CHAPTER SEVEN
The One Good Lawyer
"He's in here." Chun-Li said, guiding Saya, Kat and Link down the cell-lined hallways before arriving at the one at the end.
There sat Dante, but rather than looking upset that he was more than likely going to jail, he looked bored. Like grounded-sixteen-year-old bored. To Kat, this made sense. He was a nephilim. Busting out of jail would be a walk in the park for him. Chun-Li walked off, giving the three time to converse with their imprisoned ally.
"How're you doing, Dante?" Kat asked.
"Not bad, actually. I've had worse than this."
He looked over at Kat with a cocky grin.
"But you already knew that. Hell, you and Saya have had worse than this."
Kat smiled in return before readopting her serious expression.
"Anyway, we've got a bit of trouble. They're going to use Rebellion as evidence in your trial."
"Hey, that's an improvement compared to what people got under Mundus' rule."
"This is serious, Dante!" Saya said in panic. "The only way you can prove your innocence is if you can convince them that Limbo exists! They're gonna hang you if you don't!"
"You know, I find it very ironic that you now want me out of jail."
Saya flushed bright red.
"Well…I'm a dumb kid who just believes everything that she hears. You said so yourself."
"No, you're not, Saya. I'm sorry. But anyway, there ain't much chance of that happening. I wouldn't worry, though. I've gotten out of worse situations than a human jail without weapons."
Link looked over his shoulder and grinned before turning back to Dante.
"With any luck, you won't have to be imprisoned. We found someone who's willing to defend you in court aside from the three of us."
"Okay…who?"
Link motioned to his left, and a man stepped forward who Dante was utterly relieved to see. The man in question was none other than a legendary ace attorney who'd helped numerous people out of situations like this and was in the job for all the right reasons…pun intended.
"The best one in the business." said Phoenix Wright with a smirk.
"Damn straight." Dante replied before adopting a look of concern. "So…do you actually believe this Limbo stuff?"
"As a matter of fact, I do. Your friend Kat gave me all the proof of its existence I needed."
Dante looked at Kat who was looking away with a mischievous smile.
"Ah, Kat, you didn't."
"Well, how else was I going to prove it to him?"
"It's convenient, but not exactly comfortable what with that stench." Phoenix added. "What's in that can?"
Kat motioned for him to come closer, and she whispered into his ear upon him doing so. Phoenix grimaced.
"Quite…anyway, onto business. It's not proving you didn't commit the murders that we need to do for the court since there's photographic and video evidence that clearly shows that you did. The task will be proving that the people you killed were demons."
"How exactly are we supposed to do that?" Dante asked.
"You just tell them your end of the story, your friends here will tell them their end of the story, and I'll make careful notes about it to find a definitive conclusion that should make sense to the majority of people in there…though if Winston Payne is the prosecutor, I wouldn't count on him listening to reason."
"Why's that?"
"I don't mean to sound rude, but he doesn't listen to reason until it's painfully obvious."
Dante smirked.
"So we've got a good chance?"
"I'll do everything in my power to prove you're semi-innocent."
"Semi-innocent?"
"You did kill those people. The task is proving they were demons. Even if you can't get out of here, I don't think there's much the government can do to put you down."
"Code for nothing. They couldn't put me down with a stick of dynamite shoved down my throat."
A door opened on the other end of the hallway and Chun-Li reappeared.
"Alright. Visiting hours are over. I have some important business to attend to, so I need you all to leave."
The group left, though Kat remained behind for a brief moment.
"Dante…should we go with a backup plan just in case?"
"No need. We've got Phoenix Wright on our side. I'll be fine."
Kat reached through the bars and took Dante's hand.
"I just…I'm scared for you."
Dante smiled and reached through the bars in turn, gently stroking Kat's cheek.
"Don't be. I'll get out of this, and then we'll figure out what's going on. We need to keep Saya safe no matter what happens."
Kat smiled and sighed at Dante's touch.
"You know…about mankind, let alone a young girl…you once said you didn't give a shit."
"Times changed…I changed."
The warm moment between them lasted for quite a long time, but as Link and Saya proceeded back up the stairs to the police station's entrance, Saya looked through a window at her feet and spotted what looked like some sort of laboratory. Even stranger was that there were several large tubes filled with water dotted around the room, and inside one of them was a very tall, blonde-haired, and unconscious woman in a blue catsuit with a mask attached to her mouth to keep her breathing.
Every waking hour of the past two days just seemed to get more and more ridiculous.
Chun-Li led the handcuffed Dante down the hallway by his arm, looking as determined to get this duty over with as soon as possible. In spite of what was likely about to happen, Dante still found the guts to try and make nice with her.
"So, uhh…you do this often?"
"For the lesser criminals, no. You're a special case."
"Thanks."
"That wasn't a compliment."
"It will be. It will be."
Chun-Li rolled her eyes. She gave him one thing: he was at least facing his sentence with dignity. That said, she didn't enjoy walking him to the courtroom. It made her look bloodthirsty despite the fact that she wasn't the executioner. She needed a good long sleep after this, she reckoned.
The two entered the courtroom with Chun-Li plopping Dante into a chair next to Phoenix, who promptly smiled at Dante and nodded.
"Don't worry. We'll get you out of this."
"I sure as hell hope so."
Kat, Saya, and Link were sitting in seat away from Dante among a surprisingly large crowd of people who seemed eager to see Dante get slapped with a death sentence, but Kat knew that even if Dante got convicted, he would break out faster than you could say…well, anything.
The judge slammed his gavel down.
"Court is now in session. Everyone please be seated."
Everyone sat, and a member of the jury stood up and read off the names of a slip of paper.
"We call the 'Devil's Due' case to order. Defendant: Dante…interrupting myself for a moment, but you don't have a last name?"
"No." Dante replied. "Not like I really need one."
"Why's that?"
"How many people do you know that are named Dante?"
"…hm. Point taken. Anyway…"
He cleared his throat and continued reading.
"Case overseen by Honourable Judge Gregory Thompson. Jury: Sanji Takahashi, Harold Johnson, Janet Levowitz, Kenshiro Subata. Prosecutor: Franziska von Karma."
Dante could practically hear Phoenix bite his lip.
"What's up, man?" Dante asked.
"It had to be von Karma, huh? Out of all the prosecutors we could've gotten, it had to be her."
"Why? …she's not unbeatable, is she?"
"No, rather it's what she does if you do anything other than state your case, sit down, and shut up."
Dante was immediately redirected toward the woman standing at the desk across from them, having frankly no idea how he missed her. She had short and silvery green hair, wearing an outfit that oddly suited her and seemed to show off all her curves. What he found very off-putting, though, was the whip in her right hand.
"Why the hell does she have a whip?"
"Take a guess." Phoenix muttered."
"Defendant's attorney: Phoenix Wright." the juror finished.
Franziska immediately looked over at Phoenix and smirked, running the whip smoothly through her hands and prompting Phoenix to nervously straighten his tie. He'd been unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of it on more than one occasion, and needless to say, the end result wasn't as attractive as Franziska herself. The judge sat up and stared down at Dante.
"You have been accused of approximately eight murders within the past few months, including the murder of world-renowned philanthropist Kyle Ryder. How do you plead?"
"Guilty." Dante immediately replied.
Everyone was speechless for a brief moment. Even Franziska raised her eyebrow.
"Young man, you sound like you are proud of what you've done." the judge asked.
"You have no idea. Yes, I did kill those people, but what you don't know is that they were a threat to everyone in this room and elsewhere in the world."
"Including Kyle Ryder?"
"ESPECIALLY Kyle Ryder."
"I see…in that case, it seems that we will be reorganizing the purpose of this trial. You will instead prove to us how these people were threats to anyone. If you fail to prove it to us, then by Japanese law, you will be put to death by hanging."
"Trust me: it'll take more than that to do me in."
"In any case, please proceed up to the stand. Ms. von Karma, if you will."
Franziska nodded and stood up, beginning to pace around the room as Dante sat down. It was then that he noticed Rebellion and his two guns lying on the nearby table. He was tempted to grab them right then and there, but he didn't need everyone flying into a panic.
"Mr. Dante," Franziska began. "I'd like to hear a bit of background information from you, just to make sure we can see a clear motive for your hand in these murders."
"Is that relevant?"
He realized that he misspoken when Franziska ran her whip through her hand as though she were savouring how it felt.
"It is if we can gain anything from it. Tell me, where did you grow up?"
"Somewhere around New York if I remember. In a mansion with my family until I was seven. Then my mother was murdered and my father sent me to an orphanage to be safe."
"I see. What were your parents named?"
"Eva and Sparda."
"Sparda…don't think I've ever heard a name like that before."
"It's pretty unique."
"Well, so is Dante from what we gather."
Dante smirked.
"You sound a bit more interested in me than I thought. If I get off scot-free, wanna go out for a drink?"
Kat and Phoenix both slammed their foreheads into their palms, and Dante immediately regretted saying that when…
CRACK!
"OW!" he cried, clutching the spot where the whip had lashed him. "What the hell was that?!"
"I suppose we may as well cut to the chase if you plan on ridiculing me. Why did you murder those people?"
"I told you already. They were a threat to mankind…but seriously, ow!"
"Be specific. How were they a threat to mankind?"
Dante looked over at Phoenix, who promptly shrugged. There was no real sense in hiding the truth.
"They were demons."
"They couldn't have been that cruel."
"No, I mean literally. Demons. Abominations from Hell. Fire and brimstone. Armageddon. 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here' as a reference to the guy I'm named after."
Franziska stifled a laugh.
"You really expect me or anyone else to believe that?"
She turned to Phoenix and waved her finger mockingly.
"Come now, Wright. I thought you knew better than to take on cases involving psychopaths."
"Couldn't be any worse than you…" Dante muttered, letting out another yelp when Franziska whipped him again.
Saya clenched her fists.
"This is going nowhere!" she whispered. "He's gonna get busted for sure."
"Calm down." said Link. "He's a smart guy. He'll get out of this. Besides, he's got Phoenix helping him and they haven't even called up any witnesses. Like he said, anyway, he's a nephilim. I don't think hanging him is anywhere near enough to kill him."
The judge slammed down his gavel.
"Order!" he called.
"The jury calls Katherine Spencer to the stand."
Kat stood up and proceeded to the stand, catching a smile and a wink from Dante. Kat smiled back and sat down.
"Ms. Spencer, how are you acquainted with Dante?"
"He's my friend."
"Shit!" Dante groaned. "I thought we were dating!"
Everyone laughed, save for Franziska who merely rolled her eyes.
"Ms. Spencer…or do you mind if I call you Katherine."
"Call me Kat."
"Alright, then. Kat, who are your parents?"
Kat raised an eyebrow.
"…is that important?"
"Same reason I gave Dante."
"And I have pretty much the same background as him. I was raised in an orphanage most of my life."
"The same one as Dante?"
"No. We've only known each other for a few months."
Franziska came uncomfortably close to the stand and began glaring at Kat, who was questioning why the judge and jury were acting like this was normal.
"Are you lying to me, Kat?"
"No, but I'll tell you one thing: you're breath smells like shit."
Everyone burst out laughing again.
"THAT'S MY GIRL!" Dante hooted.
The judge slammed down his gavel again, but not before letting out a few light chuckles himself.
"Ms. Spencer, the entire reason you're up here is because you claimed to have evidence of Dante's innocence. Now, you may either stop joking around and tell me or you may sit back down and keep quiet."
"Okay, fine. I see demons, too."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Sounds hard to believe, but it's true."
"Alright, then. Prove it."
"I can't."
"Why not?"
"We're not on a rift, and I probably won't be able to convince you to move somewhere where there is one."
"Hm…tell me, what's the purpose of these rifts?"
"They're spots where the real world and Limbo collide, and thus gateways to Limbo can be created there."
"Limbo. And what's that?"
"A dimension parallel to this one that can only be accessed through the rifts."
"I see. And how do you get into this 'Limbo'? How do you form these gateways?"
"With this."
Kat whipped out her spray can which Franziska promptly swiped from her.
"Hey!"
"What is this? A hallucinogen?"
"No, it's a compound I made based on an old Wiccan recipe...which, yes, is witchcraft from a technical standpoint, but I'd like to plead that there's a big difference between witchcraft and demonic rituals."
"Hm. What is this compound made of?"
"Uhh…I can't tell you."
"Why not? Because it will prove that you're lying to me?"
"No, because it's friggin' disgusting and you'll scream like a little girl if I tell you."
Franziska rolled her eyes and placed the spray can on the table of evidence.
"You may return to your seat."
"The jury calls Peter Toretto to the stand."
For the next few minutes, Phoenix flushed out as much information as he could from someone testifying against Dante, but ultimately came up with nothing. Eventually, there came something that was unexpected.
"The jury calls Saya Kusanagi to the stand."
Saya jumped at the mention of her name, but proceeded to the stand nonetheless.
"What are they doing?! What am I supposed to say to them?"
The poor girl was immediately on the receiving end of Franziska's icy glare and trembled when the prosecutor spoke.
"Ms. Kusanagi, how are you acquainted with Dante?"
"I…I, um…we just met a day ago."
"So you barely know him. Not exactly enough time to develop a strong relationship."
"I owe him."
"Oh? So is this bribery? Has he threatened you?"
"No! He'd never do a thing like that!"
"Then tell me. Why are you supporting him?"
"Because he saved my life."
"From who?"
"A…a demon. A succubus named Morrigan Aensland."
Franziska raised an eyebrow and the jury began whispering amongst themselves. Franziska proceeded to the nearby laptop and typed in a few words before turning the computer to Saya. The monitor shockingly showed a nude statue of Morrigan embracing a defenseless man. Saya had difficulty believing that such a thing could actually exist seeing how promiscuous Morrigan was.
"You mean her?"
"Y-yeah…jeez, do people worship her or something? I mean, she's pretty and all, but damn…"
"Ms. Kusanagi, this statue is of a woman who existed in the early eighteenth century. Am I really supposed to believe that you ran into her very much alive yesterday?"
"Yes. She's a succubus, so that means she lives longer than humans."
Franziska sighed and looked up at the judge.
"Is it safe for me to say that both of Dante's accomplices here are completely insane?"
"I'm not lying!" Saya yelled.
"Do not take that tone with me!"
Franziska raised her whip, and Saya reflexively held up her arms. The blow didn't come as the two women realized that Dante had stood up, walked over to Franziska and yanked the whip out of her grasp.
"This girl is thirteen years old and has major social issues." he growled. "You try and whip her again and I'll rip your throat out."
The judge slammed his gavel back down and Phoenix escorted Dante back to his seat. Franziska shook off the shock of the previous moment before turning back to Saya.
"Tell me something: who were your parents?"
"None of our business."
"That only convinces me that you're lying, Ms. Kusanagi."
"…if you must know, they're both dead because of pompous fools like you."
Franziska gritted her teeth (Phoenix smirking when he felt the satisfaction of someone finally calling Franziska a fool) but smiled evilly at the same time.
"I find it very convenient that you, Dante, and Kat are all orphans."
"HOLD IT!" Phoenix yelled, getting up out of his seat and pointing a finger at her. "That's not any sort of evidence, von Karma! Saya is thirteen years old and Dante is twenty-one, not to mention Dante was born and raised in America while Saya is Japanese! They are as unrelated as they could ever be."
"Tsk, tsk, Wright. A fool like you would naturally be so quick to assume that they're telling the truth."
"Because they are!"
"You're only saying that because you're getting paid to defend a serial killer. A traitor of society, if you will."
Saya was just barely able to hear Dante mutter the word "traitor" under his breath as though he were angry. Then the voices came again. The first was Dante, but the second was one she couldn't identify. Both were angry and defiant as they could ever be.
"I didn't help you destroy Mundus just so you could take his place! …I can't let you do this, Vergil."
"…And I can't let you stop me, brother. Stand aside."
"Don't do this."
Then Saya heard Kat's voice, sounding broken and sad beyond repair.
"Vergil, please…
"STAY OUT OF THIS!"
The voices stopped as Franziska came closer to Saya's face.
"Hello? Anyone in there? I asked you a question, Ms. Kusanagi?"
Saya stared off into space for a brief moment before looking back at Franziska.
"Huh?"
"I asked if you know anything about Limbo."
"Oh…I…no."
"Alright. Return to your seat, please."
She obeyed, but upon sitting down next to Kat, she asked a point-black question that she knew would get her a forlorn answer: "Who's Vergil?"
Kat froze on the spot and looked at Saya with sad eyes. Eyes that looked like they had been reminded of something they wanted to forget.
"…he's Dante's brother. Why do you ask?"
"I heard him and the two of you. They were fighting. Why?"
"…because Vergil betrayed us all…but how did you hear him?"
Saya bit her lip and looked down at her feet.
"I…I see and hear things sometimes…people's memories. Bad ones that they want to forget but can't."
Kat looked deep into Saya's eyes, as though she had done something wrong.
"How do you hear these things?"
"I don't know…I just do."
Saya noticed now that there was a woman at the stand who seemed to be shedding tears. From what the conversation between her and Franziska indicated, she had been the wife of one of the people Dante killed.
"And you say you witnessed Dante's murder of Kyle Ryder."
"Y-yes." the woman sobbed. "I was at work and…and he just suddenly barged in. He dragged Mr. Ryder out by the collar and…and he…he said such cruel things to him about how killing his child was priceless."
Franziska sneered.
"He killed a good man and his child? Seems he ought to be hanged instead."
"Yes. And…then Vergil started fist fighting Mr. Ryder before Dante…"
"Yes? What did Dante do?"
"…that nephilim bastard sliced him in two!"
The jury and audience gasped. Dante got up almost reflexively and shouted, "F*CK YOU! F*CK YOU AND THAT BACKSTABBING SON OF A BITCH, YOU GODDAMNED LIAR!"
Phoenix was barely able to wrestle Dante back into his chair, though shared his client's anger when he saw Franziska sickeningly smile.
"I think that just about wraps it up."
"Has the jury reached a verdict?" the judge asked.
"We have, your Honour."
Each member of the jury stood up, but as they did so, Saya came to a startling revelation. Hearing Vergil's name said out loud immediately sent shivers down her spine. It just sounded so mysterious and forsaken, but that wasn't what offset her about it. She'd found two flaws in what the woman had said, yet when she stood up and tried to get the attention of the jury as they one-by-one declared that there was insufficient evidence to prove Dante's innocence, they didn't pay any attention to her.
"Um…e-excuse me! Excuse me!"
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Phoenix smirking at her and giving her a thumbs-up. IN that moment, he proved that he was way ahead of Saya when he stood up, slammed both of his fists on the table, pointed at the jury and bellowed "OBJECTION!"
Everyone looked at Phoenix. His voice echoed through the room for several moments, even as Franziska spoke.
"Wright, don't be foolish. It's an open-and-shut case. Just except your loss and…"
"I'm not done yet, so shut up. I have a question for Mrs. Jamieson."
The woman at the stand jumped and looked around as though a bomb had just gone off.
"M-me?"
"Yes. Firstly, no one mentioned anyone named Vergil, and secondly, you mentioned that Dante was something called a nephilim. So if you're so certain that Dante is spewing a bunch of crap, tell me: who is Vergil and what is a nephilim?"
The woman sat speechless before knitting her brow. That was when the unthinkable happened: her skin turned deathly pale, her eyes sank into the back of her head, and a revolting black liquid starting foaming from her mouth and eyes as she turned to the audience and spoke in a frightening voice.
"Saaaaaaaayaaaaaaaaaa…"
Saya jumped at the mention of her name as if she wasn't already horrified by the woman's face. Everyone looked at the woman in shock save for Dante who immediately stood up and dove for Ebony and Ivory, shooting the woman in the head once he had a grip on them.
"That's how! She's a Goddamn demon!" he yelled. "Everybody hold tight! We're being dragged into Limbo!"
Indeed they were. The ceiling stretched to an almost imaginable height, the windows shattered, the walls and floor twisted irregularly, and of course, several of the disgusting creatures Saya had seen in Dante's pictures erupted from the ground. One thing that Dante was quick to notice was that Phoenix and Franziska had not faded like the other people in the courtroom had. They retained their colour and opacity.
"Oh, shit, they got dragged in, too!"
After shooting the spotter demon in the head, he rushed to the two lawyers.
"Quick! Follow Kat! She'll lead you to a rift out of here!"
Phoenix nodded and ran toward the door, but Franziska remained behind.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" she cried.
"Don't just stand there! Get that sweet ass moving before you get killed!"
"…pardon me?"
Franziska screamed as a demon suddenly spawned behind her and ran after Phoenix. Dante picked Rebellion up off the table and hacked away at the nearest demon before turning to Link.
"Yo, a little help here?"
Link nodded and unsheathed his blade before looking to Saya.
"Go! We'll take care of things here!"
"But what if they kill you?"
Link smiled and placed a hand on Saya's face.
"Don't worry. We'll be alright. I've gotten out of way worse situations than this."
Saya hesitated for a brief moment before nodding. She turned and began running toward the door when yet another unthinkable thing happened. The ceiling in front of her and behind her collapsed, creating massive blockades that both kept her from getting out of the room or running back to Link.
"Oh, no…"
"Saya! You okay?!" yelled Dante.
"I'm okay, but…"
Before she could finish her answer, she realized that there was a hand laid on her shoulder, and the owner of this hand began speaking in a soft and flamboyant manner.
"Ah, Saya Kusanagi. How wonderful it is to finally meet you, dear one."
"…wh-who are you?"
She turned her head to find herself staring into the red eyes of a pale-skinned man with long white hair that hung down over one of his eyes. Even worse was that his lips were stretched into a smile. A very sadistic smile that made Saya quickly begin to think that she would be better off screaming.
"I am the Demon Lord Ghirahim, and I have been searching for you for quite some time now."
Saya's instinct was to jump away, but Ghirahim had too strong of a hold on her and kept her in place.
"No, no. No running away on me now."
"What do you want?"
"You've met my associate Juri Han, I presume."
"You're with Juri?!"
"Sadly, yes. I do mean sadly since she seems a bit too violent, wouldn't you say?"
Ghirahim chuckled.
"Of course, I can get a tad violent myself when pushed over the edge."
Saya whimpered and slipped out of his grasp, getting a better look at his whole body. He wore a skin-tight white suit with a blood red mantle draping over him. He may not have looked overtly threatening, but he looked creepy enough that she wanted nothing to do with him. He scowled.
"You know, you have far more relevance to me and my associates than ransom. Quite honestly, Juri was fully capable of taking you to us herself and yet she failed because of a few children and a dog. It almost seemed like she didn't even care about how much you were worth."
Saya didn't respond, but she saw Ghirahim's hands start to contort as he brought them up to his head and ran them through his hair.
"Do you have…any idea how that made me feel?"
Saya jumped back slightly when the environment shook with every word he said next.
"FURIOUS!" he shouted, thrashing all about as he spoke. "OUTRAGED! ABSOLUTELY SICK WITH ANGER!"
He vanished with a loud sound accompanying him. Saya looked all about for anywhere he could have gone…when he appeared behind her yet again. That was when she realized he hadn't just gone through an insane mood swing for nothing. He was deliberately trying to scare her.
"But I find it very unfair to take my anger out on you. After all, it is Juri's fault, not yours."
"But what do you want with me?"
Ghirahim chuckled under his breath and looked at Saya with narrowed eyes.
"You see, dear Saya, you serve more of a purpose than you truly believe. Did Link claim to know your secret? We know it, too."
Saya bit her lip. How in the world did people find out about these things?! That wasn't what concerned her, though. She could tell just from the way both Juri and Ghirahim looked that whatever they were working toward couldn't be good. She grabbed the first thing she saw that could be used as a weapon: a broken piece of one of the nearby benches that could be used as a bo staff. Ghirahim chuckled again before breaking out into maniacal laughter.
"Did you really just raise a weapon against me? Come now, dear. You must be joking."
"I'm not going anywhere with you."
Ghirahim smirked evilly.
"Like I said, I'm more mild-mannered than Juri, but quite honestly, I hoped you'd say that."
With a flick of his wrist, a small black sword was in his left hand and he pointed it straight at Saya.
"Come, then. Take me down if you can."
Saya bit her lip and stabbed at Ghirahim's head with her stick, only for him to grab it with his right hand and hold it away without any sort of effort before he yanked it out of her hands and whacked her over the head with it. Saya fell down almost instantly and weakly got to her feet, yelping when Ghirahim placed his blade under her chin.
"Why do you fear?" he asked. "We both know this won't have any effect on you. In fact, we also both know that you can do much better than this."
He smiled sadistically. He and many others knew something she didn't want them to know, and he was making every attempt he could to exploit it.
"So, show me your true strength. Just let it all out."
"I won't…that's what you and Juri want, isn't it?"
"The repercussions of doing so are appealing to me, if that's what you are asking."
"Why do you…all of you…what do you want with me? How does everyone know my secret?! Why is this happening?!"
"Quite frankly, my dear young lady, the less you know, the better."
Saya scrambled away from Ghirahim's blade and picked up her stick again. This time, he snapped his fingers and a glowing red diamond appeared over his head before he launched it at her. She swatted it away, only to be surrounded by more of them from all sides. The second they surged inward to jab into her, she bent her knees and performed a phenomenal backflip out of the way. Ghirahim simply laughed.
"Impressive! That's what I've been waiting to see, child…but it seemed you forgot one."
Right on cue, Saya's right leg buckled as she realized that one of the diamonds had struck her knee right before Ghirahim rushed forward and backhanded her across the face. She fell to the ground and stared up at the sadistic excuse for a sentient creature steadily approaching her before she wrestled herself to her feet, blocked his sword slash, and struck his chest with her palm. It stunned her just how cold and lifeless he felt for the half-second she had touched him, but it didn't matter so much when that single push had sent him flying into the wall. She made use of the time she'd bought herself to let her heart rate get back to normal before Ghirahim jumped back through the hole and surged toward her.
"Oh, this just gets better and better!" he cackled.
Saya prepared herself for the blow, but all of a sudden, Ghirahim disappeared and reappeared behind her, striking her on the back of the head and knocking her to the ground yet again. Saya's head spun, and she struggled to stand as the demon seized her by her neck and hauled her off the ground.
"Ah, such a pretty young thing." he hissed. "What a waste. I must say that I'd much prefer it if you were my ally as opposed to Juri. You seem a lot more powerful than her…but you don't exploit your power. Why not?"
"Because…true power isn't proven by how hard you can hit something…or how many people you can kill…but by how you use your strength to help your fellow man."
"Is that so? Then I suppose it's fortunate for me that I am no man. That little proverb of yours has no meaning for me. Power is definitely about how hard I can hit something. You, for example."
He threw her across the room and she let out only a single pained cry as her back struck the stone wall, feeling like her spine had splintered. She crumpled to the floor yet again and made a futile attempt to try and get up as Ghirahim began advancing on her, but it seemed like every square inch of her body hurt now. She ahd tried to put up a fight, and she was paying for it in the worst way possible.
"Don't give up on me just yet. The party's only GAH!"
The cry of pain was justified as one of the benches was lifted up and smashed over Ghirahim's head, forcing him to the ground where he was vaulted aside and his attacker stepped forward toward Saya, said attacker being an American man with a crew cut wearing a leather jacket and a dirty white shirt that clearly hadn't been ironed in a while, and his pants and shoes were just as unkempt. His most interesting feature, however, was the camera dangling from his neck, which he used to take a quick snapshot of Ghirahim before kneeling down to help Saya.
"You alright, kid?"
"You…you got sucked into Limbo, too?"
"Yeah. I'm a photojournalist. I was here to get the scoop on the trial, and let me tell ya: there's gonna be papers and news stations all over wanting to get their hands on this."
"Yeah, good luck explaining all of this. Who are you?"
The man helped Saya to her feet and properly introduced himself after checking Saya's wounds.
"Nothing too serious by the looks of it. Anyway, the name's Frank West. You're Saya Kusanagi, right? That von Karma broad was giving you a hard time up there, huh?"
"I hear she does that to just about everyone."
"I wouldn't doubt that. Who brings a whip to court? Seriously!"
"God, I need to get a good night's sleep after this…"
"I'll bet…ah, nuts, he's gettin' up."
Ghirahim shook the stars out of his eyes and glared at Frank. The anger Saya had seen in the demon was back tenfold, and he seemed ready to lash out at any moment.
"I don't like having my little playdates interrupted."
"Yeah, well, party's over!" Frank retaliated before whipping out a handgun and firing off several rounds at the pale-skinned demon.
Ghirahim swung with rapid slashes in quick succession, deflecting every single bullet before he lunged forward. In what seemed like a nanosecond, Frank had kicked the stick Saya had been using into his hand before rearing back and swinging it like a baseball bat, striking Ghirahim hard across the face.
"And it's a hooooooome run!" Frank laughed.
"Um, excuse me, but if you're a photojournalist, why the hell do you have a gun?!" Saya exclaimed.
"After the crap I've gone through, I think I'm entitled to carry one of these things."
"What's that supposed to mean? You have a gun! You need a better explanation than that!"
"Not when there's a pale-faced lunatic trying to lop our heads off!"
And that was exactly what Ghirahim tried to do at that moment, producing a second blade and diving at Frank while slashing them inward. What the "pale-faced lunatic" hadn't counted on was Frank ducking and uppercutting his stomach. Ghirahim let out a single pained shout as he was launched higher, and the second he was close enough, Frank grabbed him and slammed his knee into his back. Like before, Ghirahim was only down for a few seconds before he got up looking even angrier than before.
"You clearly don't understand how much that girl is worth, 'Frank West'." he spat, emphasizing his opponent's name as though it were a curse word before he lunged again. "I refuse to let a worthless slob like you prevent me from achieving my goal!"
"Yeah, well achieve this, freak show!"
Once Ghirahim was directly in front of Frank, he set off his camera. The flash blinded Ghirahim long enough for Frank to deliver a strong punch to his face and kick him backwards.
"DAMN YOU, YOU ROTTEN SON OF A BITCH!"
It seemed that Link and Dante had finally taken care of the demons, as Dante suddenly smashed his way through the barrier of debris blocking the two from Saya just as Ghirahim started to get up again.
"He ain't the only one, shithead!" Dante yelled, pointing his sword directly at the demon.
Ghirahim scowled at the new intruders of his "playdate" until he laid his eyes on Link. He smiled evilly and began to laugh.
"Well, well. I was wondering when you might turn up, Link."
"Excuse me?" Link demanded. "How do you know my name?"
"Oh, don't play dumb with me. Remember me? That innocent demon lord whose plans for a greater world you so foolishly ruined? We've fought three times, for goodness sake!"
Link blew a puff of air out through the corner of his mouth as he tried to think. It wasn't any use.
"No, I don't think we have."
"Are you trying to insult me by saying I'm not worth remembering?!"
"Of course not. I'd remember a freak like you. Trust me."
"You insolent little…wait…actually, now that I think about, you're a tad taller than the Link I remember. You seem a bit more…how should I put this…chiseled, as well."
"Umm…thanks?"
"A descendant, perhaps…"
All of a sudden, Ghirahim started to laugh again, only forcing Link and his companions to raise their eyebrows.
"Sheesh, what's this guy's problem?" Dante muttered.
"It seems that my master's prophecy has indeed come true." Ghirahim finally said.
Link scowled. The mention of a master reminded him of another psychopath he'd fought. That being had so much power and had let it drive him mad…but the truth of it was that being had been subservient to someone even more powerful and even more dangerous.
"What master?!" he demanded.
"I can't count on you knowing him, but here's a hint: starts with a d and rhymes with 'sunrise'…as in before long, there will never be one again."
"Dammit. Zelda was right. He's coming back…"
"Alas, dear Link, I must be going. And Saya?"
The demon lord shot a sadistic glance at Saya and sneered.
"Know this. Juri and I aren't the only ones after you. We will have you before long."
And just like that, he was gone.
"Are you hurt?" Link asked Saya in a serious tone.
"No, I'm fine." Saya replied. "Frank made sure of that…but Link? Who is he talking about?"
Link seemed about to tell her until the ground beneath their feet shook.
"Whoa, what the hell's going on?!" Frank shouted.
"Ah, crap…" Dante growled. "It's caving in!"
"Which means…"
The situation spoke for itself when the four looked behind them and saw in horror that the ground was starting to cave in, revealing nothing beneath it but a dark void.
"RUN!"
And they ran as fast they could as the massive hole kept getting larger and larger.
"What's going on?!" Saya screamed.
"That's how Limbo works, kid!" Dante shouted back. "The city itself is trying to stop us!"
"Okay, who's the moron that made this place anyway?!"
"Okay, the part about me slicing Kyle Ryder in half…whose name is actually Mundus, by the way…that part was true, but I only did it AFTER he shifted into his big badass demon form."
She felt the need to question him about Vergil and ask if that was true as well, but the ground caving in behind them as they ran didn't serve to help her think properly. Up ahead, they could see Kat beckoning to them from behind a portal on the ground.
"Hurry!" she called. "I marked it!
They seemed just a few meters away when Saya suddenly went through the old horror movie cliché of tripping and not getting up right away. She screamed as she felt the ground beneath start to give way, but by that time, like had equipped some sort of gauntlet onto his arm and fired a claw attached to a chain right at her. The claw seized Saya's shirt and heaved her into Link's arms, who promptly jumped into the portal alongside Dante and Frank. A brilliant light enveloped them, and in seconds, they stood in the same place but with everything focused back in normally and numerous civilians looking at the wrecked courthouse and wondering what in the world just happened.
"Phew. Good going, guys." Kat panted. "What kept you?"
"Saya here had a run in with some demon guy calling himself Ghirahim." said Dante. "He seems to know Link.
"Oh? How?"
Link sighed and waved his hand in a nonchalant manner.
"I don't wanna talk about it. Anyway, Frank, was it?"
"Yeah." Frank answered.
"Thanks for rescuing Saya and all, but what were you thinking? You could've gotten yourself killed back there."
"Buddy, calm down. I've covered wars, you know."
It was at that moment that the group noticed that Phoenix and Franziska were standing there giving them confused looks.
"Umm…listen, sorry you two had to get caught up in that." Dante said, scratching at the back of his head.
"Can I…have my whip back now?"
Dante obliged and Franziska pocketed it.
"I…excuse me, I think I need to go home and take a hot bath…and Dante?"
"What?"
"Do I…really have a 'sweet ass'?"
"Yeah. And I'm not gonna lie: the whole dominatrix whipping thing is kinda sexy."
It seemed Franziska wasn't used to getting compliments like this, because she flushed as red as a tomato before turning on her heel and walking away. Kat shot Dante a dirty look.
"What exactly did I miss going on in there?"
"Relax, Kat. It was just a joke."
"Right. That was why you spanked her."
"I didn't spank her!"
"No, but you wanted to, though to her credit, she'd probably lash you with that whip for doing it."
Frank stepped forward, obviously trying to get the banter to stop.
"Anyhow, you kids got a place to stay for the night?"
"Considering I'm a wanted criminal and the court has yet to clear me of all charges…"
Phoenix patted Dante on the shoulder.
"Not to worry, my friend. I think sufficient evidence was supplied in there. I'll have the papers filled out for your vindication right away."
"Awesome! You're the best, Phoenix!"
"Just one thing, though. I need you to do something for me."
Phoenix promptly dug a picture out of his pocket of him and a teenage girl who looked surprisingly a lot like Saya, though was dressed up a magician-esque outfit.
"Cute kid. Who is she?"
"She's my daughter Trucy. I haven't seen her in three days. I mean, I know she's fifteen and I shouldn't be so worried about her, but…well, she's no badass demon killer with a five-foot long sword."
Dante smiled and pocketed the picture.
"I'll keep an eye out for her. You've done good today, man. You deserve to go home and get some rest."
"Thanks."
With that, Phoenix left and Frank continued.
"Now that that's settled, I can probably get you guys a place at a hotel around here somewhere."
"Sounds good. Nothing like spending a leisurely night in Tokyo."
"Perfect. Follow me."
As they walked, Saya quickly caught up to Link and tapped on his shoulder.
"What's up?" he asked.
"Link…if it's not too much trouble…can you teach me how to fight?!"
"Huh? You mean like with a sword?"
"Yeah. It's me they want. I don't want people getting hurt because of me. I know I can be a good fighter if I try."
Link bit his lip. It seemed like Saya was asking for trouble now, but with someone like Ghirahim hunting her, she would definitely need some knowledge of self-defence. Maybe it was just a weird feeling of finally seeing a woman stick up for herself in front of him. He'd never really seen that except from Zelda.
"I tell ya, this world's all out of whack…" he muttered.
Nevertheless, he smiled.
"Tell you what: I'll talk it over with Dante. I think he might be willing to help."
"Thanks…but seriously. How many of these psychos out there are trying to get me?!"
"You got your ass kicked, too, eh?" Juri asked as Ghirahim appeared in the room.
"Silence, Han. You fought children and were defeated just as easily."
"Hey, for the record, they were psychic. That one kid froze me in the lake…remind me to rip his face off later."
"Forget it. Let us see how the formation is coming along."
The two walked down the hallway and into the sinister laboratory. Several glass canisters were dotted throughout the room, all connected to a number of tubes and computers, though only the middle one would catch any interest, for this one had computers being operated on as the two watched. Various fluids were being injected into the canister, coming together on a large mass that barely took on a humanoid shape. Standing in front of the canister were two tall and dark figures.
The first wore a long purple robe lined with red stripes that hung down to his bare feet with skin to match the color. His feet and hands were both clawed, and his multi-colored hair wavered about in almost every direction. The second figure wore a navy blue suit made of leather that shaped into what seemed to be wings jutting out of his lower back. Compared to the first figure, his skin was light-blue.
"The girl has sadly evaded our grasps, masters." Ghirahim muttered.
The blue-skinned figure grunted.
"How many partners has she accumulated?" he asked.
"Sorry?" Juri asked.
The purple-skinned figure scoffed.
"You should be, dear Juri. Short and a short attention span are a bad combination."
"What did you say to me?!"
"I rest my case."
The blue-skinned figure held up his hand.
"Come now, Hades. Saya is not an easy to target to capture."
"Really. Then tell me, Jedah: why is that we don't go after her ourselves?"
"Because we must supervise the formation. Ghirahim's 'Link and Zelda' would do anything to ensure our subject does not succeed in rebirthing. You know that."
"Yes, but I would prefer it if I didn't considering men aren't supposed to give birth."
"It isn't like that."
"No, but every party needs a pooper. That's the reason you exist."
Ghirahim stepped forward and smiled at the mass inside the canister.
"He is beginning to take shape." he said.
"Yes." replied Jedah. "Before long, we will have a true ruler for Makai…a true leader for the demonic forces."
"Uh, excuse me!" Hades spoke up with his arms crossed. "Does big bad Jedah Dohma think he's the lord of the underworld? Pfft! Please…"
Jedah smiled as the humanoid mass formed further, growing flecks of red hair and dark skin. It would be some time before the subject formed completely, but it would not be long.
"We have your scent, Saya Kusanagi." he said to himself. "Now it is just a matter of time."
"Someone should call that fellow Luigi and tell him to bring his vacuum." Hades chuckled. "Jedah's hearing ghosts."
"Hades?"
"Jedah."
"Hades!"
"Jedah!"
"HADES!"
"JEDAH!"
"HADEEEEEEES!"
"…..Jedah."
"OBJECTION! Oh, man, that is really fun to say!"
Yes it is, Deadpool. Yes it is.
One thing I'm curious about: why is it that people keep asking for Magnus or Dark Pit in Super Smash Bros. 4 and not Hades? Newsflash, guys: play Brawl, choose Pit, and cycle through the palette swaps until you get to the black one. There. Dark Pit.
SOUNDTRACK SO FAR
Saya, Ness, and Lucas- "Pollyanna" from Earthbound (SSBM)
Marth to the rescue- "Together We Ride" from Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (SSBM)
X and Zero versus Kirby and Meta Knight- "Meta Knight's Revenge" from Kirby Super Star (SSBB)
Link versus Morrigan- Morrigan's theme from Marvel versus Capcom 3
Link versus Dante- "Never Surrender" from DmC: Devil May Cry
Krystal and Trish versus the Moblin horde- "Lock and Load" from Devil May Cry 1
Krystal versus Mewtwo- "Poké Floats" from Super Smash Bros. Melee
Saya versus Ghirahim- Ghirahim's battle theme from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Frank versus Ghirahim- "On a Mission" from Dead Rising
Courthouse caving in- "No Redemption" from DmC: Devil May Cry (point being that I really like the Devil May Cry games)