OveractiveImaginer: Of course I've seen Advent Children! And between you and me *leans in closer to whisper* I actually used the one-winged angel idea for Tristan. You're way too tuned in to my writer senses! :D

*deep breath* Alright, everyone! (And by everyone, I mean, like, two people). Here is the final chapter! READ ON AND ENJOY!

Tristan hovered in the air for another moment, but the glowing orange hue that surrounded him began to fade. He wrapped his long wing around his body, shielding himself into a protective cocoon. After a moment, he carefully floated towards the ground.

A blinding light shined around him, so bright that Dante had to shield his eyes. When the light dimmed and eventually disappeared, Tristan lay on the ground before Dante on his hands and knees, clutching at his stomach.

Dante staggered to his feet and made his way to Tristan's side, but when he did, he halted in his tracks. Tristan drew his hand back from his stomach, and the wound Vergil had inflicted was completely gone. He looked up at Dante with confused eyes.

Dante managed a laugh. "What the hell are you?"

Tristan chuckled, too, rising slowly to his feet. "I wish I knew."

Dante clapped him on the shoulder and grinned. "I guess I owe you a thank-you."

"A big one," Tristan corrected.

"I'd be dead if it weren't for you, kid."

Tristan offered him a weak, proud smile.

But reality sank in quickly, and Dante stepped back with a frown and heavy eyes. Vergil was gone. He was gone, and he had taken the most powerful weapon ever to exist with him. And he had also taken both of the amulets.

But even before that, there was something more important to deal with.

Dante faced Tristan once more, struggling to ignore the pain that weighed down his body. "We've got to get back to Limbo City," he said quickly. "I've got one last promise to fulfill."

Apparently, as it seemed, Dante was the only demon-hybrid lacking in the teleportation skills department. Although, while teleporting with Tristan, things felt different: he didn't feel lost in some hopeless abyss of time and space, or like the walls of gravity were closing in on him. Instead, he felt unrestricted and free. It was a welcoming sensation that made the pain subside.

And incidentally, when they found themselves in Limbo City, he was healed of the wounds Vergil had given him. Tristan's Devil Trigger had not only healed him, but had healed Dante as well.

He had to rely on insight to find Vergil's lair, because when he had first been captured, he'd had no idea where it was. That must have been Vergil's point, Dante thought.

With Tristan at his side, they stopped in the middle of an empty street in Limbo City. Dante summoned a deep breath and closed his eyes. Kat, where are you?

He remembered Kat's tale about how she and Vergil had met: he had found her wandering through Limbo and had rescued her. Maybe, just maybe, he could find her there again.

"What are we doing here?" Tristan asked.

Dante faced him. "When we met, you asked what it was that Vergil had on me that kept me doing his work. Well, I'm going to show you."

"Is it family?" he inquired.

"Something like that," Dante returned somberly. "And I've got to find her."

He closed his eyes again and reached across the space of his mind. Kat, it's Dante. Are you out there?

He waited for another moment, but gained no response. He would have to get into Limbo on his own.

Then, he had an idea. He turned towards Tristan with a calculating grin and a light bulb over his head. "Hey. You're a demon."

Tristan shuffled his feet nervously. "Yeah, so?"

"I need to get into Limbo," he explained. "But the only way to do that is if I'm dragged in by the Demon King or another demon."

Tristan shrugged. "Not following."

Dante took a step back, stretching his arms out in surrender. "Attack me."

Tristan laughed. "Are you crazy?"

"It's the only way to get into Limbo. And the only way I might be able to find Kat. I need your help, Tristan."

Tristan stared at him with pleading eyes for a long moment before sighing and giving in. "Fine," he muttered. "The things I have to do for you, Dante."

He cracked his neck and took a step back. Then, he drew in a deep breath.

Here goes nothing, he thought. He stretched his arms out to the side and lifted high above the ground, a glowing aura of orange light surrounding him. His fingers stretched, and his nails morphed into sharp talons. The single black wing split through the skin on his back, levitating him above the ground. The rest of his body followed suit, until a hulking gargoyle hung in the air.

Dante sighed, closing his eyes. "I'm gonna regret this in the morning."

Tristan drew his arm back, and a ball of orange energy appeared in the palm of his hand. Dante braced himself, and Tristan launched the ball of energy his way. It pummeled Dante in the stomach, sending him flying backwards until he collided with a brick wall in the distance behind him. He groaned in pain as his entire body ached, and he slumped forward onto his hands and knees.

The ground beneath him immediately changed, as did the sky above him and the scenery around him. A general feeling of hopelessness and desperation began to spread over him. "Yup," he groaned, pushing himself to his feet and dusting himself off. "I'm definitely back in Limbo."

Tristan lowered himself to the ground in the distance, and another ball of energy appeared in his hand. Dante waved a hand at him, closing the distance between them. "You're good, kid," he called. "We're in Limbo now, if you can't tell already –"

Tristan sprang into the air and hurtled the ball of energy towards Dante once more.

"Whoa!" Dante cried. He unsheathed Rebellion with barely enough time to deflect the attack. He swung at the ball of energy like it was a baseball, and sent it flying into the distance. It shattered the window of a nearby building.

Dante quickly summoned Arbiter and smashed the heavy weapon into the ground. The tremor spread across the earth, headed straight for Tristan. Standing directly on the fault line, he was launched into the air. A second later, he landed flat on his face. The orange light surrounding him immediately extinguished, and he returned to his normal human form.

After a hesitant moment, Dante sheathed Arbiter. He took careful steps towards Tristan, ensuring that no threat remained.

Tristan groaned and slowly lifted his head towards Dante. "What the hell was that all about?" Dante demanded angrily.

Tristan pushed himself from the ground, rubbing his head. "I…I don't know," he muttered. "But whatever it was…well, I'm sorry."

Dante stared at him for a moment before shaking his head and sighing. "Remind me never to make you mad."

Tristan tried to shake his head clear of the ache, but it remained, hanging on like an ominous warning. He lifted his head and looked up at the defunct scenery on all sides, at the way gravity didn't seem to exist. So this is Limbo, he thought. Why do I feel like I've been here before?

"KAT!" Dante cried furiously, interrupting his thoughts.

Dante charged down the street towards a limp body lying at the mouth of an alley. A large, glowing glyph blocked her from the Stygians standing outside of it, attempting to penetrate the shield and kill her.

Dante made quick work of the lesser demons. With a couple swings of Rebellion and a few potshots from Ebony and Ivory, the street was vacant. As soon as the demons were rid of, the glyph disappeared.

Dante rushed forward with Tristan at his side. He collapsed to his knees beside Kat, cradling her into his arms. The spray can fell out of her hands, gently clinking against the ground.

Her eyes fluttered open and stared up at Dante. After a moment, she managed a smile. "You came back."

"Like I said I would," he returned with a weak grin.

"Did you…did you stop Vergil?"

He lowered his gaze, ashamed. "No. I didn't."

After a moment, she managed a smile. "I'm just glad you're alive."

Dante laughed. "That makes two of us."

With Dante's help, she slowly sat up. He planted a comforting hand on her back, watching with concerned eyes. "Vergil trapped me in Limbo as soon as you set out to Fortuna," she said, her voice hoarse.

"I should've known he wouldn't keep his word," Dante muttered irritably.

"But it wasn't all in vain," she said with a weak grin.

Dante frowned. "How do you mean?"

Then, for the first time, she seemed to notice Tristan. She opened her mouth to speak, but then looked up at him. Her face instantly froze, and her eyes filled with terror. "Who is he?" she breathed.

Dante glanced up at him. "Ah, sorry," he muttered. He helped Kat to her feet and clapped a hand on Tristan's shoulder. "He's the new guy. His name is Tristan Elliot."

She continued to stare at him with wide eyes, as if she'd seen a ghost.

Tristan swallowed nervously and reached a hand forward. "Nice to meet you," he said.

Kat stared down at his hand like she'd never seen anything like it.

Dante chuckled. "Don't worry, Kat. He's a friend. He saved my life, actually. Vergil would've skewered me if he hadn't been there."

"He…he's a demon," Kat muttered, her eyes locked firmly upon him.

Tristan frowned, glancing at Dante. "How does she know that?"

"She's a psychic," Dante explained. "She can sense these kinds of things." He turned to Kat again. "He's trustworthy, Kat. I promise you."

She continued to stare at him for a long moment before finally shaking herself out of the trance. She reached for his hand and gently shook it. "Sorry," she said softly. "It's just…I've never met anyone like you before."

"Well, I guess I'm proud to be the first," he said, managing a chuckle.

He moved to pull his hand out of her grasp, but she instantly reached forward and gripped it with her other hand, holding it in place. "Uh…" he said slowly. "Is everything…okay?"

She lowered her gaze and stared down at his hand. "You're very powerful," she said quietly. "I can feel it."

"Well," he said, clearing his throat and pulling his hand out of her grasp. "That's, uh…that's interesting." He glanced nervously at Dante, but found him staring back with the same suspicious, curious gaze. Do they know? he thought anxiously.

Finally, Kat shook her head clear. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out. I've just never been in contact with power like yours before. Not even with Dante or Vergil."

"Don't let it get to your head, though," Dante warned Tristan with a grin. "You've got awhile before you catch up to me."

He forced a laugh, relieved to be out of the hot seat. "Yeah. I don't doubt it."

And just like it had never happened, she turned back to Dante. "Anyway," Dante said, "you were saying?"

"When I was in Limbo," she resumed, "I found something – something I'd never noticed before. It was like a mirrored dimension to Limbo."

"So…Limbo within Limbo?" Dante asked skeptically.

"Something like that," she said, nodding. "I found it the first day Vergil trapped me inside, but I couldn't find it again after that." She paused, drawing in a deep breath. "It was a portal. I think it can lead us into the netherworld."

"You mean," Tristan spoke up, "into Hell?"

Kat nodded. "Straight to the devil himself. How else do you think the demons end up in Limbo?"

Dante stroked his chin, staring down at the ground. "So as long as there's a Demon King," he mused, "there will always be Limbo. And as long as there is Limbo, there will always be demons."

"And as long as there are demons," Tristan sighed, "there will always be Mundus, at the heart of everything."

"Unfortunately, yes," Kat said.

"I thought you had good news for us," Dante said.

Kat grinned. "I do. See, I've had a lot of time to think things over during the past few days, and I came up with a theory." She drew in another deep breath. "Mundus may always have the potential to rebirth, but he isn't the only one. And as long as Vergil is running around with the Force Edge, humanity is pretty much doomed."

"You're losing me…" Dante said.

"Sorry to say it, but the three of us can't stop Vergil on our own."

"So, what, then?" Tristan asked, shrugging. "You want us to resurrect Mundus and use him against Vergil? That would never work."

"Not Mundus," she said, her eyes alight with excitement.

"Who, then?" Dante asked.

She met his gaze and grinned once more. "Your father," she said. "Sparda."

SPARDA! That guy has never really gotten the attention he deserves. So I want to give it to him.

That sounds weird.

So there it is, folks! The end of the first (short) story! It's into the depths of Hell we go!

Thanks to everyone who has followed, favorited, and reviewed my story thus far! And another thanks to anyone who does any of the above after this point. You know I do it all for you guys. ;)

And yes, I realize I didn't reveal to you Tristan's origins...you're going to have to stay tuned for that! ;)

So, yes, as you might have already figured out, I AM writing a sequel to the story. I hoped to be almost done with it by now, but I am definitely lagging. I've got other stuff to do, too, more than I realize.

So that being said, I don't know EXACTLY what date I will post the first chapter of the next book, but I swear on my honor that I WILL post it. You can count on it! And just so I don't leave you in the dark, I will give you an estimated date of mid-August - that's only about a month away. So I'd better get on it.

Keep your eyes open for the sequel, titled "DmC: Into the Inferno."

And I look forward to regrouping with you guys then! SEE YA! ;)