotel. There we will connect our home to yours."

He nodded, "What will happen when you do?"

She smiled at him, "Then, you will have access to what we've created, and we will have access to your city."

The look of her was one of understanding, acceptance, and of a predator. He understood the last one. He understood that look well. It was one that promised to devour all that stood against them. He did not question that they were inviting a great power, but he questioned if they would be able to contain it.

Slowly Baba Yaga touched his hand. Boris studied the witch and saw that she was still as strikingly beautiful as when he first met her. She stood, and he understood on an unspoken level that he was expected to do the same. He felt the others moving along with him, and at no time did he ever question what they were doing. He didn't question because like all of his comrades he had accepted that his bullet could come at any time.

If it was meant to come here it would come, and there would be precious little that he could do about it. It didn't mean that he wouldn't struggle, but it did mean that he was ready to accept the embrace of the grim tyrant should it come calling. He was led back out into the small village, and he could see the dozens of missing people that stood around them. All of them hadn't aged a single day since they went missing.

"Children," the redheaded sister said as she stood before them, "We have come to inform you of a small change. Once again you will be allowed to view the splendor of the world from whence you came."

He could see some confusion, and finally one stepped forward, "Are we to be abandoned?"

She smiled softly at the one that spoke, "No child," she said gently, "You will remain by our sides, but we have been given an opportunity to view the world from whence you all came. We have been invited by those that have sworn to not want us to wage wars for them, but to merely help them."

She smiled at them, "And how could we deny the request?" she asked gently, "Did we not answer all of your requests for assistance?"

There was a comforting silence that seemed to fall over the crowd, "So, please understand that we shall assist them, and we shall not abandon you."

She studied them, "Now," she said as she turned toward Boris, "I believe that you are going to lead us to your city."

He nodded, "There is a plane," he said, as he indicated the direction it sat in, "It will fly us there, and once there we will travel to our home."

She studied him, "Ah, flying, yes some of those that have come here have spoken of flying. We look forward to the prospect of being able to fly overhead."

With that he led them toward the edge of their village. Once again it felt as if a strong snow storm was covering. For a moment he saw nothing but white, but the moment passed, and soon they stood outside of the storm itself. From there it was merely retracing his steps back toward the plane and toward Daniels.

He began to lead them toward their destination, and as he did someone stood respectfully back from the Huang Family Compound. Ria understood exactly where she stood with Ling Ling. She had been given permission to attempt a relationship with Tsukune, but for her to fulfill her plan she had to get Moka to leave his protection. Doing such a thing was practically child's play. She had planned on attempting to send her half truths.

She would send her photos of Tsukune as he walked with his harem. Allowing her to see the way he cared for them, and how he treated all of them like he had treated her. It was understandably nearly honest. Oh, it wasn't deceitful, or at least not at the level she normally worked in. This was the truth, lightly painted through a different lens. The problem was she didn't know if Moka would react as she wanted her to.

Before she had fallen and disgraced herself there was little doubt that she would react poorly. Although she had simply accepted what had to happen between herself and Tsukune. Now, she would likely simply accept it. It would be part of her punishment, part of her penance, and she would continue to wait and pine for sweet Tsukune until he was ready to accept her back. It was something she doubted would ever really happen. Despite his more human nature Tsukune respected loyalty more than anything.

It was truly fetching. It was fetching because of how vamperic it was. Her own Dark father respected loyalty quite a bit, although it was under pride and certainly under lust. It existed just above love. Tsukune was different in how he respected it. He respected it with a near fanatic reverence. He seemed to hold it in the highest of regards. Moka had betrayed him, and in doing so she had destroyed the pact of loyalty she had with him.

It was merely the last thread of loyalty that he had toward her which spared her from the wrath of the others. There was no doubt in her mind of what would come to pass the moment that Moka left that final shred of loyalty. Oh, what she had planned for Moka would be wonderful in how it would break her, but the others?

She would be forever cast aside from the clans. Even if she came here to this city she would not be accepted by even the lesser nobles that existed here. She would be considered an outsider, and she would be reduced to living as the lesser monsters did. She could see her dearest sister forced to walk the streets, dressed in fetching clothes that would find themselves on the floor of some lesser monster or human. The continual betrayal of the one she loved her only way to support herself.

She would become a mere whore, a streetwalker, and the idea of her fall to that point filled Ria with such sadistic glee. She instead decided that the best way of showing dear Moka what would finally drive her away was to simply invite her here. Allow her to travel to Roanapur, allow her to see the city, and finally allow her to see Tsukune giving his love freely to those he cherished.

Not merely sleeping with them, but treating them as treasures. Letting her see him giving them all he had given her, and then allow her to be treated with indifference. She would fall, her heart finishing shattering, and there would be nothing left for her. A mere existence as a shell of her former self. She likely would deny dying, the core of herself believing that eventually Tsukune would accept her back, and she would attempt to remain here.

She breathed out, it was perfect, and that meant she needed to ask either her dark father to help fund her trip out, or see if Ling Ling Huang would do so for her.