OOPS! In the last chapter, Dante got a call from RAY, his earlier met geekish friend, not ROB (who is a character in Boys will be Boys). That's what I get for doing two fics at once. Sorry for any confusion.
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Chapter 10: A Gathering
Sarah knocked on the heavy wood doors of Devil Never Cry (huh, he had changed the name since she had last been here, though the sign was the same tacky pink/red color). No answer. She knocked again harder. A minute went by and she let out an angry breath through her nose. She knew he was in there. She put her ear to the door. Nothing. Muttering to herself she wandered around back through an alley. He had once told her he had a back entrance in case of emergency. She found a semi-rotten porch in the back of the building with a door which she was surprised to find unlocked. That was unusual, even for someone as arrogant as Dante. She stepped in cautiously. "Hello?!" she called loudly. She proceeded a few more steps into what appeared to be a storage room. Dante was one of those guys who never threw anything out, including the garbage it seemed. She stopped suddenly. Did she hear……singing? She wandered down a short hallway and pushed through a swinging door to a sight that literally made her jaw drop.
At a table littered with half empty bottles of various alcohol sat a very drunk looking Dante and…and very drunk looking tiny purple dragon. The two were singing some unknown but very bawdy song. Sarah felt a near hysterical giggle slip out. Dante squinted at her, finally noticing her. "Sarah!" he said happily. "Haf a shrink with us!" The dragon merely hiccupped. Sarah was still trying to restrain the giggles, unsure if she was dreaming or not.
"You know," she said, managing to sound reasonably nonchalant though a giggle ran out, "there's a dragon on your table."
Dante's head swung in its direction. He blinked at it for a second. "Yeah. Cashtulus. Parenly my dad had a latin namin' fetish."
Sarah had no idea what he was talking about. "Um. Dante, we need to talk. There are demon rumors flying and my underground place is filling and--" The dragon (had Dante meant to call it Catullus?) suddenly flew unsteadily off the table towards the opposite doorway. A hit the wall about a foot from the opening. He fell to the floor and seemed to pass out in a jumbled winged heap.
Sarah just watched stunned for a second. "I think I'm going to leave now…why don't I call you in a few hours when you're in better sha…" Sarah trailed off. Dante was already asleep on the table, snoring. She shook her head and wandered back out her to car. What the hell was going on?
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Three hours later Dante woke up with an extreme hangover. Everything pounded and swayed rather unpleasantly. As he covered his eyes with his hands, a foggy memory tried to surface. A person. A person he knew. The memory darted in and out of reach. "Fuck," he muttered and put his head back down on the table. A few seconds later he jerked back up, a reaction he immediately regretted as he was attacked by vertigo. Sarah! She had come while he had been drinking with Catullus. Shit…He managed to stand walk over to a phone and dial her number which miracles of miracles he remembered.
"Hello."
"It's Dante. I'll meet you back here in four hours." He hung up the phone before she could respond. He called Ray and left the same message. He then meandered staggeringly through the kitchen past the still unconscious Catullus up to his room where he remembered to call Rob and leave the same message, then he quickly passed out into a dark soundless bliss.
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Four hours later, a disheveled looking Dante sat a table with Sarah, Ray, and a strong cup of coffee. Sarah, thankfully, hasn't commented on Catullus. "Right guys, thanks for coming," Dante said while massaging his forehead. "So what's up? I leave the country for a week and everything seems to have gone to hell. Oh, wait. Ray, this is Sarah, a friend who runs a demon shelter. Sarah, meet Ray, an old friend who tells me important stuff from time to time. Don't worry, you can trust each other." The two exchanged the normal pleasantries. "Right. So…?"
Sarah and Ray look at each other if trying to decide who should go first. Sarah wins.
"Alright," she began with a serious look. "About two days after you left, the 'shelter' started filling up with refuges. And I mean filling. They're the regular types we get, the low class demons or insubordinate guys who run away, but in the last few days we've gotten about five times the usual number. We've run out of room and have had to build temporary housing everywhere in the cavern." Dante gave her a what-does-this-have-to-do-with-me look. She took a deep breath. "All these new refuges talk about the same thing: a giant devil army that is gathering and on the move somewhere. Rumor says it is led by some devil bigwig bent on world destruction and stuff. I thought you might want to know, since that sort of stuff is out of my league."
Dante chewed his lip thoughtfully and took a swig of coffee. "Mm….kay."
Sarah gave him a flat look. "Mkay? Is that all?"
Dante cracked his neck. "Ya gotta take things as they come. That was the first point. Ray, what about you?"
Ray sat back and adjusted his glasses. "Actually I've got much the same info. All my sources say the army is on the move towards a place called the City of Hunters." He nodded at Sarah and Dante's blank looks. "It's not a highly advertised place. I just found out about it this week myself." Ray shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Um, ok. Apparently there is a…guild of devil hunters across the world. They have three main bases which are called Cities. One in America somewhere, one in Australia, and the other is in Europe somewhere. While I called them a guild, they're actually much more. There's probably close to a hundred thousand members spread worldwide. And their Cities, are actual cities. I think I've managed to pinpoint the location of the City in the US. While it's hard to say actually why the army would be moving against the City, it a good bet that the devils want to take out the largest possible threat to them."
Dante raised his hand. "Hang on. Why haven't I ever heard of this guild? Hard to believe a nice handsome guy like me wouldn't be invited to join."
Ray shrugged. "Apparently while the Cities are open to all hunters who can find them, the guild is very picky and secretive about who is allowed to know." Ray smiled sheepishly. "I'm probably not suppose to know about it. Oh! The other thing I found out was that this army is being commanded by a devil named Occasus."
Dante's eyes narrowed. Occasus! That was the same name that the old coot Barthalanus had told him. Suddenly the whole conversation came rushing back. 'Yes,' Barthalanus had said. 'He is ambitious, and has in secret been gathering an army behind him for some time now. By himself he would not be a match even for one of The Ten, yet he has allied himself with other Lieutenants and has gained support in recent years. He plans first to attack the Hunter's Cities, destroying any human interference.'
"Damn!" Dante said aloud. It always seemed he was warned of things in advance without ever knowing it. Though he still didn't know what the damned Staff was for. He shook his head. "So what do you thi--" Dante was cut off as Catullus stumbled into the room and began making himself a cup of coffee on the table. Ray's eyes nearly pop out of his head, while Sarah merely watches him, fascinated. Dante just sits there then says, "This is Catullus, by the way. He's…a friend of mine."
Sarah smiles slightly. "We've met." Catullus looked up foggily from his coffee. Apparently dragons had long hangovers. Suddenly a beeping noise went off and played Yankee Doodle in her purse. Dante gave her an amused yet appalled look. She rummaged around and picked up her cell phone. "Hello?……okay…no, not right now…yes I know……yes…fine, fine, whatever, I'm coming over." She ended the call with a sigh. "Apparently they can't function without at the store. I gotta head out. I'll keep in touch though. Cya Dante. Ray, nice meeting you. Er, same to you Catullus."
The three guys watched her drive away in her car. "She's cute," Catullus commented.
Dante smacked him with his spoon. "Glad to see you're conscious again Shorty." Catullus growled at him and snapped at the spoon.
Ray studied the small dragon during the exchange. It was legend that the royalty of the Underworld had dragon familiars…which only further confirmed his research and suspicions. Ray leaned forward and spoke in a low conspiratorial tone. "Dante listen. There's something else I have to tell you. I didn't want to mention it in front of Sarah because I don't know how well she knows you…like about your dad and stuff. I did some more research on the Five and the Staves, and what I found might…um…surprise you a bit."
Dante cocked his head at Ray. "Oookay…I'm listening…"
"First…um…how to ask this? Did you go to Egypt to get your dad's Staff?"
Dante almost choked on his coffee. "Shit Ray. How the hell do you know this stuff?"
Ray ran a hand through his hair. "It only made sense considering the information I found while you were gone. Okay, think: I already told you that the ruling class of the of the Underworld was the Emperor and his or her siblings. In Mundus case they were The Five. Each of these siblings had a unique Staff of Power."
Dante nodded impatiently. "Right, right."
"So while hacking around in some forbidden library vaults I found an interesting story…about how one of The Five rebelled against the Emperor…" Ray trailed off to let Dante reach the obvious conclusion.
Dante sat up straight while a multitude of pieces fell together suddenly. "Wait a damn second…are you saying my dad…that Mundus"
Catullus, who had listened in silence, now snorted. "Did you really think Mundus hated Sparda so much just as one of his generals defying him? It was because Mundus was betrayed by his own brother that caused him to be so angry. Mundus……is your uncle."
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Dum dum! A little surprise family history there. If that didn't make sense in some way just tell me and I'll try to explain it a little better.
Next Chapter: City of Hunters
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Chapter 10: A Gathering
Sarah knocked on the heavy wood doors of Devil Never Cry (huh, he had changed the name since she had last been here, though the sign was the same tacky pink/red color). No answer. She knocked again harder. A minute went by and she let out an angry breath through her nose. She knew he was in there. She put her ear to the door. Nothing. Muttering to herself she wandered around back through an alley. He had once told her he had a back entrance in case of emergency. She found a semi-rotten porch in the back of the building with a door which she was surprised to find unlocked. That was unusual, even for someone as arrogant as Dante. She stepped in cautiously. "Hello?!" she called loudly. She proceeded a few more steps into what appeared to be a storage room. Dante was one of those guys who never threw anything out, including the garbage it seemed. She stopped suddenly. Did she hear……singing? She wandered down a short hallway and pushed through a swinging door to a sight that literally made her jaw drop.
At a table littered with half empty bottles of various alcohol sat a very drunk looking Dante and…and very drunk looking tiny purple dragon. The two were singing some unknown but very bawdy song. Sarah felt a near hysterical giggle slip out. Dante squinted at her, finally noticing her. "Sarah!" he said happily. "Haf a shrink with us!" The dragon merely hiccupped. Sarah was still trying to restrain the giggles, unsure if she was dreaming or not.
"You know," she said, managing to sound reasonably nonchalant though a giggle ran out, "there's a dragon on your table."
Dante's head swung in its direction. He blinked at it for a second. "Yeah. Cashtulus. Parenly my dad had a latin namin' fetish."
Sarah had no idea what he was talking about. "Um. Dante, we need to talk. There are demon rumors flying and my underground place is filling and--" The dragon (had Dante meant to call it Catullus?) suddenly flew unsteadily off the table towards the opposite doorway. A hit the wall about a foot from the opening. He fell to the floor and seemed to pass out in a jumbled winged heap.
Sarah just watched stunned for a second. "I think I'm going to leave now…why don't I call you in a few hours when you're in better sha…" Sarah trailed off. Dante was already asleep on the table, snoring. She shook her head and wandered back out her to car. What the hell was going on?
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Three hours later Dante woke up with an extreme hangover. Everything pounded and swayed rather unpleasantly. As he covered his eyes with his hands, a foggy memory tried to surface. A person. A person he knew. The memory darted in and out of reach. "Fuck," he muttered and put his head back down on the table. A few seconds later he jerked back up, a reaction he immediately regretted as he was attacked by vertigo. Sarah! She had come while he had been drinking with Catullus. Shit…He managed to stand walk over to a phone and dial her number which miracles of miracles he remembered.
"Hello."
"It's Dante. I'll meet you back here in four hours." He hung up the phone before she could respond. He called Ray and left the same message. He then meandered staggeringly through the kitchen past the still unconscious Catullus up to his room where he remembered to call Rob and leave the same message, then he quickly passed out into a dark soundless bliss.
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Four hours later, a disheveled looking Dante sat a table with Sarah, Ray, and a strong cup of coffee. Sarah, thankfully, hasn't commented on Catullus. "Right guys, thanks for coming," Dante said while massaging his forehead. "So what's up? I leave the country for a week and everything seems to have gone to hell. Oh, wait. Ray, this is Sarah, a friend who runs a demon shelter. Sarah, meet Ray, an old friend who tells me important stuff from time to time. Don't worry, you can trust each other." The two exchanged the normal pleasantries. "Right. So…?"
Sarah and Ray look at each other if trying to decide who should go first. Sarah wins.
"Alright," she began with a serious look. "About two days after you left, the 'shelter' started filling up with refuges. And I mean filling. They're the regular types we get, the low class demons or insubordinate guys who run away, but in the last few days we've gotten about five times the usual number. We've run out of room and have had to build temporary housing everywhere in the cavern." Dante gave her a what-does-this-have-to-do-with-me look. She took a deep breath. "All these new refuges talk about the same thing: a giant devil army that is gathering and on the move somewhere. Rumor says it is led by some devil bigwig bent on world destruction and stuff. I thought you might want to know, since that sort of stuff is out of my league."
Dante chewed his lip thoughtfully and took a swig of coffee. "Mm….kay."
Sarah gave him a flat look. "Mkay? Is that all?"
Dante cracked his neck. "Ya gotta take things as they come. That was the first point. Ray, what about you?"
Ray sat back and adjusted his glasses. "Actually I've got much the same info. All my sources say the army is on the move towards a place called the City of Hunters." He nodded at Sarah and Dante's blank looks. "It's not a highly advertised place. I just found out about it this week myself." Ray shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "Um, ok. Apparently there is a…guild of devil hunters across the world. They have three main bases which are called Cities. One in America somewhere, one in Australia, and the other is in Europe somewhere. While I called them a guild, they're actually much more. There's probably close to a hundred thousand members spread worldwide. And their Cities, are actual cities. I think I've managed to pinpoint the location of the City in the US. While it's hard to say actually why the army would be moving against the City, it a good bet that the devils want to take out the largest possible threat to them."
Dante raised his hand. "Hang on. Why haven't I ever heard of this guild? Hard to believe a nice handsome guy like me wouldn't be invited to join."
Ray shrugged. "Apparently while the Cities are open to all hunters who can find them, the guild is very picky and secretive about who is allowed to know." Ray smiled sheepishly. "I'm probably not suppose to know about it. Oh! The other thing I found out was that this army is being commanded by a devil named Occasus."
Dante's eyes narrowed. Occasus! That was the same name that the old coot Barthalanus had told him. Suddenly the whole conversation came rushing back. 'Yes,' Barthalanus had said. 'He is ambitious, and has in secret been gathering an army behind him for some time now. By himself he would not be a match even for one of The Ten, yet he has allied himself with other Lieutenants and has gained support in recent years. He plans first to attack the Hunter's Cities, destroying any human interference.'
"Damn!" Dante said aloud. It always seemed he was warned of things in advance without ever knowing it. Though he still didn't know what the damned Staff was for. He shook his head. "So what do you thi--" Dante was cut off as Catullus stumbled into the room and began making himself a cup of coffee on the table. Ray's eyes nearly pop out of his head, while Sarah merely watches him, fascinated. Dante just sits there then says, "This is Catullus, by the way. He's…a friend of mine."
Sarah smiles slightly. "We've met." Catullus looked up foggily from his coffee. Apparently dragons had long hangovers. Suddenly a beeping noise went off and played Yankee Doodle in her purse. Dante gave her an amused yet appalled look. She rummaged around and picked up her cell phone. "Hello?……okay…no, not right now…yes I know……yes…fine, fine, whatever, I'm coming over." She ended the call with a sigh. "Apparently they can't function without at the store. I gotta head out. I'll keep in touch though. Cya Dante. Ray, nice meeting you. Er, same to you Catullus."
The three guys watched her drive away in her car. "She's cute," Catullus commented.
Dante smacked him with his spoon. "Glad to see you're conscious again Shorty." Catullus growled at him and snapped at the spoon.
Ray studied the small dragon during the exchange. It was legend that the royalty of the Underworld had dragon familiars…which only further confirmed his research and suspicions. Ray leaned forward and spoke in a low conspiratorial tone. "Dante listen. There's something else I have to tell you. I didn't want to mention it in front of Sarah because I don't know how well she knows you…like about your dad and stuff. I did some more research on the Five and the Staves, and what I found might…um…surprise you a bit."
Dante cocked his head at Ray. "Oookay…I'm listening…"
"First…um…how to ask this? Did you go to Egypt to get your dad's Staff?"
Dante almost choked on his coffee. "Shit Ray. How the hell do you know this stuff?"
Ray ran a hand through his hair. "It only made sense considering the information I found while you were gone. Okay, think: I already told you that the ruling class of the of the Underworld was the Emperor and his or her siblings. In Mundus case they were The Five. Each of these siblings had a unique Staff of Power."
Dante nodded impatiently. "Right, right."
"So while hacking around in some forbidden library vaults I found an interesting story…about how one of The Five rebelled against the Emperor…" Ray trailed off to let Dante reach the obvious conclusion.
Dante sat up straight while a multitude of pieces fell together suddenly. "Wait a damn second…are you saying my dad…that Mundus"
Catullus, who had listened in silence, now snorted. "Did you really think Mundus hated Sparda so much just as one of his generals defying him? It was because Mundus was betrayed by his own brother that caused him to be so angry. Mundus……is your uncle."
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Dum dum! A little surprise family history there. If that didn't make sense in some way just tell me and I'll try to explain it a little better.
Next Chapter: City of Hunters