I do not own Devil May Cry or any of the stories, characters, plots, locations, etc. thereof. I do not own the Divine Comedy by Dante.
So sorry this took so long. I've been busy with my internship that usually consists of crushing dreams. Thank you to all those who read and reviewed. I really appreciate your kind words.
Enjoy. RR. Let me know what you think.
Evangeline wanted to struggle: raise her arms and push him away, tear at his face and eyes. She wanted to plunge her face into boiling water to sear the taste of his lips away. He pressed harder, more earnestly as if she would somehow wander away from him. She felt his hand slide between the folds of fabric, his fingers clumsily brushing her torso.
"You are the most perfect doll. The mother of my daughter," the Puppet Maker whispered. He clasped his hands around her face.
Evangeline felt her eyes burning with anger. Her insides convulsed with disgust at his display of affection. Not for her, but for the slave he controlled.
"With you, I could create an army. Half-breeds have proven to be quite powerful," he said with a sickening smile.
She didn't know if she wanted to vomit or cry or both as he brought his searing lips against hers for another kiss. His hands worked to remove the band at her waist. Suddenly, he stopped and stared her in the eye.
"I want you to struggle," he said.
Her entire body jerked into motion and for a moment, she thought she may be free and willed herself to flee. Instead, her limbs moved sluggishly and weakly as they pressed against him in mock resistance. Her legs were stiff as she slowly ran from him. The fleeting feeling of freedom, the sensation of a struggle that was really his doing horrified her.
"Speak," he cried. His arms encircled her wriggling body once more as she felt her mouth regain its independence.
"Oh, god no!" she screamed. He laughed and her mind struggled with the voice that was hers but the body still possessed. "Stop! Don't touch me!"
The band fell away, and the robes pulled apart, revealing white undergarments and pink skin. She wanted to pull it back together, to cover herself, but her hands made no motion.
"Dammit, why won't you listen?" she screamed at her body.
The Puppet Maker pushed her to the floor. The robes fell open as he stood leering above her. He grasped her leg and tugged her closer, and she felt sick with the anticipation of what would happen next. Her voice was lost and she could say nothing.
"Sir!"
The sharp voice bit through the sounds of music and struggle. The Puppet Maker calmly turned his head towards his well-dressed minion, freezing for a moment.
"Yes, Dandy?" he said.
The demon's squared face held no expression towards the scene.
"We're off schedule and need your help in the building room for some of the more delicate processes. The doll you made has malfunctioned and destroyed several of the mechanical soldiers."
The Puppet Maker sighed and dropped Evangeline's leg. He snapped his fingers at the still twirling dolls and they stopped. They rushed over to Evangeline and lifted her up, adjusting her robes and hair.
"Another time, my dear," The Puppet Maker said. "You may sit. They'll bring you my daughter for feeding."
Evangeline sobbed silently, her mind dissolving into fits of rage, fear, and the disgust of violation. As the dolls led her back to the cushions, she could not even think of her daughter soon to be in her arms. She felt too helpless.
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Vergil's face was inches from the water; the steam from the boiling liquid seared his skin. A blistered hand was on his shoulder, pulling him downward as his hands braced themselves against the side of the boat. The boat tipped tightly with his weight until Dante grasped him around the waist and pulled backward.
The arm released and returned to its owner hidden in the depths of the boiling water. Vergil sat hard on the boat's seat then quickly leapt his feet. His weight rocked the boat, splashing searing water onto his leg. Dante placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying both their weights. The ferryman continued rowing, methodically dipping the oar into the water to carry them across, seemingly indifferent towards the attack.
Cries issued forth from the water: gurgling choking sounds as lungs inhaled liquid. Vergil's eyes scanned the shifting surface, watching arms bearing swords shoot out as hideously melted bodies emerged.
An axe wielding creature, its face a mess of flesh that was indistinguishable as human, reached the boat. Dante swung his sword in a wide arc, removing its head. The boat rocked violently with the momentum, and Vergil grabbed Dante to center their weight. We can't use swords, his thought quickly.
Two more latched onto the boat.
"Dante, give me a gun," Vergil hissed as splash of water burnt the flesh of his hand.
Dante slapped the broad side of the gun against Vergil's chest, struggling to keep his balance. Vergil untangled the gun from Dante's fingers and aimed it at the two creatures tilting the boat towards them. He fired twice, two perfect bullet holes appearing in their heads. They fell back into the water, three more rising to take their place.
The cavern erupted with sounds of bullets and their echoes. Creatures screamed in pain as they sunk into the water below. One threw itself against the boat, flopping the upper-half of its body into the boat. It swung the sword weakly and Vergil stepped onto the bench to avoid it.
The boat pitched towards it. Vergil and Dante began falling forward and they bent in half, straining their bodies against falling into the water. Heat wafted into Vergil's face. The demon slid out of the boat, sending Vergil and Dante tumbling onto the floor as it righted itself.
Vergil glanced at the ferryman who seemed rooted into place. As creatures grabbed its oar, he would calmly shake them loose and continue. Around the ferryman's long black robe, Vergil saw the approaching shore. He felt the grip of a demon on his shoulder and he fired the gun; the weight disappeared and he scrambled to his feet.
The shore edged painstakingly closer. Bodies floated in the water, new creatures emerging from beneath them. In the distance, Vergil could see the melted demons fighting each other, littering the river with their corpses.
He felt the boat bump against the rocky shore and he immediately leapt from the boat on onto the shore. Walking backwards, he continued firing into the demons. They swam to the shore, hands reaching for them. Slowly, they crawled, but as if tied to the water by an invisible noose, they could not fully emerge from it.
Vergil watched, and after a moment the demons halted their pursuit and disappeared into the boiling depths. The cavern became heavy with silence, except for the sound of his breathing.
Dante turned towards Vergil.
"That was hot!" he said. He bent over and put his hands on his knees, laughing.
Vergil shot him a withering glare and turned towards the door carved into the stone of the cavern.
A narrow set of stairs led upwards. He braced himself for an onslaught of sounds and sensations, but the climb was silent and he only smelled musty air. Faint light issued forth from the exit. As he neared it, he turned his body slightly and placed his hand on Yamato.
Emerging from the stairwell, a large room of blue marble lay before them. Torches lined the walls, sending faint shadows skittering across the floor and ceiling. In front of them, the floor was carved into squares like that of a massive chessboard. Vergil strained his ears, listening for any sound. The room responded with silence.
"I don't see anything," Dante said. He voice fell flat in the cavern.
"This should be heresy. The heretics are trapped in tombs of flames," Vergil responded.
"Something is going to jump out eventually. We might as well get started," Dante said.
They stepped forward together onto the squares. Behind them a wall of fire rose up. The cavern roared with sound of screams and flames as all hell broke loose. From the edges of the squares, walls of flame emerged. Rising from the floor, writhing forms burning inside their tombs of fire. They cried out in pain, unable to escape.
Flames shot up next to Vergil, singeing his arm. Suddenly, they began shifting, creating a maze of fire rushing towards them. Dante bolted and Vergil followed after, a single wall of flame separating them.
Vergil felt the sharp pain of heat on his back as he ran. Deftly, he jumped out of the way as four walls began to enclose around him. Dante appeared again next to him and Vergil pulled him out of the way just before a final wall trapped him.
He continued running, sweat pouring down his back. A flame leaped into life in front of him, licking his face with searing heat. He dodged to the side, encountering the screaming form of a charred body. Swiftly, he cut it down and continued, losing track of Dante in the melee of fire and screaming forms.
Suddenly, he came to a single unending wall of fire. He could see on the other side, a slight ledge and freedom. He bunched his coat around his face and leaped through the fire. The acrid stench of burning hair and leather filled his nose. His skin was screaming in protest to the heat around it. Vergil's feet hit the ledge and he rolled, no longer in the maze of flames.
He gently touched the skin of his face: tender as if sunburned. Looking up, he saw Dante standing over him, his face red like his demon form. Dante held out his hand to his brother who brushed it aside and stood up.
I feel so weak, he thought. He straightened his back and felt his skin protest as it was pulled tight. His chest ached from the deep gashes left by the demon and he could feel blisters forming from the boiling lake. The Puppet Maker's inferno was like an endurance test, and every unmovable mountain of a challenge seemed to grow larger as his body grew tired. Vergil closed his eyes. How can he claim to be her father if he was unable to overcome the madhouse of a deranged toymaker?
Green eyes stared at him.
"Verg?" Dante said quietly.
Vergil opened his eyes, his face again the perfect mask of unflappable stone. Passing Dante, he walked down the narrow path of the stone to the next test.
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Evangeline cringed inside. The flames heated her skin painfully and her heavy robes clung to her body with sweat. A few feet away, the dolls silently played with Persephone, waving rattles of silver above her head. After Evangeline had nursed her, the dolls redid her clothing and placed her too close to the fire. Despite their obvious mistake and lack of humanity, she felt an inkling of sympathy towards the wooden creatures. They looked nearly human, perhaps in some way they felt the weight of their bonds. At least for the moment, they were the only thing Evangeline could relate to.
Persephone fussed in their arms, occasionally letting out small wails. A continual ache in Evangeline's heart grew with every helpless cry. Then it dawned on her that if they never escaped. Even when the Puppet Maker grew tired of her and tossed her into the gallery with all the other dolls, Persephone would acclimate to his world. She would never remember how human she was, her flawed mother, or the father who would be desperate for her. The ache grew to dread and her heart felt as if it would stop beating.
In the hallway, the heavy sound of footfalls echoed. She stared straight at the dolls and her daughter, until the Puppet Maker put his face into her line of vision. A slight snarl was on his well-formed face, exposing the demonic truth which lay beneath his human façade. The unnatural lines of his face stood out suddenly and she was again aware of how many teeth he did possess.
"Look at me, my dear," the Puppet Maker said to her. Her eyes snapped towards him instantly.
"I think you've spent enough time with her," he said. "You do no good posed in front of this fire. What if I should have guests?"
Evangeline felt a moment of panic to be separated from her distressed child. The Puppet Maker gripped her forearm painfully and lifted her to her feet. Her eyes remained on him as she did and Persephone was lost to her sight. He led her from the room, and the last thing she heard was a high-pitched cry and her heart shattered.
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They entered into a small cavern and Vergil titled his head back. In front of them was a massive steel gate, stretching to the very top of the cavern. It was flanked on either side by two jutting cliffs. Rising from the metal of the gate were barbs of steel ready to stop and would be trespasser.
Dante let out a low whistle.
Vergil glanced at him sideways before rushing forward. As he passed beside the left boulder he heard a loud crash. He barely had enough time to stick out his arms in reflex before the heavy hammer slammed into his body, sending him reeling backwards and knocking the wind from his lungs. Stupid, he thought.
With the loud screech of metal, the massive steel minotaur stepped out from its hiding place. Like the metal warriors of before, its body was a patchwork of fused metal, nearly impenetrable. Adorning its head were two horns twisted like the branches of a tree.
Vergil fell to one knee as Dante sprinted forward towards the mechanical beast. With cry, Dante swung Force Edge towards the beast's torso only to have in slide down its side, leaving the creature unscathed. The minotaur slammed the hammer downward as Dante darted out of the way.
Vergil climbed to his feet and ran, leaping off the wall and towards the minotaur's head. The demon snapped its head upward towards him and reached one massive hand towards his falling form. Vergil twisted out of the way, landing behind the creature as Dante slammed his sword into the joint behind the demon's knee, sending it tumbling to the ground. The creature fell to its side, its metal hooves scrambling for a hold on the ground.
He stepped forward towards the demon, only to be stopped by its wildly swinging hammer. Swiftly, he jumped onto the demon's chest. His hands scrambled for an opening in the metal. The beast reached for him and Vergil flattened himself against its chest, digging his fingers into the plates around its neck but finding no opening into to the internal heart of the beast.
"Vergil! Get out of the way!" Dante shouted.
The demon pushed off the ground and Vergil jumped away from it, landing next to Dante.
"We need to get to its core," Vergil hissed.
"Yeah, so start hacking!" Dante snapped. He ran forward again. Vergil watched as his brother was thrown backward with a well thrown back hand by the minotaur. Dante threw himself at the monster again and again only to have the creature toss him away like a persistent gnat. His eyes scoured the demon's body for any opening, but the metal form was sealed shut.
His eyes traveled from the minotaur to the cliff behind it. Vergil rushed by the battling demons and leapt onto the cliff, gripping tightly to the stones. Quickly, he climbed hand over hand up the side of the cliff. He looked down briefly and saw the shrunken form of Dante hack at the demon.
He focused his eyes on a narrow ledge above his head. Reaching it, he climbed on top and pulled himself to his feet. Glancing down, he watched the two forms move below him. Slowly, the demon crossed beneath the ledge.
He jumped upwards, and in one fluid motion he unsheathed Yamato and easily sliced through the rock face. The stone began to rumble and he slammed his feet down hard on upon the weakened stone, sending them tumbling to floor below. He followed, riding a large rock down towards the minotaur.
Dante looked up and dashed away. The metal demon did not have the opportunity as the massive boulder carrying Vergil smashed into it its head. He felt the demon crumple like a tin can and the rumble of the boulder hitting the ground. As the dust cleared, he stepped down from the boulder and looked behind him.
A single sharpened end had smashed through the demon's outer shell, splitting open its chest and piercing the red orb of its heart. It lay beneath the rock like a dissected animal on a lab table.
Vergil turned towards Dante and smirked.
"Show off," Dante mumbled.
"You can learn a thing or two," Vergil said.
Dante rolled his eyes and walked towards the metal gate. With a swift kick, they groaned and opened slightly. Dante squeezed through the opening and Vergil followed, meeting the cursing Dante.
Stretching far into the cavern was a forest of thorns and brambles. Their twisted limbs stretched up towards the ceiling as if hoping to fill the entire space. The brambles stood just above their heads and stood so close it was impossible to see through them.
Experimentally, Vergil swung Yamato, cutting a large section of thorns and vines away. The separated pieces fell away and decayed, but in an instant, new vines had taken their place and reached towards Vergil's hand.
He looked at Dante whose tired face stared back.
"Keep swinging and move fast," Vergil said. He dived into the forest thorns.
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"I'm so sorry our time together is always cut short," the Puppet Maker said.
He led Evangeline through the great hall. Her heart began pounding with the expected attack. Set in the middle was a golden platform adorned with plush pillows of red and gold.
He led her to the pedestal and stopped, bringing her towards him. She felt sick as he held her closer. His hands traveled along her side, twining themselves inside the fold of the fabric. Briefly, he pressed his lips against hers.
Oh, god no, she thought. Her mind seemed too worn out to protest anymore. To her relief, he stopped and pulled away.
Sighing, he ran a hand through her hair, his face overly saddened.
"Things are not going so well in the factory. It seems we are behind schedule. I already had to destroy several dolls that couldn't properly do their jobs. But soon, we will have some time. As soon as I have everything in order to give our daughter a kingdom," he said.
Go to hell you sick fuck, she thought.
The Puppet Maker swept her up into his arms and easily jumped onto the platform. Carefully, he arranged her in a sitting position on the pillows. He spent a moment adjusting her robes before stepping down and staring at her with a satisfied expression.
He walked away and when silence overtook the room, the lights went out, leaving her in darkness.
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The edges of Vergil's coat had become nothing but tatters. He pressed his body through the brambles, feeling them pull at his hair and clothing, biting sharply into his skin. His exposed flesh was crisscrossed with tiny scratches. The vines seemed to reach out and grab him, pulling him backwards, preventing him from moving forward. With every three steps he took, he was dragged back another.
He pulled his arm wielding Yamato free of prickly branch and swung it sideways, lopping off a few feet of foliage. Quickly, he stepped through the path as the new vines grew around him. For an hour he had repeated this process again and again. Sweat had begun beading on his forehead, and his arm had stiffened from the repetitive motion. Dante a few feet to his side also faced the same obstacle. As fatigue began to slow him down, the brambles caught him more often and dragged him back further.
Vergil tried looking to see how far he had gone, but the vines required constant attendance. His mind had become blank in the never ending thorn forest; he was a demonic gardener, plowing down everything in his path.
He paused for a split second and was suddenly entrapped amongst the branches that had grown to replace their companions.
No! he growled in his head. I will not stop. Break free you pathetic excuse for a demon. You should have remained in hell for your weakness.
He tore his arm free. They need you. Save them. Save yourself, your family. Don't fail this time.
With a roar that erupted from the deepest regions of his heart, he hacked and slashed at the vines in front of him and charged forward. The thorns seemed to shrink away from this onslaught of fury as he tore at them like a madman, reaching for the end. A blue glow erupted from him, and he lost himself in within the demonic essence that carried him through his weakest moments. He was simply, a devil.
Suddenly, metal hit stone and he was shaken back to humanity like emerging from a deep sleep. He blinked and looked around at the clearing and the arched, stone doorway just a foot from him. Glancing behind him, he saw a blackened path of shredded and charred plant matter.
Dante poked his head up above the vines, the turned and cut his way towards Vergil's path. He ran down the trail of destruction just as it began to fill in.
"Whoa, Verg," he said as he reached his side. Tiny scratches covered Dante's face as he surveyed his brother with narrowed eyes. "You okay?"
Vergil looked down at his hand no longer covered with the small wounds from the thorns then back to Dante.
"I'm fine," he said and started towards the door.
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Trish ran. Her legs pumping faster than the ever had in her entire life. No demons pursued her, but she knew it would only be a matter of time. She just prayed to whatever god there may be that she would arrive in time.
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Please. I don't want it to end like this. I know you have no reason to listen to me. But she's just a baby. He's a devil, but make him godlike. Help him save her.
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Vergil took a cautious look over the lip of the pit. He heard a million cries issue forth from it, but could see nothing in its black depths. He glanced at his brother. Dante' lip was curled into a sneer, but his eyes were wide.
"None of this is real, Dante. It's just something the Puppet Maker created," Vergil said.
"He did one hell of a job," Dante said, not looking at the pit.
They looked up at the cavern that rose high above them. Wheeling above the pit, and high into the cavern were dozens of black forms. Dragon like creatures with green, scaly bodies, leathery wings, and long flew around absently. At the end of each foot was a furry lion's paw. One came close to the ledge where they were standing and Vergil saw the three heads joined together, each resembling an old man with a flowing beard. The eyes stared at nothing as it passed, as if they were wearing human masks.
"This is fraud," Vergil said.
"It looks pretty real," Dante said.
Vergil snapped his eyes towards him. Dante raised his hands in surrender.
"It was a joke," he said.
"We need to go up," Vergil said, ignoring his apology.
"Well that's easy enough," Dante said.
Vergil opened his mouth to suggest a plan, but Dante had already leapt onto the back of a passing demon. He gripped tufts of beard as he clung to beasts back. It made no sound, but fumbled in the air as its wings buckled with the extra weight. For a moment, it fell towards the pit, but strained its muscles and began gliding again.
Dante let out a whoop and pulled hard on the beast's hair. It shot upward towards its companions.
"Come on, Verg!" Dante shouted down.
Vergil glanced down at the pit that had no end, his less reckless side whispering in his ear. Then another demon passed by. It circled around the lip of the pit as if waiting for Vergil to jump.
He took a deep breath, waited for the beast to move closer, and leaped. Vergil's creature groaned as he landed hard on its back, just in front of the flapping wings. It wobbled for a moment, righting itself, and Vergil's face was tilted down towards the darkness below. His stomach lurched at the prospect of falling, but the demon corrected its flight. Vergil gripped a handful of gray, wiry hair and pulled. The beast hissed and pulled up, heading towards Dante.
The air whistled past his ears as they flew upwards. Suddenly, they were in a midst of horde of the flying creatures. His hand flew to Yamato's hilt, but they paid no heed to their mounted companions.
Just like the inferno, he thought.
Dante darted by, laughing heartily.
"Man, I haven't done this in ages," he said as he turned the demon around.
Vergil continued traveling upward, searching for the familiar exit. His mind was fixated on the next circle, and he knew what they would be facing.
Nearly at the top of the cavern, he spotted the entrance to a tunnel. As he flew by it, he felt a rush of cold air wash over him. He pulled hard on the demon's hair, moving it sideways. Within a few feet of the entrance's ledge, he jumped off, sending a few rocks falling to their doom below as he landed.
Dante flew by again, flipping the monster in midair acrobatics. After a quick figure eight, he frowned and brought the beast closer. Using its head a spring board, he jumped off and landed next to Vergil.
"You're no fun," Dante said.
"Excuse me if my daughter and lover are in dire trouble," Vergil snapped.
"Why so tense? You don't look so good," Dante said.
Vergil relaxed his furrowed brow and let out the breath he had been holding.
"Do you know what the last circle is?" he asked.
Dante shook his head.
"The final circle is treachery. Where the worst sinners are sentenced to spend an eternity encased in ice while the three betrayers of history are gnawed upon by the king of hell," Vergil said.
"You mean the devil?"
Vergil nodded the gravity of the words forming in his head. The fear of the unknown creature the Puppet Maker had created.
"We're going to meet Satan."
Let me know what you think. I'd love to hear your thoughts. I will work as quick as bunny to get the next chapter out but it may be a while. Peace.