What a wonderful dream he was having. He was in the middle of an epic brawl with a giant, spider-like demon. It was similar to a Nightmare, but conjured fire and shadow. Dante also knew that inside of its stomach was a comatose Lyssa. The beast was using her energy to fuel its own, and it was up to him to be her knight in shining armor.

It was an adrenaline-inducing fight, and once the monster was slain, he'd cut Lyssa out of its insides. She awakened, completely untainted and immediately coherent. Dante pulled her into the grass. Immediately, she was on top of him, naked and lustful. He was more than welcoming when she would grind herself against him, tearing open his shirt and claiming her dominion over him. She was a worker of miracles when she got feisty like this, and even he was melting beneath her as she pushed his wrists into the ground, holding him down with the strength of a titan.

"Dante!" he heard her voice suddenly, and it seemed far away. She sounded alarmed, and maybe a bit angry. "Dante! Wake up, damnit!"

"Hm? I was having such a nice dream..."

Instantaneously, he was aware. So was his member - again. Lyssa was throwing his clothes at him, and she appeared in a panic.

"No time for wet dreams. Get dressed. We gotta go, like now."

"What's the hurry?" he asked. Lyssa was already dressed in her usual type of attire, except her hair was up in a long braid.

"We have company, that's what. Not the good kind." She gestured to the window, and he followed her finger to the sky, where winged demons were swarming towards the mansion.

"Same shit, different day," Dante said with a small hint of annoyance. He usually loved the thrill of a fight, but he would have liked to sleep in for a change, and enjoy the warmth of the bed next to his lover. Nonetheless, he obeyed, albeit begrudgingly, and threw on his clothes. Once his coat was on, he opened the doors to the outside balcony, jumping off the rail to give himself clearance into the air. As he soared outward, he spun right into the murder of vulture-like creatures, firing Ebony and Ivory in all directions.

Meanwhile, Lyssa came out through the front door like a normal person. What demons fell to the ground weren't dead yet, so she easily finished them off with her scythe. The last one got a deserving heel of her boot right into its skull. Dante landed in a crouch in front of her, and the both of them peered around for their reinforcements.

"I could have thought of better ways for you to wake me up," Dante said as he stood. He hadn't even broken a sweat, which was why he was confident that couldn't be the last of them.

"Oh, based off what you were sporting earlier, I'm sure." The distance closed between them, and he was ready to steal a kiss from her. Yet, before he could, a voice stirred behind her, coming from the balcony of the estate.

"Well, well, isn't this just sweet."

Dante, immediately annoyed by the interruption, looked upward at the man that taunted them. He had short, black hair just long enough to slick back, and though he looked dressed for warm weather with his black, baroque-styled trenchcoat, he was easily recognizable as a demon. Lips curled into a menacing grin in the middle of a Although he was unsure of what kind just yet, Dante wasn't much of one to tread carefully.

"That's him." Lyssa's voice was quiet, almost a whisper, and she seemed uneasy. This surprised the demon hunter, as she always struck him as someone who didn't get intimidated easily.

"Oh, you're the creepy stalker that Lyssa had told me so much about!" Dante said brashly. He had to admit, the man wasn't unattractive. If he wasn't so overconfident, he might have felt threatened, but he was ready to draw the line and make sure this punk knew Lyssa didn't belong to anyone but the legendary Son of Sparda.

"You've mentioned me, Lyssa? Oh, good things, I hope."

"You wish, Ardyn," she sneered at him.

Ardyn, huh? Well, now that he had a name to the bastard... "Well, Ardyn, listen up. I don't really like you already, but if you leave this nice girl alone, I won't be forced to hurt you, capiche?"

"Dante..." Something in the succubus's voice was warning him not to get cocky, but he ignored her. He needed to make his point.

"Easy there, boy. I think we're getting just a little too riled up."

Dante lost his cool for a moment, spinning out Ebony and Ivory to start firing shots at him. Ardyn jumped effortlessly off the railing of the balcony, darting so fast from his spot that he almost lost track of him. He drew out Rebellion, leaping into the air the meet him halfway. A duel erupted between the two of them, and to Dante's surprise, this guy put up one hell of a fight, and he did so with little to no struggle. He fought back with his own sword, his speed throwing him off guard and sending him back to the ground with such force that it created a crater beneath him.

Then, to his surprise, and maybe even dismay, Lyssa charged at Ardyn once he made it to the ground again. She wielded her two sickles, yelling angrily as she threw a series of swipes at him. It looked as though she had landed a blow on his cheek with one of her blades, but not much more as he appeared behind her at inhuman speed, snatching her by her braid and shoving her to the dirt, so much force behind it that she left an indentation in the ground.

Seeing that made Dante's blood boil. Still confident in himself, he came at Ardyn again, gearing up for round two, but once again, his opponent struck him down, ethereal blades seeming to come out of nowhere and striking Dante in numerous areas of his body. He fell again, and this time, he was starting to feel humiliated.

"This guy is really starting to piss me off."

"Leave him alone, Ardyn! Take me instead!"

What?

He looked at Lyssa in surprise, as if to confirm he had heard her right. She slowly staggered to her feet, looking pretty torn up from her brawl with him. Was she really trying to surrender herself to this guy just to protect Dante? As much as it made his little heart go pitter-patter, he wouldn't let it stand.

"That's why I'm here, pet, but the obedient dog won't stay on his leash."

"That's it. He's done for."

Dante felt his skin heat up, rippling with rage and power. Before he could stop himself, his demonic blood boiled until he transformed, naturally pale skin altering to a scaly black, flames licking at his body until he arose in the form that resembled his father's inheritance. The demonic form of the Son of Sparda stood between Ardyn and Lyssa, angry eyes shooting daggers at the asshole threatening to take her away from him.

"Finally, a challenge," Ardyn said approvingly. His face seemed to morph now, an inky, black substance trickling down his face like blood. "I was beginning to think the infamous demon killer was punier than the legends say."

"Lyssa, get out of here. This could get ugly."

"I'm not leaving you, Dante." Her voice stirred behind him, unwielding.

To be honest, he wasn't expecting such an endearing statement from her, especially since he was standing another couple of feet taller now, possessing the form of a rather scary looking devil. He wanted to smile, but right now, showing weakness was not a good idea right now. Large wings spread out behind him, and he flew at Ardyn once again, fire spinning around the both of them like a tornado as they combated once again. He had to admit, this guy was tough. Really tough. He was almost as skilled a fighter as Vergil, and if Dante hadn't known any better, he would have mistaken his fighting style for his twin brother's.

Vergil wasn't the girl-stealing type of brother, though.

"Give it up, Ardyn. She doesn't belong to you."

Their swords both pushed against each other, and with a great feat of strength, Dante was once again knocked off his feet, his human appearance returning as he hit the exterior wall of the mansion.

"On the contrary, it's not about ownership. I'm the only one who can control her. Without someone to keep her tamed, she will kill every last human on this earth, and you know she's perfectly well capable of it."

Dante stumbled to his feet, casting a look at Lyssa. "She's a badass little lady, don't get me wrong, but she wouldn't do that."

"She is of noble blood, just as you are. You truly don't believe the only daughter of Jezebeth couldn't be capable of such destruction?"

Dante tensed slightly. He knew the name Jezebeth through old libraries he once traversed through. He didn't seem like much of a reader at first glance, but on the contrary, he liked to be in the know, especially when it came to demonology.

Jezebeth was the sister of Lilith, the most powerful succubus in existence. While Jezebeth wasn't her sister, she was less aristocratic, still powerful, and a much more chaotic demon, seeking out the destruction of humans ever since one in particular had summoned her only to bind her by a powerful spell and rape her. Jezebel tried to kill the only spawn she ever had as a result, but it seemed somehow, her daughter had survived, her demonic side dormant until the past, few years.

Again, Dante looked at Lyssa for confirmation, but she wasn't looking at him this time. Clearly, this was a detail she didn't want to make him aware of.

"You don't strike me as the babysitter type, Ardyn." Dante returned to his calm and collected self.

"Nor do you, but if you wish to prove me wrong, be my guest." Ardyn gave a low bow, his long coat billowing in the wind that picked up before he would leap into the air, and suddenly, he was gone. Silence filled the air, and after a few seconds, he was sure he was gone.

Dante had a lot of questions, but his thoughts couldn't quite reach his lips before Lyssa was ready to excuse herself.

"I can't stay."

He grabbed her wrist as she started walking past him. Despite what he had learned, he wasn't about to let her leave. He wanted answers.

"You didn't think that it was important for me to know?" he demanded. He couldn't say he was angry with her. He wanted to be, and he should have been, but something held him back.

"How do you think I felt when I found out, Dante?" she shot back sharply. "I'm not exactly ready to brag to the world that my mother is the second-strongest succubus in the world, and she has a grudge against humankind."

Dante watched the pain in her eyes for a moment. She was going through something indescribable - something possibly very similar to how he felt when he first discovered his father was the legendary Sparda. It's not something easy to come to terms with, especially when your entire life was shrouded in uncertainty.

"How long have you known?"

"Only a month or so," she confessed, her wrist limp in his grip. "When he told me, I didn't believe him, but... it would make sense, wouldn't it?"

Dante released a sigh, pulling her against his body. She was struggling, and the last thing she needed was him to turn against her. He wanted to be supportive. "I got you." Her head rested on his chest, and a certain warmth filled him as he laid a gloved hand on her head. His fingers stroked her hair, then brushed over her braid. "We'll figure it out, okay?"

"Do you have a plan?"

"Um..." Dante thought for a minute, and then, he realized he did. While he knew things could go farther south than hell if he did, he was going to need to get some advise from a certain nephew.

"I think it's time I introduce you to my family."