I like to thank all of you who have given me reviews. I'm really happy that you liked Neva since she is my OC and have been living in my head for a while. Now let's continue!
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Soul wanderer
As they made their way through the streets both Trish and Dante were occupied with their own thoughts. Dante was stricken by the recollecting of Neva's first appearance in his office. He was well aware that the mentioning of his family had made him less inclined to listen to the intruder, making him miss some of the things she had said. But one piece of information had apparently been stored in the deeper crevices of his mind.
"Is she really that old? Where she around before my father battled Mundus?" The half whispered words were ripped from his lips by the wind as he followed Trish down the road in their usual speed, well above the speed limit.
Later, when they had taken off some of their arsenal, including their swords, and laid slumped in the battered sofa that occupied a corner of the office, Dante asked Trish what she thought about the whole thing. She laid her head on the armrest, putting her legs over Dante's knee and stared up into the ceiling.
"Well, there are demons that are that old. I'm not sure what she is but she's not human that's for certain. There something in her eyes… and that skin! And did you see that thing when she changed clothes in a blink of an eye. That would come in handy when you're in a rush."
"But what is she?" Dante knotted his brow as he pondered the possibilities.
Trish stretched and smirked, mildly amused by the thought that the devil hunter had found a conundrum that could leave him stumped.
"Whatever she is I have a feeling that we will find out soon. I really don't think that she's out to kill us, but on the other hand it wouldn't be the first time someone sent you on a wild goose chase just trying to eliminate you."
"Yeah, you should know since you're one of them." With a teasing grin Dante stretched out his long legs and put his hands behind his head. Trish made a face at him and then they settled down. They both figured there was not much to do but wait until their mysterious would-be employer appeared.
After half an hour of waiting and small talk they finally heard a knock on the door. Trish swung her legs of Dante's lap and went to open the door. Neva stepped in and looked around.
"You had no problem getting home, I hope. We found the cult members you left in garage. Nice work. Now, it is not safe here, we have to move on. I have a place in the woods that is well protected."
"You know, we haven't accepted the job yet." Dante spoke up, feeling that Neva's assumption that they would obey her every word, was getting on his nerves. His statement made Neva's confidence falter. She stood frozen for a second with her eyes fixed on Dante's face.
"But…but you have to. If we do not stop Cthulhu the world is doomed."
"As I said before, they all say that. If you have any connecting with what happened on Mallet Island, I see no reason to trust you."
Trish, knowing Dante's urge to sometimes mouth off to people, stood back and watched. She knew that he would take any opportunity to kick some monster butt; he just had some issues with people ordering him around. She glanced at Neva to see how she coped with being questioned, and flinched. Neva's eyes were virtually smouldering. Her gaze revealed a desperation that bordered on insanity. Her sudden change from cool to hot headed made Trish so dumbfounded that she just stood staring at the scene when Neva, shaking with emotion, hissed at Dante, "If you do not come willingly I will make you." She shut her eyes and her face went blank, a slight shimmer enveloping her body.
Dante's eyes grew wide and then he screamed, reaching for his gun, aiming them at Neva's head. "AAAHH! Get out of my head, you bi-." Suddenly he broke of and his face went blank. His eyes stared into oblivion, betraying no feeling at all. With one smooth movement he twirled the guns in his hands, handing them over to Neva. At that instant a metallic hissing was heard as Alastor, which Dante had leaned against the sofa, unsheathed itself and whipped through the air, burying itself point first in the raven haired woman's shoulder. The blade pierced the chain mail and stopped with an inch of its point protruding from her back. She staggered backwards and by the sheer force of the impact smashed into the door. Trish finally shook herself out of her paralysis and ran up to Dante who was swaying slightly while gripping his head.
"Are you okay?"
Dante cautiously turned his head and looked at her. "Yeah, I think so, but I have a hell of a head ache."
A muffled gasp was heard and they both turned towards the door. Alastor was slowly twisting in Neva's shoulder, trying to inflict as much damage as possible. Neva looked up and tried to give them a smile. "Could anyone get this sword out of me?"
Dante leaned forward, gripping Alastor's hilt. "Tell me why I shouldn't kill you right here and now." He did not move until Neva's eyes met his and she almost automatically replied.
"Because you can not kill me. You are not strong enough."
Their eyes locked for a while until Dante reluctantly backed down. Neva arched a brow at Dante, indicating that he would do something about the sword that still was piercing her shoulder. He stepped back and pulled out the sword. Trish guardedly stepped forward and gripped her uninjured arm. The devil hunter and his demonic sidekick regarded this woman who seemed to have more secrets than anyone else they ever met. Neva met their gaze and seemed to understand their hesitation to trust her.
"I swear on your father's sword, Dante, that I am not trying to deceive you and that I will not attack you again. I am afraid that I overreacted a bit."
"Damn right you did!" Dante was rubbing his temple, giving her a sour glance. "What the HELL were you doin' inside my head? Now I have a freakin' head ache. Thanks a lot! And why should we believe you?"
"Because, unlike Alastor, Force Edge is one of the two things in this world that can kill me. See?" She moved her shoulder, making the chain mail reveal the gaping cut where Alastor had gone through her. The wound was quickly closing as they watched it. Even the blood disappeared.
"Now loan me Force Edge." Neva stretched out her hand towards Trish who hesitantly handed her the sword, hilt first. Neva pulled up her sleeve and drew the edge of the blade against her skin, making a long cut, just deep enough to draw blood. The crimson fluid ran along her arm, dripping on the floor. With her hand she wiped at the blood covering the wound to show them that the cut was not healing. "Do you believe me now?"
Trish and Dante both nodded in affirmation and then Trish motioned for Dante to go fetch the first aid kit and a rag to clean the blood of the floor.
As Dante stalked off, the two women stood looking at each other.
"What did you do with Dante?" Trish asked. Her voice was brimmed with curiosity.
"I let a part of my soul take over his body."
"Your soul?!"
"Yes, I am a Soul Wanderer."
"How does that work? I have never heard about that before."
"By sending a little piece of my soul into a person, or an animal for that matter, I can control them, or just use their eyes to see what they see. That is how I used the cat."
"So you spied on us through the cat?"
"No, I do not spy. I watch. I had to make sure that Dante was strong enough to deal with the task that I need him to perform."
"What task," Dante interrupted as he entered the room again but he got no answer. After handing the first aid kit to Trish, he picked up Alastor's sheath and strapped it to his back. He was still holding the sword in his hand. He stared at it for a while and then glanced at the woman who was being bandaged by Trish.
"What is up with this sword attacking you all the time? It never used to attack people on its own accord before you can along."
"It attacked you once, did it not?" Neva responded.
"Yes, but-"
"If you had not been worthy you had died. It was a test."
"So Alastor is testing you?"
"No, he just hates me. I will explain later. Now with your permission…" Neva bowed mockingly, gesturing towards the front door. With a grunt, Dante sheathed Alastor and walked outside. Trish and Neva shortly followed him, sharing an amused look. They were starting to get along fine.
"Are we riding in that!?" Dante pointed at the vehicle parked in front of the building. Neva just nodded and walked to the driver side. As she climbed inside, Dante stood regarding the oddest looking vehicle he had ever seen. It had once, in its former life, been an ordinary military jeep from WWII but now it seemed to have mutated. Instead of the normal 15" tires it was now sporting 40" tires with heavy duty tread. The front of the pitch black jeep was adorned with a steel grille guard and a winch. As he handed his sword to Trish and got into the passenger seat he noticed that an aluminium cage was bolted to the inside frame, giving the occupants protection in case the vehicle would roll over.
Trish, who had climbed into the backseat and held a tight grip on their swords, put on her seat belt as Neva turned the ignition and steered away from the curb. By the sound of the engine Dante knew that a V8 was installed instead of the old four-stroke engine that was standard. He wondered for a while why the jeep had been so extremely modified but he soon forgot his thoughts when he became aware of their speed.
Neva was speeding up while glancing in the rear view mirror. As she took a curve on two wheels she smiled at her passengers. "We have company." Dante looked in the mirror and saw that a dark station wagon was trying to keep up with them. It was not doing a very good job. Neva sped onto the freeway that lead out of town and was slowly putting a growing distance to their followers, weaving in and out between other cars. As they left the city behind them the traffic cleared and she pressed the accelerator to the floor. The head lights of the chasing car slowly disappeared. Neva saw that their pursuers were giving up but she did not slow down.
The jeep roared through the dark, making the passing trees blur.