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The following is a fan-based

FICTION

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Chapter 23: Road to the Serenissima, Part 4

After decades of ruling over Italy, Diavolo knew a thing or two when it came to rebellious thugs to put down.

But where previous revolts against his rule had been limited and scarce, this one was definitely getting out of hand too fast. As much as he despised the situation, his mind had to delve into the intricate mess to see what caused it and how he was supposed to crush it without expending too many resources. The first issue, the most glaring of them all, was allowing La Squadra to survive their first slight against him. He shouldn't have punished just two of them- they all should have been killed. At the time, the pink-haired mob boss thought the group was still useful. Still loyal through fear. A mistaken view as it was slowly becoming apparent due to this rebellion.

Then there was his daughter- the news of his potential heir being a young girl with no connection with the mafia made her an excellent tool to establish a new criminal dynasty. And to do that Diavolo had to be removed. Could he blame Trish? No. He didn't blame her or her mother- Donatella had been an experiment from back many years ago, one that yielded the unexpected result that was Trish. And, due to how dangerous his daughter was through indirect power projection, he knew he would have to kill her once she came here. That was the only chance he had to crush the momentum and erase any traitorous intent within Passione.

With his disguise as Doppio still working and the youthful self of his proving to be as loyal as he could get, there was no reason for him to expect any issues in making a quick escape once Trish was dead. The sewers were ideal and easy to access through his current hideout. That was the best option he had at that.

Or that would have been the case if he hadn't met an issue. An unknown factor which he couldn't handle on his own and that Doppio was forcefully pushed back on the rear of his mind because of. Growling and gritting his teeth at the mysterious robed figure which had nullified ｢King Crimson｣'s powers and was mocking him by merely standing. Gray eyes glowed chillingly under the shadow created by the hooded cloak, the man owning such stare mocking him with a snort.

"Apologies, oh King of the Passion, but this is not the time to bicker. In fact, I come here to grant you the one wish you carry to your heart. The deepest desire that enables your most heinous machinations," The figure proclaimed with enough smugness that made Diavolo hate the man more, but also more intrigued as he could perceive an odd accent. It… reminded him of people he met in his youth, yet not. "The chance to be free, the chance to no longer be assailed by those that seek to remove the bloodied crown from your head. You seek your Passion to be eternal, against those that plan to extinguish it."

Despite the irritating way he introduced himself, despite being exposed, despite being so close to actually panicking at the power suppressing his own… Diavolo took this chance with a scowl.

"How?"

He could see the entity grin and then, within a single blink of an eye, three new robed figures appeared in front of him, two on the left and one by the right side of the ringleader. None held distinguishable details beyond the different heights.

"They will take care of your visitors. They are more difficult to 'please' compared to how you think this will end. And you… will go back to Rome at once."

Diavolo narrowed his eyes at that imperative tone. "And then?"

"Then you will wait for my next command, Diavolo."

The mafia boss held back a snarl at that attitude, but he could tell he was currently outmatched. Without ｢King Crimson｣, his chances of survival were abysmal. He thus left, Doppio soon taking over for him as their newest objective was to get to Rome 'because the boss forgot something important and his most loyal minion had to do this task'.

...

"Do you think he will follow through with your order?" One of the shorter figures inquired about the leader.

"He will. He hates it, but he knows better than to disrespect power. He is an animal, and thus he will listen to those that are superior to him," The man remarked calmly. "And I think it's time I leave you three to handle this business as I had planned."

"We will take care of them, boss," One of them remarked giddily, while the tallest of the trio sighed, gaining the curious look of their mysterious leader.

"Something's upsetting you?"

"...No."

A liar, but a loyal one at that. He decided to let this one slight go just for now. After all, there was a big chance they were going to fail him anyway.

"Good. Then I shall go. Make sure Trish Una is killed. Same for Giorno Giovanna."

The average-sized figure chuckled jovially. "We wouldn't want to forget about family, sir~."

The unknown ringleader smiled before leaving, giving one last glance at his minions and sensing their inner stars glowing with such a sinful glow and desire. Oh yes, not even the intruder was going to matter much against this trio. Not when this was a matter of family.

A meeting he wasn't invited to as he will soon realize.

"M-Master?"

Arlecchino sighed, glancing at Medea as the Caster looked around in panic while a thin layer of violet appeared to form a barrier with them inside. What really made this entire matter worse was that this wasn't a magecraft-made barrier- It was a pure magical one as Medea quickly realized. It's been just a few hours now since they had reunited and the large army of criminals was ready to wage a siege of Venice if it meant destroying Diavolo for good. Risotto couldn't be there because he was taking care of some last-minute issues in Sardinia, but he promised to be there to finalize the take-over. While that sounded reasonable with what he knew of this peculiar dimension, the masked guard knew that there was something wrong with the overall situation.

Especially when, as the barrier completed its materialization, a horde of skeletons formed around the Basilica's external perimeter. Magecraft was being used- a Magus was moving to take care of Diavolo. At first Arlecchino thought it was Atrum, but the man was no expert in this sort of magecraft. No, it had to have been a new issue. Which was never good news as he had learned many times in the past.

"We will need to take care of that."

Some of the thugs were worried about this development, but their chiefs didn't seem to care about it. Arlecchino thought that this could be problematic in the long run due to the implications of exposing so many normal men and women to this matter, but then his attention went back to the barrier. It was somewhat stopping the Root's deterioration within the area. Anything that happened here which would normally speed up the decline of Magic was severely dampened and wasn't going to impact the decline as it should have normally.

Orders were given, guns and weapons were prepared and soon the mass of gangsters slammed onto the lines of skeletal foes. Meanwhile the members of La Squadra and Bucciarati's group advanced forward. Trish was left behind with Arcueid and Narancia much to the annoyance of the trio as they wanted to take part in this whole mess. Still, Arlecchino spoke up, aiming a comment to Bruno.

"Medea and I will take care of the cause of this supernatural issue."

A nod, Bucciarati focusing more on ending this whole mess for good rather than being embroiled in some magical problems like this one. Their combined group blitzed through and eventually stormed the basilica while the rest of the grunts took care of the monsters.

Before going, there was someone else to ask help from. "Mr. Dawn. I think we will need your assistance in disrupting this defense."

The bespectacled man groaned at the potential tedious job, but nodded as he knew that it was within his duty to handle this sort of business. The trio shifted through the lines of foes, rushing to the upper sections of the building so they could check the rooftop and secure any potential issue in that section between archers, mana-users and the source of the skeletons itself. The battle to end Old Passione had started and things were already showing to be quite unpleasant and unpredictable. Sadly for the rebels, the 'king' was no longer in that castle.

Instead, three heirs were there waiting patiently to find and match their worth against their 'missing' brother.

Giorno felt his shoulder burn as soon as he entered the building, the same attitude taken by Sakura as the girl instinctively reached for the spot where her birthmark was.

A bad omen for sure, and one that both were ready to see what it was all about. It was him, Sakura and Fugo assigned to check the right side of the basilica, while Mista, Pesci and Ghiaccio looked the left side; finally, Bucciarati, Abbacchio, Caren and Prosciutto looked into the central spot which was the most exposed of them all and would require utmost attention from all. The battle plan looked good, and yet the unease growing within Giorno didn't diminish with that hopefulness.

For the first time in years he felt this challenge was not going to be easy and… it wasn't the boss. No, this one wasn't Diavolo, he could tell this much the more steps they took in the right direction. Someone was waiting for them, someone that they should know about. Someone that Giorno felt a connection to and yet couldn't think who it could be. Soon an answer came in the form of a closure to that odd feeling as his blue-eyed gaze was matched by a same-shaded look. The young man looked to be of his same age, his blond hair kept short. He had long sideburns which pointed toward his mouth and blunt bangs that covered his entire forehead.

The youth was wearing a choker necklace that has a spiral pattern in the center, while also sporting a deep V-neck long-sleeved shirt matching with some unique-styled pants. The front and sides of his shirt and pants had an excessive amount of thick loops and his shoulder straps went through three front loops on his shirt, as well as two more straps from his belt which traveled downward through the front loops on his pants.

It wasn't just their appearance- something else bound them within fate's own might. It was the same burning star branded in their soul, except his one glowed with malicious intent. An evil being… Was he?

"I couldn't believe it when I was told that fate would have all reunited us. The children of a man that is no longer here but aspired to be greater than the [World] itself," The young man muttered, a cordial smile on his face. "It's a pity that we are facing each other in this battle, but destiny so demanded, Giorno."

"Who are you?" The blond asked back, a nod being granted as a prelude to an opening.

"My name, brother, is Donatello Versus. You and I may have been conceived by two different mothers, but our father is one and the same."

"Why are you here and… do you work for Diavolo?" Sakura pressed, and yet something odd happened as Donatello glared with incredible hatred at the girl.

"You think you have any right to question me, Joestar?"

"Sakura is family," Giorno rebuked.

"Joestars are not our family."

"We all are Joestars. We have the birthmarks-"

"But Dio is the mind behind our conception, you fool. Blood or not, Dio is in us more than what that feeble fool that was once Jonathan Joestar could have used to make us," The man rebuked. "Which is why now I shall deal with you three and make sure that my savior is given just reward for helping me out of my spiral of dread."

Just as he said that, a pillar of red light emerged from him, causing the rest of the room's occupants to take a guarded stance. A Stand User? No, that wasn't the case. As the light faltered and dispelled, Donatello stood with a new outfit. An armored setup which was silvery in its main theme, but with red details that culminated in the notion of a hellish knight with horns sprouting by the side of his helmet. In his grip was the hilt of a sword that crackled with energy.

"I hope you are ready, Giorno. Your rebellion against our father's wishes is now… over."

The ferocious knight rushed in to begin the fight and while Giorno knew that this was his foe, something was resonating from within his heart and it urged him to seek… Donatello? No, it was something else. Something struggled and gnawed within his foe. Something that didn't want to obey to him, to allow a rebellion to falter and die- someone, Giorno accepted, that perhaps understood him.

For it was a mistake of Donatello to pit a rebellious son against another.

AN

The main villain makes an appearance. If Donatello is here, then the two other sons of Dio have to be here and… has he been honest? Is this Dio's will to have his heirs clash for something like this. So many secrets, so many truths… and so many lies. Too many lies…

P.S. I now have a discord server! Discord .gg/ceBMM2Zz6c