Welcome back, my friends of the night. In this chapter, our heroes are riding down the rails on Felicia's tour train. But an unfortunate incident leads to a fierce battle between the forces of Demon World and the ragtag demon slayers. Who will win? Read on to find out, IF YOU DARE!

The train was moving at a breakneck pace, and only going faster. Dante was in the middle compartment, practicing on his violet colored guitar, with electric strings and a scythe attachment, Nevan. Plucking a few random notes, he was sitting aimlessly, just bored without a demon to slay or anything to fight, when suddenly, he felt a weird vibration, like a demonic rift opening, and dropping off a few stronger demons. Dante looked out of the window of the moving train to see an army of demons, but the thing that pissed him off the most was that the five in the front line were very skinny and held large, red, pulsing fleshy orbs. "Oh, great. Hellwraths!" And to make matters worse, the ones behind them were white robed with violet lining and were taller than the Hellprides, and had deadlier scythes than them as well. "And Hellsloths too! Perfect!" Dante had no choice but to tell the others.

Felicia was busy telling Jon how Dante was able to help Morrigan and Lilith against the Hellprides, but how she stopped the Hell Vanguard from slicing and dicing them, while Jon laughed heartily. Dante burst through the doors to the main car, Rebellion in hand. "Guys! We got trouble!" Felicia's ears pricked up at this. "Trouble?!" "Yeah, we got a massive demonfest coming up fast, led by Hellwraths!" Felicia was confused at the name. "Hell-whats?" Dante told her all about them from the last encounter they had. "...and the fleshy ball they carry? That's actually a high-powered demon explosive, filled with all the anger and hate in humankind. And if they slam it down on the ground, it..." KA-BOOOOOOM! The tracks were destroyed!

Felicia gasped and burst through the conductor's door! "Conductor! Stop the...!" But, the conductor was impaled by a scythe! Dante said, "Sorry, babe, but we got no time! We've gotta bail!" So, without stalling at all, the troupe of ragtag demon fighters, plus Jon, who Dante thought was just dead weight and would get in the way, jumped off the train, just in time to watch the remaining Hellwraths slam their bombs onto the ground, and create a large pit, which the train fell in, and promptly exploded. Felicia was beside herself. "HSSSSSS! I can't believe this! My train, GONE! THESE DEMONS ARE DEAD!"

Felicia began to storm over, when she was stopped by a firm yet gentle hand, attached to Jon's arm. "Jon, let me go!" Jon shook his head and said, "Listen, Kitten, as long as those demons think that they did their job, then we're safe. We don't need these creatures attacking us." Felicia's expression, contorted in rage, had softened almost instantly, and she gave a slight smile. "Okay, Jonny. I understand." The two looked at each other longingly, and were about to pull into a kiss, when Dante said, "Okay, this is really romantic and all, but now we're trapped out here in the middle of nowhere without a mode of transportation, and a horde of demons just waiting to tear us in two!" Morrigan smiled, and said, "Now, Dante, we can get through this. I'll just call in a favor from an old friend. Lilith, stay here with them." No sooner had Morrigan taken to the skies, that one of the Hellsloths looked and saw her outline, before it took the form of a bat, and flew off. The Hellsloth gave a horrendous shriek and pointed to the troupe. "That's not a good sign."

The Hellsloths charged in, scythes bared and ready to rend flesh from bone, when they were stopped cold by a freezing blast which created an impenetrable wall around the team of demon slayers. The source was Dante, now wielding a triple nunchaku set, glowing with blue light, cold to the touch and all attached by chains to a silver ring. This was one of the first Devil Arms Dante had obtained, Cerberus.

"Well, that oughta hold 'em off..." Then the sounds of ice being shredded and broken came through. "For about three minutes." Felicia stretched her legs in the way a professional gymnast would, inadvertently causing Dante to gaze at Felicia's bronze skinned legs flex and relax, and said, "Well, if we're gonna go down, we might as well go down fighting, guys!" Dante nodded and rested Cerberus under his arm in a ninja pose, and said, "Guys, it's been a real pleasure fightin' with you." Jon just dropped into a martial arts pose of the long forgotten art of the Silver Wolf style. "Let's just end this."

Then, the Hellsloths burst through the wall, and Dante began to whip his nunchaku at a blinding speed with the expert of a ninja, then swirled them around his waist like a Satellite, and said "Too easy!" (Satellite) Felicia was holding her own as always, using her dance knowledge as well as a bit of Tiger Style fighting moves, when she was attacked from behind by a Hellsloth, being cut across the back. Jon was busy fighting off multiple Hellsloths, when he heard Felicia's scream. Turning his head in shock, he screamed, "FELICIA! NOOOO!" In his rage, Jon tossed one of the Hellsloths into three more. Then he doubled over. "NOO! NOT...NOW! GOT TO...FIGHT BACK!" Dante looked over and saw Jon contorting his body in pain, and heard him say, in a voice that sounded more like a wild beast than a man, "YOU...HURT FELICIA! NOW...YOU HAVE UNLEASHED...MY INNER DEMON!" Then, with a scream that even made Dante cringe in fear, Jon began to shudder, as raw power flooded him from all sides.

Then, Jon's feet began to stretch and his heels snapped upwards, assuming the shape of a wolf's back paw. His muscles began to swell and grow, his hands stretched, and his nails sharpened and strengthened, becoming claws. His shirt began to split in the back, as well as the shoulders, his sleeves becoming shredded at the growth of his biceps and forearms. His chest became more powerful as thick slabs of muscle formed beneath the skin and shirt, causing buttons to fly off in a hurry, also revealing a six-pack abdomen. The cuffs of his pants ripped, revealing his bulging calves. Dante then noticed something else happening to Jon, that his ears were stretching, becoming a well-defined point, like a wolf's! Jon's teeth then sharpened in his mouth, and his body began to become covered in a blueish-gray fur, with white on the lower arms and legs, the line of the chest and sides of the stomach. His face stretched as his nose and mouth fused into a more animalistic form, more canine than human. The very tip of the snout became covered in a blackish material, like a dog's nose. His hair grew out, growing longer as his face began to be covered in the white fur and blue at the back. Finally, a tail popped out of the seat of his pants, lashing furiously. Jon, opening his predatory yellow eyes, took in a deep breath and let out a blood-curdling howl, so loud it shook the ice.

Dante was surprised to see that the man he thought was dead weight had turned into a powerful werewolf! Jon's body, which already had the physique of a formidable martial artist, had gained another 20 or 30 pounds of solid muscle, and he was at least 6 inches taller. Jon growled, and looked none too happy. Jon then jumped into the air and charged, shoulder first, in a football player manner, and was engulfed in a blue-yellow flame (Howling Rush), and struck the Hellsloth that slashed Felicia's back, completely destroying it. Landing softly, Jon walked to Felicia and said, in a strong yet raspy voice, "Are you all right, Felicia?" Felicia opened her eyes, and saw her Lycan savior and said, in a whisper, "Thanks, Jon." Little did Jon know, that a Hellsloth was right behind him, ready to strike. But, due to his heightened sense of hearing, Jon quickly swiped behind him and took a large chunk of the Hellsloth's torso with him.

"Now, then," Jon snarled, "let me show you why it is unwise to try and attack a wild wolf!" Then, as 20 Hellsloths charged into battle against the Werewolf Hurricane, Jon leapt in to the air and began to strike with a flurry of kicks and claws, taking out 7 or 10 of the army. Then, whipping out his own pair of nunchaku, Jon began spinning them at a rapid pace, and struck them all with pinpoint precision (Million Flicker). He struck one of them with an outstretched claw in an uppercut (Razor's Edge) and combined it with a front flip kick engulfed with flame (Flash Claw), slicing it in half. The remaining Hellsloths charged in and tried to kill Jon, but Jon just laughed and said, "You never learn, do you!?" Then, outstretching his arms and moving them in a circular motion, he then shouted, "DRAGON CANNON ATTACK!" Then, a tube of flame the size of most concrete tubes in construction incinerated the remaining enemies and melted the ice dome entirely. Jon then said, "No demon has faced up against the Werewolf Hurricane and lived to tell the tale."

Jon then heard a CLICK, and he looked behind him and saw Dante, with Ivory pointed at his head. "So, anything else you want to tell me, Wolf Boy?" Jon held his hand/paws up to surrender. "Dante, it's not what you think..." "Oh, really? Well, what is it, because I think that you rode on with Ms. Kitty over there to gain our trust, and just when we're at our weakest, POW!, you take us out." Jon then said, "Listen, and for once listen with your ears and not your gun barrels." Jon began to tell Dante all about his past and origin.

"My father was Baraba Kreutz, also known as the 'Wolf Lord.' The Kreutz family is one of the seven noble families of the Demonic world. My father was a fierce fighter, and had a secret affair with a human female, known as Alissa Talbain, after he was cared for by her. After I was born, my mother died, and I had no way to search for my father. Then at 11, I discovered that I was a werewolf, during a full moon. At first, I thought I was cursed, and did everything in my power to cure myself. Then, one day, a woman told me that I could cure myself of the curse by pushing myself beyond the limits of a normal man. Eventually, I went up against a massive flame demon named Pyron, and defeated him, and restored my humanity. Or so I thought. I cannot cure that which is not a disease. So, I learned to live with this curse and turn it into a blessing. Eventually, I met up with Felicia, during Pyron's second coming, and well, what can I say. But I assure you, I am not evil. Besides, if I was, wouldn't I have come after you already? But, if you still wish to shoot me, then do so. I bear no ill will toward you." Dante still didn't lower the gun. Jon closed his eyes, and prepared for the shot. Then...

BANG! Jon opened his eyes to see he was still alive and well. He then looked behind to see a Hellsloth burst into sand. Dante smiled and said, "Ya missed one, Jon." Twirling Ivory back into it's holster, Dante then said, "I guess you've earned my trust. Besides, like you said, if you were evil, you would've come after us a long time ago." Dante extended his hand as a gesture of trust. Jon looked suspicious for a while, but then smiled and shook Dante's hand. Dante then added, "But, if I even see you doing something that even resembles a dark deed, I won't hesitate to shoot."

Then, Jon gasped as he remembered... "Felicia! If we don't hurry..." "No worries, Jon. I got something to heal her right up." Dante grabbed a rather sizeable rucksack, in which he packed many of the demonic artifacts which he used for medicinal or combat use. Reaching into the bag, Dante finally smiled as he pulled out a large green star. "What is that?" "Well, Jon, this is the very thing that will save your velvet pawed girlfriend." Dante then walked over to Felicia, and rolled her face flat on the ground to get to the gash, which, due to the scythe, was very deep. Dante then said, "This'll only sting a little." Dante snapped the star at one of it's points, and squeezed a green viscous fluid into the gash. Jon then looked, and saw the fluid glowed and absorbed itself into the bare muscle tissue. Severed muscle reattached itself and became whole again, and the skin that was opened closed up like a zipper.

A few minutes later, it was almost like the gash never happened, no scars, no blood, no nothing! Felicia slowly got up on all fours, and the placed her hand on the place where the cut was, but the cut wasn't there! "What?" Dante smiled and said, "That's the Vital Star at work, Felicia. You see, the larger ones heal grievous injuries, such as third degree burns, deep gashes, and the like. The smaller ones are made for lesser injuries." Felicia was so happy that she gave Dante a quick kiss on the cheek. Jon looked a bit mad at this, but just calmed himself in an instant. "Uh, thanks for the kiss, Kitty, but, there's still a problem. WE'RE STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!!"

Then, they heard a chugging sound, like a train. A train had appeared right where the hole ended, a train with bat wings. Morrigan stepped out of the first car, and said, "I told you I'd find a way to get us to Castle Aensland. This train once belonged to an old demon I used to know." "Really, Morrigan? Who?" Morrigan smiled and said, "I said 'used to know.' I've forgotten his name. I've had too many boyfriends to remember just one name." Dante smiled at this and said, "Well, maybe you'd like to add one more to your belt?" Morrigan rolled her eyes and said, "I've heard that one so many times, I can't remember the exact number." Felicia walked over to Morrigan and whispered, "Where did you get the train, Morg?" Morrigan smiled and said, "I stole it from Dimitri's castle." Felicia sniggered a bit and said, "Alright! Everyone on board! Next stop, Castle Aensland!" The crew entered the train without hesitation, and once aboard, the train once again began to move, taking the team to Castle Aensland.

Meanwhile, a strange figure appeared near Dante's shop, dropping to one knee to pick up the skull of a Hell Vanguard. He brushed one hand through his spiked platinum blonde hair, and looked over the skull, finally stopping at the gaping hole in the forehead. Even dead, the demon still exhumed the aura of the mysterious demon, the demon known as the Blood Lord, but even before this person picked up the skull, he knew that the Blood Lord was back, and he was ready to fight. "Dante," the figure said in a voice that seemed as cold as a blizzard, "soon, you and I will face the most powerful demon the world has ever known. And, afterwards, we finally finish our little dispute." Then, dusting off his blue pants, and picking up his katana, the figure left, strolling towards the train station.

So, what did you think? If you were able to survive this chapter, wait until the next! Next time, Dante will meet with a certain young female sorceress, who used to tag along with a powerful monk. And to those you can guess the mysterious person near Dante's shop, I will give the honor of naming an Original Character after them (Or at least what I can manage.) Good luck, and remember, if you think that a creature is behind you, just pull yourself together, and remember, after all, there ARE such things as monsters.