Dio Brando's world
Dio Brando looked up at the pale face of Jonathan Joestar. A dismembered head, refusing to accept death, held by the corpse of one who welcomed it willingly.
„He...he's dead." Dio whispered in utter disbelief. Hearing those words come out of his own mouth almost didn't seem real. Jojo was dead. The man Dio called his equal, the one he tried to kill time and time again, had finally passed away, and Dio could hardly believe it. Although he had arrived with the intent of defeating his rival and for all, it now seemed strangely out of place to see him dead right in front of his own eyes.
An explosion finally took Dio out of his stupor. He quickly dropped any conscious thought, leaving his survival instincts to take over. His veins quickly shot out of his throat, drilling themselves into Jonathan's throat with brute force. Halfway expecting his nemesis to rise up and deliver a final riposte, Dio instead beheaded Jonathan without any resistance. While driving his veins into Jojo's throat, pulling his head onto his rival's body, Dio couldn't help but to admire the finality in this action. The ship was burning around him in a spectacle of mayhem; everyone on board was either dead or dieing, and yet, there he stood: Dio Brando, reborn and triumphant at last. Amidst the flames, he grabbed Jojo's head with both of his own hands. He found that they were shaking, resisting his will with every move. He ignored it, focusing instead on Jojo's still open eyes.
„Are you seeing this, Jojo? Can you behold my victory from the afterlife? I, Dio, have won at last! Your struggle has been proven to be nothing but useless at last! Useless! Useless!"
He exploded into boastful laughter, raising both of his newfound arms into the air while still holding on to Jonathan's head. A victorious grin didn't leave his face as he gazed upon his new body. It only cracked when he noticed that his arms were still shaking. Looking into Jojo's eyes, he noticed that, strangley enough, he seemed to be at absolute peace. There was no fear in those eyes. Not even a hint of anger seems to have tainted Jonathan's soul while he looked down at Dio during his final moments. Even in death, he still looked down on him. This snobby brat, who had grown into a figher worthy of Dio's respect, looked down on him like someone looked down at an insolent, unreasonable child. Was it not only peace, but even love that Dio saw within those eyes?
Dio grit his teeth at his brother, digging his shaking fingers deep into Jojo's head. He began sucking every drop of blood from the dismembered head, smiling in glee as what little life was left on his face turned into a grotesque mask; a bag of skin hastily thrown over a skull. The scar between his head and Jonathan's body grew softer with every drop, and the shaking finally stopped.
„That is what has become of you, Jojo. A vessel for a being which will surpass anything you could ever hope to achieve. A gift truly worthy of a man like you."
He cast the skull into the flames, not gracing it with a final look.
„Farewell, Jojo! Ultimately, you were nothing but a stepping stone. A mere sidenote in the history of me, Dio."
With that, he tried to make his way to the coffin hidden in the secret compartment. But before he could even make his first step, he tripped and nearly fell over.
„What the-" Dio yelled out, looking down on his new body. His legs were no longer shaking, but trembling like those of a newborn deer.
„What is this new hell, Jojo? Are you still fighting me, Dio, even from beyond the borders of death?"
He looked back on the place where he had thrown the skull, almost expecting to see Jojo's fierce eyes staring back at him. Instead, there were only flames, dancing around him with increasing intensity.
„Your resistance is useless, Jojo! Useless, Useless!"
He drove his nails deeply into his palms, gritting his teeth and slowly making his way forward. Every step required him to be on guard, to be at the pinnacle of his concentration. And yet, he moved slowly, clumsily like a drunk from ogre street. He had only taken a few dozen steps, as another explosion shook the ship, throwing him to the ground. Dio cried out in frustration and anger.
„I did not attain immortality to step down now! I, Dio, am the ultimate power! I will survive, no matter what, Jojo!"
He tried to get up, but Jonathan's body refused to even let him get to his knees. Instead, he clawed at the ground before him, slowly crawling forwards. He could already make out the coffin in the distance, but he could also feel the fire creeping up on him.
„Even in death, you are a pest, Jojo. But that is all you have ever been, a pest! A pebble in my shoe, nothing but a fly in my food! I, Dio, have fought for every bit of luxury and power that you took for granted. I will not allow you to take this from me, Jojo! To me, Dio, fighting for my life has become a daily routine!"
He dug his nails deeply into the wooden planks before him. He could feel the first sparks of fire at his feet, burning away at Jonathan's shoes.
„I, Dio, will prevail!" He lunged forwards, a clumsy, last ditch effort, focusing all of his vampiric strenght and concentration into this one act. He landed only a few feet away from the coffin, his body twisted like a ragdoll. Dio grit his teeth, as his concern started to turn into panic. He tried to grab the coffin's cover, but another explosion threw it just out of his reach. He screamed in fear, a sensation he thought he'd never experience again. He hastily crawled forwards, finally reaching the coffin. With all grace and elegance long forgotten, he dragged himself into his refugio, the secret hidden compartment. Focusing his last bits of strenght, he pulled the lid of the coffin back into it's initial position and locked it from the inside. He could still hear the flames roaring from outside his refuge, but inside the darkness of his coffin, he finally felt safe. His mind was still racing with fear; never before, not even when Jojo had reduced him to a head, had such terror befallen him. Just before he was able to calm down, he heard something other than the raging fire and explosions. He heard footsteps. Small, hasty footsteps. Dio's eyes widened. How could someone have possibly have escaped his zombies? Was it perhaps an ally of Jojo? Had this pesky Speedwagon somehow snuck on board and now seeked to drag him, Dio, out into the flames? He tried to move his body as he heard the coffin lid being opened just mere inches away from him, but his body – Jonathan's body – refused to obey his commands. Before, it had merely resisted him, but now, it felt like it utterly forbid him to attack the person that had invaded his refuge. He heard the lid being closed again, and registered two panicked heartbeats, along with a faint third one. But before Dio had time to piece those informations together, another explosion, louder and more destructive than any other before, finally ripped a hole into the boat, throwing the coffin out into the ocean.
