Author's Note: I had originally planned to update once a week, but I'm writing way ahead of schedule, so here's another update. Right now, I'm shooting for a Wednesday/Friday schedule on this one, as I am really happy where this story is going.
Celestial Ink: Thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked chapter one! Hopefully, you like the OC too! I'm slightly biased, but I think her companion is one of the funnier characters I've written in awhile.
Regardless, hope you enjoy!
Chapter Two
When Vergil landed outside the forest, the dragon was already gone. If it wasn't for the numerous scattered trees, clear skid marks, and the fact that Dante had seen it too, Vergil might have assumed it had never been there to begin with.
He let his trigger go and caught Yamato as he moved through the carnage. He tried to pick up on any unusual smell or sound, but the Underworld was as quiet and demon scented as usual. He could feel the aura of something. A strong demon, certainly, but it was impossible to distinguish what exactly it was. Further along, he found a dead empusa, it's insect body sliced in two. He was almost impressed. The cut was nearly as clean as one Yamato would have made.
He heard a demon shriek nearby, but it was silenced almost instantly. A second body - another empusa - shot past Vergil and was pinned to a tree with a silver sword. Dante had been right. This sword was nearly identical to Vergil's summon swords, albeit a bit smaller. It was more like a dagger, but clearly just as deadly. He teleported up into the trees and phased forward until he perched above a clearing. The woman stood below, back to him, but her hair was different now. A silvery blue tied back into a ponytail. Three silver daggers hovered around her as she held a long, black and white katana in her right hand. She looked almost regal with an open, midnight blue coat, high collar, and long sleeves. It flared out at her hips, stopping behind her knees. White pants were tucked into knee high, dark blue boots. A black belt sat askew upon her waist over everything. A circle of demon bodies lay around her, many stabbed clean through.
"Calcifer." She said. "Eat up."
A much smaller white and blue dragon bounded out from the trees like an excited puppy. On all fours, it was just taller than the woman's ankle. "Fresh meat!" The dragon chirped in a distinctly young male voice. It hopped over her foot and bit down on a dead empusa's neck. The woman dropped her sword, but it vanished before it hit the ground, her hair turned a blue so dark it was almost black. A staff appeared on her back, both sides shaped like a crescent moon. She sighed softly. "Eat quickly." She said. "We can't stay long."
The dragon tried to talk, but its' voice was muffled by the food in its' mouth. "Yes, I know you can't fly." The woman said. "Nor do I have the energy to make you." Another muffled noise."No you will not have to walk the rest of the way." He could hear the eye roll in her tone.
A new sound, a mix between a howl and a grunt, drew her attention. Though she didn't look up at Vergil, he could see her face clearly. Slightly pale skin, sharp features and bi chromatic eyes - one black and one white. "We are very far from home." She said.
The dragon swallowed, satisfied. "You really should tell that guy to stop staring."
In the half second it took Vergil to realize what the dragon said, the woman was already flying straight at him. He phased instinctively forward, narrowly dodging her. She grabbed the tree branch and flipped back over to land opposite of him. The staff hovered inches away from her. As their eyes met, however, a look of shock crossed her features.
"Vergil?"
Her voice was a whisper, but he heard it like a thunderous shout. Certain that his face was as stoic as he could make it, he said, "I have no recollection of you."
There was a flash of painful disappointment in her eyes before her stoic gaze returned. "I apologize." She said. "Wrong person." She said it in a way that told him she didn't quite believe it. "If you wished to speak to me, it would have been preferable to ask rather than rudely stare."
"You could have attempted a greeting rather than attacking me." He replied flatly.
The woman smirked. "One should always be ready for a fight." The staff snapped to her back in a rush of white light. She was only slightly shorter than him, but her confident stature might have unnerved anyone that wasn't him. He could feel her demon half as he did Dante's. A natural kinship between half-breeds. Humans would feel an endless barrage of mild discomfort or - for the weaker ones - a sense of terror or a need to run. Dante had his other half relatively constricted, preferring "hospitality" and "friendliness". This woman either didn't know, or - more likely - didn't care.
It was very possible, he realized in slight amusement, that she might be trying to intimidate him. Or, at the very least, subtly show that she wasn't the least bit afraid. It was smart of her to do so. While Vergil was far beyond giving into his demonic instincts, female demons - half-breed or otherwise - were a rarity in the Underworld. He wondered if that's why so many demons were after her in the first place.
"Corrin!" The dragon whined as he paced at her feet. She glanced down at him. "I'm still hungry."
She scowled. "There's five demons. Pick one."
"Can't you roast one of them?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because I used it all making sure you weren't torn apart by flaming bats." She said. The dragon grumbled as it slunk away to another body. It reminded Vergil slightly too much of Griffon for his liking.
"Familiar?" He asked nodding toward Calcifer.
"Dragon." She said. "My companion, if you will."
That didn't really answer the question, but a demonic laugh pulled his attention to the sky. A still triggered Dante barrelled through a rather large bat before smacking it away like a baseball with his devil sword. Then, he plummeted. Vergil snapped backwards. He heard the dragon's cry of terror somewhere over the chaos as Corrin vanished. A small earthquake burst out from Dante's feet before he swapped back to his human self with a wild grin. "Feels good to stretch the old wings, eh Verge?"
Corrin's staff, seemingly from nowhere, slammed into the back of Dante's knees. He toppled backwards with a startled yelp. Corrin reappeared in front of Vergil, catching the staff seconds before he sliced it in half with Yamato. "Are you an imbecile?" She snapped, cradling her dragon in her free hand. It curled up against her, whimpering slightly.
"I'm assuming that's a fancy way of saying moron?" Dante said as he pushed himself to his feet.
"You could have killed him!"
"So you're a half-demon like us, yeah?"
She blinked. Vergil almost rolled his eyes. Unlike him, this woman was not prepared for Dante's antics. "Excuse me?" She said finally.
"You're not a daughter of Sparda are you? Because that would be disappointing."
"No." She said. "But that still doesn't…"
"I just dropped out of the sky as a rather menacing looking demon, if I do say so myself. And not only are you yelling at me, but you have your back to my much more naturally intimidating brother. Which means you aren't scared of either of us."
"Idiocy does not a threat make." She muttered.
Dante groaned. "You talk like Vergil."
"Educated?" She said.
"Pretentious." Dante said. "No offense, bro."
Vergil knew full well that Dante meant it, but didn't dignify his brother's cheeky grin with a response. Corrin huffed in irritation as she walked away from them both and pet the top of the dragon's head. "Are you hurt?" She asked.
"No more than before, I think." He said. "A little dizzy." She lifted him to her shoulder and he hopped on, standing back on two legs as his tail flickered behind her shoulder. His little head stretched just taller than her ear. His tongue flicked at Dante. "No thanks to red-guy."
"That's Dante to you, little guy."
The dragon roared, but its voice was deep and aggressive like it had sounded when it was much larger. Dante nearly jumped out of his skin, and even Vergil took a small step backwards in surprise. Corrin glanced between them, unbothered. "You broke the first rule." She said.
"Don't try to kill him?"
"A dragon is never small."
"Anything else I need to know, sweetheart?"
Vergil felt her energy spike long before the silver dagger appeared, but he made no effort to stop it as it careened into Dante's shoulder. Once again, it knocked him off his feet, though Vergil wasn't certain if it was because of her strength, or the fact that she had caught his brother completely off guard. "Do not call me that." She said. "Ever."
"Rule number two," Dante said as he yanked the sword out. It shattered the second he did. "I'll keep that in mind."
A loud, guttural roar echoed behind her as a massive black axe sliced through the trees where Corrin had been. She appeared beside Vergil as a large, deformed bull demon lumbered toward them. It stood on two, hooved legs, but held its' weapon with only a single massive arm. Both of its' shoulders were covered in large, spiky, metal plates, but there was nothing but bone jutting out of rotten flesh on the right. It's massive jaw could easily eat two of them at once, but it hung open as if the beast couldn't control it. Inside were three rows of sharp, shark like teeth. Four horns protruded straight forward from above its eyes and ears. "That's a new one." Dante said.
"Second one today." Corrin said. It was the first time that she actually sounded tired. Vergil wondered how much she had been fighting today. Without knowledge of her power, ancestry, or really anything, Vergil couldn't guess what she was capable of.
"Leave this to us." Dante said. She glared at him, but Calcifer headbutted her cheek just enough that she didn't respond.
"Rest." The dragon said. "Blue-man will protect you."
He glanced back at them, but Corrin didn't meet his gaze. "I'm perfectly capable of fighting." She said.
"Your magic is low." He said. "Why risk hurting yourself more."
It's what I do." She said, but she took a step back regardless."
Dante frowned. "Why does he get to be blue-man but I have to be red-guy?"
"Because I like him more than you." Calcifer said.
Dante held his chest in mock pain. "You wound me."
The demon's eyes shifted to Corrin. Vergil moved slightly in front of her, hand on Yamato's hilt. The creature was large, and he knew Yamato would not be able to slice through it completely without multiple cuts. The demon grunted in a demon language Vergil had not heard in many years. "Moon-child." It said. "Master is looking for you."
"I haven't been a child since your master was Mundus' pet." She said, icily.
Vergil glanced at Dante. Though he knew his younger brother did not know what was being said, the name Mundus was the same in every language. Dante was frowning now, glancing between Vergil and Corrin. Clearly, she knew more than they did, but now was not the time to question her. The demon laughed, pulling Vergil's attention back to it. "You risk your life out here."
"Didn't have much of a choice." Corrin said.
"Thanks to your stupid, ugly sister." Calcifer hissed.
The creature huffed as it stamped its' foot. A puff of smoke erupted from its' nostrils. Dante whistled. "I don't know what either of you are saying, but it's not gonna to prevent an ass-kicking."
The demon glared at him. "Spawns of Sparda… my Master would love you too." He charged then, but both brothers lurched forward without fear. Yamato sliced through the beast's arm with a hundred, lightning fast strikes. Dante's sword plunged straight into its chest. Vergil phased backwards as blood splattered everywhere, but Dante pushed down harder until the beast's body slammed into the ground. Dante jumped backwards as he aimed a pair of finger guns in the monster's direction. "Easy." He said.
Black tendrils shot out of the monster's shoulder and attached to the severed arm like a series of webs. It snapped back to him, pulling together the shattered bones and flayed skin. The hole in its chest filled in as the creature rose back to his feet. It howled in rage and swung its axe with a speed Vergil didn't expect. Dante stopped it with the Devil Sword, but it still pushed him to the side, even as he dug his feet into the dirt. Dante triggered to push it away before diving back into the creatures body. He tore through it a second time, separating its torso from its legs. However,the demon's eyes turned bloodshot red as it reformed again. It swung at Dante, but Vergil caught the strike with Yamato as Dante dashed out of the way. "What the hell is this thing!" Dante shouted.
"It's corrupted!" Calcifer shouted.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Dante yelled.
"It gets stronger every time it dies!"
"Helpful information, please!"
"You have to sever the soul." Corrin said. The soul? Vergil couldn't see anything that could be a soul. He had read descriptions of it in some books, but the ability to see them was rare, usually left to certain types of demons. At this moment, however, he couldn't remember which ones. Instead, Vergil shot a series of swords into the creature's neck, avoiding severing it completely.
"Distract it." He said to Dante before teleporting to Corrin. His brother spurred into action, drawing the creature's attention away.
"You can see it's soul?" Vergil said.
She nodded. "Normally I could deal with it, but I used too much when I killed his sister this morning. It would be impossible for me to sever it fast enough." She glanced down at Yamato. "That could. I'm certain." The sound of a revving motorcycle echoed in the background. Corrin's eyes snapped over Vergil's shoulder. "He's using that as a weapon?"
"How do I see it?" He said, ignoring his brother's excited cheering behind him.
"Let Calcifer resonate with you." She said.
"What is…"
"We don't have time." She said as she held her hand out to him. Calcifer skittered down her arm and sat on her palm.
"You're going to have to trust me." Calcifer chirped.
Vergil didn't trust anyone. He barely trusted Dante. But looking her directly in the eyes, he realized that she was trusting him. Why? Why did she have faith in someone she didn't know? If she really could see souls, then surely she could see all the sins that weighed his down."Please." She said. "Saina."
Dear friend. His eyes snapped wider when he realized she had spoken in a new, melodic language that he should never have understood. But he did. Nothing made sense, but he didn't have time. "Quick." He said to Calcifer. The dragon hopped onto Vergil's arm and scrambled onto his shoulder. A flash of white light disoriented him for a brief moment. When he blinked it away, he saw a silver and blue light like a flickering flame appear on Corrin's chest. A smaller, blue one, hovered in front of Calcifer, and a red one clung to Dante as his brother drove circles around the very confused demon. The bull's soul, however, was a complete mess. Instead of a single, flame, its grey soul was stretched out between the various parts of its body, connected to a spiky, chaotic mass in the center. With every blow Dante struck, the soul grew more erratic. "Clean slice." Corrin said. "Or it will replicate."
Vergil launched forward without hesitation, ignoring Calcifer's startled cry as his claws dug into Vergil's shoulder. Dante leapt out of the way as Vergil cut diagonally through the ruined soul. The demon howled as it went limp. The soul scrambled to reform, but a blast of silver fire consumed the body. The soul vanished in the smoke as the demon's body burned within seconds. The brothers glanced back as Calcifer leapt off Vergil's shoulder. The souls vanished, but Corrin crumbled before the dragon got to her. Her staff hit the ground, and she looked paler than before as her eyes turned an unsettling gray. "You overdid it!" Calcifer roared angrily.
"I had to." Corrin mumbled as she tried to stand up. She stumbled backwards, but Vergil caught her, cutting off Dante who had moved to do the same. His brother didn't argue.
"Take her to our place." Dante said. "The demons won't bother her there."
"I can't fly." Calcifer said.
"Don't worry about that." Dante said with a small smile. "If she wants, I could carry her myself."
"As enticing as that sounds." Corrin muttered. "I'd rather walk off a cliff."
"Ouch," Dante said with a chuckle. "You may want to reconsider your choice in men."
"Shut up, red-guy." Calcifer scowled as he hopped onto Corrin's chest.
Vergil smirked despite himself. It wasn't often that other people took his side over Dante's, not that he had ever done anything in particular to warrant such a reaction. Although, he wasn't certain that was a good thing quite yet. Dante just shrugged. "Lucky me." He said. "I'm off babysitting duty."
The other three stared at him in varying levels of irritation. However, Corrin's weakening demonic aura concerned Vergil more than his brother. "I can carry you." He said. "But don't make a habit of it."
Corrin smiled so slightly that he almost missed it. "I promise to take better care of my dragon."
"What do you need?"
"Time, rest, demon blood. You've got a lot of options."
Vergil triggered, but waited a moment as she stared at him. He and Dante always argued over who's devil form looked more menacing than the other. Dante always argued that his was, as his took after their father and flames were "much more terrifying than arm swords". But Vergil's demon form was different. Blue. Draconic. Much more his own. There were traces of Sparda's influence, but it was clear that Vergil had developed much more in isolation than Dante; still similar, but ultimately his.
It was Calcifer who responded first. "I'm jealous."
Corrin chuckled. "I'd have to agree. He does seem quite a bit more menacing than you in that form."
"And that tail!" Calcifer said. "That's just not fair."
He heard Dante burst into laughter behind him. Vergil growled, but said nothing as he picked Corrin and her companion up with ease. She fell somewhat limply in his grasp for a moment, but she took a deep breath and pulled herself up to wrap her arms around his neck. As he unfurled his wings, she stared at him with a look of wonder. He growled again, only somewhat surprised when not a single part of her, not even her aura, flinched. She wasn't afraid of him, or his demon form.
He hadn't decided if that was a good thing either.
"She interests you." Griffon cackled in his head. "Or you've just gone soft. Either way, what do you have left to live for but temporary distractions?"
"A woman who isn't afraid of you." Dante said. "This will be entertaining."
Vergil leapt into the air without a response. Within seconds, Corrin was asleep against his chest as Calcifer watched him with a look somewhere between amazement, hesitation, and sheer jealousy. "Yes?" Vergil said, his demon voice much deeper than his regular one.
"It suits you." Calcifer said begrudgingly.
Vergil was silent as he realized, with a small amount of irritation, that he didn't have a clue what to say to that.
