Devil May Cry: Zero
Disclaimer: All original characters from Devil May Cry belong to Capcom. This is a non-profit fan fiction.
Chapter 10: The Decision
The ghostly hands were gone after they brought Rei to the other side of the void. An unknown source of light lit the entire area. For a moment, only a moment, Rei felt afraid. She was all alone in a place she had never been to. It didn't take long for her to realise she wasn't standing on leveled ground. In fact, she was brought to an extremely steep gravel mountain. It was more like a large hill because there was nothing except gravel on it. Gravity was pulling her downwards.
Standing was one of the hardest things for Vergil right now. The hill was treacherously high and steep. He could see Rei in front of him, trying to stay on her feet like him. She didn't see him coming through to this side since she was hauled to the other side completely before he followed. Nonetheless, Vergil figured that if he didn't do something soon, he would be rolling down the hill sooner or later. He struck Yamato into the gravel to slow himself down. Normally he wouldn't use it for other purposes other than slaying demons; however he didn't have a choice in such situation.
Rei tried to maintain balance but the stones slide over each other almost as smoothly as marbles. One of her foot stepped on a looser pile, causing her to lose balance but didn't stop her from skidding downhill uncontrollably. Rei saw many long, branch-like things sticking out of the ground so she took hold of one, hoping it would slow her down. When she touched it, it felt dry and hard. To her horror, the branch-like object was a skeleton arm. Her reflex action caused her to let go of it but immediately regretted it the moment she did. She couldn't believe she was still scared of little things like that when she was fighting devils a while ago.
A strong hand grabbed hers, halting her right away. Rei looked up and saw Vergil. He was sort of crouching on his feet but leaning slightly backwards. At the corner of her eyes, Rei could see him holding Yamato, which was dug in the gravel at that time, with his right hand and holding her with his left hand. Rei wondered when Vergil followed her. Nevertheless, knowing he was here gave her great relief. Carefully, they skidded down to the bottom of the grey-coloured hill.
Rei looked up the hill they came down from and shuddered. The hill covered such a large area that she couldn't see anything other than greyness on either end. Hundreds of bony arms, legs and skulls stuck out in similar manner. An ordinary person would think that place was hell upon first sight. In a way, Rei was glad the skeleton body parts weren't moving at least.
"This is strange. Why would they take us – I mean me, really – to a place like this?" Rei said. She expected demons would come out and seizes her any moment but there was nothing at all.
"I don't think that man's action is predictable," Vergil replied. He was considering whether or not he should ask about Rune at a time like this.
"What should we do now?" Rei asked. She had a couple of options in mind, but wanted to listen to her companion's opinion first.
Vergil thought for a moment and spoke. "We should leave this place as soon as we can before they send more demons after us."
"I know, but what about Dante and Mia?" Rei asked.
"They'll be fine," Vergil said. Needless to say, it was too dangerous to go back. "Dante knows what I'll do," He added. Rei nodded in agreement.
The place where they were at resembled a grey desert to Vergil. Everywhere looked the same. It was the perfect place to be lost, if anyone wants to be lost, that is. Rei summoned two small, white-furred creatures that had mixed features of rabbit and squirrel. The summoning circle was green, unlike the last one. The diagram inside it was different too. She ordered them to find a way out for them while they explore the area.
"Thanks," Rei said to the devil hunter next to her.
"What for? You thanked before," Vergil asked.
Rei shook her head and smiled. "No, this is for believing me. You wouldn't have let me go off with Dante together if you didn't trust me, right?"
Vergil didn't say anything. He wasn't good at deciding what to say when people thank him. On the other hand, even though she had only met him for less than a day, Rei knew him well enough to not expect an answer.
They looked around for a while but didn't find a single thing. Greyness was all there was. Rei glanced at her silver-haired companion. He was staring forward, expressionless as usual. She couldn't tell if he was in deep thought or staying alert. The wound on his shoulder seemed to have healed but he got more fresh ones. It came to her that she was supposed to be scared of him. He was, after all, half-demon. But for some reason, she felt secure beside this person. Being partly demon, Vergil and Dante treated her and Mia better than some humans.
All of a sudden, demons emerged from beneath the stones and gravel. Vergil and Rei were surrounded by Enigmas within seconds. More Enigmas appeared outside the first wave. There were at least twenty if not more. All of them were flashing blue, which indicated they were about to release their long needles. Vergil didn't waste a second; he drew Yamato and cleared the ones nearest to him. Rei kneed down and chanted silently. A black square-shape was formed around her. Beside her, Vergil spun his katana so quick that it was able to block half a dozen of blue needles shooting towards him. He could see some were heading for Rei, who couldn't move in the middle of summoning. She had her eyes closed in order to concentrate.
Rei heard noises that sounded awfully like sharp objects piercing through flesh. She had completed the summon so she opened her eyes. She could see three baseball bat sized needles had pierced through Vergil's chest. More demons appeared outside the circle of Enigmas. The new wave consisted of an assorted group of the seven sins. They headed towards them like bees attracted to honey. Strangely, five Hell-Vanguards appeared and started attacking the demons. Vergil realised that they were allies that Rei summoned up. The Hell-Vanguards kept their enemies occupied so none were able to get close to them. He was a little surprised that she could summon demons as well.
Vergil returned Yamato to its sheath and set his hand on one of the needles. He held his breath before pulling the needle out. Next to him, Rei watched as he did so. She knew it must be painful even though Vergil didn't say a word.
"Why did you do it?"
Vergil thought Rei would ask him if he was ok. He didn't expect her to say that.
"You don't need to protect me. I only asked you to save my sister." Rei didn't want anyone to be hurt because of her. To her, she wasn't worth being protected. It was horrible enough to feel guilty to be alive.
Near them, the sound of demons slaying each other was quite loud. Somehow they were able to hear each other clearly.
Vergil looked into Rei's eyes. They were pretty but filled with sadness. "Do you want to die?" He asked.
Rei didn't reply. She sat down on the ground to rest for a bit. It was rare for her to have to use her power for so many times in a day. The moment she sat down she felt extremely tired. In fact, she was exhausted a long time ago but all the things that happened kept her mind off it. Vergil rid of the remaining needles. Blood was coming out of the wounds but his demonic blood was already beginning to heal them gradually.
"Thanks for saving me…for the tenth time or so?" Rei sighed.
"If you want to thank me, why don't you tell me about that man called Rune?" Vergil sat down beside her. He looked back at the fight between demons of the same kind. Almost all the sins and Enigmas were gone by now. As soon as the last demon was gotten rid of, the Hell-Vanguards vanished.
"That's right, I haven't told you yet," Rei said. "I'll sorry I didn't have the chance to explain this properly to you and Dante. I'll answer any questions you have. Where should I start?"
"First, tell me about your High Priestess bloodline," Vergil suggested.
"Alright," Rei nodded. For some reason, Vergil had a feeling it was not going to be a happy cheery story.
"The powers that Mia and I have were inherited from our mother. It is our mother's side that had the High Priestess blood. There can only be one High Priestess in this world at a time. Very few people in the world know our existence for a good reason: it is a very important secret. The High Priestess can either be a barrier manipulator or summoner, but she can never be both. If she does, she'll be able to open the Gate to the Underworld and bring chaos to humanity." As she recalled, she looked at the finely crafted locket in her hands, which was used to suppress her powers.
Rei took her eyes off the locket and stared ahead, as though she was seeing images of her past. "When my mother's family knew mum gave birth to two twin girls, they were scared. If Mia and I both have power, the world can end in our hands. The demons were constantly looking for the Priestess. But while mum still lived, they couldn't tell whether or not we are both Priestesses. They even thought about killing one of us just to be safe. In order to avoid them, my parents moved away so we won't be found."
Vergil didn't understand humans sometimes. Some humans, like his mother, can fall in love with a demon, whilst others would think about killing their own family.
"Even until now, we move at least once a year to stay away from our relatives. There can only be one Priestess in the world at a time, as I said. Therefore, the new Priestess will not inherit the power until the previous one dies. Soon after mum's death, we found out we were indeed both Priestesses. The only person on my mum's side who didn't hate us was our uncle, mum's elder brother, our uncle. He is also the father of Rune. Therefore Rune is our cousin."
Vergil finally understood the reason why Rune knew so much about the Rei and Mia. If he was related to them, it made sense that he would know where they lived. Perhaps Rune told the demons about his cousins. "If he is human, how come he has all these powers? Do all the people in your maternal side of the family have powers?"
"No, they are supposed to be normal humans. Only the Priestess has powers. I don't know why," Rei shrugged. "Rune…he went missing five years ago. All of us thought he was dead."
Without warning, Rune appeared in front of them. "Did I hear my name?" Vergil and Mia were startled. They had their eyes glued on him as though Rune was a bomb that will go off any second. Vergil had his hand on Yamato's hilt, ready to block any sudden strikes.
"I'm not here to fight you." Rune laughed, amused by their expression.
"What are you here for then?" Vergil demanded. His grip on the katana relaxed slightly.
Rune dug into his pocket and fished out a shining red amulet. No doubt it was half of the amulet given to Vergil and Dante from their mother. Now it was Vergil's turn to worry. Since he had his, the half that Rune was holding must be Dante's. He knew his brother would never give his half to anyone. "Recognise this?" Rune asked, a light smile hang on his face. Rei didn't know what was going on. She could see Vergil's eyes widened. Something was very, very wrong.
"If Rei doesn't go to the Gate before midday, I don't know what would happen to your brother."
"Why are you telling me this? I know you can take her away right now if you want. Why are you waiting for me to hand her over?" Vergil asked. Rune's actions didn't make sense if he was a subordinate of Zorlin.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not on anyone's side. Besides, it'd be boring if I do that, wouldn't it?" Rune said simply.
"Dante's in danger? How can this be?" Rei asked. Both Vergil and Dante were so strong. How could they possibly be defeated? But then again, even if they are half demons, they would be tired from all the battles. She looked at Vergil and saw him staring at the ground blankly. What was he thinking? Rei wondered. He must hate her now, for bringing so much trouble and misery. It was her fault that Dante was in danger. If what Rune said was true, the odds that Mia was safe were not looking good either.
"I'll go save him," Rei told Vergil.
Shifting his gaze to her, Vergil replied. "No, it's almost midday." There was less than half an hour left. He couldn't allow Zorlin to open up the seal on Gate.
"Dante won't get into this if it wasn't because of me and Mia. I have to go," Rei said. She could see Vergil was unconvinced. "I won't open the Gate for them no matter what happens."
Vergil didn't like the idea for two reasons. There was always the risk that Rei and Mia will be forced to unsealing the Gate, willingly or not. Also, there was no guarantee that Dante was safe right now. Even if Rei went, Dante might not be there anyway. What they had in front of them smelt very much like a trap. Something else was bothering Vergil as well, how did Rune knew there were two halves to the amulet?
Rune guessed what Vergil was thinking. "There is a very simple solution if you don't want the Gate to be opened," He said. "Just kill Rei."
Undeniably, the only way that can ensure humanity would not be threatened was getting rid of one of the girls. Silence penetrated for a long while. Vergil, Rei and Rune all had different things in mind.
"Well then," Rune waved his hand in the air and created a portal instantly. "Step in here and you'll be bought to the Gate. See you later." Then he was gone.
"He's right," Rei finally spoke. Vergil was going to say something but she kneed down for another summon. A purple circle shape surrounded Rei and glowed brightly. A figure emerged from the ground and took shape of her. She looked exactly like Rei. Even her clothes and wounds were the same.
"This is my shadow," Rei explained, wiping some sweat on her forehead. She was reaching her summoning limit. "She can listen to you but she can't speak. You can give her simple instructions and she'll do as you say. Take her to exchange Dante. She won't disappear even if I die."
It surprised Vergil that she was so decisive. Indeed, in order to save humanity, a girl's life should be a cheap price to pay. He had never killed a human before, but it was not really the problem. Why was he hesitating? He had known her for less than a day and yet… Vergil shook his thoughts away. There was no time to waste. Killing Rei would be the safest. It would be over in seconds. Slowly, he drew out Yamato out of its sheath and walked towards Rei.
Author's note: Sorry this chapter took me so long to write. A couple of weeks ago I went on a university exchange program to study in Japan for a year. I was very busy settling down but is pretty much done with it now. A few days ago I even caught a cold. The next chapter probably won't come out soon but I'll keep on writing! By the way, I love getting your reviews my dear readers.
Date Written: 17 April 2005