Hi everyone, once again, thank you for your patience. We are nearing the climax of the Devil Hand arc as all but one of the Seven Sins are defeated and Vergil approaches the Lair of Judgment, having past the final door and seemingly killed Arkham. Now Dante stands before Iblis, the strongest of the Seven Sins and she will provide him with a challenge. Now that is said, let us get on with this chapter.
Pride Before Judgment
"Are you certain of this?" Gran Doma questioned as he stood in the chamber of the new Magic Council headquarters along with his colleagues.
"Yes sir." The thought projection of Lahar replied. "It would seem that Devil Hand has made their move, and currently Fairy Tail is on the scene as well."
"This is deeply disturbing." One member said as a magic hologram of Temen-ni-gru appeared in the center of a chamber. "The amount of demonic energy emanating from this tower is staggering."
"The name of this tower is apparently Temen-ni-gru." Lahar informed. "And it serves as a bridge between our world and the Demon Realm. At the moment there appears to be a small army of demons engaging a group of Fairy Tail wizards outside the tower, and there are several wizards, including the one named Dante, inside the tower; more than likely fighting Devil Hand's core members."
"This is our chance!" One council member spoke up. "Both that troublesome Fairy Tail and this Devil Hand are all gathered in one spot! I vote we fire an Etherion and eradicate both once and for all!"
"Absolutely not!" Org exclaimed. "We have no idea just what sort of abilities this Temen-ni-gru possesses. If we take such a reckless action we could make the situation perpetually worse!"
"Org, how dare you speak….!"
"What if this turns out to be similar to the R-System!?" Org interrupted. "Firing the Etherion then only made things worse for us! If this tower serves as a bridge between our world and the Underworld, and we fire a powerful attack, it could potentially tear a hole between our worlds! We'd place every single person in all of Earthland in danger!"
"If that happens then we can rally our armies to fight the threat." A member contradicted. "We can even order all the guilds to stand by us as well."
"But if we're the ones who invoked the disaster in the first place, they will never agree to assist us!" Org continued to exclaim.
"They have no place to defy us! If they do, we will disband them…!"
"That is enough!" Gran Doma slammed the end of his staff onto the ground to silence the argument. "I am inclined to agree with Org. Yes, Fairy Tail has become problematic, however I'd rather not risk causing an incident that would ultimately destroy our reputation. Lahar, has your army arrived?"
"Yes sir." Lahar nodded. "My army has gathered and we stand just outside the battle taking place."
"Good, await further orders. Do not engage." Gran Doma instructed.
"Sir."
Several explosions erupted across the battlefield around the dreaded tower Temen-ni-gru. The members of Fairy Tail did their best to fend off the many different demons, but for every one they took down, it looked as if three more rose in its place.
*SLASH!*
Freed swerved past three Hell Lusts and a Hell Pride with his sword before purple lines appeared on their bodies and they exploded in glorious fashion.
"Just how many of these beasts are there?" Freed questioned as he jumped back to avoid a bomb attack from a Hell Wrath perched on a hill with four other Hell Wraths ready to attack as well. But before they could even launch their attack, Bickslow's dolls flew down toward them and shot their green energy beams at the bombs, causing them to explode and take out all the demons with them.
The dust began to clear as Bickslow stood back-to-back with Freed. "That's gotta be at least a dozen for me, and who knows how many more to go."
The two braced themselves as a group of Hell Prides and Hell Greeds began to march toward them, only for Evergreen to fly down in front of them. She lowered her glasses as her eyes began to glow, the second she made eye contact, all the demons she looked at turned to stone.
"If only Laxus was here, he'd probably demolish all of them in an instant!" Evergreen stated.
"But he isn't." Freed said with a regretful sigh before standing tall with his sword. "Which is all the more reason for us to stand strong. Laxus or no, we are still the Thunder Legion and members of Fairy Tail! It is our duty to carry his legacy and keep his memory alive, no matter the cost! Let these beasts come, we'll cut them down all the same!"
"Hell yeah buddy!" Bickslow cheered. "No way we're gonna let these freaks get the better of us!"
"No way! No way!" Bickslow's dolls cheered as well.
Evergreen smirked as a group of Fallen loomed over the trio. "Well, let us get to work then." The three of them flew up towards the demons; Evergreen with her wings, Bickslow riding on his dolls, and Freed with his Dark Ecriture wings.
"Sandwave!" Max threw out his hands to send a wave of sand to encompass a Hell Gluttony and two Hell Envies and send them flying as he stood close to Warren, still working with his telepathy.
"Anything Warren?"
"No, I still cant' contact the others! That damn tower's blocking me!"
"Well we better think of something soon, I don't know how much longer we're gonna last." Max said as several more demons began to move in on them.
"Smoke Crush!" Wakaba sent a hail of pink-smoke fists onto an Arachne demon to pulverize it into the ground, but little good that did as he was surrounded by several Enigma demons.
"Damn! Just one after the other! I might be in a little trouble here, guys!"
The Enigmas lunged right for him, but they didn't get to far. "Purple Rain!" Macao had jumped into the air and sent a hail of purple flames at the demons to knock them back as he landed next to his friend, while trying to bear something of a confident grin despite the odds.
"Dante makes it look so easy. If we get outta this, I may just ask him for some pointers." Macao commented.
"Requip Sniper Rifle!" Bisca stood on a hilltop as she used her magic rifle to shoot down several Bloodgoyles coming in her direction. However, this served as a distraction as a Hell Vanguard was about to ambush from her behind.
However, Alzack landed on the demon with his feet to kick it back. "Keep away from her! Guns Magic: Tornado Shot!"
"Watch your back, Bisca!" He warned her.
"Don't worry, I got you to watch my back, don't I?" Bisca stood up and smiled at Alzack, causing him to blush slightly.
"Uh yeah… sure…"
"Hey, hey! Save it for the honeymoon you two!" Cana called to them as she stood below the hill they were standing on, facing two Hell Prides.
"Card Magic! Summoned Lightning!" She threw a trio of cards at the two demons that combined together into a powerful lightning strike to take them out in spectacular fashion. She took several deep breaths and fell to her knees.
"Cana, are you alright?" Levy ran toward her and helped her onto her feet.
"Yeah, I'm fine. But it feels like we're fighting back a whole ocean of these things."
No sooner did Cana say that; Four Hell Lusts, one Arachne, and three Fallen soon appeared and were about to jump on them when Jet and Droy leaped in front of the two women.
"Keep your filthy hands off Levy!" Droy threw out multiple seeds. "Chain Plant!" The seeds hit the ground and immediately, multiple vines shot out to grab and bind the demons, leaving then open for Jet.
"Falcon Heavenward!" Jet leaped into the air and used his super speed to deliver a devastating kick to knock away all the demons and send them flying to parts unknown.
"Now that's how we do it Shadow-Gear style!" Jet tipped his hat as he and Droy stood proudly. However, a Dullahan demon had sudden appeared above them and roared, causing both men to comically scream.
"Solid Script: Fire!" Levy had ran out and written the word 'Fire' in blue flames that shot out and blasted back the armored demon, causing both of them to breath sighs of relief.
"That was close." Droy breathed.
"Yeah, thanks Levy." Jet added.
"Don't thank me yet, we're not done." Levy said, as they looked outward to see several more demons engaging the rest of their comrades.
"These things just don't quit, do they." Jet said in frustration.
"And they're probably all low-level demons." Cana added as she looked towards the ominous Temen-ni-gru. "Dante, Erza, and everyone else are all inside that thing, taking on the heavy hitters, including Vergil and we all know how tough that guy is."
Levy's eyes began to shake slightly; she knew just how terrifying Dante's older brother was, as did most of Fairy Tail. That and she had also heard that another member of Devil Hand, Arkham, was apparently Lady's father. It was really tragic to know just how divided their own families were. However, her fists clenched as her eyes shook with a firm resolve.
"We don't have time to worry about that right now." Levy said as she walked in front of the group. "Dante, Natsu, and everyone else are working there hardest to try and stop Devil Hand, we should be doing the same! We're all members of Fairy Tail just like they are; no matter how many of these monsters stand in my way, there's no way I'm going to let them keep me from helping my friends!"
"Thata girl!" Cana smirked as she readied several more of her cards. "I'm with ya all the way!"
"You're so brave Levy." Jet said with hearts in his eyes.
"Yeah, you're the best." An equally love-struck Droy added.
"Come on guys, let's show these bastards just what Fairy Tail's made of!" Cana exclaimed as she and everyone else charged forward.
"YEAH!"
Heavenrise Chamber
Dante ran along the wall as Iblis continued to hover in the air with her dark magic wings as she pointed her hand forward and a pitch black magic circle appeared on her palm.
"Morning Star: Black Comet!" She shot multiple large black energy projectiles at Dante as he ran along the wall, while he used Rebellion to slice and block them all. He got to one point on the wall and jumped towards Iblis with his sword to try and swing, but she covered herself in a veil of black magic, causing her to disappear right as Dante swung through the dark fog.
"What the…?"
"Up here!"
Iblis appeared above Dante and shot another Black Comet attack, hitting Dante dead on and sending him falling down the deep pit of the chamber, but he was quickly caught by a cyan flash and pulled back up in the air.
"Nice save Happy." Dante smirked at the blue Exceed supporting him with his wings.
"Aye sir."
"Relying on someone else to help you?" Iblis questioned as she floated on the same level as them with her own wings. "The son of Sparda shouldn't sully himself so, especially with an annoying little pest like that."
"Hey! Who you calling a pest?!" Happy exclaimed with an anime anger mark on his forehead.
"Nothing wrong with asking for help." Dante said simply. "Even a lone wolf likes to run with the pack sometimes."
"A pack that I'll take great joy in slaughtering." Iblis said with an evil grin.
"Well then sweetheart, let's dance." Dante twirled Rebellion some more. "Come on Happy!"
"Aye Sir!" Happy shot forward with Dante at Iblis as she flew downward with her wings and Happy flew after her with equal speed.
"Morning Star: Chaos Blades!" Iblis' hands grabbed solid black magic, which took the form of two long swords, one in each hand, as she stopped her retreat and shot back at Dante to clash her blades against his Rebellion.
Dante swung his sword at insane speeds, but Iblis was able to match his own pace with her dark magic swords. She blocked one strike before flying upwards with Happy flying Dante up to catch her. He pulled out Ebony and Ivory and opened fire.
"Morning Star: Black Nova!" She crossed her blades together as they merged and created a large ball of black light, which not only blasted away Dante's magic bullets but sent waves of black light towards Dante and Happy.
"Evasive maneuvers!" Dante exclaimed.
"AYE SIR!" Happy practically screamed as they barley avoided the waves of destructive power shot at them. Each wave that missed hit a wall, causing large explosions that shook the whole chamber, and most of the innards of the tower itself. Dante got an idea and swung Rebellion at the falling rocks to shoot them towards Iblis as her attack died down.
"Morning Star: Black Comet!" Iblis shot more long ranged projectiles at the incoming rubble and was able to hit all of them with pinpoint accuracy, but this created a dust cloud, which Happy and Dante shot out of to meet Iblis face-to-face. Taking advantage of her stunned surprise, Dante swung Rebellion at her and slammed the flat end in her side to send her crashing right into the wall.
"You got her!" Happy cheered.
"Don't celebrate yet. I doubt something that easy could take her out." Dante advised.
"You call that easy?!" Happy questioned in comical fashion. "You know how many times we almost got diced by that crazy magic of hers?!"
"The cat should really listen to his better." Iblis' voice called out as she leapt from the dust, her wings having vanished as she stood on a hanging piece of rubble over the seemingly bottomless pit, her prideful smirk never having left her face.
"Still going huh?" Dante mused. "This should be fun."
However, while Dante looked excited, Happy looked a bit scared. "Hey uh Dante… this lady…. I can't help but get this feeling around her… I think she's about as strong as Erza."
"I wouldn't say that, I think she might actually be stronger than Erza." Dante said, still looking a bit excited.
That took Happy by surprise. "Stronger than Erza?!"
"I'm glad you're acknowledging my strength." Iblis said. "To be praised by a Son of Sparda is quite empowering."
"You got some fancy magic there, never seen anything like that." Dante noted.
"Of course you haven't." Iblis began to explain. "I wield Morning Star magic. To put it simply, you could call it Black Light magic; think of it as a hybrid between light and darkness; it moves about as fast as light, and yet at the same time it's as all consuming as darkness. The best of both worlds."
"Morning Star, huh? That has a nice ring to it." Dante noted.
"So it's both light and dark magic?" Happy thought. "Just where in the world did Vergil find someone like this?"
"Let me ask you something Iblis, why you with a Dark Guild?" Dante asked. "Like I said, you got some serious stuff right here, but it seems like a waste to use it for something like this. You joined a legal guild, you'd probably end up very high in the world."
"Trying to convert me, are you?" Iblis asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Nah, I just hate to see talent go to waste." The red-clad Devil Hunter said.
"If you're just trying to ask her out on a date, Dante; I swear I'm gonna drop you!" Happy exclaimed in frustration.
"Do it and die." Dante said simply, causing Happy to look comically frightened.
"SORRY! JUST KIDDING!"
However, Iblis caught their attention as she laughed, almost like what Dante said to her was the funniest thing in the world.
"You think I'm wasting my potential?" She asked in-between laughs before she calmed down. "I could say the same thing to you."
"What's she talking about?" Happy questioned.
"You're the son of the Dark Knight himself, you wield power that only others can dream of." Iblis began. "But, you waste your talents joining a pathetic legal guild like Fairy Tail, protecting weakling who could only dream of obtaining power the likes of us have at our disposal. That is why Vergil's the strongest brother, rather than waste his talents protecting insects, he only strives to make himself stronger, to be the absolute master of the Underworld, surpassing even the likes of Mundus! That is why I work with him, so that I can be the undisputed master of magic! I'll wield power that surpasses even the likes of the Wizard Saints, to become a magic goddess!"
Despite her proclamation, Dante didn't look the least bit impressed, but rather he looked disappointed. "Did you hear her just now Happy? She wants to become a goddess."
"Yeah I heard her." Happy replied. "Looks like we got another cocky, power-hungry, nut-job."
"Excuse me?" Iblis questioned in a low tone.
"You know how many times I heard that kind of speech before?" Dante began. "You got some special power, and you automatically think you're on top of the world and that everyone is your little plaything, or an insect to be squashed, or whatever. To me, that's just a load of bullshit. Some of those 'insects' are pretty good people just trying to make their own mark in life, and you got no right to knock them down just because you think you're stronger. That's why I'm here, to knock guys like you down a peg. It's what my old man did, and it's what I'm gonna do."
"Aye! Same goes for me!" Happy added. "Weak or strong, we're both Fairy Tail wizards and we're the ones who are gonna protect this world!"
Iblis sighed in annoyance. "Wow, you are more naïve than I thought. In this world, power is the only thing that matters. So let us see which one of us has the strongest power!"
"That works for me." Dante accepted.
"Morning Star: Chaotic Nebula!" Iblis threw out both her arms as a black, dark blue, and dark violet, nebula-like veil appeared in front of her and shot out streaks of black lightning towards Dante.
"Agni! Rudra!" Dante quipped both his fire and wind swords as he spun along with Happy, creating a powerful vortex of fire and wind that shot down towards the attack, resulting in a powerful explosion that rocked the whole chamber from top-to-bottom.
Natsu's roar echoed throughout the underground tunnels as he continued to run with virtually no end in sight. He'd been doing this for about an hour, until finally his patience wore off.
"Okay, where the hell is everybody!?" Natsu yelled. "Come on! Happy! Dante! Lucy! Lisanna! Erza! Anyone! Isn't this place supposed to be filled with demons?! Where the heck did everybody go!?"
"Awe, is somebody feeling lonely?"
Once Natsu's eyes set up Jester, he immediately grabbed the clown by his shirt and pulled him forward with a large flame in his hand.
"Alright clown boy, where the heck is everyone?! Tell me right now or I'll burn you to ash!"
"Well, somebody's cranky." Jester mused before he slipped out of Natsu's grip and danced around him. "Well, if you're wondering where all the big bad demons are, they're all outside."
"Outside?" Natsu asked.
"Yep, apparently, some of your buddies in Fairy Tail showed up to give you a helping hand, but the big bad Vergil sent all the demons here loose on your pals to keep them busy." Jester explained.
"What?!" Natsu questioned, becoming even more aggravated by that.
"As for everyone else, well I hate to say it, but Devil Hand is pretty much done, like a rib-eye steak." Jester continued. "Pretty much all the Seven Sins are beaten except one, and the mighty red-coat pretty boy Dante is presently fighting her as we speak."
That last piece of news caught Natsu's attention as his eyes popped in disbelief. "You gotta be kidding me! Seven super tough bad guys and I didn't take down a single one?!" It was true, Natsu might have had a chance to fight Satan, but Gajeel was ultimately the one who brought him down. "Damn it, Grey's gonna hold this over me for the next month! Man this sucks!"
"No need to give up hope, Dragon boy." Jester told him. "Vergil's still up and about."
The mere mention of that name got Natsu's attention as his mood became serious. "Vergil?"
"He's in the control room in the basement." Jester sang. "But good news for you, you're in the basement here to, all underground and stuff. So you don't have to go through all those puzzles. Congratulations! Instant short cut!"
"Where do I find him?" Natsu questioned.
Jester came up to Natsu's face. "Use that fancy nose of yours little Salamander." He tapped Natsu's nose, much to his annoyance. "You might be closer than you might think."
"Why are you even helping me?" Natsu questioned once more. "Aren't you supposed to be with Devil Hand to?"
"Who me? No. I'm just a guy who's looking for a good show, so give me a good performance you fire-breathing freak!" Jester gave his titular laugh as he back flipped back multiple times and vanished into a cave.
"That guy seriously creeps me out." Natsu said to himself. "Okay, use my noose." The Fire Dragon Slayer took a moment to calm down and sniffed around the air. After about a minute, his eyes popped open. "Gotcha!"
He caught Vergil's scent, and he wasn't that far from him. Following the scent, Natsu ran as fast as he could. However as he ran, his mind flashed back to all the moments he fought Vergil, all the times he got his ass kicked, and especially that one time where he faced Vergil's Devil Trigger and almost died. Natsu's own pace slowed down at the thought of that as he held the scar on his chest. Though he hesitated, it lasted only a second as he tried to put out of his head.
"I don't got time to be scared right now. This place is seriously bad news and it's gotta go." Natsu continued down the tunnel. "Ready or not Vergil, here I come!"
A stream of water shot up onto the ruins of the bridge that hung above the coliseum where Mammon was defeated. The water cleared to reveal Gray, Juvia, as well as the defeated and unconscious Mammon in Juvia's Water-Lock.
"We have defeated one of the Seven Sins, though I can't help but wonder where the others are at." Juvia stated.
"If I had to guess, I'd say everyone else already taken them down." Gray assumed.
"You guessed right!"
Both Gray and Juvia looked in surprise to see Jester appearing in front of them out of nowhere. "Well look at you, the icy-water couple took down old Gold Boy. Congratulations to the happy couple!" Jester joked.
"Happy couple?" Juvia thought as her cheeks turned red.
"And who the heck are you supposed to be?" Gray questioned, getting in a defensive stance.
"Oh well, I've been up and down this tower all night, I felt that everyone knew me at this point, guess I was wrong. Call me Jester, and I'm here to give you some friendly advice, stripper boy."
"I hate it when people call me that!" Gray exclaimed as an anime anger mark appeared on his forehead. "Seriously though, how do we know you're not with Devil Hand, why should we trust you?"
"You might not have a choice, considering you're actually on a time limit. Tick-Tock! Tick-Tock!" Jester gestured a clock with his arms for emphasis.
"What do you mean a time-limit?" Juvia questioned.
"You saw it to, didn't you?" Jester asked as he zoomed towards Juvia, causing her to look comically freaked out. "That huge tower jutting out of the ground? That thick shaft that causes women to shudder…!" He began to massage Juvia's shoulders, causing her to comically shudder. "Just like that!"
Gray however grabbed Jester by the shoulder and pulled him away. "We know what it is! Temen-ni-gru is basically one giant tunnel to the Demon World, we get that already!"
"Yes, but do you know if it's active or not?" Jester asked as he pulled Grey in close as if he were sharing a close secret. "Good news for you, it's not! At least, not yet." Jester hopped back as he continued. "The big bad Vergil managed to get Dante's amulet, and that along with his amulet, as you probably know, is the key that fully activates the tower. If you don't stop him soon, he'll unleash Armageddon upon all of Earthland! Doesn't that sound terrifying?"
"Alright, so how do we stop him?" Gray asked.
"Easy! You just gotta beat him! Duh!" Jester answered.
Gray's eyelids lowered in annoyance. "Where is he?"
Jester opened his palm where he produced a small sphere of dark purple energy. "Follow this little glowing ball and it'll lead you directly to him."
"And how do we know that this will indeed take us to Vergil?" Juvia questioned with suspicion in her eyes. "How do we know it's not a trap."
"You don't!" Jester shouted dramatically. "But like I said, you gotta time limit, so you should make your choice pretty quickly." He began to back away. "Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock. Tick-Tock." He vanished in the darkness.
"Uh… thanks?" Gray wasn't sure what to think.
"Can he be trusted? This could lead us into a trap." Juvia voiced in concern.
"Maybe." Gray nodded. "But I don't think he was lying about how much time we have. Vergil's not the kind of guy to waste time, if we're gonna stop him, we may need to take a few risks."
"Alright, then let's go." Juvia was about to walk with him when Gray put his hand out.
"No, you find as many of our friends as you can, and take him with you." Gray gestured to the still-unconscious Mammon. "I'll find Vergil."
"By yourself?!" Juvia questioned in surprise. "Gray… you remember what happened the last time you faced Vergil, don't you?! You're strong but… not even you, Gajeel, or Natsu working together could stop him. If you face him alone he… he could kill you." Juvia didn't want to admit it, but she knew how strong Vergil was compared to Gray, not to mention Gray himself hasn't fully recovered from his fight with Mammon.
"You might be right, but like I said, time might not be on our side right now." Gray said. "But that's what it means to be a part of Fairy Tail, you gotta take a few risks."
"But not at the cost of your life!" Juvia exclaimed.
"Don't worry, I don't think I'll be alone." Gray told her. "Knowing Dante, he's probably on his way there to. I'll meet up with him and we can take Vergil down together."
Juvia looked at Gray in surprise, he did have a point. If he and Dante worked together, there would be no way Vergil would win.
Gray turned toward her with a smile. "Don't worry about me, I know what I'm doing." He gave her a thumbs up. "Trust me."
Juvia's cheeks blushed as a smile formed on her face. "Alright, I trust you Gray. Now go kick his butt."
Gray smirked as he began to walk, but as he did, the sphere that Jester provided began to glow and fly down the path, where Gray took off running with the intent on finding Vergil and beating him once and for all.
"Dante…" Juvia thought. "If you really are there, please, look after my beloved Gray. And see to it he comes back to me."
Meanwhile, Vergil had entered a large circular chamber with several demonic images along the walls. At the center was a rise of three steps that led to a large circular platform. Vergil had walked up onto the platform and toward the center where he stood above a small white hole in the center with an invisible liquid inside.
He held both his and Dante's amulets in his hands, once he opened his palms; the red jewels in the amulets began to glow as they levitated, before circling and joining together into the complete Perfect Amulet. It shined briefly before descending and vanishing into the liquid.
Once that was done, Vergil kneeled down and unsheathed Yamato. He held out his hand and used the blade to cut down on his own palm, causing drops of his own blood, the blood of Sparda, to fall down into the hole. The liquid turned red with his blood as Vergil stood up. Now all he'd do is wait. Unlimited power was finally within his grasp.
Heavenrise Chamber
Happy flew Dante up the seemingly bottomless and topless chamber as Iblis used her dark magic wings to follow them as she prepared another attack.
"Morning Star: Black Comet!" She shot more projectiles at them as Dante pulled out Ebony and Ivory and shot down towards her to intercept all the attacks, each bullet hit each projectile, causing it to explode, but Iblis kept up the attack as Dante continued to shoot with Happy flying straight up, until he began to see the top.
"Dante! We're about to hit the ceiling!"
"Keep flying and toss me straight up!" Dante told him.
"Wha… but Dante…!" Happy exclaimed in surprise.
"Just do it! Trust me!"
Happy nodded. "Whatever you say." He flew straight up with Iblis right behind them. Right when they are about ten feet away from the ceiling, Happy then threw Dante straight up. Using his own demonic physiology, he flipped in mid-air and landed his feet on the roof before he jumped and shot himself down, letting gravity handle the rest.
"You fool! You're leaving yourself wide open! Morning Star: Chaotic Nebula!" She shot out her powerful attack as the black lightning generated from it shot towards Dante, but that was what he wanted.
"Nevan!" He quipped Nevan as he fell and used his electric Devil Arm to draw in the lightning generated by her attack to make it stronger as he channeled all the combined electricity into one single swipe with his scythe and was able to cut through the attack like tissue paper, much to Iblis' shock.
"What?!"
Taking advantage of her shock, he used the momentum to swing his scythe at her with the remainder of the electricity to not only electrocute her but send her hurting down on a diagonal angle and crashing and skidding along the wall.
Happy quickly flew in and caught Dante before he could fall any further. "Wow! That was awesome Dante!"
"Yeah I know." He said with a cocky tone before getting serious. "Now it's our turn to go on the offensive. Let's go furball!"
"Aye sir!" Happy charged towards the recovering Iblis with Dante.
"Damn… it…" She cursed herself for falling for that, but looked in surprise to see Dante was already on her.
"Cerberus!" He quipped his icy-three-pronged nunchuck and began to lay a multitude of hits all across Iblis' body. Each hit not only hurt, but it began to freeze a portion of her body as well.
Iblis spread her dark magic wings once more to take flight and gain some distance as she spread out some of her magic to break away the ice off her body. She wouldn't get too far however as Dante began to spin Cerberus and send a hail of ice-shards at Iblis.
"Morning Star: Chaos Blades!" She generated her black light blades again as she began to swing and cut down the attack Dante shot at her with amazing speed and precision that would put even Erza to shame. Dante saw that this was going nowhere.
"Get me in close Happy." Dante put away Cerberus and took out Rebellion once more.
"You got it!" Happy flew Dante directly down at Iblis as they began to parry swords again. Their swords were swung so fast it appeared almost as if a blur, Dante swung furiously on the offensive, forcing Iblis to use both her blades for defense, despite having the majority of the swords. Iblis flew backwards, but Happy kept flying Dante toward her at equal pace as she continued to block and parry against Rebellion.
Dante tried swing vertically as he sent a large wave of red demonic energy at her but she was able to slice through it with her blades as she shot herself downward with Dante following close behind. Iblis turned herself around as she flew down and shot both her blades forward as if they were spears, but Dante was quick to slice through them easily, but right then he had an opening that Iblis was quick to take advantage of.
"Morning Star: Black Nova!" She unleashed her all-encompassing attack once more, forcing Dante to use Rebellion as a makeshift shield to protect him and Happy, but the force of the attack still sent them hurtling straight up. The attack subsided as Happy tried to stabilize himself and Dante, trying to regain his bearings.
"You doing alright fur-ball?" Dante asked.
"The whole room is spinning." Happy's eyes were swirls as he was quite dizzy. However, Iblis suddenly appeared behind them with an open palm ready to shoot Happy.
"You're wide open." She shot a single Black Comet attack at Happy.
"Sure about that?" Dante quickly angled Rebellion backwards as he blocked the attack, much to Iblis surprise. Dante spun his body around to deliver a roundhouse kick to Iblis' body and send her back some distance.
Happy shook his head as his senses began to clear. "Thanks Dante." He glared at Iblis. "Trying to shoot me in the back while I'm dizzy?! That's a cheap shot!"
"You're the one who's making him fly, I take you out, and he looses a serious advantage, basic strategy." Iblis said.
"But he's right though, a cheap shot, thought you we're supposed to represent the Sin of Pride." Dante told her. "Take cheap shots and try and cheat, you forsake your pride. You gonna say you won because you stabbed your enemy in the back? Yeah, don't really see how that's gonna bolster your reputation."
Iblis' practically growled. "And what of you? Hmm, Dante? The mighty red-clad Devil who lives with the Fairies. It must hurt so bad that you have to rely on help for those insignificant bugs in that pathetic guild for help."
"What's wrong with asking for help?" Dante mused. "That's why Pride's usually considered a sin. It's good to be proud every now and then, a confidence boost doesn't hurt. But when you let your pride cloud your judgment, thinking you can the whole world by yourself, you loose sight of reality. You say you wanna be the strongest dark wizard in the world, I don't really see that happening, cause honestly you can't even beat me and Happy without using some kind of cheap trick. Like they say, Pride goeth before the fall."
"Aye, you tell her." Happy said with a smirk.
Iblis growled. "Damn it… am I… really going to loose… to him?! No, No! I cannot loose! I was chosen to be Vergil's right hand! I couldn't have been chosen to be the leader of the Seven Sins if I wasn't the strongest! I refuse to loose! I will kill you Dante, even if it costs me my own life!"
"Tell you what, Iblis." Dante proposed. "You put up a good fight, but if you surrender and tell me where Vergil is, you won't have to pull yourself up off the ground. Might even put a good word for you so you won't face life in prison. Shame to let such a pretty face and strong power go to waste."
"Again with the flirting with girls thing, that's seriously getting old." Happy commented as a sweat drop appeared on his forehead.
"This coming from the cat who always says 'you liiiike her' all the time." Dante shot towards him.
"That line is a classic!" Happy exclaimed. "Classics never go out of style!"
"Like you know anything about style."
Their brief argument was caught off guard by Iblis' laughter; it was so loud that it echoed throughout the entire massive chamber. Happy and even Dante looked slightly disturbed at the deranged chuckle before it came to a halt and she glared at them.
"I will never accept defeat! Do you hear me?! I won't surrender and I will not betray Master Vergil! I will kill you Dante, even if I die doing it! In fact, that's exactly what's gonna happen!"
"What are you talking about?" Dante asked, not liking the sound of that.
Iblis brought her hands together toward her chest as a black sphere began to pulsate in-between her palms. Despite it's small size, the energy emanating from it was massive.
"Oh, I don't like the looks of this." Happy said as all the shadows in the chamber were actually being drawn to it. "That's a lot of magic energy right there!"
"You're right!" Iblis began to laugh manically. "My most powerful spell! Not even the Son of Sparda can dispel this!" The orb in-between her hands actually began to emanate a suction force that began to draw in all the air, Dante and Happy could feel all the wind being drawn in.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Dante questioned.
"MEET YOUR END BY MY HAND, DANTE! ULTIMATE MORNING STAR TECHNIQUE: HEAVENLY BLACK HOLE!"
She threw her arms out as the sphere in her arms grew to encompass her body and everything began to be drawn into it. Iblis had created a black hole. Her body was the first to be sucked in and destroyed; though her life had now just ended, the spell would continue to grow as it drew in more matter.
The force was so strong that Happy couldn't keep his hold with his wings. "DANTE! I… I CAN'T HOLD ON!" He accidentally let go of Dante, but the red-clad Devil Hunter was able to drive Rebellion into the wall to keep him in place while he grabbed Happy by the tail to prevent him from being pulled in. "WHAT THE HECK IS THAT?!"
"A BLACK HOLE!" Dante exclaimed. "THAT CRAZY BITCH MADE A FREAKING BLACK HOLE!"
The black hole began to grow in size as it began to suck in everything; not just the air, or all the rubble created by the fight, but the walls of the chamber began to break apart as it was also being sucked in. Dante saw the deadly phenomenon growing.
"Damn it, this isn't good!" He thought to himself as he tried to hold himself and Happy in place as best he could. "She's probably dead and can't control that spell! It if it continues to grow, it could suck in this whole damn tower, and it might not stop there! It could suck up the whole damn world! Gotta stop it, but how!?"
Dante could only think of one possible option. It was a gamble, but it was a risk that had to be done right now.
"HAPPY!" Dante began to yell at him as he pulled Happy toward him. "HOLD ONTO MY BACK!"
Happy was able to climb as best he could, despite the growing and overwhelming force of the ever-increasing black hole growing just above them. "OKAY! NOW WHAT!"
"I WANT YOU TO FLY US BOTH STRAIGHT INTO IT! AS FAST AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN!" Dante yelled.
"WHHHHHAAAAAAATTTTT?!" Happy screamed at the top of his lungs. "HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND!"
"NO! DO IT LIKE WHEN WE CROSSED OVER INTO EDOLAS!" Dante said as Happy recalled how he and Carla flew Natsu and Wendy, while Dante and Modeus used their own powers, to pierce through the anima and travel into Edolas. "I GOT A PLAN TO BRING THAT THING DOWN, BUT I NEED YOU TO FLY US INTO IT WITH EVERYTHING YOU GOT!
"BUT…DANTE…!" Happy however had to shield his eyes as Dante was encompassed in a red glow before his body flashed in a red light and he had obtained his Devil Trigger transformation. "His Devil Trigger…? He's serious."
"HAPPY! DO YOU TRUST ME?!" Dante looked at Happy with sincerity in his glowing yellow eyes.
The blue exceed looked in honest surprise before a determined look fell on his face. "I TRUST YOU!"
"THEN LET'S DO IT!" Dante shouted.
The black hole was so big that its outter force began to outgrow the walls of the entire Heavenrise Chamber. Dante pulled his black Rebellion out and shot forward along with Happy directly at it.
"DO IT HAPPY! NOW!"
"AYE SIR MAX SPEED ATTACK!" Happy channeled all his magic power into his wings, causing them to glow in their sparkly cyan color, as Dante prepared something as well.
"QUICKSILVER!"
Dante had combined his Quicksilver style, already enhanced by his Devil Trigger, with Happy's own Aera magic. The energies all mixed together as both their bodies converted into a cyan-red-sparkling beam that shot at a speed faster than light and not only pierced the black hole, but actually cut completely it half!
*BOOM!*
The entire spell exploded in a bright and spectacular fashion. So much so that it not only rocked the entire upper tower of Temen-ni-gru, but the light could be seen from outside as well, even by all the Fairy Tail wizards fighting the demonic hordes outside.
"Whoa, what's going on?!" Lucy exclaimed as she, Lisanna, and Angel were all knocked down by the rumbling of the tower.
"The whole tower feels like it's shaking!" Lisanna exclaimed as well.
"What was that?!" Wendy shouted as she, Erza, Lady, Carla, and Sheeree were also rocked from their location in the Room of Tranquil Souls.
However, despite the fierce shaking, Lady had a good idea of who might be responsible as she smiled. "Dante."
The light and flash all died down as Dante and Happy hovered, the youngest Son of Sparda having turned back to normal to conserve as much energy as he could. He saw the result; most of the chamber was destroyed, even large holes that showed the outside of the tower lined all the walls. Dante couldn't help but smirk.
"Hey, we did it." He said to Happy, who looked just about spent.
"Aye… sir…" Happy's wings completely vanished as he fainted in exhaustion, causing him and Dante to fall. Dante however was able to catch Happy was he let himself fall pretty much the whole way down. Once it looked like though he was about to reach the floor, he took out Rebellion and jammed it into the wall he was closest to. It didn't halt the fall, but Rebellion cut through much of it and slowed his descent till he came to about ten feet from the floor before he pulled it out and jumped before landing somewhat gracefully on his feet before falling to one knee while still holding Happy close.
Dante took the moment to catch his breath as he spent some of his own natural demonic energy. He had hoped he wouldn't have had to use his Devil Trigger before facing Vergil again as it saps too much of his stamina, but he was only in it for a few seconds, and he didn't really have much choice. He smirked as he looked to the exhausted Happy.
"Hey, we just took out a black hole. Not bad, huh?"
Happy smiled weakly "Not bad…. At all…. But I think… I'm about done… sir…"
Dante chuckled a bit before looking up with a somber look at what was left of the whole Heavenrise Chamber. Iblis had sacrificed her own life, even though Dante offered her a chance to surrender and spare her life. He wasn't naïve enough to think that Iblis would take it, but to unleash such a powerful spell that not only killed herself, but could have potentially destroyed everything. She threw everything away for the sake of her pride, he almost felt bad for her, but that was usually why Pride was considered the worst of the Deadly Sins: you're willing to do anything for it, even throw away your own life.
However, Dante's thoughts were cut off by a familiar and annoying laugh.
"That was amazing!" Jester tap-danced onto the scene. "Not even a black hole can stop old Devil Boy!" Jester laughed.
Despite being weak, Happy looked a bit frightened at Jester's reappearance. "What's he… doing here…?" He weakly asked as Dante gently put him down on the ground. But right as he did, he grabbed Jester by the shoulder and pulled him close before pointing Ebony at his face, right at his nose.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You're not going to shoot me are you? If you do, I'll die, you know?"
"If that's what it takes to shut you up. It bugs the crap out of me when someone talks more than I do." Dante practically growled, he was in no mood for games.
"Don't act so rashly, my boy." Jester tried to reason. "You wanna give the little kitty-cat nightmares?"
"I'm okay with it." Happy said. He wasn't one to watch someone die in front of him, but he did not like Jester at all, the clown actually frightened him quite a bit. Plus nothing gave him worse nightmares than Vergil.
"Well, I also just so happened to know where your brother is." Jester told Dante. "But if you snuff out my voice like that, I won't be able to tell it now, will I?" Dante threw Jester to the ground. As annoying as he was, if he knew where to find Vergil, he could at least listen to him.
Jester took a sigh of relief. "Thought I was a goner for sure." Dante picked up Happy in his arm as Jester began to speak. "You already know by now; this giant and horrific tower is actually a tunnel, leading the demonic domain to the human world. But, it's not fully activated… yet." Jester said dramatically. "And you probably also know that your brother has both his and your mommy's amulets to turn it on."
"Where?" Dante asked in a low growl.
"He's in the control room in the basement." Jester sang as he began to playfully hop around Dante. "If you don't hop down there quick like a bunny… HE'LL OPEN THE GATE TO HELL!" He announced dramatically. "Isn't that a scary thought?"
"And you're telling me this, because?" Dante would be a fool to think that Jester wasn't trying to play him.
"Because I just want to see the ultimate clash between ages!" Jester exclaimed with a laugh. "Whether you or your Fairy Tail buddies beat him, or he wins and unleashes the apocalypse, it's gonna be one hell of a show! Oh, and two of your buddies, a certain hothead and a stripper-boy, are already on their way there! So I think you'd better hurry! And because I'm such a good guy, I'll even show you the short cut!"
Jester hopped to a wall and tapped on it with his cane a few times before it opened to reveal a hidden stairway that led straight downwards. "Go young Devil boy!" Jester began to tap-dance backwards down the secret stairway. "Let your young spirit drive you and go for it! HA HA HA HA HA! AH HA HA HA!"
"Wish you would have just told me in the first place, you big-mouth moron!" Dante stated.
"Dante…" Happy weakly said. "Can we… really beat Vergil?"
He looked down to the weakened exceed and smiled. "Yeah, we can beat him. We did it before."
"He said… Natsu and Gray were already on their way…" Happy said.
"Yeah I know, with the three of us together, he won't stand a chance." Dante said with his usual cocky grin. "Let's go." Dante then ran down the secret stairway with the weakened Happy.
Room of Tranquil Souls
Wendy had finished applying some healing to Sheeree before standing up. "There, you should be all set."
"Wendy I…" She didn't know what to say, she felt she really didn't deserve it, not after all she done. "Thank you." Wendy smiled and nodded and offered the once-spiteful girl a hand up, which she took.
"I'm sorry…" Sheeree said as her eyes began to water. "I am so… so sorry Wendy. I… I didn't mean for… it to go this far I…" Wendy pulled Sheeree into a hug.
"It's alright Sheeree, I forgive you. But can you forgive me for leaving you behind?" Wendy asked.
Sheeree hugged her back. "I already have."
"I must ask for your forgiveness as well Sheree." Carla walked over with a humble look on her face. "Not only for leaving you behind as well, but for how I treated you before. Back then, all I could think of was keeping Wendy safe, I didn't even give you a second thought, I've done that with a lot of people but now… I want to start over. Will you accept my friendship?"
Sheeree looked in honest surprise. All her previous memories of Carla were of her being rude, obnoxious, and beyond overly protective of Wendy. But here she was, humble and even asking forgiveness.
"I… I've never seen this side of you before Carla." Sheeree said before a small smile appeared. "But I like this side of you better, so yes. I accept your friendship." Both Carla and Wendy smiled.
Sheeree looked to see Erza walking towards her, Sheeree met her and bowed her head. "Erza Scarlet of Fairy Tail… I owe you my deepest apologies. Not just for hurting you or your friends but… for hurting Wendy… one of your own. And for all of this. I accept any punishment you give me."
However, rather than punish her, Erza kneeled down and gently placed both her hands on Sheeree's shoulders and gave her an honest and compassionate smile. "After all you have endured Sheeree, I think you've suffered enough."
Sheeree smiled as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Hey kid." Lady got her attention. "I get what you're going through and all but, do you know where we could find Vergil or Arkham?"
The mood became serious at the mention of those names. "I think so. The Lair of Judgement, if Vergil has both of the amulets, that's where he'd be. It's where he can fully unlock Temen-ni-gru's power and open a portal the Underworld."
"Well we're not going to let that happen!" Wendy said with determination evident in her voice, but this surprised Sheeree a great deal.
"But Wendy… this is Vergil we're talking about!" Sheeree stated. "He's the Son of Sparda… his power… I've never seen anything as strong as him. I don't know if you or any of your friends can really beat him."
"We won't know until we try." Carla said. "And besides, we have a Son of Sparda on our side as well."
"She's right, Sheeree." Wendy nodded. "With Dante on our side, there's no way we can loose!"
"And I have every reason to believe several of our friends are already on their way there as well." Erza also said. Knowing Natsu, he was probably there already to.
Lady didn't say anything, but while she could say she was scared, she was also very eager. She was so close to Arkham, and after everything he's done; she can finally put an end to him once and for all.
Sheeree was honestly moved by this. Despite knowing how powerful Vergil was, they weren't going to back down, if anything it gave them even more motivation. Was this what it meant to be part of a real guild, a part of Fairy Tail. She clenched her fists as her eyes contained a fierce resolve. She helped to make this mess, now she was going to do whatever it takes to make things right, no matter what.
"Alright. I'll lead you all there. Let's go!"
Everyone nodded as they left the chamber.
Dante ran with the weakly Happy still in his arms down the secret staircase before entering in a long hallway with an open door at the end. He stopped however when he noticed Arkham's body lying on the ground with a puddle of blood underneath.
Happy looked down and his eyes widened in surprise. "Is… is that… Arkham…?"
"It was, apparently." Dante noted.
"Wha… what happened to him?"
"Vergil. Probably outlived his usefulness." Dante assumed. He'd be lying if he said that Arkham didn't deserve it. However, Lady was definitely not going to like it, knowing her she'd want to be the one to do it herself. But that can wait, Vergil had to be stopped right now. "Come on, it's time to end this whole damned nightmare."
"Aye sir." Happy said as Dante continued to carry him into the doorway.
Lair of Judgment
Vergil paced around the small hole where he just shed his own blood. He'd been waiting a good twenty minutes. It was true that he was a patient man, something like this doesn't usually take so long, and it was actually getting on his nerves. The whole reason he formed Devil Hand was for this one moment, so something should happen or else it was all for nothing.
"Why isn't this working?!" Vergil exclaimed. "Is there something missing?! Must more blood be shed?!"
"You seem to be in a bad mood."
Vergil turned to see his younger brother having entered the chamber. "Dante." Vergil immediately got defensive as he gripped Yamato, ready to use it in an instant.
However, Dante walked away slightly as he sat down the weakend Happy by the wall. "Sit tight and enjoy the show Happy, sorry I don't have any popcorn."
"It's fine… Now kick his butt Dante." Happy said with a smile, causing Dante to smile and nod before walking back to face his brother.
"Your guild's finished Vergil." The youngest brother said. "Your Seven Sins are done, and you just killed off your own partner."
"It doesn't matter to me." Vergil said. "The entire purpose of the Seven Sins was to release Temen-ni-gru from its imprisonment. I have no further use for any of them."
"Before we get started, I just wanna ask something." Dante began. "If this place was so dangerous, why didn't Dad and his dragon buddies just destroy it? Could have saved us a whole lot of trouble."
"In its present state, it cannot be destroyed." Vergil explained. "Temen-ni-gru may be inactive, but while it is, it's main power source is protected. It can only be exposed once this tower regains its full function, consequently however, doing so will inevitably open a portal to the Underworld, the exact opposite of what our father would have wanted."
"So it's a double-edge sword." Dante surmised. "We can't destroy it while it's harmless, but when we can, it's at it's most dangerous."
"That is correct." Vergil confirmed.
Dante sighed. "Why can't life just be simple?"
However, before either could make a move, there was a loud rumbling sound coming from one of the walls on the far left side. It sounded like a mix of thunder, muffled explosions, and rumbling. Vergil looked in the direction with a glare, while Dante smirked.
"That can only be one person."
*BANG!*
A powerful blast of fire tore down the wall to reveal a smoking Natsu as he jumped out and landed dramatically with a smirk. "Found ya, Vergil."
"Hey, nice timing fire-breath!" Dante greeted casually.
"Oh hey Dante, thought I'd smelt you to." Natsu waved casually as well.
"Natsu!" Happy called from his spot.
"Happy, you doing okay buddy?" The Salamander asked his Exceed companion.
"Yeah, I'm just taking a breather. Don't mind me." He waved and motioned for the fight to start.
However, everyone's attention was caught yet again as a wall on the far right side of the room began to freeze over before the ice around it crumbled to reveal Gray as he walked in.
"Well what do you know, that clown was right." Gray said with a smirk.
"Gray, you're here to?" Natsu voiced in honest surprise.
Dante was a bit surprised. "Huh, well color me shocked."
Vergil however looked rather annoyed by all of this. He'd expected his brother and Natsu to be here, both were very persistent, and while he hated to admit it, but Natsu was strong, maybe even a worthy opponent for him being a Dragon Slayer. However, Gray Fullbuster was a simple human with some fancy ice magic, nothing too special about him.
"Whoa, Gray's here to?" Happy questioned in surprise as well.
"You got nowhere left to run Vergil." Gray told him as he walked up. "Devil Hand is done and so are you."
"Hey, what do you think you're doing trying to show us up, huh?!" Natsu questioned in comic anger.
"Don't act like you're all high and mighty!" Gray argued at Natsu. "I owe this guy some major payback."
"Last time you fought him, you got your ass handed to you!" Natsu reminded.
"You don't have a winning streak against him either." Gray said.
"Hey, I got an idea." Dante said as he took out Rebellion. "Let's all join in. We've all come all this way, and we each owe this prick some payback. So what do you say? Wanna share?"
Natsu and Gray looked towards each other for a moment before they each smirked.
"You know what? That's fine with me." Gray put his right fist on his left palm and began to generate his titular cyan-colored magic.
"Yeah, I don't mind sharing either." Natsu's right fist lit on fire as he had a toothy-grin. Though he wouldn't admit it, he was openly relieved, he actually didn't want to fight Vergil alone. He was one of the very few enemies that actually frightened him.
Dante pointed Rebellion at his older brother. "Well… that okay with you? I'm sure you have time for one more game, right?"
Vergil briefly unsheathed Yamato for a moment before putting it back. "Why not? After all we share the same blood." He quipped Beowulf on his hands and feet. "I'll just use more of yours to undo Daddy's little spell, and maybe even knock down a few pests along the way."
Natsu and Gray both smirked as they took combative stances while reading their magic. "So, you want a piece of me literally." Dante said as he twirled Rebellion. "Okay bro, come and get it, if you can!"
Done.
So that's it. All Seven Sins have been defeated. Iblis, Asmodeua, Belphegor, and Belezebub are all dead; while Mammon and Satan are beaten (but still alive), and Leviatha (AKA Sheeree) has defected to the good side.
And yes Dante is strong enough to cut through a black hole. Now before all you science nerds begin to voice how that is physically impossible, let me say something first. You remember how Dante, Happy, and everyone else we're able to enter Edolas via the remains of the Anima back at the start of my Edolas arc way back? Well, they were essentially piercing a hole between dimensions with their power; while the barrier between worlds was weakened by the Anima, the fact they could cross over like that is still a significant feat. So Dante and Happy combined their powers, along with Dante's Quicksilver style, augmented by his Devil Trigger no less, to basically become a mass that is actually faster than even light. Something that not even a small black hole can stop.
I hope that all makes sense.
And it looks like Dante, Natsu, and Gray are about to face off once more against Vergil; and it seems that Erza, Wendy, Carla, Lady, and even Sheeree are on their way as well. Now, before any of you say how Dante should take down Vergil by himself, let's take a look at a few things that happened in this arc…
Not only is Vergil physically stronger than Dante, but he is actually less tired than him. Dante not only fought Vergil before and lost in less than a few hours, he took on Iblis, whom Dante even admitted his more powerful than the likes of Erza, and even destroyed her black hole attack, which probably costed a great deal of his stamina. Vergil simply has more stamina than Dante right now, so he'll need a helping hand. Not to mention, Natsu still has plenty of energy to spare as he didn't really defeat Satan, true he put up a good fight, but he had to stay out of the way as Gajeel went the pacifist route to defeat Satan, so Natsu still has some fire left in him (no pun intended). Gray though may be a bit more rouged up and more spent right now from his and Juvia's fight with Mammon, but he's still got plenty of tricks up his sleeve as he's actually pretty clever (and even Happy admits that he's actually as strong as Natsu, so he's not gonna go down easy).
But, the whole reason they ended up there was because Jester helped to guide both of them there, and if you all played DMC3 before, you'll understand why. There is a reason he did that.
Also, the Magic Council has taken notice of Temen-ni-gru, fortunately Org (pretty much the only member with any real common sense) has prevented them from taking any drastic measures *cough* Etherion *cough* so they'll be sitting on the sidelines waiting for the fighting to end before trying to pull off another dick move.
The Devil Hand arc will be nearing its end as we only have just a few chapters left. This has been a fun arc to write and I look forward to the epic climax! See you all soon with the next chapter. JACKPOT!