FicWad

Chapter 22



Indeed, a sizable force was heading that way, and there was no telling how big, what it consisted of, or what it would take to stop it. However, the twins were already on the move. The two moved ahead to scout out what approached, and to see how the locals were handling it. The locals, who were all suspicious, had hidden inside, thinking some kind of a protest or riot was about to ensue. Yet, the twins knew better, and began to asses things. "Good," said Mickey, "This leaves it to us, but gives us a chance to keep it discreet."

"What do we do now?" asked his sister.

"Wait for the others to engage, and then drop in."

About that time the others were moving in. Keelin watched the approaching undead and smirked. "This'll be fun, right Ca...I mean Ryuu,"she said, correcting herself.

That caught Jean-Claude's attention, but he had no time to deal with it then. "That better be Keelin talking," said Jean-Claude, who then raised the rifle with the others armed so and said, "LET'S ROCK AND ROLL!"

"It isn't," Ryuu said, with a sweat drop on top of his head, worried what would happen next with Keelin.

They began to spray, and Anjou reached under her skirt, producing an Uzi. Jean-Claude then said, "Why that?"

"Easier to conceal," she said, with a blank expression as she opened up on the undead.

However, the difference was that, this time, the undead they fought also had firearms, and they were not shy about using them as a wall of lead came at them. They quickly took cover, looking for a better way to fight this. It did not look good at all. Chiyuki dodged the bullets and swung at the approaching undead, she had more trouble then normal. These undead were trained, and old, nowhere near as old as her, but old enough. It seemed that Vlad had trained for himself an undead army, having long since distrusted the use of the Beowulf, and not caring much for the ancient vows. He wanted a back up in case the day came where he could get rid of them, and that day finally came as far as he was concerned. Now, with just a handful, they faced abattalion of undead, well-armed, and well-trained. They were using cover and elevation as best they could, but they wanted to avoid the collateral damage that the undead was causing, and that hindered their progress. Keelin, under Teresa's influence, just watched and giggled with glee. She was indeed under Keelin's control, so she could not exact any revenge directly, but seeing this would satisfy her no end. "Finally," she thought, "The day walker goes down, as well as my traitorous child!"

Indeed, they were running out of room, and they would soon have to go hand-to-hand, but with the sheer number, though they may take out many, would eventually overwhelm them. Yet, that was when it got interesting.



The princess' Elite Eight were watching the whole thing, shocked at the size of a force that Vlad had brought about. He also saw the efficiency the squad they brought was working with, but they knew that, even with the intelligence that was being shown in the fight, they would still be overwhelmed. This is when Remus called the princess and told her what was up. She was still airborne, but approaching and she said, "Finish this: we are going to have enough problems as it is without all the questions and urban legends that will arise from this!"

Yes, the squad was outnumbered, but the squad with the eight... THAT made it an even fight. They drew their blades and dove into the fray.



Quickly, the undead were dropping, and Jean-Claude was shocked at the sudden turn of the attention to them to something else. He could not see what was going on, but he knew how to take advantage of asituation when he saw it and started to counterattack. At that moment, the twins were getting ready to move in. "They're having difficulty, brother,"said Sheila.

A simple "now" was his response, and they both leaped down, third eyes open, and ready to demonstrate what royal blood could do. When this happened, Keelin jumped off Ryuu's shoulders, and completely awakened herself, thought she wasn't doing this herself. This was having had an effect on the undead, and on Ryuu, oddly enough, who was having trouble not collapsing to his knees. As the eight were starting to herd and ash their prey, the hands of the twins began to glow, and a tsunami of astral fire shot forward, 20 feet high, and 20 feet wide, not burning buildings, but vaporizing every undead in its path. The eight could not believe the display of power before them, and, if they were this royalty as they claimed, not even the nobility of the pure bloods in their sect could do this! The ones that didn't get vaporized were gathering around Keelin, who wasn't Keelin at that point, who was grinning. Her third eye was also open, which was something of which Chiyuki was not prepared to see. It took all she had not to pass out. "Ryuu," said Keelin, glancing back at Ryuu, "Do we need to kill them all?"

Ryuu shrugged and said, "I don't know, princess."

The twins collapsed and both unconscious. Jean-Claude went over to tend to them as the others gathered around Ryuu. "Do we need to kill them all?" Keelin asked again, kicking off an undead that started to grab on her dress.

At that, Karin had an idea, but sadly, a gruesome one. They did not kill them, but they started to cut off the hands and feet of the undead, taking away their ability to fight. Keelin sighed and said, "No fun!"

Karin then said, "They may have information."

Meanwhile, the twins were now feral, and Jean-Claude realized they used too much in their attack. He pulled them over to one of the helpless undead and let them latch on. Keelin was about to comment till she got hit in the head by the hilt of Chiyuki's sword, which knocked her out. Chiyuki was well aware of what was going on, and because Jean-Claude couldn't tend to it at that moment, she certainly could, and in her way! A few seconds later, Keelin came to, rubbing her head and saying, "What happened?" opening her eyes, which were no longer red as they had been before. Everyone was shocked by this, save for Jean-Claude, who had an idea what she did. The others questioned this, but Chiyuki then said, "Teresa torqued me off," as she shrugged her shoulders. Ryuu then said, "She may have actually called for these undead. That, we will have to find out."

The twins staggered up with Jean-Claude, but with looks of ecstasy on their faces. Keelin blinked and said, "Why are you all staring at me?"

At this point, subtlety was not needed any more, and being plain was now the best approach. "Kid, I think you got used," said Jean-Claude, "and by someone we don't particularly like."

"Used?" Keelin asked.

"Remember the airplane ride, and the talk we had? Remember when I linked up with you?" reminded Jean-Claude, to which Keelin pumped her head up and down. He then asked, "Do you remember the two extra voices that came in?"

"Yes I do," she said, "Teresa and Ai."

"I'm thinking Teresa used you to call in what we fought tonight, either to test us, or to kill us, one of the two," said Jean-Claude, not knowing the true intent. Yet, Chiyuki had other ideas. "I don't think so," Chiyuki said, blinking and staring Jean-Claude dead on, "That's not her style."

"Well, it was too big a force to test us," said Jean-Claude, a smaller force would have been able to do that-using expendables. However, if this was a test, Vlad must be onto just what he may face, and he had to find out. I do think he got more than he bargained for tonight, and I hope this sends a clear message back to him when none return. Also, I am curious as to what seemed to distract them. Something drew off their attention, and I wonder what. I have my guesses, but it's all confusing. Let's get back to the hotel."

Keelin hid behind Ryuu at this point, frightened by all that had gone on, and the two souls that she had unwittingly plucked out of the either-one as she died, and one from outer darkness. It was only because of what she was that even allowed her that kind of a reach. In truth, it seemed possible that Teresa took advantage of her ignorance to what she was, but that would be something that had to be found out another time. At that point, it was time for after actions, and to get out of there before the authorities arrived.



Back at the hotel, Keelin was shaken, but she had to be made aware of everything now. There was no going back at this point. However, an answer came in the form of the Elite Eight arriving at the hotel. Romulus and Remus knocked first so as not to surprise them. Jean-Claude then said to them, all happy, "Well that would explain the sudden diversion in the fight. Ifigured that you would be with this princess of yours."

"We were," said Remus, "And she ordered us to be here now to aid you with the rest of us."

With that, he proceeded to introduce the team that he led, and Jean-Claude's confidence was going sky high. "Was this a test?" asked Jean-Claude.

"It was both a test, and a gamble that Vlad could get rid of you as well," answered Romulus, "I just wonder how the police are going to write this one off."

"Don't worry;" said Jean-Claude, "There is not much they could trace. This is an old deal with which I am well familiar."

"Karin," said Remus, "Tell us about the prophecy that involved you."

She did, and then he took Keelin gently and set her on his knee and relayed the story now that his knowledge of things was complete after some investigation: "A long time ago, it was prophesied of those that would bring order to the vampire, and a merger of the day and night worlds. It was not to be a world peace as much as it was that each side would generally mingle, and leave each other in peace. However, as the centuries passed, how this was to come about was lost. Yet, there was a household of undead that thought that they could achieve this by the way they lived their un-lives. They were called the Selibri. They sought for Golconda, and it was thought that the achieving of this would be some kind of vampire salvation. Many came close, even forming the third eye that marks the Golconda, but none ever achieved it. Then came Vlad. Because he felt himself greater than Cain, and because he wanted no threat to his 'rulership,' he sought them all out and had sought to kill them all. He failed, however, to wipe out the house, and many are now protected by the princess herself. However, there were rumors, even in the world of the undead, that one came who bore life and fertility in her blood. There was talk that she could save the undead from their state, and the talk of Golconda came anew. However, father brushed them off as stories, and ignored it. However, I did some research, and found out, not only of all the factions of the world of the night, but of the blood maker who would be the forerunner to this...well...symbiosis, for the lack of a better term. She would usher in the Golconda that would rule. It was then there was some panic in the world of the undead when rumors flew that it had happened, but before they could react, someone or something was wiping out the households. It was obviously your crew."

Chiyuki nodded while Keelin stared wide-eyed at him in wonder. Remus then said, "You were born late in the game, and you have amighty purpose. Vlad is frightened of you, that you are more powerful than he, and fears the end of his throne."

"She can be, and it seems it's only in the hands of the one we trust the least," Chiyuki said, face-palming at the thought.

"Who would this be?" asked Romulus.

"Teresa, the demon wife of Satan," growled Chiyuki.

"That raunchy succubus?" spat Remus, "What is she doing involved with this? Where is she?"

"In Hell, last I thought," said Jean-Claude, frustrated that God would have allowed this. If He did, there had to be something greater on the horizon he was just not allowed to see as yet.

"So, there are two spirits guiding her," said Romulus, "...a good and an evil."

After a moment of silence, Jean-Claude looked like he was thinking, and he smiled as he said, "We may not have to worry as much as Ithought. Keelin, would you come here, please, I have something to tell you that you need to be able to understand. I am going to do my best to make sure you do understand."

Keelin walked up to Jean-Claude, completely confused. He picked her up, sat down, put her on his knee, cupping his hands around her waist in a supportive fashion and began: "Keelin, sometimes this world can be acrazy, confusing place. Many times, things just don't make sense-not even to us grown-ups. That can happen when you face things like good and evil, and right and wrong. There is a difference between the two pairs. Following so far?"

Keelin nodded and said, "That is a very basic thing to grasp. I may be young and confused, Uncle, but I'm not ignorant completely."

Jean-Claude chuckled at her innocent honesty and said, "Okay then; that makes this easier. Then, you understand that good and evil can vary from person to person, but there is always an ultimate right and ultimate wrong. Sometimes, people have to do what some consider evil that the right thing happens. Sometimes, people do something that is good, but with the wrong intent. With you, those two voices represent good and evil, or the good and evil that may be in you. But when it comes to right and wrong, well, we should always strive to do the right thing, no matter what, no matter how good or evil one thinks something to be. Even God does that. It's even in the Bible where he did that, in several places. So, for you, you have tools to help you, but remember: they are just tools. It depends on how you use them. But always use them for right."

Keelin nodded but became suspicious about the talk. "Okay, Iknow this. Is there more?" she asked, "I get the feeling there is something you're not telling me."

Jean-Claude sighed and knew he had hit the hard part. He then looked at her honestly and said, "Well, there is going to come a time, and maybe soon, that you will be faced with a big choice. No one can make that choice but you. You may even confront Vlad yourself, and you may even be the one who can defeat him, or turn him. I don't know what the future holds, but, one thing I do know is this: You can save the undead. You are like a little anointed one-a messiah, if you will-to the undead. Your choice of what you do with this, and how you deal with them, could spell the future of mankind, and the Dream. I can't tell you what you should do, but all I can tell you is this: always make the right choice. Yet, be sure it is the right choice. Davy Crockett always said, 'Be sure you are right, then go ahead.' He said it kept him from getting lost in the woods on several occasions. This is all I can think to tell you. Just know that I have tried to tell you all I know and understand, and I would never intentionally hold anything back from you."

Chiyuki sighed and smiled a touch. She knew he was trying to tell her, but also trying to instill in her to make the sensible choice. Yet, this was something that was best herd from her parents, and to punctuate it to Keelin, she gently pulled her away from Jean-Claude and put her in front of her, squatting down to her eye level. She had remembered what Jean-Claude had said about talking to children, and now it was appropriate to do it as Chiyuki said, "What your uncle is trying to say is that, you have a great power, and its your choice how to use it. Use it for what is believed by you to be the right choice."

She smiled with the pride only a mother can show to a child and put a hand on Keelin's head, messing up her hair. Jean-Claude then added,"Remember that you have all of us to talk to. Always start with mom and dad, but you have me, Ryuu, Anjou, Karin, even Elda-we're all here to help you."

Keelin got a glint similar to her mother, "When are we going to kick some butt?"

"We clear out tomorrow night," said Romulus.

"Is that safe?" asked Karin.

"Sometimes, the best place to hide is where your foe least expects-right under his nose," said Jean-Claude, "We'll be okay. Tonight, however, I need a crew to start investigating where to go next."

Everyone was jumping in on this one, and Jean-Claude looked at the eight and said, "We thank you for the help, but it would seem to be aconflict of interests if we asked you to join us."

"Trust us," they said, "The Beowulf have broken with Vlad, and we just wait the right time to put an end to things."

Ryuu grinned and said, "Hee-hee! I like these guys: can we keep them?"

Remus then said, "Hey, we aren't some stray puppies here!"

That got everyone to give a good belly laugh considering how it sounded. Jean-Claude said, "Well, we'll get ready to go here, but Keelin, Iwant you to stay here with the twins."

Keelin pouted slightly, and clung onto Ryuu's neck stubbornly, the Ai in her was showing through. "Keelin, I don't think it's very safe for you, honey," Jean-Claude said to her.

Keelin sighed and let go, landing on her feet and walking back towards the other Golconda. Sheila knelt down and said, "It's okay, kiddo, they just love you, and don't want to see you hurt."

However, Remus said, "She may be a good tool."

"There is danger out there," said Jean-Claude, "But, if there is anyone that thinks it better that she stay or go, then speak now or ever hold your peace."

"She isn't going, not right now!" Chiyuki said, with a scary look on her face.

"Sorry, Keelin," said Jean-Claude, "Parents will always veto anything else. She has spoken, and I am not going to override that."

Romulus just eyed them and said, "You may regret that choice."

Chiyuki was up in his face with her chainsaw massacre face on and snapped, "I do NOT regret any decision I made in thought of keeping my child safe!"

He then said, "We look for things like we looked for back in New York, and we then try to extract the information that we can get out of them."

"By what means?" Chiyuki asked, "Any means? Those are my two favorite words."

"By any means that won't draw undue attention to us,"reminded Jean-Claude.

As they were leaving, Jean-Claude asked, "You want to be exposed?"

"No, I just like having fun in my old age is all," she pouted.

"I think there will be plenty of that!" said Remus as they headed out.