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Devil
May Cry: The End of the Line
PART XI
They drove to an isolated and heavily wooded area on the south side of the island. As the track they were following reached an end, they were forced to get off and proceed on foot, however they didn't have far to go. Covered in writhing ivy and vegetation, aged, crumbling stone steps led them down a steep valley. In the distance, Lady could hear the roar of a waterfall.
They at last reached an area that was so thick with plant life and tree's that Dante was forced to hack them away with his Rebellion sword. Lady glanced warily around, searching for any signs of Nelo. She half expected to see him sitting in a treetop or on a branch - ready to swoop down and attack. But of the dark knight there was no sign.
"Damn
bugs!" Dante growled, beating his hands about in an effort to swat
the teeming insect life that buzzed around them. Lady ignored him and
strode past, staring at something.
"This
must be it." she said. Dante peered over her shoulder and nodded.
The tangle of tree's and vines partially concealed a low stone wall decorated with bizarre carvings. Directly ahead was a narrow opening that descended into darkness. From the looks of things it had once been blocked by a sliding section of wall, but either side of the opening were indentations.
"Luce & Ombra ... Sparda's weapons. And here, a groove for his sword." Lady gestured to a carved recess above the opening that bore a remarkable resemblance to the strange demonic Sparda sword.
Dante reached up and wiped the sweat from his brow. The humidity was killing him, and the pair were still wearing their cold weather gear from their hike through Tibet. Practically panting from the heat, Dante peeled his gloves off, tossing them aside along with his thick red jacket. He rolled up the sleeves of his black sweatshirt and buckled his sword/gun belt around his chest. Lady removed her own fur-lined jacket and dropped it in a heap on the ground along with her gloves.
"Its
very ... low profile." Lady observed, checking through her guns to
make sure they were loaded and working. Dante shrugged, checking that
his Devil Arms were secure.
"Lets
do this." he said, standing before the narrow opening that was like
the yawning mouth of some slumbering beast. Lady came up alongside
him, holstering a pistol and nodding.
They descended into the Tomb, the darkness quickly giving way to the faint glow of Luminite rocks that had been set into the walls and ceiling of the underground structure. They proceeded with caution, but it wasn't long before they stumbled across their first trap.
The problem was it had already been triggered.
"That's
not a good sign." Lady murmured, staring at the bent and twisted
metal spikes jutting from the floor and ceiling. From the looks of
things someone had driven a tank through them.
"Nelo."
Dante murmured. They carefully stepped through the gap in the spikes
that had been twisted open by the previous passage of Angelo.
As they continued deeper into the tomb, they saw similar sights - Traps that had already been triggered by someone else; A boulder that had been smashed to rubble; light traps that had been shattered; bladed door traps in which the entire door had been torn from the frame. With each trap they passed, the stronger the feeling of unease that grew inside of them.
After about ten minutes of this Dante steered them down an alternate path that led them to a spiral staircase, which wound deeper down into the Tomb. It ended in a short stretch of corridor, the left side of which consisted of fluted archways. These opened into a cavernous hall filled with stone pillars. And at the centre of the chamber - a stepped pyramid, atop of which lay a sarcophagus. The carved figure on the heavy stone lid was unmistakably made in the likeness of the demon Sparda.
"Dante-" Lady started to say. She was interrupted as his hand clamped down over her mouth. He turned to her and placed his index finger against his lips, instructing her to be quiet.
Resting in the hands of the carved Sparda was the actual Sparda sword itself. The weapon that Vergil - no, Nelo - had taken from Trish and placed here. They also noticed a circle of glowing golden orbs placed at set intervals on the ground around the sarcophagus, each one pulsing and throbbing from some inner light.
"He's
here ..." Dante breathed, his words scarcely more than a whisper.
"Dante,
if the ceremony has already started," Lady whispered, dropping into
a crouch beside him. "We have to stop it before he revives Sparda,
otherwise Mundus will-"
"I
know." he said, cutting her off. "Wait here."
He
somersaulted forwards, through the archway, falling and twisting to
land lightly on his feet. Lady gaped down at him in a mixture of
surprise and annoyance. It was at least a thirty, forty foot drop and
she couldn't make it without his help. She let out a frustrated
sigh as he darted off, quickly halting and pressing his back against
one of the many pillars.
"Fine,
I'll just wait here then shall I?" She mumbled.
She reached around to pull the Kalina-Ann towards her, when suddenly she felt the cold metal of a sword blade lightly rest upon her shoulder ...
