Chapter 330: Breaking the Seal
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BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM!
The sound of Issa nervously drumming his fingers on Zenith's guardrail filled the air as the group watched the two sisters meet for battle. Despite him often pitting his girls against each other in 'duels to the death' when they were younger, Issa had never actually expected that he would one have to watch one of his girls kill another. Alex meanwhile turned around and said to the rest of the girls while lightly smacking Shia's rump,
"It's about time for all of you to get going, the real show will begin soon." This earned him a series of anticipatory smiles, while a couple of the girls like Sun or Kurumu looked fairly nervous at the upcoming fight. Regardless, with Shia leading the pack after wiggling her butt at Alex teasingly, they jumped or stepped off of Zenith's deck one by one, and fell until they disappeared into the sea of clouds below, leaving Alex alone with Moka, Issa, Touhou, and Mikogami.
Turning back towards the upcoming fight, Alex walked up to those remaining on the ship and said, "I'd say it's about time we move a little closer as well, don't you?" Though they kept their eyes on the two girls about to fight, everyone silently nodded in agreement as they prepared to disembark.
Meanwhile the two girls stared at the other as they steadily approached each other until they were only a few feet apart, Kokoa with her kou-bat transformed into a greatsword at her side, while Kahlua looked as if she was fighting back tears. As they stared at the other Kahlua finally said,
"You've grown so much in such a short time Kokoa, you're such a strong and beautiful woman now." Despite her sister's praise though, Kokoa instead asked,
"Why big sis? Why are you helping mother when you know none of this is right?" Though she had attempted to manage a slight smile as she spoke to Kokoa, Kahlua couldn't help but frown sadly at her question and answered,
"Because, I didn't want mother to be lonely...." Gyokuro had imprisoned Issa, isolated Kokoa, and despised Akua and Moka for being the daughters of other women, if Kahlua had left her mother as well then Gyokuro would have no one left around her. It was for this reason, along with the fact that Kahlua considered herself irredeemable for the lives she herself had taken, that she had remained by her mother's side despite everything she had done, and what she was planning to do.
Their conversation over, Kokoa took a stance as she prepared to battle her big sister, while Kahlua flipped her hair back on the right side of her face, revealing a diamond studded rosary hanging from her ear. In an instant Kahlua removed her rosary, and her supernatural power suddenly skyrocketed as she became surrounded by the bat-like swarm of energy. Kokoa's own supernatural power then rose as well in response to her sister actions, but she never noticed the stir she caused as her energy quickly caught up to, and then greatly surpassed Kahlua's.
"Th-that can't be!" Gyokuro swore as she watched Kokoa's power shoot up, while Miyabi, Issa, and Kahlua showed similar levels of bewilderment at what they were seeing. Soon Miyabi's eyes widened as the truth hit him, and he muttered,
"She's a Shinso?!" His words caused a stir amongst the rest of the division leaders, as Raika hesitantly asked,
"Aren't the only Shinsos left Alucard and that Akashiya girl? How can there be another?" Shinso blood could only be gifted from a Shinso themselves to a recipient, which was how Moka became one when her mother transferred her own blood into her to save her life as an infant. While there was the minute possibility that Moka had transferred her own Shinso blood into Kokoa, this idea was immediately dismissed as then the link to Alucard would have activated when Kokoa used it.
Rather than sit around and debate how this had happened, Gyokuro quickly stood from her throne and was about to interrupt the match between her daughters, intending to capture Kokoa to experiment on her when this farce was over with. The moment she took a single step forward though, Gyokuro's hair suddenly stood on end as the feeling that some kind of weapon was at her throat appeared. She then glanced around and noticed Akua standing clear across the battlefield, her hand positioned like when one used the Jigen-tou despite the distance. As they stated at each other Akua also steadily released her own aura, causing Gyokuro's eyes to widen when she realized that Kokoa wasn't the only new Shinso.
With Akua's message of keeping Gyokuro out of her sisters fight clear, the vampiress sat back down on her throne as she contemplated how both girls had become the legendary Shinso. Meanwhile Kahlua's expression hardened as prepared to face Kokoa, who had grown far more than she ever could have expected in the seemingly short time since she saw her last. As Kokoa took her stance once more, Kahlua had tears appearing her eyes as she started transforming her left arm, which quickly became five razor sharp bat wings. With her 'berserk' state activated and both girls ready, there was nothing to keep the duo from killing one another other than the fact that neither had yet moved.
In an instant both girls flickered and appeared in the same positions the other was in less than a millisecond prior, both moving and attacking faster than most of the onlookers could follow. At first glance Kahlua appeared to be the winner of their instant exchange, with her seeming fine while Kokoa had five deep gashes on the left side of her body, under her eye, on her shoulder and forearm, and then on her hip and thigh. However, these wounds quickly healed at a rate greater than the usual vampires regenerative powers allowed thanks to her Shinso blood, and soon all that was left of the wounds was the few drops of blood
"I-it looks like this is your win, little sis..." Kahlua barely managed to breath out as she turned to face her sister, right as a line of red blood started forming on her white dress, from her right hip up diagonally to her left shoulder. With a sickening sound, the upper half of Kahlua's body suddenly slid down to fall to the ground, yet Kokoa immediately caught her and held her close with tears in her eyes.
"W-why big sis? Why didn't you fight me seriously?" With her enhanced vitality keeping her alive for a few seconds longer, Kahlua smiled weakly and answered,
"I-I did Kokoa. You don't seem to realize it, but you truly have become so strong now." Though Kokoa was shocked to hear her big sister's words, she quickly pushed them out of her mind as she clung to Kahlua even tighter as, despite always being scared of her and fighting her to the death, Kokoa didn't actually want her sister to really die. Kahlua however smiled warmly despite her current state and added,
"Do not fret about the end of my wretched life Kokoa, someone like me who has lived only for reaping the lives of others deserves this..." As she finished speaking Kahlua let out one final shaky breath, before she fell silent and her eyes lost the l.u.s.ter of life. Kokoa let out a shuddering breath as her sister died in her arms, while a sound of pain escaped Issa's throat as he approached as well, his daughter's bisected body filling his view.
While the two were pained at Kahlua's passing, Gyokuro looked on with indifferent eyes while Moka and Akua both turned towards Alex, the former pinching his side while hissing, "How long exactly are you going to wait?" Alex smiled wryly at her prodding, before stepping forward and saying to Kokoa and her father,
"Step aside." Naturally Issa turned towards Alex in fury and was about to demand what he wanted, however he found Akua in his way as she said,
"Listen to what he says father, Alex knows what he's doing." Though he wanted to ask her what she meant, Issa stopped himself when he saw Akua rub her neck with a slightly pale expression. As she gently pulled him away from Kahlua's corpse, while Moka did the same with Kokoa, Alex stepped forward and held his hand out above her.
Suddenly a massive magic circle appeared and spread to cover the entire battlefield, shrouding her and the rest of the corpses in a bright light. After nearly a minute the light started to fade, and what was revealed was Kahlua's newly repaired body, with her eyes closed and a slow yet steady rise and fall to her chest.
As if that wasn't enough of a miracle to the onlookers, a series of deep throated growls around them also caught their attention, alerting them to revival of the various dragons that had fallen in battle as well, some having their bodies regenerated from mere scraps of meat or bone. With everyone around them feeling either confusion or a sudden surge of emotion, Alex simply explained with a shrug,
"With my abilities, reviving the recently deceased is a simple matter really." Naturally Issa and even Kokoa were unaware that Alex had this ability, and an entirely different emotion filled them as Issa muttered "Thank you" to him several times.
While Issa and Kokoa took in the fact that Kahlua was no longer dead, and Akua helped to console them, Alex turned contemptuous gaze towards Gyokuro and the rest of Fairy Tale's division leaders, all that remained of their forces. With their eyes narrowing at Alex's obvious contempt, he then turned towards Moka and softly asked while pulling her close,
"Are you ready?" Moka closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, before opening them and moving forward to kiss him gently, but passionately. Ignoring her father's incredulous gaze, or the annoyed gazes of those around them, Moka continued kissing Alex for several minutes before breaking it off, and saying in a resolute voice,
"I am ready." Nodding, Alex looked into her striking green eyes one last time before grabbing her rosary, and swiftly removing it. As he had already seen several times since they met, a power surge of supernatural energy radiated from Moka as the seals restricting her powers became undone for the last time.
Her flowing long pink hair turned silver, and her gentle striking green eyes turned to a crueler blood red, Moka turned her firm gaze from Alex to the one responsible for everyone being there that day, Gyokuro. As the step-mother/step-daughter duo glared at each other though, the first one to move was neither of them, or even Alex, instead the gangster-like appearance of Miyabi suddenly appeared behind Alex before saying with a sarcastic tone,
"Now that the seal is removed, there's no more need for you 'Dragon Emperor'!" What happened next seemed to transpire in slow motion as Miyabi's blade-like hand moved to pierce Alex's heart through his back, seemingly without Alex even being able to react.
The latter didn't even flinch however, as Miyabi's Hand impacted, and then crumpled against the skin of his back, which had turned to a shiny black under his clothes. He then turned back at his would-be assassin, and sneered,
"Did you really think I didn't see you coming? Or that I'd leave myself open like that around any of you?" With Miyabi's eyes widening in surprise, he was unable to react as Alex turned while c.o.c.king back his fist, before planting it directly into his gut with enough force that Miyabi was sent flying clear off of the Flying Fortress. He then turned back towards Gyokuro and the rest of the division leaders, and said to Moka and Akua while stepping forward,
"I'll leave the next part to you, I'm going to have a 'chat' with these four clowns." The two girls smirked at Alex's words, while Gyokuro frowned and said in a venomous voice,
"While you do seem to be at least a little bit capable, do you really think you'd stand a chance against all four of us?" At this Alex smirked and replied,
"Bitch please, the better question is can the four of you at least entertain me a little bit before all of you are defeated?" This made her expression turn worse than had all day, and, after all of the day's events, Gyokuro was ready to vent on the idiot who dared to challenge her.
Standing from her throne, Gyokuro then slowly descended the steps between them while the fake Issa, Raika, and Gairen in his suit of armor followed suit. As she reached the bottom Gyokuro looked up slightly at Alex, not at all intimidated by his large figure and overbearing demeanor, before saying,
"After everything that's happened, trust me when I say that I'm going to enjoy what I'm about to do very much. I daresay I may even enjoy it as much as I will slaughtering all of those filthy humans that that bitch Akasha cares for." In the face of her arrogance and confidence, Alex only smirked and stated,
"Then I think it's about time we get to our 'arena' then!" Before anyone could register what he meant, a magic circle suddenly spread from under Alex's feet until it also encompassed Gyokuro and the other three, and the five of them all disappeared in an instant.
Almost immediately after this happened Akua moved towards Moka and said, "Then it's time for us to start as well!" This made both Mikogami and Touhou look back at her in surprise as both had been preparing to chase Miyabi after Alex sent him flying, before Mikogami asked,
"'Time for us to start' what exactly?" Akua smirked knowingly and said,
"Time for us to start awakening Alucard of course!" This made both of them freeze, before Touhou declared,
"Why would we do that?! The plan was to let the Dragon Emperor fight that monster, and he's not here anymore! Now we should focus on that guy he sent flying, he's not what you think he is!" In the face of his frantic declaration though, Akua smirked and replied,
"True, but we already discussed who'll at least keep Alucard occupied in the meantime, so it'll be fine until Alex finishes what he's doing." Though the two Dark Lords, as well as Issa wanted to argue, Moka suddenly spoke up,
"I can awaken my Shinso blood whenever I want, consequently waking up Alucard as well. So your options are to either assist us as we ask, or to leave us alone as we try it by ourselves anyways." At this point however Issa spoke up and said,
"Or there's the third option, where we waste time trying to detain the three of you before doing as Touhou said and chasing after that man." At this however Moka, Akua, and even Kokoa from where she was watching over the still sleeping Kahlua smirked knowingly, before the eldest of the three said,
"If you'd know what kinds of people we spent the last few years training against, then you'd realize just how foolish that sounded father." As she said this Issa looked at his daughters in shock of how they'd changed in the time he hadn't seen them, in ways that were obvious and ways that he had yet to see.
After several minutes of deliberation, Issa finally said, "It appears that we have no choice in this matter. Well if we are going ahead with this folly, then what do you need us to do?" Akua smiled at her father's change of mind, and said,
"Moka will activate her Shinso blood, awakening it and Alucard, and we will create a formation around her to help her acclimate to her blood to control it." When he heard this Mikogami frowned, and asked,
"And what about Alucard himself? In case you haven't noticed we're all aboard the same flying prison he is on, whats to keep it from attacking us the moment it awakes?" This time it was Moka who piped up,
"A mechanic that works for Alex has been secretly investigating this place ever since Kuroka and Endou first infiltrated it. He says that once Alucard awakens the restraints that keep it in place will release, and it'll be dropped to the earth below where people are waiting to fight it." Of course when she explained this Moka left out that the mechanic in question, Hajime, also planned to abduct the floating fortress after they were done with it to study, and possibly use for himself later.
Though Touhou and Mikogami snorted since they apparently weren't even expected to fight despite making the trip, both were too exhausted mentally to even question anything Alex and his companions did at this point, and moved into position along with Issa and Akua around Moka. While Kokoa moved out of the way with the still unconscious Kahlua and the Shuzen vampires, Touhou began setting up the formation needed to awaken, and then synchronize Moka's Shinso blood.
Even if the blood awoke it didn't mean Moka could use its power right off the bat since her entire life had been spent with the blood's power being forcibly suppressed, and so, while she would naturally be able to awaken its powers eventually, the magic formation would be used to make Moka an instant Shinso. Once the formation was done, Touhou, Mikogami, Issa, and Akua all started pumping their own supernatural energy into the formation while Moka sat cross legged in the middle. With her rosary gone and Moka herself offering no resistance, the effect was almost instantaneous as a pulse of power suddenly spread from her body, resulting in the entire floating fortress rumbling as a massive roar shook the air.
Alucard had finally awoken.
***
When the light from the transportation magic circle faded, Gyokuro and the division leaders were stunned to find themselves in what appeared to be a wasteland filled with red sand, rocks, and craggy mountains, while the sky was filled with orangish clouds. After a brief glance around the man in the suit of armor, Gairen, demanded as he focused back on Alex,
"And where the hell did you bring us exactly?" Alex smiled widely at the question, and answered,
"Well I wanted us to go all out without worrying about collateral damage, so I brought us to Mars of course!"
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BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM!
The sound of Issa nervously drumming his fingers on Zenith's guardrail filled the air as the group watched the two sisters meet for battle. Despite him often pitting his girls against each other in 'duels to the death' when they were younger, Issa had never actually expected that he would one have to watch one of his girls kill another. Alex meanwhile turned around and said to the rest of the girls while lightly smacking Shia's rump,
"It's about time for all of you to get going, the real show will begin soon." This earned him a series of anticipatory smiles, while a couple of the girls like Sun or Kurumu looked fairly nervous at the upcoming fight. Regardless, with Shia leading the pack after wiggling her butt at Alex teasingly, they jumped or stepped off of Zenith's deck one by one, and fell until they disappeared into the sea of clouds below, leaving Alex alone with Moka, Issa, Touhou, and Mikogami.
Turning back towards the upcoming fight, Alex walked up to those remaining on the ship and said, "I'd say it's about time we move a little closer as well, don't you?" Though they kept their eyes on the two girls about to fight, everyone silently nodded in agreement as they prepared to disembark.
Meanwhile the two girls stared at the other as they steadily approached each other until they were only a few feet apart, Kokoa with her kou-bat transformed into a greatsword at her side, while Kahlua looked as if she was fighting back tears. As they stared at the other Kahlua finally said,
"You've grown so much in such a short time Kokoa, you're such a strong and beautiful woman now." Despite her sister's praise though, Kokoa instead asked,
"Why big sis? Why are you helping mother when you know none of this is right?" Though she had attempted to manage a slight smile as she spoke to Kokoa, Kahlua couldn't help but frown sadly at her question and answered,
"Because, I didn't want mother to be lonely...." Gyokuro had imprisoned Issa, isolated Kokoa, and despised Akua and Moka for being the daughters of other women, if Kahlua had left her mother as well then Gyokuro would have no one left around her. It was for this reason, along with the fact that Kahlua considered herself irredeemable for the lives she herself had taken, that she had remained by her mother's side despite everything she had done, and what she was planning to do.
Their conversation over, Kokoa took a stance as she prepared to battle her big sister, while Kahlua flipped her hair back on the right side of her face, revealing a diamond studded rosary hanging from her ear. In an instant Kahlua removed her rosary, and her supernatural power suddenly skyrocketed as she became surrounded by the bat-like swarm of energy. Kokoa's own supernatural power then rose as well in response to her sister actions, but she never noticed the stir she caused as her energy quickly caught up to, and then greatly surpassed Kahlua's.
"Th-that can't be!" Gyokuro swore as she watched Kokoa's power shoot up, while Miyabi, Issa, and Kahlua showed similar levels of bewilderment at what they were seeing. Soon Miyabi's eyes widened as the truth hit him, and he muttered,
"She's a Shinso?!" His words caused a stir amongst the rest of the division leaders, as Raika hesitantly asked,
"Aren't the only Shinsos left Alucard and that Akashiya girl? How can there be another?" Shinso blood could only be gifted from a Shinso themselves to a recipient, which was how Moka became one when her mother transferred her own blood into her to save her life as an infant. While there was the minute possibility that Moka had transferred her own Shinso blood into Kokoa, this idea was immediately dismissed as then the link to Alucard would have activated when Kokoa used it.
Rather than sit around and debate how this had happened, Gyokuro quickly stood from her throne and was about to interrupt the match between her daughters, intending to capture Kokoa to experiment on her when this farce was over with. The moment she took a single step forward though, Gyokuro's hair suddenly stood on end as the feeling that some kind of weapon was at her throat appeared. She then glanced around and noticed Akua standing clear across the battlefield, her hand positioned like when one used the Jigen-tou despite the distance. As they stated at each other Akua also steadily released her own aura, causing Gyokuro's eyes to widen when she realized that Kokoa wasn't the only new Shinso.
With Akua's message of keeping Gyokuro out of her sisters fight clear, the vampiress sat back down on her throne as she contemplated how both girls had become the legendary Shinso. Meanwhile Kahlua's expression hardened as prepared to face Kokoa, who had grown far more than she ever could have expected in the seemingly short time since she saw her last. As Kokoa took her stance once more, Kahlua had tears appearing her eyes as she started transforming her left arm, which quickly became five razor sharp bat wings. With her 'berserk' state activated and both girls ready, there was nothing to keep the duo from killing one another other than the fact that neither had yet moved.
In an instant both girls flickered and appeared in the same positions the other was in less than a millisecond prior, both moving and attacking faster than most of the onlookers could follow. At first glance Kahlua appeared to be the winner of their instant exchange, with her seeming fine while Kokoa had five deep gashes on the left side of her body, under her eye, on her shoulder and forearm, and then on her hip and thigh. However, these wounds quickly healed at a rate greater than the usual vampires regenerative powers allowed thanks to her Shinso blood, and soon all that was left of the wounds was the few drops of blood
"I-it looks like this is your win, little sis..." Kahlua barely managed to breath out as she turned to face her sister, right as a line of red blood started forming on her white dress, from her right hip up diagonally to her left shoulder. With a sickening sound, the upper half of Kahlua's body suddenly slid down to fall to the ground, yet Kokoa immediately caught her and held her close with tears in her eyes.
"W-why big sis? Why didn't you fight me seriously?" With her enhanced vitality keeping her alive for a few seconds longer, Kahlua smiled weakly and answered,
"I-I did Kokoa. You don't seem to realize it, but you truly have become so strong now." Though Kokoa was shocked to hear her big sister's words, she quickly pushed them out of her mind as she clung to Kahlua even tighter as, despite always being scared of her and fighting her to the death, Kokoa didn't actually want her sister to really die. Kahlua however smiled warmly despite her current state and added,
"Do not fret about the end of my wretched life Kokoa, someone like me who has lived only for reaping the lives of others deserves this..." As she finished speaking Kahlua let out one final shaky breath, before she fell silent and her eyes lost the l.u.s.ter of life. Kokoa let out a shuddering breath as her sister died in her arms, while a sound of pain escaped Issa's throat as he approached as well, his daughter's bisected body filling his view.
While the two were pained at Kahlua's passing, Gyokuro looked on with indifferent eyes while Moka and Akua both turned towards Alex, the former pinching his side while hissing, "How long exactly are you going to wait?" Alex smiled wryly at her prodding, before stepping forward and saying to Kokoa and her father,
"Step aside." Naturally Issa turned towards Alex in fury and was about to demand what he wanted, however he found Akua in his way as she said,
"Listen to what he says father, Alex knows what he's doing." Though he wanted to ask her what she meant, Issa stopped himself when he saw Akua rub her neck with a slightly pale expression. As she gently pulled him away from Kahlua's corpse, while Moka did the same with Kokoa, Alex stepped forward and held his hand out above her.
Suddenly a massive magic circle appeared and spread to cover the entire battlefield, shrouding her and the rest of the corpses in a bright light. After nearly a minute the light started to fade, and what was revealed was Kahlua's newly repaired body, with her eyes closed and a slow yet steady rise and fall to her chest.
As if that wasn't enough of a miracle to the onlookers, a series of deep throated growls around them also caught their attention, alerting them to revival of the various dragons that had fallen in battle as well, some having their bodies regenerated from mere scraps of meat or bone. With everyone around them feeling either confusion or a sudden surge of emotion, Alex simply explained with a shrug,
"With my abilities, reviving the recently deceased is a simple matter really." Naturally Issa and even Kokoa were unaware that Alex had this ability, and an entirely different emotion filled them as Issa muttered "Thank you" to him several times.
While Issa and Kokoa took in the fact that Kahlua was no longer dead, and Akua helped to console them, Alex turned contemptuous gaze towards Gyokuro and the rest of Fairy Tale's division leaders, all that remained of their forces. With their eyes narrowing at Alex's obvious contempt, he then turned towards Moka and softly asked while pulling her close,
"Are you ready?" Moka closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, before opening them and moving forward to kiss him gently, but passionately. Ignoring her father's incredulous gaze, or the annoyed gazes of those around them, Moka continued kissing Alex for several minutes before breaking it off, and saying in a resolute voice,
"I am ready." Nodding, Alex looked into her striking green eyes one last time before grabbing her rosary, and swiftly removing it. As he had already seen several times since they met, a power surge of supernatural energy radiated from Moka as the seals restricting her powers became undone for the last time.
Her flowing long pink hair turned silver, and her gentle striking green eyes turned to a crueler blood red, Moka turned her firm gaze from Alex to the one responsible for everyone being there that day, Gyokuro. As the step-mother/step-daughter duo glared at each other though, the first one to move was neither of them, or even Alex, instead the gangster-like appearance of Miyabi suddenly appeared behind Alex before saying with a sarcastic tone,
"Now that the seal is removed, there's no more need for you 'Dragon Emperor'!" What happened next seemed to transpire in slow motion as Miyabi's blade-like hand moved to pierce Alex's heart through his back, seemingly without Alex even being able to react.
The latter didn't even flinch however, as Miyabi's Hand impacted, and then crumpled against the skin of his back, which had turned to a shiny black under his clothes. He then turned back at his would-be assassin, and sneered,
"Did you really think I didn't see you coming? Or that I'd leave myself open like that around any of you?" With Miyabi's eyes widening in surprise, he was unable to react as Alex turned while c.o.c.king back his fist, before planting it directly into his gut with enough force that Miyabi was sent flying clear off of the Flying Fortress. He then turned back towards Gyokuro and the rest of the division leaders, and said to Moka and Akua while stepping forward,
"I'll leave the next part to you, I'm going to have a 'chat' with these four clowns." The two girls smirked at Alex's words, while Gyokuro frowned and said in a venomous voice,
"While you do seem to be at least a little bit capable, do you really think you'd stand a chance against all four of us?" At this Alex smirked and replied,
"Bitch please, the better question is can the four of you at least entertain me a little bit before all of you are defeated?" This made her expression turn worse than had all day, and, after all of the day's events, Gyokuro was ready to vent on the idiot who dared to challenge her.
Standing from her throne, Gyokuro then slowly descended the steps between them while the fake Issa, Raika, and Gairen in his suit of armor followed suit. As she reached the bottom Gyokuro looked up slightly at Alex, not at all intimidated by his large figure and overbearing demeanor, before saying,
"After everything that's happened, trust me when I say that I'm going to enjoy what I'm about to do very much. I daresay I may even enjoy it as much as I will slaughtering all of those filthy humans that that bitch Akasha cares for." In the face of her arrogance and confidence, Alex only smirked and stated,
"Then I think it's about time we get to our 'arena' then!" Before anyone could register what he meant, a magic circle suddenly spread from under Alex's feet until it also encompassed Gyokuro and the other three, and the five of them all disappeared in an instant.
Almost immediately after this happened Akua moved towards Moka and said, "Then it's time for us to start as well!" This made both Mikogami and Touhou look back at her in surprise as both had been preparing to chase Miyabi after Alex sent him flying, before Mikogami asked,
"'Time for us to start' what exactly?" Akua smirked knowingly and said,
"Time for us to start awakening Alucard of course!" This made both of them freeze, before Touhou declared,
"Why would we do that?! The plan was to let the Dragon Emperor fight that monster, and he's not here anymore! Now we should focus on that guy he sent flying, he's not what you think he is!" In the face of his frantic declaration though, Akua smirked and replied,
"True, but we already discussed who'll at least keep Alucard occupied in the meantime, so it'll be fine until Alex finishes what he's doing." Though the two Dark Lords, as well as Issa wanted to argue, Moka suddenly spoke up,
"I can awaken my Shinso blood whenever I want, consequently waking up Alucard as well. So your options are to either assist us as we ask, or to leave us alone as we try it by ourselves anyways." At this point however Issa spoke up and said,
"Or there's the third option, where we waste time trying to detain the three of you before doing as Touhou said and chasing after that man." At this however Moka, Akua, and even Kokoa from where she was watching over the still sleeping Kahlua smirked knowingly, before the eldest of the three said,
"If you'd know what kinds of people we spent the last few years training against, then you'd realize just how foolish that sounded father." As she said this Issa looked at his daughters in shock of how they'd changed in the time he hadn't seen them, in ways that were obvious and ways that he had yet to see.
After several minutes of deliberation, Issa finally said, "It appears that we have no choice in this matter. Well if we are going ahead with this folly, then what do you need us to do?" Akua smiled at her father's change of mind, and said,
"Moka will activate her Shinso blood, awakening it and Alucard, and we will create a formation around her to help her acclimate to her blood to control it." When he heard this Mikogami frowned, and asked,
"And what about Alucard himself? In case you haven't noticed we're all aboard the same flying prison he is on, whats to keep it from attacking us the moment it awakes?" This time it was Moka who piped up,
"A mechanic that works for Alex has been secretly investigating this place ever since Kuroka and Endou first infiltrated it. He says that once Alucard awakens the restraints that keep it in place will release, and it'll be dropped to the earth below where people are waiting to fight it." Of course when she explained this Moka left out that the mechanic in question, Hajime, also planned to abduct the floating fortress after they were done with it to study, and possibly use for himself later.
Though Touhou and Mikogami snorted since they apparently weren't even expected to fight despite making the trip, both were too exhausted mentally to even question anything Alex and his companions did at this point, and moved into position along with Issa and Akua around Moka. While Kokoa moved out of the way with the still unconscious Kahlua and the Shuzen vampires, Touhou began setting up the formation needed to awaken, and then synchronize Moka's Shinso blood.
Even if the blood awoke it didn't mean Moka could use its power right off the bat since her entire life had been spent with the blood's power being forcibly suppressed, and so, while she would naturally be able to awaken its powers eventually, the magic formation would be used to make Moka an instant Shinso. Once the formation was done, Touhou, Mikogami, Issa, and Akua all started pumping their own supernatural energy into the formation while Moka sat cross legged in the middle. With her rosary gone and Moka herself offering no resistance, the effect was almost instantaneous as a pulse of power suddenly spread from her body, resulting in the entire floating fortress rumbling as a massive roar shook the air.
Alucard had finally awoken.
***
When the light from the transportation magic circle faded, Gyokuro and the division leaders were stunned to find themselves in what appeared to be a wasteland filled with red sand, rocks, and craggy mountains, while the sky was filled with orangish clouds. After a brief glance around the man in the suit of armor, Gairen, demanded as he focused back on Alex,
"And where the hell did you bring us exactly?" Alex smiled widely at the question, and answered,
"Well I wanted us to go all out without worrying about collateral damage, so I brought us to Mars of course!"
BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM, BA-DA-BAM! The sound of Issa nervously drumming his fingers on Zenith's guardrail filled the air as the group watched the two sisters meet for battle. Despite him often pitting his girls against each other in 'duels to the death' when they were younger, Issa had never actually expected that he would one have to watch one of his girls kill another. Alex meanwhile turned around and said to the rest of the girls while lightly smacking Shia's rump, "It's about time for all of you to get going, the real show will begin soon." This earned him a series of anticipatory smiles, while a couple of the girls like Sun or Kurumu looked fairly nervous at the upcoming fight. Regardless, with Shia leading the pack after wiggling her butt at Alex teasingly, they jumped or stepped off of Zenith's deck one by one, and fell until they disappeared into the sea of clouds below, leaving Alex alone with Moka, Issa, Touhou, and Mikogami. Turning back towards the upcoming fight, Alex walked up to those remaining on the ship and said, "I'd say it's about time we move a little closer as well, don't you?" Though they kept their eyes on the two girls about to fight, everyone silently nodded in agreement as they prepared to disembark. Meanwhile the two girls stared at the other as they steadily approached each other until they were only a few feet apart, Kokoa with her kou-bat transformed into a greatsword at her side, while Kahlua looked as if she was fighting back tears. As they stared at the other Kahlua finally said, "You've grown so much in such a short time Kokoa, you're such a strong and beautiful woman now." Despite her sister's praise though, Kokoa instead asked, "Why big sis? Why are you helping mother when you know none of this is right?" Though she had attempted to manage a slight smile as she spoke to Kokoa, Kahlua couldn't help but frown sadly at her question and answered, "Because, I didn't want mother to be lonely...." Gyokuro had imprisoned Issa, isolated Kokoa, and despised Akua and Moka for being the daughters of other women, if Kahlua had left her mother as well then Gyokuro would have no one left around her. It was for this reason, along with the fact that Kahlua considered herself irredeemable for the lives she herself had taken, that she had remained by her mother's side despite everything she had done, and what she was planning to do. Their conversation over, Kokoa took a stance as she prepared to battle her big sister, while Kahlua flipped her hair back on the right side of her face, revealing a diamond studded rosary hanging from her ear. In an instant Kahlua removed her rosary, and her supernatural power suddenly skyrocketed as she became surrounded by the bat-like swarm of energy. Kokoa's own supernatural power then rose as well in response to her sister actions, but she never noticed the stir she caused as her energy quickly caught up to, and then greatly surpassed Kahlua's. "Th-that can't be!" Gyokuro swore as she watched Kokoa's power shoot up, while Miyabi, Issa, and Kahlua showed similar levels of bewilderment at what they were seeing. Soon Miyabi's eyes widened as the truth hit him, and he muttered, "She's a Shinso?!" His words caused a stir amongst the rest of the division leaders, as Raika hesitantly asked, "Aren't the only Shinsos left Alucard and that Akashiya girl? How can there be another?" Shinso blood could only be gifted from a Shinso themselves to a recipient, which was how Moka became one when her mother transferred her own blood into her to save her life as an infant. While there was the minute possibility that Moka had transferred her own Shinso blood into Kokoa, this idea was immediately dismissed as then the link to Alucard would have activated when Kokoa used it. Rather than sit around and debate how this had happened, Gyokuro quickly stood from her throne and was about to interrupt the match between her daughters, intending to capture Kokoa to experiment on her when this farce was over with. The moment she took a single step forward though, Gyokuro's hair suddenly stood on end as the feeling that some kind of weapon was at her throat appeared. She then glanced around and noticed Akua standing clear across the battlefield, her hand positioned like when one used the Jigen-tou despite the distance. As they stated at each other Akua also steadily released her own aura, causing Gyokuro's eyes to widen when she realized that Kokoa wasn't the only new Shinso. With Akua's message of keeping Gyokuro out of her sisters fight clear, the vampiress sat back down on her throne as she contemplated how both girls had become the legendary Shinso. Meanwhile Kahlua's expression hardened as prepared to face Kokoa, who had grown far more than she ever could have expected in the seemingly short time since she saw her last. As Kokoa took her stance once more, Kahlua had tears appearing her eyes as she started transforming her left arm, which quickly became five razor sharp bat wings. With her 'berserk' state activated and both girls ready, there was nothing to keep the duo from killing one another other than the fact that neither had yet moved. In an instant both girls flickered and appeared in the same positions the other was in less than a millisecond prior, both moving and attacking faster than most of the onlookers could follow. At first glance Kahlua appeared to be the winner of their instant exchange, with her seeming fine while Kokoa had five deep gashes on the left side of her body, under her eye, on her shoulder and forearm, and then on her hip and thigh. However, these wounds quickly healed at a rate greater than the usual vampires regenerative powers allowed thanks to her Shinso blood, and soon all that was left of the wounds was the few drops of blood "I-it looks like this is your win, little sis..." Kahlua barely managed to breath out as she turned to face her sister, right as a line of red blood started forming on her white dress, from her right hip up diagonally to her left shoulder. With a sickening sound, the upper half of Kahlua's body suddenly slid down to fall to the ground, yet Kokoa immediately caught her and held her close with tears in her eyes. "W-why big sis? Why didn't you fight me seriously?" With her enhanced vitality keeping her alive for a few seconds longer, Kahlua smiled weakly and answered, "I-I did Kokoa. You don't seem to realize it, but you truly have become so strong now." Though Kokoa was shocked to hear her big sister's words, she quickly pushed them out of her mind as she clung to Kahlua even tighter as, despite always being scared of her and fighting her to the death, Kokoa didn't actually want her sister to really die. Kahlua however smiled warmly despite her current state and added, "Do not fret about the end of my wretched life Kokoa, someone like me who has lived only for reaping the lives of others deserves this..." As she finished speaking Kahlua let out one final shaky breath, before she fell silent and her eyes lost the l.u.s.ter of life. Kokoa let out a shuddering breath as her sister died in her arms, while a sound of pain escaped Issa's throat as he approached as well, his daughter's bisected body filling his view. While the two were pained at Kahlua's passing, Gyokuro looked on with indifferent eyes while Moka and Akua both turned towards Alex, the former pinching his side while hissing, "How long exactly are you going to wait?" Alex smiled wryly at her prodding, before stepping forward and saying to Kokoa and her father, "Step aside." Naturally Issa turned towards Alex in fury and was about to demand what he wanted, however he found Akua in his way as she said, "Listen to what he says father, Alex knows what he's doing." Though he wanted to ask her what she meant, Issa stopped himself when he saw Akua rub her neck with a slightly pale expression. As she gently pulled him away from Kahlua's corpse, while Moka did the same with Kokoa, Alex stepped forward and held his hand out above her. Suddenly a massive magic circle appeared and spread to cover the entire battlefield, shrouding her and the rest of the corpses in a bright light. After nearly a minute the light started to fade, and what was revealed was Kahlua's newly repaired body, with her eyes closed and a slow yet steady rise and fall to her chest. As if that wasn't enough of a miracle to the onlookers, a series of deep throated growls around them also caught their attention, alerting them to revival of the various dragons that had fallen in battle as well, some having their bodies regenerated from mere scraps of meat or bone. With everyone around them feeling either confusion or a sudden surge of emotion, Alex simply explained with a shrug, "With my abilities, reviving the recently deceased is a simple matter really." Naturally Issa and even Kokoa were unaware that Alex had this ability, and an entirely different emotion filled them as Issa muttered "Thank you" to him several times. While Issa and Kokoa took in the fact that Kahlua was no longer dead, and Akua helped to console them, Alex turned contemptuous gaze towards Gyokuro and the rest of Fairy Tale's division leaders, all that remained of their forces. With their eyes narrowing at Alex's obvious contempt, he then turned towards Moka and softly asked while pulling her close, "Are you ready?" Moka closed her eyes and took in a deep breath, before opening them and moving forward to kiss him gently, but passionately. Ignoring her father's incredulous gaze, or the annoyed gazes of those around them, Moka continued kissing Alex for several minutes before breaking it off, and saying in a resolute voice, "I am ready." Nodding, Alex looked into her striking green eyes one last time before grabbing her rosary, and swiftly removing it. As he had already seen several times since they met, a power surge of supernatural energy radiated from Moka as the seals restricting her powers became undone for the last time. Her flowing long pink hair turned silver, and her gentle striking green eyes turned to a crueler blood red, Moka turned her firm gaze from Alex to the one responsible for everyone being there that day, Gyokuro. As the step-mother/step-daughter duo glared at each other though, the first one to move was neither of them, or even Alex, instead the gangster-like appearance of Miyabi suddenly appeared behind Alex before saying with a sarcastic tone, "Now that the seal is removed, there's no more need for you 'Dragon Emperor'!" What happened next seemed to transpire in slow motion as Miyabi's blade-like hand moved to pierce Alex's heart through his back, seemingly without Alex even being able to react. The latter didn't even flinch however, as Miyabi's Hand impacted, and then crumpled against the skin of his back, which had turned to a shiny black under his clothes. He then turned back at his would-be assassin, and sneered, "Did you really think I didn't see you coming? Or that I'd leave myself open like that around any of you?" With Miyabi's eyes widening in surprise, he was unable to react as Alex turned while c.o.c.king back his fist, before planting it directly into his gut with enough force that Miyabi was sent flying clear off of the Flying Fortress. He then turned back towards Gyokuro and the rest of the division leaders, and said to Moka and Akua while stepping forward, "I'll leave the next part to you, I'm going to have a 'chat' with these four clowns." The two girls smirked at Alex's words, while Gyokuro frowned and said in a venomous voice, "While you do seem to be at least a little bit capable, do you really think you'd stand a chance against all four of us?" At this Alex smirked and replied, "Bitch please, the better question is can the four of you at least entertain me a little bit before all of you are defeated?" This made her expression turn worse than had all day, and, after all of the day's events, Gyokuro was ready to vent on the idiot who dared to challenge her. Standing from her throne, Gyokuro then slowly descended the steps between them while the fake Issa, Raika, and Gairen in his suit of armor followed suit. As she reached the bottom Gyokuro looked up slightly at Alex, not at all intimidated by his large figure and overbearing demeanor, before saying, "After everything that's happened, trust me when I say that I'm going to enjoy what I'm about to do very much. I daresay I may even enjoy it as much as I will slaughtering all of those filthy humans that that bitch Akasha cares for." In the face of her arrogance and confidence, Alex only smirked and stated, "Then I think it's about time we get to our 'arena' then!" Before anyone could register what he meant, a magic circle suddenly spread from under Alex's feet until it also encompassed Gyokuro and the other three, and the five of them all disappeared in an instant. Almost immediately after this happened Akua moved towards Moka and said, "Then it's time for us to start as well!" This made both Mikogami and Touhou look back at her in surprise as both had been preparing to chase Miyabi after Alex sent him flying, before Mikogami asked, "'Time for us to start' what exactly?" Akua smirked knowingly and said, "Time for us to start awakening Alucard of course!" This made both of them freeze, before Touhou declared, "Why would we do that?! The plan was to let the Dragon Emperor fight that monster, and he's not here anymore! Now we should focus on that guy he sent flying, he's not what you think he is!" In the face of his frantic declaration though, Akua smirked and replied, "True, but we already discussed who'll at least keep Alucard occupied in the meantime, so it'll be fine until Alex finishes what he's doing." Though the two Dark Lords, as well as Issa wanted to argue, Moka suddenly spoke up, "I can awaken my Shinso blood whenever I want, consequently waking up Alucard as well. So your options are to either assist us as we ask, or to leave us alone as we try it by ourselves anyways." At this point however Issa spoke up and said, "Or there's the third option, where we waste time trying to detain the three of you before doing as Touhou said and chasing after that man." At this however Moka, Akua, and even Kokoa from where she was watching over the still sleeping Kahlua smirked knowingly, before the eldest of the three said, "If you'd know what kinds of people we spent the last few years training against, then you'd realize just how foolish that sounded father." As she said this Issa looked at his daughters in shock of how they'd changed in the time he hadn't seen them, in ways that were obvious and ways that he had yet to see. After several minutes of deliberation, Issa finally said, "It appears that we have no choice in this matter. Well if we are going ahead with this folly, then what do you need us to do?" Akua smiled at her father's change of mind, and said, "Moka will activate her Shinso blood, awakening it and Alucard, and we will create a formation around her to help her acclimate to her blood to control it." When he heard this Mikogami frowned, and asked, "And what about Alucard himself? In case you haven't noticed we're all aboard the same flying prison he is on, whats to keep it from attacking us the moment it awakes?" This time it was Moka who piped up, "A mechanic that works for Alex has been secretly investigating this place ever since Kuroka and Endou first infiltrated it. He says that once Alucard awakens the restraints that keep it in place will release, and it'll be dropped to the earth below where people are waiting to fight it." Of course when she explained this Moka left out that the mechanic in question, Hajime, also planned to abduct the floating fortress after they were done with it to study, and possibly use for himself later. Though Touhou and Mikogami snorted since they apparently weren't even expected to fight despite making the trip, both were too exhausted mentally to even question anything Alex and his companions did at this point, and moved into position along with Issa and Akua around Moka. While Kokoa moved out of the way with the still unconscious Kahlua and the Shuzen vampires, Touhou began setting up the formation needed to awaken, and then synchronize Moka's Shinso blood. Even if the blood awoke it didn't mean Moka could use its power right off the bat since her entire life had been spent with the blood's power being forcibly suppressed, and so, while she would naturally be able to awaken its powers eventually, the magic formation would be used to make Moka an instant Shinso. Once the formation was done, Touhou, Mikogami, Issa, and Akua all started pumping their own supernatural energy into the formation while Moka sat cross legged in the middle. With her rosary gone and Moka herself offering no resistance, the effect was almost instantaneous as a pulse of power suddenly spread from her body, resulting in the entire floating fortress rumbling as a massive roar shook the air. Alucard had finally awoken. *** When the light from the transportation magic circle faded, Gyokuro and the division leaders were stunned to find themselves in what appeared to be a wasteland filled with red sand, rocks, and craggy mountains, while the sky was filled with orangish clouds. After a brief glance around the man in the suit of armor, Gairen, demanded as he focused back on Alex, "And where the hell did you bring us exactly?" Alex smiled widely at the question, and answered, "Well I wanted us to go all out without worrying about collateral damage, so I brought us to Mars of course!"
