Disclaimer: I don't own Attack on Titan, Devil May Cry, or any of its characters...
While wearing the cloak of the Survey Corps, Eren rode towards Trost with one goal in mind: to see his mother. Captain Levi gave him two days to settle everything he needed to do because once he officially starts as a soldier of the Scout Regiment, there will be no time for him to spend with his family, friends, or loved ones. Not to mention that because of the various expeditions done by the Survey Corps, only a few were lucky enough to return and reassure their families that they were safe.
He didn't waste any time and as soon as he recovered only a few hours after the trial, Eren immediately took off on a horse and headed for Trost. After two days, he would rendezvous with Captain Levi and his squad in the old Survey Corps Headquarters and begin his duties as a member.
But for now, he can focus on his family.
When the inner gate of the wall finally came into view, Eren pulled up his hood to conceal his identity. After what happened here a few days ago, he didn't want to attract any unwanted attention whether the people saw him as evil or not. Also, before leaving for this journey, he wrapped bandages around his right arm just to be sure that nobody can notice him.
He was here for one reason only.
Reaching the small town that was just before the wall itself, Eren got off his horse and led the way into the place on foot.
"Looks like the titan issue here isn't over just yet…" Eren thought, seeing how civilians were all gathered in each of the empty houses there, with only soldiers occupying the road. From the looks of it, they were all working together to figure out what to do next in the aftermath of the successful operation a few days ago. "I'll have to stay away from the road then, or they'll notice me and make me join in whatever it is they're doing. I just need to find mom in one of these houses here and steer clear of any officers."
He led his horse to the back of one building, which is where he left his companion in order to proceed alone. Bringing along the animal would definitely attract attention, and it would give away his cover.
Eren peeked out from the various alleyways between the houses so that he could get a better look at his surroundings and see if his mother was around. Since almost everyone was outside the houses, either watching the soldiers or minding their own business, he'll be able to easily spot Carla if she was around. If he can't find her, then Eren would have to resort to checking out every house here to see where she was.
However, while he was doing his best to look for his mother among the massive number of survivors from the titans' attempted invasion of Trost district, his eyes also caught sight of a number of familiar faces among the soldiers who looked like they were about to go back to Trost.
"Those soldiers… it looks like they're—?!" His eyes widened when he saw someone from his early days as a trainee, one whom he knew very well. "Jean? Why do you have that cloth wrapped around your face? And why's everybody else doing the same thing?" Eren thought, noticing how all of the soldiers all had similar handkerchiefs covering their faces save for their eyes, as they slowly walked towards the inner gate of Trost district. "It's not just him… Annie, Reiner, Bertholdt, Sasha, Connie, Krista…" After Jean, Eren saw the rest of his friends who all wore handkerchiefs on their faces in the same way, as they headed for the gate. "Why are you all wearing those? And why are you heading back inside the district? Isn't it still considered dangerous to even go back there?"
It seemed that his hard work would pay off, however, when he finally caught sight of his mother; she was just on the other side of the road, standing just outside the door to one of the houses there. Eren's eyes widened as she came into his view, and because of it, he almost forgot who and what he was for only a split second.
"Mom…" he muttered unconsciously, losing himself in his personal feelings momentarily. And how can he hold in something like that? It had been several years since he last saw her, and now she was there… just… across the street…
Regaining his composure, Eren figured out two options he could go with on this. He could either wait for these soldiers to finish marching into the district, or just teleport with his Air Trick to the other side of the road.
Actually, why was he even having choices like this? It was obvious what the safest and most convenient option is between those two options.
Focusing his attention to the alley just beside that house, Eren used his Air Trick to transport himself and in less than a few seconds, he found himself in his desired destination. Without even wasting time, he quickly fled towards the house where his mother was, who was just standing outside the front door.
Upon seeing him walk towards her, Carla only raised an eyebrow, unaware of who it was underneath the hood.
"Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to go back inside Trost with your friends to clean up the place?" she asked, as if she didn't trust this soldier in the first place. How could she? The last time she saw her son was when he was being taken away from the district after the successful operation and she didn't even know where he was brought to.
Smiling slightly in response, Eren removed his hood and revealed himself to his mother, who widened her eyes and took a step back out of shock.
"E-Eren?"
The teen only smiled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Hey, mom."
"Y-You… I… I saw… oh, my—!" Carla was truly at a loss for words, before bringing her son towards her in a tight hug, as if the two of them had been separated for a long time, which was true all the same. She couldn't exactly express the emotions she felt right now, because they were mixed but one thing was clear. She was happy to see her son again.
Eren hugged his mother back, truly feeling as if it was like an eternity had passed without them meeting. He was happy to see her doing well, without any harm coming to her, and for him that was enough to keep on doing his duty as a soldier.
Surprisingly enough, Carla broke off from the hug as she looked at the white-haired teen with an expression that was enough to tell Eren that she had been worried sick about him. "What happened to you, Eren? Where did those soldiers take you a few days ago?" she asked, placing her hand on his shoulder.
While he was quite taken aback that his mother knew that he was somehow captured, Eren knew better than to discuss this while they were still outside.
"I'll tell you, but…" The half-demon glanced at both sides to see if anyone could hear him. Luckily, none did. "It can't be discussed out here. I can't be noticed by anyone else, especially by other soldiers. A-And the people around here will surely cause a ruckus if they find out that I'm here."
Understanding what her son meant, Carla straightened herself and walked towards the door to the house. "Of course, dear. Come on inside, then we'll talk."
Eren followed his mother inside, and he quickly plopped down on one of the chairs there. He noticed Carla was in the kitchen, looking like she was preparing something, most likely tea. The teen shook his head in amusement; he would've told her not to worry about him, but opted not to. He missed her so much, and this was one way of making up for what they've lost. And besides, a cup of tea could help him calm down after recent events.
"So mom, is this your house now?" he began. Eren decided to ask something related to his mother first, before getting down to business and shift the discussion to him. It honestly felt kind of… good and relieving at the same time, to be around his parent again.
"Yes, after the whole titan thing in Trost, the civilians were told to relocate here and surprisingly, I was lucky enough to have this place on my own." Carla said from the kitchen, before she turned her head with a smirk, knowing that Eren can't see it. "Oh, and you may be a soldier, but you are still my son, young man. So don't think of this house as mine, because you live here as long as I am alive."
"I know that, mom…" Eren looked down and chuckled, already starting to forget about everything that troubled his mind lately: getting captured after sealing Trost, the trial over his custody, up to the unintentional beating that he received. As soon as he looked up though, he found his mother holding out a cup of tea for him. He accepted it as Carla sat down on the chair that was beside his, enjoying herself with her own cup of tea.
"So as I was saying, dear… why were you captured by your fellow soldiers? Weren't you the one who sealed the district?" As a mother, she knew that her son had grown considerably after years being in the military, and she had hope that he became more mature in many ways, even without her to guide him.
Eren was once again surprised with that. "You knew about that?"
"Of course I did." She shrugged, before sipping from her tea. "Everyone in town knew… well, at least part of it. After the news came out that the gate was sealed by a soldier all by himself, I knew it was you. But for everyone else, they thought it was a conspiracy and something more was behind something akin to a miracle."
"I don't know whether to be surprised that you figured out that it was me, or laugh at how the people of Trost are so close, yet so far." He chuckled in amusement once again.
"Well, for one thing, you are my son. I should be able to figure out when you're involved in something. And second, a soldier sealing a hole in the wall by himself? Did you think I can't find the answer to that? If I had to guess, you were able to do what you did because of that arm." she pointed out, setting aside her cup of tea before gesturing to Eren's bandaged arm.
Eren looked at his right arm for a few moments and sighed, before the events of the operation flashed through his mind as a brief memory. "I guess… though it wasn't just because of this. There was another thing that helped me." Carla had raised an eyebrow at that, but the teen shook his head to get it out of his mind. He had a feeling in his gut and it told him to not talk about the Devil Trigger right now, as he had a feeling that his mom might react differently.
Sure, she was able to take in the whole "Sparda was real and he had the blood of a demon inside him" but this was different. Maybe that can wait for another time. "But anyway, the reason why I was captured… it's simple. It's because many were freaked out by what I am."
"But how are you here? Don't tell me you escaped from them."
"Far from it, mom. I'm not a kid to do something stupid like that anymore." Eren almost had the urge to roll his eyes as Carla stifled a laugh. "Yesterday, I woke up in a cell while in chains, and got escorted to a courtroom where two sides had a dispute over who would take custody of a demon like me," he made sure to point to himself with that statement. "...moving forward. The Military Police wanted to get rid of me, while the Survey Corps wanted me in their ranks to take back Wall Maria."
Carla slowly started to put the pieces together. "Since you're here, I can only guess that the Survey Corps won the case… and you're wearing their cloak too, dear, so there's that."
Eren only leaned back and nodded.
"Well… it looks like the Survey Corps weren't as bad as I thought they were." Carla said in deep thought, remembering how she didn't want Eren to join the Scouts back when he was little. It felt a bit odd, to say the least, because things had taken a turn against what she thought and believed.
"Told you." Eren thought to himself with a hidden smirk.
"But dear, if you're a part of the Survey Corps now, then why are you here?" Carla asked, apparently becoming confused now. "Aren't you supposed to be outside the wall on an expedition?"
"The next one is happening in a month, and I'm actually supposed to be with my new squad." For now, he would keep the fact that he was under the command of humanity's strongest soldier as a secret. Plus, it wouldn't really make much of a difference. "But I told Commander Erwin that before I go with them, I would like to visit my mother first because it's been so long since I last saw her. I was given two days at max to settle everything before I return to my duties as a member of the Survey Corps."
"Aww, that's sweet of you, Eren." Carla said with a gentle smile. "Even after all these years, and even though you found out the truth, you still love your mother with all your heart…"
"Shut up, mom." He whispered, looking to the side so he could avoid getting embarrassed.
"What? It's the truth." She smirked at him. "And by the way, where's Mikasa and Armin? Don't they always stick around you wherever you go?"
"They've yet to pick a military branch to join. I was a special case in that aspect. Might be a few more days before they can choose, though… because I saw some of my fellow cadets going back to the district just earlier." He didn't want his mother finding out that those two were somehow involved in the trial he was in. She treated them as if they were her children too, and Eren definitely had no intention of finding out how she would react.
Carla shook her head and smiled. "You know they're definitely going with you in the Survey Corps, right?" After that statement, a sudden thought, or memory, flashed through the woman's mind out of nowhere.
Eren sighed, as he could only imagine how slight the chances were of Armin and Mikasa joining the Military Police instead, or even the Garrison. "I don't like it, but… I guess that's what they'd most likely do. I'll have to bear with it and protect them in any way I can." He looked towards his mother, who looked like she was stuck in a trance. Eren frowned and leaned closer towards her. "Mom? You okay?"
"Oh, goodness!" she exclaimed, catching Eren off guard with her sudden outburst. "I almost forgot about her!"
Now this got her son confused. Who was she talking about, and why did she think about it while they were still discussing things?
"Her? Who are you talking about?" Eren asked with his eyebrow raised.
Carla quickly stood up and headed to the staircase, but not before turning to her son. "Eren, there's someone here who's been wanting to meet you a few days ago and she decided to stay here until by chance, you would show up or if she… wait, how did she say it, uh… when she senses your presence… whatever that means." The woman definitely sounded confused at the end of her statement, but she shook her head nonetheless and went up the stairs. "Just wait here, sweetie. I'll go get her."
"Okay… so someone was here all along, and she… wants to meet me?" Eren said to himself, before looking down as he tried to think of who it could be. "I've never known any other women in my life except for my mom, Mikasa, Annie, Krista, Sasha, and the rest of the female cadets in the Training Corps… there's no way that one of them made her way here since I saw all of them go back inside Trost… which means that…" He put his hand on his chin and came to a single conclusion. "This person must have been watching me from a distance. I better be careful."
"Eren, she's here." Carla's voice snapped Eren out of his thoughts as his eyes immediately caught sight of the woman standing beside his mother.
She was a tall and attractive woman with tanned skin. She also had deep emerald green eyes like Eren's and bright red hair put up in a braid over her left shoulder. She wore a white cape, brown leather gloves and various brown leather gear on her outfit that left her midriff exposed. Lastly, she had holsters for her blades, pouches for her throwing knives, as well as a series of leather clasps to help keep her cape in place.
All in all, she could be described as beautiful.
"Uhhh…" Eren was at a complete loss for words, as he unknowingly stared at the woman before him, an event that caused Carla to giggle. Yeah, and it also caused him to blush, just by looking at her outfit.
"It's a pleasure to meet you in person, son of Vergil." she said with a small bow. At this point, Carla decided to leave the two alone as she could tell that this was something she had no business meddling in.
"W-What…?" Okay, that cut him off his embarrassment for a bit. Did that woman say what he thought she did? If so, then… how did she know?
"You know of who your parents are, do you not?" The woman spoke in a slightly confused tone. "Your father was Vergil, who was known as the Darkslayer, and your mother —"
"I know who they are," Eren cut her off. "I've known ever since a few years ago. I'm… I'm just confused… how did you know?"
"I was a friend of Dante, your uncle…" With that, the teen's eyes widened in shock, just as the woman now had a look of sadness on her face. "...back when he was… still alive."
"So… So you knew my parents… and Dante too…" Eren concluded, before frowning slightly. "Then that means… you aren't human, are you?" He knew that Dante wasn't exactly the type to hang around humans, while his father only knew one human in his life, his mother, so that means that this woman… has something more to her.
"I am not a human, but my name is LUCIA." The sad look on her face disappeared, before she bowed again. "I am a demon made by human hands, more known as an artificial demon. I turned on my creator when he revealed his true purpose, and now I serve under a new leader."
Eren's face softened. So this woman, Lucia… was a demon too. Perhaps… he could now believe what she said about her being Dante's friend back then. He couldn't sense any malice in her presence and… he didn't miss the sad look on her face earlier. She looked genuinely sad. However, that didn't stop him from being confused because of some matters. She must be someplace from beyond the walls, did she really come all the way here just to see him?
"Okay, then Lucia…" A serious look formed on Eren's face. "Why are you here? I'm pretty sure you didn't just come here to meet me."
Lucia nodded. "Of course. I'm here because of a request by another one of Dante's old friends. She wanted to give you something special of her own creation, like what she did for Dante in the past."
"And who was that?"
Lucia then pulled out a pistol from behind her before tossing it towards Eren, who managed to react in time and caught it with in his left hand. "Nell Goldstein, the legendary gunsmith who forged Dante's pistols, Ebony and Ivory. She wanted to do the same for you, Nero. It saddened her that Dante has long passed with his brother in the Underworld, but she wanted to honor the two of them by forging a gun of your own. Your gun, the BLUE ROSE,' was her final work before she passed as well. It was her dying wish for you to receive the Blue Rose. I was contacted by her granddaughter to do it, and here I am. You are the only being left in this world who has the blood of Sparda in his veins, and you will need all the help you can get to be ready for what is to come." she explained, also calling the teen by his birth name in the process.
As Lucia spoke, Eren slowly admired the gun in his hand, examining it closely. It was a unique revolver with an over and under barrel style, which would allow it to fire two rounds of bullets with each pull of the trigger. It had a 6-shot cylinder, a molded wooden grip, a design of a blue rose carved into the arm of the cylinder crane, and had the words "For Nero. By .45 Art Works" engraved on its barrel.
"This thing looks good… I've got to take this for a test run and see for myself." Eren said with a grin on his face, before turning back to the redhead before him but not before holstering his newfound gun. "Was that all you wanted to tell me? If so, then tell 'thank you' to Nell Goldstein for me. This baby will help me slay demons, that's for sure."
"Sorry, Dante…" Eren apologized in his mind before smirking. "Looks like I won't be using your girls anymore, at least not all the time. I have my own now, and all that's left is for me to have a sword of my own too. You were right. I have to be my own person."
Lucia nodded before something crossed her mind for a moment. "I have one more gift I wish to impart to you before I go. I presume that the red coat you have received years ago is now too small for your size?"
"Wha…?" Eren was about to ask what else she wanted to leave him, only to stop completely upon hearing the end of her statement. And how did Lucia even know about that? The coat that he always wore as a kid was a gift left on their doorstep with no note on who it came from… unless… unless…
"H-How did you—?" he breathed out in disbelief, as a smile slowly formed on Lucia's face.
"I was the one who left that coat on your doorstep years ago," she revealed. "You were just a little boy at the time. You had a free spirit like Dante and at the same time, you inherited a cold and calculating demeanor from your father. You took up traits from the both of them, and as the last remaining member of Sparda's bloodline, it is up to you to continue what your family did for decades." Lucia then summoned a magic circle and through it, she pulled out a blue coat before presenting it to Eren. "Within the past few days, I was able to gain knowledge of another known monster lurking these lands called the 'titans'. Is that correct?"
Eren could only nod dumbly, while keeping his eyes directed towards the coat in Lucia's hand.
"Then you have a massive burden on your shoulders, Nero. However, you are the only one who is capable of defending the people here from demons and those titans. The fate of the people in these walls rests upon you, son of Vergil."
A look of determination then spread across Eren's face, as he reached out to take the coat from Lucia.
"Words can only go so far," he began. "But I swear, I will not let the demons nor the titans wipe out what's left of the people in these walls, and I will do what I must." He clenched his fists tightly. "In the name of my father, my uncle, and my grandfather… I will protect my people from them."
Lucia smiled at him. "Then my business here is done." she stated, which caused the teen to look at her in confusion. "My only objectives here were to deliver that gun, and present a new coat to you. Now, I must return. I am needed somewhere else."
"Then before you go…" Eren smiled at her in return. "I'd like to say thanks. You didn't have to go all the way here to do this, but you did. It's not something that happens everyday too. Will we ever meet again?"
"I was only doing my duty, but you are welcome. And perhaps in the future, our paths may cross once again, Eren Yeager." Lucia bowed once more and headed for the door with being left wide-eyed at hearing her use the name that his adoptive parents gave him. However, before she could leave the place, she turned towards the white-haired teen one more time. Much to his confusion, the woman had a teasing smirk on her face.
Eren frowned all of a sudden. "What is it? Forgot something?"
"A word of advice. It is said that Sparda himself had many women as his lovers when he was alive, only to settle down with only one in the end. Just remember to be there for them when the time comes."
Lucia could only giggle at Eren's gobsmacked expression after her 'advice' before continuing on her way out, and leaving the teen standing frozen in his place.
Okay… what the hell was she talking about? What was with that 'advice'? Why would Lucia even talk about something like that? So what if Sparda had many lovers?! Why would he have anything to do with that…?! He wasn't his grandfather… right? Then…why would Lucia even offer him advice like that?!
Too many questions ran through Eren's mind that he didn't even notice his mother was tapping his shoulder to wake him up from that trance.
"Are you alright, Eren?" Carla had a look of concern on her face, just as her son snapped out of it and looked at her with a confused expression.
"What…?"
"That girl's name was Lucia, right? Did she just leave?" Carla asked with her eyebrows furrowed.
Still affected by what the redhead told him just a while ago, all Eren could do was shrug, but he looked quite conflicted as he did so. "Uh… I guess?"
"Well, that's a shame." she shook her head and crossed her arms. "I already made lunch and even made extra for her to join us on the table."
"Yeah…" He could only look down, internally cursing Lucia for making him feel like this. "I don't know how could that count as damn advice! I'm not like that at all! Damn you, Lucia!" He shouted in his mind, almost being tempted to stomp all over the floor out of frustration.
The woman raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously. "What's going on with you, dear? You look like you've just been given 'the talk'. Come on, I made lunch and since Lucia already left, you're eating with me alone, young man." With that, Carla headed for the kitchen with Eren having no choice but to follow, while hiding an annoyed expression from his mother.
"Still… I wonder what the hell was that all about…" he thought, feeling as if Lucia wanted to tell him something, but decided to be indirect about him.
And that ends this chapter! This was just a small filler chapter dedicated to introducing Nero's Blue Rose, his signature pistol from the DMC games. Now, it will become his personal firearm instead of Ebony and Ivory. All that's left is for him to get Red Queen but how will that come to be? Also, Lucia from DMC2 makes a small appearance by giving Eren his new gun and it is revealed that she was the one who gave Eren his red coat (refer to Chapter 1), before giving him a new one. Next chapter, we'll be focusing back on the main story and finally get started on the Female Titan arc. Excited? Tune in next chapter!
Goodbye… and good night! BANG! *too sweet gesture*
-Lance
