Chapter One: Down fall of Brotherhood

It was an empty victory. Nothing about it struck the warrior as noble nor honorable. What shook through Nelo Angelo wasn't a passion for the battle but despair. Laying in a pool of blood was a hunter in red. He was alive but just barely and the servant of Mundus just shook as different emotions ran through his mind. Despair...This was the emotion most dominant. It was eating away at the dark-slayer but he couldn't realize as to why. Slowly Nelo raised his blade to deal the fatal blow but froze. The knight could not bring himself to end Dante's life. Not when the hunter in red as so familiar to him. So the demon stood there in a confused haze.

The pendant hung from Dante's neck as he struggled to get to his feet. Pushing himself up using Force Edge. The blade had been stained red with Dante's bleeding wounds. "What's the matter? " the hunter spoke with a sarcastic tone. "What is stopping you?" he asked. The white haired hunter rose to his feet and stared daggers at the knight in the black armor. He then noticed Nelo's attention was directly on the pendent. This kept Dante on guard. "...what the hell is wrong with you?"

The demon let out a grunt before lowering his blade. Any will to fight had faded to nothing. The dark knight turned his back to the bleeding hunter and began to walk away from him. When he fought Dante something stirred deep within Nelo. Something that felt like a memory but he couldn't quite grasp it. It was distant and merely a feeling of familiarity. It felt less like a battle to the death but a battle of pride. Something like a rivalry that didn't make any sense.

Nelo suddenly stopped in his tracks as the room the battle was fought began to shake intensely. The knight let out a grunt and held his footing but Dante was knocked onto his side. Then there was a disruption in the air and Trish appeared through a portal. The blonde woman remained stoic as she landed gently on the ground. It was time for her drop the act. This was direct orders from Mundus. Dante stared in confusion. "Trish?" he asked as he struggled to get up again. His wound stung deeply.

Nelo glanced back at her. His face hidden under a helmet. The blonde woman ignored Dante completely and stared at the dark knight. "What do you think you are doing? You are disobeying a direct order to kill the Son of Sparda. Finish the job." she told. " The castle is shaking due to Lord Mundus's angry roars." Trish then glanced at Dante who was glaring daggers at her.

"So this is just a trap!?" Dante snapped at Trish. He got to his feet and gripped the hilt of his sword tightly. His wounds wouldn't stop bleeding but he ignored the stinging he felt. Anger filled him as he felt Trish's betrayal. It stung so deep in him due to her sharing a very similar face as his mother. The hunter lifted his sword and charged at Trish, however Nelo Angelo gotten in the way and blocked his attacked with his own blade.

The blonde haired woman stumbled back as the shaking finally slowed down to a soft rumble. The dark knight shoved Dante back. The battle was back on and they dueled fiercely. Any blow Nelo gave Dante just made him stronger. The red hunter just got back up after each attacked that Nelo gave. The two swordsmen were starting to grow exhausted. Trish watched on in silence. Remorse filled her gut. It was a feeling she never experienced before. Why did she feel this way? Was it because of Dante? Why? She ignored those thoughts for now. There was no way she could think like that. Not when Mundus was her cruel master.

Nelo made another blow and knocked Dante back against the wall. His blood smeared against the concrete walls and floor. Still the white haired hunter didn't go down. He stood and panted heavily. Nelo did the same. Heavy grunts could be heard from his armor and purple blood seeped through it's cracks and onto the floor. The two stood still in silence. Then there was the shine from Dante's amulet which caught Nelo's attention again. So there two continued to stand there. Silence filled the room and the three of them did not move.

"You've even bested my best warriors..." came Mundus's booming distorted voice. It echoed off the walls and came from no where. Dante glared upwards and stood firm against the wall. His light blue eyes scanned the area trying to pin point Mundus's exact location but was unable to. His senses were dull from exhaustion and blood.

" Why not come out and fight me yourself!?" Dante snapped in response. Nelo held still as he heard the voice. It sent shivers down his spine. That merciless voice...Nelo remembered the torture he endure during his time as a knight for Mundus. It made him tense up and grunt at the memories. Trish stood still. No emotion was on her face and her eyes hid under thick blonde bangs.

Mundus continued to speak." You can barely stand. You take all the blows from my strongest warriors and yet you stand ready to fight. Your endurance matches...no...it's even greater than your fathers." the demon lord spoke with a hiss to his voice. Dante growled at the mention of his father.

" Get to the point!" Dante snapped. He pushed off the wall and stumbled forward a few steps. Each step stung his whole body which caused more blood to pour from his wounds. He continued to glare up at nothing. "Show your face to me, you bastard!"

This earned Dante a chuckle from the demon lord. Mundus found it amusing. "Why would I show my face to my enemy? You foolish half-breed." there was a pause and then a silence. Then suddenly Nelo began grunting as if he was in great pain. Mundus began to speak again. "This face would be much more interesting to you, Sparda's son." The helmet the dark-slayer wore began to crack. Nelo began to cry out in pain due to the pressure he felt from Mundus. Soon the helmet shattered and shot everywhere.

Dante's eyes widen in shock as he leaned against his sword for support. "You're...Vergil!?" he cried out. Vergil grunted and glared up at Dante. His memories were faded. The devil hunter seemed to remember him but Nelo didn't. His memories were warped and distorted by Mundus's torture. The demon king began to speak once again.

"Look at the family reunion...The foolish Son of Sparda tried so hard long ago. Tried to hard to face me. To try to defeat me like his father did but he failed. So now in turn, I made him my personal puppet. " Mundus explained. A look of despair washed over Dante's face. His brother that he thought died...was enslaved to Mundus. Fate was to cruel sometimes.

"...You've got to be kidding me..." Dante spoke softly. He dropped the sword and just stared at Vergil with sorrow filled eyes. Slowly he walked over to the dark knight. Vergil let out a grunt and took a step back. He was panicking as he struggled to piece any familiar feeling or memories together. He had dropped his blade as well when Mundus had finished speaking. The demon lord watched with mild curiosity.

Dante took slow and uneven steps. Blood continue to pour from him and he was growing weaker from the wounds each passing minute. Vergil retreated to slowly and soon Dante was so close to him. The dark night's eyes widen at Dante's next action. The red hunter had embraced him tightly. "...Vergil. ..I thought you had died those years ago..." he spoke softly as he continued to hug his twin brother. Vergil continue to stare wide eyed and just froze. The demon's mind was racing and trying to retrace any memories he had. Mundus had tortured him so badly that he believed Dante to be an enemy...but was he truly. Enemies didn't do what Dante did.. "..." Vergil couldn't speak. Mundus had taken that ability away from him. He was suppose to be a obedient soldier.

Then the dark knight felt something hit his cheek. Those were tears that Dane had been shedding and Vergil didn't realize it until now. Soon a distant memory played through his mind. One from childhood that he thought he had forsaken. The image of two young boys rough housing continue to play through Vergil's mind. One of them was crying and clinging to the other. The elder twin had began to pet the crying child's head and he suddenly calmed down.

The memory was strong in Vergil's mind. A hand rose out of pure muscle memory and rested on top of Dante's head. This caused the hunter to glanced up for a moment. "Brother...?" he asked before Mundus had interrupted the reunion. With his power a force pulled the twins apart and Dante was shoved against against the wall. "Ugh!"

" Your human side is your biggest weakness, Son of Sparda." Mundus spoke. "The reunion ends now. Your brother will be my eternal slave. You'll never interfere again." the demon king told. Mundus held Dante up with his power. The hunter was too weak to struggle. His eyes focused on Vergil. "He'll never be yours again, Son of Sparda" Mundus repeated. A black mist appeared around Dante and shot him into the air and out of the castle. He then was shot away and off the island and far into the deepest part of the ocean.

This is how Mundu's seal worked. Dante would no longer be threat to the great demon king. Trish stood there staring at Vergil whom feel to his knees. Mundus's voice shook the room. " The hunter is no more. He is sealed away just like his miserable father. No one is there to stop us now. We shall march into the human domain and take it. " There was a small pause before he spoke again. " Trish. Nelo. Gather your troops. Tonight when the moon is the fullest we are going to enter the human world..."

"Yes, my lord. " Trish told and opened a portal that led to the demonic relam. Vergil shook as small memories played through his mind. Quickly he regain his composure and stood up. The dark night picked up his sword and held it tightly. The wounds on his body and armor began to heal due to Mundus.

"Good, my puppet. Good. My methods of keeping you obedient prevailed over the human notion of love. Forever my puppet...poor little Vergil. Now go. There is still much to be done. Go gather your armies and rest. Tomorrow night we shall take the human world and I shall rule over everything." Soon Mundus faded back to the demonic world.

Vergil stood there alone and in silence. His thoughts had calmed down and those long forgotten memories before he was captured had returned. He placed his sword on his back much like how Dante did. There was a deep rage behind Vergil's eyes as he turned and formed a portal. He then noticed something on the ground and walked over to pick it up. It was Force Edge. Vergil gripped it tightly and turned to the portal. The fire of rebellion lit his soul and mind. "No. Mundus..." Vergil had remembered how to speak. A memory that Mundus had repressed. " I shall devour you from the inside out...devoured by the beast you turned me into..." he growled and walked through the portal.

The castle fell silent. With the hunter gone now. Mundus's seals had been broken. The demon god now could enter the human world and take over. Dante was sealed away deep in the ocean. For now he would sleep in his watery prison as a statue.