3 February ?
It was cold. The aura felt disturbingly quiet. Cyra's breathing seemed to echo…or maybe that was her heart beat. Her eyelids lifted, expecting a bright light to consume her as if she just passed out on the floor and the ceiling light had been left on, but no such light existed. No effort was put into standing up as she tried to recall her last memories. Memories of arguing with Vergil flashed into her mind before there was a gap. The next thing she remembered was pushing Dante back and feeling confused and afraid. Then more gaps.
Cyra tried to push herself up, bringing her arm back so that her elbows kept her up. Getting a better view of the room she was in made no difference, because it was just as empty as it was dark. Now fully lucid, she noticed the ground beneath her was made of tree roots, stretching off into the seemingly infinite darkness. She pushed herself up completely and stood up, immediately looking around. She remembered this place from her dreams or hallucinations, or whatever they were. Even if it looked more detailed now, with the root floor, the feeling was familiar. Someone spoke to her in them, but now it was quiet.
"H-hello?" Cyra tried calling out and sure enough, her voice echoed around her.
"Oh good, you're awake," A voice behind her said.
Cyra quickly turned around and braced herself from the woman in the distance. She was facing Amelia, who was smiling wickedly at her, "Amelia…"
"I feel like I haven't seen you in so long. You were really fighting my influence these past few days," Amelia said.
"Can't get through to Vergil so you're coming after me?" Cyra scowled.
Amelia laughed, "You act as if you're my backup plan."
"So what, controlling me was your goal all along?" Cyra asked, glare still plastered on her face.
"Who said I can't have multiple goals?" Amelia widened her grin. She thought she was entirely in control.
"What do you want!?" Cyra shouted.
"Power. Control. A laugh or two…" Amelia said.
"A laugh…" Cyra repeated, "I can't believe I ever trusted you, you insane bitch!"
Amelia laughed, perhaps a bit too exaggerated, "You know, I'm starting to understand what that demon saw in having power! This feels wonderful! Even if it is over you."
"If you kill me, he'll do much worse to you…" Cyra warned.
Amelia chuckled darkly, "Oh I'm counting on him to try," She said and raised an arm. A shadowed figure then landed in front of Amelia as if on command.
The figure stood up straight and stared in Cyra's direction, hair fully pulled back into a short ponytail this time, although it was the first time Cyra's seen him… It. Gabriel's corpse was standing tall in front of her. Not a single emotion was visible on that familiar face.
Cyra's defensive stance wavered upon recognizing his face. Her skin turned pale and face sullen, "Ga….Gab...riel?"
Amelia cackled like a hyena, "Oh go on Gabriel, say hello to your wife after three long years!"
Gabriel began to walk forward, which only caused Cyra to take twice as many steps back, albeit shorter and sloppier, "No no no, you're… you're… He said… Vergil said you're…"
"What, dear? Dead? Does he look dead to you?" Amelia asked, but Cyra ignored her. She just couldn't focus on anything other than whatever the hell was walking towards her.
"You're not him…" Cyra muttered to herself, "You're not Gabriel…"
"Gabriel, our other guest is almost here. Get ready to put on a show," Amelia said.
Gabriel pulled out a knife from his belt and held it off to his side, Cyra immediately noticed and froze in fear.
Just then a blue steak went through Gabriel's body, pushing him back as he turned his attention to see what attacked him. A blue holographic demonic figure came up and knocked Gabriel back fully. It all happened so fast, Cyra couldn't comprehend what she saw. Gabriel stood back up, and once again before she could see anything else, someone tackled her with a tight embrace as she was pushed off the ledge of the platform she didn't know had edges.
Cyra didn't have to guess very hard to know that it was Vergil who pushed her, but she shut her eyes tight, hoping she was right and that they didn't jump from very high, but the fall felt like it was never ending. Cyra couldn't even find it in her to scream. Vergil did what he could to lessen the impact of the fall by scaling down platforms and walls that he could find on the way.
They landed with a thud, Vergil stumbling and rolling along the ground with Cyra ending on top of him. She looked up to confirm it was Vergil, but his face was laced with an obvious discomfort. Either from the landing or her weight, she didn't know or care, but she pushed herself off of him and sat back, using her arm as support, "Are you alright?" She quickly asked.
Vergil sat up and that's when she noticed a knife sticking out of his thigh. Without another second, he pulled the knife out, holding back any noise to signal pain and tossed it aside. Looking back at Cyra he asked, "Are you?"
Cyra stared at him in disbelief. Her lips were mouthing the beginning of questions she didn't know which to commit to, "What… was that?" She settled with.
"What exactly are you referring to?" Vergil asked.
"Gabriel!" Cyra almost snapped.
Vergil felt a bit relieved he didn't have to hide it from her anymore, but he felt guilty he couldn't protect her from it entirely. Now began the moment he needed to explain it to her, "That sorceress is puppeteering his corpse. She expressed plans to hurt you, in an attempt to get to me."
Cyra shook her head, "His corpse…"
"Can you understand why I kept this from you? I anticipated taking care of the problem before you found out. I'm... sorry," Vergil said directly and apologetically.
Cyra quickly stood up, almost startling even Vergil, "You're sorry? I want to understand, but keeping something like THIS from me?"
Vergil stood up as well, ignoring the pain in his thigh from the knife wound, knowing it would go away soon enough, "I wasn't sure how to bring it up."
"Maybe just fucking telling me!?" Cyra shouted.
"I was hoping to protect you from this…" Vergil said quietly.
"That's not your call! He was my husband, and that's his… corpse-" She struggled to say, "-being used by my former mentor! How could you not understand that!?" Cyra asked, voice already breaking.
Vergil didn't respond.
Cyra frowned, "And you got nothing to say. Typical."
"If I told you, what would you have done? You'd have gone to search for him or approach the sorceress herself, falling right into her trap and getting yourself killed. Am I wrong?" Vergil said.
Cyra bit the inside of her cheek. What would she have done? Supposedly it didn't matter at that point, but he was probably right. Cyra scoffed and walked off, in a direction she wasn't sure was correct, "Leave me alone."
"Cyra…" Vergil began, following her.
Cyra stopped to point at him, "You know, for once, I don't actually want you to say anything to me," She said and resumed her walk. Vergil kept silent and pressed on, respecting her wishes. Vergil knew where they were and was surprised Cyra hadn't asked yet, but he knew she was too stubborn and angry to admit she had any further questions.
Understanding Vergil's actions would mean forgiving him. Would it? It wasn't something she could agree with. Hiding vital information about someone as close to her as Gabriel once felt seemed like a betrayal, even if he did have good intentions. She wouldn't let him off that easily.
Cyra, run!
"What?" Cyra turned around and asked.
Vergil stopped to look at her, "Hm?"
Cyra looked at Vergil, "You didn't hear that?"
"No," Vergil responded.
Cyra looked further beyond, over Vergil's shoulder, wondering if Amelia was just playing tricks on her again. She sighed and turned back to continue walking ahead, but when she did, she was looking into a bar. Tables were strewn about with people, the bar was filled with awaiting customers. How did she get here? Wasn't she just with Vergil? Was this a dream? She glanced at people's faces and realized she recognized them. They were all friends and coworkers of Gabriel's. Out of reflex, her attention snapped to the side and saw Gabriel at a booth surrounded by people, including some overly friendly women. They were all laughing while Gabriel was speaking confident and loud - words that Cyra couldn't quite make out. She remembered this day. It was the day Gabriel got promoted as an officer, which would mean Cyra was… Her head turned to the bar to see her past self sitting by herself waiting for a drink. She walked closer to herself and watched. She remembered that day… It had to be around 5 years ago.
…
A 26 year old Nathan walked up to her old 26 year old self and put his hand on her back, whispering something in her ear. Her past self seemed startled, but laughed as she gently pushed him away, looking behind her to look at Gabriel, "Hey if he gets to flirt, so can you," Nathan winked. For a moment, Current Cyra was admiring how kind the years have been to him, all things considered. He looked the same, except his light brown hair was a tad longer.
"He's just celebrating," Her past self defended.
"Without his own wife," Nathan told her.
"I'm here, aren't I?" Past-Cyra answered.
"Only 'cause you feel you have to be. I bet if you left right now, he wouldn't notice," Nathan said.
"Probably not wrong," She chuckled.
Nathan leaned down and whispered something in her ear. Cyra couldn't hear it in this vision, but she remembered what he said, "Then come home with me."
Cyra's past self didn't answer but her attention snapped to Nathan with confusion on her face. Eventually she pulled away from the bar and shyly made her way back to where Gabriel was sitting.
…
"You almost said yes," A voice from behind her said.
Cyra presently jumped and turned around to see Nathan. It was still the younger Nathan from the past, not the one she saw the other day, "What?"
"You ignored my request that day, but I know you wanted to say yes. That's why I said that to you. I knew your marriage was falling apart and I was there to pick you up," Nathan said.
"No! That's not true!" Cyra defended.
"How many times did you cry yourself to sleep when he didn't come home? You knew who he was with all those nights," Nathan said.
"You're wrong… He was working late, he..." Cyra mumbled.
"Well that's what he said, and you believed him," Nathan said.
"Why wouldn't I? I trusted him…" Cyra said.
"And he took advantage of that trust," Nathan said, "Because he knew there was no way you'd leave him."
"Shut up…" Cyra mumbled.
"He knew you were so dependent on him, he could do whatever he wanted while doing the absolute bare minimum to make you happy," Nathan said.
"I said shut up..." Cyra tried again, shutting her eyes tight.
"And you had no one to blame but yourself because you allowed it to happen-"
"Stop..." Cyra whimpered.
"-while pretending everything was fine. Marriages aren't perfect, you reasoned! You thought about using me to cheer yourself up, but you knew you'd only feel worse for cheating on someone who didn't even love you."
"STOP IT!" Cyra shouted and covered her head with her hands.
...
When she opened her eyes back again, she found herself in a kitchen. Her and Gabriel's old kitchen. She saw her old self standing over the stove, the sound of something sizzling in front of her. Cyra walked over to her old self and noticed she was making pancakes. There were only a few occasions per year that Cyra made pancakes. She had a feeling she knew which special occasion this day was...
No…. No no no no.
Gabriel came up behind her and gave her a quick kiss on the shoulder, "Happy Anniversary," He said sweetly.
Cyra's old self's distant face instantly turned happy as she turned around wishing him the same sentiment, "Get the crossword puzzles ready?" She asked him.
"You still want to do that? I feel like they've already asked every question known to man, plus you get them so quickly now, where's the challenge?" Gabriel said.
"Shouldn't you know what it's like to enjoy being a know it all?" Her past self said.
"Ha, ha," Gabriel said sarcastically, "Look if you're trying to impress me, you already have for the past 12 years."
Cyra's old self smiled, "Wait till you try these pancakes!" She said, setting one on a plate and handing it to him.
Gabriel didn't even bother with a fork and grabbed it with his hand to take a bite, "Oh my god!" He said with a mouthful, "These taste like my childhood."
Her old self giggled, "I finally got the recipe from your mother! Said it was deserving of a 10 year anniversary."
Present-Cyra knew what was happening next. They ate breakfast, they did the puzzle, Gabriel arguing over whether the answer was Mahogany or not. Truth was, Cyra didn't even remember the question, and the vision wasn't kind enough to remind her. Gabriel stood up because he got a call to go into work. Cyra's old self protested because it was their anniversary but Gabriel didn't want to decline after he got the new promotion. But he still stayed home. Past Cyra cheered and ran around the table to give Gabriel a happy embrace; Gabriel letting a smile spread across his face. With joy, she sauntered back off to the kitchen to clean up as she started making plans for the rest of the day, but current Cyra wasn't listening.
"Gabriel…. Please leave… Get out of this house," Present-Cyra pleaded. Amelia… Please don't make me watch the next part, Cyra continued to plead, Please, you've done enough…
"Vergil? I can't do this alone, I really need you right now…" She was sobbing and reaching out, desperately hoping to connect her hand with him somehow.
There were screams outside. Present-Cyra knew why although it was too late for the ones in the past. They both approached the window cautiously upon hearing the commotion. Demons were attacking the city. This was rare, especially with how many. Their city didn't have a dedicated devil hunter, unlike the cities surrounding her, and calling one now would be too late.
Demons landed in front of their house, "Cyra, get out of here!" Gabriel shouted as he ran to his coat that rested over the coat hanger to pull out his gun. But a large rat-like demon crashed through the window, it's claws readied as it pounced forward. It slashed toward Cyra's past self, cutting through the side of her stomach. She didn't realize she got pushed over, but when she looked back up, she wanted to vomit.
Present-Cyra had to shut her eyes and cover her ears from the screams that would be emitting from her old self any second now. Please stop this… She pleaded to no one in particular, but hoped that Amelia was listening.
Present-Cyra opened her eyes anyway, hoping it went away, but she was suddenly in the body of her old self, seeing through her own eyes. Gabriel's upper torso was dangling from the demon's claws, while his bottom half was somewhere on the ground, separated, "Cyra, run!" Gabriel still managed to croak out.
Multiple gunfire shots were heard, shooting down the demon. She recognized Nathan's voice following after it, "Officer down! I need an ambulance!" He shouted desperately into his radio, even though he knew it was too late for his friend Gabriel, "Cyra, hang on, help is on the way!" He yelled, but his words fell on deaf ears. Past-Cyra's body felt cold, all she could hear was this horrible static as her attention was focused on her husband's mutilated body.
And by some miracle, she finally broke out of the memory.
...
Cyra shot her eyes open again, gasping for breath as if she'd just been underwater. Moments of desperation went by before she realized she was on the ground with strong arms wrapped tightly around her. A voice was soothing her telling her she was okay. Immediately recognizing that she was in the arms of Vergil, she pushed herself further into him as she balled herself up as small as possible, whimpering and shaking. She didn't care if she was angry with him at the moment, "Oh my god, Amelia made me see it again! She made me-"
"I know, I saw it, too," Vergil cut her off, caressing the side of her arm.
"You did?" Cyra asked, unsure if it was a relief or not.
He saw and felt it all. The guilt from having Gabriel risk his life to save her because she begged him to stay home. She had thoughts of leaving him, but was too afraid. Gabriel's sacrifice felt unworthy for Cyra, that's why she worked extra hard to help others - to pay it forward. He recognized guilt more than anyone and he never expected that to be her main motivator as well. Cyra certainly was full of surprises. The thing that scared him the most is he also recognized the feeling she had during the second memory with Gabriel. It's how he felt around her, and she called it love. It unsettled and confused him, but this wasn't about him at the time, "We know how the memories work. That memory was from three years ago. It was a long time ago. You're safe now with me."
Cyra was almost hyperventilating, but she focused hard on his words. Three years ago. Long time… She was with Vergil. Cyra nodded, "Three years ago…." She repeated through breaths, "With you… safe. I'm safe… Three years ago… Just a memory."
Vergil continued to rub her arm as she repeated the sentiments, "I now understand what you felt when you saw those other memories involving me," Vergil said. It was true. He felt exactly what she felt, although logically he shouldn't be sad. He didn't know Gabriel nor cared, but it didn't matter. Amelia certainly had quite the power to be able to manipulate feelings like this, "I underestimated how lucid they are. Felt like I was quite literally you for a moment."
Cyra nodded, not realizing that Vergil hasn't been tethered that way to see a memory before, "Sucks doesn't it?" She said for lack of better words, continuing to focus on her breathing.
Vergil couldn't help but think back to the memory. The little details were catching up to him now that he had time to process them himself. The scar he saw on her stomach weeks ago came from that day - by a lowly rat demon. He also recognized it to be similar to the demons that came through the portal the other day. Knowing what he knows now, he wouldn't have been so cold to her that day when she froze up, until Nero helped her.
The newspaper they were doing the crossword on was the Red Grave City Gazette, "I didn't know you lived in Red Grave…" He muttered. How long did she live there? Not only 8 months ago, did he attack it when he summoned the Qlipoth. He could've… killed her.
"Yeah, for a few years because of Gabriel's job. I moved out after he passed…" Cyra responded quietly, knocking him out of his trail of thought.
"I'm from there…" He said lamely. It wasn't what he wanted to talk about, but he didn't want to linger on death or murder any longer, for her sake.
Cyra knew he and Dante were from Red Grave. She had a feeling he brought it up because of the events 8 months ago, when he was Urizen, "It was a long time ago," She said, finding herself unable to stop herself comforting him in return. They were both a mess, weren't they? Cyra looked up a bit to see Vergil's face in her peripherals, "You really saw it all?" Cyra asked.
"I think so," Vergil nodded.
Cyra cringed, "Please don't judge Gabriel… Or me… Or Nathan."
Vergil shook his head, "It's none of my business, anyway. We can talk about it later, but we must escape before these get worse," He'd be damned if she fell into another one of his memories.
"Worse? Is this going to keep happening here? How?" Cyra asked, leaning her head more into him.
"It won't if we escape quickly. Can you stand?" Vergil asked.
Cyra felt herself weaken for a moment knowing she'd had to leave his embrace, but without wanting to seem desperate, she pushed herself away from him to stand up, albeit begrudgingly. Feeling vulnerable in this unfamiliar setting, she wrapped her arms around herself as casually as she could, "So? What is this place?"
Vergil looked apprehensive about answering, "Just make sure you're alright first."
Cyra stared at Vergil, concern splattered on her face, "Why? Where are we?"
Vergil slightly exhaled, as if preparing himself, "The demon world."
Cyra's eyes widened, "Demon world!?"
"Don't worry," Vergil added quickly upon hearing the concern in her voice, "She manifested this world in a pocket of the demon world, but demons won't hurt you here," He reassured.
Even if they could, she wasn't afraid as long as Vergil was around. There was a lot on her mind, but she answered simply, "Okay."
"Just stay close to me no matter what," Vergil commanded as he started his advance, but only when he knew Cyra would follow.
Cyra could only focus on the ground below her, carefully watching where she stepped with Vergil's shoes in her peripherals. As long as she didn't look up, she wouldn't have to see another horrible memory, "So what exactly does 'pocket of the demon world' mean?"
"Well, there isn't a human world equivalent... Demons like sorceresses can create an illusory world, in this case it's in the demon world," Vergil explained.
"Amelia just made this place?" Cyra asked; Vergil offered a simple nod in response, "What about the memory I saw?" Cyra asked.
"This world may be created by that sorceress, but it is sustained with our energy. My guess is that our memories are manifested as illusions - Somewhat of a side effect, if you will," Vergil said.
"So what's the point? What does she want?" Cyra asked.
"To drain all my energy and leave me dead… probably," Vergil trailed off thinking about what Eileen told him before he entered the portal.
Cyra fell silent. He knew that Amelia would try to kill him yet he still came after her to save her? She felt guilty for yelling at him about keeping Gabriel a secret, but she still stood by her anger. This could have been prevented if he told her. Biting the inside of her cheek to stop herself from apologizing, Cyra nodded, "How do we get out?"
"We both came in through the same portal. It's now been closed so unfortunately we have to find a new exit," Vergil said.
"Can you not use your portal powers?" Cyra asked.
"We're in the core of her world right now. She'll absorb anything I do as energy, so unfortunately no portal powers," Vergil said, looking around their surroundings to find a way out.
"Damn," Cyra cursed quietly.
"Try not to fall behind. I hate to rush you, but we have no choice," Vergil said when he noticed she was slowing down. Cyra nodded and quickly quickened her pace.
"How big is this place?" Cyra asked.
"As big as she wants it to be," Vergil said.
"Why does it look like the inside of a tree?" Cyra asked.
"It's easy to manifest, I suppose," Vergil answered, "Because this world is based on memories; trees are common. Could also be a clue as to where her permanent residence is."
If it was based on memories, Cyra wondered if it was related to the Qliphoth tree, but she felt awkward about bringing up Urizen related memories at this point. It only led her to a different question, "How do you know where the exit is?" Cyra asked.
"Higher up the tree where we entered should be unstable. If there's no portal already, I will have the opportunity to make one quick enough to escape," Vergil said.
"So have you been in one of these before?" Cyra asked, trying again to see if there was a connection to Qliphoth.
"No," Vergil answered.
"You just know a lot about this… illusory world," Cyra said.
"Have you forgotten I lived in the demon world for over two decades?" Vergil asked.
"R-right, sorry…" Cyra said.
"No need to apologize," Vergil said.
"I feel like I'm asking too many questions," Cyra muttered.
"You're not," Vergil simply said.
"No, I am…. But thank you," Cyra said.
"You're in an unfamiliar environment. Asking questions is to be expected," Vergil said.
Sigh, he was right. He was so blunt sometimes, and it was hard to call him sweet, but Cyra was certain he was trying to make her feel better in his own way, "Amelia seems a lot more powerful than we thought," Cyra said.
"Unfortunately, she's absorbed far more energy than we anticipated, despite how much she's already used thus far," Vergil said.
"I guess 25 years is a long time…" Cyra trailed off, "But she had to have started to gather this much energy for a reason, right? You think she always assumed you'd come back?"
"As far as she knew, I was dead or enslaved for eternity," Vergil said bitterly.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up!" Cyra said quickly.
Vergil gave her a quick glance, "It's in the past."
"Is it something you'd ever want to talk about?" Cyra asked.
"No," Vergil answered without skipping a beat.
Cyra nodded and remained quiet, mulling over her own emotions. Speaking was a nice distraction, but it was difficult to forget the feelings that were forced on her just a few moments ago. Seeing Gabriel's death and reliving one of her most traumatic experiences of her life. Not just his death. It was the feeling of being so dependent on someone and realizing how lost she was when he died. Once Gabriel passed, she had no family and she was truly on her own which is something she never learned to do. Hell she even became dependent on Amelia, then Dante… she supposed even on Vergil. Or she would have had he let her. Keeping her at arm's length might have been a good thing after all.
"I'm still mad at you…" Cyra said out of the blue.
"I know," Vergil simply said.
There was a long silence between the two. Cyra was wrapped up in her own thoughts to speak and Vergil just felt giving her space was what she needed.
"I found divorce papers a few days after he died," Cyra randomly said out of nowhere, "It was dated for a while, and he didn't sign it, but knowing he thought about it… God, I wish he just left me. Then he might still be alive."
"Is that the reason why you feel responsible?" Vergil said.
Cyra shrugged, "I was holding him back. I was always dependent on him. He knew I was alone and he'd feel guilty leaving me… That was my problem. I didn't need to drag him down, but he was too nice to admit it. Those papers confirmed he really did die because of me."
"You don't think he was even slightly happy with you?" Vergil asked.
"Not enough that he had to think about a divorce. Enough to not go through with it, I guess," Cyra said.
"If he was truly unhappy, he would have gone through with it. Isn't that how it works?" Vergil said.
Cyra chuckled, "You an expert on marriage?"
Vergil smirked at her lighter tone, "Absolutely not, but I can't see a reason to willingly stay unhappy and not do something about it. Especially something as simple as handing over a piece of paper."
"Humans swallow their feelings a lot. I know I did. I don't know why Gabriel came home so late, but I just wanted to pretend that what he told me was the truth," Cyra explained, "I'd have been so lost without him. So sometimes the happy moments were just worth the misery."
"I can't relate, but I suppose I can understand," Vergil said.
"Oh, you can't relate? Mr. I-like-this-girl-but-i'm-constantly-stressed-about-it," Cyra mocked.
Vergil feigned ignorance, "Oh dear, you think I like you?"
Cyra scoffed, "You trapped yourself in Amelia's little world just to save someone you don't like? What would you do for someone you do like!"
"Certainly not throw away all my principles for her," Vergil responded.
"What principles!?" Cyra chuckled.
"Did you hit your head on that fall and lose your own memories?" Vergil asked.
"Mmmmmmmmaybe. You'll have to refresh my memory!" Cyra chirped.
Vergil smirked, "Perhaps once we leave."
"Well we're not doing anything other than walking. Maybe you could tell me now?" Cyra suggested.
He glanced down next to him to see her smiling up at him. It warmed his heart to see her happy after what she experienced and he couldn't help but feel that he was the reason for it. Was that vain?
It was vain. But he didn't care. He wanted to be the one to make her smile. He mentally scoffed. If only Dante could read his mind just now, he'd be mocking him for the rest of his life, "I'd rather not fuel that sorceress any further. We can talk about anything you want when we escape," He repeated.
Cyra didn't even consider Amelia listening in or anything along the lines. Did she see Cyra's reaction to that memory? It made her angry knowing she got to her. That evil bitch… Cyra sighed and nodded, "Anything, huh? I'll hold you to it."
-!Meanwhile, outside in the normal world-
Nathan and Eileen ran back to an empty Devil May Cry. Eileen pushed the doors open first and exhaled, seemingly out of breath. She clutched her chest and tried to relax. Nathan eyed her cautiously, "You alright?" He asked.
Eileen nodded, "Just not in shape is all…"
"So you know what that light was?" He asked.
Eileen was careful to say too much. She didn't know Nathan, and didn't know his involvement with Cyra. She certainly didn't want to say anything she wasn't supposed to, "How much do you know?"
"How much do you know?" Nathan threw it back at her.
"With all due respect, I don't know who you are," Eileen said.
"You got something to hide?" Nathan asked.
Eileen narrowed her eyes, "No."
Nathan crossed his arms, "Then why don't you elaborate on what you told Vergil."
Eileen remained confident, "I'm worried a conversation about demons might scare you."
"Try me," Nathan said.
"Hmph," Eileen responded, "That sorceress… Amelia… She set a trap for Vergil and used Cyra as bait. She used to be my mentor until… recently."
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Nathan asked, now concerned.
Eileen shook her head, "You and me no, but if you know where the devil hunters are, perhaps they can. Have you seen them?"
Them? Nathan thought, "Uh, Dante went out, I have no idea who the other devil hunters are…"
Eileen laced her fingers together and brought them to her forehead, "Then I suppose all we can do is pray."
"Sorry, praying isn't really my thing… But if they're the only hope to save them, I'll go look for them," Nathan said and began walking to the door, only for it to open in his face.
Nero stood there glancing between Nathan and Eileen, a curious expression on his face, "Looks like Dante has a lot more new friends than I thought," He muttered.
A friend of Dante? Him? Nathan could have blushed, but there was no time, "Do you know where he is?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing. Either of you know what that big light is doing there?" Nero said.
Eileen took a step forward, "Are you a devil hunter?"
"You could say that," Nero answered.
Eileen's eyes widened, "Cyra and Vergil are in there, they need help!"
This fully got Nero's attention, "What do you mean?" He wasn't about to trust just anyone, but he couldn't ignore Cyra and… Vergil in peril.
"There's no time!" Eileen called out and reached for Nero's hand.
Just then, Nero was hit with waves of memories and feelings. The memory of Cyra and Eileen both working for Amelia, although at different times. The feeling of hatred for Vergil. The desire to use Cyra as bait to kill Vergil. The knowledge that Cyra and Vergil were otherwise stuck. Eileen's torment… Although that part was very brief. He was too busy trying to focus between the other waves of memories involving the people he knew. He violently pulled his hand back and almost stared right into Eileen's soul, "What… What was that?"
And all the same, Eileen saw some of his own memories. Shd focused on Nero's relation to Vergil and what he went through recently to defeat Urizen. Learning Vergil was Urizen was shocking but there was plenty of time to process that later. If Eileen wasn't so desperate, she may have laughed at Nero's first interactions with Cyra, "I can explain later, you have to save them!"
….
Back in the Memory tree.
A white flash went off for Cyra, causing her to wince and bring up her arm to shield her from the light even further. When she lowered her arm and began to open her eyes, she saw herself in a bright, sunny, field. It was relieving to see Vergil standing there looking around, "Are you seeing this, too?" She had to ask.
"Yes," He answered, wondering if it was his memory or hers. His childhood home looked similar to what they were seeing.
But voices from behind them answered both of their curiosity. A younger Gabriel was holding a younger Cyra's hands as he spoke, "I didn't think I'd be so lucky to be so young and find the person I want to spend the rest of my life with… Cyra, will you marry me?"
The memory hit Cyra like a brick and emotions washed over her like they were brand new. Gabriel… the love of her life proposing. Cyra shut her eyes tight, forcing tears she wasn't even aware were piling up to roll down her cheek.
He was dead. Gabriel was dead. The memory was from almost 15 years ago, yet Amelia's power certainly made it feel fresh. Cyra wasn't sad, she was angry. Angry that Amelia had the ability to manipulate her like this. But still, she couldn't help but relish back to a time when she was happy and carefree. She had already mourned her mother's passing. While she missed her, she felt comfortable enough moving on. Being a doctor to pass on her mother's legacy gave her hope. Being 18 and married with a goal in life felt like it mattered. Currently, Cyra was struggling to make a difference while trying to not get murdered by some bitch sorceress.
Cyra's breathing was labored and she fell to her hands and knees, letting the tears hit the ground beneath her. It was disgraceful. She felt embarrassed that Amelia was affecting her so much. Cyra felt a hand rest on her shoulder, immediately knowing who was responsible for it. Without looking over, she pushed Vergil's hand away from her and stood up, wiping the tears as discreetly as possible, although there was no use. It was very obvious she had been crying, "Let's go," She commanded.
"Are you alright?" Vergil asked, slightly taken aback by her reaction. He wasn't expecting her to sound angry when she displayed sadness. Unlike the previous memory, he wasn't experiencing her emotions. They made physical contact for the last one, which Vergil assumed was how to activate the tether.
Cyra tried to steady her breath, "No," It came out as a harsh whisper.
As Cyra walked by, Vergil saw something gold shining on the ground. He went to pick it up, the world around him changing from the grassy field to a slightly dense forest, but the object in his hand stayed intact. A quick inspection showed it was a pocket watch. Did she drop it? Did it belong to her? He didn't want to waste time so he continued to follow her on the quest to escape this forsaken dream world. For now, the gold pocket watch would stay hidden in his pocket. There would be a time to show it to Cyra, but he didn't want to upset her further. Although keeping things from her is what got her upset with him. He tried to reason that there was a difference this time since he planned to show her eventually...
An arrow whizzed past Cyra's face, making her gasp in a reaction. Vergil stopped to turn to her, but didn't say anything, "Did you hear that?"
"No, what now?" Vergil asked.
Another memory alone, she couldn't handle it… Cyra ran to Vergil and grabbed his arm, hugging it, "I heard something fly past me. I can't deal with another memory…." She said desperately.
Vergil understood and let her cling to him while he looked around to the new setting that flashed before them. He was now in another one of Cyra's manifested memories. The dark empty tree root ridden hall was turned into a green, sunny forest. What kind of memory could be here? Behind him he heard the sound of arrows hitting a wooden board. Following the noise, he saw what looked like Cyra practicing archery. It was hard to tell with the rays of the sun somewhat obscuring her silhouette, but she looked a bit different.
Vergil looked down to Cyra, "I didn't know you practiced archery," He said, trying to understand the memory. It didn't seem too bad yet.
Cyra looked up, "How did you know that?" She muttered and she started to look around at the new setting. Following Vergil's gaze to a woman's silhouette, her jaw slightly dropped. The grip on Vergil's sleeve relaxed, "That's… my mom."
"You look a lot like her," Vergil said softly, not even exaggerating. She could have been a twin.
Cyra smiled and took several steps forward, fully dropping Vergil's sleeve, so she could get a better look at her, "Thank you."
Her mother looked so graceful shooting arrows. So flawless yet methodical. Cyra could never forget this day. She turned to see her younger self walking up to her mother, saying some words she couldn't hear in the memory. But her teenage self clearly did not look happy, while her mother chuckled. Cyra remembered this day fondly. It was the last day her mother felt fully healthy enough to do physical activities. Cyra smirked, "I was never as good as she was at archery. This was the last day we both did it together… before she got sick. It just wasn't the same without her so I stopped."
"You certainly don't look like you were enjoying it," Vergil said.
Cyra chuckled, "Yeah… Really took it for granted."
"I think we all do as children," Vergil said.
Cyra smiled and turned to him, "You too?"
Vergil let out a chuckle, "Well I never really enjoyed doing anything with my family because Dante was always there."
"He couldn't have been that bad, could he?" Cyra asked.
"Maybe we'll tap into a childhood memory of mine and you'll see for yourself," Vergil half joked. On one hand, it'd be nice to have that kind of evidence. On the other hand, he wasn't sure he'd be able to handle seeing his mother or father, even if it was a memory. It was then that he realized Cyra was much stronger than he thought. Being able to handle three memories of her past - no doubt a past she missed or was traumatized by, and she still managed to move forward and even smile.
Cyra nodded, "I like when you share stories like that. It makes me happy."
"Hm," Vergil said, feeling warm at her confession. Although he'd never admit that to her. Their surroundings reaffirmed his belief that things would be better if he left her alone. After all, her current fate was his fault. Every time he allowed himself to take a step closer to succumbing to it, there was something else forcing him to take twice as many back. Life was truly unfair, he thought.
Cyra blushed a bit at the intense look he was giving her. Whether or not it was directed at her didn't matter, but she reached for his hand with both of her, holding them tight. Feeling tired or scared, she didn't know, but she had to get closer to him. Settling on laying her forehead on his upper arm was enough to where she wasn't pushing boundaries, "I never thanked you for coming to save me…"
"Save it until we've escaped," Vergil said softly, unable to stop himself from reaching over and laying a hand on her back.
Cyra nodded against his sleeve, snuggling closer to him, "So I guess not every memory here is a bad one."
"I wouldn't count on seeing any more pleasant…" Vergil trailed off, an image on the wall distracting him. He didn't even realize he trailed off. His arm around Cyra dropped.
Cyra noticed he turned silent, which wasn't an unusual thing for him, but mid sentence was curious. Repositioning, she removed her forehead from his arm and looked up, trying to catch a glimpse of his face.
Vergil was staring ahead at the tree textured wall, a pained expression on his face. Was he experiencing a memory? Is that what it looked like? The wall was letting off a light red glow, with a faint black silhouette. It looked like a man being held up with something like that resembled ropes from his arms. Maybe chains? Cyra knew from experience that physical contact was the way to transfer the memories and only assumed that it applied in whatever world they were in.
Vergil's body was shaking, Cyra could see sweat glistening from his temple. She was already holding his hand, wondering why she wasn't entering his memory. Although that was probably a good thing knowing how adamant he was about not wanting her to view anymore of his memories. Either too invasive or too painful for her sake, she didn't know. Maybe touching his other hand would work? It'd be the only way to view his memory. Lord knows he'd never talk about it himself.
It'd be too invasive in the end, and she couldn't risk hurting any trust he had in her. She let go of his hand to grip his sleeve, slightly shaking him.
Vergil faltered backwards, stepping back to keep himself standing. His hands came up to his head, he was muttering something, words that sounded like he was begging them to stop. Cyra reached out again to touch him, "Verg-"
The moment she made contact, Vergil violently pulled his arm back but visibly relaxed the moment he laid eyes on her. The urge to touch her overpowered him. His hand reached over to grab Cyra's own arm, careful not to hurt her. She felt cold, but it was her. The contact proved that what he just saw was a dream. His memory of being captured and about to be enslaved by Mundus. The fear and uncertainty of what he was about to endure. His 19 year old self had no idea what he was in for, and it felt like he was about to watch himself go through the same thing for another 25 years. It was too much.
"Were you seeing a memory?" Cyra asked softly.
He relaxed further when he heard her voice, feeling a bit embarrassed for his initial reaction with needing to reach for her. Reluctantly, he removed his hand from her feeling momentarily worried he may have hit her from snapping back to reality. The most important question is if she saw it as well, "What did you see?" He almost growled.
"I-I didn't!" Cyra started, but was nervous at the look he gave her. It was filled with anger and resentment. It wasn't directed at her, she knew. It soon softened when he saw the way she responded, "I didn't see anything."
Vergil nodded and straightened himself out, "Let's go," He said confidently, as if nothing happened. The memory was too painful, he didn't want to go through another one again, although it gave him solace knowing Cyra wasn't subjected to it. He couldn't count on that happening again. It was a miracle she didn't try to pry, but then he wondered what made her not pry. She knew that touching his skin would transfer the memory. It took everything to not ask her, not ready to have that discussion. Not there.
"What was the memory?" Cyra asked.
"Nothing," Vergil nearly growled.
"Are you alright?" She tried asking.
"Fine, let's stop talking and press on," Vergil said.
"You said when we escape, we can talk about anything I want, right?" Cyra said quietly.
"Not now…" Vergil warned.
"I'd rather not deal with you being moody until we find a way out of here. I'm just worried about you, okay?" Cyra said.
Moody? Vergil thought, "I said I'm fine," Vergil said quickly.
"Clearly," Cyra deadpanned.
Vergil stopped dead in his tracks to turn back to Cyra, making her stop short as he towered over her, speaking closely to her face, "I don't even want to have these thoughts! What makes you think I want to talk about any of it?" Vergil asked darkly.
"Okay, I didn't know it was that bad, so just communicate with me and I'll leave you alone. Cause it just seems like you're blowing me off!" Cyra said, concerned.
"How often do I have to tell you?" Vergil asked.
Cyra threw her arms up, "As often as it's brought up?"
"I already said I don't want to talk about it now. What else do you want from me?" Vergil asked, exasperated? Why was she so insistent?
This argument felt familiar so Cyra thought harder about it, "You were going to say something earlier… What was it?" Cyra asked.
"What?" Vergil asked.
"You acted distant, I asked you to tell me what you were thinking. You kissed me and then I asked you to use your words. You were going to say something before Nathan came in to tell me about Gabriel. What were you going to say?" Cyra asked, patiently.
Vergil furrowed his brows, unsure of what to say. Well, he remembered he was on the verge of telling her he loved her, but he certainly wouldn't tell her that now. Or ever. Truthfully, he just wanted to be left alone, yet was lingering on her concern for him. What was wrong with him? What did he really want? Frustrated, he sighed, "Leave me alone," He said quietly and started to walk off.
Cyra visibly deflated and rolled her eyes. Without another word, she pressed on, walking confidently, but far away from him.
But Vergil could not accept this. He was acting as if angry with her when he wasn't. He just wanted his space. Space where no one could dig into his mind and figure out what he was thinking. It was lonely, he admitted, but the alternative was feeling vulnerable which he hated. Being vulnerable around Cyra was a confusing mess. On one hand, he enjoyed it - to be comforted by her, but it didn't bode well with his pride, he supposed he could call it. People like him weren't supposed to feel vulnerable. Not too long ago he split his two halves in a physical sense, yet his emotions seemed to remain that way. Here he thought the devil and angel on each shoulder was just a metaphor, but it was almost as if it was real.
Speaking of, Cyra remaining quiet for once and not annoying an answer out of him felt strange. He glanced over to her and seeing her sadness only projected it onto him, knowing he was the cause. Vergil stopped walking and waited for Cyra to catch up, but made no effort to look at her.
"I'm sorry," He said quietly.
Cyra thought she imagined it, "Did you say something?"
Vergil pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled, speaking louder, "There are certain things that I wish never to think of again, but the nightmares still find a way to consume me. I take it out on you, but you need to know they have nothing to do with you. I'm still learning to adjust to… life. Poorly, but I'm trying. So, I am sorry," Vergil said awkwardly, almost robotic at times like he was struggling to come up with the most basic of words.
Cyra couldn't complain, though. This was the most he's ever talked about himself. He was trying! She mentally cheered, "It's okay! I know it's not personal. And you're right, I do make it seem like I want you to talk about something you clearly don't want to. I just… want to understand you, is all. But you're doing great," Cyra said awkwardly.
"Hypothetically, if I were to find something that may have belonged to you, would there ever be a wrong time to show you?" Vergil asked, changing the subject.
"Uhhh…No?" Cyra asked, mostly because she wasn't prepared for the subject to change so quickly. Although she mentally laughed at the fact that Vergil was so uncomfortable talking about himself, that he had to change the subject in the most awkward way possible. It'd be cute if it wasn't something born out of trauma.
Vergil dug into his pocket to pull out the gold pocket watch he found, showing it to her, "This was on the ground earlier…"
As Cyra's eyes took in the object he was holding. Cyra knew what it was right away.
A pocket watch. Cyra gave Gabriel a pocket watch on their first anniversary when he was training to be a police officer. It was a simple round gold accessory that opened up to show two sides. It was supposed to be a little piece of her that he could keep with him for good luck and to stay safe on the job. Cyra finally grabbed it from Vergil's hands, confirming it was real. She opened it up to see a dead clock on one side, accompanied by a photo of Gabriel and Cyra, faces squished together as much as possible.
"We buried him with this…" Cyra finally decided to say. Knowing Amelia was using Gabriel's corpse, it'd make sense she found items that he was buried with. It made her feel sick knowing how long Amelia had this. Gabriel's pocket watch.
Vergil knew they had to hurry and leave, but he couldn't stop looking down at Cyra. The way she looked so defeated hurt him. Between memories of her husband proposing to her and holding the very item that he was buried in, she couldn't muster up the facade to seem alright, as much as she probably wanted to. He couldn't begin to imagine what she was going through, but he was impressed she was able to keep it together as much as she has been. Humans were always more emotional, but she seemed much stronger than he anticipated. It never occurred to him how much her life may have changed after losing Gabriel.
It made him feel inferior once again. Would Cyra ever feel that way about him? If he died, how long would she mourn him before moving on? No, that was silly to think, and he knew. They barely knew each other for a month. He was the one that was unnecessarily attached to the first woman who was nice to him. She was fine on her own before he came along.
It just brought him back to the first feeling he had when he learned of her marriage. Although it was different now. He wasn't sure what really happened between Gabriel and Cyra, but based on the memory, Vergil was no longer a fan. Not even out of jealousy, he was confident. How dare he take someone like Cyra for granted.
Vergil reached up to rest his hand on her upper arm, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked up at him, seemingly hoping for him to say something - at least he thought, "Let's hurry."
Cyra nodded and Vergil dropped his hand, continuing to move forward. Cyra followed him, wishing she could figure out what to say. She tightened her fist around the pocket watch while maintaining her stare at the back of Vergil's head. She was… proud? Hopeful? He finally opened up a little bit to her, and even apologized! Showing her this pocket watch could have easily hurt her feelings or upset her further, but he just gave it to her without feeling the need to hide it any longer. There was no way she'd be able to suppress the giddy smile she had across her face. It hurt her to see him so distraught by whatever his memory was, but he turned it around. He was trying! And he was letting her in! What she wouldn't do to go hug him right now… If it wouldn't annoy the crap out of him. She'd save it for later.
Sorry for slight typos and if sentences are kinda goofy. I just really wanted this chapter out so i can stop re-reading it a trillion times in case I wanted to change like a word or something looool.
Thanks for reading, hope you liked the angsty/fluffy chapter. Plenty more to come!