The Devil of Zero
Disclaimer: Neither The Familiar of Zero nor Devil May Cry belong to me.
The Thief
– The Devil –
Tristain Academy of Magic
Night
Vergil was disappointed, to say the least. While his acceptance of Guiche's duel had been a matter of honor, he had also tried to gain some insight as to how these mages fought. The same had been his objective when he'd allowed those bandits to capture Louise, something he'd not have done had he not detected Kirche, Tabitha and Sylphid.
And, as with Guiche, he found them lacking. Guiche was acceptable, he was still learning. The bandits, Vergil supposed he couldn't expect much from them. But here he was, patrolling the castle for the third night in a row, disappointed. He was even missing Dante. His twin brother, as annoying, rude and uncouth as he was, was still the best swordsman other than Vergil, and knew how to put up a decent fight at the least.
"Partner, you seem kind of quiet. Something on your mind?" The scabbard on Vergil's back shook as Derflinger drew himself out of it somehow, making room for the piece of metal that served as his mouth to move. Vergil had been forced to use the techniques he'd used when he'd wielded Force Edge for that short time a decade or more ago, rather than the Iaido he'd used with Yamato. It was annoying, because he didn't strike quite as fast as he did with his inherited blade, but he'd make do.
"I do not boast when I say I am one of the best swordsmen where I come from." Vergil replied. "And I am sure, as an ancient and well-used blade Derflinger, that you understand what it is like for swordsman with no worthy opponent to be found?"
"Yeah, I know the type." The blade admitted. "Some were humble, some were arrogant, and some merely took pride in their abilities. They were antsy lot though, always itching for a scrap."
"Indeed. Like a potter or a blacksmith, us swordsmen take pride in our skill, and always seek to challenge the work of others to ensure we remain at our peak." Vergil continued. "But these mages…none are swordsmen, none are warriors. Those we engaged earlier today gave me no challenge. It is a tiresome and boring thing."
"Don't worry partner, I'm sure you'll find someone to give you a challenge." Derflinger comforted.
"I can only hope so." Vergil replied softly.
– The Zero –
Here she was again. Back in this nightmare…Idly, Louise wondered when the voice would come to taunt her…
This place was grotesque, marble columns around a pit seemingly made of some sort of purple goo. And in the center of it, stood – if 'stood' was the correct word – an enormous, shifting mass of the goo, strange appendages emerging from and sinking into its form, faces morphing out of its flesh. And before it was…
Vergil! The man standing before the blob had the exact same features as Louise' familiar, and his hair was down around his head like Vergil's had been when first summoned…but this man had a coat as red as blood, and wielded in his hands an enormous sword with a ribcage and skull forming part of the hilt, and two bones as the guard, rather than the 'Summoned Swords' her familiar used.
"Regardless of how strong you are, you're nothing but a half-breed! You cannot defeat a true demon, the real Sparda!"Louise wondered about that. Vergil had introduced himself as 'A Son of Sparda'…and then the creature struck, extending an arm of goo at the man, when Louise's body drew and sliced with the curved sword, cutting creature's hand from its extended arm from her vantage point many feet away and above them. "What's this!" Both the monster and the man turned to look up, seeing her. "Damn you!" The monster cried, while the man's face held an expression of recognition and shock. Louise rose, feeling her mouth move, and was shocked.
"I've come to retrieve my power!" Vergil's voice issued from her mouth, the familiar regal tones echoing about the area. Her –Vergil shifted the arm holding his blade, pointing the tip at the monster. "You can't handle it." She – no, Vergil – Leaped from the platform and landed adroitly near the red-coated man, flicking the sword around so its tip pointed at his throat. He didn't seem too concerned about it.
"Look at you," He said, gesturing, "Making a big, dramatic entrance and stealing my spotlight."
"Well…" Vergil said, stepping back. "You don't possibly believe he deserves to be our main event, now do you?" He flicked his sword again, batting the hand back to the monster and turning.
"Now that you mention it, you're right." The red-coat hefted his blade in one hand impossibly, resting it on his shoulder as he and Vergil strode towards the monster. Some sort of low rumbling issued from the beast, and Louise realized it was chuckling.
"Do you feel you can defeat me?" It asked, waving its tentacles. "Defeat the power of your father, the great Sparda!"Vergil lifted his hand, one finger extended.
"You should come to realize you cannot control the power of Sparda."
"You're wasting your time buddy." The other man added, bringing his sword to bear. "I think he needs to learn the hard way." Vergil glanced at him, the struck the extended sword with his, before the two rushed the creature. They attacked in concert, slicing off slabs of the beast's flesh and waving, curling tentacles as it shifted. Then it struck, forcing the two back, whereon the red-coat sheathed his blade and brought out what looked like two pistols from his back, one white and one black, firing impossible amounts of bullets into the monster. Vergil's Summoned Swords struck as he dashed back in, closing with the beast until it roared, sinking into the goo, and rising in its place were strange eel-like serpents, fat and wriggling in the air. They were easily dealt with though, between the red-coated man's guns and Vergil's swords and blade.
And when those were destroyed, the beast dropped in from the sky, nearly squashing the two swordsmen under its bulk. The battle continued like that for a time, the creature obviously frustrated, and unable to do anything else as the two weakened it and destroyed its creatures when it retreated. Finally, it groaned in pain as the red-coated man flourished his sword, rushing at the beast and stabbing it in the side. Louise watched from Vergil's perspective as he too stabbed the beast in the opposite direction. It roared, swinging its appendages and knocking the two back. Vergil recovered, and struck the hilt of his blade with his palm, shoving it into the monster's innards. Apparently the other man did something similar, for his greatsword or whatever ejected out at Vergil, who caught the grip and flourished it, moving as he did so that he stood next to the red-coated man, who held Vergil's strange, curving sword. They charged, Vergil swinging the not-so-heavy sword at the beast as his opposite sliced with his blade. Some sort of white ichor gushed from the wounds, as the two exchanged blades again; Vergil receiving his with what Louise felt was like relief.
"It can't be…it cannot!" The red-coated man smirked at the creature's lament, drawing his pistols and twirling them about before aiming both. A roar and a sweeping tendril knocked the black gun out of his hand, only for Vergil to catch it, aiming it at the beast.
"I'll try it your way for once." Vergil said calmly.
"You remember what we used to say?" The man asked. A small smile graced Vergil's face.
"Don't do it!" The monster pleaded. Ignoring him, the two stepped closer, the red-coated man bringing his pistol up, while Vergil rested his borrowed gun's barrel along the top of it, sideways.
"Jackpot." The two chorused, firing. The bullets fired, spiraling about one another and trailing red and blue before piercing the beast.
"I HOLD THE TRUE POWER OF SPARDA!" Was its cry.
"Not very classy for someone's dying words." Vergil remarked. The beast's bulk faded away, revealing what looked like a solid version of Vergil's Summoned Swords, two amulets swirling about it. Vergil rushed forward as they fell, into a dark pit in the center of the area, his near-double close behind…
Louise's Room, Student Dormitory
Morning
"Louise." Again, Vergil's voice awoke the student mage easily, and unlike the last time, she was used to the nightmare or dream and got up calmly. The morning was routine, Vergil awaiting her outside as she dressed, and the two proceeding to the dining hall. If anyone found anything wrong about Louise' familiar eating with the rest of them, they didn't dare say so, the example of Guiche's golems serving to keep them quiet. In fact, Louise found that people in general hesitated to call her by her insulting nick-name now, probably because Vergil was almost always by her side.
As they ate, the dream weighed on Louise's mind. She compared the face of the red-coated man with Vergil's, and they really were exactly alike. The curiosity consumed her, until finally, when they were exiting the hall, she asked him.
"Vergil."
"Yes?"
"Do you have a twin brother?" That stopped Vergil, turning him to gaze at her with those cold, icy eyes.
"I did." He answered. "Dante."
"W-what was he like?" Louise hated stuttering, but under that stare…
"…he was a fool. An ill-mannered, lazy fool. He rarely took anything seriously, and spent his life working for others." Vergil's words were short, and delivered with an unnaturally even voice, as though he was trying to control himself. "And he was one of the best swordsmen I knew, and the best marksman, bar none."
"…did he wear a red coat?" And instantly Vergil's eyes focused back on her, narrowing with suspicion.
"Just what is the source of these questions Louise?" She audibly gulped at his tone.
"W-w-well, I've been having...dreams, since I summoned you."
"Mhmm."
"The first one...I was in this place, all covered in blood, with marble statues and columns rising from it…" A spark of recognition glinted in his eyes. "And there were these creatures, which came out of it and attacked me with scythes…"
"Abyss…in the Room of Fallen Ones…" Vergil stated, gaze still on her. "You've been dreaming about my memories?"
"I-I-I guess, the one after that, it was in some stone room, with a giant hourglass-"
"Infinity Nirvana."
"-And there were more of those Abysses with some things that carried big explosive balls-"
"Wrath Hells of the Demon Army."
"And some angel-things that weren't angels-"
"The Fallen. You saw my memories of my journey through Hell." Louise gulped. Hell! "Did you see the battle with Arkham?"
"Well…last night's dream…there was this enormous purple blob-"
"Yes, that was him."
"Why am I having these dreams?"
"…If I were to guess, I would suppose that my own nature is interfering with your contract, playing with it, and you only experience it directly in sleep, when your mind is at its weakest."
"Can you stop it?"
"If my guess is correct, then only the severing of the contract is the only way to stop it…And as you know-"
"The contract is only severed by death…"
"I have no desire to die, Louise. So you'll have to decide if my memories are bad enough for you to give up life."
"O-of course not! Some of the things in them are h-horrible… but not that bad!"
"I'm glad you think so." Vergil had a sardonic tone now.
"…Vergil…about your family…"He sighed.
"Let's return to your room before we begin to tackle those questions." Once they were back in Louise's room, Vergil locked and bolted the door securely, before leaning on the wall beside it. "Ask your questions."
"The blob mentioned something about your father…that he was-"
"A Devil? True." Louise's mouth gaped, and she backed away from Vergil. The half-devil sighed, and began. In short, terse sentences, almost as though he told the tale against his will, Vergil explained how his world had been infested by demons and devils, until one of their numbers discovered his morality, and fought the Legions of Hell until he defeated their master, sealing them back in their dark home. And then, for two thousand years he wandered the Earth, sealing portals to Hell and dealing with demons that made it into the world. Until, decades ago, he met a human woman and fathered two children with her.
"You and Dante." Louis said, dazed. "Are the sons of a powerful and legendary Devil in your world?" It was quite a lot to take in. Louise had just gotten used to the idea of having a mere swordsman as her familiar, and now it turned out that he was the son of a powerful Devil. Which might make him the most powerful familiar in the academy…
"Correct. And now, I believe that is enough for today." Vergil said, stepping away from the wall. "Don't you have classes to get to?"
"Well, no. There's an exhibition tomorrow for the second-years and their familiars, so the school gave us today off to practice."
"I see." Vergil gave Louise his studious stare. "I suppose you want me to perform in this exhibition, then?"
"W-well, you don't have to…" Vergil looked pensive for a moment, before he sighed.
"No, I might as well. With luck, maybe a proper demonstration of my abilities will dissuade anyone like those bandits from yesterday. Now, what I'll do..." The discussion of his abilities and what he would need to show some of them took a while, and was interrupted when they had to attend the arrival of Princess Henrietta, someone Vergil assumed was well beloved of many, given from how he'd heard the servants and students chatter during the assembly before the school gate. The carriage the princess arrived in was a primarily white-pink color, with a purple roof. The princess herself, when she stepped out, proved to be quite the attractive young woman by many standards.
Curiously, Louise seemed particularly glad to see the Princess, more so than would be usual for someone excited by visiting royalty.
– The Devil –
Louise's Room, Student Dormitory
Night
With the day over, Louise was settling down for sleep, while Vergil was actually going to get some rest too. Even for him, three nights was pushing it. He was just drifting into a light slumber when a knock came at the door. Looking towards Louise, he saw a quizzical expression on her face, showing that this arrival wasn't someone she had merely forgotten to inform him about. His right hand went to Derflinger's hilt as the other unlocked and unbolted the door, opening it. A cloaked and hooded person darted into the room, quickly closing the door behind them.
"It's been a while Louise Françoise!" The person said, moving towards the risen student and hugging her, leaving the cloak and hood to flutter to the floor. Vergil, for his part, was surprised to see their unexpected visitor was the princess. "Louise…Louise…" A second after that, Louise lightly pushed the princess to arm's length before kneeling before her.
"Your highness, you shouldn't come to such a low-class place."
"Please, there's no need for formality between us, Louise Françoise." Henrietta said. "We're friends."
"Your kind words are too much for me your highness." Louise said, holding a hand to her heart.
"Excuse me." Vergil butted in lightly, giving the princess a light bow. "You know the princess Louise?"
"Yes. I had the honor of being the royal playmate." Louise replied.
"Can't you just say we were childhood friends Louise?" Henrietta admonished. Her eyes were wet, and her hands clasped before her. "I've wanted to see you for so long Louise."
"Your Highness," Louise said concernedly, rising.
"I'm sorry." Henrietta wiped at her eyes. "Ever since my father died, I haven't had anyone I could speak with openly."
"You can speak with me any time, Your Highness." Louise offered.
"Thank you Louise...and who is this kind sir?" Henrietta gestured to Vergil. "Your lover?"
"N-no he isn't?" Louise blushed a furious red, comparable to Dante's coat.
"I am not." Vergil said. "I am Louise's familiar. Vergil, Son of Sparda."
"Pleased to meet you, Sir Vergil."
"Likewise."
Vestry Field
Noon
The princess had left shortly after Vergil introduced himself, leaving the master and familiar to rest for the exhibition and wishing them good luck. The day of the exhibition started with a lot of enthusiasm from Louise, and they joined the rest of the second years at Vestry Field for the event. Professor Colbert served as the announcer, introducing each student and their familiar.
The first up was Kirche with her salamander Flame, the buxom redhead posing while her familiar breathed out artistic plumes of fire. Afterwards, the blond girl with whom Guiche had double-timed, Montmorency, was up with her frog doing tricks. And then Guiche…posed with his mole Verdande. Tabitha and Sylphid demonstrated their flight. And finally, it was Louise and Vergil's turn.
"Are you sure you want to do this? We could just-"
"No Louise, this exhibition will allow me to fully show just what I'm capable of." And possibly, draw some worthy opponents my way. With no way of gaining infernal power in this world, Vergil sought to gain a more traditional form: skill and reputation. He sought to hone his technique with Derflinger, and gain influence from building a reputation as a powerful and deadly warrior. To do so required skilled adversaries, and this exhibition would be an exemplary way of drawing challengers, weak and strong.
The two moved onto the stage, Vergil striding with confidence and pride. Louise took her place in the center.
"Let me introduce my Familiar, Vergil, Son of Sparda." Louise began. "He is a swordsman, and will demonstrate his abilities with these golems." Louise stepped of the stage, leaving Vergil in the center as golems created by some of the staff stepped up. Unlike Guiche's Bronze Valkyries, these were made of iron and steel, shaped more like traditional heavy knight armor, wielding greatswords and lances.
"Begin!" Colbert said. And Vergil moved. He'd spent years perfecting his Dark Slayer Style, and it showed in his movements…or lack thereof, as he teleported behind two of the golems. Drawing and slicing Derflinger down in a single movement shattered one golem, while the other suffered impalement by Summoned Swords. The rest of the golems began moving finally, as Vergil struck a third before taking its greatsword and stabbing another in the torso, pinning it to the ground. He darted towards the foremost of the approaching golems, striking it from below with enough force to send the mobile armor flying into the air. A thought summoned Spiraling Swords to surround him, slicing deep into the metal of the golems as Vergil split helms with Derflinger. Mere moments after the start of the demonstration, the golems laid in shards about Vergil, to the awed and horrified gazes of the crowd.
"That was a Blast." Derf commented as Vergil sheathed him. Vergil was about to bow when an enormous tremor shook the area.
"What was that!" Louise cried, staggering as the earth shook. Vergil's eyes narrowed, and he turned to Tabitha.
"Tabitha." He said, "Take me up." The wind mage nodded, closing her book and stowing it away as they mounted Sylphid, the dragon taking them up into the air. Louise boarded just before they took off, clinging to Vergil as the dragon brought them higher and higher. Tabitha sent the dragon circling around the tower to the side opposite of Vestry Field...revealing an enormous golem, molded like clay out of the earth into a vague, headless man-shape pounding into the side of the central tower. Vergil's eyes caught sight of a cloaked figure on the construct, waiting for it to bash through the tower's wall.
"Why is this thing here!" Louise shouted over the wind.
"Vault." Tabitha answered quietly.
"A vault?" Vergil asked.
"Oh! That must be it!" Louise realized. "The academy's vault holds a lot of magical artifacts!"
"I see. So, a thief wishes to rob the academy." Vergil glanced back at the figure on the golem. "I suppose I'll have to stop them then." Vergil stood up on Sylphid's back, legs tensing before he 'Tricked' as Dante called it, teleporting into the air above and between the golem and the dragon, and once more to land upon the golem's shoulder. The thief turned to face him as he approached, apparently taken aback going by his or her posture.
"How did you get up here?" A woman's voice, Vergil noted, studying the figure before him. "No matter, begone!" The golem's earthen skin lurched, the mage seeking to throw Vergil off of her creation. Vergil simply Tricked up, and down again behind the thief. But as he slashed Derflinger at her head, a quick wave of her wand summoned a tendril of earth to parry the blow. Hmm…this thief may be a good fight… Vergil thought. Another gesture from the thief made the golem's surface roll, separating the two combatants from each other. A flick of the wand warned Vergil, and he leaped just in time to avoid a large spike erupting from the surface, landing on the construct's arm. And then he heard Louise shout.
"Fireball!" Rather than the expected exploding ball of fire, nothing happened for a moment, as the mage and her golem paused. Then an explosion shattered the arm upon which Vergil stood, sending bits and pieces of the limb flying along with the half-devil. Vergil 'Tricked' down, landing lightly on the grass and suffering only a few nicks from the explosion's shrapnel. Standing back up, Vergil saw the golem's other arm swing at the tower's wall, where he saw another effect of Louise' spell: a spider-web of cracks and charred stone, weakening the structure. Vergil was about to return to the fight when the golem's fist breached the wall.
Indescribable, Infernal POWER filled the air, sending Vergil to his knees feeling as weak as a recovering addict confronted with his favorite drug. The heady feeling flooded Vergil's soul, dragging him back into memories of the might he wielded. He struggled, looking back up as the thief raced out of the hole in the tower and across her golem's arm, a long, thin package strapped to her back. At the sight of it, Vergil's eyes rolled back into his head, and he collapsed.
– The Devil –
Alright, and now all is set for the first of the big, true battles. And Vergil has a reaction to the academy's artifact…now what could that mean?
Review Replies:
HolyKnight5: You're close but still a little bit off the mark.
Takeshi Yamato: Well, I personally liked how it was used in The Hill of Swords, so I decided to incorporate something similar in here, hand-waving it with the whole 'Devil-Contract' thing.
Fear the Fangirl.
That's FoZ canon.
Well, it'd be pretty much a blending of both UC and Wing in some ways, if the setting was like an Armored Core game.
bakapervert: See above.
Orchamus: Eh, I looked up pictures and they matched well enough for me.
They'd probably make a good couple indeed, but I just don't see Vergil as he is now having any interest in romance…
See above.
a fan: I'm trying to figure out what would be character development, and what would just be plain OOC… it's a thin line.
I'm working off of the anime, and in his introductory episode he's pretty much a straight-bladed weapon with a single edge.
Yeah, but this is Vergil…and I don't think Dante's actually gotten anywhere with any of the DMC girls…
Anime Game Writer: I'm pretty much working off of the games here, since I never read the manga or novels, and the anime had nothing about Vergil in them, although I do ascribe to the theory/fact that Vergil is Nero's father.
I think, personally, that after his (teenage?) fling with Nero's mom, Vergil became the power-obsessed awesome guy we see in DMC3.
Nivek Beldo: Pretty much.
That it does.
Yep.
Oh yeah, definitely.
Thank you.
Bradley McCloud: I'm pretty much just jumping on the FoZ crossover bandwagon, and as far as I can tell, every story seems to have the same premise: Louse summons character X from universe Y, Awesome stuff happens. And the events that happen in the anime were pretty much set into motion well before Saito was summoned, so I imagine the events themselves would still happen, but with the outcomes altered due to Vergil being the summonee.
pyromania101: Louise is pretty much just seeing Vergil's memories, in this case from the last few missions of DMC3.
Well, we can't know because all we really see of Vergil is in DMC1 as Nelo Angelo and DMC3 as himself, and he's always focused on business there. Likes and Dislikes aren't really explained, so I'm just throwing some stuff in.
Nope. The Spear of Destruction is, literally, a Spear of Destruction. You'll see next chapter.
Kojiro Kun: Unfortunately, golems don't exactly have a lot of blood. Unless they one of those Blood Golems summoned by Diablo II's Necromancer…but then, those are nothing but blood…
VictoriousVillain: Thank you.
Yeah, I was thinking about that, but I lost my copy of DMC4 and only have DMC3 to go off of. I suppose there are some Youtube videos though…
Knightmare Gundam of Ni