Author's note: I have a feeling a lot of people are going to disagree with the way I've done characterization in this chapter. But I think this is how it would have gone down, and that's why I wrote it this way. There's a post chapter note for those of you might want an explanation for the exact way the events happen, but hopefully, it won't be needed.
Chapter 18: The End of an Era
Vergil stepped forward, inspecting the place he found himself in.
"This is where my brother is?"
"Indeed", replied the figure next to him. "It is called Remnant. Quite a beautiful world for one with such a tragic name, wouldn't you say?"
Vergil made no answer, but his grip on Yamato tightened. As always, his bearing remained calm and cool, but he was wary. He could sense the tremendous strength of the one who had brought him here.
Lucifer Morningstar, the fallen angel, the original demon. Vergil had seen enough of the Underworld to know that there must be truth to the tales told about him. But he had never expected to actually encounter him. There was no doubt he was who he claimed to be.
Even more curiously, Vergil could sense his own power growing. And it had started happening from the moment the Lightbringer had arrived.
For the moment, however, he decided to focus his attention on the matter at hand. Lucifer did not seem to be hostile, at least right now, though Vergil knew this could change at any time. "Hostility" was not quite the right word. Being around him, the Dark Slayer had the distinct impression that even when inflicting violence, Lucifer would not be "hostile" towards his targets. No, quite simply, it was just another means of obtaining pleasure for him.
"Why reveal Dante's location to us?"
It was better to have some idea of his plans right now, rather than discovering them later, when it might be too late.
"Why indeed?" mused Lucifer aloud. "It's worth mentioning: I always knew where he was. After all, I was the one who sent him here."
Vergil quickly hid the look of surprise that appeared on his face for a moment.
"You split the portal," he said, realizing what had happened that day, months ago.
The Lightbringer smiled.
"Why would you do such a thing? What is your intention?"
Vergil doubted he would give the answers he was looking for, but it was worth it to take a chance and ask, just in case he felt like revealing them.
"Why, because it is fun, of course."
Vergil all but rolled his eyes. He should have expected that.
It didn't seem like he was going to give anything away. Well, that was just how it was. And it didn't matter in any case. Now that he was in the same world, finding Dante would not be difficult. The red-clad Devil Hunter tended to leave a trail of chaos in his wake, one way or another.
As this conversation was happening between the two devils, another man stood a little way behind them, watching them both carefully. He was tall, and had a wiry, athletic build. His clothing consisted of a simple pair of cargoes and a vest, with a dark blue leather jacket over it, the hood of which was pulled back. His silver hair was cropped short, and he carried an unusually large sword.
Nero, the Devil Hunter
The young man did not feel at ease, his right hand clenched tightly by his side, a faint blue glow emanating from it at times. This situation wasn't good.
"Hey," he said to the blonde woman next to him. "Just to be clear. That guy… he's the Lucifer? You know… actual Satan?"
"That's one of the names he has been given, but it undersells him," replied Trish. She could understand Nero's discomfort quite well. Back at the Devil May Cry office, a moment of bloodlust from the fallen angel had incapacitated her right away, just like it had Nero. None of them needed to put into words what that meant.
But that wasn't the only problem.
"You sense the other issue, right?" Nero asked. He knew Trish was a demon, but Dante trusted her, and that was good enough for him.
"You mean the part where your father dearest is giving off energy like he just ate ten Qliphoth Fruits?"
Again, neither of them needed to say what that meant.
In the months since the Qliphoth's destruction and Vergil's return, Nero had fought his father several times. They had all been training bouts, so neither of them were attacking with the intent to kill. Even so, the younger man had not been able to best the Dark Slayer. His success at the top (bottom) of the demon tree had not been something he had managed to repeat. Vergil fought mostly defensively in their spars, and Nero used his entire arsenal of powers, abilities, skills and strategies… but at the end of each session, he was left exhausted, while the katana wielder was unscathed.
It was excellent training, of course. In those few months, Nero had improved considerably, discovering ways of fighting that he had never thought of before.
But he wasn't the only one who had improved.
And as if that wasn't enough, Lucifer's presence seemed to somehow be making Vergil even stronger.
What that came down to was that if he should decide to cause destruction again (and Nero knew it was very possible), there wasn't anybody in their group who could stop him. Vergil had calmed down considerably, and was even able to get along with others to an extent. But had he really changed for good?
It worried Nero that he didn't know the answer to that.
"Chin up kid," said another woman, standing on his other side. This lady had short black hair that was styled straight, and carried a gigantic bazooka on her back.
Lady, the Walking Arsenal
"You're awfully relaxed about all this," Nero commented.
"She's got a point," said the final member of the group. Unlike the others, this man wasn't a slayer of demons. His most prominent skills were as a negotiator, information finder, and agent.
Morrison took a long drag from his cigar before exhaling the smoke.
"To put it simply, there ain't nothin' anyone of us can do if those two decide to go wild. Now that's not a good thing. But, it also means that worryin' is useless. So we might as well go along on this little ride. After all, it's not everyday the Devil himself takes you to a place that isn't hell."
Nero grunted.
He didn't like it. But there wasn't much of a choice.
Right now, finding Dante was the best option. That was why there were all here.
Still, he had to admire Morrison and Lady. They had guts, that was for sure.
"Heh. Nico's going to be so pissed she didn't come along."
The genius craftswoman and weaponsmith had (reluctantly) chosen to stay behind. The reason behind that was that she was in the middle of a construction project. Taking too long of a break in the middle of work just wasn't her style.
As for Lucifer himself…
Now they are all here. Yes, the timing is just right. I should leave now. This will be interesting to watch, and being present will change the outcome too much. But before I leave…
Just a small spark would be enough.
"In any case, I will be on my way now," he said to Vergil. "About your brother, do what you will."
He turned to leave, but paused.
"Incidentally," he said. "Dante holds a victory over me. Just so you know."
He wasn't looking at Vergil, but it wasn't hard to imagine the expression on his face, or on the others'.
Before any of them could say anything though, he created a portal and walked into it, vanishing from sight.
Nero felt a single bead of sweat roll down his neck.
The old man beat him?
It was… impossible.
But then again, regularly doing the impossible was what Dante did. It didn't surprise Nero. But looking at Vergil, the Devil Hunter could see his fist clenched.
"Oh boy," said Trish. "That does not look good."
If Vergil heard her, he did not acknowledge the statement in any way.
Instead, he began to walk.
"Hey," said Nero. "Wait up."
He caught up with Vergil, but the Dark Slayer did not slow down.
"Keep up," was all he said, before he transformed, unleashing his Sin Devil form. Nero raised his hands to shield his eyes from the flash of blue light. With a leap and a powerful beat of his wings, Vergil took to the skies, disappearing from sight in less than a second.
Nero had only a moment to decide if he should follow. His own Devil form allowed him to fly, so he should be able to keep up, as Vergil had said. But if he did…
He turned and looked at the others.
Trish was a demon, and she was strong. And Lady was skilled in her own right. But they were in an unfamiliar world. Anyone or anything could come at them.
He grunted, but the choice wasn't difficult.
"Tch. We'll go our own way then," he said out loud.
The others blinked, but then smiled. Nero's choice hadn't gone unnoticed by them.
"Well, he took off right away. But it's not as if he knows where Dante is", Trish pointed out.
Nero's eyes widened.
Lady grinned.
"Yep. So that's the first thing we should find out. Luckily, if I know anything about him, this shouldn't be hard to do. We just need to ask around."
Out in the wilds of Vale:
"Not bad at all."
Dante nodded, taking in the sight in front of him, a satisfied smile on his face as he nodded.
Glynda had a hand on her forehead. She could feel a migraine coming on, and was attempting to soothe it before it hit. She took a deep breath and exhaled.
"Is there a reason there is a billiards table and a jukebox in the front office?" she asked.
"Because they have to be there," replied Dante and Yang at the same time, fist bumping each other.
And the migraine hit.
Keep calm.
"Dante," Glynda said in a sweet voice. "You know that these things cost money, yes? Things like the jukebox, the billiards table, or that drum set. Why do you even need a drum set?"
In answer, Dante grinned.
Glynda face-palmed, realizing what she had just done.
"He's going to do a drum solo, isn't he?" asked Weiss.
"He's going to do a drum solo," confirmed Ruby.
"Stop him from doing the drum solo," said Glynda in a muffled voice from between her hands. "We've barely set this place up. There's a lot of work to be done."
"Umm…" Blake raised her hand. "Why are these two here?"
She looked with distaste at a certain heterochromatic girl and her bowler-hat wearing partner.
Needless to say, she hadn't forgotten their role in the robberies the White Fang had committed.
"Ah, Roman?" said Dante. "Don't worry about him. He's a good guy now. And Neo is… well, Neo."
Blake's expression tightened. While she now trusted the Devil Hunter, it didn't mean she automatically agreed with him on everything. If anything, she'd had to reassess the man completely. It wasn't that he was hiding his true self, it was simply that he was far too trusting.
"Dante, these two are wanted criminals. They're responsible for tens, if not hundreds of crimes, including robbery and racism. And I'm sure they've killed people."
"Quite a few," Roman commented drily.
Blake immediately drew her weapon in gun form, pointing it at the criminal mastermind, who gave her a smug smirk in return.
"All right, all right," said Dante, stepping in between them. "Just relax for a second, okay? I know these two have done some pretty bad things."
"Then why-" began Blake.
"Because I don't think it's my place to judge people, Blake," answered Dante simply. "They chose to turn things around and change how they were living. And I don't want to take that chance away from them."
Blake lowered her gun, but didn't relax.
"How do you know you can trust them?That they aren't just here with plans of their own?"
"Because they risked their lives to save that city," answered Dante. "I don't think the White Fang or that Cinder chick take kindly to former members."
The tension in Blake's shoulders lessened slightly, but did not entirely vanish.
While it was news to her that the two criminals had switched sides and risked their lives to do so, she was still cautious. Still, at the very least, they would be right here, where everyone could keep an eye on them. In the worst case scenario, they'd just have to take them out.
"Ease up a little, kitty," taunted Roman. "I'll be honest, the thought of going another round or five with you doesn't bother me."
He looked at Dante, who rolled his eyes.
Reluctantly, Roman decided to back down for the moment.
"But it would be useless. People are dying, and kingdoms are about to fall. It goes beyond a few stolen shipments. I'd rather keep this world in one piece. And so, here we are. Like it or not, we're on your side."
"Are they even going to be useful?" Yang asked Dante.
The Devil Hunter walked over to the billiards table, grabbing one of the cues and knocking a ball into a pocket without looking.
"You've got to remember, they've been evading capture and gathering information all this time. Best believe they aren't too shabby. But there's something else: they've worked with the ones behind everything that's been happening."
"Unfortunately," said Roman, "they didn't reveal themselves to us. The only one we've met is Cinder."
"So all we have to do is find her," said Ruby.
She remembered her encounter with the woman during the Dust robbery. It was, after all, the incident that took her to Beacon.
"There's more going on here than we know," said Dante quietly.
It was true. Ozpin had refused to divulge any information, and he wouldn't cooperate with anyone who wasn't working according to his plans. This meant that there was at least some truth to what the so-called Woman in the Tower had said.
It was also strange that Ozpin hadn't made any attempts to persuade him to stay. Going by what Dante had seen of him, and the descriptions in the book, the headmaster should, by nature, be trying to maneuver people. In other words, he would normally try to manipulate Dante in staying at Beacon and working for him, most likely by giving him something in exchange.
But he hadn't.
He wanted me gone, because he's doing something he doesn't want me to see.
But that was a sudden change. One that had occurred after Dante had revealed his Devil form to the world.
He hadn't factored me into his plans, huh? Or, to be precise, he hadn't factored a proper demon into his equation.
Use Dante to keep the Grimm and the demons at bay. Keep him distracted by sending him to spy on Roman and having him teach the kids.
While he was free to continue his own plans.
"There's something hidden at Beacon," Dante said aloud.
Everyone else looked at him sharply.
"How do you know that?" asked Weiss.
"It makes sense," said Roman. "Ozpin is the type to keep secrets."
Even Glynda could not disagree there. Despite having worked at Beacon for years, she wasn't privy to all of Ozpin's plans.
"So what's our move?" asked Yang.
Dante looked out the window.
"Well, for the moment, we'll wait for the other two teams to get back. They are buying supplies we need for this place, after all. Once all that is that, I want to train you all a bit more, because I have the feeling you'll need it for what I have in mind."
"Which is…?" asked Glynda.
Dante grinned.
"I'm going to take ol' Cinder up on her offer, and meet her boss."
Roman's eyes widened. He was about to shout how dangerous that was, when he remembered who he was in front of. He'd seen the footage circulating on the Net too.
If it was Dante, then the idea of meeting whatever batshit crazy individual Cinder was working for wasn't a bad idea.
As they were about to discuss this further, they all felt it.
For the second time in only a few days, almost everyone in the room nearly collapsed.
"What the hell…" grunted Yang.
It was an instinctive dread, similar to being in the presence of an apex predator. She had felt it before during her encounter with Raijin, who was a high level demon.
But this… this was even beyond that.
Every instinct she had was telling her the same thing:
Certain death.
"A demon…" she said.
"This power… what kind of monster could have it…", said Weiss.
They looked at Dante, who was looking at the ceiling, or more accurately, up at the sky.
"Redgrave!" said Roman. "What the hell is that?"
"He's here," was all Dante said.
Of course, he was familiar with that power. He had faced it many times in the past. Still, he wasn't expecting to feel it again so soon. Certainly not with that kind of aggression behind it.
It pissed him off.
Haven't you learned your lesson yet?
In a flash of flames, Devil Sword Dante appeared in his hand, and he walked towards the door.
"Don't worry," he said. "This won't take long."
Elsewhere in Remnant:
Nevan swore.
"Damn it all! Why is he here?"
She hadn't forgotten the way she had been unceremoniously thrown from the Earth to this world.
The other members of the cabal were all alert, their demonic auras flaring around them in response to the threat.
"The other twin is here", said Atlas.
"The once-King", snarled Valkyrie. "Do we attack?"
Nevan seriously considered that strategy. He was the biggest obstacle to their success, for multiple reasons. Taking him out now would be best, and if they were to do that, attacking him all at once and catching him off-guard was the best chance they had.
But even with such a strategy.
"It won't work," she muttered.
He was currently in his Sin form. That was why they were able to sense his power from so far away.
And if so, attacking him would mean certain death.
Before she could come up with another plan, she felt something else.
A different power, also flaring, also palpable from miles away.
It was rising defiantly, as though daring anyone to challenge it.
"That's-!"
She knew who it was.
Nevan was ecstatic.
Perhaps even without knowing it, he was acting like a Demon King, protecting his territory.
"Our King is going to face him," said Iris.
"Stay here," said Nevan. "I will observe the battle."
She was confident in Dante, but with Vergil as the opponent… one could never be too sure. If things went badly…
She looked at Malevar.
"In an emergency, I'll make my way to Dante. As soon as I have him, transport us both out of there. We cannot fail here."
"As you wissshhh."
With at, the Serpent demon summoned a transport portal, which Nevan entered.
Back in Vale:
"Hey… you guys feel that, right?", said Nero.
Trish made no reply, jaw clenched as she looked in the direction from which she sensed the power.
So this is the path you've chosen, Dante.
"Tch! There's no time. You guys catch up. I'm going ahead."
The situation had changed. The big threat was now the coming battle, and Nero needed to be there. He wasn't sure if he could succeed, but he needed to stop them, like he'd done once before.
In another dimension:
Lucifer leaned back, conjuring a soft drink out of nowhere and taking a sip.
"Finally. This show has truly gotten interesting."
He turned to the person next to him.
"What do you think?"
"That you need other hobbies," that person replied.
"Is that all? I would have thought you'd want to intervene."
"My sons are old enough to settle their own disputes."
The insectoid demon was likewise seated, next to Lucifer.
Sparda, The Legendary Dark Knight
"Again, must I sit here and watch this? The wife is waiting, and I'd rather not make her wait too long."
"You aren't concerned about this at all?"
"Not particularly. I already know how it will end."
That had Lucifer's attention.
He sat up straighter, leaning forward.
"Oh? Do tell me. Who do you believe will win?"
Sparda looked at him.
"If I do, you'll have to excuse me, since I'll be leaving early."
"That's quite all right."
"Fine. Then…"
The Legendary Dark Knight gave his answer, and a look of surprise briefly appeared on Lucifer's face, though it disappeared quickly enough.
"You truly are the most human of all us demons. I doubt anyone else would have given that particular answer."
"It wasn't what you expected to hear, was it?"
"No. It wasn't."
He turned his attention back to the projection in front of him, which depicted a real-time view of Remnant.
"You should go," he said to Sparda by way of parting. "Give Eva my regards."
Back in Remnant:
Dante stood waiting, looking at the sky. Around him, a crimson aura flared, his demonic power surging. Then, he could see him approaching. Still miles away, but now in sight.
A moment later, the cerulean, samurai-like demon landed in front of him, reverting back to his human form.
And after months, the two brothers were finally face to face.
In silence, the two Sons of Sparda matched gazes, taking in every single detail about each other.
Vergil frowned.
He's… different. He seems… more grounded? But that's not all.
He realized what exactly had changed.
"Well, well. I never thought I'd see actual anger from you, Brother."
It was a typical barb, the likes of which they'd exchanged many times, but this time, Dante made no reply.
What followed was so fast, Vergil barely had time to raise Yamato.
The force of the thrust slammed into him, and he slid backwards.
He went right for my head!
The implication of that was not missed.
Destroying any of their organs was pointless, since both Sons of Sparda could regenerate them in seconds.
But if the brain was completely destroyed…
Devil Sword Dante's blade was broad. Using it, a single thrust was enough to scramble the entirety of the brain.
Vergil unsheathed Yamato, but Dante was already out of sight.
From the sides? No, above!
It was one of his brother's favourite tactics, pushing the opponent back with a powerful attack, then teleporting above to rain down bullets.
But that was when he was fighting to compete, having fun.
That wasn't what was happening now.
So his true position must be…
Behind me!
Wheeling around, Vergil slashed with Yamato, only to be graced by a point-blank explosion as a rocket went off in his face.
He baited me!
In front of him stood a shadowy version of his brother. It was Dante's Doppelganger, a power he hadn't seen him use since their fights on the Temen-ni-Gru, years ago. The double was holding a bazooka in his hands, and the shell going off right in front of him meant he was surrounded by smoke, nearly blinded from the flash of light, and distracted by the burning smell.
A moment later, he felt pain explode in his body, as a blade sprouted from his chest.
"Arrghhh… Dante…"
Three steps ahead. He'd been three steps ahead.
"This is your last chance, Vergil. Back down. I won't give you another warning."
Vergil looked up.
Dante was in the air, held aloft by his wings. He was in his restricted Devil Trigger form. The sword piercing through Vergil was the Devil blade itself.
He used telekinesis to impale me!
Dante's eyes burned orange, and there was no smile on his face.
Vergil straightened up.
So this is Dante when he's fighting to kill.
The Doppelganger vanished, and the Devil Sword was wrenched out of him, flying into Dante's hand, where its sides parted, revealing a glowing red core, as crimson Summoned Swords formed around him.
Vergil sheathed the Yamato, bringing it to his side, ready for a quick-draw.
This was it. In his heart, he knew this was his final battle with Dante.
His brother wasn't holding back at all.
This was the version of him he needed to defeat. Dante at his absolute best.
"Hold still."
Yamato flashed, three times, and each time, an explosive blast followed as space-time was ripped by a Judgment Cut.
Dante avoided the attacks, his wings propelling him through the air too fast for human eyes to follow.
That's it.
Dodging each Cut by a hair's breadth, Dante wheeled around, heading towards Vergil.
Just as planned.
The Cuts had been meant to do this.
Vergil had been learning new techniques, and one of them was what he was about to reveal right now.
Hidden Assault.
As Dante came at him, Mirage Blades that had already been summoned, but invisible because their energy was cloaked, rushed at him from all angles.
Vergil had led him into this trap.
As the Blades were about to touch him, demonic energy burned, and Dante blasted through them all with his Royal Release.
He had taken and absorbed the power of the attacks, multiplied them, and was going to hit Vergil with it.
Just as planned.
This was why Vergil had been in the Iai stance.
He had thought three steps ahead, knowing Dante would use Royal Guard to turn the tables on him.
But the counter based technique had one weakness.
Right after the counter was delivered, the user would be open, since he wouldn't expect someone to predict the counter.
Thus, as Dante's fist closed in, Vergil warped out of sight.
Countless slashes followed, and the very area itself, ground, air and all, seemed to be cut into pieces.
Yamato Ultimate Skill: Frozen Time End- Utilizing peerless Demon speed, deliver countless slashes in a single instant. Each cut from Yamato severs time-space, trapping the target in a moment of frozen eternity.
Vergil reappeared, slowly sheathing his blade.
"It's over."
He had created that technique for the very purpose of defeating his brother, taking into consideration all his previous battles with him.
The Judgment Cut End was a powerful technique, but Dante had proved able to block it before using his Royal Guard Style.
There was a possibility that he might not take the bait, instead blocking the Mirage Blades, and then expect another attack to follow it immediately.
If it had been Judgment Cut End, he would have been successful.
And so, Vergil's trap had taken both possibilities into account.
Regardless of whether Dante was ready and used Royal Guard twice in quick succession or not, he had used Frozen Time End, an uncounterable technique.
"Took the bait twice. You're getting old, Vergil."
Impossi-
Before he could even finish the thought, he felt his body being crushed.
Behind him stood Dante, in his Sin Devil form.
It took Vergil only a second to understand what had happened.
He didn't have enough time to dodge, and he couldn't block it… so he took it head on!
But that would mean that Dante had transcended time and space, and broken out of what would otherwise have been a permanent prison.
The power of his Sin form… he must have that ability too.
Vergil had it, since some amount of time-warping was needed to move fast enough for the Judgment Cut End. But it appeared, Dante had taken the ability to the point where he could move regardless of time or space.
Lucifer wasn't lying… he's gotten stronger.
The grip on Vergil's body tightened. The Dark Slayer struggled, but he couldn't break it.
Frozen Time End took a lot of energy to perform.
Put another way, it took all of his Devil energy to perform. In other words, he would need to wait a while till he recovered enough to transform.
But he didn't have any time.
Sin Devil Dante curled his fist inwards, and the demonic power enveloping Vergil compressed even further.
Sin Demolition Deluxe: Upgraded version of the original move. Uses demonic power to increase gravity, forming a contained black hole that crushes the opponent and nothing else.
Incidentally, Dante had thought of the attack because of Lucifer's use of a black hole against him during their fight.
In any other situation, Vergil could have broken out. But having expended his energy on a costly attack, that was no longer possible.
Even Dante's use of his Sin Devil Trigger wasn't any guarantee he would win, since putting out enough power to move outside space-time took a lot of energy.
In other words, this was a specific scenario.
Vergil wasn't in this position because he was weaker.
He was in this position because Dante had managed to see through his plan, and come up with the perfect counter.
I got careless.
The Dark Slayer was furious.
But a part of him was also focused on something else.
Survival.
He'd been caught off guard because Dante was fighting with a strength and ferocity Vergil had never seen before from him.
Like a demon.
It hit Vergil that his brother was far more in tune with that side of himself now.
Why?
He looked at the house in front of him. It was a quaint little structure, out in the middle of the fields, and had a wooden sign saying "Devil May Cry" on the front. Inside, Vergil could sense human presences.
He's… grown attached to them. And he believes I'm a threat.
The realization was heavy on Vergil.
Dante wasn't fighting to prove himself better. He was fighting to protect others, like he always did.
Is that why I'm losing?
Is my motivation weaker?
No. I refuse to accept it.
I won't accept it.
Vergil couldn't break out by himself.
In desperation, he decided to try something else.
The black hole his brother was creating wasn't complete yet. Vergil wasn't sure of the exact physics of it, but if it had been complete, he probably shouldn't be able to see or otherwise perceive anything outside it.
He wasn't sure this would work, but it was worth a try.
Reaching into his soul, he found Beowulf, and equipped it.
He didn't have the strength to move, but he could still control the Devil Arm's innate power.
So he released it in a tremendous blast of light.
Dante, standing right behind him, and in Sin form no less, where his eyes were more sensitive, caught all of it, and roared in pain, backing away.
The momentary lapse in concentration was all it took.
He lost his grip, and Vergil staggered away, free.
He was breathing hard, the effect of having his body squeezed in on itself, nearly squashing his lungs.
His demonic healing was kicking in, but he was still at a disadvantage.
Sin Devil Dante roared in anger, and the ground shook.
His eyes were closed, but he was looking right at Vergil.
Unhh. This… might be unpleasant.
Dante dashed forward, feet never touching the ground, armoured fist shooting forward in a powerful punch.
Vergil got his hands up to guard, but was pushed back.
Before he could counter, a taloned foot lashed out, its heel heading right for Vergil's head.
Once more, he brought his arm up, but this time, was sent flying by the kick. Twenty feet away, he slowed down enough to touch the ground, sliding to a stop on his feet.
He looked at his left arm.
Beowulf's gauntlet was shattered.
I can't stop him in an up-close fight without my demon form.
He would need to keep his distance. Only a few seconds would be enough. That Sin Demolition attack had taken a lot out of Dante, meaning he wouldn't be able to maintain this form for long either.
It was easier said than done.
He had faced this form of Dante before. It was strong, fast, and brutal. And it had incredible energy projection abilities. Perhaps it was a good thing they were fighting here: anywhere else, and Dante might have flown up into the sky and bombarded the entire location with lasers.
"Dante!"
A new voice rang out.
The Devil turned and saw his nephew.
Nero was already in Trigger.
"That's enough. He can't fight anymore. Let it go."
"Nero…"
He liked his nephew, which is why he didn't want him to see this.
But Vergil had gone too far.
Coming to this world, coming to his new home, with murderous intent…
"Stay out of this."
Twice before Vergil had nearly destroyed the Earth for his own selfish reasons.
He wouldn't let him threaten Remnant.
He'd thought that after everything, he had changed.
He would even have been happy to see him again.
But then he had transformed, and Dante had sensed the violence he had intended to carry out as he had flown here.
After everything, he was still willing to risk everything, just to satisfy his own desire to be stronger.
Not anymore.
He wouldn't let him.
He moved towards Vergil, but found himself being held back by spectral hands made of blue energy, which had wrapped around him.
"I'll only say this once, Nero. Let go."
"No. Not until you cool down. I won't let you kill each other."
So that was how it was to be?
Sin Devil Dante turned to face Nero, and the younger Devil Hunter suddenly collapsed to ground, clutching his head.
Waves of telepathic force crashed into his mind, almost dominating all thought.
Struggling to keep him out of his head, Nero wasn't able to maintain the materialization of his Devil Bringer.
Dante was floating towards him.
He realized that before now, he'd never really known what it was to have the older man truly angry at him.
If I keep him conscious, he'll only get in the way. How much longer do I have? Maybe ten seconds. It's enough.
Breaking both his arms should be enough. The kid would heal up in time, but he wouldn't be able to interfere in this fight.
Before he could reach him, however, he felt an attack coming towards him, and teleported away, avoiding a slash from Yamato.
"Nero! Focus! Visualize a wall, and hold that image in your mind!"
He did as his father said, and the waves of telepathic force were finally blocked, giving him relief.
He stood up, looking in surprise at Vergil.
He… saved me?
It was odd to think of Vergil protecting him.
But regardless of what Nero thought, there was humanity in the Dark Slayer, and it had driven his actions.
"Focus. What you've learned should be enough. We only need to occupy him for a few seconds more."
Nero nodded. Out of the two, Dante was the bigger danger right now. His own Devil Trigger still had plenty of time left, so with both brothers back in their human forms, the situation would be under control.
"I've had… just about enough."
Dante raised a palm, and a blue sphere of energy formed in it.
Before Nero had time to raise Blue Rose, the sphere shot towards them, forcing them both to dodge, in separate directions.
This was a tactical error.
Nero felt a muscular, leathery arm wrap around his neck, turning him upside down.
A moment later, he felt himself spinning, and realized what was happening. One of his arms was trapped in Dante's grip. Using the other, he prepared to stop the impact as best as he could, even as he tightened his core to brace himself.
Even with all that, it hurt.
His skull wasn't shattered, and his spine wasn't broken, but he was in pain.
Dante had used one of his own moves against him, a spinning piledriver.
Leaving his nephew to recover on the ground, he turned his attention to Vergil.
Six seconds left.
He had regained his vision, his eyes having healed up from Beowulf's light.
He summoned Devil Sword Dante, but before he could go on the attack, Vergil unexpectedly teleported right in front of him.
"Leave… my son… out of this."
Using Beowulf's one intact gauntlet, he delivered a gut punch with every last ounce of strength he could muster.
The right gauntlet shattered, unable to take the impact.
Dante still hadn't staggered.
Vergil followed up with a reverse heel kick to the chin, which only destroyed his left greave.
In Sin Devil form, Beowulf would have enough power to do damage. But without Vergil's own energy to boost it, the Devil Arm was falling apart against Dante.
Continuing the movement, Vergil used the momentum to lash out with a rising kick, also to the chin.
The force was enough to snap Dante's neck back, and almost push him backwards.
The last piece of Beowulf broke.
Vergil summoned and gripped Yamato, but before he could unsheath it, Dante's hand closed around his head, lifting him into the air.
One second left.
With the last of his energy, Dante slammed Vergil headfirst into the ground, even as he summoned hellfire from under it, subjecting his brother to both the blunt force and the searing heat from the Sin Inferno.
As he straightened up, the Legendary Devil Hunter was breathing hard, back in his human form now.
Vergil lay on the ground, his face burned, but quickly healing.
Even so, the Dark Slayer wasn't able to get up.
Dante held his sword at his throat.
"This ends here, Vergil."
It had all come down to this.
This rivalry had gone too far. Twice before, people had died because of it. This time, Dante would make sure no one else suffered.
Not any of his students.
And definitely not Glynda.
As he looked at Vergil, and prepared to drive his sword into him, he hesitated.
His brother's gaze wasn't fixed on him.
Instead, it was on Nero, who was lying next to him, struggling to get up.
"Nero…"
Vergil's fists clenched, and he managed to raise his head.
He couldn't understand why the boy was still trying to fight.
Couldn't he see he had lost?
It was over.
They had fought, and lost. That was all there was to it.
No.
He knew that wasn't the whole truth.
He had challenged Dante.
That was why Nero had had to intervene.
That was why he was hurt.
All of Earth's population wasn't enough to teach him the lesson.
But seeing his own son in that state, Vergil finally saw the truth.
He had gotten them into this.
Someone who shouldn't have suffered because of this was now on the ground next to him.
"Enough… that's enough, Nero. This isn't your fight."
"Like hell it isn't. I can't just stay down, and watch my old man get killed."
It wasn't often that something managed to make its way past all of Vergil's logic, all his iron defences and caution, all his self-imposed isolation, and reach his heart.
Indeed, the last time it had happened was when he was still a child.
And now, Nero had managed to do it.
At that moment, Vergil's rivalry with Dante ceased to exist.
He no longer wanted to be stronger than his brother, to prove himself the better warrior.
He no longer even wanted to defeat him.
He simply wanted to protect his son.
If it was the last thing he did, he had to make sure Nero didn't suffer because of his actions.
It was that which allowed Vergil to break down the last of his barriers, and fully accept his own humanity.
In turn, it was that which allowed Vergil to overcome his limits.
Somehow, he managed to get back up to his feet, holding Yamato in his hand.
"Let's end this, Dante."
The red-clad warrior, for the first time in that fight, took a step back.
Looking at Vergil right now… he felt like he was staring into a mirror.
The determination in his eyes right now… it wasn't the fire to prove himself better.
It was the fire of a man who could not lose, because someone precious to him was in danger.
With both of them utterly exhausted, neither of them was in any condition to fight.
Right now, if one of them were to attack, the other would do so too. They would both end up piercing each other. With their healing abilities already at their limit, both of them would die.
Dante looked long and hard at his brother.
Seeing him now, willing to risk himself to protect Nero, he knew for sure that there was humanity in Vergil.
That in the end, he wasn't so different from Dante.
Why, then? Why were his choices so different?
He hadn't had time to reflect on it during the Qliphoth incident.
Or maybe, he simply hadn't looked at it the right way.
Why did beating Dante matter so much to Vergil?
Why did strength matter so much to Vergil.
The answer hit him like a truck.
It's because he's never had anything else.
Since the demons had taken away their home, killed their mother, the twins had both had to survive on their own.
But Vergil had spent that entire time thinking that Eva had chosen to try to save Dante instead of her.
Even after knowing the truth, the conditioning from all those years wasn't going to go away so quickly.
Dante had been lonely, but Vergil had been alone.
When you don't have anyone, what do you live for?
What has more meaning than your own strength?
That was why the victory had meant more to Vergil. Because if it was just a fight between them, and Dante lost, it would not be the end of the world. He had people to come back to. Reasons to live.
With Remnant and Glynda at risk, that wasn't the case.
He knew that as tired as they both were, there was no danger to the world right now.
But if they both walked away here and now, it would not be the end.
Vergil had someone to live for now. Someone he could count on. Someone to remind him that he didn't always need to be the strongest.
But even so, after all this time, a tie wasn't a conclusive answer.
It would rankle. And maybe it would stop Vergil from ever truly moving on, and finding his peace.
Winning here and now means more to him than it does to me.
Everyone Dante cared about was already safe.
And if that was the case, then the final thing he needed to do here…
He could see Nero getting up. The younger Devil Hunter had recovered enough to finally stand up again.
Devil Sword Dante disappeared in a flash of fire.
"It's my loss," he said.
Vergil blinked.
"... What?"
"You've won, Brother. This rivalry is over. You've got things to live for. It's time you moved on."
Post chapter note: Vergil and Dante are evenly matched in terms of powers, abilities and overall skill. However, a fighter is more than just these attributes. Between two equal fighters, things like psychological factors and motivation come into play. Dante dominated the fight because he had more reason to win than Vergil, meaning he fought harder. That, combined with how he didn't play around like he usually did, caught Vergil off-guard, hence the result.
I do think Nero is strong, but he isn't on the level of the brothers yet. Also bear in mind, he wasn't boosted by emotions here to the same extent as he was during DMC V Mission 20.
Finally, Dante thought Vergil was a threat because he approached in SDT, with aggressive intent. A full power battle between the two in SDT could be very dangerous for everyone on Remnant. In addition, Vergil has been known to not care what happens to people when he is chasing a goal (Temen-ni-Gru, Qliphoth), so in Dante's mind, seeing him appear suddenly and come for a fight rather than approach peacefully, there was ample reason to think Glynda, the students and Remnant was in danger.
And finally, the next chapter will have something most of you are probably looking forward to, which is the interaction between the Earth and Remnant branches of Devil May Cry.