The Phantasma Cruise ship. . .
The casino was bustling with adults, some to seek a mass fortune through games like poker, blackjack, and slot machines, or to drown their sorrows in alcohol after losing all of their money. In the quietest part of the casino, was a large circular table, over twelve people sat around it, playing a high stakes poker game. The host of the game was a man named Victor Strauss, a european billionaire who picked on those that were considered "undesirable". On the opposite side of him was Dante, under the name of Tony Redgrave, while Trish sat next to him using the name, Gloria White.
Although Dante wasn't the best player, he won several hands, causing Strauss to up the ante.
"Impressive play Mister Redgrave. For a man of actions rather than words, you seem to have a smart mind." The german said, puffing smoke from a cigar as he shuffled the massive deck, an almost evil grin was evident on his face.
"Well as a fellow gambler, I only need to play my cards right to get what I want." Dante replied, smiling at the european smugly.
"Then let us see if you can beat me. . ."
Trish quietly observed Victor as he handed out the cards to the players, noticing his smug grin. It was clear that he rigged this poker game from the start as several of the guests left in defeat while the european took their winnings without remorse.
"Two can play at this game. . ." The lightning witch thought as she looked at her cards, a two of clubs and a five of diamonds were a weak hand, so without anyone noticing she used magic to alter them into the best hand.
The next fifteen minutes were intense, Dante and Trish were still in the game. This seemed to agitate Victor, the sweat rolled down his chubby face as he played on.
"All in!" Dante pushed all of his chips into the betting zone, with Trish doing the same.
"Very well herr Redgrave, and frauline Gloria. It is time we put this game to an end." Strauss said in an almost menacing tone, the grin widened as he laid out his cards.
A flush was laid out to the duo, shocking both of the demon hunters. Dante lost, raising both of his hands in defeat, his smile however did not dwindle as Trish winked in his direction.
"It is a shame you've lost Redgrave, too bad you'll go home with nothing, and I MEAN nothing. . . As for you Gloria, why don't you show me your cards and accept that you're better off in a bed than gamble your life away!"
Victor bellowed out in laughter, only to have his smug face turn into a furious frown as Trish revealed her cards.
"Oh my. . .a royal flush! It would seem mister Strauss that you will go home with nothing!" Trish smirked as she took all of the chips away from the european, his face going red with embarassment and anger.
"So you beat me. . . I suppose I can get rid of this accent, and this form." Victor said as he shifted from a fat man, to a skinny, tall, and youthful looking man.
"So. . .a shapeshifter. May we ask what is your name and why is a demon pretending to be a condescending asshole?" Dante asked as he sat back in his chair, showing Victor that he wasn't in danger.
"I apologise for the attitude, but I won't apologise for taking money from the billionaires and snobs. They talk so lowly of people that are worse off, thinking they're gods, I rigged the poker game with my own magic so they would lose eventually throughout the game." Victor spoke in a more New York american accent, dropping the whole german act alltogether.
"So you basically did a whole Robin Hood act? For a demon, you seem to have good intentions, even if they are a bit old fashioned." Trish said in an admiring tone.
"It is true that I'm a demon, but I always felt it was better to help. You can thank Sparda for that."
Dante's face lit up as he heard the name of his father, standing up to stretch his legs and arms.
"I'm gonna head to the buffet. I'm starving after all this. Nice meeting ya, and enjoy your vacation. . ." The red devil saluted as he walked off whilst humming a tune.
"Farewell Victor. Glad to know that you're not a threat to anyone." Trish shook his hand before walking away to join her partner, leaving the shapshifter be as he poured himself some brandy.
He raised his glass with a smile as he sat by himself, watching both of the devil hunters walking away out of sight. Victor then said to himself grinning, "Such a lovely duo."
The Albert Manor outside of Redgrave City. . .
Lady felt her strength fading, her eyes meeting Rachel's in fear as the latter's father began an ancient demon ritual. The father succeeded in subduing the huntress after their initial encounter, gaining the upper hand whilst Rachel attempted to escape the manor. The demonic minions continued to chant whilst a small group focused on restraining their prisoners, their scale like claws digging into the girl's arms and legs while laughing hysterically.
"Soon my precious Rachel. . . Soon your power will be mine and I will be fully restored, then the world will suffer at my hand as I create hell on earth!" The father shouted as he looked down on his daughter, the violet eyes reddened as she cried in pain.
"You sicken me. . . Using your own daughter, just so you can command a bunch of gremlins? Lame. . ." Lady coughed out, smirking despite the situation she was in.
The father simply scoffed as his minions began to chant louder, causing the hall to be painted with glowing symbols. The ritual suddenly stopped without warning, causing confusion amongst the head demon and his minions. His eyes looked right at Lady in anger, sensing that she did something.
"Wait. . . your blood. . . IS NOT EVEN PURE!!" The father roared before taking his anger out on one of his followers, crushing his skull and slamming it down.
"What you thought I was a fourty year old virgin? Jeez you're pretty dumb." The huntress taunted her captor, even causing Rachel to smirk.
"No matter. I'll just kill you here and now!" His arm rised as he prepared himself to strike at Lady, only to stop at the sound of the hall door opening.
Snapping his fingers, he commanded his creatures to encircle the hooded stranger that walked in, readying themselves to attack. The figure lifted his head up, looking at the creatures with a small grin on his face. One of the minions attacked, only for the figure to move swiftly before drawing out his weapon with extreme speed. With one slash, the demon stood there before his entire body parted in half.
The father roared, commanding his followers to attack the figure at once, hoping that he would be overwhelmed by the numbers. They attempted to pile on top of the hooded one, stabbing at him with their claws, but his grin only grew wider. A sudden glow emitted from his weapon, the blade growing brighter before a blast of energy engulfed him, revealing a familiar blue devil.
Vergil launched the minions into the air, using his devil trigger to enhance his leap before slashing the creatures with Yamato with minimal effort. Lady and Rachel watched as the blue demon slaughtered the entire demon horde within a few minutes.
The father was filled with fury, his eyes glowing a sinister red as he watched his minions fell apart, their body parts scattered all over the hall, with blood shooting out of them like a fountain. He channeled his power, slowly removing his attention from his daughter, to his new opponent.
"You. . . the son of Sparda. You're supposed to be dead!!" He shouted, only for Vergil to sheathe Yamato, simply looking at him with disgust.
"How ridiculous of you to assume my demise. Release these two at once!" Vergil sternly said as he pointed to Lady and Rachel, almost commanding the father to do so.
"Killing you will be pleasurable. The ritual may have failed due to the harlot's tainted blood, but I will still succeed in my plan!" The father shouted as he charged towards the blue devil, his eyes shifting to a crimson red.
Vergil's initial reaction was dodge the blackened magic hands that attempted to grab him from below, taking the chance to unleash a barrage of summoned blades towards the remaining minions that held Lady and Rachel, killing them with outstanding precision. Once the two girls were freed, the huntress herself lifted the girl before taking cover with her whilst her former enemy fought against the father.
As the battle between them raged on, the blue devil showed no signs of slowing down. His swift but effective attacks with Yamato had severely weakend his opponent, whose form was bleeding uncontrollably.
"How is this possible? I can't lose, not to you!" The father's anger grew worse as he felt an immense pain overflow him, his attacks only growing weaker and weaker during the lengthly fight.
"You're all bark and no bite. Now accept your loss and vanish into oblivion!" Vergil channeled his inner demon, harnessing the energy and sending it into Yamato.
Without hesitation, he entered his devil trigger, letting out a demonic war cry before charging straight for the father, whilst the latter charged for him too. Vergi leapt into the air, and landed behind his enemy. With great speed, he unleashed a barrage of attacks, slashing every part of the father's body before using one final vertical slash to finish him off. The blue devil slowly sheathed his proud weapon, clicking into it's sheath and causing his hulking opponent to crumble to pieces.
Changing back from his demon form, Vergil watched as the father's screams of agony echoed through the hall of the manor. The magic within him leaked out, slowly but painfully reverting him into his human form, barely living and awake.
Rachel felt her strength returning, tapping on Lady's arm to put her down. She began to walk to the frail form of her father, who looked up at her as he bled out.
"My dear. . . please help your father, don't leave me with this demon. . ." He pleaded in desperation, fear slowly taking over him.
"You are no father of mine, you killed my mother. . . all because of power. I'm not scared of you anymore." Rachel spoke, her anger evident as she curled her hands into fists, her violet eyes turning a glowing white.
"Rachel, please. . . don't abandon-." The father pleaded again, only to be silenced by his daughter's glare.
Staring into his soul, the raven haired girl raised her arm, dark magic flowing through her as it engulfed her parent. His screams were muffled as the dark magic tore his body into ribbons, and he was dead, only this time it'd be for good. Feeling exhausted from the whole ordeal, she dropped to her knees, finally free from her curse. Lady placed her hand on the girl's shoulder, causing her to look up.
"I. . . I. . . I'm free?" Rachel asked softly, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"You're free hon. He's gone for good." Lady answered as she brought the girl into a tight hug, letting a few of her own tears fall.
Vergil could no longer sense an evil presence, sighing in relief whilst reaching for his cell phone. Half an hour later, the trio exited the manor, but not before setting it alight at Rachel's request. Once they made it to the gate, they deemed it a good idea to head back to Devil May Cry, where Nero and Kyrie anxiously waited for their return.
Devil May Cry was quiet, Lady brought Rachel into the spare room upstairs, letting her rest whilst Vergil informed Nero and Kyrie of the events that transpired.
"Poor girl. . . thank goodness you got there in time." Kyrie spoke quietly as she passed Vergil a hot cup of tea.
"Indeed. The girl will recover here for a few days until she figures out where to go from here, be it stay with Lady for a while or find herself a new home." The blue devil spoke, trying to hide the fact that he felt good about saving someone.
"Best thing we can do is support her, until then we'll make sure she's safe and hopefully no more demons come after her." Nero said as he felt his eyes dropping, feeling like he was ready to sleep.
"Go get some rest, both of you. I'm gonna stay up for another hour, then I'll just rest on the couch ok?" Vergil responded, smiling at his son.
Nero quietly wished him goodnight, taking Kyrie with him upstairs to Dante and Trish's room for the night. Lady emerged from the kitchen with a large bag of ice on her severely bruised leg, sitting on Dante's office chair whilst checking her bandages on her arms.
"Guess I'll take my leave soon." Lady said as she inspected her bruises and cuts, grunting through the pain that took hold of her as she attempted to walk.
Just as she was about to trip, Vergil caught her by the waist, forcing her to sit down next to him.
"You're far too hurt. Best to save your strength while you still can." The blue devil's voice was quiet yet calming as he carefully moved the ice bag up to her exposed right leg, which did not go unnoticed.
"You really don't have to Vergil, I've had worse and-" She was cut off by his finger pressing onto her lips, sushing her quietly.
"That is enough, you're tired, you've lost a few pints of blood, and you'll only get more irritated if you try to move." His voice sounded more caring as he began to massage her leg, helping to ease as much pain as she can, unknowingly making her blush.
"You're such an ass Vergil. . ."
"And you're a stubborn girl Lady. You bite off more than you can chew and yet you persist on being this "badass woman" who doesn't need anyone's help."
"Ok, you win. I admit I like to fight solo, more than I like to team up. It's just I. . . I don't want anyone else putting their life on the line to save someone like me." Lady said as she looked down, like she felt ashamed.
Vergil placed his hand under her chin, lifting her head up. He looked into her eyes, shifting himself closer.
"You're afraid of losing someone, aren't you?" He whispered whilst continuing to move the ice bag along her leg, the cold sensation gave Lady an strange feeling in her stomach.
"I suppose I do. I know Dante, Trish, and Nero can look after themselves, but if something ever happened to them, I don't know what I'd do. . ." She paused as she looked into Vergil's blue eyes, almost hypnotised by them.
"What about me?" The blue devil asked, keeping his eyes on Lady.
"Well. . . I'm sure you can figure it out, that is if you want to know?" She shifted closer, their noses almost touching.
Vergil simply smirked, the tension between the two faded, then he backed off, and Lady almost wanted him to stay close, well almost.
"We best sleep. You take the other couch, I'll grab a few blankets for us." Vergil said as he stood up, making his way upstairs and into the hallway cupboard to grab the blankets.
"Yeah. . . sure. Thank you Vergil." Lady said, putting her feet up onto the leather couch, making herself comfortable as she removed the ice bag from her leg.
By the time Vergil came back, she was already sleeping. He placed the large grey blanket over her whilst she rested, the small smile on her lips showed she was grateful for the blue devil for saving her and Rachel. For Vergil, it was all he needed as thanks. Then he laid onto the other couch, wrapping the blanket over him.
"Feels good. . . to save someone. . ." Vergil thought as he drifted into a deep sleep, the feeling of saving someone gave him a new sense of strength, and to him, that was all the power he needed.