Chapter 6: Hunt A Soul

So, just like that, Dante was on the street again. He had thought about telling Lady where he was going, but he quickly reconsidered. She was just gonna want to tag along again, and he couldn't afford to pay for another "argument" in their office. The way he figured it, it was easier to do what he was planning to do the whole time and catch her up on it when he was done.

It wasn't too hard to track the devils through the urban sprawl. Despite having a leader who was apparently in control of the situation, some habits you just can't beat out of a demon; one of those habits is a healthy appetite for pointless destruction. Let's just say that it's not hard to follow someone's path when they make it a point to blow holes in the walls of buildings for laughs on their way. Not to mention the cars mangled and ripped in half like phone books. Or the bloodstains of the people who weren't quite fast enough to run away. Or the bent and twisted streetlights... well, you get the picture; they're not pleasant people to be around.

Fortunately for Dante, the four devils didn't appear to be part of what one would call a tight-knit group. For the most part, it seemed like they only obeyed Bael out of convenience. This may explain the presence of a straggler in the group, left behind to enjoy himself with the pointless destruction while the others continued ahead.

It was a bit of a surprise, the scene the son of Sparda came upon in following the trail of the Four. At a nearby street corner, standing atop a broken-down car, was one of the devils himself: Yeter'El the Fearful One. His wings were spread wide, like an angel of darkness, and with a certain sort of psychotic pleasure, he addressed a crowd of humans- the residents of the city- that had gathered in the intersection before him. With a voice like sandpaper, he delivered his dark sermon:

"Ladies and gentlemen of the Human World, kneel before your true masters! I am a powerful devil, known in the language of men as Yeter'El the Fearful One. Within the Demon World, even the mightiest demons cower at my name, and you would do well to do the same. Know this: soon, your pitiful world will be overrun with demons, and your only salvation will come through total obedience to me..."

There was a click from behind Yeter'El, followed quickly by a mocking laugh. "Yeah, right," quipped the demon hunter, "and my name's Attila the Hun. If any of what you just said was true, I'd eat my foot!" Yeter'El turned away from his throng of would-be followers to see Dante casually approaching, pistol in hand.

"Hm, you..." said the pitch-black demon. "I thought you would've been smart enough to stay out of our affairs."

"I thought about it. This seemed like more fun."

"My job amongst devils is to spread fear and terror among humans," continued Yeter'El. "In doing so, they learn to respect devils, and to obey us! You interrupted my work, true, but perhaps by destroying you they will see my true power and learn."

Dante smirked and gestured at Yeter'El with his pistol. "Feel free to give it a shot, if you think you can. I'd certainly like to see you try." Yeter'El beat his wings, sending loose feathers off into the air, and flexed his hands. All four of his eyes fixed themselves upon Dante at once and Yeter'El's hands went to his twin swords. He beat his wings once more, and flew into the air; the devil paused for a second at the apex of his flight, and shouted down to his opponent:

"Prepare yourself!"

With that, he began to dive in for the attack.