Author's note: I do not own any characters from any franchises that may appear in this chapter.
Chapter 2: Glimmer's of Hope
...
The mood was sombre inside the empty Gates of Hell. The record player was silent and covered with a thin layer of dust, as Rodin did not believe that it was appropriate to have his normal tunes playing.
The centre of the room had been cleared and now housed a casket that Rodin was too familiar with for his own good. The healed, nude body of Jeanne lay inside, clutching her hands above her still heart. Her eyes were closed and her long hair covered almost every available surface inside, from the walls of her container to the exposed skin of her body.
"Well, now that she's dead, naked and not talking? I can sorta see why people think she is pretty." Enzo stroked his chin and shook his head, pulling it away from the box. "Nah, I still don't see it."
The gunsmith sighed and leaned on the counter. "She's not dead. Not in the traditional sense. But at the rate everything is going? Jeanne may as well be."
No one had seen Bayonetta for a week. She had, understandably, run away from civilisation when it became very apparent that her best friend was dead and there was seemingly nothing she could do about it. Processing grief was different to each person, but Rodin wished that a part of Bayonetta's was taking some form of communication with her. He was fine with not wanting to be around other people when you needed time to get to grips with the current reality of the situation, but disappearing off the face of the Earth was really fucking annoying.
Luka shared his sentiments.
"Huh? Whaddya mean she's not dead? She got punched by a Demon and her body fell off a skyscraper; if that didn't kill the bitch, then what possibly will?"
Rodin stood back up and walked around the counter, picking up a silver Umbran Watch when he passed it. "When a Witch dies their soul is taken into Inferno; that you should know. If they had any pacts with Demons, then those get the first share of the meal. If, and only if, there's any leftovers… Well, I think you get the idea."
"Oh I get it, but that doesn't tell me how or why she could be still alive!" Enzo poked the body in the coffin. "See? She's dead. She ain't coming back."
"A person only dies if their soul leaves the trinity and passes onto the next world. This process, especially if the Patron Infernal is unprepared to reclaim their owed soul, can take up to two weeks."
The short man frowned and looked into the coffin. "So you are telling me that if someone can find her soul, then she can come back to life?"
"Yeah, but it's going to be cutting it real close." Rodin opened the watch to see half of the trailing purple flames extinguished. "We are running out of time."
"Well, you can get into Inferno, right? Why haven't you gone downstairs yet and rescued her?" Enzo's head turned to him with a frown. "Surely you-"
"I can't."
"What!? You mean to tell me that the all-powerful Rodin can't do something? Why?"
He closed the watch and sighed. "Something is blocking me. All the normal paths into the Underworld have been sealed shut; the only ones left are the real Gates of Hell in Noatun and that pathway opened by the damn tree in Red Grave City."
In an unexpected show of emotion, the weaponsmith slammed his fist down on a nearby table. "Going through that tree is guaranteed to be a one-way trip and Noatun is their domain. If it's the person I think is behind all of this, then shit just got a lot more complicated."
Enzo gulped. "How come?"
Rodin chuckled darkly. "Who do you think my best friend in Inferno is trying to outwit? Some random bastard? No, this guy is one persistent son of a bitch. If he has caught onto her in any way that's possible, then this whole scenario and situation is fucked."
…
The phone rang to a dial tone for the third time. Without hesitation the man holding it slammed the handpiece back onto the receiver and started repunching in the numbers.
"Come on…" He whispered to himself as the phone began to ring again. "Please, pick up."
A click on the other end finally calmed him down slightly.
"Hello, welcome to Devil May Cry! Nero isn't here right now, but my name is Kyrie and I can take a message if you want?" A cheerful voice answered.
"Oh- I'm Luka Redgrave, I'm a friend of Damien." He rushed out before his emotions decided to get the better of him.
"Oh! I know of you, but I do not know you. Sorry!" Kyrie's voice slowly became more disheartened. "I heard about what happened to Jeanne."
The Witch's crumpled body flashed through his mind. Luka flinched and his breathing hitched. "I…"
"I shouldn't have brought that up so quickly. I'm really sorry for your loss."
"It's okay." A lie. "I'm managing." Another lie. "Does Damien know?"
"I don't think he does." Her voice was solemn. "He returned to Red Grave City with Nero about three weeks ago and when Nero came back, he wasn't with him."
Luka felt cold. "What do you mean, didn't come back? What's happening in Red Grave City?"
"You haven't heard about the tree?"
"I have, but isn't Dante dealing with that?" The strange tree that grew up and through the city on the west coast was the talk of the underground. For the rest of the world, it was just a movie set. Another cover-up in the same vein of Temen-Ni-Gru.
"Dante lost. Damien, Trish, Lady and he went into the tree to take out the Demon that summoned it. Nero and V went in after-"
"Who's V?"
"A friend. He's helping out with the whole situation. He's got a personal stake in this situation and he's…" Kyrie seemed to be struggling to find the words. "I'm not explaining this well, but he is with us to make sure we win. And we will."
"But where is Damien? Bayonetta has gone missing and-" His voice choked up. Swallowing, Luka tried to calm himself again. His hand squeezed the armrest of the couch in an attempt to keep himself centred. "I need to know he's safe."
Kyrie was silent for a moment. "He's okay. Damien isn't with me right now, but he's okay."
Nero should have chosen a better business partner who could actually lie, especially if they were going to be manning the phones. Luka closed his eyes and very calmly spoke again. "Can I speak to Dante? Do you know where he is?"
"He's… also not here right now."
Luka very much wanted to scream and shout, but he knew that Kyrie did not deserve it. There was a very high chance that the poor woman was the unfortunate face of the situation and not being deliberately antagonistic. Sighing, he reopened his eyes and tried to keep himself calm.
"That's fine. How long until Damien is able to talk?"
Kyrie hesitated again. "I can't give an exact timeline, but it should be sooner rather than later. I hope."
But he's okay!?
"Thank you. When you catch up with him, tell him to call me."
"I will."
"Thank you again."
The line clicked shut and Luka hurled the phone at the couch, barely remembering that he didn't really have the money to buy a replacement. A pained cry erupted from his throat when he buried his face in his hands, openly crying and wailing for all to see and hear.
Thunder rumbled in the distance and the heavens opened up. Rain began to tap at the windows, setting a rather poignant backdrop to his suffering.
Ha. Now he was thinking all ridiculous. Get a grip, Luka. You have to find Bayonetta and make sure she is mentally alright.
He had woken up a week ago, finding the lollipop jar half emptied yet again and a neatly written note about how he had to fulfill his end of the bargain. This was typical Bayonetta behaviour; she would 'waste' his money and time over her indulgences. Did Luka mind that much? Not really. His only real regret was when he worked out with the woman that he had been the one to inadvertently addict her to the candies.
"That's your problem then." She smirked that stupid, infuriating smile and patted his head.
Resigning himself to another trip to the grocery store, he prepared himself for the day and within a few minutes of getting changed everything went to hell for the first time in a long time. Buildings began to explode from unseen forces and he had to scramble to find those glasses that could see into Purgatorio. When he finally found them and saw what was happening, it was Isla Del Sol all over again.
And just as he began to run down the emergency stairs to start moving people off the streets, it ended. Silence seemed to reign for an impossibly long time. Then the sky turned red.
Luka at that point knew that the safest place in the world would be right next to Bayonetta. He didn't find her in his frantic search; instead, he found Rodin and the horrible sight of Jeanne's mangled body.
The image was seared into his memory and he knew that it would never leave.
A head bumped into his elbow. Uncovering one eye, he found Viola looking up at him with wide, innocent eyes. Whimpering, he grabbed the cat and placed her onto his lap and began to stroke her fur. She began to purr and Luka briefly wondered just how sentient his cat actually was.
"I need to know she's safe." He began to talk aloud, somewhat hoping that Viola would somehow give him reprieve. "She's out there, alone and hurting and I need-"
Luka wasn't sure if she would appreciate being held, but he lifted the cat up and cuddled her. He didn't get scratched instantly.
"Her best friend is dead. Her brother is missing and all I can do for her is sit here and, I don't know, fucking cry," he tried not to get angry, but his frustration at his inability to do anything useful was beginning to boil over. "I just want to help someone and I can't do anything to help anyone. What a useless friend must I be!"
The room was illuminated with a bright light when lightning struck nearby. Thunder followed soon after, causing the other two cats and dog to yelp in fear.
"Come here, Claire, Silvia and Akira."
The pets quickly jumped onto the couch, surrounding and throwing themselves at him. Luka's two hands weren't enough to constantly calm them all, but he somehow managed. Akira began to circle around on the second cushion and curled up into small ball. The two cats still stayed close to him, both rubbing themselves against his legs.
"Everything is going to be alright."
He was talking to the cats, right?
Another flash of lightning lit the room up again. But this time, it all plunged into darkness when the power went out. Luka merely sighed and carefully repositioned the cats onto the sofa.
He really hoped he had bought candles.
Turning on the torch function on his phone, he wandered over into the kitchen and began opening cupboards and drawers. Luka didn't remember owning candles; he was assured by the complex's owner that any kind of power failure was impossible due to the city's construction and the sheer amount of power conduits entering the building. That was true, but he assumed that the owner also did not account for an Angelic invasion destroying the city infrastructure.
Someone knocked on the door.
Luka slowly made his way over and opened it up, both unsurprised and befuddled to see Mrs Hunbourge with a tray full of candles.
"Hello dear!" The elderly woman smiled and held the tray out. "I wasn't sure if you had restocked on candles recently, or ever at all, so I wanted to make sure you could see during this power outage."
Leave it to her to be prepared for this kind of thing. Luka smiled for the first time in a week and bowed deeply. "How many can I take?"
"As many as you like, dear. At least enough for a nice, romantic evening with that girl you've been living with." She gave him a sly wink and he nearly dropped the two candles he was grabbing. "Tell me you've at least tried to, what do they call it these days? Woo her?"
"Please stop talking." He barely managed to keep his emotions in check. She didn't know. It wasn't her fault.
Fortunately, Mrs Hunbourge did not notice his distress. She merely chuckled and pushed a few more candles towards the empty part of the tray. "Go on, buy some wine and have a night in. She'll love it."
Bayonetta would appreciate the gesture on a good day when her best friend was still alive and well. Luka honestly felt trying anything to make her feel better would be like a slap in the face, and that was assuming she was going to come back at some point.
"You know, the longer you leave it the more likely it is for her to find another-"
"I understand your concern, but thank you for the candles. Cereza will love them." A polite smile affixed itself on his face and he put his hand on the door handle.
"Well, I know when I'm not wanted." Hunbourge lowered her head. The kind expression remained, although. "If you need more, you know when to find me."
She shuffled down the hallway and Luka closed the door after her. The last few words stung and he wanted to go out and apologise, but a mewl from behind his jogged his memory to the four animals still on the couch.
"Alright, alright! I'll get some light going!" He walked back and began placing candles around the room. Thinking better of it, he left them on a nearby stand and placed one on the coffee table in the centre. His thought process was to illuminate the entire room, but unless he knew how much one candle could there wasn't really much point in setting them all out just yet. He tried to remember if he had a lighter or match somewhe-
The kitchen!
Luka ran over and began opening cupboards and drawers, wracking his brain for where he put the matchbox. Surely, he would have put it in with the rest of the tools-
Someone knocked on the door, slowly and with great weight. Luka frowned and made his way back to the door; Mrs Hunbourge had just left and he had made it very clear he didn't really want to talk with her. The old lady was sometimes a pain, but she did know when to move on or come back another day. Grabbing the handle, he opened the door.
"Hel-"
Bayonetta stood there.
Her clothing was soaking wet and stuck to her body in clumps instead of its normal sleekness. Her hair was the same, albeit drooping down, matting and covering her eyes. An unhealthy pallor was her skin tone and she was shaking. Whether it was from illness or grief he did not know. Her eyes, normally bright and full of mirth, were dead and despaired.
"Holy shit- Bayo- Cere-" And of course, once she was here he did not know what to say. "Um…"
Bayonetta spoke no words and buried herself against his chest. He felt her arms wrap around him and her head nestled itself under his own. The shaking increased beyond what he thought was possible. A soft cry escaped her lips and he could feel her weeping. Her tears seeped into his shirt and scarf but he did not care.
Bayonetta was here. She wasn't okay and she wasn't in good spirits, but she was here. That lifted a lot of stress off his shoulders.
"She's gone." Her voice was hoarse and thick, almost inaudible amongst her weeping. "She's gone and she's- she's not coming back."
There was no answer he could give that felt appropriate. Luka wrapped his arms around her and gave her a squeeze, trying to give her some reprieve. He didn't think it would help.
The second his hands touched the back of her new hairsuit he almost pulled them back. Her skin (and body by proxy) was freezing. Wherever she had been, she had not taken care of herself. Luka wasn't actually sure if Umbra Witches had inbuilt immunity to disease and he did not particularly want to find out.
With slow movements, he guided her inside of the apartment and closed the door behind him. Bayonetta arm stayed wrapped around his torso, almost like it was her lifeline. Akira and Viola immediately ran over to the woman and rubbed themselves against her legs, seemingly sensing the emotions expelling from her.
"We need to get you warmed up." Luka broke the silence, rubbing one of her shoulders.
"Don't you care that she's…" Bayonetta bristled back with anger, slowly wilting away. "She's gone and you want to make sure I am okay? I let her die. I deser-"
"Bayonetta, she would want you to be alright. I can't do anything about her, as much as it pains me, but I can help you." He looked directly at her pale face in the darkness, somewhat illuminated by a soft glow emanating from herself. "Please, let me. I need to do something! I spent a whole week trying to find you and now you are here and I just want to do something to feel useful!"
Viola purred against her leg in the silence that followed.
"I'll draw you a bath. Would you like anything for it? Scented candles? Bathing salts?" He asked. Bayonetta shook her head almost instantly. "Alright, let's get you to the bathroom. You'll… need to undress. I don't know how to get you out of those clothes."
Normally, the Witch would make some comment about how he was trying to get her naked for him to be able to perve all over her body. Instead she nodded and clung to him a little tighter.
He missed her normal attitude for once.
It took longer than he expected, but they made it to the bathroom. Gingerly, Luka began to unwrap Bayonetta from his torso. Her grip, however, remained strong.
"No."
"Bayonetta, I can't bathe with you."
Her tear-streaked cheeks gleamed when a flash of lightning illuminated the room. "You are not going away. If I look away, you're going to die. Just like-" the words caught in her throat, dying off with a choked whimper.
He did not know the specific circumstances surrounding Jeanne's death; all Luka knew was that one of Bayonetta's summons went rogue and killed the Witch. From what she was implying now, it was a sneak attack and definitely something both Witches did not expect. This clinginess was explainable, if that was the case, and Luka did not blame her. However…
"I've been fine for a week. Well, not fine in any sense of the word, but no Angels or Demons have shown up to attack me." He gently pulled her arms down to her side and held her hands. They were freezing. "They won't attack me in the next twenty or so minutes."
"You promise?"
There was absolutely no way he could promise. What the hell could he do if the Angels and/or Demons decided to attack?
But what else could he say?
"I promise."
…
Once the candles had been set up and Luka dug out his old kettle, it was time to make a phone call. He had been contacting Rodin for the last week, almost every other hour, just to see if the man had an inkling of Bayonetta's whereabouts. Of course, he didn't know and every time he did Luka was told not to call back again.
Well, this time the news would be different.
"Gates of Hell, Rodin speaking."
He clutched his mobile phone tightly to his ear. "Do you do house calls?"
The man on the other end sighed. "Redgrave, this will be the eighty fifth time this week I will tell you that- a house call?"
"Yeah, can you come here?"
"Redgrave, why the fuck would I ever do a house call? I have a business to run. If it's anything to do with the power outage, you know that I do not fix shit for fun. Unless you are literally about to die, it's a no."
Luka's eyes glanced towards the bathroom. The sounds of running water had subsided long ago and he could only imagine what Bayonetta was doing. Judging from the silence? Nothing. "I found her."
Rodin swore and he could hear a glass shattering. "You found her? Are you one hundred percent certain it's her?"
"Yes. She came back here about twenty minutes ago." A thought came to him. "Can Umbra Witches contract an illness?"
"The Demon or viruses? If it's the latter it shouldn't be possible, but with what's currently going on then I'm not actually sure what is."
Bayonetta's appearance flashed through Luka's mind. "She walked in looking like death. She kinda felt like it too."
"I'll be there in a few minutes." The weaponsmith grunted. He could hear objects shuffling around and then something crashed with a loud bang. "Make sure she's alright, Redgrave. We're going to need her."
"Wait! Don't you-" A click ended the call and Luka stared at his phone with a defeated expression. "Why does everyone already know where I live?"
Sighing, he went back into the kitchen and turned on the stove. Filling the ancient kettle with water, he placed that onto the heat and began to rummage through the cupboards. While Jeanne and himself needed to wake up and stay awake with the use of coffee, Bayonetta was a tea connoisseur. Luka felt that giving her a few cups of her favourite leaves would be something he could do.
At the very least Rodin would probably want some.
Finding the small boxes buried behind the pasta, he pulled them out and placed them onto the counter. Now he just had to wait for the water to boil.
"Luka?"
Bayonetta's faint voice carried through the apartment. Turning the heat down under the kettle, he grabbed the nearby plated candle and wandered back towards the bathroom. He opened the door to see her sitting at one end of the tub, her legs drawn up and held close to her chest. Her eyes were staring at the opposite wall, but they turned to him the second he opened the door.
The only time he had ever seen her so vulnerable was when Jeanne had 'died' in Ithavoll.
"Everything alright?" Luka asked, only realising how dumb the question was after the words left his mouth.
Great fucking job Luka. Is that how you make someone who lost their best friend feel better?
"Does Bubby know?" Bayonetta ignored his question and asked one of her own. And it was the best question she could have asked as well.
"I've been trying to get in contact with him or anyone from Devil May Cry. I got through to Nero's girlfriend and she says he's fine." Luka answered honestly, after a moment's hesitation. She would probably find out the truth anyway, so he was going to relay what Kyrie had said.
Her eyes wandered over his body, disappointment filling them. "She's lying."
"She can't lie to save a life." He agreed. His shoulders slumped and he placed the plate onto the sink. "Kyrie was like 'he's fine! I'll tell him when I see him!' Why couldn't you tell me where he is, then?"
"She knows?"
"Bayonetta, it's been the talk of the world for a week. Something invisible destroys half of New York and at the end of it all it's rumoured that one of the surviving Witches are dead." Leaning over, he grabbed the small stool that acted as a step into the tub and dragged it over to him. Taking a seat on it, he rubbed his face with both of his hands and let out a huff of annoyance. "Turns out our friend in the government has been taking the heat for us, for once."
"Ada?"
He nodded. "She called pretty early on. Told us that we should take the time to grieve."
"She knows the truth?"
"Jeanne trusted her with her life," Luka explained, recalling the dry woman's conversation from four days ago. "And when I told her what Rodin thought happened, Miss Wong made moves to blame it on the Umbrella Corporation."
A dead smile graced her lips. "Smart woman. I always knew she wasn't the hardass she tries to be. And anything to annoy Wesker is always funny." It disappeared as soon as it appeared. "To answer your question, I physically feel better. A warm bath has done wonders, as you would expect."
Luka uncovered his face and focussed on the unspoken part. Rubbing his temples, he tried to formulate his thoughts into words. "I… I can't expect to ever know how you feel like. I was too young to fully understand what losing both of my parents meant to me, but losing your best friend of five hundred years? I don't know what I can do to help. I'm sorry."
"You don't need to do anything," her words had a strange soothing effect. "Just being alive is enough. Have you…"
Her hesitation creased his brow in a frown. "Yes?"
"Have you been able to mourn yet? Knowing you, you've probably been working yourself to death in order to make sure I was okay." Bayonetta tilted her head. "Am I wrong?"
"Well, no…" He grimaced and rubbed his temples. "Is it bad that my first thoughts were to make sure you were both okay and safe?"
"Not at all. At least you accepted you couldn't do anything quicker than I did."
"And that's why I feel like shit. I couldn't do anything even if I was there- Fuck!" He cried out, recovering his face. "She was my friend too. She might not have liked me that much, but we were friends and I should have done something! Even if it was just an extra pair of eyes on the situation-"
"Cheshire, I couldn't do anything and I was there." A wet, but soft hand encased his own, pulling it down gently. He met her eyes through a rapidly blurring vision. "Some part of my womanly intuition tells me that there's a lot more to this and I will need your help in figuring it out. I… didn't think seeing you would bring it all back."
"I'm sorry."
"Stop apologising; it's definitely not your fault. I couldn't reach Damien, but he's useless at investigating books." She pulled his other hand down and began rubbing them with her fingers. Luka reflected that the bath had done wonders; they didn't feel like a corpse any longer. "Something happened to my summon and I want to find out what."
"What makes you think that?" He asked.
"Remember when I mentioned that something was up with Butterfly?"
Luka wracked his brain for that, but he frowned when he remembered. "That was… three months ago, right?"
"Both of our patrons went silent three months ago. Angel attacks stopped three months ago. Demons stopped contacting us three months ago," Bayonetta hesitated. "And when they all come back at once, that fucking bastard instantly betrayed me and k-" A sob escaped her throat. "Sorry. I thought I was ready to start confronting things, but I can't talk to you about it without getting choked up! This is not what Jeanne would want!"
"Jeanne would want you to be ready. Considering that, if your theory is right, there's someone interfering with your powers and they haven't made another move during your absolute lowest, then I don't expect them to make one so quickly now." Luka began to rub her hands when she stopped doing the same for him. "If you need my help, then why are you asking? You know I would gladly do anything to help you."
"Luka, this is a little more than your average adventure that you always throw yourself into." She shook her head. "This being had enough power to affect the allegiance of my Demons and harm Butterfly. I do not want you to get hurt."
"Balder could have killed me at any point during our trip to Ithavoll-"
"It was pure luck you survived. I don't want to push that luck any further than-"
"Cereza." The use of her actual name felt a little sour on his tongue, but it instantly grabbed her attention. "I will help you. She was my friend too, remember? I've got a stake in this revenge as well."
"Well, Bayonetta is correct that this might be out of your league."
Luka screamed and jumped into the air. His foot caught the stool on the way down and he fell awkwardly onto his side, slamming his head into the wall. His sight darkened slightly, but he didn't fall unconscious.
That was a good start.
"Rodin," Bayonetta greeted with a dry tone. "It seems that you always know how to make a spectacular entrance."
Somehow, he managed to twist himself over and look at the doorway. An unamused Rodin stood there with his arms crossed, not bothering to check on him. His gaze was fixed upon the Witch, the sunglasses hiding the boring eyes.
"I'll let you both freshen up. Then we all need to discuss a few things."
…
Luka held an ice pack to his head while he moved some candles towards the coffee table. Bayonetta was gathered at one end of the sofa, wrapped in a white evening gown and clutching a steaming cup of tea in her hands. Rodin sat at the other end with a cup in front of him, the flames reflecting on his glasses.
He, on the other hand, had to sit on the floor. Folding his legs underneath him, Luka found a place against the wall and kept that ice pack on the hematoma that was forming. The cats swarmed around him, each one giving the gunsmith evil eyes.
"I didn't think his babies wouldn't like you." Bayonetta muttered, taking a sip. "But then again, you were the one to hurt him. They are very protective."
"I've found that animals and pets don't like me in general." He commented and copied her actions. Rodin gave the teacup an appreciative glance and looked over at Luka. "Damn, you do have some good tea."
"That's her stuff. Mine's the cheap shit that's… uhh… shit." Luka grimaced, remembering how the Witch had reacted upon seeing his selection. In his defence, he only really served it if he had guests. Which was never. Nowadays he had more than a few guests, but they didn't drink tea for the most part.
"Just when I gained a small amount of respect for you, you had to blow it all away."
Viola broke away from the pack encircling him and jumped onto Bayonetta's lap with a single bound. One of her hands reached down and began to pet the golden fur absentmindedly. "Well, Rodin, what brings you here?"
"Redgrave told me you were here and we've both been trying to find you for a week."
"Aw, you care."
"Bayonetta, what I'm about to tell you concerns everyone. None of this sentimentality bullshit; this concerns the very fabric of the universe itself." Rodin glowered, the dark sunglasses failing to hide the red glare of his eyes.
The Witch swallowed and bowed her head. "My apologies, Rodin."
"S'alright. I can't find your brother-"
"And neither can we." She glanced to Luka, who acknowledged her with a hesitant of his head.
"And that means we have a fucking problem." Rodin put the cup down on the table and folded his arms. "How much contact have you had with Butterfly? Or rather, when was the last time you had a good conversation?"
"Three months ago." Bayonetta answered immediately.
"Shit. That was the last time I heard from Khepri, and it was a warning. She told me that he was coming and to be prepared for anything."
Luka frowned and rested one hand on his chin. "Who is he?"
Bayonetta increased the speed of her petting. "Is that why you wanted those upgrades done sooner rather than later?"
"I can't tell you who he is, specifically, because I'm not too sure myself. But yes, he is the reason why." Rodin turned to her. "You should never go against anything underprepared."
She exchanged a glanced with him. Luka lifted the ice pack up and gestured to the weaponsmith. "So, what can you tell us about him?"
He sighed with resentment, but the journalist recognised it was at himself and not him. "Khepri has been embroiled in her own game of chess using all of reality as the board. She's been manipulating a lot of events to make sure her pieces move into the right spots. You've both probably noticed that with her less-than-subtle manipulations."
"I can't speak for Cheshire, but Butterfly has told me I'm important to several futures. Or something similar."
Rodin nodded. "Exactly. On the other side of this board is the Enemy. Dante's Blue Guy. A figure shrouded in enough mystery that even the Primordius aren't sure who he is. And that is saying something."
Another mention of the Primordius caused Luka's head to perk up. "Those guys again?"
"Well, Sheba and myself have theories. But until we get some solid facts, there's nothing we can say or do on the situation without potentially giving you false information to work with. You, Redgrave, should know quite the thing about that." Rodin held up three fingers. "There are three possible candidates. They each are former Primordius and each one would have plenty of reasons to want to return to power."
"You can stop being a Primordius?"
The man chuckled. "Stop is a loose term; once you leave the status, you can never reattain it. One was the original Primordius of Inferno and was toppled from his position long ago due to his lust for more power. His replacement had the same ambition and was removed due to his physical manifestation being annihilated by the son of Sparda. The third disappeared when he decided to give all of humanity free will."
That was a lot of information to digest. So Luka narrowed his eyes and focussed his attention on the quantity. "Honestly, you seem to know way too much all the time."
"Rodin, please be a little bit straight with us this once," Bayonetta narrowed her own. "Are you a Primordius?"
It seemed that the Witch shared his theory as well. Rodin seemed to bring up these supposedly mythical beings a lot more than, well, any text he had read. Luka wasn't one to assume a lot, considering how badly he had fucked up his last assumption, but this was a little too on the nose to not give it a possibility.
"Heh. Why else would I care so much? I revolted against Paradiso when Jubileus fell into her slumber, trying to fill the vacuum of power she both left and created. I failed and was cast out, stripped of my Lagunan heritage and turned into an Infernal. Turns out, even in my weakened state, I was the only candidate suitable to inherit the status that Aesir left behind; I was the strongest being left in Chaos, after all." A chuckle left his lips. "Turns out the position in the food chain I always fancied came with a lot of unwanted responsibility."
"Let me guess; us?"
"Bingo." Rodin clicked his fingers and pointed at her. "Khepri was the one to tell me of who I had to become in order to understand what was required of me. And when that realisation came, good lord I just wanted to go back to being a Dea."
Bayonetta chuckled and took a sip of her tea. "I guess we are that annoying."
"You deal with that asshole Philemon for more than five minutes and tell me otherwise. The rest of the other six Primordius aren't that bad, but they all have their little peculiarities that makes me kinda glad we closed the Realm Between."
"Not to annoy you, but what has any of this got to do with anything?" Luka brought both of their attention back to him, and hopefully to the matter at hand. "I mean, the information is good because information on the Primordius is super rare, but how does that help us with our… well… thing?"
"Your thing?"
"I want revenge on whoever unleashed my Infernals on me." The Witch stated plainly. "Be it this blue guy or someone else."
Rodin shook his head. "You don't want to challenge those who could make the book of revelations look like mother goose. But what you can do is save those in need of it."
"Rodin, don't fucking give me hope. She's dead and that's-"
The weaponsmith tossed a small, silver object to her. Bayonetta caught it with a tendril of hair, quickly placing her teacup down and grabbing it with both hands. Luka recognised it as the Umbran Watch that sat upon Jeanne's breast. It was flipped open and she looked to Rodin with confusion.
"But how!?"
"Jeanne's body is dead. Her soul was never claimed by her patron, and knowing Styx she would send it right back so her destiny can be fulfilled. So it's in Inferno, waiting to be taken by the strongest demon that comes across it." Rodin lifted his cup up and downed the rest of the contents. "But she's still down there. I'd wager you have about a week to find her and you should be able to use that to get her out."
Bayonetta's face was a whirlwind of emotion, settling into hope. "Are you sure about this, Rodin?"
"If you haven't forgotten, Jeanne is currently holding the keys to Jubileus. Even if she wasn't a central piece to Khepri's plans, that's more than enough reason to make sure she stays safe." A cigar flicked into his hand from nowhere and Rodin lit it with his thumb. "The rigmarole of choosing Mundus's replacement was enough headaches to last several lifetimes."
She giggled and gave him a slight shove. "Oh, come on! You can just admit you're trying to help out, you big softie."
"No, I won't." Rodin grumbled and looked away. Luka found himself chuckling as the heavy mood slowly began to lighten.
They could bring Jeanne back to life and all they had to do was find her body in Inferno. Except, there was no-
"Wait, how do we get into Inferno?" He asked and the tension returned. "I know there's a few Portals to Paradiso still active, but I don't remember reading anything about portals into Inferno."
"Cheshire does bring up a good point. Just how do we get there?" Bayonetta's face fell and Luka regretted bringing it up in the first place.
"Well, it's not as hopeless as you think." Rodin smiled. "There are two paths into Inferno that I know for certain are open. One is the Qliphoth tree that's currently growing in Red Grave City; however, that's an entrance into Inferno, not a portal. You go in through there, you're going to have a very hard time getting back out."
"How come?" He asked for the two of them.
"There's something blocking my normal paths, and the Qliphoth is meant to be a conduit out of the Underworld for Demons. I guarantee you that you could not get out if you decided to use that path."
Bayonetta raised an eyebrow at that. "Something or someone?"
"Heh, definitely leaning someone. Which leads me to the other pathway; Fimbulventr."
The name was familiar. Luka found himself leaning forward in anticipation for when Rodin continued.
"Fimbulventr is a mountain that once was the home of the Primordius Aesir. To you, he is known as the God of Chaos and was the original owner of the Eyes of the World. He created them, in fact." Rodin began, taking a puff of the cigar. "And upon his mountain there are two portals; one to Paradiso and the other to Inferno."
Luka could see Bayonetta clutching at her chest, undoubtedly near her own Umbran Watch.
"Now, Khepri doesn't like me telling you these things, but if I were a betting man that portal probably still functions. That is the problem. Chances are they, the being I think is behind all of this, knows this too. If I send you there, there's a high chance I'm sending you straight into a trap." The smoke from the cigar rose lazily above the candles, forming a cloud near the ceiling fan.
"We can handle a few traps. Isla Del Sol was a giant one and we both managed to get out of that unscathed." She pointed out and Rodin nodded.
"That I do concede. I was fully expecting some specific shit to go down there and, besides from Damien's brief dance with death, nothing really happened." He hesitated with another drag from the cigar. "The situation this time is that I have no clue what is going on and I don't want to put everything into a situation that might be impossible to win. Khepri is insistent on keeping details on the low down, for some reason. She's barely spoken a word to me since three-"
His empty hand balled into a fist and he punched the sofa. "Dammit. Maybe I should have realised that they would've gone after her too."
"So the options are either we go in through this tree that Devil May Cry is currently dealing with and potentially never come out, we go to Fimbulventr and straight into a trap, or we sit here and let Jeanne's soul be devoured." Luka listed off and Bayonetta turned to him sharply.
"We are not letting Jeanne's soul be devoured!"
"I know! I'm just laying out the options and it really seems like we have just the one." He flinched away from her tone and the guilty flash on her face was not missed. "We gotta go to Fimbulventr."
He clicked his fingers and sat up a little straighter, his eyes widening. "That's where I heard it before! Balder was researching Fimbulventr! Just, why would he be?"
"A rival?"
"Nah. From what Dante said, blue guy was working with Balder, not against him." Dragging himself up, he began to stumble towards his computer. A hand gripped his bicep and he turned to see Bayonetta looking at him with concerned bemusement.
"Are you forgetting the power is gone, Cheshire? You can't exactly use electronics." She glanced back to Rodin, who was staring intently at the cat placed him his lap. "So where is this Fimbulventr?"
"Noatun. A city in Italy that's almost impossible to get to." He answered without moving his gaze away.
"How come? This isn't like Vigrid, the city that 'never changes,' is it?" Bayonetta rolled her eyes and brushed a few loose strands out of her eyes. "Is everywhere that relates to us so unwelcoming?"
"Thule was said to be pretty open to those willing to devote their lives to nothing." Rodin shrugged. "But it ain't the culture this time, Bayonetta. They say the mountain itself seems to expel those who it doesn't deem worthy."
Luka raised his eyebrows at that. "The mountain?"
"Sounds bullshit, right? Whoever our mystery blue guy is, they've probably decided to take up residence in Aesir's old home. If they've been scheming this alongside Balder, then it makes sense to push every prying eye away." Rodin finally looked away from the cat with a grunt. "Probably should have kept more tabs on it."
"What's done is done. Now, how do I get to Noatun?"
That brought out a frown. "Bayonetta, don't you mean, we?"
"Absolutely not. You, Cheshire, are staying put."
"What!?" He whirled around, feeling his vision swirl from the sudden movement. "No way am I staying here! I've got to-"
"Luka, listen to me. I couldn't protect Jeanne, and we both know damn well that you can't protect yourself against anything that this blue guy will throw at us. Nine lives or not, I'm not going to let you die. You are staying here." Her hand kept on his bicep, keeping him locked in place while he stumbled around. "Besides, you're hurt. You are in no condition to be flying, let alone researching. At the very least I will let your stubborn pride do that."
"I want to help you."
"Redgrave." Rodin called out. "Trust me, you would be doing us both massive favours if you stay here."
One of the things Luka absolutely hated was just how weak he was. It wasn't fair that he constantly dragged people into his problems and then he couldn't actually finish them due to his physical and magical limitations.
But this wasn't a situation where he needed to do anything physical. Bayonetta, as much as she was posturing otherwise, was still hurting. He would feel a lot more comfortable with her going alone if Damien was there with her. But since her brother was missing, someone had to be with her. And that person, well, it had to be him.
Because there was no one else.
"I couldn't do anything with Balder. I want to do something here!"
"You can help by giving me guidance." A tendril of hair slipped under her phone and she held it up with a smirk when it arrived at her. "Every bit of information will help, no matter how trivial or pointless you may think it is."
Perhaps it was for the best. Luka closed his eyes and sighed, trying hard not to think about how pathetic he was. "Okay."
Her hand wrapped around his own, interlacing their fingers together. "I won't be long, Cheshire. Just a trip there and back to get Jeanne, and then we can plan getting our sweet revenge together as a trio."
A thought came to him. "What about Butterfly?"
"What about her?" Rodin raised an eyebrow.
…
"PDEE BARMA!"
A portal to Inferno ripped open above the roof of the apartment complex, showering it in red light. Rodin stared up at the portal with apprehension, while Luka clasped his hands together in a prayer. The glasses on his nose did make him look a little silly, in her opinion, but then again he was a silly person in general.
The good kind of silly. A fond smile grew when a few memories passed through her of just how easy it was for him to make her laugh. Bayonetta kept her pose, her nightgown fluttering from the unnatural winds. Her eyes did not waver from the portal.
Come on…
"You said she was hurt, right?" Rodin yelled out.
"The last time we talked she screamed in pain. I've never heard a Madama do that, even when they were summoned." She recalled Damien telling her about how Khepri literally took a direct missile to the face and offered no physical reaction to it.
Rodin grunted and folded his arms. "Just gotta wait then."
"How come you can summon? I thought the portals were closed!" Luka asked, glancing at both of them.
"How do you think the tree works?" The gunsmith gestured at the man. "And besides, she's manifesting the Madama using her hair. Not summoning the-"
Madama Butterfly tumbled through the portal and slammed onto the roof with a thunderous bang.
"Oh. Well, that's impressive." Rodin stroked his chin while the red light faded. "Luegray could summon Khepri because he manifests a part of her like a Persona. Now to bring the full Demon into Purgatorio? That's some power I haven't seen in a little while."
"I've grown a little stronger in the last six months, Rodin. Please give me a little credit." Bayonetta turned to her Patron and stared at her with concern.
A low cut, dark purple dress covered bluish grey skin- Low cut on the dress was putting it lightly and Bayonetta reconsidered her description. Her breasts were barely covered by thin purple straps, each leading up to spiked shoulder pads that served to enhance the presentation of power and sexuality. Long and slender legs jutted out from a slit in the dress, capped off by black heels with a red point. Ridged and spiked braces adorned her forearms, each one covering and wrapping around her middle fingers of both hands. Red lips and eyes contrasted the pale skin upon her face, crowned by an elaborated black headdress that resembled antennae of her patrons namesake. Upon her back were two extravagant butterfly wings, each one containing the image of a mirrored crescent moon. Their coloration and hue reminded Bayonetta of stained glass.
What was the most concerning were the sheer number of cuts and wounds upon her body. Black ichor dribbled out of a dozen deep ones and she could see some that passed cleanly through.
"What is the meaning of this!?" Her patron roared, pain very clear in her voice. She held on hand to her stomach and slowly twisted to face the trio. "Did you summon me to show me off? Your damaged Patron?"
"Madama Butterfly," she curtsied with a bow. Bayonetta then abandoned all pretences of tradition and ran to her patron. "What happened?"
"What do you think happened? He found me and ensnared me in an elaborate trap to make sure you could only use that traitor as a summon. By the time I freed myself and found another Infernal for you to use, I was too late to do anything and he found me again anyway." She hissed. "What are you doing!?"
Bayonetta was now running her hands along her legs, green healing magic filling her. "I'm helping you out, you big dummy."
"I can help myself."
"Just let me do something for you, for once." She stopped at her ankles, spotting a particularly wide slash that clearly passed through a few tendons.
"Our contract does not require you to help me. I give you power, you give me your soul. Nothing less, nothing more."
"Madama," Rodin called out and the Demon turned to him, taking her wrathful gaze away. "What happened exactly?"
"I have already explained the situation, Infinite One," she seethed. "I do not need to explain myself again."
"Every piece of information counts, Butterfly." He met her gaze with a measured one of his own. "Was it Dante's blue guy at the very least?"
This question gave the Infernal pause. Butterfly avoided his stare for a moment, until she answered with a defeated tone. "I do not know."
Bayonetta hesitated before she touched the skin of her Demon. Looking over at her upper body, she tilted her head slightly. "Butterfly?"
"It happened so fast. I was simply minding my own business and then he simply took me." Butterfly wilted in her posture, leaning over slightly with a demure expression. "I never got the chance to see who took me."
"How do you know it was a him?"
Butterfly turned to her with a snarl. "He sounded like a pompous ass. Very hard to mistake for anyone else."
Luka's ghostly body stepped up beside her, staring up at the Demon in fascination. "I didn't think she was so big."
"Well Cheshire, in Inferno size does matter." Bayonetta returned her attention to the massive wound in Butterfly's ankle. "Butterfly? I'm going to heal you."
"It is not necessary for you to do so; I can heal myself!"
"Why haven't you?" She only had just realised that Butterfly had not moved ever since falling onto the roof. The Demon was only lying there, propped up by one arm and shaking slightly in-
Oh.
"I-I can and I will!"
"Butterfly, just let her." Rodin stepped back and gestured at Luka to do the same. The Demon, this time, kept her mouth shut about that and growled in frustration.
"Just tell that mortal to stop ogling my legs and I will."
Both of their heads turned to Luka, who returned their frowns with confusion. "What? I don't understand her."
"Just look away, Redgrave. You're making her uncomfortable."
"Huh!? I'm staring at the one part that doesn't make me uncomfortable! How can that possibly be uncomfortable to her?" He gestured with both hands towards Butterfly's upper body. "Everything up there is very distracting!"
"I suppose that is the intended purpose," Bayonetta mused, then shook her head. "But I think it's got to do with Butterfly not wanting to show weakness in front of those she deems not worthy."
"Oh! Well, that makes sense." He turned around and shoved his hands into his pockets. "I'm not going to peek."
"You better not, Redgrave."
Placing her hands onto the cold skin, Bayonetta released the healing spell she had been building for several minutes at this point. Green energy flowed from her palms and into the Infernal, halting the flow of ichor and reknitting the flesh together with soundless briskness. The incantation weaved its way through the leg and passed through the stomach, healing everything in its path.
Within a few seconds, Butterfly groaned and stretched out her legs, using them to tilt herself into a sitting position. Her arms stretched above her head when they healed as well and audible 'pops' from her joints echoed off into the night.
Bayonetta stepped back when the spell completed it course and Madama Butterfly stood up. Awkwardly, the two stared at each other.
"…thank you." The Demon was the first to break the impromptu staring contest. "There was no reason for you to help me. Actually, it would be in your best interests to not help me in order to make sure your soul does not fall to-"
Bayonetta placed her hands on her hips and interrupted her with an unimpressed grunt. "You're my friend, Butterfly. And not to mention now I guaranteed myself two Internals' to work with when I go to Noatun."
"We are not friends. We are contracted and contractee." Butterfly sharply returned her gaze back. "To be anything else would be an affront to what we brokered."
"Okay then, well, at the very least I can still count on you to help me out?"
Butterfly smoothed out her dress and flashed a toothy grin. Her teeth were sharp, seemingly filed into points. Bayonetta suspected they grew like that. "I will not miss out on a chance for revenge, Cereza. We will make this journey together."
A portal opened up behind her and Butterfly turned to step through it. "More Infernals, or any that will listen and offer their services in a contract, will come soon. I cannot guarantee that they will be the same quality of your previous."
"Any help you can give will be enough. And besides, if my new cats could defeat my old dog, then it should be more than fine." Bayonetta smiled and waved. "I'll look forward to them!"
"Do not hype yourself up over nothing." Butterfly's voice echoed out of the portal when she stepped through. "I cannot promise anything."
The portal snapped shut and Bayonetta followed her patron's example and stepped out of Purgatorio. Luka removed his glasses and turned around, while Rodin appraised her with a curious eye.
"Everything all good to go?" The former asked, folding and replacing the accessory away in its case. Bayonetta nodded once in reply and he sighed. "I guess I'll sort out a plane or something. My phone should have enough charge to do that."
Walking over and opening a nearby door, Luka walked back into the building and left her with the gunsmith.
"Tell Redgrave not to worry. Enzo's gonna pay a little bit of his debt off tomorrow." Rodin huffed and suddenly his gaze began to scrutinize her. "Now, just why did you do that?"
"Do what? Heal her? I thought that's what decent people did."
"Butterfly was correct in saying that you had no obligation to heal her," he folded his arms and began to walk over to her. "And that it was far more beneficial for you to leave her as wounded as she was. Now, I was going to restore her regardless, but why did you?"
Bayonetta turned and looked over the edge of the building, letting her eyes trail over the skyline around her. "Because she's been with me the longest. Longer than Jeanne, longer than Damien and even long than Mummy."
Rodin stopped when he was beside her. "She's not your friend. Styx has a lot invested in Jeanne and Khepri's relationship with your brother is far more complex than it really needs to be. But you and Butterfly? You two are contracted and contractee. She will use any situation to her advantage if necessary."
"She wouldn't do that."
"Do you really know Butterfly? Do you understand how an Infernal works?" Rodin sighed. "I'm not trying to put a divide between you and her, but you have to remember; once the future is clear and all apocalypses have been averted, she will start gunning for your soul. It's the way these things work."
Bayonetta stayed silent.
"I've seen too many Witches believe the same as you; that their contracted shares a special bond with them. It's never the case. Damien and Khepri is a special case and-"
"Are you going to tell me why?"
Rodin didn't answer for a minute. Just before her patience snapped in two, he began to talk. "I cannot tell you. If I do, no matter what you say or do, he finds out. And if he finds out, everything is doomed regardless of anything that may happen."
His hand slapped her shoulder softly, rubbing it after. "I'll let Enzo know to expect you at eight at the airport, okay?"
"Okay."
"I'm sorry, Cereza." The use of her real name did not go unnoticed, but by the time she turned to him Rodin was gone.
And then she was alone once more. Watching the moon peer over the dissipating storm clouds, Bayonetta felt herself falter. Swallowing back the emotions, she let the moon's strength in.
"I'm coming, Jeanne." She promised the night's sky. "I will rescue you."
…
And there we have it. Chapter two down, and in record time as well.
Post notes: A whole bunch of new information is revealed here, so I would very much like to hear everyones thoughts on it all. Now, this is really where the divergences to canon really start to show and hopefully they all make sense.
Please leave a review if you want to add criticism or anything like that for my work. But thank you for reading and stay tuned for Side Chapter 1: The Underworld!
