A/N: Anotha one!

-DMC-

This battle… was not going the way Ivy had planned.

Dante was having a blast slicing through wave after wave of vines and mooks. Vines that would aim to pierce his heart would get hacked apart with that sword of his, while other vines meant to either pierce his head or ensnare his throat he'd smoothly dodge, and then swiftly hack apart without missing a beat.

One of the humanoid plants, one of many formed from Gotham's undesirables, tried getting the jump on Dante from behind when he landed, only for him to put a bullet through the plant's flower head without the man even turning around.

Three more of the humanoid plants tried tackling him from all sides, Dante leaping up high to dodge, before bringing out his pistols and letting off a spinning rainstorm of bullets over the mutants.

The second his feet touched the ground, a mutated venus fly trap came at him from the side like a speeding truck. One downward swing from Rebellion, and the plant was cut in half. Another fly trap came at him from above, Dante moving in a blur to dodge. The flytrap bit down on nothing.

Before it could get up, Dante put a boot down on its head, keeping it in place as he put several rounds from Ivory into its head.

The floor was beginning to pile with shredded remains of plant, "I keep this up, I could whip up a nice salad." the half-devil said as he kicked the plant-mutant away, before fluidly decapitating another. The vine meant to ensnare him from behind was briskly snatched by him, "Got any ranch?" he asked her before tearing the vine with a hard jerk.

With every plant Dante killed; Ivy would suffer, physically and emotionally. Every vine he tore, every vine he sliced, was like putting a branding iron to her heart; but through the pain, she was more concerned about the lives of her 'children' that were snuffed. She couldn't stop her onslaught, less her babies die in vain.

Ivy gave a rage filled cry as she threw all she could at Dante, a wave of barbed and thorny vines shooting at the hunter like a tidal wave.

He simply stood… and took it.

A sadistic smile crossed Ivy's face as she eyed the skewered body before her. Numerous vines pierced Dante's chest, arms, legs, and throat. Blood and gore leaked down the vines and dripped to the floor, confirming the kill in Ivy's eyes.

"And thus things end as they should." Ivy said as she sat back on her makeshift throne, "Mother nature always wins."

A chuckle from the 'corpse' brought a gasp of horror from Ivy. She saw Dante walk through the vines, the spikes tearing bloodily through his body as he closed the distance.

He stood just feet away from Ivy before he casually ripped the spiked vines with his hand. His healing factor quickly sealed the wounds and pushed the vine tips out of his body.

Dante pulled Ivory, leveling the gun right to Ivy's face.

"Guess we'll consider this tree... chopped." he said, Ivy's eyes wide in fear.

Ivy looked between Dante and the gun. She saw her life flash before her eyes. She couldn't die here. She still needed a world without industry, and she'd be damned if she left this world until she gave that to her 'children'. In one last desperate act, Ivy quickly grabbed Dante's wrist, moving Ivory out of the way before grabbing his shirt collar… and kissed him deeply.

Dante's eyes darted left and right in confusion. After several seconds, she pulled back, a triumphant smirk on her face, "Now, you're all mine." She looked into his eyes, expecting to see another man having fallen slave to her pheromones and toxins.

Blinking, Dante smiled, "Heh, you hit the gas fast. I would've waited till the second date." he finished with a chuckle.

Ivy's eyes widened in shock and confusion, "That… normally works…" there was only one other man she couldn't bend to her will. And this man before her wasn't dressed in a batsuit. Growing frustrated, Ivy grabbed Dante by the collar again, once again crashing her lips against his. This time, she grabbed the back of his head, bringing the kiss even deeper. Her mouth opened to funnel deadly amounts of toxin through Dante's body.

After several seconds, Dante decided he'd had enough, and pushed Ivy back, "No offense lady, but your breath reeks."

Ivy's green eyes furrowed in anger and frustration, "Impossible, I put enough toxins through you to kill twenty men!"

"Hm, maybe you shoulda swang for thirty." he said to her with a cheshire cat grin. At that moment, his eyes widened as his skin turned deathly pale, the veins in his face blackening and thickening. "Ugh!" Dante grunted in discomfort.

The redhead smiled in joy, "Yes! It did work!" Ivy's world suddenly went black, Dante having pinched a nerve in the side of her neck, knocking her unconscious.

Shaking his head, Dante felt the effects of the poison vanish as quickly as they appeared. Dante looked down at the unconscious eco-terrorist. Beautiful or not, she was dangerous. He put Ebony to her head, clicking the hammer.

Dante's brow furrowed, 'Crazy lady, sure. But she's no demon.' he thought. He grabbed her by her arm, slinging her over his shoulder, 'Guess I'll let her be higher authoritie's problem.' He walked out of the warehouse, bringing Ivy along with him.

As he pushed the door to the outside open, the son of Sparda was greeted with the sight of the bat-dressed creep and his sidekick from last night. It appeared the two were waiting for him.

"Well this is a surprise." Batman said when he saw the unconscious Ivy.

"Hey birdie's, fine night for a fly ain't it." Dante said casually, as if he were speaking to any stranger he crossed in the street.

"I agree." the Batman said as he approached the hunter.

"I take it you two've calmed down?" Dante asked, hoisting Ivy up better on his shoulder, "We can keep our hands to ourselves this time?"

"I suppose." Batman said, cowled eyes narrowing, "Before we decide on that, we need to know…" he got straight to the point, "who and what was it you killed last night?"

"Heh, guess demon's aren't popular around these parts?" Dante asked, the man putting his weight on his left foot.

"Demons?" Damian asked.

"You heard me." the demon hunter said, "They're everywhere, usually hiding in plain sight and taking over the bodies of the recently deceased. You'll find'em in all shapes and sizes. They could look like your next door neighbor, a dog at the pound, or some monstrosity out of your average horror movie. Normally they stay lowkey, unless a bigger badder demon pops up and starts calling the shots."

"Was that the case?" Batman asked. He and his organization had dealt with demons and the supernatural before. There were even members who specialized in such among their ranks. The existence of such, obviously, couldn't surprise him at all.

"Nah. Demons normally pick fights with me 'cause they aren't very… progressive." Dante said as he walked to step past Batman. It would be a cold day in hell before something out of the underworld would allow a half-demon half-human hybrid to simply be.

"Who are you?" Batman asked, stopping the demon slayer, "What's your name?"

"Me? I'm just a cowboy a long way from home." Dante said as he walked, "Could tell you my name… if you gave me yours first." he grinned at Batman. When he received none, he kept walking, "What I thought."

"Wait." Batman said as he signalled for his vehicle with his wrist computer. The Batmobile sped around the corner, stopping just in front of the trio. The back of the vehicle opened, revealing a seat with straps meant to secure, "Put Poison Ivy inside. I'll take her off your hands."

"Poison Ivy?" Dante repeated the name, the man chuckling at it, "A little on the nose, don't you think?"

"We don't make the names." Robin said as he folded his arms, somewhat agreeing with the man.

"Hm, but anyways, you saved me a trip to a police station that I have no idea where to find." Dante said as he strapped the unconscious woman into the transport, "Appreciate that."

"Do you have shelter? A place to stay?" Batman asked, Robin looking to the man with confusion in his eyes.

"Define 'shelter'. I see a bridge here, and a bridge there. An abandoned building down the block." Dante said.

"Remember this address, 239 Kane Street. You'll be taken care of." Batman said, he and Robin getting into the car. It sped off down the street.

The boy wonder watched as the streets of Gotham turned into a streak of street lights, Dante disappearing from the side-view mirrors in seconds, "Where did you send him?"

"Somewhere I can keep an eye on him… until I learn more about him." Batman said, turning a corner as he made his way to Arkham Asylum.

XXX

Having found the address after a trek halfway across the city, Dante stepped through a pair of double doors, the man greeted to the sight of a bright hallway lined with homeless folk.

"Ugh, homeless shelter..." Dante quickly deduced. "I'm not a bum. What the hell am I doing here?" he left the building, walking to the back of the alley the building was next to.

He sat down on the garbage littered ground… a rat running across his leg, "I've made a terrible mistake..."

XXX

After a half hour of waiting, Dante made it to the front of the line. An older woman with short hair greeted him, "Welcome to the Wayne Shelter for the Homeless. We have a bed available for you for…" she flipped a page on her clipboard, verifying information, "three days, and food as well! We just need a name and some form of identification."

Dante sighed, figuring he'd use his alias, "Tony. Redgrave." he said robotically as he flipped her his ID.

The woman wrote down the name on the clipboard, "Okay, Mr Redgrave." she handed Dante back the card, "You'll find your bed in room 3E. Food is in the cafeteria."

"What's for dinner?" Dante asked.

"It's pizza night!" the woman said, Dante's eyes widening as he looked up to the ceiling.

"Thank you God." he whispered, before he quickly turned back to the social worker, "What type?"

"Pepperoni sausage and olive!"

A wrecking ball crashed into Dante's good mood, "Damnit God!"

XXX

Bruce and Damian sat at the batcomputer, the billionaire searching the database of his homeless shelter.

"There you are." Bruce said, "Tony... Redgrave." he leaned forward, pulling up his own custom database of the world's population. He entered the name into the system… receiving nothing in return.

"No Limbo City, no Tony Redgrave." Damian said, folding his arms.

"A long way from home seems to describe his situation perfectly." Batman said.

"Alien maybe?" Damien asked.

"Possibly." Bruce said, "I'll need to get some more one on one time with him. Ask him more questions." Bruce leaned back in his chair, "If it turns out he's not of Earth, then there's a very good chance I may need the League's help in dealing with him."

"You aren't worried about him causing trouble around Gotham?" Damian asked.

"He brought in Poison Ivy. Alive. His current financial situation tells me hasn't robbed anyone. That's a well enough test of character. For now." Bruce said as he stood up from his seat.

XXX

(The Following Afternoon...)

"Are you kidding!" Dante growled in frustration, the hispanic convenience store clerk not at all fazed, "That thing's a piece of junk! How the hell are you gonna ask for six-hundred bucks for it!?"

The 'thing' in question was an old Harley-Davidson motorcycle, at least a decade and a half old, with a busted left mirror, scratched and chipped red paint, and more than a bit of rusted metal. A 'FOR SALE' sign hung from the handlebars.

"Uh, by charging six-hundred for it?" the young store clerk said with a cut of his eyes. The man was young, no older than eighteen or nineteen. He had tan skin, a buzzcut, and a thin mustache and goatee. He was dressed in a casual black polo and jeans as his work outfit, "I could cut the price of that bike in half and someone would buy it. That's a better deal than the 15 bucks you were offering." he rang up the Jack Daniels whisky Dante put on the counter, "The liquor will be 20. Unless you wanna haggle there too." the cashier scoffed with a cut of his eyes.

Grumbling, Dante put the money down on the counter. He snatched the bottle of Jack before walking to the front door.

Before he could leave, an itch on the back of his neck flared, before an unnaturally big fellow in a black suit walked through the store doors, stepping past Dante. The man had dark skin, beady eyes, and a thick cornrow hairstyle. The son of Sparda caught a big whiff of the man, the slight itch on the back of his neck heating up. This man stank, with a stench he was all too familiar with.

The unusual looking man stopped for a moment, his twisted face turning to slide Dante a side eye. He ignored the son of Sparda who still had his back to him, before continuing up to the shopkeeper like he himself owned the place.

"Penguin expects his protection money." The enforcer said, voice deep and booming. He towered over the cashier, looking down on the young man.

"Oh come on," the shopkeeper said, trying his best to keep a brave frame, "my ma's not well and my old man's locked up. Business is slow. We just don't have the money right now." The shopkeeper spoke bravely but the shake in his boots told otherwise, for good reason.

"Damn shame." the enforcer's long arm grabbed the cashier's wrist, forcing it down on the countertop, "For you." the enforcer's meaty thumb pushed up under the shopkeepers index finger, the teen breaking out into a cold sweat from the quick pressure build up, "Two weeks late, Penguin says I get to break two fingers."

"Oh shit! Wait, h-hold on-" the cashier said, feeling the bones in his finger ready to disconnect at any split second.

A chuckle filled the air, but it didn't come from the enforcer or the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper looked past the enforcer, the larger man's beady eyes side eyeing Dante, who approached the two.

"Demon's are taking orders from penguin's now? Damn, you guys are down bad." the hunter chuckled.

The enforcer chuckled heavily, his beady eyes turning pitch black, "Lotta smack talk," his voice grew even deeper and more guttural, skin turning grey, "coming from a man who's already dead." his teeth grew sharper, his lower canines growing as the veins in his skin bulged.

Dante took in a deep breath as he put a hand to his pulse, "Already dead? I beg to differ."

The demon whipped the shopkeeper at Dante, the devil-hunter briskly catching him. The shopkeeper screamed as the demon charged at them, smashing through shelves filled with chips and candy to reach his target. Dante smirked, shoving the clerk to the side as he smoothly stepped in towards the demon. He smashed the heavy bottle of Jack into the demon's head, caving its skull and dazing it before Dante roundhouse kicked it into a shelf filled with liquor and other alcoholic drinks.

"And bingo." Dante drawled as he whipped out Ebony, and fired a shot at the alcohol covered demon.

The shopkeeper stood mouth agape as the demon took a gunshot to the chest, at the same time catching fire. It screamed in agony as it quickly burned to death.

The young cashier stepped away from Dante, looking back and forth between him and the demon.

"Sorry about the mess, kid." Dante said, "Dealing with these things is never a clean job." he holstered Ebony again as he turned to leave the store, "Though I'd hate to see what kinda shitstorm these penguins are gonna leave when they find out I whacked their man."

The shopkeeper looked back and forth between the dead demon and Dante, "Wait!" he called out, stopping Dante. The cashier now looked between Dante and the motorcycle outside, "Um… wanna make a deal?"

XXX

A/N: I know this story is called 'Devil of the League', not 'Devil of Gotham' but that'll change.