Just to let everyone know, while I like the SMT series, I'm not too knowledgeable about it, having only played Devil Survivor 2, a bit of Devil Survivor 1, and most of Strange Journey. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the story!

Chapter 1:

A long drop from home

(Ryu's room):

"Ninety-eight… ninety-nine… one, hundred!" exclaimed a teenage boy as he completed his hundredth push-up before promptly dropping onto his back. Some of his messy black hair was stuck to his forehead from sweat. His emerald green eyes looked up at the ceiling as he lay down and regained his breath. His peach-toned skin was covered in a light layer of perspiration from the physical effort he'd just gone through.

After a few more seconds of rest, Ryu sat up before getting up and onto his feet.

"A shower sounds pretty good right now," he mused, already making his way over to the door with long strides. He was seventeen years old, had an average, if slightly tall height and a lean yet muscular and athletic build. He was living alone in a four room apartment that consisted of: his (bed)room, a guest room, the kitchen/ dining room and finally the living room.

His parents lived in another city to the one where he was taking college, but they sent over more than enough money every month for his various needs. He saved up the excess in a money box in his wardrobe. At the moment, he was in the third day of a two-week break from college. He would have gone home, however his parents said that they had to go away to somewhere for around a month due to some issue with his dad's work.

After finishing his shower, Ryu made himself a light lunch consisting of some grilled lamb meat with seasoning and steamed vegetables. He wasn't feeling particularly hungry, so he didn't really need to make any more than the small portion that he served himself. Having lived on his own for a little over a year by now, he was responsible enough to fully take care of himself and properly attend to his needs and wants. Cooking had probably been the hardest thing he learnt. At first, he was terrible, his results being just about safely edible, but his mother gave him some neatly handwritten instructions for a few recipes as well as a few homemade videos. He also bought a cookbook or two so that he could learn how to make more varied foods in addition to things besides main meals. Now he was good enough that he sometimes worked part-time as a chef on the campus cafeteria.

'Wonder what I should do,' he thought when he finished washing up. 'I've more or less got the full day left and the weather's good too. Maybe I should hop over to the park, that guy who sells those cool keychains might be there today. Even if he isn't, there are others who give other stuff and it's a pretty nice place with all the different trees and plants.'

A few minutes later, he locked to door to his apartment and began walking towards the stairs to get to the ground floor. The complex he lived in wasn't that large, having only three floors and four apartments on each. He lived in the middle of the second floor, so he didn't have to walk too far to get to wherever he wished to in the building.

"Hey, Ryu!" he heard a voice call out after exiting the building. Looking in the direction the sound came from, he saw another boy his age. It was one of his classmates from college, Kishi Tenrou. He was the kind of guy who got along with everyone and who nobody had any issues with, except for bullies. He and his two best friends, Drake and Kai, were each nightmares for delinquents or thugs who liked picking on those who couldn't do much back. They dished out punishment so regularly that they ended up gaining the title 'Massacre Trio' from the less civil members of society. Ryu was friends with all three, having helped them deliver a well-deserved beat-down a few times.

"Hi Kishi, what's up?" he asked in greeting.

"Nothing much," replied Kishi, giving his signature small smile. "I just saw you as I was walking past. I'm on my way to my part-time job. What about you?"

"Just going for a walk in the park," Ryu told him. "The weather's good and it's a nice place so I thought why not?"

"True," agreed Kishi. "Anyway, I need to get going. Take care alright? See ya later."

"Yeah, you too," Ryu said in farewell before the two of them turned around and went their separate ways.

While making his way through the city streets, Ryu tuned out the noise of the cars that passed by and the people talking. While it wasn't really that busy, he preferred the simulated quiet and the calm it often brought. He continued like that for the next ten minutes until he finally reached the high iron gates of the park.

The moment he entered was like he'd stepped into another world. The sounds of the city vanished, replaced by birds chirping merrily and leaves rustling in the wind. Stopping for a moment, he closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. The air felt refreshing, cleaner and crisper. Reopening his oculars, he steadily walked down one of the various paths that branched out from the entrance.

'Heh, I feel good just walking through this place,' he mentally noted. 'The nature all around gives off a pleasant vibe too.' Just a few metres ahead, he noticed a man who looked to be in his late twenties standing behind a table/ stall with multiple small objects laid on it. A small smile forming on his face, he made his way over. "Hey," he greeted the man. "Got any new ones?"

"Ah, Ryu," said the man. "Good to see you again kid. Yeah, I've got quite a few new ones in. anything that catches your eye?"

Ryu scanned the various keychains with his green eyes. There was a wide array of different objects and designs, as well as ones made from different materials. A particular one caught his interest. It was a black colour and made from metal. Two single-bladed swords that crossed each other in a 'X' formation. The hilts were simple, the cross guards weren't in the usual style though. They had three spiking protrusions at each side, with the middle ones being straight whilst the ones near the hilt or blade slightly curved towards them respectively. The blades themselves were slightly broad, but no so much that it looked like you'd need both hands to use one if it were the actually large enough, were narrower towards the hilts and had tips that curved up and out a bit.

"How much is this one?" he inquired, picking it up to show the seller.

"I'll let you have it for one-fifty," the man told him.

"Seriously?" he asked, expecting it to be more.

"Well, consider it a sort of gift kid," said the man. "You buy stuff from me pretty often."

"Thanks," Ryu said appreciatively as he handed over the money.

"Pleasure doing business with you," said the man heartily as he took the money.

Ryu slid the keychain into his pocket and walked on past the man and his merchandise, continuing his earlier stroll. He let his mind relax and enjoy the serene atmosphere of the park. He carried on calmly making his way through the pocket of nature, taking his time and admiring the plant life as he passed.

However, an unexpected crackling sound caught his attention. Not only was it out of place, but it sounded unnatural too. A little space in front of him, he saw what looked like a smoky, swirling dark blue hole that was rapidly growing. Within a second, it was wider than his entire body's length. He began feeling a pulling sensation, as though something was trying to suck him into the portal. Trying to maintain his balance, Ryu started inching backwards so he could escape its pull. Suddenly, the pulling increased hundred-fold and he found himself yanked off of his feet before getting swallowed into the rip in reality.

(Dimensional portal):

Ryu screamed in agony as strange foreign energies zapped and assaulted his body. He felt like he was being pulled apart fibre by fibre while simultaneously getting crushed by a grinder. Bolts of lightning hit him every second, sparking erratically. Somehow, the keychain that he'd bought earlier came out from his pocket and was immediately subjected to the strange forces of the space he was in.

The keychain began to grow in size, until it was large enough to actually be considered two real swords, each the length of his full body minus his head. They separated away from each other and the chain linking the two together shattered. For a brief moment, ominous red tribal designs glowed across the blunt sides of each sword's blade before fading.

Black flame-like marking materialised on his right forearm and the right edge of his face, licking at his right eye and temple. His nails burst out into small but sharp and deadly-pointed claws. His canines prolonged slightly and grew sharper. Finally, his irises turned a blood red. However, Ryu didn't notice any of the changes that happened to his body or to his keychain. All his mind was registering was the unbearable, impossible pain. Then, within a flash, his body reverted back to its original appearance.

Several small, marble sized orbs of what looked like plasma gathered around him as he fell unconscious. They began gaining a more solid appearance, until they looked like crystals or gem stones. The twin black swords created from his former keychain began spiralling around him, like two supernatural guardians that were soon joined by the orbs. His body continued falling through the space of iridescent colours and swirling energy clouds.

(?):

A figure was running across a blackened, charred-looking plane. She had dark brown hair that reached her lower back, a fair skin tone and golden eyes. She was clothed in a white furry jacket of sorts, pitch black pants and matching shoes. However, her most unusual and striking features were the black cat ears atop her head and the black cat tail trailing behind from her tailbone.

She was panting heavily and trying to maintain her movement, but was quickly wearing down. She'd been running for ages and her energy was nearly spent, especially with the not-so-little skirmish that took place before she started running. The numerous bruises that marred her skin weren't helping either, especially when they were all throbbing with a dull ache. Soon, she dropped to the ground out of exhaustion, finally having reached the point where her body simply couldn't carry on any more.

The large, brutish being pursuing after her continued to draw closer. He was roughly around three heads higher than a fully grown man, was bald, had a few small spikes around the crown of his head, had red skin over his rather muscled frame and carried a large executioner's sword in one hand. His clothes were simple yet coarse in appearance and had shredded ends at the sleeves and trousers. He was an oni, but not one of the usual types. Normally, someone of his level would be no problem for her to deal with, however she was completely drained from the various enemies that she'd dealt with before and the long run she'd just done.

'Is this how I'm going to end?' she thought sadly. 'Just getting brutally murdered by this oni?' He was almost near her by now. He wasn't bothering to rush, partly because he himself was worn out from chasing after her, and partly because he knew that there was no need to.

"Ha, finally out of steam nekomata?" he asked rhetorically while moving towards her, only a few metres remaining. His voice was rough and gravelly, matching his appearance. "I'm going to enjoy taking your head as a trophy."

Suddenly, a crackling sound pierced through the air, making both individuals look up in confusion to see some kind of smoky, swirling wormhole in the sky. There was also another sound that was steadily getting louder, which they soon realised was the sound of somebody screaming.

Ryu had regained consciousness a few seconds ago. The intense agony no longer flooded his body, but he could tell that he was plummeting down at an insane speed. The sheer insanity of it all, as well as the fear of the consequences if he hit some kind of ground, caused him to scream out. He vaguely registered the two obsidian black swords and the multiple little spheres of different colours orbiting around him, although he was too freaked out to pay much attention to them.

The amalgamated colours around him vanished as his body exited the portal, falling towards where the oni was standing. Through pure coincidence, while he was attempting to right himself, his right elbow stuck out from his body, resulting in him delivering a powerfully devastating elbow drop directly to the demon's head.

The lion's share of his kinetic energy having transferred to the unfortunate oni, Ryu fell to the ground safely as the large red demon crashed to the floor in a daze. The objects that had been circling around his body clattered down around him, but the swords vanished through a black mist that covered them from view before dispersing. Holding his spinning head, Ryu began trying to get back up to his feet, swaying wildly from side to side. He managed to get back into a standing position, but then vomited a few seconds later. Feeling a little better, he straightened up a bit when the dizziness returned again.

Noticing a shadow come over him, Ryu looked back only for him to see the oni towering over his smaller body. Not only that, but he looked pretty ticked off to say the least, if the bared fangs were anything to go by.

"A demon?" he muttered in shock.

"How dare you attack me like that, you lowly human!" the oni snarled.

"What?" said Ryu in bewilderment.

Not giving any more words, the oni reared back his free hand before thrusting it out at the black-haired teen. His muscle memory and fighting instincts kicking in, Ryu's emerald eyes sharpened with focus whilst they observed the approaching fist. He redirected the larger-than-human fist away from its original course, making the oni stumble a bit as he overextended. Wasting no time whatsoever, Ryu charged in and leaped up to slam his right knee into the demon's solar plexus, knocking the wind out of it.

Before he could do anything further however, a wave of intense nausea overcame him. He staggered around a bit as the world seemed to swim within his vision. He blacked out once again and dropped backwards onto the floor as the oni recovered from his hit and straightened up. He looked at the downed teenager with an unreadable expression.

"Not bad for a human," he stated with a hint of respect. He then raised his executioner's sword into the air above his head. "But unfortunately for you, that will gain no mercy from me."

Black, smoky wisps began trailing up from Ryu's body, making the Oni halt in surprise. Just like what had occurred when he was in the wormhole, his body began to change. His nails turned into the sharp and deadly claws, the black flame-like markings started manifesting across his right arm and on the right edge of his face. His mouth twisted into a snarl, showing his elongated canines while a low, rumbling growl came from his throat. Then, in a cloud of black mist at each hand, the twin blades appeared. A second after they did, the spikes on each that pointed towards the blades suddenly prolonged, as did the middle spikes which also began to bend towards the blades, leaving only the ones that pointed towards the hilts in their original shape. The tip of each blade curved upwards more whilst a section halfway through the blunt edge gained a small, outwards-pointing curve.

Like he was being pulled up by strings, Ryu's body began rising, his upper body coming up first. His arms were spread out at his sides, he stopped baring his teeth and his eyes were still closed. When he reached a standing position he remained completely motionless, his head tilted down with his hair overshadowing his shut eyes.

The oni lowered his large sword cautiously and held it at the ready, not sure what to expect. All of a sudden, Ryu's head snapped up, revealing his blood red eyes. He gave a low growl at the oni, how an alpha would to a challenging rival. Within the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the red-skinned demon and cut off his left arm from the shoulder. The oni shouted in pain and took a few steps back, staring at the human in disbelief. No, this was no human. It was more of a demon than even he was, especially with the oppressive feeling it was giving out, like a pressure all over his body.

Ryu flipped the sword in his right into a reverse grip and subsequently stabbed the blade down into the dismembered arm. The red tribal designs appeared across the blunt side and a small noise that sounded like someone drinking could be heard. The nekomata and oni watched in morbid fascination as the severed limb began to wither, almost like it was being sucked dry. He lifted the black blade out of the drained flesh, the red designs promptly vanishing the moment he did so.

Not wanting to be taken by surprise again, the brutish demon charged at the demonic teenager, swinging his own sword forward. Ryu parried with the sword in his left hand, then knocked his opponent's weapon away with the one grasped in his right. The oni started sending his fist at the smaller being in a desperate attempt to punch him, however Ryu stabbed both of his blades right into the oni's chest.

Once again, the tribal marking appeared across the blunt sections while the demon fell backwards onto the floor. His flesh was rapidly drying out and withering as the two swords drank his blood and absorbed it.

"Ha ha," he rasped out. "Being killed by… a powerful opponent… a… satisfactory… end."

The raven-haired youth didn't give any response. Instead, he raised his hand towards his weapons when the oni's body was nothing more than a mummified husk. Both swords disappeared in a flash of black mist. Letting his hand drop back to the side, he closed his red eyes. The black markings on his body began receding. The small orbs that had fallen through with him rose up and moved to his position, circling around him for a bit before they fell down to the ground along with his body, which had reverted back to normal.

Having watched the entire spectacle, the nekomata slowly pushed herself up onto her elbows and started crawling towards him. Intentionally or not, he had just saved her life. The least that she could do was make sure that he was okay. Finally reaching Ryu after a minute or so of slow progress, she gently placed one of her slender fingers on his jugular vein, checking for a pulse. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt a steady beating under the digit. Picking up one of the numerous spheres around him, a green one to be precise, she put it into her mouth and ate it.

Amazingly, all of her injuries began to heal at an extremely speedy pace, leaving her perfectly healthy and fit within a second. Getting up into a sitting position, she looked down at the teenage human's face as he slept peacefully. Hopefully he'd wake up soon, then she could thank him and ask if he needed any help himself.

Please comment/ review. I don't mind suggestions or constructive criticism, but please don't just flame.