[NERO]

Nero watches Novena leave, watching the older Knight catch up to the weird woman who practically shoved Novena into her, uh, ample chest. The other lady is probably Gloria, the mysterious new Executive Nero has never met (but heard bit and pieces from Novena) until now. The peacock-looking Executive certainly suits Novena's style of combat, Nero thinks, what with their tricks and flips.

Nero shakes his head, clearing it. He'll… think over things later. He has a hunt to pursue, and not enough time.

So he turns and heads into the Castle, pushing through the massive double doors that admits him into the Grand Hall.

Nero takes a moment to take in the massive place, removing the wrappings hiding his right arm as he did, eying the ceiling probably sixty, maybe even a hundred feet up. Chandeliers of gigantic proportions hang from it, casting dim lights all over the place, making the shadows seem deeper, alive in the way they look to be moving. The dark bricks making up the walls and the floor and the ceiling, so bleak and dreary looking. The pews facing toward the front, towards the honestly ugly portrait of His Holiness (how they managed to commission a fifty plus foot portrait, Nero would never know), and Nero spots one of the Gyro Blades, currently inactive and just sitting there like an intimidating statue.

And speaking of statues…

Nero finds one of those Divinity Statues in the Grand Hall, just to his left when he's facing His Holiness's portrait. He jogs right over to it, a little excited to see what his collected Red Orbs could get him – he got quite a bit from the mines, and practically got the lion's share of Red Orbs after killing that Berry guy – because while he did find a Divinity Statue in Ferrum Hills, he wasn't able to use it, what with Novena being there. So with older Knight's presence limiting his privacy, Nero had to hold back and just collect the Red Orbs that spill from the felled demons, managing to amass quite an amount, ready to be spent on 'boons'.

He jogs up excitedly to the statue, and the pretty white surface practically gleams at him, tempting and inviting. He puts his Devil Bringer on the base, looking up at the statue as he waits for the voice.

Hail, young warrior. You have returned.

Nero shifts excitedly on his feet, almost nodding before remembering himself, that he needs only to direct his thoughts towards the statue and voila! Instant communication. Nero thinks about the fight about Berry, the statue he wasn't able to use back in the mines, the demons he killed in the mines and outside the castle, and finally, Novena's presence hindering him, as much as that statement leaves ash in his mouth.

An obstacle you encountered, but managed admirably… now. You say you've bested the Ruler of Fire Hell? Berial?

Ooooh, so demon dude's name is Berial, and not Berry.

In his defence, Novena had cut the demon off while said demon was talking. And there wasn't really much chance to talk afterwards, what with all of them fighting for their lives and generally running around the place, fire exploding everywhere, swords clashing and the demon healthily cussing them out.

Nero nods absently, vaguely remembering a light that entered his arm-

Ah. And you've gained his Devil Arm, to boot. Truly well done, young warrior.

Devil Arm? What's a Devil Arm?

Demonic weapon wrought from the very soul of a Devil. Their will, their desire, and their power… are condensed into a form that you can wield at your own discretion, once you've gained possession of their Devil Arm. And a powerful Devil Arm you have, rightfully earned by rite of conquest.

The power of Berial, the Firestarter, is now yours, young warrior. Go forth, and burn your enemies and their kingdoms into ash and dust.

Suddenly, memories, images and thoughts trickle into Nero's mind, the impressions of flames and ash and destruction leaving an imprint his mind. He realizes that the statue is giving him the knowledge to wield his new… Devil Arm, and he can't wait to try it out.

He can't help but grin widely this time, turning back to the Divinity Statue and thinking about the Red Orbs he collected.

We are named the Divinity Statues, we are the Tradesmen of Hell, and we offer you our services. You've amassed more Red Orbs than the first time, and thus your boon shall be more substantial.

The golden light pours forth from the hourglass, and Nero watches in anticipation as the treasure chest forms, a little bit bigger than the last time. When it's fully solid and corporeal, Nero doesn't waste time in popping it open, peering inside for his bounty.

Vital Stars, five of them this time, another Gold Orb - YES! – and oh, is this blue thing the Blue Orb? If Nero remembers right, they increase his life… or was it endurance-

"Hm?" Nero peers back into the chest, and sees a rather curious bowl filled with strange crystals, seemingly shattered but somehow keeping their spherical shape. He picks up one, and he lifts a brow at the demonic essence held within, harmless, more of a power source than anything else. Now, what is this…?

Nero touches the base of the Divinity Statue again, all the while still admiring the pretty gleam of object in his grasp.

Proud Souls. Pure essence that, when imbued with a wielder's weapons, grants increased power. Bear in mind, that non-demonic weapons, if infused with Proud Souls may display… unprecedented reactions. Such as mutation.

Nero grins.

Really now?

He puts the Proud Soul back in its bowl, along with the rest of it. He pulls Red Queen free from his back, looking at the statue pointedly, instructions clear in his mind.

As you wish.

The Divinity Statue takes the Proud Souls for itself, and the gold light pours into Red Queen this time, instead of coalescing into a treasure chest. Nero can't help but laugh in excitement as his sweetheart snarls and bucks in his grip, the sword's surface shifting like its alive. The engines and exhaust sputter then roar, and Nero's can't help but laugh in glee when the resulting flames come out stronger.

Hell yeah.

"This is gonna be fun…!" Nero whispers to himself, returning Red Queen to her place. He could feel it, Red Queen's new latent power. While he himself could upgrade and modify her even more… Nero can't deny that the boost is going to make his life easier. Especially now what with all that's going on.

Nero spares a quick nod in the Divinity Statue's direction – the statue just glittering in response – before moving back to the centre of the Grand Hall, hands on his hips as he takes the place in, much more thoroughly and much more clinically.

He missed it at the first look, but the magical barriers are up and running; blue light emanating from the grooves on the walls and floors, made to stop demons from passing through. And with Nero being… what he is, he knows his path isn't as clear cut any more. He'll have to take the long way around, probably even circle the entire castle, at this rate.

Unlike Novena, who regularly makes a pilgrimage to the Castle every two weeks for reasons she never shared with Nero, the white haired Knight has only ever been to Fortuna Castle once or twice, when he was still a Knight-to-be, in fact, making it years ago. Still, he has a vague idea of where the prominent places of the castle are, so if he wanders the place carefully…

Nero turns on his heel, entering the Large Hall via the Grand Hall's left hand door. From what he remembers, the Large Hall could lead outside to the Central Courtyard, which has a pathway that circles it, leading it back around to the sealed off right hand side of the castle, where the Library is. He has a quite a trip waiting for him; better start off as soon as possible.

Nero isn't surprised when demons greet him as soon as he walks through the dim hallways of the Large Hall, but he pays them not much mind; the quicker he kills the demons, the faster he can get to the Anima Mercury, and use the Gyro Blades for much more effective snooping. And if that man in red is in here… well. Let's see if he can fight murder statues, coming at him from all sides, at ridiculous speeds.

Nero makes quick work of the demons, proceeding down to the left side of it and eliminating any demons he comes across. He makes note of another Divinity Statue situated in an area, along with two inactive Gyro Blades positioned atop… curious glowing pedestals. There are two out of four pedestals occupied, and they seem to be the keys for the barrier that's withholding access to the main area of the Central Courtyard….

Hmm, but why is the Central Courtyard sealed…? Well, more reason to find the Anima Mercury.

Nero moves on, forgoing the Divinity Statue in the meantime – not enough Red Orbs and he sees another Gyro Blade at the end of the Large Hall, locked behind bars etched with strange runes. With that one inaccessible, Nero turns to the right, where a door at the end of it is located.

Nero steps through and-

"What the- a torture chamber?"

Nero gapes at the place; rusted cages hang from the ceiling, and the walls are stained with something Nero doesn't want to know. The floor is flooded, and it's thankfully dark enough that he can't see what the water is hiding. Nero doesn't remember seeing this when he was a Knight-to-be, but then again, he and the others are mostly confined to the Grand Hall to attend private sermons from his Holiness. Or maybe this is a recent addition…?

… But who in their right mind would add a torture chamber to Fortuna Castle, though… I mean sure, castles have dungeons but no… outright torture chambers.

… Right?

The cackle of Scarecrows interrupt Nero's thoughts, and he snarls as he quickly lays waste to them, staining the water – why is there water in this place? Not to mention these decidedly not empty cages – something nasty as the demons falls almost obscenely ease under Red Queen, the sword's new power quickly proving to be substantial. Once that's done, Nero doesn't bother with the stairs; he leaps, from the ground, then off the side of the wall, then using one of the cages as a springboard to reach the second 'floor', which… lacks an actual floor.

What the hell happened here…?

No matter.

Nero climbs into the narrow hallway, jogging over to the door that thankfully leads him to the second floor of the Grand Hall. He walks over to the railings, reaching out with Devil Bringer. The blue light solidifies the moment Nero's demonic arm is just a few inches away, the barrier vibrating and humming with holy power, ready to fry and hurt him.

Nero retracts his hand with pursed lips, before proceeding to his next destination. As he had guessed earlier, the barriers are keeping the left and right sides of the castle separate, so Nero doesn't bother the barrier again, instead going through the door. After giving His Holiness's portrait a disgusted look, of course.

The door leads to the pathway, out in the Central Courtyard, and Nero could immediately tell that there's something wrong here. Very wrong.

While it's true that Fortuna Castle – and other places on the island – get the weirdest weather due to demonic influence… There shouldn't be a localized blizzard in the castle, with the epicentre being the courtyard.

Just what is happening?

Nero cautiously walks down the pathway, a hand on Blue Rose, and when he leaves the safety of the entrance, he had to grimace. Leaning of the ornate railing, Nero tries to peer into the blizzard that is happening in and only in the courtyard, a solid wall of violent snow. Nero considers it for a moment, the noise of a blizzard roaring in his ears, and he whips out Blue Rose. He fires off a bullet, into the blizzard, but nothing comes out.

Hmm…

A whistling in the air interrupts Nero's thoughts, and he tilts his head just so, just enough for the icicle to pass in front of his face harmlessly. Nero turns, glowering over at the couple of Frosts that had appeared, the two demons stalking over to him with their tails swishing and claws of ice poised to attack.

"Ugh." Nero loads up Blue Rose with a charged shot, whilst drawing Red Queen at the same time. One of the Frost snarls at him and pounces, and Nero meets it head on, lashing out with Red Queen and landing a deep slice across its face. It shrieks and falls back, stumbling, and Nero raises his revolver, pulling the trigger and watching with deep satisfaction as the Frost takes the bullets at full force and getting blasted back from the following explosion.

The other Frost leaps at Nero as its compatriot flies back, and its claws glow briefly before shooting icicles at Nero once more. The white haired Knight ducks, rolling away to dodge the Frost. The Frost turns sharply, trying to slam its tail down on him, only to shriek in surprise when Nero grabs said tail with Devil Bringer.

"Merry go round, demon!" He whirls the Frost in violent circles, over and over, and as a finale he chucks the Frost in his demonic grasp towards the other Frost, the two ice-type demons crashing into each other with the sound of icebergs colliding. Nero revs Red Queen in a split second, and he releases the throttle, streaking forward and letting his beloved – and currently flaming – sword cut through the demons like a knife cutting through butter.

The demons shriek and shatter into ice shards, Red Orbs spilling from their remains. Nero sighs and returns Red Queen to his back, bending down and letting Devil Bringer absorb the demonic currency for later use.

With no more ice lizards threatening to impede him, Nero proceeds to the end of the pathway, going through the door – there are a lot of doors here, for some reason – and entering the back section of the castle, facing the massive Foris Falls. The sound of the falls is a dull roar to his ears, and he remembers once, having snuck to the top of the dam with Novena – who was very against him, she was only there because she was trying to stop him – and looking over the two sides of the island. Nero scoffs lightly in humour, going down the massive steps, grabbing the Vital Star floating prettily atop the spire, before climbing the other set of stone stairs.

Going through that is the other side of the pathway, bringing with it two more Frosts. Nero deals with those guys as quickly as possible – almost getting shish kebab by an ice spear for his efforts – and when he's done with them, he proceeds, going back into the castle but this time on the left side.

"Whew, that took a little while…" Nero mutters to himself, walking over to the raised platform where the generator is. He fiddles with it, taking a bit of time since he rarely ever works with these things, but soon enough the barriers are brought down, the blue light fading. Nero jogs over to the now accessible door that leads to the gallery, remembering that beyond the gallery is another area overlooking the cliffs of where Fortuna Castle is situated, as well as having the Library nearby.

The presence of demons in the gallery didn't surprise Nero one bit. He scowls when the Scarecrows try to swarm him, coming at him from all sides, but he merely revs Red Queen, the roar of her engines far stronger and feral after her boost. Nero turns sharply with a snarl, Red Queen extended, and he catches the demons on the blade, flinging them away violently.

They flew, scattering throughout the room, brutally slamming across various surfaces and walls and causing quite a bit of damage – Nero couldn't muster up the care to be sorry for that. Nero leaps, and he skewers two of the demons at the same time with great relish. He heaves, and cuts them from gut to head. He turns, drawing Blue Rose smoothly, and he shoots the Scarecrow that leapt for his back. It explodes, revealing the other Scarecrow, already swinging its bladed arm.

Nero jumped, summersaulting over it. He slams his boot against the back of the demon's head, followed quickly by Red Queen cleaning cutting into its burlap body. Nero lands on his feet, light as a cat, and he rolls his shoulders as he looks over the remaining demons. Four more. Ugh.

Nero snatches one up with his demon arm, and he sneers at it as it struggled and flailed uselessly in his demonic grasp. "Even your mother wouldn't love your face." He laughs to himself, before squeezing hard and slamming the Scarecrow down, making it burst like a grapefruit on the floor.

Ew.

Nero meets the rest of demons with Red Queen drawn, and it was over fairly quickly. He swipes Red Queen through the air once, flicking of demon viscera and blood off of its blade, before returning Red Queen to its place on his back. The red, web-like barriers shatter with a merry sound, and Nero gladly went through the new path, going through the door and ducking his head a bit when cold air nipped at his face and skin.

He takes a moment to just breathe and relax, walking over the railing and looking over the cliff. In his time traipsing through the honestly massive castle, night has fallen, and with it, the moon has risen. Nero could see in the dark better than others – who are normal and human – so he was granted the breath taking view of the mountainous region of Fortuna Islands. He breathes out, slow and deep, watching the cold turn it to mist.

"What I would give to take you guys up here…" Nero mutters to himself. As a special operative of the Order, Nero has the most freedom during his missions. Of course, he used this freedom to wander the island when he is able, and in his wanderings, he found a lot of places that would both be safe – or at least easily defensible between him, Novena and Credo – and enjoyable.

Fortuna Island, for all its harsh locale, abundance in demonic activities, and isolated state, still has its own beauty. Untamed, dangerous and just begging to be discovered.

… He's getting distracting from his mission.

Nero turns away front the magnificent view, making a mental note to remember this place, and the other ones where he can hopefully bring his… bring the others to. He's sure they'll appreciate the beauty – no matter how murderous it can be - of their country.

Nero walks over to the ornate door at the end, and he raises an eyebrow at the Divinity Statue near it, glittering and emitting its usual soft light. Okay… that's three Divinity Statues in Fortuna Castle now. Why are there three Divinity Statues here? Moreover, why are there Divinity Statues in Fortuna Castle in the first place? Do… do they spring up suddenly from the ground? Demonic hocus pocus?

'If you poke around places, do a bit of sneaking, I think you'll find your answers.'

Unbidden, the voice of the man in red surfaces in Nero's mind, and he shakes his head violently, growling to himself in frustration.

No, no, no, no. No time for doubt and hesitation. There's only Nero, his sword, and a man to cut down.

Nothing else.

Nero enters the Library, and he frowns at the… haphazard state of the Library. While he's not much of an avid reader of the Order Scriptures, he still knows that the Library is maintained, and maintained well. So for the whole place to end up like a tornado passed through it…

Nero walks into the room, Blue Rose out and in his hand. He's using it to poke and prod at the books, eyeing the upturned books, the torn pages, the heavy volumes scattered about. It's like someone came here and went through the Library in search of something. Either that, or someone was here, using it, and needed to leave hastily, leaving the place a whole mess…

… Maybe this is the reason for that peacock Executive's presence in the Castle…? She must be doing her own investigations too. But that Gloria woman didn't say anything… Hmm, where was the switch for the secret wall again? Is it the globe, or one of the candlesticks on the wall? Ah whatever, it doesn't answer the question of why Executive Gloria was in Fortuna Castle. Or why she didn't report any findings to him and Novena earlier.

"Probably more worried about the hag…" Nero mutters to himself, resting Blue Rose on his shoulder as he saunters over to one of the tables, surface filled with books opened and unopened. He thumbs through the one lying flat in the middle, and Nero recognizes the passages as the ones from Sparda's Covenant. Oddly enough though, some lines are heavily underlined, the black ink streaky and messy.

'Blood of Sparda', 'Holy War', 'destined sacrifice', 'of snow and ice blue', yadda, yadda, yadda… What does this thing even teach? All Nero remembers from the sermons is that everything that threaten humans must be eliminated, that's it. He never really got the need for fancy words, the long and winded versions…

But then again, priests and their delusions and flair for the dramatics.

Nero looks over the books once more, finding them all related to the Order's religious texts, and he wrinkles his nose. Wait, priests…?

"Maybe the bastard went through here…?" Nero mutters to himself, bracing both hands on the table, looking down at the piles of books strewn everywhere. "Though, didn't figure for that guy to be a bookworm…"

The sudden presence behind him had Nero moving in a blink of an eye, raising Blue Rose and aiming at-

One of the Order members, already decked in full Angelo armour. Nero pauses, lifting his finger off the trigger as he lowers his gun. The Angelo Knight stands there, silent and still, its wing-like shield in its left hand and its heavy lance in the other.

Nero tilts his head. "That's one way to get yourself shot, buddy," He remarks lightly. The Angelo moves its helmeted head, and Nero moves his right arm behind himself, hiding it from view. He gives Blue Rose a twirl, heart beating in his throat as he picks up the book, pretending to read it. "So, tell me. Supreme Commander sent you here to try catch that guy too? Also, where were you guys when the demons invaded the city? We could've used the help-"

The whistling of the air alerted Nero to the lance headed for his head, and he turn, trapping the Angelo Knight's lance between the pages of the book. His arm locks as he holds back the weapon, and he grimaces down the length of it, at the Angelo Knight that silently just attacked him out of nowhere.

"So much for friendly banter!"

The Angelo Knight pulls its lance free, and Nero allows the book to be tossed from his hand, ducking under the armoured knight's wild swing – which hits the globe and shattering it, oops, not sorry – and moving to a much more open area of the Library.

He pulls Red Queen free, stabbing the ground with it as he revs his beloved sword to maximum. "You pickin' a fight? Then a fight you'll get."

As much as he loathes it, he needs to put this knight out of commission. Nero's Devil Bringer is seen, and Nero can't have that.

The Angelo Knight lunges for him, and Nero twists to the side, pulling Red Queen free as he does so. He pulls out Blue Rose once more, firing off a couple of shots at the armoured knight. As expected, the knight raises its shield, easily defending itself from Blue Rose's special bullets, and then the knight charges at Nero, going straight for him.

Nero jumps over its head, clearing it easily, and he throws out Devil Bringer, intending to pull the knight to himself for a good smack. He'll forever deny the yelp he lets out though, when it was he that was pulled towards the Angelo. He manages to twist and land awkwardly on the Angelo Knight's shoulders, and it turns its horned helm up at him. Nero grins nervously.

"Uh, hi?" The white haired Knight says, before slamming down a fully revved Red Queen.

The sword and the Knight explodes, and Nero is thrown back from the resulting explosion himself, too close to the blast to remain unaffected. He manages to land on his feet through, skidding backwards in a crouch. He coughs out a bit of ash, grimacing, and he rises, waving a hand to clear the air.

"Uh, sorry about that, Red Queen doesn't really play nice-"

Nero's words are cut off, when the sight before him registers in his mind.

The Angelo Knight, is shattered to pieces, the armour broken beyond repair and some places scorched black. No one would be alive, if that's the result of their armour. No one would be alive, apparently, after receiving a powered up, fully revved Red Queen.

That is, assuming there's someone inside the armour.

And the Angelo Armour before Nero, is empty.