Okay, now that I've had a little revenge on Chasm, I will write this
chapter. (Ah, I've felt good lately!) I was hoping to get this up before
thanksgiving holiday, and I did! Anyways, thanks to everyone who's been
reviewing. It seems there are others reading who weren't before. If they
were, they weren't reviewing. Bah, on with this thing!
Chapter 15 Merin's Poison
"What are you talking about?" Dante asked the man, his voice stern.
The man merely smirked coolly and stepped away from the edge of the building. He came closer to the three, keeping his eyes on Dante. "I'm sure you're quite well aware that the boy there is poisoned. Correct?"
Dante looked at Demitri on his shoulder. His breathing was heavily labored, and Dante could feel that most warmth had left his body. He was shivering slightly and let out a little groan as Dante slowly removed him from his arm and sat him on the ground. His face was ghostly white and he laid there limply, not trying to move in the least. Dante looked at him solemnly then averted his attention back to the man.
"No shit, I know he's poisoned. I take it you know how to cure him?" Dante growled.
The man chuckled a bit. "Well, you caught on quickly. Those spiders are kind of pets of mine. Nasty little buggers though, didn't you think?"
Dante answered this question by smoothly drawing his sword. The man smiled thinly at this reaction.
"You plan to fight me then?" He asked sarcastically. "If you fought me now, you'd never save the kid."
Dante's brows furrowed a little as his gaze dug into the man's eyes. "If you know how to help Demitri," Dante began, pointing the sword in the man's direction. "Tell me."
"Well, you're certainly a cheerful chap, I see."
Dante growled at the man's sarcasm. "Just who do you think you are, asshole?"
"Oh," The man began. "How rude of me not to introduce myself. My name is Merin. Pleasure to meet you."
Dante shifted his head back toward Demi. "How do I help him, huh?" Dante became angry when Merin kept his silence. "TELL ME!"
Merin sighed and began to explain. "Since I took care of those spiders back when they were little, I created an antidote for their bites. However, if you don't cure him soon, his body will start to deteriorate from the inside out and he will die. No one can survive their poison, that I made sure of." He smirked again, shifting his eyes over to Demitri. "As far along as he is, I'd give him another hour, at the most. Kinda sad, really. . .poor bloke."
Dante became worried at the time limit that he had to cure Demitri. Not only that, but the thought of dieing like that seemed pathetic and sad. "Give me the antidote then."
Merin laughed at Dante's request. "You really think I'd just hand it over?"
"Nah." Dante said, shaking his head. "I was planning on having to fight you for it."
Merin smiled. "Oh, a fight!" Dante noticed that Merin became excited at the thought. He was considering the proposal. "I haven't had a decent fight for quite some time. I'd be honored to have a go at the legendary Dante." Merin looked up at the sky, looking for the sun. It was close to setting, large and orange, close to the horizon.
"Alright, here's the deal. I'd say your boy there's got until the sun goes completely down to live." As Merin spoke, he reveled a short katana, only about two feet long or so. He paced and came closer to Dante, but not much. "If you can beat me in a fight before he dies, then I'll give you the remedy. Deal?"
Dante took another glance back at Demi and then looked around at the roof. He knew this would be their arena, so he wanted to scope it out. The cathedral bell had apparently been torn down some time ago, the middle of the roof bear leaving only marks of where a bell had been. In it's place was a thick steel grating that covered a hole. Dante could see the reflection of blue coming from below the hole. He figured below was the holy water pond.
As Dante continued to look around, he saw a small man standing against one of the four roof edge pillars. He had dirty blonde hair that was awfully askewed from the wind. His big, deep-brown eyes stared at Dante, tinged with fear. The man turn his frail body away from sight as Dante stared him down.
"That guys not going to intervene in our fight, is he?" Dante asked Merin, figuring that he was trying to trick him.
"Who, Ori?" Merin laughed. "That little welp can't even fight off a kitten, let alone you. He's just here to watch."
Dante didn't trust Merin on this, but he shrugged and nodded. "Let's get this over with then."
Merin seemed rapturous at these words. He trembled slightly, either in fear or in joy. "Ah. . .music to my ears!" He laughed, readying his sword. "Come at me!"
Dante wasn't fool enough to take the first move. He stood for a moment, then got into a well balanced, crouched position with his sword tucked behind him. Merin wondered exactly what Dante was planning to do. Dante spun out of the crouch and flung his sword forward, releasing it as it reached his front. Merin narrowly dodged the spinning sword, jumping up and to the side as it spun under him. He landed, watching the sword go back to its owner. Merin didn't bother to make any remarks. He quickly lunged forward, trying to get a good hit in on Dante.
Dante saw the move coming and jumped to his side. He let Merin glide past and turn before cutting down at him. Merin tried to jump away, narrowly missing what would have been a mortal cleaving in of his whole left shoulder and on down diagonally. As he took his footing, he grunted, holding his shallow gash in his shoulder.
Dante didn't give any slack. He charged on forward while Merin's guard was at its low point. Merin ducked and darted around vigorously, barely keeping himself ahead of Dante's strikes.
"Gah, ruddy bastard! Cut me a bit of slack, would ya?!" Merin yelled as he ducked a near decapitation. As he came low to the ground, he slid forward and swept the blunt end of his sword into Dante's legs, knocking one out from under him. Unbalanced, Dante attempted a quite ungraceful back flip, landing haphazardly a few feet back and onto the grated flooring. Merin gave a little chuckle at Dante's maneuver, and then tried to make a move at him again.
Dante knew Merin would try to take advantage of his rather sloppy fumble and watched as Merin came closer again. Just as he tried for a slash, Dante bounced up from the ground and over Merin. As he came through the air, he cut a front flip, his sword spinning with him. As he landed, his blade cut into the side of Merin's back and right shoulder. It wasn't a major wound, but one that would incapacitate that arm for a while.
As Merin turned to Dante, Dante's sword greeted Merin's face, hovering only centimeters in front of him. He shot backward further onto the grating and knelt down in pain, letting his sword drop. With both shoulders out of commission, he couldn't find the strength to swing his blade. Blood leaked continuously from his wound and he felt the pain sear up as he tried to pick up and swing his sword again. With a loud groan, Merin dropped the blade and slowly stood up. Dante wondered what he was planning.
Not wanting Merin to get the upper hand, Dante proceeded with his attack, coming forward with a jab. Merin yelped out softly and groaned as Alastor found the right side of his chest. He stumbled back and knelled down, huffing loudly. Merin knew the blade had punctured his lung as he felt the urge to cough. As he did so, blood spat from his mouth in a mist.
"Aw, bloody hell. . . . ." He groaned, his breathing gurgled. "Aw well, it'll fix up I'd 'magin. . . . .just need a bit of time. . ." He came out of the crouch and sat on his butt, holding his bloody chest. "Well, I call a truce 'ere. Whataya say?"
Dante smirked mildly and sheathed his sword. He knew Merin wasn't a threat at the moment.
Merin smiled weakly and reached into his brown jacket. "I promised you the antidote, so here it is." Merin grumbled as he slowly pulled a small plastic vial from the inside of his jacket. He held it out at Dante weakly. Dante came closer to get it from him, but just as he reached out for it, it slipped from Merin's fingers and onto the grating, bouncing once. Dante growled and cursed loudly as the vial bounced once more and fell through one of the cracks in the grating. He glared at Merin angrily. Merin only chuckled weakly.
"Sorry 'bout that. . ." He smiled. "Guess you'll have to go get it, now won't you?" He closed his eyes and mumbled. "I'll be off now, so I guess I'll see you later." He slowly disappeared, but left Dante with a little note. "Next time, I won't take you so lightly."
Now, Merin was gone, leaving Dante, Schala and the wounded Demitri to stand around alone. Dante took a glance around, not seeing the cowardly little Ori either.
Dante took a dash to the stairs, but was stopped as he heard Schala call him.
"Where are you going?!"
"For a little swim. . ."
Hah! Short, but I managed to get it up before break! When I come back, I'd like to see a few reviews, pretty please?! Bye for now!
Chapter 15 Merin's Poison
"What are you talking about?" Dante asked the man, his voice stern.
The man merely smirked coolly and stepped away from the edge of the building. He came closer to the three, keeping his eyes on Dante. "I'm sure you're quite well aware that the boy there is poisoned. Correct?"
Dante looked at Demitri on his shoulder. His breathing was heavily labored, and Dante could feel that most warmth had left his body. He was shivering slightly and let out a little groan as Dante slowly removed him from his arm and sat him on the ground. His face was ghostly white and he laid there limply, not trying to move in the least. Dante looked at him solemnly then averted his attention back to the man.
"No shit, I know he's poisoned. I take it you know how to cure him?" Dante growled.
The man chuckled a bit. "Well, you caught on quickly. Those spiders are kind of pets of mine. Nasty little buggers though, didn't you think?"
Dante answered this question by smoothly drawing his sword. The man smiled thinly at this reaction.
"You plan to fight me then?" He asked sarcastically. "If you fought me now, you'd never save the kid."
Dante's brows furrowed a little as his gaze dug into the man's eyes. "If you know how to help Demitri," Dante began, pointing the sword in the man's direction. "Tell me."
"Well, you're certainly a cheerful chap, I see."
Dante growled at the man's sarcasm. "Just who do you think you are, asshole?"
"Oh," The man began. "How rude of me not to introduce myself. My name is Merin. Pleasure to meet you."
Dante shifted his head back toward Demi. "How do I help him, huh?" Dante became angry when Merin kept his silence. "TELL ME!"
Merin sighed and began to explain. "Since I took care of those spiders back when they were little, I created an antidote for their bites. However, if you don't cure him soon, his body will start to deteriorate from the inside out and he will die. No one can survive their poison, that I made sure of." He smirked again, shifting his eyes over to Demitri. "As far along as he is, I'd give him another hour, at the most. Kinda sad, really. . .poor bloke."
Dante became worried at the time limit that he had to cure Demitri. Not only that, but the thought of dieing like that seemed pathetic and sad. "Give me the antidote then."
Merin laughed at Dante's request. "You really think I'd just hand it over?"
"Nah." Dante said, shaking his head. "I was planning on having to fight you for it."
Merin smiled. "Oh, a fight!" Dante noticed that Merin became excited at the thought. He was considering the proposal. "I haven't had a decent fight for quite some time. I'd be honored to have a go at the legendary Dante." Merin looked up at the sky, looking for the sun. It was close to setting, large and orange, close to the horizon.
"Alright, here's the deal. I'd say your boy there's got until the sun goes completely down to live." As Merin spoke, he reveled a short katana, only about two feet long or so. He paced and came closer to Dante, but not much. "If you can beat me in a fight before he dies, then I'll give you the remedy. Deal?"
Dante took another glance back at Demi and then looked around at the roof. He knew this would be their arena, so he wanted to scope it out. The cathedral bell had apparently been torn down some time ago, the middle of the roof bear leaving only marks of where a bell had been. In it's place was a thick steel grating that covered a hole. Dante could see the reflection of blue coming from below the hole. He figured below was the holy water pond.
As Dante continued to look around, he saw a small man standing against one of the four roof edge pillars. He had dirty blonde hair that was awfully askewed from the wind. His big, deep-brown eyes stared at Dante, tinged with fear. The man turn his frail body away from sight as Dante stared him down.
"That guys not going to intervene in our fight, is he?" Dante asked Merin, figuring that he was trying to trick him.
"Who, Ori?" Merin laughed. "That little welp can't even fight off a kitten, let alone you. He's just here to watch."
Dante didn't trust Merin on this, but he shrugged and nodded. "Let's get this over with then."
Merin seemed rapturous at these words. He trembled slightly, either in fear or in joy. "Ah. . .music to my ears!" He laughed, readying his sword. "Come at me!"
Dante wasn't fool enough to take the first move. He stood for a moment, then got into a well balanced, crouched position with his sword tucked behind him. Merin wondered exactly what Dante was planning to do. Dante spun out of the crouch and flung his sword forward, releasing it as it reached his front. Merin narrowly dodged the spinning sword, jumping up and to the side as it spun under him. He landed, watching the sword go back to its owner. Merin didn't bother to make any remarks. He quickly lunged forward, trying to get a good hit in on Dante.
Dante saw the move coming and jumped to his side. He let Merin glide past and turn before cutting down at him. Merin tried to jump away, narrowly missing what would have been a mortal cleaving in of his whole left shoulder and on down diagonally. As he took his footing, he grunted, holding his shallow gash in his shoulder.
Dante didn't give any slack. He charged on forward while Merin's guard was at its low point. Merin ducked and darted around vigorously, barely keeping himself ahead of Dante's strikes.
"Gah, ruddy bastard! Cut me a bit of slack, would ya?!" Merin yelled as he ducked a near decapitation. As he came low to the ground, he slid forward and swept the blunt end of his sword into Dante's legs, knocking one out from under him. Unbalanced, Dante attempted a quite ungraceful back flip, landing haphazardly a few feet back and onto the grated flooring. Merin gave a little chuckle at Dante's maneuver, and then tried to make a move at him again.
Dante knew Merin would try to take advantage of his rather sloppy fumble and watched as Merin came closer again. Just as he tried for a slash, Dante bounced up from the ground and over Merin. As he came through the air, he cut a front flip, his sword spinning with him. As he landed, his blade cut into the side of Merin's back and right shoulder. It wasn't a major wound, but one that would incapacitate that arm for a while.
As Merin turned to Dante, Dante's sword greeted Merin's face, hovering only centimeters in front of him. He shot backward further onto the grating and knelt down in pain, letting his sword drop. With both shoulders out of commission, he couldn't find the strength to swing his blade. Blood leaked continuously from his wound and he felt the pain sear up as he tried to pick up and swing his sword again. With a loud groan, Merin dropped the blade and slowly stood up. Dante wondered what he was planning.
Not wanting Merin to get the upper hand, Dante proceeded with his attack, coming forward with a jab. Merin yelped out softly and groaned as Alastor found the right side of his chest. He stumbled back and knelled down, huffing loudly. Merin knew the blade had punctured his lung as he felt the urge to cough. As he did so, blood spat from his mouth in a mist.
"Aw, bloody hell. . . . ." He groaned, his breathing gurgled. "Aw well, it'll fix up I'd 'magin. . . . .just need a bit of time. . ." He came out of the crouch and sat on his butt, holding his bloody chest. "Well, I call a truce 'ere. Whataya say?"
Dante smirked mildly and sheathed his sword. He knew Merin wasn't a threat at the moment.
Merin smiled weakly and reached into his brown jacket. "I promised you the antidote, so here it is." Merin grumbled as he slowly pulled a small plastic vial from the inside of his jacket. He held it out at Dante weakly. Dante came closer to get it from him, but just as he reached out for it, it slipped from Merin's fingers and onto the grating, bouncing once. Dante growled and cursed loudly as the vial bounced once more and fell through one of the cracks in the grating. He glared at Merin angrily. Merin only chuckled weakly.
"Sorry 'bout that. . ." He smiled. "Guess you'll have to go get it, now won't you?" He closed his eyes and mumbled. "I'll be off now, so I guess I'll see you later." He slowly disappeared, but left Dante with a little note. "Next time, I won't take you so lightly."
Now, Merin was gone, leaving Dante, Schala and the wounded Demitri to stand around alone. Dante took a glance around, not seeing the cowardly little Ori either.
Dante took a dash to the stairs, but was stopped as he heard Schala call him.
"Where are you going?!"
"For a little swim. . ."
Hah! Short, but I managed to get it up before break! When I come back, I'd like to see a few reviews, pretty please?! Bye for now!