Dante felt a drip of sweat trickle down his chin as Nero stared him down, Blue Rose aimed to shoot. The Legendary Devil Hunter had his hands hovering over his own guns, ready to draw them if ever necessary.
As much as he didn't want to admit it, but he was terrified. There his nephew stood, glaring him with no recognition in his eyes. He was the reason why the teen before him couldn't recognize him. He had robbed him of his memories by complete accident.
And along with that came the consequences he would face. How would Jeanne react? If there was anything that stuck to him, it was that a mother's fury should never be trifled with, lest you are prepared to go to hell and never return. What about his nieces and the friends waiting for him back in Mistral?
By now, regret flooded his entire being, desperately wishing that he had chosen another way to have Jaune infiltrate the Order instead of just bashing him over the head. He was too complacent and look where it got him…
"Snrk."
Dante looked up, a bewildered expression replacing his look of regret. He couldn't exactly make out Nero's expression, his face being shadowed over by his bangs, but he could definitely see his shoulders shaking. A loud laugh escaped Nero's lips as he arched back, clutching his face, trying to breath. Dante lost every emotion on his face, except for disbelief as he stared at the giggling teen.
"I, I got you so badly! What's wrong, Dante? My acting skills fooled ya? You better thank Sol for that, because she's the one who taught me."
The Son of Sparda slumped against the pillar as his body sagged in complete relief. Nero, or rather, Jaune, stopped chortling and helped his uncle stand up, still grinning like an idiot. Dante, of course, was not amused.
"What the hell, kid? I actually thought I gave you amnesia!"
Jaune lost his smile and stared at him blankly before smacking him over the head with Blue Rose as his face turned into anger. "You actually did, you jackass! If it weren't for Trish literally jolting my memories awake, I wouldn't have even remembered my family back in Mistral!"
Dante's eyes slightly widened in shock as his expression grew guilty. Jaune turned around as he recounted his experience, holding himself.
"I was so scared. I had no idea who the hell I was, besides the name in my head that just sounded so familiar... I couldn't remember my family! Even Pyrrha. I forgot about her too! When Trish woke me up, everything was still in a jumble. She had to help me sort some stuff out and make me remember that I wasn't Nero... that I'm Jaune Arc."
Dante hummed uncertainly, his eyes looking hesitant. He shook his head and grabbed his nephew by the shoulders and just hugged him. Jaune just repeatedly hit him on his side as he sobbed into his shoulders.
"I'm sorry, kid." That was the only thing he could say. What else could he say to someone that he accidentally gave amnesia?
The two just stayed like that for a few more seconds until Jaune finally got his act together and composed himself. Dante sat down onto the fallen bookshelf and looked up to his nephew.
"So! Nero, huh? Is it because of-"
"Yes." he answered softly. Jaune drew out Red Queen, staring at it sadly as the memories of its creation played in his mind. "Her name was the only thing that rang in my mind. I guess, even without memories, I still wanted to honor her… Not just by using the weapons she made, but through a name as well. Nera is the reason why I have everything I do in the first place. I owe it all to my big sister..."
For a moment, the two of them remained silent. A few minutes after, Dante decided the time was right and discussed the other thing on his mind.
"The Order's plans. It involves something with the Hell Gates. Yes, gates. Plural. There's more than the one you encountered in Ferrum Hills. From mine and Lady's investigation, they're being powered up by Devil Arms they stole. So, if you want to immobilize it, just take the Devil Arm off. The other two are within Mitis Forest, and at this very location, Fortuna Castle… Which just so happens to be where the Yamato is located."
Jaune scrambled up in shock. "You're kidding. She's right here?"
The Rebellion illuminated, speaking out to the teen. "That's correct. My sister is trapped inside of this castle. Her presence has grown even more faint since the last time we had sensed her. Wherever she is, whatever power she has is being sustained, but it's not enough. We need to get to her ASAP before she fades."
The two nodded in agreement, gazing at the elevator. "It would be best if we stick together. Because, you were right. I guess there was no need to have you infiltrate the Order."
Jaune nodded, though parts of him internally were conflicted. He had come to really enjoy his time here as Nero... But it was about time to return. To his friends and his family. "Yeah. Let's pack up and go home."
As they were about to leave the library, the blond stopped his uncle remembering something.
"Wait. I... I have a hunch. That, what we saw back in Achroma's lab, it's related to something with the Order. These demons that I fought, the Bianco Angelos, they used to be human, stuffed into these armor... Kinda like the Bambinos."
Dante faced his nephew, a quizzical expression on his face. "You think the old head scientist is here? The one who started the experiments on the children? On Ren and Nora?"
The teen looked unsure, staring at the pieces of armor scattered around the room. "Maybe. Like I said, only a hunch. No evidence too..." He shook his head and walked to the elevator. "We'll find out soon enough. Come on."
The Legendary Devil Hunter nodded, and the two of them ran off to the next Hell Gate.
Dante and Jaune looked around the courtyard, the blizzard outside getting stronger by the second. It got so strong, the snow became too thick for them to see through. And if that wasn't bad enough, Dante vanished all of a sudden. The white-haired teen looked around, trying to sense out his uncle.
"Dante?" he called out. He rolled his eyes, frowning deeply. "Ha ha, very funny. Look, can you just stop, so we can wrap this-"
Jaune cut himself off as he spotted the Hell Gate, which was opened up. And in front of it was two spirits that seemed to resembled young, nubile women. The two floated and danced around very sensually, touching each other every once in a while. And if he were to be honest, they sort of reminded him of two certain people that he knew of…which the thought made him embarrassed.
"Hope they don't find out about this…"
He mumbled under his breath, looking down on his demonic arm as it glowed, confirming his thoughts that there was a demon out in the open. He quickly grabbed Red Queen and swung it upward, striking something large and sending it sliding back. Jaune flicked down his sword, the mist around them dissipating, allowing him to get a better look at whatever it was. He saw a large, white, toad-like demon shaking its head, the spirits attached to its head like an angler fish's feelers.
"Huh, so that's what you really look like." he remarked.
The ice toad grunted, a bit impressed. "You're smarter than you look, with a smart-ass mouth to match!" it gurgled out, spitting out some sort of liquid as it spoke.
Jaune shrugged. "Hey, cut me some slack. I'm not big on amphibians. I'm more of a land animal type of guy."
The toad demon roared, blowing up a large gust of wind that forced Jaune to cover his face as some of the spit got on him, making him groan out and try to wipe it off.
"Fool! You think I, Bael, care what you s-"
"Yeah yeah, whatever." he rudely interrupted. "Let's finish this quick before I end up traumatized."
Being interrupted infuriated the ice demon, making him bellow out once again. "I will crush you!"
Jaune sighed in annoyance, planting Red Queen into the floor and cranked it up. Bael roared and released the multitudes of icicles on his back, sending it raining over Jaune. The Son of Vergil dashed to the side and released an arc of blazing energy that singed the icy toad. He bulged up and released a wave of ice, freezing the teen in place. He used his feelers to smack the still frozen teen around, before deciding to belly flop him.
Jaune broke free and rolled out of the way just before Bael landed on him. He pulled out Blue Rose and started rapidly shooting at him, causing the demon to wince. He swung down Red Queen, immediately reaching Exceed MAX-Act, and skated up to the toad, landing a series of devastating slashed across its body. He jumped back and fired off a Charged Shot, causing the demon to grunt in pain.
Bael jumped back and released a large cloud of gas, blinding Jaune. He wiped his eyes and saw his surroundings go dark, the distance of his sight becoming shortened as the last thing he saw of Bael was its creepy grin. Once more, the Rusalka appeared, trying to lure him into danger by walking up to him seductively.
Howeve, he merely ignored this, choosing to just grab it by the throat and choke-slammed it. He dashed back and revved up the Red Queen, before launching it skyward, burn marks beginning to appear on its body. He hit it twice in quick succession, before spinning in a deadly show of force, bringing them a bit higher.
The Lone Son grabbed it by the face and dive bombed down, bringing it along to slam it harshly onto the ground. The Rusalka became red as it fell down and laid helplessly on the ground. Before he could make another move, the other Rusalka pounced out of the darkness and caught him with its tendrils, wrapping tightly over his wrists. Jaune struggled against the restraints, surprising him on how strong its grip was.
The Rusalka laughed haughtily and froze him. Unfortunately for it, before it could do anything further, Jaune managed to break free and pulled it in for a nasty right hook that probably cracked its neck. Like what happened with the other Rusalka, it turned red. However, the spirits disappeared and Bael lunged forward.
Jaune saw him and managed to create a Glyph to jump on and dodge, causing the ice demon to crash into the gate. While he was disoriented, the white-haired teen quickly took the opportunity and laid off numerous attacks on the toad, all powered up with Exceed. It took a while for Bael to recover, until he finally jumped back into the darkness, summoning out his Rusalka feelers once again to distract the hybrid.
"Those things are really damn annoying." thought Jaune.
Quickly revving up Red Queen, he rushed at them and performed an EX-Streak, sweeping and burning up the two. Focusing first on one, he spun around Red Queen at propeller-like speeds, launching the Rusalka up into the air, before shredding it up with a secondary spinning attack.
He dashed back, avoiding the tendrils of the other feeler. He channeled demonic energy into his blade and released a shockwave strike that pushed back the second Rusalka. Jaune lunged forward, and t ook another page from Dante, doing a Stinger attack on to the poor thing. This time, it knocked it out, turning red and laying helplessly on the floor.
Jaune grabbed it by its foot with his Devil Bringer and used it to pull Bael out of the shadows. This staggered the demon, allowing Jaune to move in and attack him with precise strikes. Once again, Bael had recovered and jumped out of the way of an Exceed slash, putting some distance between him and Jaune. The demon toad released another wave of ice, which was dodged courtesy of a Glyph.
Bael launched out the icicles on his back once again, forcing Jaune to quickly move out of the way. However, the ice creature used this to his advantage and shot out a cone of ice and cold, impaling Jaune and also freezing him up. Bael launched himself into the air and belly flopped on the poor teen, crushing him beneath the large toad.
Jaune roared and punched the demon off of him with a Buster attack. Bael sneered and breathed out his gas once again to shield himself back into the shadows. The teen rolled his eyes, unimpressed by the attack.
"You're seriously gonna try that again? It didn't work the first time, so what makes you think it'll work the second-"
The poor teen didn't get to finish as Bael emerged behind him and swallowed him up. The large demon chuckled triumphantly, assured of its victory. This would be short-lived, however, as the blade of Red Queen protruded out of its back, making him groan out in pain and horror. Jaune pulled it back and began to cut up the inside of his mouth before bursting out of his back, grievously wounding the demon.
In a last ditch effort, Bael tried to attack with his feelers. Jaune anticipated this and caught the Rusalka by the leg, then flipped him on his back. He smirked and started flailing Bael around like a ragdoll, before smashing him on the ground, leaving the demon on its back as it tried to get up.
"You think...you've...beaten me?! Never! You piece...of-"
"That's exactly what I think." said Jaune, cutting him off.
"My brothers…will come! They-"
Jaune ignored Bael's last words and punched him right in between the eyes, sending the demon spinning around like a top, crashing against the walls. And as the finishing blow, Jaune jumped after him and sliced him in half, the remains freezing up and exploding into shards of ice. The Son of Vergil landed down, brushing off the goop on his clothes as he heard clapping.
"Nice work, kid."
Dante walked up to the Hell Gate, retrieving the Devil Arm that powered it up. Jaune mock glared at his uncle, only slightly annoyed that he didn't even bother jumping in. "Didn't even cut in, huh? What, you enjoyed the show, jackass?"
"As a matter of fact, I did. Wanted to know just how much you've improved."
The Devil Arm glowed, revealing its true form. A gray briefcase with many cracks detailed onto it with a silver circle at the very center of the cracks, encompassing a three-eyed skull with fangs. Dante smiled and lightly knocked on it appreciatively. Jaune looked at it, a bit amazed before it was wiped off as he remembered what Bael said before his death.
"Wait… Did he say brothers?"
Despite no longer having the Devil Arm to power it up, the Hell Gate had just enough juice to sustain itself as numerous Dagons emerged out of it. All of them were like Bael, except green and their feelers were already red. Jaune groaned at the fact that they had to fight again.
"Well this is great. Now we have to a deal with a whole herd of them?"
Dante cracked a grin, hefting up Pandora on his shoulders. "Would you look at that. It's like an all-you-can-eat buffet!"
"You and I have a different definition of a buffet." he muttered to himself.
Dante placed down the briefcase and it glowed, changing its form into Jealousy - a six-barreled gatling gun. He fired it off, forcing the Dagons into a single line. He picked it up and turned it into Hatred - a triple-barrel rocket launcher.
The Son of Sparda grinned and fired off three rockets, the explosion sending each toad demon straight into the air. Spinning around, he switched Pandora into its Grief form - a tri-blade shuriken. With precise accuracy, he threw it and it struck every Dagon before returning to him.
And finally, for the coup de grace, he changed it into Argument - a vehicle-like form with numerous rockets around the seat. He pulled the down the lever, firing off every rocket and blowing the Dagons and the Hell Gate into smithereens.
With a satisfied sigh, he slammed placed down Pandora back into its briefcase form, when it suddenly clicked open as it displayed a bright light. He quickly closed it up, before anything could happen. Dante picked it up and placed it away as Jaune clapped appreciatively of the little gun show.
"Okay, that Devil Arm is awesome."
As the Son of Sparda was about to say something, the ground beneath him gave in, causing him to fall underground. Jaune walked up to the newly created hole and called out to his uncle.
"You okay, Dante?"
"Yeah, I'm fine! Don't worry about me. You go on ahead, I'll catch up with you later."
Despite not being seen, he gave a mock salute and jogged up to the entrance of the rest of the castle.
Somewhere in the Order's Headquarters
On a stone bed lay Sanctus's body, while Credo stood over it diligently, his head bowed down. Without any prompt, Sanctus's eyes shot open and glowed red, as his body spasmed with his veins becoming more visible. This attracted Credo's attention as the General looked at the Vicar in slight worry. It only took for a moment for him to finally settle down, his body returning to normal. Sanctus opened his eyes once more, and this time, they were normal.
"You have awakened." noted Credo.
Sanctus looked at his trusted subordinate and regarded him with a nod. As His Holiness recovered, Credo brought him up to speed on the current events. "My men are currently in pursuit of Dante. It is only a matter of time before his location is revealed."
"He came to us... " he said, his voice a bit hoarse. "It was fortunate I was able to participate in the 'ascension ceremony'."
As the Vicar of Sparda spoke, a tall, hunched man walked into the room, writing something on a notebook. He had tanned skin and long hair with a ponytail. He wore an Order of the Sword uniform, but it was more fitting in the profession of a researcher, complete with a monocle over his left eye. He looked up from his notes and gazed upon Sanctus, amazed at his recovery.
"His Holiness...! You look magnificent!"
The man tried to approach him, however Credo placed himself in between them, preventing the man from getting near Sanctus. He sneered at the General as he tried to move to the other side.
"You sent that inexperienced brat Nero to find Dante?"
Credo continually blocked the man, placing his arm over a stone pillar. "You question my command?"
The man looked outraged, as if it wasn't already obvious. "Yes! What shall befall me s-s-s-s-should he stumble upon my research facility?!"
Credo didn't look too concerned, not even bothering to look at the researcher. "Our priority is to capture Dante."
"Why you t-t-t..."
Before the man could finish whatever he wanted to say, Sanctus piped in, speaking softly by calling out his General's name.
Credo gazed at his leader, nodding in acknowledgement. "Yes, Your Holiness."
"Gather everyone." he requested. "I must ease their minds on this matter."
The General obeyed, leaving Sanctus alone with the researcher.
And the man's fear was realized. Jaune had indeed stumbled upon the research facility. The white-haired teen looked around in curiosity, seeing a few papers and some equipment strewn abouy. In the corner of the room were three stationary Bianco Angelo's, void of life. Jaune stared at them warily before turning his attention to something else.
He stopped at the front of a desk with some tapes, next to a Walkman. He popped it open and inserted the tape in, pressing play, curious as to what it contained.
"T-T-To think that I would be allowed to continue my research! Humans are like ants - stubborn and foolish. And that is precisely why they make the p-p-perfect candidates for me to experiment on! Although, the specimens I've received are far too... aged. I must acquire younger samples if I want to further improve!"
And the tape ended there, automatically ejecting itself. Jaune placed in the second tape and listened carefully.
"W-W-What a stroke of good luck! The others have chanced upon two children in the forest. Orphans. And quite young, the both of them. Yes. I can feel it. They will be the ones to help me make a breakthrough in my r-r-research!"
Jaune felt himself get sick. He knew of the children the man was talking about. After all, he helped saved them.
"I'm almost afraid of what I'll hear in these next tapes. Damn. So I was right... This bastard is the one Achroma talked about."
He contemplated for a moment, debating if he should listen to the rest. Making his decision, Jaune plucked out the second tape and replaced it with the third one.
"Marvelous! Simply marvelous! I've started conducting my experiments on the boy, and he is far more receptive to demon DNA than I could have ever imagined! He's already gained most of the abilities of the demons I've injected him with. His Aerokenises is quite p-p-powerful! N-Not to mention, his ability to change his perception of speed and time! Still naive to our intentions, and willing to participate. I c-c-cannot wait."
Jaune looked at the remaining tapes, doubt plaguing him if he should even listen to them. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. Jaune took out the third tape and put in the fourth one.
"The little girl...is f-f-far more troublesome to work with than I could have imagined! Not in the sense of cooperation, oh no. She's gullible as a newborn i-i-infant. All I needed to give her was a lollipop and a pat on the h-h-head to allow me to inject her with every sort of DNA I had. Rather, my problem with her is that her body is not as receptive as the boy's. Nonetheless, it worked. She has become far stronger than I could have anticipated. She's bench pressed over f-f-five hundred pounds! A-A-And she's just eight years old! Imagine how much her strength would be when she reaches her prime! Then, there's her element of lightning. She'll become a blitz-type of a brute demon. Speed, and strength. The two of them combined for a vicious combo. I need to further improve on this!"
Jaune growled, eyes flashing red. Damn him for what he did to his friends. They became parentless at such a young age, and then they were taken advantage of. Cruel and sick things done to their bodies, and possibly even their minds. He looked at the last tape and stared at it intensely. He sighed and put it in.
"An unforeseen complication h-h-has arisen. They've become...aware to the cruelty of my research. They've started asking questions, so I was f-f-forced to manipulate their minds. Made them susceptible to my orders. Little by little I've b-b-broken their tiny little minds. But alas...they had perished. Such a p-p-p-p-pity."
Jaune shook his head, still digesting what he had just heard. He planned to leave until he heard a voice croak out. It was weak. It was faint. And he almost didn't notice it.
"H-Help..."
He turned around and saw a pillar of light wherein lay an intricate katana, broken in to two. He walked to up it, his eyes widening in realization. In front of him was his father's blade - the Yamato.
He gingerly reached out to it, but then the Bianco Angelos came to life. He had no time to react as all three pulled him back and pinned him against the wall with their swords. The young cambion gasped for air, blood dropping out of his wounds. The researcher strode into the room, writing down some information, before looking up and staring right into Jaune's eyes.
"You had come. Just as I suspected." The man gave a mock bow, introducing himself. "I, am Agnus. Working in secrecy, very few are p-p-p-privy to my existence. But alas, you won't be able to take that little information with you."
The researcher was about to walk away until he saw his Devil Bringer. Agnus quickly went closer, very much fascinated with the demonic arm, glowing in resonance with the Yamato.
"Such a magnificent sample! I've only began my research years ago. Could we isolate the demonic power and bind it, it can enable us to conquer the world!"
Despite his current state, Jaune still found time to snark. "Did you already forget? His Holiness is dead. You might as well give up now, cause your efforts are in vain."
Agnus smirked and wagged his fingers at him. "Ahh, but because of my research, His Holiness has been reborn. As an angel!" He gestured to the armored knights, looking at them with pride. "Look at what a small fraction of my research wielded! Such...beauty!"
Agnus frowned deeply and tightly clenchedhis fists as the memories of their creation played in his mind.
"You have no idea of the hardship to make just one armor come to life. I had to capture and control countless demons to harness their souls. Summoning them alone was almost an insurmountable task!"
Jaune's eyes lightly widened up in realization. "Summoning? So you're the one who made those Hell Gates!"
Agnus eagerly nodded. "Indeed! I merely created it as a reference in substitution for the real Gate. But after utilizing a powerful Devil's Arm, it proved sufficient..."
The white-haired teen glared at the scientist, trying to fight through the pain. "You sick bastard."
The scientist merely grunted as a blade demon flew into his hand. "You should rest." He plunged the blade deep into Jaune, making him gasp out more blood. "You'll need it, for you're my new subject for experimentation, and that arm. It might prove to be the key in restoring the Yamato."
Agnus smirked before grunting in confusion as he saw a locket laying on the floor. He picked it up and opened it, revealing the image inside. The researcher was a bit confused until he put two and two together, making him rumble in dark mirth.
"I see. To think that you've been lying this whole time. Well, I'm sure the Order won't mind the kidnapping of this girl for experimentation. I'm sure you'll enjoy the company of her screams!"
Jaune's eyes widened. Not in shock. Not in surprise. Not in horror. But in fury. That Agnus would dare threaten her. But what could he do? He was pinned, bleeding out profusely... And he was losing the strength to even move.
He closed his eyes, ready to accept the darkness, until all of a sudden, he was no longer at the lab. Instead, he was in a blue void, similar to the one back then. There stood a man that had his back turned against him. Before the teen could ask who he was, he turned around and brought surprise to Jaune...
It was his father, Vergil.
"Do you hear it? The cry of your soul for its desire? What does it say?" he asked, coldly yet it was tinged with gentleness.
Jaune was momentarily confused before he looked down at his demonic arm. He clenched it tightly, knowing exactly what his soul wanted. "Power... I need. More power!"
Vergil lightly smiled, extending his hand to his son. "If you want it... Then you'll have to take it."
And he did. Jaune took his father by his hand and everything exploded. His eyes turned into a vibrant shade of red as it glowed, along with his Devil Bringer. Vergil vanished and his surroundings shifted back to the lab.
Inside of the pillar, the Yamato began to violently react. The two pieces connected with each other and melded back into one. It flew into Jaune's hand and caused a powerful shock wave, destroying the Bianco Angelos and the blades pinning him down. Agnus was sent out of his facility, being forced to transform into his insect-like demon form to heal. He slowly raised himself, seeing Jaune stand there, radiating with power while he held the repaired Yamato.
"How?! Not even I could succeed in restoring it!"
Jaune's eyes bore into Agnus, making him shiver. He took a step forward as a vibrant aura began to erupt from him.
"You're not worthy of this awesome power... Only Sparda's descendants can use it. And don't even think I'll let you lay a single hand on her!"
The Yamato glowed as Jaune released a blade of energy, destroying a large chunk of the facility's wall, narrowly missing the researcher. Agnus shook in fear, before composing himself to retreat out of the newly formed hole.
Then for some reason, he felt the desire to start swinging the blade. His movements were completely amateurish and inexperienced, yet it felt right. He was confused, it felt like something was instructing him to do it all, guiding him through the motions.
Unbeknownst to him, an astral projection of Vergil floated besides him, doing the exact same motion he was doing, though his showed off much more experience, precision and focus than his son's.
The red glow in Jaune's eyes faded along with the energy that surrounded him and the astral figure. He fell to his knees, panting as he felt the adrenaline leave him.
"W-what was that?"
Jaune scrambled to retrieve his locket and was relieved that it was mostly undamaged. He stood up, looking at the Yamato as he placed back the gift she gave him. He twirled around the blade and gingerly placed it into its scabbard.
"I hope you'll help me just as well as you've helped my father."
As a response, the Yamato glowed for a moment and spoke in a respectful and feminine tone.
"But of course, young master. I'll help you in any way I can. It is good to meet you."
Jaune smiled as the sword disappeared into his arm. He placed back the locket over his neck and quickly headed for Mitis Forest to regroup with his uncle.
Mitis Forest
Jaune walked up to the cliff and smiled as the sight before him. The view that he had allowed him to see most of the forest, teeming with green and life. To him, it was beautiful.
"Breathtaking, ain't it?"
The teen swiveled around and pointed his gun at his uncle, who walked up to the edge to look at the forest below. He rolled his eyes and holstered away Blue Rose. Feeling a bit curious, he decided to ask his uncle how he got out.
"Pretty boring. It involved some noxious fumes, a clamped up room, and a chamber that tried to get me to play a board game. All in all, it took me about ten minutes to get out."
As the two converse, an idea popped into Dante's mind. He grinned mischievously and ran past his nephew.
"Last one to the Hell Gate owes the winner lunch at any diner of their choosing!"
Before Jaune could even make any retort, Dante kicked himself off the edge and fell into the forest, making the hybrid shake his head and followed suit.
Hey everyone. Sorry for not updating on Wednesday, it completely slipped my mind to update this story, so I'm posting the new chapter now. Won't happen again, I swear. From this point on, I'm gonna start updating on Wednesdays, or if I fuck up and forget again, Fridays.
Now, the updates I've made to this chapter are: instead of acting for the entirety of his stay in Fortuna, Jaune actually gained amnesia and only managed to remember in part of Gloria/Trish's help. Speaking of which, do you guys want to see a chapter of that in the Chronicles side story? Let me know down in the reviews.
Next, is the omission of Ren's zipper-related abilities. When I first wrote this at the beginning, I imagined Ren having something similar to the Sticky Fingers stand, as a reference to JoJo, duh, and his role as a team mom, channeling his inner Bucellati, but as you can, I've decided to cut it and instead have him stick with aerokinesis.
Lastly, is the scene with Vergil. According to the Deadly Fortune novel, Nero was close to dying in that scene until he received a vision if Vergil, having a conversation in regards to what he wanted/needed. Which was, of course, power. I threw it in for an interaction between father and son.
That's all that there is needed to be said of this A/N. Thank you for reading. If you have any other questions, leave them down in the reviews or PM me. Stay safe.