Chapter 3: Between the Light and the Dark
Survivors, whoever and whatever they may be, share a single quality. It is what enables them to overcome or escape extreme danger, and it is also what allows them to face adversity. And that is, simply to do their best no matter what situation they find themselves in. It was an ability Dante, Son of Sparda, had in truckloads. It had stood by him throughout his life, and this new, strange chapter of it was no exception. In a world completely different from his own, not to mention totally unfamiliar, he was doing what he always did: making the most of life.
And right at the moment, that meant doing deadlifts. Bending his knees and hips, he gripped the three-inch diameter bar that had been custom built for him. He'd discovered very quickly that the equipment used by the rest of the staff and the students wouldn't quite be enough for him. And so, he'd put in a request to Ozpin. Considering some of the ridiculously outlandish and expensive things the headmaster had paid for over the years, it didn't seem extravagant at all. And so, a bar and plates made of a special, ultra-dense metal, along with other similar equipment, which allowed the legendary Devil Hunter to do something he hadn't done in decades: workout.
The current weight on the bar was two thousand tons. Dante, of course, did not think in terms of the numbers. It was only a fraction of how heavy that fake Saviour statue's punch had felt (in other words, not much at all). Of course, as generous as Ozpin might be, asking him to construct a stone colossus larger than a building just so that Dante could get a pump going was a little too much. So, ever the adaptable one, he'd decided to do high reps instead. By remaining in his human form, and pushing into hundreds of repetitions on each exercise, Dante was actually seeing some gains.
Tightening his grip, he ripped the bar off the ground, standing up and locking out at the top. Slowly, he lowered it down, then performed the movement again. After several more minutes of this, he finally stopped, satisfied. Exhaling, he walked over to the bench and grabbed himself a towel, wiping off the sweat he had worked up. Looking at the mirror, he nodded in approval. Demon genetics along with near-constant fighting had kept him in great shape anyway. But, he had to admit, he was liking the changes from regular weight training. Of course, eating clean rather than subsisting on a diet of pizza and ice cream was helping too. He was leaner, each of his muscles more sharply defined, while his arms, legs, back and chest were thicker.
"Not bad at all," he said, spinning a water bottle in his palm a few times without looking, before opening it and taking a sip. Feeling invigorated, he resumed his training, moving on to the next compound movement, weighted pull-ups. As he strapped on the belt with the attached weights and reached up to grab the bar, he mentally recapped the developments of the past month. On the investigation front, he had worked with Roman Torchwick on another heist, during the course of which he had also met the man's mysterious partner, Neo. It was too early to start pushing for more information. It would make the criminal too nervous. Right now, the best move was to wait and observe. Contrary to popular belief, Dante could actually be quite patient when he needed to. Also, the duo was quite entertaining. It was a shame they were into the whole war-mongering business.
On the other side of things, there were his students.
Honestly (and Dante had never before thought this was even a possibility), he was enjoying teaching. He wouldn't have liked it so much if it was regular classes in a regular school back in his home world. But a school for badass hunters? And a class where he taught people how to kick ass? He was in his element. The students of Beacon had mostly turned out to be skilled, as well as quick, intuitive learners. Much like Dante himself. And so, most of his worries about how he was going to impart knowledge to them had been dispelled.
As he flawlessly performed his pull-ups, he planned ahead for the day's lessons. There were some interesting things he had wanted to get started on for a while now, and the time was right.
"I guess I'm feeling… motivated."
Meanwhile, in another world:
Vergil frowned.
"He's making fun of me. I know it."
"You sure you aren't paranoid?", asked Nero.
"Oh, I'm quite sure. I'm quite sure I'm going to stab him."
So saying, the Dark Slayer doubled his efforts in researching ways to find what world his brother had been transported to.
Back on Remnant, however, Dante remained quite unaware of any such developments. He finished the rest of his workout, and decided to return to his own quarters to shower. Along the way, he ran into a familiar face. Tall, slightly gangly, with blond hair, the boy was dressed in full battle gear, carrying his sword and sheath-shield.
Ever jovial, Dante waved at him.
"Hey, Jaune Arc, wasn't it?"
He had gotten around to learning his students' names. There would be no embarrassing incidents here!
Of course, Dante's elation could not quite be matched by Jaune himself, who looked a little like a kid who had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. The unmistakable expression of "I would rather be anywhere else in the world but here" on his face did not go unnoticed by the Devil Hunter.
Hmm. He looks like he's on his way to do a bit of training.
It wasn't really hard to see what was going on here.
In the month he had spent teaching the first years, Dante had quickly learnt that Jaune was different from his peers, in that he had no combat experience. The others, in some form or the other, were trained fighters who all had command over the basics, and considerable sparring experience. Many of them had been in real fights too. In contrast, Jaune barely knew how to hold his sword and shield. It was obvious he hadn't trained his body much, and he could barely keep up with his classmates physically. Pretty much every spar he was in, he ended up getting defeated. Badly.
Why's a guy like this here?
Dante couldn't help but wonder that.
Hunting demons. Hunting Grimm. Dangerous professions. Why would someone without power and training come to a place where people risked their lives?
The Devil Hunter knew all too well, of course.
One fights if one has a reason to fight.
Jaune lost every spar he was in.
But Dante had noticed one other detail.
One that most of the boy's classmates had missed.
He always stood back up. And he never backed down from a challenge.
That wasn't the attitude of someone who had ended up here by mistake. Skilled or not, Jaune had come here by choice.
And all strength began with choice.
"Uh… Professor Dante… d-didn't expect to see you here," the boy stuttered.
"Just Dante is fine," he replied. "You on the way to get some solo training in?"
Jaune hesitated for a moment, then nodded. There was no point in hiding it. He then prepared himself for the look he received from all the other teachers, and most of the students. That look of silent judgment. Saying, without a word, that his efforts wouldn't matter. Refusing to acknowledge him. Pitying him. Yeah, pity. That was the word he was looking for.
He waited for that look.
But he didn't get it.
Instead, Dante nodded.
"Yeah. There's no teacher like oneself," he said, surprising Jaune. "After all, there isn't really a substitute for one's own efforts, right?"
Jaune looked up, more than a little surprised.
Maybe it was because Dante didn't really carry himself like a typical teacher. He didn't draw some kind of arbitrary boundary between himself and his students. Above all, he didn't talk up or down to anyone. It made him real, in a way that was rare. And at that moment, it was able to break through the walls of self-deprecation and mistrust Jaune had built up.
"Yeah," the boy answered. "There isn't."
A brief moment of silence followed.
"Hey. That sword of yours. It got a name?"
"Crocea Mors," Jaune replied, slightly surprised by the question.
"You mind if I get a feel of it?"
Jaune's eyes widened slightly. This was not a request he had ever gotten since setting out from his home. Even Ruby had only wanted to see what weapon he had. Not hold it. He was surprised to find how protective he was of the sword. Now that it came to it, he realized he would be highly reluctant to just hand it to someone.
But something about Dante made him trust the man.
He unhooked the blade, along with its shifting sheath, and handed it to the Son of Sparda.
Dante's innate ability to understand a weapon just from holding it came into effect. His demonic energy flowed into Crocea Mors, sensing its mechanism, along with minute details about its weight, length and balance.
Unsheathing while transforming it, he gripped the shield in his left hand, and the sword in his right.
Moving with perfect ease, without even dropping the towel on his shoulder, he dropped into a low guarded stance, shield up, and sword levelled forward just above it.
Jaune saw the stance, and knew immediately that it had zero openings. Crocea Mors' shield was positioned perfectly to guard all of Dante's vitals, and expose only his eyes and the top of his head. But attempting to go for that would immediately get you countered by a shield bash, and then have a sword thrust through you.
Dante did exactly that, demonstrating a classic shield block, followed by an over-the guard thrust and slash combo, ending with a parry that would have used the shield the knock aside an enemy's weapon, opening them up for a lightning-quick barrage of what looked to Jaune's eyes like millions of stabs.
The young Arc stared in awe.
He had never actually seen his father or grandfather fight.
But somehow, he imagined this was what Arc Knight style combat looked like in its purest form.
Dante transformed the weapon back to its restricted form and sheathed it before returning it to the boy.
"Crocea Mors," he said. "It's a good sword, and a good shield."
Hearing that filled Jaune with pride. But there was a sense of bittersweetness to it too. He'd always known his family was legendary. He didn't need a reminder. Every day he lived told him he had yet to become worthy of their legacy.
Or so he thought.
Sometimes, all it takes to change everything, is one person believing in you.
"Hey. I'll be training in the Combat room tomorrow morning at six. Feel free to join me."
With those words, Dante walked away, leaving Jaune gaping.
All his life, he'd been kept away from training. Partly by distractions. Partly by his parents. Partly by the fact that no one had ever really taken him seriously. His family had never wanted him to become a hunter.
Of course, that wasn't an excuse. If one really wants to, one finds a way. He could have trained if he really wanted to.
But he hadn't. Until it had all come down to a single, incredibly rash decision. He had reached the point where he couldn't watch his dreams pass him by forever. So he'd gotten his transcripts forged, and tricked his way into Beacon. He'd assumed, once he made it there, he'd learn on the go. Of course, the reality was different from what he'd imagined.
But now, someone had given him a chance.
An actual hunter had asked Jaune to train with him.
Jaune had a feeling (and he really hoped he was right) that Dante's true meaning was that he was offering to train him.
If a warrior of his level were to train him, show him the way… then, he might have a chance.
As for Dante himself, he found himself wondering why exactly he did what he just did.
He shrugged.
I'm training in the mornings anyway. Might as well help him out a bit.
He didn't overthink it. That wasn't his style.
Half an hour later, he was in the dining hall, having breakfast. Over the course of his month at Beacon, he had become quite familiar with most of the teachers, at least on a surface level. This had, to an extent, quelled some of the excitement surrounding him, though people were still quite curious about him, given the fact that his past was quite unknown, barring a few very vague details. On the whole, however, he was more or less accepted as one of the faculty.
There were, of course, a few who remained quite harsh in their appraisal of him.
And he recognized the footsteps of one such person coming towards him.
He gave no sign of having heard them though. It always annoyed her to have to get his attention.
"Ahem."
He turned slowly to face her.
"Morning," he said brightly, ignoring the twitching vein in her temple. "Great day, isn't it?"
"Indeed," answered Glynda Goodwitch. Unlike Qrow, Dante could remain impeccably polite in his speech, while still doing his best to rile her up.
And boy, did it work.
She took a deep breath, thinking calming thoughts. This man was a shameless flirt, a rebel, a danger to property, and an overall problem. She couldn't afford to get caught up in his orbit and play along with his games.
Keep it direct, and don't lose your cool, she told herself.
"There is a mission that will require your participation", she said aloud.
Dante finished the omelette he was eating, his interest piqued.
Hearing he had a mission was the same feeling, whether he was at Beacon, or back home at the Devil May Cry.
"What's the job?" he asked.
Glynda, slightly surprised he wasn't joking around more, elaborated.
"Some of our students will be going on missions today. It's part of their training, so that they get some hands-on experience out in the field. They are all skilled, and second years are quite capable of handling routine runs on their own. However, this…"
"Isn't a routine run?" finished Dante.
"Not quite," agreed Glynda. "That is to say, we picked some slightly tougher situations this time around. We need our students to be prepared for them. However, given the difficulty, they will need to be accompanied by a hunter."
Dante took in the information.
From what she'd said, it sounded like these kids were second years. Obviously, Dante was going to be looking after them during their mission. That was the job.
Second years, huh?
So far, Dante had only taught the first years, though some of the older students had approached and talked to him.
Well, it's an opportunity to see how much they grew in a year, he thought.
It would give him a chance to gauge his students' growth against those who had a year's worth of experience more than them.
"Sounds fun," he said. "I've been looking for a chance to stretch my legs."
Working out was fine, but there was nothing like an actual fight to get the blood pumping and some thrill in life. He had training duels with his students every now and then, but he always restricted himself to a large extent for those. At the very least, he wouldn't need to hold back to the same extent against Grimm.
"This is not a chance for you to rampage," said Glynda sharply. She was more than aware of his abilities, as well as his love for fighting. "If you take care of everything, they will learn nothing from this, and a valuable opportunity will have gone to waste. Do not take that opportunity from them."
There was a surprising amount of emotion hidden behind the woman's normally strict tone, and Dante caught on to it right away.
She didn't act this way when it came to all the students.
Dante knew that she happened to teach the same subject he did: Combat.
She must be the one teaching the second years.
He smiled.
"You're quite attached to your students, aren't you?" he said.
She started slightly. It wouldn't have been strange for him to know that she taught the second years. But he was surprisingly perceptive when it came to how she felt about the team he was supposed to be accompanying.
Shaking her head, she regained her bearings.
"Team CFVY… have a lot of potential. I think they can become great hunters."
Interesting.
Dante observed how her face changed when she spoke of them.
It was quite a difference, seeing such concern on that stern face.
He liked it. Of all the qualities humans had, the ability to care about one another ranked high on what Dante valued.
There was absolutely no way he was going to say that aloud though.
Maintaining his persona of seeming nonchalance and complete confidence, he answered.
"Well, they'll be all right. I'll make sure they do some good hunting, then bring them back safe and sound."
Once more, Glynda was surprised by how cooperative the devil hunter was proving to be. Still, she wasn't complaining. Now, if she could just get away from here before he made one of his quips...
"Guess even doms have their soft side, huh?"
The ticking vein in her temple burst, and she turned around, swinging her riding crop, which encountered only some kind of strange red energy, which was all that remained where Dante had been a moment ago.
Done with breakfast, he waved at her from the other end of the hall.
"See ya around!"
"DAMN IT, DANTE!"
The students thus witnessed the unusual sight of Glynda Goodwitch losing her temper.
A short while later.
Team CFVY stood waiting near one of the many bullheads docked at Beacon's own hangar.
"So, the new teacher's the one coming along with us on this one, huh?"
The leader of the team, Coco Adel, tapped her foot as she waited, shifting weapon held in one hand in bag form. She wasn't quite sure what to make of the new addition to Beacon's faculty. The second years had never had any classes with him, so she'd had no opportunities to see him in action herself. That being said, the first years were raving over him.
"Well, we get to see if he lives up to the hype," commented Fox as he leaned against a handrail.
Yatsuhashi remained silent, as did Velvet, though for different reasons. Having spoken a few times to team RWBY, she had heard good things about the teacher, but had also concluded that his methodology was very unorthodox. There was no way to tell yet how that translated into on-field work, but she was slightly nervous.
They didn't have to wait any longer.
"Hey. I'm guessing you're the kids I'm tagging along with."
They turned to see a man in red approaching them. Dante walked towards them with a trademark spring in his step.
"Well, he's certainly doing all right in the looks department," whispered Coco.
Dante heard her, of course, but pretended not to. At this point, he had gotten used to remarks like this from Beacon students.
I suppose living in a kind of post-apocalyptic world loosens a lot of inhibitions, huh?
Pushing the thought out of his head, he observed the students he was supposed to accompany.
They looked capable enough. Still, having read the mission brief, he had to admit, they'd most likely have a difficult time out there.
However, they had to go into it with a positive attitude.
"Right! No point standing around. Let's get this show on the road!"
With that, they boarded the bullhead, which proceeded to take off, carrying them towards their destination.
As they travelled, team CFVY kept shooting glances at the mysterious teacher.
"I just can't get a read on him," said Fox. "Something about him is different though." Unknown to the boy, that was simply his sense of smell, sharpened out of necessity, picking up the fact that Dante's scent wasn't quite human. His sonar device, of course, couldn't pick up on his different composition and genetic structure. And Fox himself, unaware of the existence of demons, and by extension, half-demons, couldn't quite understand what the slight difference in scent signified.
"Yeah, he's a tricky one," agreed Coco. Going by the rumours, she had basically been expecting an older, male version of Yang, but that was definitely not the case.
After enjoying the view from the window for a while, Dante came over and took a seat close to the team. It was a good idea to get to know the ones Glynda thought of so highly.
"This isn't your first mission, I've been told," he said.
"That's right," replied Coco proudly. "We're 3 wins to 0 losses!"
Dante nodded. It made perfect sense. Glynda Goodwitch would not have spoken so well of them had they not been capable.
"I've got a question, teach," continued the fashionista. "Where you from?"
"Long ago, and a galaxy far, far away," replied Dante, mentally celebrating the fact that he'd been given a chance to use this particular line.
Team CFVY blinked.
"It's a joke," said the devil hunter.
"He's all right in my book," said Fox, giving the rest of the team a thumbs up.
Coco rolled her eyes. She was starting to understand why Yang liked the devil hunter. They had similar senses of humour.
"I have a feeling you thought something I should be offended by," said Dante.
"No way, you're just imagining things."
"Right. Well, it's my first time seeing what second years at this school can do. Impress me out there."
Yatsuhashi frowned slightly. The man seemed a bit too light-hearted for a pro hunter.
Coco, on the other hand, grinned.
"Oh, you'll be blown away. Trust me."
Dante turned to the two members who hadn't said anything so far. He'd already noticed Velvet's ears, signs of her Faunus heritage.
The existence of Faunus had been interesting to him. He had read about them in the history Glynda had given him. And he'd also noticed several at Beacon. There was one in the class of first years he taught, Blake Belladonna. She happened to keep that fact secret though. And in town, he noticed there were several other Faunuses who also kept their true nature hidden. Given what he had read in the history text, this wasn't surprising.
Still, there were plenty who revealed their Faunus heritage with pride, despite the difficulties they faced. Maybe it was a way of showing solidarity, standing up for their rights.
It made Dante wonder, what if there was a world where he didn't have to keep his own demonic heritage a secret.
Unlikely. Vergil, Nero and I are among a small number. There aren't as many of us as there are Faunuses.
There was also the fact that humanity was largely ignorant of the existence of demons.
Because he was lost in thought, he'd ended up staring a second too long at Velvet, causing the rather shy girl to look away.
She still didn't quite know what to make of him. And a lifetime of hard experiences had taught her to be wary of strangers.
Still, with her team around, she wasn't afraid.
Dante, noticing her rather defiant stare, realized he must have unknowingly done something to put her on the defensive.
Turning to the other members, he decided it was best to change the subject.
"Right, let's go over the brief once."
This wasn't normally how he operated. As a devil hunter, most of his jobs had been solo. There were times when Trish or Lady had worked with him on missions, but he had a much more informal relationship with them both, and trusted their abilities. Oh yeah, there were also a few times he worked with that Bayonetta woman, but she and Dante had never gone into a situation knowing they would run into each other. They'd just sort of ended up meeting every time it had happened, and found common goals. Given how immensely powerful she was, he'd had no need to worry about her.
However, this was different. He had to bring these kids back to school, safe. Best make sure they knew what the objective was.
The rest of the ride passed by with them discussing the mission. They arrived at the drop zone soon enough, and got off once the bullhead touched down. This was the extraction point too, and they were to return here to be picked up once the job was over.
As the aircraft left, the five of them made their way forward. Ahead of them lay the walled gate of a village. Located at a high altitude, it was surrounded by rock and snowy mountain sides, with sparse vegetation. When they reached the gate, a person appeared atop the walls, and upon confirming they were hunters from Beacon, let them through by opening the mechanical gate.
Impressive fortification, Dante noted.
The walls were made of solid stone, and thirty feet high. Ground based Grimm wouldn't be able to leap over them, and they were too thick to be crushed by force easily. In addition, turrets were mounted with miniguns at intervals on the walls, most likely as protection against flying Grimm.
It's a lot of weaponry for a village.
Still, given the way Remnant was, it made sense.
"Professor-"
"Just call me Dante."
"Dante, we should talk to the headman and get information," said Coco. Her team nodded.
"You lot go ahead," said Dante. "I'm going to talk to some of the people here."
Coco raised an eyebrow.
"Do you really have time to be socializing? We need information on the Grimm we're supposed to kill."
According to the brief, the village had mostly had a stable existence due to its fortifications, but recently, people had started to go missing. The objective was to find out the reason, and eliminate it.
Dante began to walk, waving as he did so.
"Like I said, I'll leave the headman to you. Just let me know when you're planning to head outside the walls."
Having said that, he left.
"Wait-"
But it was no use, he was already gone.
"Great. Just great," deadpanned Coco.
Velvet, who had been expecting something along these lines given what she had heard about him, decided to get her leader's head back in the game.
"Hey, we should go talk to the headman."
Yatsuhashi and Fox nodded.
"Right."
The four of them asked around, and were given directions to the headman's house.
Upon knocking, they were let in right away. The man had been informed that the hunters he had requested had arrived, so he was prepared.
"Come in," he said.
The house was not extravagant, but it was well built. From that, and the other buildings, not to mention the walls, it was clear this village wasn't lacking funds.
"Have a seat. Would you like something to eat or drink?"
Coco shook her head.
"We're all right. We'd like to get to work as soon as possible."
The headman nodded, slightly impressed.
"The work. Yes, of course."
"Tell us everything you know about the situation. Don't leave anything out."
"Yes, of course."
Pausing for a moment, the man began to explain.
"It all started around a month back. You see, we have the occasional Grimm attack, but nothing we can't deal with."
"You have some impressive walls and armaments," Yatsuhashi noted, breaking his silence.
The headman nodded.
"This village is built on top of a meteorite crash site. Generations ago, we were able to mine it for ore, and continue to do so. The ore is high quality, and yields iron that is much sought after. As a result, we've never been lacking in money."
Boy, what Atlas would do if they knew this place existed, thought CFVY's leader.
Nodding, she let the headman continue.
"In any case, we've never had undue trouble with Grimm before. It's impossible for there to be no casualties, since we're so far out in the wilds, but the numbers were small, the incidents rare. All that changed a month ago. People started to disappear."
"How?" asked Fox sharply.
"We don't know," said the headman. "They left the village, but never back."
"Why would they leave the safety of the village?" asked Velvet.
"To hunt," replied the headman simply. "Living all the way up here as we are, there aren't too many other ways we can eat. We do trade for food, but we can't simply depend on that. And I can't stop people trying to provide for their families."
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the village:
Dante spun Ivory, having just finished destroying a training target. Putting it back into its holster, he took off the blindfold he was wearing.
"Well, looks like ya owe me," he said, turning to face a group of people next to him.
They all looked at him with a mixture of awe and resentment.
"Never met anybody who can pull off six consecutive headshots blindfolded," noted a woman among them.
"Hey, buddy, you are human, right?" asked a man.
"Me? Sure. My shooting? Different story. Now about that bet."
They all refused to meet his eye, now that it was time to pay up. Dante, of course, had seen this coming.
"Tell you all what. You can keep the money. But there is something you can give me."
Looking considerably relieved, they waited for him to go on.
"I'm actually here to take care of a problem you've all been having. People have been going missing from here?"
They looked at each other, and then back at him.
"You're a hunter? Then… you're here to help?"
Dante nodded.
"We'll tell you everything we know. Please, whatever it is… just take care of it."
"These people… how do they go missing?"
"Well, they all went out hunting. For food. And they never came back. I mean, we have stuff in storage, but it's not going to last forever. And the next shipment won't arrive for months…"
"They all went hunting alone?"
"No, they went in groups. But… it didn't matter. None of them made it back. None of the search parties we sent came back either. We even sent people to check if there were any dangerous Grimm nearby. None of them returned. We've been stuck within these walls since. No one's dared to go out."
The man in red carefully considered the information. If this was supposed to be due to Grimm, something didn't add up.
"How often are you attacked by Grimm?" he asked.
"Ah… not very often. Maybe once a few months? It used to be much more frequent, but we used to repel them easily thanks to the fortifications. Eventually, the attacks became rarer and rarer."
"These hunters who went out for food. They were experienced?"
"Yes! None of them had ever had any problems during a hunt before."
It just didn't make sense. Grimm were attracted to negative feelings. In a settlement like this, which had learned to defend itself, those would be relatively less. In addition, experienced wild game hunters who have come back alive before would be in control of their emotions during a hunt.
And finally, it was likely that any search or destruction teams the village sent would be well-armed, judging by the walls.
While it made sense that there would be growing worries as more and more people went missing, that would not be the case for the first few people that went outside.
But there still wasn't enough information to come to a decision on.
"Is there anything else anyone noticed? Anything strange at all?"
One of the man smacked his fist onto an open palm.
"Ah! What about that?"
Immediately, the others rolled their eyes.
"Oh, give it up, Jarod. You're still going on about that? You were seeing things, remember?"
"No, I wasn't! You all keep saying that…"
"You need to get over the drinking habit."
"Wait," said Dante. "This thing you saw. What was it?"
The one called Jarod seemed slightly surprised that a pro hunter of all people would be interested in hearing his account. Especially after how skeptical everyone in the village had been about it. Still, he wouldn't miss this chance.
"Well, there was this flash of light. Gigantic, like from a lightning bolt or something, you know? Lasted only a moment. And in that moment, I saw…"
"Oh, come on," said someone else, rolling his eyes.
"... I saw what looked like a giant tree, getting destroyed by some kind of flames? I wasn't sure. But the tree was definitely there for a moment. Like a silhouette in the sky."
Dante's eyes widened.
The silhouette of a gigantic tree in the sky.
A flash of light.
Flames that destroyed the tree.
"When did you see all this?" he asked.
"A-about a month ago, I guess? Just before the disappearances."
Dante had heard enough.
He dashed away.
Pulling out his Scroll, and tried calling Coco, only for the call to fail.
Signal's weak all the way out here. Damn it!
A short while ago:
"Hey, are you sure we should be going out without Dante?" asked Fox.
"We can handle it!" replied Coco. "Besides, he's probably goofing off somewhere."
"It might seem that way," said Yatsuhashi cautiously, "but he's still a teacher. We should contact him first."
"It'll be fine," said the leader. "It's not our first time on the field. Look, if things look bad, we won't engage, all right? But we need to scout the place out and see what we're dealing with anyway, right? How about we at least do that?"
The team was reluctant, but ultimately agreed. Their leader was headstrong, and also very difficult to convince once she had already made up her mind about something. But, on the other hand, she'd never led them astray yet.
And so, they were currently out in the snow-covered woods, trying to track down the mysterious Grimm that they believed was responsible for the missing people.
Little did they know, they weren't dealing with a Grimm at all.
When the first arrow came, they weren't prepared for it.
OST: Motorhead- Enter Sandman (Metallica cover)
It crashed into Yatsuhashi like a hammer, launching him backwards. The massive youth smashed through several tree trunks before rolling backwards on the ground. The roll caused the arrow to fly past him, embedding itself into a boulder behind him.
Grunting, he slowly got his feet. Turning, he looked at the arrow that had almost skewered him, nearly breaking through his Aura.
It was gigantic, larger than an average spear, and at least three times as thick.
"What the he-"
Before he could even finish his exclamation, he heard the whistling of air, and leapt backwards, avoiding a second arrow, which smashed the boulder into bits.
Following the direction the shot had come from, he found the archer, and his eyes widened.
Standing close to ten feet tall, he towered even over Yatsuhashi himself, possessing an inhumanly muscular physique, which was almost completely exposed to view. Bits of armour like scales covered his nethers, shoulders and thighs. In one hand, he held an enormous bow that appeared to be made of the antlers of some unknown beast. And blinking on it were several living eyes. The archer himself had a crown of proud horns growing from his head. His gold eyes seemed to burn as if with fire, and his skin was dark blue.
Yatsuhashi felt a cold sweat roll down his neck.
"What kind of creature are you?"
In answer, the being pulled back the string on his bow. A flash of lightning followed, and another massive arrow materialized, nocked and ready to fire.
Before he could release it, though, several bullets bounced off him. Not even flinching, he turned to face Coco, who had Gianduja out in minigun form, trained on him.
"Yatsu, move, get into formation now!"
He didn't need to be told twice. A year's worth of experience with the team kicked in, and he hefted his sword, circling around, even as Coco opened fire once more, the shots heavier than before, doubtless amped by her Semblance.
The titanic archer continued to take the shots, unaffected in any way, and not even bothering to cover up or avoid them.
In hindsight, Team CFVY would realise this was a sign that he was not an ordinary opponent.
But at the moment, Yatsuhashi and Fox both attributed it to high durability. Having faced Grimm with similar toughness before, they decided to use Coco's fire as a distraction to approach him, and take him out with their bladed weapons.
As they were mere inches from slashing him, he disappeared.
The two teens blinked.
Before they could react, they both felt heavy blows crash into them, and were sent flying.
The sheer force behind the hits was incredible. Deathstalkers, or even Goliaths, could not strike with that kind of power.
Their Auras nearly depleted, the two boys rose to their feet shakily.
"N-no…" said Coco. She was unable to believe that her teammates, who were two of the toughest people she knew, could have been damaged to that extent so easily. On top of that, she had been unable to see the monstrous archer move at all.
It was at this point that she realised, she had made an error as a leader.
OST- Attack on Titan Fight Theme
She had entered a fight she could not win.
The archer's eyes flashed gold, and another arrow materialized in his hand.
There was no way this thing was human.
No way it was Grimm even.
A monster like this could only be…
"A demon…"
We are dead here. We can't beat this monster.
Immobilized as she was with fear, the cold certainty of this realization gave her the strength to act.
She had brought her team into this mess.
As leader, it was her job, to get them out… even if it cost her her life.
If she used every last bit of Aura she had left, she would be able to power her Semblance to the point where ordinary minigun shots would become explosive rounds. She would only be able to hold that kind of output for two seconds maybe. But it would be the equivalent of a missile barrage.
If she hit him with that, she would be able to distract him enough that maybe one person would be able to get away.
With this in mind, she issued her final orders.
"Yatsu, Fox, with me! Full attack! Velvet, get out of here now! Find Dante!"
Velvet, who had so far not used her weapon at all, stared at Coco in fear.
"No! I can't just leave you here-"
"That's an order!" shouted Coco. "We… can't beat this thing. We can only hold it off for a while. Before our time runs out, you must find Dante!"
The tone of her voice left no room for argument.
Velvet bit down on her feelings. On her self-hatred and powerlessness. Her Semblance and weapon combined allowed her to use the weapons and fighting styles of other hunters… but with limited effectiveness, and only for a short time. It was extremely versatile and useful if timed right. But against a monster like this, it would be no use.
Right now, the only use she could be of to her team was by running.
Running, and getting help.
She hated it.
But she had to do it. Their lives were on the line here.
And so, she ran. Sprinted away, with every last bit of her agility and speed, leaping from tree to tree to go faster.
Far behind her, the demonic archer did not even spare her a glance.
His attention was focused on the three who had remained.
Unknown to them, he understood their language perfectly fine. He was as intelligent as any human, perhaps more.
When he spoke, his voice filled the three teens with dread.
"A foolish attempt. So might worms crawl from the inevitable hook. Submit, and become my prey."
"You can speak…" said Coco. "What the hell are you…?"
The archer scoffed.
"A hunter does not give his name to prey."
The fashionista gritted her teeth. He was beyond terrifying, but she wouldn't back down here. She needed to buy all the time she could, and this guy's arrogance was going to help her do it.
"Looks like you got a major superiority complex there, big guy. You sure you aren't compensating for something?"
The demon frowned. If he was scary when he was indifferent, his mere presence was paralyzing them now that he was slightly angry.
"Always the same. Humans and their pathetic arrogance. Where does it stem from, I wonder? Are you all braggarts by nature? Or are words all you have?"
Ignoring him, as well as the looks of her teammates, Coco decided to push him even further.
"I'll let you in on another fact, big guy. We are the hunters here. We come from an entire school of them. This is our world you're in. And you're not welcome."
The demon's gold eyes narrowed.
"You will suffer before you die."
"You first, asshole."
Pouring all of her Aura into her weapon using her Semblance, Coco fired.
As explosions rang out behind her, Velvet continued to move.
If those blasts were what she thought she was, then she was almost out of time. She had already tried calling, but the CCT barely had any signal strength all the way out here.
Was she going to have to find Dante herself?
There was no time for that.
He could be anywhere in the village, and it would take a few more seconds for her to even reach the place.
There was no time.
There was no time.
In her desperation, she shouted out desperately.
"DANTE!"
And that was enough.
She had no idea, of course, that like her, he possessed superhuman hearing, only to an extent that surpassed even her.
He had already entered the forest, and was searching for the students. Her voice was all he needed to find her.
A red blur leapt out of the trees, right in front of her.
Velvet stared, but had no time to let her own surprise register.
"They're that way!" she said, pointing. "You need to hurry, now!"
He didn't even reply. With a simple nod, he disappeared from view, moving with unimaginable speed.
Heart pounding in her chest, Velvet followed as fast as she could, to back him up in any way she could.
It would, however, be unnecessary.
OST- Machine Head- I Am Hell
Coco managed to get to her feet. Her Aura was completely depleted now. Yatsuhashi and Fox were already unconscious.
The demonic archer had not even needed to draw another arrow to defeat them.
So this is how it ends, huh?
Even if this would be her final act of defiance, she would die standing up, looking this monster in the eye. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of dying like prey.
The demon shook his head.
"All this resistance, pointless. In the end, no matter how courageous, the deer cannot defeat the tiger. Such is nature. I will give you, at least, a painless death. And your companions will follow you to the afterlife soon enough."
Having said what he wanted to, he drew his arm back, planning to impale her with his razor sharp claws.
Coco took a deep breath, and prepared to die.
At least I managed to save Velvet.
The demon thrust his hand forward.
But the blow never connected with her.
A red blur had materialized in front of her, and a hand shot forward to meet that of the monster.
Coco's jaw dropped open.
"D-Dante?"
The last thing she registered before falling unconscious was a feeling of safety.
As for Velvet, she reached the clearing just in time to see Dante holding the demon's hand in place with an iron grip.
The normally cheerful warrior had no hint of a smile on his face.
He was beyond angry.
Right about then, Velvet realized why he kept his lighthearted facade on around people.
His aura wasn't like a wild beast's.
His anger was on a completely different level.
He was like a force of nature.
The archer frowned.
Unaware of the danger he was in, he spoke.
"So there is someone of worth among you after all. No matter. You too shall fall soon en-"
The words died in his mouth.
As he had attempted to pull his hand out of Dante's grasp, it hadn't so much as budged.
Planting his feet firmly, he tried once more, but to no avail.
Dante's face remained cold.
The demonic archer, experiencing something he had never experienced before, tried to pull away with all his might, but came up short.
Dante tightened his grip, and pulled backwards violently, tearing the archer's arm off its shoulder socket. The hand he was gripping had already been mangled, and blood flowed freely from the gaping wound on the archer's torso, even as torn muscles were exposed to view.
The demon took several steps back, snarling in anger and growing fear.
"You! You are not human! That power… you are…"
His eyes widened in comprehension.
Back in the Underworld, he had heard the stories. A Legendary Dark Knight, who had sired twin sons.
"Son of Sparda…" he hissed. "Why are you in this world?"
But Dante was in no mood to talk.
He began to walk forward.
The archer jumped backwards. Concentrating his demonic power, he was able to regenerate his lost arm, a new one bursting forth from his shoulder. He sprang towards the figure in red, knowing now that he could not afford to hold anything back.
Changing directions mid-dash to catch him unawares, he attempted to slash Dante from the side with his claws.
A blast of red energy flashed, and searing pain surged across the demon's chest.
Dante was still walking towards him.
Three more times the monster attempted to claw at Dante. Three more times the Royal Release was delivered, with brutal and unrelenting precision.
The demon struggled to get to his feet. The pain he was experiencing was beyond even what he had felt when Mundus had beaten him into servitude.
A foot connected with his chin, and he felt himself fly through the air, crashing through tree after tree, until he collided with a boulder, which collapsed in pieces on him from the force of the impact.
How? How does he have such strength? He is only half demon!
It was no longer a fight for pride. Now it was a fight for survival.
Having no choice, the demon unleashed his true form.
Boss Battle:
The Hunter of the Underworld- Orion
Demonic power surged forth in a wave, obliterating every tree in a ten metre radius.
Orion hovered above the ground, kept aloft by wings extending from his legs. All four of them. His lower body was that of a horse, only covered by scales as though they were armour. His bow was larger than before. Eyes on it tracked Dante.
"You will fall here, Son of Sparda."
The one feared as the legendary devil hunter gave no reply. His silence was answer enough.
Velvet Scarlatina watched the hellish battle in front of her unfold.
It was like something out of myth and legend.
There were no Grimm like this.
Although she did not know Orion's identity as the Hunter of the Underworld, whose stars shone in the night sky, she instinctively felt his nature as demon lord.
And somehow, Dante, the new teacher at Beacon, had overpowered him at every turn.
She sensed it in him.
A power that surpassed her imagination. Something ancient. A godlike power, that could only belong to the greatest of all knights.
Orion drew his bow, and in place of an arrow, a lightning bolt manifested.
Velvet's eyes widened.
The string was released, and the lightning surged forth, as fast as any lightning bolt in a storm.
Yet, even as he had pulled the string back, Dante had called on one of the many Devil Arms in his possession.
Cerberus' lightning flashed to meet Orion's, and the demonic energies cancelled each other out.
Growling, Orion attempted to draw his string back once more, but a bullet struck his right hand, shattering every bone in it.
Dante held Ebony up, trained on his demonic archer.
Every time Orion's regeneration attempted to repair his hand, Dante blasted in apart again with deadly accuracy.
Pulling out Ivory with his other hand, he started firing both weapons, aiming at completely different targets, and in different rhythms, never missing a shot.
Ebony continued to destroy Orion's hand time and again, while rapid-fire shots from Ivory punctured every eye on Orion's bow.
The Hunter of the Underworld felt fear as he had never felt before.
Completely outmatched, he attempted to retreat, only for bullets to tear apart all eight of his wings, causing him to crash to the ground.
Knowing now that it was impossible to run, he decided to bet everything on one final defiant charge.
Using his bow as a lance, he galloped forward, attempting to impale Dante.
The Legendary Devil Hunter drew Coyote A, and fired.
A point-blank range shot charged with Dante's potent demonic power connected with Orion. Countless shots from the shell dug into his body, blowing him backwards off his feet.
Breathing hard, Orion could look on as Dante walked towards him, a sword appearing in his hand as he approached.
Near death, Orion was able to glimpse Dante's true form for a moment.
Black and red, burning with the fires of the Underworld.
"Devil of Sin… I see now. The son has surpassed the father…"
Dante said nothing, simply driving his namesake blade into Orion's heart, ending his life. As he removed the Devil Sword from him, it vanished in a flash of flames.
The demon's body was converted to energy, forming a single glowing sphere which approached Dante, who held out a hand, and absorbed it.
In its place, a demonic bow identical to the one Orion had wielded appeared. Dante drew its string back once. Satisfied, he allowed the weapon to disappear, ready to be summoned again when needed.
With the battle finally over, he sighed.
He turned to Velvet, who had collapsed from sheer relief.
As she stared at him, he thought for a while he could see fear in her eyes.
Had he allowed his true form to emerge for a moment? And if so, had she seen it?
He shook his head. It didn't matter.
Going over to Yatsuhashi, Fox and Coco, he checked all three of them one by one, and found, to his immense relief, that they were all still alive.
"They're okay," he said out loud, without facing Velvet. "The bullhead should be arriving to pick us up soon. Let's carry them to the extraction point."
"Wait!"
He stopped.
"That thing… that wasn't a Grimm. What was he?"
"A demon," Dante answered after a moment.
"Demon…" Velvet echoed. A monster from hell. That really was the only thing he could have been.
And if that was true, then the power she had sensed from Dante…
Everything made sense now. Why he alone had been able to fight him. Why he had been able to beat him so easily.
"Dante… are you-"
She paused, and looked at him.
Even if he carried the same power, he wasn't like Orion.
Had that been why he had been staring at her earlier?
As a Faunus, it was hard enough to fit in.
As another outsider, had he been wondering what it was like for her?
"Something wrong?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"No, it's all right."
The two of them carried team CFVY's unconscious members out of the forest.
As for Velvet, she concluded Dante was as human as she was, or anyone else she knew.