"Earth raised up her head
From the darkness dread & drear,
Her light fled,
Stony, dread,
And her locks covered with grey despair."

-Earth's Answer, Stanza 1, William Blake


What Vergil expected of the Archives was pretty much what he was confronted with: a Renaissance architectural style that showcased plentiful columns which has elaborated decorative pilasters, the arches dipped and curved perfectly to be semi-circular that were pushed further out from the marble of the rest of the building. Sat on the top of it was a dome, colored a rusty red and each of its tiles seemed to be a different hue of the other but one of the most appealing parts of the structure of the semi-circular arched windows, which each one has stained glass that depicted the legendary Sparda within the pieces. There was no more door in front go them as the column directed them towards staircases that led to the entrance of the legendary Archives.

"Well," Elena spoke as she noticed that he seemed to be finished with taking in the sight go the Archives, "Let's go in then."

He nodded in agreement with her statement as she made her way to the staircase, descending downwards to the only entrance that he had found at the moment. Guards were posted on each side of the large doorway that portrayed elaborate designs on the side. Elena offered a smile to the two main guards that blocked the door with their large sabers. The guards bore different outfits compared to the regular Order's which happened to be a long black coat with dark pants and high boots. Gold was integrated into the outfit but one of the most striking things about these Guards was the charcoal black masks that hid their features besides their eye color.

"Good morning, soldiers." Elena said once she reached the bottom of the staircase and curtsied to them, her head bowed down from them and did not look them in the eye. Vergil remained still before he noted Elena's stern expression that he could see from her bowed head, which meant that he was to follow as he bowed down. Every ounce of his being despised the act of bowing to another, especially since they were in no way his equal.

And that futile position was being held by his little brother.

"Good morning, Miss Adesso. What matters bring you to the Archives?" One guard said but she could not tell for the hidden veils coverage their features.

"I am here to locate some books for my brother." She answered and many of the guards' attention turned to Vergil who reigned emotionless and passive against their gazes towards him.

"Who are you?" Another guard asked and Vergil's eyes narrowed at the question. Elena smiled at this, her eyes twinkling in amusement as she gestured with her hand to Vergil.

"This is one of the many faithful servants of the Adesso household, Rotem." She answered for him and the guards looked at each other before their gazes returned to him. He scowled at this, clearly displeased that they were taking so long on their judgment of him.

"What is with his hair? Has he displeased Sparda?" One guard asked with a hint of animosity towards the half Demon. Elena coyly offered the guards a smile and waved her hand this before stepping closer to them.

"No, he has albinism. Perhaps you know of it." She told them and they remained stoic on any knowledge on the known disorder, "If not, it is of no matter. Rotem has joined me in finding the books and carrying them back to the manor. Is there any issue with that?"

The guards gaze crossed over to each other but then glanced down towards the beloved sword on Vergil's waist.

"No, but weapons are forbidden in the Archives." One guard said and Elena nearly wanted to cuss at them for stating the obvious rule. She glanced at it before offering an innocent smile to the guards and stepped closer to them, nearly in their personal bubble.

"It is not a weapon. He has issues of fatigue and it is a cane in the shape of a sword." She responded and she hoped they were accepting the story, "It is shaped like so in order to have others not approach us to try and threaten us. I hope you are all alright with this."

The guards looked at his sword with suspicion before one pulled something from behind him, which happened to be a clipboard.

"May we inspect the cane then record it that you are carrying it?" One asked and she looked to Vergil with eyes that held no concerts if they were to find the truth about his beloved weapon. He offered a small nod and removed the weapon from his waist, offering it for further inspection. One guard approached the weapon and Elena had to guess that he was looking to find any hidden compartments from just visual cues then the guard balanced the weapon in his own hand, remaining silent as he then attempted to pull the bias out.

Dread overcame Elena but her expression remained neutral and the blade made no attempt to come out as if it were a cane. The guard again balanced it out then held it back to Vergil who swiftly grabbed it back and then reattached it to his hip,

"The cane is very well cared for and shall be allowed in the Archives." The guard that inspected it said and Elena smiled gratefully at this, "It has been logged down if any occurrences happen while you two are there."

"Thank you for allowing him to bring it in. I am in your favor." She said and curtsied, curls of her hair falling out from her behind her ear, "Now we will be on our way. May Sparda bless you all."

Vergil's expression soured at the mention of his father but his hood hid most of his expression of it. Elena slowly made her way to the entrance and Vergil followed her led, having to duck down once they passed through the doorway.

Then before him stood the Archives in all their glory. Rib-vaults extended throughout the space and seemed to be never-ending as they stretched to all ends of the building. The place was built out of limestone from what he could inquire and plentiful amounts of bookshelves that seemed to stretch up the ceiling. No words were spoken but the sound of shuffling feet and pages turning along with the scribbling of a pen to record something from the books. Many people in red walked around them but some still looked at them strangely.

"Lucky for you, I know where to find the books we need." She whispered softly, trying not to draw attention them, and her gaze wandered around the building as multiple Guards were stationed at each end of the bookshelf along with the entrance of the building. She made her way down a few more steps as she traveled left, keeping her head low as either to avoid intrigue or why a woman happened to be at the Archives. Vergil glanced through the building, noting that no windows were spotted, making interest that the ones outside were either on a different level or covered up but gave the illusion that the windows could see through the building.

So there was only one entrance to escape from if things were to go south.

They continued to move past bunches of shelves, earning a turn of heads from the Guards but they remained on their path until the stopped at an alley, looking down it with narrowed eyes until she approached the one guard an innocent smile gracing her features as he stood behind her at a good distance so the Guard would not be concerned at his own appearance.

"Good morning, sir does this shelf contain books about the Savior?" She addressed him and the Guard remained still before he gave a nod of his head. She curtsied at this and kept her head bowed down at this, as Vergil gave a curt nod of his head to show respect to the Guard. She made her way down the aisle and scanned as much as she could and narrowed her eyes, trying to find a section that might be sufficient for what Vergil was looking for. She stopped at one book's title that caught her attention and her fingers reached towards it, pulling it from the shelf and looked at the elaborate floral designs on the cover.

"Here is one book that we can take." She whispered softly to him and handled him the book so he could briefly glance at it. His eyes gazed over the title, Beloved Savior, and he narrowed his eyes at it, quickly flipping through the pages and saw a few words that popped out in his head that he wanted to look into.

"Are there certain books we can take with us outside of here?" Vergil inquired and Elena glanced back at him, gray eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"Yes, some we can not take with us. Some are held out here while others are hidden away." She resounded and he opened his mouth to say something but closed once noting the Guard's attention to them. She continued to move down the aisle and looked over to the other side, noting a book of interest on a shelf taller than herself. She sighed and nudged Vergil with her elbow, who looked at her with annoyance.

"Grab the book titled Sparda's Trials on that shelf." She suggested and he reached up, easily able to snag it from the shelf. He stared at the cover again and narrowed his eyes, wanting to suggest another title.

"For me to get some of the books you want, it will have to wait. I can't grab them without suspicion rising from the Guards. I can only grab certain subjects that will eventually make a connection to get the books you want. Start small then grow bigger." She explained and he scowled at this, clearly not happy about that knowledge, "Your frustration really surrounds you. You need to tone it down or you won't get anything you want."

His eyebrows twitched at this observance and she smirked at this before it lowered itself, knowing that they were being watched. She moved further down the aisle known that they could only check out five books per visit and that she wanted something that wouldn't catch more attention than need be.

"We need to look for some other books like the illustrated versions of what Sparda could perhaps look like." She suggested and he stopped for a second at the mention of what his father could have looked like.

He knew exactly what he had looked like.

"Why do you need illustrations of him?" He questioned and she paused her next step, eyes to the ground. Her expression turned sour and she clutched her fists.

"Because I was commissioned to create a piece for the Church to hang up near the entrance." She snarked out in a mere whisper and he stared at her with impression, not even thinking that the members of the Church would go as far for someone so young.

"You are not looking forward to that?" He asked and she bit her lip as she reached up and grabbed another book, knowing it was dangerous to speak ill of the Church especially in the Archives.

"It will have to be something spectacular and in a way not what I want to do at all." She answered and she paused as her eyes glanced through the books before they sealed shut for a moment, looking around from her ability. Vergil merely watched her and glanced back at the Guard who seemed to be completely oblivious to the interaction between the two. Her eyes shot open and she gestured with her shoulder for him to follow her, continuing her way to the near end of the aisle.

"I do not want to do this piece but it will keep my family in good regard with the Church. We are not well-liked by many people on Fortuna but because the Church regards us highly, we are mostly welcomed." She explained and turned left to another aisle but skipped out a few to another one which seemed random but she had looked for the following book on her list and knew where to go down.

"Now, in order for me to get the piece in their ideal perceptive, I need reference material while the books you have do contain illustrations they will not help me enough to create a piece they are willing to have." She continued and she stepped to the right, following down the aisle where the size of the books grew larger. Vergil remained silent at her response and thought to himself how powerful of a family was her's on the island.

They must contain the knowledge of the Temen-ni-gru.

Elena sighed as a headache overcame her and her vision contorted, causing her to lean onto the bookshelf. She sealed her eyes and tried to remove the vision now playing across her eyelids.

Ocean waves washed against each other harshly while a storm seemed to brew above, light casting murky shadows on the water. Everything seemed to be wild and overwhelming as the waves picked up intensity and closer and closer her vision was reaching to an island. The sky bleed to an ugly orange and crimson while the sea turned black.

"Hey, you're causing the Guards to look at us." Vergil's voice hissed at her and she opened her eyes but her vision remained useless, fixed on the sea and black island.

Why did it return to her again?

She licked her lips as her vision drew closer to the island, more features now standing apart from it. A castle showcased itself with a cathedral behind it which looked In terrible shape from the broken windows and pieces of it were missing. The landscape was immensely rocky and although trees seemed to be scattered on the island, most looked either dead from the empty branches or burnt to a crisp. Then once she was closer to the island, dread overpowered her at the sight of Demons scattered everywhere, there was no preference on what type they were but plenty of ones she had seen before whether from personal experience of illustrations in books along with some she had never seen before.

"Hey, girl."

Vergil's voice caused her vision to end now and she blinked as her vision of the Archives returned to greet her. Vergil stood over her, obscuring her from the Guards, and his glare drilled into her. He remained stoic but clearly not expecting her to suddenly lose concretion and nearly blow their cover.

"What the hell was that?" He hissed at her quietly as he seemed to realize that she had returned to her senses and she blinked at that while her vision of his Human form smeared aware in an instant to showcase his Demon one.

Uh oh.

She gulped as she slowly pushed herself upend tried to make a guess as to where his eyes happened to be in his Human form but her vision was reluctant to let her see him in his Human form.

"Nothing. We need to continue on and leave soon." She sneered back and now started to haste towards a book she knew was near. Vergil gripped the books tightly in his hand, which caused indents in them, and followed behind her, noting that she looked both out of breath and paler than what she just was.

He had no need to be concerned for her personally but she was important in order for him to get the information he so desperately needed.

"You did not say we were in a rush." Vergil sneered and she stopped to flare back at him, annoyance flushing over her face.

"We are now with all your disturbances and questions. We need to move quickly since I can't be out for too long." She replied and he looked ready to snark back at her but she had grabbed a book from off of the lower shelf, opening it up and multiple illustrations were seen. She tucked it under her arm and began walking further down the aisle, near the entrance to the Archives again.

"Come now. Our last book is near the exit." She stated and he so wanted to lash out on her but they would easily be discovered by the Guards, unable to achieve anything either of them wanting. He clutched his unempty fist tight and his hand went to the hilt of his sword, ready to draw blades but once his hand had approached his beloved katana, a Guard's attention was drawn to him. Elena glanced back to him and sighed, ready to scowl him out.

He was acting out more than what the Guards will accept.

She hastily reached for him and grabbed his wrist from his hand reaching for his blade. Her eyes were wide and her face turned pale with worry.

"Don't." She whispered as her gray eyes were terrified of the consequences that would happen if they were to be caught. He stared at her in shock that would be so bold to make a move towards his personal space and actually attempt to grab his sword.

"We can't fight about this. We should just check out these books and leave. There are too many people here." She suggested in a soft tone and he bites his lip harsh, eyebrows pushing together. She pulled away and stood still, trying her best to not yell at him. He removed his hand from his katana and rubbed the bridge between his eyes, a small headache forming at how everything seemed to be going to shit.

"Fine." He hissed and snatched the book out of hand, then gestured to the bookshelf, "Find the last book and we can leave."

Relief flooded over her pictures and her pale face gained back its color while a smile graced her features.

"Wonderful." She whispered and she skipped past a few aisles, moving down one that had the final book needed. She twisted around to find the book and snagged the one that popped out of the self from the bright red cover, its bold words admittedly striking her attention. She stared at it for a second before her gaze traveled to the end of the shelf, something played at the edge of the shadows but once she blinked it was gone.

She needed to leave and get out of there. Too much-unexpected things have happened since she appeared.

She stalked back to Vergil who awaited at the corner of the shelf, clearly ready to leave with the books himself. She held the final book out to him and he reluctantly grabbed it before they approached a desk which was near the entrance that a young woman, probably in her twenties, with bright eyes that hide behind her glasses and a smile across her face greeted them. She had on a wimple, hiding her hair and neck, from them and also a red tunic tied together by a white cincture. Her hands were folded across the desk she sat at and she gave a little wave to Elena once they approached the desk.

"Good morning, Elena. How are you?" The woman asked and Elena offered her a smile in exchange.

"I'm doing well, Vesta. Thank you for asking." Elena responses and the woman looked at Vergil with interest, a glint taking over her eye.

"And who is this? I do not think we had the chance to introduce each other." Vesta said and reached over to take the books from him, placing them on the elevated part of the desk. Vergil stayed silent before Elan gently nudged him with her elbow, telling to introduce himself.

"…Rotem." He lied and Vesta raised her eyebrows at this before nodding, glancing between the two before landing back to Vergil.

"You are a servant under Elena's household then?" She questioned and he nodded while she looked to Elena with intrigue, "Interesting. Have you gotten an assignment from the Church, Elena? You hardly visit the Archives unless it's something for your brother or a piece to do for the Church."

Elena nodded as Vesta looked at the title of the books, recording them down on a piece of paper. She flipped through the first book before placing it aside then grabbed the next one. Vergil glared down at her in question at the mention of her brother, now understanding that she had probably run away yesterday once realizing that her own brother was near the area.

"…Have you thought about my brother's offer?" Vesta whispered quietly and Elena pierced her lips together, nervousness tipping on her features.

"It is not my decision to make, Vesta. My brother will take care of that matter. I am not worried about the matter." Elena told her and Vesta nodded, pushing her glasses up further on her face as she recorded the final book in the records. She slammed it shut and looked up to Elena in worry as she placed the books back up on the edge.

"That is fine. My brother wanted to know if you had a hand in the say of the matter. I will inform him of your decision." She said then leaned forward on the desk, "I hope I will have the chance to see the piece you are working on someday."

At the mention of her work, Elena's smile turned to a smirk and leaned closer to the desk too.

"Of course. It'll be a grand one. I hope it will get featured once it's completed." She said and Vesta giggled at this, the tension easing up. She started to record the final book before ripping it out of the record, where the yellow under copy was for the church's Record. She handed it to Elena who thanked her and held it close to herself, knowing it would be needed for leaving the Archives.

"I'm glad. I hope to see you soon, Elena. Take care the both of you." Vesta said and waved them off as Vergil grabbed the books from off the table, shuffling them under his arm. He offered a polite nod at this and Vesta waved at them while staring at Vergil in interest.

Something was slightly off about him.

Elena released a breath as they made their way back to the entrance but a Guard stood there, obstructing their view from leaving.

"Please present your paperwork, Miss Adesso." The Guard said and held his hand out to her, while she offered it to him and smiled in ease.

"Of course." She said and the Guard seemed to nod in agreement while looking at the books by Vergil's side. Elena tried not to fidget under the Guard's attention and the Guard then handed her back the paper.

"You are good to leave, Miss Adesso. Please take care of yourself and return the books by the following week." The Guard told her and then looked over to Vergil, "Please watch over your Master and next time please leave your cane before you arrive."

Vergil seemed ready to attack the Guard while Elena curtsied at the Guard, keeping her head low to avoid her gaze from interacting with the other Guards.

"We shall see to it, soldier. Have a pleasant day." Elena said and the two left the Archives. Once they passed by the following Guards that watched the entrance, they climbed up the staircase and more people had arrived on the streets, not even offering them a glance. Elena turned down a road and stopped, sealing her eyes close to see if they had been followed and took in her surroundings.

No one had followed them.

She released a breath and pushed her back down, combing through her hair. She opened her eyes back up and turned to Vergil.

"Well, I guess we got the first round of books." She said and Vergil nodded while annoyance was still on his features.

"Indeed but you need to be more careful." He said and her expression turned sour, eyebrows growing together at the suggestion.

"What the hell are you talking about? I was fine. You need to watch yourself on your temper. We were nearly screwed from the get-go because of your sword." She hissed and stubbed her finger at his chest.

Vergil remained silent on the mention of his sword before sighing and rubbed his eyebrows at this.

"…You did not tell me that the Archives would not question my sword." He replied and she blinked at this before sighing, knowing that if she had known about his sword being nearly taken away most of their arguing would have been saved.

"True. I am sorry but I had not known about that policy." She told him and he pulled the books forward, looking her in the eye.

"Was the reason why you had left yesterday was due to your brother?"

She froze and her eyes grew wide, uncertainty powering over her features at this. She bit her lip and frowned, knowing she had should kept the small talk with Vesta on a leash.

"…Yes. He is my caretaker and worries far too much about my safety. I didn't want him to know about what happened yesterday so that's why I left in a hurry." She explained and sighed, knowing that she would never be able to hold anything back. She tapped her foot against the ground and Vergil remained silent, his head cocked to the side before his eyes narrowed, noting someone staring at them.

"Elena." He said and she blinked out of her thoughts, turning head in the direction of what directed his attention and her stomach dropped.

It was Rotem, who stared at her in absolute horror and worry.