Post DMC 2.
Sequal to 'Memories of The Fallen' and 'Angels'.
Enjoy~. Please read the other two before you read this one.
She had met me at the gate.
I took two steps and was greeted by her and the woman known as Matier.
They seemed happy to know that I had come back.
"Come, Son of Sparda. Let us go else where, where we will be out of the elements. And then I shall tell you the Story of Sparda, as a guardian tells it…"
I followed the two women for a ways before I noticed something different about Lucia.
Her weapons were different.
The belt that hung from her waist held two slim packs, each about a foot long. And on the outside of those packs was her main weapons.
The blades earlier were curved in outstretched 's' shape, and they were thin.
These were far from it.
Each blade was probably about a good four inches in width at their thinnest point. And the blades were scarred…
Then I realized it.
They were no ordinary blades.
These were the Zambak.
In the packets were foot long darts.
I knew the set like nothing else.
These were Ikira's weapons.
I watched the light glint off one blade, just as they had when Ikira had first pulled them from their sheathe.
I remembered those times like no others…
The times when Luken was still alive.
Yes, I still missed him. I probably always would.
I too had seen the same scene as Ikira. The white feather lying on a frequented spot where it would normally never be.
Luke was still with us, if only in spirit…
"Dante? Everything alright?"
I instantly came back from my world of memories upon hearing my name. Matier had lead us to a small building that had escaped the destruction.
"Everything's fine. I just thought of something is all…"
I swear Matier could read minds, because what she said next really shocked me.
"A young woman he held close to his heart wielded the same weapons as you, Lucia, and he was lost in memories. The vessel of the Hellion Angel Rykira. Correct, Son of Sparda? Or was it her angel companion that you were thinking of?"
I knew that she had figured me out, so there was no use hiding. I ended up telling the entire story of what had happened in Temen Ni Gru. Lucia didn't seem to mind as much as I thought she would form how she had acted toward me earlier. But what she did next surprised me.
She removed the Zambak and Darts.
"Here. I have heard stories of Rykira from Matier in the past, and how Ikira came to be her vessel. Both were skilled with this sort of weapon. Please, take these back to Ikira. She is more worthy of them then I."
I pushed her hands away, as she had held them out to me, and explained to her why Ikira didn't have them now. Lucia then said something that I would later tell Ikira.
"No human of this realm is worthy of a demon's blades. But the human of both realms is more worthy then the demon themselves of the blades."
I knew then that Lucia would not let me leave without taking Ikira her blades, so I accepted them and settled in for a different version of my father's tale…
--
I walked into the office with a belt slung over my shoulder and a cloth wrapped around the items the belt held. Both Lady and Trish greeted me, but Ikira damn near tackled me. I laughed when she finally let go of my ribs and tossed me a major grin. She had lightened up in the past five years, and she was back to being the little sister of the two of us. I smiles at her and ruffled her hair. She walked back over to Lady's side and I tossed her the belt that I had carried in. She caught it and gave me a questioning look.
"Just open it. But don't drop it when you see what it is. I was told to give them to you by the person that had them. I'll tell you what they said later…"
I saw Ikira's hands hesitate over the cloth, as if this situation was familiar to her. It should have been, as they were wrapped like that when Luken placed them in the box to give to her. I watched her carefully as she pulled back the first layer and then began a steady pace of unwrapping them. When she pulled back the final layer however, she froze.
"No human of this realm is worthy of a demon's blades. But the human of both realms is more worthy then the demon themselves of the blades."
"Who… gave you these blades to give to me? I didn't think anyone would find them…"
"Her name was Lucia. A created being who was a lot smarter then I thought. Her quote is what convinced me to bring them back to you…"
I watched Ikira slip the belt around her hips just like she did the first time. She pulled them from their sheathes and began a few slow movements with them, just like she had when she got them. Then she surprised me. Her movements sped up to an obscene rate and I felt the skin on my chest separate. So she still had it…
"Remind me to find this, Lucia, and thank her for bring back my memories of blades."