A few assumptions:
- I'm sorta assuming the angels from Bayonetta are actually angels and they're the non-Japanese equivalent of the Reikai. (Its technically dmc canon, so...)
- Idk what year this is in but it's in the early 90s somewhere, and the timeline is up in the air.
- Mundus is one of many "demon kings" (such as him and Argosax) ruling the western/european part of Hell, not the Japanese Makai (where Raizen, Mukuro, and Yomi rule.) Yet, he's the strongest one in the area (or was, 2000 years ago, when Sparda sealed off Hell. He's still very strong in the modern day, but whether he's the strongest is up in the air.) Th Qliphoth made him strong enough to be a demon king.
- Kuwabara is still gonna get his big moment! Don't worry, the Yamato being there and having dimensional cutting abilities won't take that away
- The creation of the Yamato was inspired by a trip Sparda took to Japan for some reason, so I made up one: giant fucking hellgate.
- idk but him living in Fortuna happened after that, so I'm just fucking with the timeline here lmao
I don't know how to write Sensui so I guessed. Let me know if I screwed up, because I'm too lazy to beta this right now.
Anyway, enjoy. I don't know exactly how to end this, but we will get there.
Vergil picked up the phone and dialled the required number, dripping murky red water onto the concrete floor of the phone booth. Rain and Demon Blood plastered his hair to his forehead, and he glanced at his reflection in the phone booth's window as the phone rang into his ear. Before his run-in with Dante nine months prior, seeing his hair down would only make him angry, before the melancholy of missing his twin won out over his anger over Dante being their mother's favorite. But, after their run in? After Dante refused his offer of partnership?
Looking at his reflection and seeing Dante made him furious beyond belief.
He shoved his gloved hand roughly through his hair and slicked it back into its normal state, despite the trail of demon blood that now ran through it.
He scowled at himself, and turned his vision back to the phone's worn keypad.
The person on the other end of the line picked up.
"Vergil," Arkham greeted, from the other end of the line. "Any progress?"
"I have reclaimed the sixth sealed demon's name," Vergil informed him. "One more, and the Temen-ni-Gru shall rise once more, at long last."
It had been quite the journey to get to this point, and through it, he had met many, gained knowledge beyond his imagination, and, in one rare instance, let his guard down enough to be with a human woman.
He didn't want to think about that. He didn't dare think of her, and how being near her would only put her in danger. It was for the best that he had left her behind on Fortuna, no matter how much he ached to go back and hold her in his arms once more.
It had been almost 6 months since he had left, Vergil chastised himself. He should have left those feelings behind by now.
"Excellent," Arkham said. "I have recovered the location of the next name. And I believe you'll be especially interested in this one."
"Oh?"
"Indeed. A couple of my associates in the area have been attempting to unseal a rather large Hellgate. Compared to the Temen-ni-Gru, of course, this gate is inconsequential, but it would allow demons into their land for the first time in over 1000 years, when Sparda sealed it off."
There was only one place Vergil could think of that fit this criteria, based on his research and his father's stories. After all, this particular conquest was how his father had received the Yamato.
"You're sending me to Japan," Vergil said.
"I am," Arkham said, "After all, you're the only person I know who has the means to cut through the barrier between realms instated there."
"Interesting," Vergil mused. He had never been there, but he had always meant to seek out the demon that had taught his father the way of the Katana. Although he was proficient in Iai-do, most of his skills were taught to him over a decade ago, before his father had abandoned him. Of course, he had learned the Japanese language in order to further his study of the Katana, but there was only so much he could learn from old relics and manuscripts in delicate, flowery Kanji.
What better way to gain his father's power than to learn from the master that taught him? He had no doubt in his ability to seek him out, no matter how much he tried to blend in amongst Humankind. After all, even the lowest level of demon could only hide from one of their kind for so long.
He smiled.
"I've been meaning to go there for a while," he said. "Where do you need me to go?"
Arkham's acquaintance was a tall, willowy man named Shinobu Sensui, who was planning on gathering a cadre of spiritually sensitive humans in order to prevent any interference while he fully opened the Hellgate. However, he needed the power to cut the barrier in order to start the process, and Arkham had pointed him in Vergil's direction in exchange for help with awakening the Temen-ni-gru.
"Relying on humans in order to achieve your ends," Vergil spat. "How distasteful."
Sensui just laughed.
"Oh, you may find it distasteful, but demons and humans are but two sides of the same coin. Both are capable of great good, but, more importantly, also capable of great evil."
Sensui held up a VHS tape, and handed it to Vergil.
"This tape is known as the Chapter Black," he said. "It contains video evidence of every atrocity committed by mankind."
"Every one?" Vergil questioned. "Videography was only invented a century ago, after all."
"Every one," Sensui nodded. "You'd be surprised as to what sorts of technology the Spirit World has at its disposal. And, how much they're willing to cover up in order to preserve their anti-demon agenda."
"The Spirit World," Vergil mused. Old records of Sparda's quest in Japan spoke of how the authorities of the Reikai, or the Spirit World, had aided him in his effort to raise the barrier between worlds. After the barrier was erected, Sparda had left it to them to maintain it, before returning to live among humankind on the continent once more.
Vergil wondered, was there some sort of Spiritual Authority looking over other parts of the Human world? He had heard of certain mages making deals with beings from a so-called "Heaven," but he wasn't foolish enough to believe that the Spirit World had any sort of non-Japanese equivalent.
"The Spirit World," Sensui agreed. "Did you know that I used to be their detective? I'd do their dirty work for them, killing whatever demons they sent me after. But then, I learned the error of my ways. I learned that demons could be just as gentle as humans, and humans just as abominable as demons. The Spirit World, of course, disagrees. They'd rather keep the worlds separate and believe in the so-called inherent goodness of humanity than accept the truth."
Vergil scoffed.
"Fools, all of them," he said. "If they can't see beyond their own noses, why should they have a say as to what sort of beings belong in either realm?"
Sensui barked out a laugh.
"I'm glad you can understand where I'm coming from," he said. "Now, Arkham said you can help me with the initial opening of the gate, correct?"
"Puncturing the first layer of the barrier?"
The barrier, from what Vergil learned, was like an Onion. Cut off the roots, and the onion would gradually unravel, layer by layer, until only the core was left. And the Yamato was the only knife sharp enough to start the process, and, later on, destroy the last layer between world after the barrier gradually opened itself.
"Indeed." Sensui agreed.
Vergil smiled.
"Very well, then," he said. "Where do you plan for me to cut the barrier?"
Sensui smiled.
"Have you ever heard of Mushiyori City?"
