The Shattering

Lilith pressed her mouth against the glass. She inhaled through her nose and puffed her cheeks. There was a quick flapping sound as air escaped.

"Lilith!" Dante called. "Get away from the window!"

Lilith turned and pressed her back to the glass. "Why?"

Dante took her hand and pulled the eight-year-old away. "Because I don't want you to be seen by someone who shouldn't see you." He guided her to his desk on the left side of the room. She groaned with verbal exaggeration as he placed her into a chair and opened a book in front of her. "Finish your homework."

"Ugh." Lilith let her head fall against the book.

Dante rubbed her head. "It's a start." He walked towards the door. "Don't go anywhere." She waited for the door to close before lifting her head. Then she grabbed the book and slid from the chair. She ducked under the desk and sat on the carpet.

"I hate math."

(X)

Dante passed Vergil on his way down the hall. "What's up?" Dante asked.

Vergil knew it was a serious question. "We just iced another extermination squad."

"That's bad news, isn't it?"

"Exactly. This time they were uncomfortably close to the safe house. Mundus is getting wise to us. We better move. The next one is only about thirty miles from here."

Dante shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea. You know the stress of our situation has made Deanna very ill. If I move her again, she'll only worsen, assuming she even survives."

"That's a chance we have to take. Whether or not she dies, you still have a daughter to protect. If Mundus gets to her, then everything we've fought for will be for nothing."

"I know that!" Dante bit on his thumb.

"Where is Lilith?"

"In my office. Take care of my stuff, will you?"

"Sure." The twins walked off in opposite directions. Lilith was greeted by the sound of the door opening and closing followed by footsteps. Rather than move, she pushed herself further against the desk. Vergil sat at the desk and shoved his feet under. Surprisingly, Lilith managed to avoid his feet.

Five whole minutes passed before Vergil finally said something. "I know you're down there. You might as well get up."

Lilith pulled herself forward and peeked up. "Uncle Vergil?"

Vergil pushed the chair back and snatched Lilith's book. "What's nine times eight?"

"Don't insult me. Seventy two."

"Well then. Let's say you're done for the day, and no one will be any the wiser."
Lilith squinted as if in thought. "Okay." She crawled from under the desk and stood. "What are you doing here?"

"Looking after you."

"Where's my dad?"

Vergil merely shrugged. Lilith rolled her eyes and walked towards the window. Vergil grabbed her shirt as she passed him. "Stay away from that window. We don't want you to be seen by someone who shouldn't see you."

"That sounds like something my dad would say," she whined.

"Well, maybe if you obeyed, you wouldn't have to hear it."

Lilith relented and leaned against the desk. "What am I supposed to do? I'm bored, but no one will let me do anything fun."

"I'm sorry, but we live in a dangerous world. Maybe, if things were different, you wouldn't have to worry about such a thing."

"What would have made it different?"

"I don't know."

(X)

Lilith glanced over Vergil's shoulder. Then she ran around the table and did the same to Dante. They both were holding a handful of cards. Lilith looked at the table, which was an imaginary bloody battlefield. She glanced back and forth between her father and her uncle. Both brothers were stuck in the middle of a Magic: The Gathering duel. Vergil finally tapped some lands and played a card.

"There goes my Dreadnought."

Dante muttered a curse. Lilith gasped and pointed at him. He covered his mouth. "Sorry." He tapped some lands and an artifact card. "Grindstone. Let's go." Vergil grumbled as he discarded several cards from his deck.

Lilith shook her head. "I can't stand the slaughter. I'm going to bed."

"Good night," the twins said simultaneously. Lilith shrugged and dragged herself up the staircase. She passed Deanna on her way up.

"Hi Mom. Bye Mom."

"Hey." Deanna grabbed Lilith's arm. "Going to bed so soon? Without being taken?"

"I'm tired. It's a fluke. Enjoy it while it lasts."

"Okay, then." Deanna let Lilith shuffle to bed. She walked down to where Dante and Vergil were playing their game. She could almost see their foreheads shine with sweat. "Why do you two always do this? Is it some sort of sibling rivalry gone wrong?"

"No," Dante answered innocently as Deanna leaned against him. "It's just a game."

"That our very souls depend on!" Vergil added with a wicked laugh. Dante and Deanna gave him disapproving looks which he promptly ignored.

"You need help," Deanna said. She leaned over to look at Dante's cards. She pointed to a creature card. "Play that one."

(X)

Narek walked towards the light among the trees. "We're almost there," he told the horde of demons behind him. Soon we will have the child and her mother." He took his time approaching the light. Though they were impatient, the demons loyally remained behind him. "Look," he said when the house was finally visible. "Let's have some fun."

The demons maintained their distance behind him. He circled the house until he found some vines growing on the side. He grabbed the ladder structure that supported the vines and hauled himself up the side of the house. He stepped onto the roof and crawled towards the nearby window. When he peeked through the window, he saw a little platinum white haired girl lying across her bed.

"That must be her. Koromos will be pleased."

(X)

"Woman, get away from my cards." Dante gently shoved Deanna aside. "You'll give everything away."

Deanna slapped his shoulder. "Whatever. I'm headed for the kitchen. What do you want?"

"Nothing," Dante responded.

Deanna looked at Vergil. He simply shook his head. When she was gone, Vergil lowered his cards. "You didn't tell her, did you?"

"Tell her what?"

"About the extermination squad I found. About having to move because they're getting uncomfortably close."

Dante flattened his cards. "What do you want me to tell her?"

"Exactly what I told you."

"Look, Vergil, I don't think it's a good idea."

"Well, we can't sit here and wait for them to find us. What about Lilith? Don't take for granted that you'll just make another one."

"I'm not," Dante said. He was careful not to raise his voice. "I just don't believe Deanna would take it well."

"What if she doesn't? We still should move. She can recover from stress. She can't recover from death."

Dante leaned back against the chair. "I know. It's just not fair to them, the way we live, especially with a child in the picture."

"Think of all the civilian children we're also trying to protect. If Mundus has his way, that's pretty much self-explanatory."

"I know, already." Dante made a move to stand, but he was interrupted by the electricity suddenly going out. The house fell silent.

"I don't feel too optimistic about this," Vergil said.

"That may be a good thing. I'll go after Deanna. You get Lilith."

The two went their separate ways again. Before either of them could get out of the room, they heard Lilith scream upstairs.

(X)

Lilith screamed as Narek broke punched through the window. She rolled from the bed and fell to the floor. Her first immature instinct was to hide under the bed. Narek seized her ankle and pulled her back. He pulled her off the floor by her arms.

"Well," he said to her, "you must be the princess I was sent to kill." He pulled her close to his face. "Are you ready to die?" Lilith stared at him in terrified silence. "In the end it really doesn't matter."

He flinched slightly when the door flew open. It nearly broke from the hinges. Narek lowered Lilith just enough to see over her head. Vergil was standing at the entrance with a gun pointed at Narek's head. "Which one are you?" he asked.

"What difference does it make? Either way, I have to kill you."

"Even if it means putting the princess in danger."

"She's not in danger."

"Are you sure?" Narek dropped Lilith and wrapped an arm around her neck. Vergil recognized a detonator in the hand closest to her head. "How much are you willing to bet? Her life? Yours?"
Vergil remained steadfast. "You won't scare me into relenting."

Narek nodded slowly. "All right. Then we'll have to do this the hard way." Narek lifted his hand. At the same time, Vergil pulled the trigger. The bullet pierced Narek's forehead. His thumb pressed the button before he went down.

(X)

Deanna dropped her glass when the lights went out. She tilted her head at the sound of scraping and low growling. In the corner of her eye, she saw something slimy press its face against a window. She opened her mouth, but Lilith's scream above came out first. She turned towards the door to run. Dante pushed it open and stopped her. She flew into his arms panting with panic.

"Shhh!" Dante ordered.

Deanna began breathing in short quick breaths. "I can't breathe," she managed to say between pants.

"Calm down. We have to get out of here."

"What about Lilith!"

"Vergil has her. Let's go."

He tugged on her arm to pull her from the kitchen. "He found us," she said to him.

He stopped to look at her. "What?"

"Mundus. He found us. How could you not know about this?" Dante ignored the question. "You knew?" she insisted. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Dante stopped to stare her in the eye. "Deanna, we don't have time for this."

"You thought I was too sick, didn't you?"

He didn't appreciate the accusation in her voice. "I'll explain when we get somewhere safe."
Deanna jerked her arm away. "I'm not a child. You put our daughter's life in danger! How dare you!"

"I don't have time for lectures, woman! Let's go!" Before he could grab her arm, the house exploded.

(X)

Narek still had his arms around Lilith when they fell to the ground. He landed on his back. The impact forced him to release her. She seized the opportunity to break free and run. Narek pulled himself to his feet and chased after her. He ignored the falling debris as he grabbed her and held her screaming over his head.

"I'm surprised you survived. There's someone who wants to see you. Unfortunately, you have to be dead."

"Put her down!"

Still holding Lilith over his head, Narek turned to face Vergil, who was still pointing the gun. His other hand carried a sword. "What if I don't?"

"I'll have to take her back, one way or another."
Narek ignored the lightning flowing across Vergil's hand. "They want her only one way. That's dead."

Lilith screamed again as Narek attempted to rip her body in half. A volley of sparkling bullets ripped through Narek's face. Narek fell over. Lilith rolled away as Vergil approached them. He plunged the sword into Narek's throat. Lilith sat on the ground in tears. When Vergil was sure Narek was dead, he pulled the sword free. Suddenly calm, he carefully pulled Lilith to her feet. She continued crying.

"Stop that," Vergil ordered. Either she didn't hear him or she disobeyed him. He shook her by the shoulder. "I said stop that!" She jerked her shoulder away. Oblivious to everything else, he lifted her off the ground. He transformed and flew away with her to everything behind to its fate. He was noticed by a few surviving fiends who took off after him. They kept their distance just enough to avoid being seen. They followed him on the ground through the woods towards a new hiding place.

(X)

Deanna had to fight to get a breath. There was a severe pain in her chest. She reached up to touch a wetness on her chest. She cringed in horror when she found a sharp piece of wood protruding through her heart. A fiend kneeled beside her. She tried to scream, but blood surged into her throat.

Attracted by the smell of her blood, it lowered its head for a quick snack. A knife from nowhere lodged itself into the side of its head. It shrieked and backed away. Dante stepped around her. She watched him decapitate the beast and impale the head on a nearby stake. He tossed it aside and took the demon's place beside Deanna.

She knew exactly what he was thinking. "Just go," she said. "There's no point in staying."

"You're out of your damned mind."

"Don't argue with me." She heaved and spat up a mouthful of blood. Dante seized the stake jutting out from her chest. It pulsed with each heartbeat. She mustered the strength to take his wrist. "If you do that, I'll die in seconds."

"That's the point. If I can't save you, I won't let them take you alive."

Understanding his intention, she released his arm. "I love you." Dante knew that responding would slow him down. He ripped the stake free. Deanna held back the scream. She deliberately closed her eyes and turned her head away. A few seconds later, she was dead. Wasting no time, Dante stood and walked in the direction he saw Vergil fly off.

He found Vergil leaning against a tree. Dead demons lay strewn across the ground. Lilith was propped against another tree. She was curled in a fetal position in total silence. Vergil shook his head, almost in disbelief, when he noticed that Deanna was missing.

"Where is she?" he asked, though he was sure he already knew the answer.

"Not now," Dante said. He went to Lilith and lifted her into his arms.

"Is that your answer to everything?" Vergil challenged. "Total silence." Dante glowered at him, but Vergil didn't back down. "It was your silence that got us into this mess."

"I am not in the mood, Vergil. Either way, we've been compromised. We need to get out of here. We have to walk a ways to avoid drawing attention."

Vergil let Dante get ahead a few steps. "I suppose you're not worried about Deanna's health now." He heard Dante growl at him. Vergil let him keep ahead. "I wonder what's next," he said, but it was deliberately too low for his brother to hear.

(X)

Mundus bit into the glass pipe and inhaled the noxious smoke. His lungs were filled with smudge of smoldering belladonna. He removed the pipe and exhaled through clenched teeth. He listened to his son's footsteps as Koromos descended into the chamber.

This time Koromos didn't bow. "I never thought I'd actually catch you getting high." Mundus responded with a long exhale. "One from Narek's team returned."
Mundus tilted his head. "Only one?"

"According to him, all the others were killed, including Narek. He says they managed to kill Deanna, though."

"One down, three to go. The empress is gone. Now there is just the emperor, the regent, and the obnoxious princess." He took another puff of the belladonna. "Where are they now?"

"No one knows."

"They'll never return to the scene of the crime. This will push back our efforts by several years. By then, the princess will be grown. Then what?"

"We'll just have to deal with them all the old fashion way." Koromos snatched the glass pipe and inhaled the belladonna smoke. He coughed and wiped some water from his eyes. "That's really good." His voice was raspy and weak. Mundus released a low belly laugh as Koromos left the chamber.