Epilogue: Dance With The Devil
Devil May Cry Establishment:
The woman known exclusively as 'Lady" considered herself a woman of, put mildly, exacting patience since the years of her youth. Similarly, she'd been around the block more than enough times before and since encountering Dante that she had been certain there wasn't anything left in this world that could surprise her. "Had been," being the operative term here, as in past-tense.
She leaned forward on the desk which Dante was lounging behind. "So let me get this straight, not only did you not deal with the Order of the Sword. You didn't even close all of the Hell Gates? You left one in the care of some fat-titted witch?"
The half-demon in the red coat shrugged unflappably. "Seemed like a nice girl, wasn't bothering anyone. Seemed terrified that I got the best of her." Dante leaned forward resting his head casually on his hands. "I think she'll stay on the straight and narrow, at least for a good long while."
She glared pointedly at Dante, but held her tongue. Unless she was going to march up there herself she didn't really have a leg to stand on when it came to further criticism. And a witch that could 'kill' Trish, full-demon that she was, they were probably beyond her without counting the army of lesser demons. She wasn't happy about it, but that was really the end of the matter. At least, as Dante had said, until that witch thought she could get cute or something. They always did…
A voice, heavy with sheer presence, boomed from behind her. "Dante Sparda, I presume?"
She jumped, suppressing a shriek. Dante started, albeit to a significantly lesser degree. And she spun around with the kind of speed only fear could bring. There was, a figure there. Tall, hooded, head tilted down far enough that even with their rough eight feet of height their eyes were hidden. And, the lower half of their face seemed swallowed in darkness, even in the bright lights of Dante's shop.
She heard Dante smack his lips, preparing to say something flippant, but a third voice, Trish's, cut in. "And who's asking?" The blonde stalked past her, towards the dark figure. "Because we're closed right now, and I'm not in the mood to-"
She blinked, there was the sound of an impact, and when she opened her eyes Trish was crumbling to the ground while simultaneously flying towards the wall, an angry red welt at the base of her neck. "Silence, wench."
A chair scraped against the floor, Dante stood, and spoke with just the slightest edge of seriousness to his voice. "Ok tall dark and spooky, you made your point. Now who's asking?"
The figure slowly raised their face, still concealed completely in darkness, save for the eyes, two molten, blood red, glowing rubies in the black. "Erasmus, Erasmus Killgore. I believe you are familiar with my daughter. You did run her through, after all." The hood and connected cloak evaporated in a stream of black mist, revealing an undeniably grand suit of armor crowned with soaring spikes that seemed to encase this, man, from head to toe save his face. His hands were now clasped behind his back, standing with perfect posture. "I do hope such an experience has not yet faded from your mind. Few enough individuals exist that can exceed Persephone's raw power."
Dante spread his arms, a cocksure grin spreading across his lips. "So let's just say I remember. What about it?"
Erasmus's arms un-clasped, and as they fell to his sides a black-red flame began to coalesce in his right hand, one which formed a blood-red, massive blade at least as long as he was tall. "Now what do you think?"
She backed the hell out of the center of the two, towards where Trish had been struck, as Dante smirked lightly. "Huh-"
She blinked again, and in that timeframe Dante drew his pistols and fired a barrage, a hail of lead aimed perfectly towards this 'Erasmus.' The latter didn't even move, or, she didn't see him move. Disturbingly, there also lacked the sound of lead striking metal…
Slowly, casually, Erasmus brought up his left hand, clutched in a fist, turned it, and slowly opened it. One, two, a steady stream of perfectly formed bullets fell to the floor with a clatter as they scattered upon impact. He'd caught every single one, effortlessly.
Erasmus's eyes narrowed, and a low, menacing growl oozed from his hidden mouth. "Don't waste my time, boy."
Forcing herself to keep here eyes open, she watched as the dark man lunged forward, swinging his giant blade with only his right hand. Dante's desk flew apart in two perfectly cut halves as the devil hunter rose slowly behind it, having jumped just out of reach of the red blade. Ebony and Ivory rang out again at close range, but all she heard was splintering wood from the floor.
The invader paused, eyes still deadly narrow. "What did I just say?"
Another lunge, a great clash of metal as Dante successfully, if barely, parried a brutal swipe. But she blinked, and when she opened her eyes again it was just in time to see Erasmus's left hand closing in a crushing grip around Dante's neck. There was a brief, visible squeeze as Dante struggled in the iron grasp before Erasmus almost casually hurled Dante out, and through, the front door.
The invader made two slow yet purposeful steps to follow, paused, and turned his baleful gaze upon her. Ruby eyes pinning her in place like frozen spears. "If you value your life, you'll stay right where you are and not intervene. This is a matter of pride."
The giant man stalked out the shop with nary another sound… and yet despite his warning and the vice of terror upon her vocal chords she crept along the floor to the front of the shop to peer out the gaping hole where the front door used to be, barely sticking the top of her head out just so she could see what was happening. That 'happening' happened to be a Dante unsteadily rising to his feet getting an uppercut hook to the jaw that crunched bone and tossed the devil hunter at least fifteen yards along the street.
Erasmus spoke as he again, deliberately stalking in pursuit. "Really now, this is all you have? I'm disappointed."
Dante recovered and collected himself enough to fight back, lunging forward with, what did he call it, his Stinger move. But the lunge was dodged, the point of Dante's sword only just sliding by Erasmus's ebon carapace before the dark man's left hand closed upon Dante's sword hand. More bones were crushed, and Erasmus flipped Rebellion around and drove Dante's sword through the devil hunter's gut before kicking both back past the shop door.
Glaring ire and malevolence at Dante as the devil hunter rose again, Erasmus spoke. "Given this, I feel compelled to purge all memory of Persephone's defeat at your hands to avenge the indignity. At which point, I'm going to have some rather strong words for her on shirking her combat training. Still-" He gestured to the shop doors where she was cowering. "… Yours is not the only life I'm going to need to extinguish for that memory to cease existing."
Realizing what Erasmus was saying her blood froze in her veins, considering that him tossing Dante around meant he was far out of her league. But Dante let out an echoing cry, and screamed back towards Erasmus with a flare of red energy and the blade of Rebellion properly directed.
Erasmus blocked the strike, eyes narrowing once again. But when he spoke, she could almost see the ghostly impression of a smile in the shadow of his helmet. "… That's more like it..."
Author's Note: First, probably several years overdue to 'completely' wrap this up.
Second, this is the Last, Last bit I will write for 'Overlord' fanfics in this same vein.
Third: I hope you enjoy regardless despite the brevity.