Devil May Cry's office was filled with stale air. The windows seemed lightly frosted with dust and the entrance doors squeaked more as they were opened and then closed. Lady entered the depressing scene and looked about. Everyone was rather silent, even Saya's usual attempts at optimism seemed suppressed.
"Did you guys wake up to find your puppy dead or something?" Lady requested of them while freeing Kalina Ann from her shoulder.
Despite being mostly silent, Dante still reclined in his desk chair with his feet propped up.
"Eh, slow day. Plus, you know, the huge shark thing."
The missile launcher thudded softly on the pool table as Lady set it down and adjusted her holsters so it would be more comfortable to sit.
"You mean it really threw you for a loop?"
"Hell no." He responded instantly.
"It was just kind of strange to see something that huge, that powerful, and for it to have come out of nowhere. We've had plenty of demon attacks lately, but none of them were that powerful. You usually get some kind of indication that a higher-level demon is coming; little runts running their mouths and such. Well, when they have mouths anyway."
The newcomer looked about and saw that Diva wasn't reclined on Vergil as she usually was. They still shared the same couch, but things felt a bit different between them. It had been a couple days since the run-in with the Megaladon at the harbor, but whatever had happened between them apparently wasn't fully gone yet.
"So you're thinking that maybe there's something else going on?"
Dante scratched his head.
"I don't know. Thinking back on it, the thing didn't feel 'demonish' to me."
One of Lady's eyebrows rose.
"Demonish?"
"Shut up. I mean the shark seemed more normal."
"Normal? It was bigger than a damn beluga whale, had glowing red eyes, and wasn't affected by gunfire."
Dante finally pulled his feet from the desk and sat up straight.
"Remember that chiropteran you ran into; the one that seemed different than the others?"
It was kind of hard to forget, but she acknowledged his question.
"Maybe there's some kind of demonic virus or whatever going around, mutating things in the area. Could explain how those two events happened when we didn't see any signs of them coming."
"They did feel different to me." Saya spoke, chirping up from her silence.
"I can't explain it, but they did feel unnatural. How about you, Diva?"
The girl remained silent for a few moments before quietly saying that she'd felt the same way.
"So maybe it's some kind of demonic chemical warfare?" Lady asked no one in particular. Her question was met with a grumble by Dante, who rose from his chair fully.
"What the hell's going on in this world? I remember the days when fighting demons off was as simple as taking down a horde of them or closing some portal. But now they're going all World War One on us."
Vergil seemed to linger in thought for a while before speaking up what he thought the cause might be.
"Ritorno could be in charge of the demon world now."
His sentence was enough to shake the staleness from the air as everyone heard him.
"He's alive? Why the hell didn't you mention that before?" Dante spoke in a raised voice, though he seemed more irritated that his brother had remained silent than intimidated by the man's return.
"It's quite possible that he isn't. After Terrence got those powers he defeated Ritorno quickly and struck him out of the tower's wall. I couldn't tell what happened after that. I assumed he was dead."
"Diva, did you see him?" Saya asked her twin.
"No. I came down after Terrence. I knew he was back, but I thought he died after the Marionette was destroyed."
The group hadn't forgotten what Ritorno did last time, but it would be strange for him to still be in the demon world. If anything, it was likely he would go to see Enzeru. After all, bringing his brother back had been the man's ultimate goal.
"Hey, now that I think about it, if Ritorno is Enzeru's brother then you have like a super-great evil uncle, Lady." Dante spoke.
She sighed and told him this wasn't the right time.
"Well either way, there isn't much to worry about. I mean, if he doesn't have his overpowered sword and Terrence can kill him easier than stepping on an ant then-"
"We can't leave it to that." Vergil interrupted his brother.
"There's no way of knowing whether or not he really does have some kind of demonic virus. And if that's the case then it might be capable of infecting us by the time it's completed."
It was an unsettling prospect, and Vergil was right; they couldn't just sit around waiting to see if such a thing were true.
"Either way, Ritorno seemed to know something about what's going on. If he is still alive then maybe we could get a few answers out of him."
"Just one problem; how the hell do we find him? I don't know if you remember, but the demon world isn't exactly two blocks down the street. Plus, we don't even know if he's still there." Dante retorted.
"Then we ask Enzeru."
It didn't take long for the group to agree that it was the most likely way to find Ritorno. After all, even if they didn't share some kind of twin-like mental bond, he was still the only person in the area that knew about spells. Despite having lost most of his powers, he could probably still put some kind of locator spell together.
"But if he is still out there, we shouldn't all go to Enzeru's. I don't want to come home and find my shop trashed again." Dante spoke.
"About half of us should stay here." Vergil agreed.
"Well I'm going. He might be weird but Enzeru is still my family. Plus I don't know how much good I would be against a psychotic demon-enhanced superman." Lady spoke.
"Haji and I will stay here." Saya added.
"I'm driving." Dante furthered.
Vergil and Diva looked at each other. To everyone's surprise they actually seemed to be silently deciding which one should stay behind. Ultimately Saya told them it was alright, and that she and Haji would be enough. With that the departing group lightly armed themselves and then got into Dante's car to leave.
They drove their usual route towards the flamboyant man's estate. As they did it was made evident to them that people in the surrounding areas were finally starting to move back in en masse. It never ceased to surprise the group of demon hunters how many people jumped on the opportunity to move here. It was as if they had signed up for employee positions at Useless Cannon Fodder Inc.
Still, the dirtier parts of town seemed more or less uninhabited. It made sense considering people didn't usually move into a new city with the intent of living in poverty. There were a few houses with lights on, and several others without power but which still seemed to be inhabited.
Their trip was uneventful and demonless. No crazy people began shouting at them. No buildings were blown apart, sending dangerous rubble plummeting down. In fact, they didn't even hit a red light. It was quite a pleasant ride. Well, aside from the distance between Diva and Vergil.
Despite the situation, Vergil tried to pay attention to the houses and the sidewalks. There was nothing to be said between Diva and he, as there was really no way to prove who was right about Terrence. And until that matter was resolved it was likely they would be as they were.
A particular building passed by as Dante drove down the street, and Vergil saw movement within. Such a thing wasn't strange, considering there were several homeless people about the area already. However, he recalled the building from a time earlier on in the year when they had come across it; Enzeru had cleared out a nest of demons within before their arrival.
"Dante, stop the car."
His brother didn't waste time doing so while asking why.
"That building, the one where Enzeru told us that something was coming. I saw something moving inside."
"So?"
"I just want to check it out."
"Fine, you got five minutes."
Vergil didn't wait for the car to come to a complete stop before exiting. He made sure to bring Yamato with him and noticed that Diva wasn't following. It didn't surprise him, but it was still a bit painful that she seemed so detached.
The half-demon shook it off and entered through the broken entranceway. If it was possible, the interior appeared to be in worse shape than before. Still, he didn't see any signs of life within. He decided to start in the room they had first seen Enzeru when a sword thrust out from behind a corner at him. His reflexes drew the young man's head back as Yamato was drawn and slashed through both the air and the wall. He didn't feel it go through anything else and, as he heard a few bounding steps up some nearby stairs, Vergil understood why.
"Well, at least my investigation wasn't a dead end." Vergil thought while following the sounds through the unfamiliar building.
When reaching the top of the steps he was met with a large old-fashioned desk being thrown his way. He bisected it with Yamato and didn't even break stride as the hardwood pieces crushed the floor and wall behind him. A loud crash was heard up ahead, and he saw plaster falling from a hole in the ceiling. A list of scenarios went through his head before the silver-haired man ducked down just in time to avoid having a sword thrust through his head. The weapon withdrew from the ceiling and he scowled.
"It has to be him. No one else is that cheap."
It was just Ritorno's fighting style to use distractions in order to get in a sucker punch or a cheap stab. It went along with the perks of his previous weapon.
Vergil cut a large gash in the ceiling and leapt up through the falling dust and debris. But before even setting down on the floor above, a sword swung down on him which he had to block. As the cloudy air finally thinned out a bit he saw that it was, in fact, Ritorno.
"Well, now, imagine running into you in a place like this."
"Save it, Ritorno. We need to talk."
"Ha!"
His enemy pushed him back through the air and dove towards his legs, swinging at them. Vergil placed Yamato between the two objects and avoided being maimed before the two landed on the other side of the hole.
"What makes you think I've any interest in talking to you?"
"I don't really care what your interest is. But the fact is that you're the best lead we've got as to what's going on around here."
"Oh? Did the world not turn back into candy once you killed the big bad wolf?"
Once more they clashed swords, though this time Vergil loosened his grip on Yamato and stepped past his opponent's guard so he could strike Ritorno's sword downwards. He held the blades together, trying to bide as much time as he could.
"There isn't any time for your psychotic games. The person who cut you into cutlets before kicking you off the tower is here in the human world, and I want to know what you know about him."
The memory of being defeated so easily brought down Ritorno's elated mood and he freed a hand from Vergil's grip to swing at him before backing away.
"What do you think I am? The oracle of plot devices? I don't know the brat's life story, I just know that he got the upper hand of that weak little demon and took those powers for himself."
Down below the opponents could hear someone entering the building. From the sound of the steps and the person's shoes, it sounded like Diva. Vergil was relieved that her feelings still prompted her to help him, but it would be more difficult to interrogate Ritorno with her around.
"What- damnit!" He cursed in his head as he realized Ritorno had made off towards the roof.
"You're not getting away… not until I've gotten some answers."
Vergil's transformed body thrust itself up through the remaining stories of the building, passing through the rotting wood and plaster with ease. When he no longer felt a roof above him, Vergil allowed himself to fall back down to earth, landing on the rooftop. As luck would have it, he arrived just before Ritorno had made it up the stairs. Despite his strength, the man seemed at least a bit intimidated at the sight of a transformed Vergil.
"Like I said, I have some questions for you. And you're going to answer them whether you like it or not."
"…you think because your skin's made of genuine leather that you'll be able to kill me?" Ritorno tried to taunt him.
"It worked on Enzeru."
His suspicions of Ritorno being the weaker brother were confirmed when he seemed more intimidated. Still, it was to Vergil's fortune that the man didn't know that he had been a different person during the fight with Enzeru.
"And you think that reminding me of that is going to get me to spill my guts, do you?"
"You're a coward, Ritorno. You try to hide it behind strength, but you're afraid of death. If I find out that you're just some demon running around having fun, you're free to do as you wish. But if you're the one behind this demonic virus, or you know who is…"
He drew down into an Iajutsu stance.
Ritorno scowled at him and Vergil supposed a 'warning shot' was in order. His left arm would do. With unparalleled grace and speed he drove forward and pulled Yamato from its sheath, using his momentum to slash faster than his enemy could react. However, when it finally struck something it was a sword, and not Ritorno's. To both men's surprise, Terrence now stood between them, blocking Vergil's attack. Using the opportunity, Ritorno leapt off the building to another one and continued darting from roof to roof before dropping down out of sight. Hatred replaced Vergil's surprise.
"What the hell did you do? I was trying to get answers from him!"
Despite Vergil's increased powers, Terrence didn't seem intimidated.
"Enzeru theorized that some manner of virus is being concocted by the demons as well. If you're right about Ritorno knowing something, he will be able to answer questions better while he has lungs."
"I am well-versed in the art of interrogating demons! Don't think you know more than me just because you got juiced up! Now get out of my way!"
"Juicing is a reference to taking anabolic steroids, right? If that's the case wouldn't your overbearing anger and aggression make you more akin to that description?"
"I said get out of my way, boy!" He shouted again before pushing Terrence back and off-balance. It was the first time the young man showed any signs of surprise, and it might have been the demon blood, but Vergil rather enjoyed it. However, before the situation could progress any further the two were interrupted.
"Stop! Both of you!"
Vergil felt himself fall out of Devil Trigger at Diva's shout, though Terrence merely regained his composure. She seemed relieved that they hadn't continued with the confrontation but as Terrence sheathed his sword he began walking to the edge of the building.
"Enzeru doesn't know Ritorno's movements, but as evidenced he will come to his brother eventually. We will be waiting for him when he does. That's all you need to know."
As the girl turned to speak to him he was already gone. She gave a rare sigh and turned back towards Vergil. He was still holding Yamato.
"Are you going to use that against me as well?" She asked him, sounding more vulnerable than most would ever hear.
His anger dissipated and he sheathed his sword and began to put his hair back up- Diva looked down at the ground and he noticed how much the transformation had drawn him back into his old habits. Vergil allowed his hair to fall back down and he walked over to her.
"Diva, I'm sorry."
But when he tried to hug her she backed away.
"So am I." She said before stepping to the edge of the roof and dropping to the street below. She, Dante and Lady could be heard speaking as he stood on the rooftop alone. He felt a hand transform for a moment before he willed it to return to normal and descended as well.
