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Chapter Text

Prologue

Four millennia ago, long before the vampire apocalypse, the world had been on the brink of destruction. A demon king called Kiseki-O ruled over the earth with an iron fist and killed any and all beings who sought to defy him in any way. He inherited the powers over the dead, building up an army of undead beings to wage war against the living in a bid to make the world completely his own. For centuries, Kiseki-O and his people wrecked havoc over the Earth, laying waste leagues of humans and animals and life as we knew it. Hope of survival was dwindling at alarming rates, and any thought of someone who could rise up to protect the world never came to mind; the notion of salvation was a ridiculous pipe dream no one dared to imagine.

And yet, salvation did come at long last. Seven beings of light, adorned with four, massive wings made; some made from feather like the birds, others fleshy and membranous like a bat. Together they were capable of beating back the armies of the undead and Kiseki-O from the world of the living. They overwhelmed the demon king with their sudden appearance and unspeakable powers of the elements. Once separated from the living, these creatures returned combat against the demon king and his people, never needing to hold back for fear of the humans getting caught in the crossfire.

Kiseki-O had no hope against such devastating beings. After nearly two centuries, Kiseki-O’s reign of tyranny was brought to a spectacular end by the hands of these winged creatures. Kiseki-O was sealed away for all eternity into one of the seven future Black Demon Series weapons in possession of the Japanese Imperial Demon Army, and the undead warriors of the demon king’s armies were laid to rest in peace.

However, too many questions regarding these mysterious beings of light remain unanswered even to this day.

What were these creatures? Where did they come from? Where did they go? Were they somehow disguised as normal humans until the need arose that their powers were needed again? Or once their powers weren’t deemed necessary any longer, did they somehow die out?

Over the passage of time, the remnants of the winged creatures of long ago disappeared entirely from the minds of the humans.

Some, though, still possessed ancient transcriptions about the winged creatures of light. The curiosity of humans can be a dangerous thing.

In a bid to recreate these ancients, heroic creatures, a group of humans began utilizing human experimentation on young, orphaned children in the hope of bringing forth these creatures. They craved the awesome power of the mysterious beings, wanted it for themselves so that should there ever be a new threat to human life occur this time the humans would stand a better chance of survival.

However, as a result of the failed experiments on these children, the world ended not by the hands of some nefarious demon, but by the very hands of the humans who were desperately trying to preserve it. In a single night, one fateful Christmas six years ago, a widespread, lethal epidemic massacred all humans over the age of thirteen years old. Ninety percent of all human life was destroyed, and those who remained were taken in by the vampires to be used as livestock. All under the false guise of wanting to protect them, all the children were rounded up and transported to the city of Sanguinem deep beneath Kyoto in Japan.

Chapter Text

Chapter One

Tears streaming freely down his face, a small, raven-haired boy ran as fast as his bare feet would carry him over the uneven terrain of the tunnel that would take him to the outside world. He screamed in anguish, dark, scarlet blood stained the front of the boy’s white clothes and the palms of his hands. He wasn’t really looking where he was going, and he choked on a sob as his feet got caught on an outgrown tree root and he tripped end over end three times before coming to lie on his back in the calf-high snow blanketing the ground. He took in ragged, sporadic breaths as he pushed himself up into a sitting position, his eyes wide as he peered out over the world he had forgotten through his years of being held prisoner in Sanguinem.

“So the prophecy was true.”

The deep, masculine voice tore the boy’s attention to three adults standing close by; one male and two females, each donned in similar uniforms of black, deep, navy blue, and red accents. The male wore a hooded cloak while the women’s hoods hung about their shoulders allowing for the boy to see their faces better in the dim light of the waning, three-quarter moon hovering high overhead.

The boy stumbled to his feet, stepping on unsteady legs closer to the trio of adults.

“What do you say kid? Do you want to join me and help annihilate the vampires?” The man asked, pointing at his chest with his thumb.

He was completely caught off guard when the boy fell against his front, knocking the man off of his feet and the two landed on the ground in a pile.

“Hey, what-?”

“I do. I want to destroy them all.” The raven-haired boy croaked in a hoarse but solid tone of voice.

The devastation in the boy’s voice was evident, and against his character, the man awkwardly wrapped his arms about the boy’s shoulders in a bid to comfort him. After a moment of this, the man pulled them both to their feet, and the blue-haired woman unhooked her cloak and wrapped it about the boy’s trembling shoulders.

The adults spirited the boy away from his captors, far away from the world he had known for the past four years...the remnants of the family he had finally grown to accept left lying in their individual pools of blood across the pristine white ballroom floor behind him.

                *     *     *

“Private Officer Yuichirou Hyakuya, you have been selected for a special surveillance assignment.” Guren Ichinose, commanding officer and unofficial surrogate father to the raven-haired teen standing before his desk in the lieutenant colonel’s office, announced in an official tone of voice.

Two years ago, this same raven-haired boy had watched the last of his makeshift family be massacred by a single noble vampire, and now he is a newly graduated officer of the Japanese Imperial Demon Army charged with the eradication of the vampires plaguing the last ten percent of human life left in Japan. With sharp, narrowed, jade green eyes and raven hair, the boy was striking in appearance, dressed in his official state issued uniform.

“What kind of surveillance are we talking about?” The younger man asked.

“The particulars of the assignment are classified information, and are only made available to officers rank brigadier general and higher. However, in short, you are charged with keeping guard over a federal security prisoner.”

“What? I’m a soldier! I should be out on the front lines fighting vampires! Not playing security guard for some stupid criminal.” Yuichirou argued angrily, eyes snapping fire in indignation at the implied insult of the higher-ups.

“Yuu, this is something much bigger than some simple guard mission. This is a high security prisoner that you’ve been specifically ordered to stand guard over. Instead of think of this as an insult to you, how about you realize that this is the opportunity for you to garner more favor with the higher ups. That way you’ll have more opportunities to get at the vampires?” Guren suggested, although his deep violet eyes broached no further argument, and the suggestion was actually an order.

Taking a deep breath in and out slowly, Yuichirou struggled to maintain composure.

“Fine. I’ll accept the assignment.”

Guren nodded, standing from his chair and coming ‘round the desk to stand in front of the teenager.

“Maybe you can make the most of this somehow.” The older man laid a hand on Yuichirou’s shoulder and squeezed, “Follow me.” He returned to his official tone of voice as he led the way out the door.

*     *     *

Aoi Sangu stood to the left of the steel-reinforced door at the end of a long corridor. The short, slender, blonde officer nodded her head in silent greeting toward Guren and Yuichirou, raising her hand to signal the two men to stop.

“That’ll be all, lieutenant colonel. I will take Private Officer Hyakuya to his station.” The stoic woman ordered.

“I will leave him in your hands then.” Guren replied with a fake smile before giving Yuichirou a pointed look and turned, leaving the two officers in front of the door.

“Come this way, Officer Hyakuya.” Aoi prodded as she turned, inputting a pass code into the keypad next to the door. There was a loud beep and she turned the doorknob and swung the door open.

Immediately on the other side of the door was a steep stairwell that was lit by the occasional set of torchlight throughout the descent. Aoi led the teenager down the stairs, and after a few minutes of walking, Yuichirou could finally see the corridor at the bottom of the stairs.

The security in this place is insane.   The raven-haired teen thought to himself as he let his eyes travel around the hall, taking in his surroundings in equal parts curiosity and caution. They came to another steel-reinforced door, this one was a double door that slid open horizontally using a key card to authorize clearance.

Why would they allow a private officer like me down here? Who are they keeping down here?

Finally, Aoi came to one last door, this one was made of bulletproof glass and steel beams. A simple lock and key opened this one, and on the other side was a tall man with dark hair, brown eyes, and strangely shaped eyebrows.

“I’ve brought him, commander.” Aoi announced as the two entered the room.

“Thank you, Aoi.” The man said as he turned toward the teenager, “Private Officer Hyakuya, a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am commander Kureto Hiiragi.”

“Same here.” Yuichirou replied, although more out of reflex than sincerity.

“I suppose you’re confused about the nature of your assignment? I apologize for the lack of information, but very few are allowed to know about him.”

“I fail to understand why I should be the exception to that, sir.”

“Because as of yet, you seem to be the only officer at our disposal that is compatible with the prisoner.”

“Compatible?”

“We have a prisoner in custody who has been very belligerent and will not cooperate in the slightest. We need to run tests on him and cooperation will make everything easier, but he is insufferable and it’s been impossible to do our jobs.” Kureto explained.

“And you think I can help, what, calm him down?”

“Ironically, yes. In the earliest exams we ran on him before he regained consciousness and has since been completely unresponsive, we have detected signs that you are the best case we have in getting him to settle down.”

“So what will you have me do?”

“We have prepared a suite underground here while you’re off duty. As you can already guess, this assignment is of national security and of the highest confidence. You will have very limited contact with anyone outside of those gathered here, and if you see any of your comrades you are explicitly forbidden from discussing with them anything related to your assignment. Am I being clear?” The imposing general stared Yuichirou down as he willed him to answer correctly.

Yuichirou was dumbfounded and just as confused as he was at the start, but he found himself nodding his head in acknowledgment of Kureto’s question.

“Very good. Then, shall we meet your charge?”

Yuichirou gulped thickly and nodded again. He couldn’t imagine what sort of creature was down here. What could possibly require so much security penning it underground? Why all the secrecy and urgency? What was so special about this creature that these people needed its cooperation?

All thoughts fled the raven-haired teenager’s mind as soon as Kureto pressed a button on a remote control that lit up a large, white-walled cell behind five inches of bulletproof glass. It was reminiscent to the former psychiatric facilities, complete with the prisoner being enfolded inside a straitjacket.

The creature was kept on its knees on the hard, tile floor against the back of the room. Its eyes were covered by a thick cloth obscuring its sense of sight, and a thick, rubber ball fitted in the middle of two bands of elastic belts was firmly set inside its mouth. A large canvas bag was strapped to its back, and thick, heavy, titanium shackles kept the creature bound in its place on the floor. A multitude of wires and needles that led to a battery of machines that were on the other side of the glass partition.

However, the state of the creature’s quarters nor the creature’s appearance made Yuichirou freeze in both mind and body.

The mass of dirty yet wavy dirty-blond hair that still held signs of the light, wheat-blond color that once shone bright like the sun. Pale, porcelain skin with an under layer of light olive tint was now drained of color and left a pallid, sickly, yellow tone. Behind that blindfold, Yuichirou could already picture those crystal clear, cerulean eyes that rivaled the clearest, mid-Spring afternoon sky. He was tattered, beaten, bruised, and looked like he was inches from death, but Yuichirou’s heart hammered excitedly at the revelation that somehow Mikaela had survived the massacre of the Hyakuya children and had been somewhere out there for the past four years.

He’s alive! Yuichirou thundered ecstatically inwardly, but he was mindful that he had an audience with him.

A quick glance to the side found that Kureto was carefully watching the boy’s reaction. Yuichirou hoped that his military training was enough to mask the sheer joy he was feeling. Something told him revealing his true feelings would end badly for both him and Mikaela.

“Do you recognize him? Is there any reason his brainwaves are compatible with you?” The general asked.

“I haven’t seen this creature before in my life, sir.” Yuichirou stated, half-truths work best when spinning a web of lies.

“Hmm.” The man hummed thoughtfully, “Well, nevertheless, your assignment remains as it was. You will stay below ground and keep watch over the creature, catalog any irregularities or changes you observe in this journal, and if you can, speak to the creature. Perhaps with that, we can get the experiments  underway.” He explained.

“I’m supposed to just watch this creature? Is there anything else to do down here?” Yuichirou wondered as he already began moving toward the empty office chair behind the desk with the research journal Kureto had addressed previously, as well as a bank of computers that seemed to be hooked up to Mikaela’s body.

“There is a full library stocked in the room adjoined to this one if you find yourself with time on your hands.” Aoi Sangu stated instead of Kureto, “Apart from this, I am afraid you will be too occupied in your duties to concern yourself with idle pastimes. Your meals will be brought down to you five times per day, and you will be allowed one visitor every three days to keep you sane.”

“Keep me sane?” Yuichirou repeated.

“There is a history of technicians and jailers who have gone mad while observing this creature. We find that contact with friends of the outside helps keep you balanced.”

“Good to know.” Yuichirou mumbled.

Kureto grunted, and the two senior officers left him in the office alone with his long-lost childhood friend sitting just feet away on the other side of the glass.

Chapter Text

Chapter Two

"Mika?" Yuichirou breathed his name like a prayer as he stepped toward the glass minutes after the two superior officers departed the dungeon. "Is it really you?"

The raven-haired boy took in his friend's quarters with closer inspection and was deeply disturbed by what he saw. Mikaela's legs were trembling beneath his weight. Aside from the white straitjacket that left him bound tight, he wore a pair of tattered blue jeans that were dirty and bloody, crimson stains both old and new. The chain manacle circling the blond's throat made Yuichirou furious as he noted the raw flesh that was showing underneath. A terrible rash with inflamed sores alerted him that Mikaela was allergic to the metal and yet that basic fact was blatantly ignored.

The machines behind him beeped in succession with Mikaela's constant, rhythmic heartbeat. It didn't do much to quell his discomfort at finding his best friend in this condition.

"How...how in the world can you still be alive?" Yuichirou wondered, not really expecting an answer.

And he didn't get one, either. The blond inside the cell remained still, his head bowed. Mikaela most likely didn't even know that he was there. Tears welled up in his eyes as Yuichirou reached out to place his palms against the glass. He gasped as a hushed wash of compressed air blew across Yuichirou's feet, tugging at his trousers as what appeared to be an invisible door slid upward. Without the barrier between them now, Yuichirou shivered at the frigid chill in the air inside the cell. No wonder Mikaela's skin looked waxy and paler than usual. The blond was surely frozen being stuck in this cell for who knows how long. Scanning the room around them cautiously, Yuichirou slowly began to approach Mikaela's suppressed form one unsteady step at a time. The echo of his boots on the marble floor seemed to trigger Mikaela's awareness as the blond's shoulders tensed.

"Mika?" He called, much like a person would use on a wild beast, "It's me. Yuu."

Dropping to his knees in front of Mikaela, Yuichirou reached out with trembling hands. He untied the blindfold from around his eyes. The fabric fell away revealing those familiar, startlingly clear, cerulean eyes that Yuichirou knew so very well. They were dull, his pupils blown wide from being covered in darkness for however long someone dared to blindfold him. But soon they receded and Mikaela raised his head to meet Yuichirou's eyes. They widened minutely before they closed. He opened them slowly as though he couldn't believe that Yuichirou was really there. Yuichirou quickly undid the clasp and took the rubber gag out of his mouth. Mikaela gasped as he dropped his head, coughing and a bit of drool trailed down his jaw.

"Shit, Mika." Yuichirou gasped as the blond took in huge, shuddering gulps of air.

He unbuttoned the top few buttons on his uniform jacket before pressing the material over Mikaela's face. He did not need to be taking that much cold air into oxygen starved lungs. He kept it there until Mikaela's breathing finally regulated and then he raised his face to look Yuichirou in the eye.

"Yuu-chan?" He burst, "Why are you here? You've got to get out of here. These people are evil."

"Shh, shh. Mika, calm down. It's okay." Yuichirou tried to calm the frantic blond.

"How are you here?" Mikaela trailed his eyes down the other's body, seemingly understanding, "Are you a soldier too?"

The crack in his voice tugged at Yuichirou's heart.

"I did it because I wanted the knowledge to destroy the vampires. After I lost you and the others to that damned silver-haired noble, I wanted nothing more than to avenge you by ridding the world of their despicable existence." Yuichirou stated.

The odd light in Mikaela's eyes dimmed and he nodded minutely as if he was confirming something in his mind.

"But then...why are you here?" The blond asked.

"I was given the task of guarding you."

"Guarding...me?"

Yuichirou felt so shattered at the wounded look on Mikaela's face by this admission. Why he looked that way, he didn't understand quite yet, but he needed to erase that expression completely from the blond's visage permanently.

That lingering welling of tears that Yuichirou had somehow only just been holding back began to spill over and trailing in steady tendrils down his face. The magnitude of this situation heavy on his shoulders. Mikaela was alive, however that was possible he didn't care. He was here, Yuichirou was touching him when all he had were memories of a time that had been surprisingly easier. He felt the dips and contours of Mikaela's face beneath his fingertips. Mikaela wasn't just a figment of a dream or some cruel trick some demon pulled on him to get him to give up control of himself. He was real...and he was in danger.

It was easy to see. The straitjacket and heavy chains, the low temperature in the room, and the terrible isolation he had been subjected to. Kureto had stated that Mikaela was an important experiment.

An experiment? Fuck that! Yuichirou was livid and heartbroken just at the images of what Mikaela could have been through.

The blood, the raw flesh and sore, the bruises all over him, it all made Yuichirou unbelievably angry. More so than he may have ever been before. How long had he been down here? How long had the JIDA higher ups been subjecting him to untold experiments? How often had they hurt him, tortured him?

What the hell is on his back? Yuichirou demanded as he took a closer note of the strange canvas cloth that was attached to the back of the straitjacket and kept some tangible mass contained within.

"What have they done to you?" He choked as he asked the question.

Mikaela was like a shadow of his former, younger self. The hollows in his cheeks and waxy, sickly, yellow tint to his skin, the dimness in his eyes, the tremors Yuichirou could feel throughout his entire body just from touching his face; all of it terrified Yuichirou. The wounded, wary animal look in that he even gave Yuichirou and the way his speech seemed to be on a five-year-old's level with how he just repeats most of what he hears, questioning everything. This wasn't the boy Yuichirou had known. Someone, somewhere, whether it was a side-effect of the incident that occurred just before Yuichirou had escaped Sanguinem or from whatever Kureto and Aoi and whoever else was privy to human experimentation had broken the blond. It was excruciating. Yuichirou's heart trembled and his chest squeezed as he wrapped his arms around Mikaela's neck and wept.

It wasn't fair. Why him? Why did so much shit happen to Mikaela? He never hurt anyone. His biggest fault had always been his affinity to sacrificing himself for his family. He had a heart of gold, giving of himself to make life in Sanguinem better for them all, and even giving up his own life to let Yuichirou go free from the vampire world. Mikaela didn't deserve any of this.

Yuichirou straightened himself, carefully taking Mikaela's face between his hands, and he leaned forward to place his forehead against the blond's so that he could look directly into Mikaela's eyes and that Mikaela couldn't see anything but him.

"I won't ever leave you again. I swear I will find a way to set you free and together we will live far from both the vampires and any human who seeks to hurt us. You can count on me this time, Mika."

The grave sincerity in his voice seemed to register with Mikaela. Tears swam in those cerulean eyes and spilled over. He choked and gasped as he leaned further into Yuu as much as the chains would allow.

In a whispered, terrified, trembling voice, Mikaela spoke something that set Yuichirou on fire while at the same time it crushed him completely.

"Take me home, Yuu-chan. I don't want to be here anymore. Please! " He sobbed .

Yuichirou bolted to his feet and ran back into the control room. He raided the drawers for a key to Mikaela's shackles, cursing vehemently when he couldn't find any. He unsheathed his sword and came back to the cell. He jammed the blade into the space between the wall and the bolt of the chains connected to the manacle circling Mikaela's throat. Bracing his foot nearby, Yuichirou pulled with all his might, struggling to get the bolt free. Even if the chains have to stay on Mikaela for now, at the very least he could have them away from here and then he could figure out another way to get them off when their away from this place.

After a few tugs, he felt the bolt give and he grunted as he fell back on his ass when the bolt propelled out from the wall.

"It worked." Yuichirou gasped as he scrambled up to his feet.

He made an attempt to undo the straitjacket but Yuichirou's hands were trembling and he felt like time was running out for them to make their escape. Frustrated, the raven-haired man threw up his hands in a gesture of I'll go that later, and he began to yank off the tabs and needles from Mikaela's body that were keeping him captive. Finally free, Yuichirou rose and scooped Mikaela up into his arms princess style although the canvas bag on the blond's back made the position a little awkward.. Mikaela buried his face into Yuichirou's shoulder, his body shuddering as huge waves of relief.

Yuichirou rubbed his cheek against Mikaela's hair and whispered, "Just hold on, Mika. I'll have you out of here soon."

With hurried determination, Yuichirou made his way back through the labyrinth of security and straight up the long column of stairs to the outside. His heart was hammering away in his chest the closer he came to the final blockade that had been keeping Mikaela imprisoned below the Earth. His mind raced with exactly how he would hide the blond away. He figured that once someone noticed that their national security prisoner was missing and he would be prime suspect number one. He needed to get away from the military completely but he needed help. He knew he could trust his squad and Guren. Was there anyone else? Did they need anyone else? Where would they go?

First thing to concern himself with was to get Mikaela medical attention and food. The blond felt like a sack of potatoes in his arms; he was unbelievably light.

All thoughts about what to do after they got away from the prison compound came to a screeching halt when Yuichirou found that as soon as he crossed through the door to the outside and found a long wall of uniform clad soldiers, weapons at the ready, with Kureto and Aoi at the forefront. Aoi kept her stoic, frozen expression, but Kureto was smiling. He had a cocky, "I knew this would happen" grin as he cocked an oddly shaped eyebrow at the pair of boys before he began to speak.

"Private Yuichirou Hyakuya, you are under arrest for treason, theft of a national experimental subject, and the attempt to desert the military in a bid to house said subject. If you choose to resist, we have no choice but to execute you and forcibly remove the prisoner from your possession."

The rage inside Yuichirou that had been festering since he discovered Mikaela being kept in such deplorable conditions was amplified the longer Kureto spoke. At the threat of taking Mikaela away from him, Yuichirou let his anger burst forth.

"Mika is not just some experimental subject!" He screamed, holding the blond closer to his chest, "He's my family and you will have to kill me if you want to get him back!"

The courtyard was silent as Yuichirou made his decision. With deliberate slowness, Kureto unsheathed his sword with a loud, piercing, threatening drag of steel scraping against wood. Fully drawn, Kureto took a step forward and raised his sword offensively.

"So be it."