Nero looked around, eyes sharp, senses alert. He followed the demons here, their scent—a combination of rot and sour musk—still clung to his nostrils. When he got home, he found everything in disarray. The furniture in shambles, the walls marked with jagged claw marks, the floor wet with ooze and blood. The sight of it all made his stomach drop, his knees stiffening as they fought the urge to buckle.
No. No. No.
His legs moved, clumsily at first, but soon he moved with a lunatic's pace, rushing up stairs to excavate each room. He needed to find Kyrie, needed to make sure she was alive and okay. Nero functioned like a mad man, screaming her name as he shoved broken things about, hoping to find her under piles of broken furniture that had no business hiding her. He hoped for a meek cry, a whimper, something to let him know she was alive and just hiding and scared. That she was waiting for him, waiting to be saved. But when his screams met with nothing but the sound of his own haggard breathing, he dropped to his knees.
It was then that the smell finally hit him. The smell that was prevalent throughout the house, the smell that he should've noticed in the first place if not for his frantic searching. It was the acrid stench of rotting flesh, the smoky stink of burnt bone, and something else. He knew that stench all too well as it varied from demon to demon.
And that smell was what brought him here, to the underworld.
After prying his way through the gate, he pictured he would meet a world full of fire, brimstone, and decay. Instead, as the gates closed behind him, Nero found himself in a deserted, dark city, lined with abandoned townhouses and a road made up of brick and cobblestone. He looked up at the muddled gray sky and noticed a soft light coming from the north. There, he was sure that was where she was. Given how demons liked to play, he wasn't surprised that this pack wanted him to follow a certain path, get him going on a journey in the hopes of weakening him for the final showdown. But what these demons didn't know was that Nero didn't give a fuck about their games. He was there to rescue Kyrie. Whatever they wanted to dish out he was sure he could handle it and more, because nothing would keep him away from her. Nero would take on the entire underworld for her, and this was what the demons didn't understand. That his determination, his love for her was going to see him through any obstacle. Nothing they could do could break him as long as he had Kyrie in his heart. So they want to play games? Fine. Nero could play with the best of them. They picked the wrong guy to fuck with and they were going to regret ever crawling out of this hellhole.
He reached a lonely street where the street lamps barely glowed and the townhouses boarded up and abandoned. This place did a half-assed job at imitating the human world if those dead crows were anything to go by, he was pretty sure birds didn't have red glowing eyes or sharp knives for beaks. Ignoring their beady stares he continued his way up north, after the soft light in the sky.
Nero stopped at the sound of squeaky wheels. He watched as a tired wooden wagon full of dead bodies slowly emerged from the darkness of an alley. It stopped in front of him and his Devil Bringer glowed. He got a better look at the bodies, their ghoulish faces stuck in a permanent state of horror and agony. He noticed their sharp teeth, their caked claws, and the smell of rotten flesh. He took at step back, reaching for his gun.
At the sound of the safety clicking off, the bodies sprang up. The demons, lanky and starved in appearance, jumped toward him. Nero hopped back, shooting a couple of shots that staggered a few, but they seemed intent on attacking him. They advanced screeching and swinging their claws. He shot off their knee caps, reloading to make the rest of the group immobile, but the monsters just crawled their way to him, making retched guttural sounds that would make a normal person's skin crawl. After reloading once again, Nero took aim at their heads and stopped them dead in their tracks one by one. He was satisfied to see their headless bodies decaying quickly, leaving behind a mess of sand and bone. He didn't have time to deal with those shrimps. He had bigger fish to fry.
"My word, you got them all! Those buggers are nothing but trouble," a male voice said from the shadows.
Nero brought his gun up, aiming at the alley where the voice came from. From the darkness emerged a thin man dressed in some dark jeans and a vest. He had skull tattoos winding up his left arm and a couple of nose and lip piercings. He had a punk rock look with the biker boots and studded belt that he wore. His black hair, a spiky thing of a mess, spilled past his shoulders.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Hold on." The demon held his hands up in surrender. "I come in peace."
Nero didn't budge, which made the demon roll his eyes.
"Oh for the love of—I'm a demon, obviously." The man spoke with a British accent.
The hunter pulled back the hammer of his gun which made the demon's eyes widen in panic.
"B-but I'm not going to do you any harm!" He took a couple of cautious steps forward. "Why would I try tangoing with you after witnessing what you did to them? I choose life thank you very much."
That wasn't enough for Nero to drop his guard around the guy, but it was enough for him to put his gun down. The man slowly approached and Nero got a real good look at him. The man's face appeared marred by claw marks on his right cheek that had scarred. The apprehensive look the demon had as it drew closer made the demon look more human, vulnerable. But he learned that when it came to demons, looks could be deceiving and though he put his gun down; his finger still danced over the trigger.
"U-um…I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask if I can bum a fag off ya?"
Nero ignored him as he looked around. "So, this is hell?"
The demon looked around too, as though mocking the hunter, nose turned up as he looked critical. "You are correct kind sir. This is hell and this city is a part of it."
He stopped his meandering and looked at Nero, a slight smirk on his lips.
"We're getting quite progressive you know, our world's much like your surface world," he said, pointing upwards, "We got supermarkets now if you could believe that." He paused to rub his chin."Though I wouldn't go shopping there, unless you're fond of rotted food stuff."
Nero snorted, shaking his head while saying nothing.
"What? You don't believe me?"
"It's not that I don't believe you, it's that you're wasting my time. I have more important things to do."
"Maybe I can help?" the demon wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
"Information, in exchange for something of value," the man said and grinned. "How about some fruit?"
Nero raised an eyebrow. "Fruit?"
"Ugh yes," the man groaned in pleasure. "They're like succulent candies! I'm a slave to them. They're delightful."
He walked up to Nero who took a couple of steps back. The guy didn't seem particularly bothered of invading other people's personal space.
"Strawberries are my poison, though I wouldn't mind the occasional ripe peach—"
"You're quite the chatter box."
The demon smirked. "And a treasure trove of information. Tell me, what would you like to know?"
"Where exactly is Mundus?" Nero had a feeling that his fight would be with the lord of the underworld. He knew Dante defeated him before, but what's to stop the king of hell from picking a fight with him?
"Why he's everywhere of course, he's the king of hell. But I don't think the bone you're trying to pick is with him."
Nero raised an eyebrow.
"It is true that Mundus is our overlord, the queen bee, the head honcho, etcetera. But there are other demons you know, demons who thirst for power," he said looking around the place. "They are the equivalent of what your human history refers to as Dukes, only without the loyalty."
A pair of demons appear down the street from them. The demons looked much like the emaciated ones Nero had dispatched before only with horns and sharper claws. The demons fought using their claws and horns to decimate the other in their brawl. After a few minutes only one came out victorious while the other made a guttural sound as it writhed on the ground in pain.
"Demons fight, a lot," the man informed him. "There's always a fight going on to see who's the strongest. Demons are always vying for that number one spot. Fleming is one of them, and you're now in his city."
"Fleming?"
The demon nodded.
"You would think he'd come up with a better name. No one's a big fan of the name, but neither are they a big fan of him either. Though if you ask me he would be better off naming himself Charles. I mean, who would suspect someone named Charles as being mighty and powerful?"
"I'm guessing going off on tangents is another talent of yours?"
"It's part of my charm, the name's Johnson." He offered his hand for a shake, but Nero ignored him.
"So this Fleming character, mind telling me where he is?"
"Are you looking to challenge him?"
Nero shrugged, facing away from him as he looked around the street as though he found that more interesting.
"You might have a chance if that arm of yours is anything to go by."
Nero flexed the fingers in his demon arm as it glowed. He felt Johnson get close and turned around to see the demon crouched in front of him as he stared at his arm. The demon hunter pulled his arm back and hid it behind him, taking a couple of steps back.
The other man simply tilted his head, an amused grin on his lips.
"No? Then you must be here for revenge." He stood up. "Tell me, what blood has Fleming split that you claim yours?"
"He didn't spill anything," Nero hissed. Johnson raised his hands up in surrender.
"My apologies, we know what happens when people make assumptions. They make an ass out of—" Johnson found himself staring down the barrel of a gun.
"I've had enough of your idle chatter." Nero pulled the hammer back as a warning. "Where is he?"
The demon's face grew serious as he stared at Nero. The young hunter didn't like the way the demon looked, he couldn't read anything off him and his finger twitched on the trigger in case the man tried to pull something.
"Fleming has a weakness," Johnson started. "For beautiful mortal women. Snatches them up from the surface world when they strike his fancy." He brought his hands up very slowly and snapped his fingers. "Just. Like. That," he emphasized.
"He courts them first. Wines and dines them, just like a gentleman, you know. And then he has his fun with them."
Johnson moved a long finger down the barrel of the Blue Rose slowly.
"He devours them piece by piece," he said as though hypnotized by the mental image. "And keeps them alive long enough to hear them screaming."
Nero lost his nerve and pulled the trigger, the gun shot echoed loudly through the empty streets. His panting did nothing to ease the current rage he felt and what made it worse was the space in front of his gun as the smoke cleared and Johnson reappeared again with a grin.
"Missed!" Johnson chirped which only made Nero's eyebrow twitch. "Tell me, hunter, what would Fleming want with a plain Jane like your woman?"
He shot at Johnson again and this time, it was Nero's turn to grin.
"Oh bloody hell! That hurt!" Johnson shrieked at his wounded shoulder. "That temper of yours is mighty fierce. You'll go nowhere with it."
Nero turned to leave. He had enough of this clown and though it would've made him feel better to pump the bastard full of lead, if what the demon said was true, then he had to rescue Kyrie as soon as possible.
"You pissed him off that's what you've done," Johnson called out to him as he held his shoulder. "If you're not here to challenge him then he's summoned you. Fleming only toys with those who've done him wrong first."
Nero stopped walking and turned his head slightly to listen.
"A word of advice before you go off to fail," Johnson huffed.. "Nothing is what it seems. This is hell after all, and Fleming has a knack for tricks. You're a hunter aren't you?"
Silence.
"Keep your wits about you. It's how you hunters survive. Hope you get to her in time, so best of luck. You're going to need it."
Nero turned to face Johnson again, but the demon was gone.
The demon hunter didn't let this get to him. He looked north and followed the soft lights that glowed in the sky.
Nero woke with a start that sent a wave of pain through his body. He was alive? The last thing he remembered was yelling at Lady about her butting into his life and then. He groaned as he remembered devil triggering, though he couldn't remember exactly what happened after he did, his body did a great job reminding him of the total beat down he got from the only person powerful enough to subdued him, Dante.
The young hunter made an effort to move and winced through the pain as he sat up. He was pretty banged up, but he was patched up and clean. He didn't recognize his surroundings at first, but once he saw how nice the room was, how clean and dainty, he knew he wasn't at Devil May Cry but back at Lady's place. What possessed her to welcome him back into her house after he went apeshit on her, he didn't know. But now he felt like he owed her something and that did not sit well with him. They didn't get along and he hardly liked her, so being in debt to her was the last thing he wanted.
He wondered if he could still get out of there, though from the way his head pulsed, he knew he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. Nero sighed and reclined back into the headboard, closing his eyes as he ignored both his headache and his sore body.
Johnson.
The dream he just had wasn't new. In fact, he often dreamed about the events that led up to what happened to Kyrie. It was his subconscious punishing him, playing the events over and over to show him all the mistakes he'd made, all the wrong decisions that led to Kyrie—
Nero opened his eyes, sensing something in the room. He looked at the foot of the bed and saw Lady's demon cat. It mewed as though saying hello and the man rolled his eyes.
The bedroom door flew open and Lady walked in.
"Lucy, the kid's—" She stopped once she realized Nero was awake and sitting up. "—up. So, you've decided to come back to the world of the living?" She took the cat off the bed and placed him on the ground.
"The dead don't want me, so this place was second best," he answered as he watched her go into the small bathroom.
"It's an honor," she said, coming out with some first aid supplies.
She set them down and sat on the edge of the bed.
"How are you feeling?"
Nero watched her unpack some fresh bandages and tape, as well as some peroxide and other ointments.
"I have a headache," he voiced.
Lady grinned as she looked at the bandages on his chest. She carefully peeled them back to show soft pink flesh.
"Must be from whacking you a couple of times with the pillow." She looked up at him and winked, which only made him frown. He wasn't in a playing mood.
"What? I was just joking."
"I wouldn't put it past you."
"Well considering that you almost tried to kill me," she said, getting the ointment and applying a fresh coat. "The temptation to do more than just smother you with a pillow was there."
He hissed when she pressed too firmly and glared.
"You'll live," she said rolling her eyes, but he noticed that she was a bit gentler when tending to his other wounds. He watched her work in silence and wondered why she was doing any of this for him and where the hell was Dante in all of this when he was the one that mattered and was the one that started all of this?
"Almost done," she whispered, switching gears and cupping his face to see the patch on his forehead. Up close like this he could see the light scar over the bridge of her nose and her different color eyes. He tried not to stare at them, but he couldn't help but notice how despite being so different they brought the best out of the other, the blue, so dark and intense brought out the soft, yet vibrant red. She leaned up and his eyes widened in pure shock as the thought of her lips coming up so close to his own lips made his heart race and chest burn. Before he could push her away, she plucked the hair tie holding his bangs back, the one he hadn't noticed he was wearing, and gently rustled his hair, spreading the curtain of bangs over his eyes.
"Should help with the headache a bit," she said, sitting back down.
He was grateful for the hair obscuring his view of her because he couldn't really look at her at the moment. Not when he was fighting the heat off his cheeks along with his still pounding headache.
"Oh, missed one." She reached over again, and he caught her wrist just as she was about to pull off a band-aid.
"Stop," he said, and released the grip he had on her.
The woman sighed and looked away.
"You're getting prickly, kid. Might end up looking like Dante if you're not careful," she said, picking up the scraps of paper leftover from the used medical supplies.
The hunter felt his face and frowned at the hint of stubble. Kyrie always preferred him smooth.
"I won't," he said, a little offended as he scratched at the stubble. "Besides, I don't want you making googly eyes at me because I resemble the old man. Go flirt with your cat when you go in heat."
"Well it's safe to say that mouth of yours is fine since your snark's up to snuff." She went and threw the garbage away.
"Where did you sleep?" he asked when she came back from putting away the unused supplies.
"Why, I slept beside you of course. The bed's big enough and it gets cold and lonely at night," she said shrugging. Nero eyes widened in horror which made Lady roll her eyes.
"I slept on the couch genius. You're injured."
The cat jumped on the bed again and made its way to sit next to Nero. The man's eyes narrowed in suspicion, but the cat placed its paw on his Devil Bringer as though to say 'Dude, it's going to be okay. I'm here for you now.'
"You didn't have to," he said, ignoring the cat for now and looked at her.
"Well considering how beat up you were, I didn't think it was safe to leave you at Devil May Cry with Trish acting as your nurse for aid. Because I'm sure between her sudden fascination with drawing on your face and the warring roaches marking you as territory, you wouldn't stand a chance."
Nero shivered at the thought of Trish looming over him with a marker. The demon was psychotic and got her kicks from making his life hell. Her behavior wouldn't be surprising in the least, but at least he knew what to expect with her. With Lady it was different. He didn't expect waking up in her home, let alone being treated and cared for. Nero tried to kill her in a moment of pure rage and the woman acted as though it didn't mean anything.
And that was the problem. He wanted her to be angry, to lash out at him for being a jerk because that was what he deserved. Her anger was something he could deal with, like before when she yelled at him. She seemed easier to deal with when she lost her cool, but her kindness was not something he could work with. Anger seemed the most reasonable to him because it was anger that fueled his self loathing. His self loathing was what kept him going everyday and yet being met with her sudden kindness, her out of left field reaction to almost being murdered by him snuffed all his earlier resentment. It left him feeling drained, pathetic, but most of all, it made him feel stupid, guilty and a little ashamed. He wasn't a child, but she brought those childish qualities in him to the surface and he disliked her for it. He despised the idea that she could read him like an open book and there he was, at her mercy, and unable to read anything off her but an air of indifference.
"I'm not mad at you, if that's what you're brooding about."
Nero looked up at her and noticed that she had the cat in her arms.
"Why not?" he asked. Lady put the cat down on the floor.
"Because being angry at you is just a waste of time and energy."
"So, I'm just a waste of time to you?" he asked, sitting up better.
Lady sighed and sat down at his feet.
"No, but being mad at you isn't going to solve anything. It won't change that you tried to kill me, and it won't solve the current issues you have with yourself."
She was right. Her being mad at him wasn't going to change things. Her anger would only give him an excuse to act the way he did before and look what that got him.
"Look, it's been about a week since it happened. I've had enough time to cool down and think about things. I realized that being angry will only make things worse. It'd make me resentful and that's the last thing I want to be. Being that way only hurts everyone involved."
Nero looked down at his hands; a little ashamed that his resentment played a major role in how things progressed since the day he arrived.
"Hey." He looked up to see that she had moved a bit closer to him. "You don't have to stay and do this. If you want to pack your things and go back to Fortuna you can. I'm not going to hold you back. I'm really no one in your life and even if I was, I can't tell you what to do."
It was easier said than done. Dante was also involved in this and knowing how the man practically dragged him over there from Fortuna, Nero knew the older man wasn't going to give up on him without another fight.
"What about Dante?"
"Well, you're going to have to talk to him obviously. Let him know what you want to do."
"Yeah, but will he listen?"
"I think he will if you give him a chance."
Nero wasn't so sold on talking to Dante, but he knew he had to, given their current circumstance. He wasn't sure what he wanted to do now. He could take his stuff and leave, just like she said, but he had nothing waiting for him back at Fortuna but some overbearing nuns and a grave he refused to visit. Staying meant swallowing his pride and dealing with Dante and Lady, if she still wanted to be involved. Staying meant letting his guard down, staying meant a lot of things he wasn't sure he wanted because he wasn't sure he was willing to take the risk involved in letting people get close to him.
"If I stay, will you…?" He didn't want to fully ask but she tilted her head and grinned which made him regret ever asking in the first place because now he felt like she was toying with him.
"If you want me to help, then I will. Sure your attitude needs work, and I'm not fond of that mouth of yours and you're going to cost me a fortune to house, feed, clothe, and maintain." And she went up and ripped off the band-aid he stopped her from taking off earlier. The pain was immeasurable as he let out a surprise yelp.
"Ow!" Nero glared at her because he could feel his eyes tearing a bit. "Fuck I get it!"
She rolled her eyes at his holding his cheek and pouting angrily.
"But, I'm willing to take a chance if you are too. You're even welcomed to stay here."
The demon cat came in between them, placing a paw on Nero's leg as it said his welcome.
"Lucy doesn't mind," Lady said, taking the cat and rubbing his belly. The animal purred. "He warmed up to you a lot when I left you alone. Made a great babysitter, didn't you Lucy?"
Nero's jaw dropped in horror.
"You left me alone with your demon pet!"
Lady didn't see anything wrong with it as she sat the cat on her lap.
"Well, someone had to work to pay the bills around here. I couldn't just sit here and dote on you all day. Besides," she presented the cat to Nero who wanted nothing to do with it and held it away from him. "Lucy was a great babysitter. He made sure you were safe and even played with your face when he was bored. Those scratches healed up really fast, you can hardly notice them."
"You're serious?"
Lady had to snort a laugh because she couldn't hold it in. She pushed herself off the bed to stand.
"I tried to kill you before, don't make me try to do it again," he threatened but Lucy made sure Nero looked ridiculous as it tried to paw at his face. The man held the cat away from his face as he tried to glare at the woman who looked at the pair in amusement.
"You're not the first and I doubt you'll be the last demon to try," she said, watching him struggle as the cat tried to dominate him.
"How about I fix you something to eat? That way, you can win that wrestling match Lucy is obviously beating you in."
"Lady," he warned with a stern glare. The woman smirked and went and got the cat from him, placing the animal on the floor.
"Kid, we're going to have some problems if I have to come save you from losing to a demon cat."
"That's the problem, demons aren't supposed to be cats," he said, scowling at her as he got out of bed. Lady made it to the door and turned to look at him again.
"I set out a bunch of stuff in the bathroom for you to freshen up when you woke up. When you're done making yourself look pretty for me, come out for some food. I promise I won't poison you," she winked.
Nero rolled his eyes as she left, but did in fact feel the small pangs of hunger as his stomach began to rumble. Lucy pawed at Nero and the man frowned at the cat as it followed him to the bathroom.
"You are not coming in here. Go watch someone else pee," he snapped and slammed the door in its face. The cat mewed, pawed at the door, and disappeared.
Nero didn't see it coming as he turned around from the toilet and screamed.
Lady sighed as she heard the commotion. No doubt Lucy playing tricks on the kid for being mean to it. Dante was going to owe her double, no triple for all of this. She continued to chop carrots while ignoring Nero's cursing and screaming.