NieR: Become as Devils

by Rroorrs5

As Dante and Vergil end their match at the Hellgate an unexpected event occurs where both brothers are transported to a rather empty and machine-ridden Earth.

8. Fe

[Apartment Complex]

"NO HUMAN WE'RE HERE TO-AUGH!"

"STOP WE MEAN NO-OOF!"

7E and 4B were the first ones to react when the human summoned the portal. They sprinted around the humanoid machine but weren't fast enough to stop the man from entering. Their only option left was to leap towards the portal, determined to follow after him no matter where they went. However much to their dismay the tears keeping the rift open repaired themselves, restoring the fabric of reality back to its proper state. With the portal now gone there wasn't anything to stop their bodies from impact.

"Dammit. How...did...he do that?" grunted the redhead who was underneath 4B. Sadness was mixed in her tone as she punched the ground in anger.

The white-haired woman didn't respond as she got back up. Behind them the sounds of battle of could be heard. At the center of the field was the rest of the team in the middle of fighting the humanoid machine. If you could even call it fighting, despite this new enemy posing as a major threat it didn't attack, counter, or even block. It just endured everything they threw at it.

Getting up from the ground 4B looked at their enemy. The machines were able to replicated an And-no a human's appearance. Now that she thought about it, the human and machine looked similar, so similar it sent a chill up her back.

But that feeling soon turned into anger, she was assigned the most important job any Android would die for and she failed. Now the human's gone and she has no way to find out where. Seeing their enemy only invigorated her further as she now viewed it as the machines' way of mocking her creators. Summoning her Type-3 Blade 4B was about to join her comrades but heard something to her side, zipping right past her was 7E wielding two Type-40 Blades. The look on her face was of anger but not her usual expression, her movements emitted a form of rage the battler has never seen before.

'This is new.' 4B thought. Her teammates saw her approaching form and momentarily backed off.

Stabbing the huge blades into the machine the redhead's Pod began firing bullets as she started to attack the machine without mercy.

"4B where is he?" 1D asked. 4B looked to her side and saw the captain..

Shaking out of her stupor she quickly responded "H-he got away. We weren't able to stop him in time."

1D didn't say a word but the expression on her face told the battler that she wasn't pleased. The captain directed her attention away from her. Not far from their right 11B and 12H looked distressed, with them looking back at the last place where the human with depressed and enraged looks on their face. They must've heard her as well, she hate to admit it but she felt their grief too.

But now's not the time.

"11B contact the bunker." Taking a moment to regain her calmness the bluehead turned to her Pod. She was met with an offline message.

"No good. We need better connection."

Hissing in frustration 1D readied her bracers and faced towards 7E and the machine. They can't let this enemy live, its too dangerous of a threat. Not only that but it seemed to have ill intentions with the human, it doesn't deserve be in his presence.

"New plan: Destroy the machine and contact the Bunker."

Throwing her swords into the air 7E jumped up and kicked the machine square in the face. It landed on its back as the Android knelt down and began assaulting it with punches. The redhead brought her anger down onto her enemy, her savageness showed. Upon seeing this new machine-type made her infuriated. The very idea of a machine replicating a human's image filled her with so much malice it bubbled up a new form of anger within herself. Mixed with the constant reminder that she failed to rescue one only left her anger to erupt.

*Punch*

"PIECE OF SHIT!"

*Punch*

"HOW FUCKING DARE YOU!"

*Punch*

"YOU THINK YOUR ONE OF THEM BUT YOUR NOT!"

She stopped her barrage as her swords came back down. Jumping up she gripped her handles and proceeded to bring them down onto the machine. To her surprise 7E's blades bounced right off it and stumbled onto her back.

"DAMMIT! WHY ARE YOU SO HARD TO CUT DOWN?" she yelled in a fit of rage.

Getting back up 7E witnessed a white light surrounding the false human. It got up and gripped it's head in a daze, it was finally reacting.

"Nnnngh. Ahhh-An...droid." It said as it began to walk towards 7E with a displeasing look in it's eye.

"It talks." Said a voice behind her looking back 7E saw 1D along with the rest not far from her with their weapons at the ready.

"Sure does. We can't leave it alive."

"I agree. My Pod told me it has reinforced metal plating. We just need a little more of a kick." said her captain with the redhead smirking at her statement.

'Fine by me.' Giving a nod she rushed back at the machine with the others following suit.

Dashing to the back 7E sidestepped before sweeping her legs under the machine. Now off the ground the redhead swung her sword into the false human, sending it flying to 4B. The battler brought down her heavy blade to it's head, stopping its momentum. 4B continued to swing her sword into it while her Pod assisted by firing bullets. Satisfied with her attacks she ended it by cleaving upwards sending the machine flying vertically.

A yellow beam fired from 12H's Pod halted the machine's descent for a brief moment. Despite the short time period 1D came in and used her Type-40 bracers to slug the machine back to the ground. The black-haired woman continued her assault now in a boxing stance, the Android gave it a punch towards the torso followed by a kick to the shin. She raised her arms up and brought it down on it's head. She backflipped with a kick straight to the false human's chin as it flew towards a pile of machines.

"Is it down?" the healer unit asked.

Her question was immediately answered when the pile of machines started to move. Coming out of the corpses was the false human who looked relatively unscathed but appeared to be hunched over in pain.

"Why...fight?" A shadow fell over its body as the humanoid machine looked up. Coming down was 11B with her Type-40 Lance aimed right towards the top of it's head. They came into contact with the Android trying her absolute hardest to pierce through it's eye. The machine merely shook her off as she landed a good distance away. Not allowing the false human any chance to recover 7E rushed in putting all her force into her swing. The machine was pushed back as white light surrounded it's body once again.

"Sword...dodge. Projectile...deflect."

Bullets from each of the girls' Pods were fired. A dark shield surrounded the enemy as the bullets faded into the dome. In a split-second the shield broke off and sent all the bullets flying back. All the Androids dodged the incoming fire but some didn't come out unscathed.

7E and 11B were the closest ones and had a harder time avoiding them. Despite their fast reaction times they weren't able to fully evade. Gripping her injured knee the redhead let out a disgruntled gasp, she looked at the bluehead who looked to be in the same condition but with her shoulder being the limb that got hit.

'Dammit. I swear once I get close to it I w-' 7E's thoughts were cut short as the machine ran towards her and kicked the woman's knee. She screamed in pain.

"7E!" Her teammates can be seen rushing towards the pair.

The machine was stronger than it looked. The force she felt caused her to drop her weapons leaving her vulnerable to attack. The machine however jumped back as it engaged combat with 1D and 4B. The redhead was having a hard time trying to stand up but the bluehead and healer grabbed her. "Hold on." 12H said as she begun the healing process.

1D resumed a boxing stance as she dodged a kick. The false human jumped up and brought it's foot down. The captain dodged and slugged her futuristic guards into it's face. It faltered back and she delivered a haymaker at the mid-section while her Pod fired. In a brief moment the machine summoned the barrier again, the dome released all the ammo it received back to her. The black-haired woman dodged with success and took her stance once again.

The false human ran towards her, she prepared for a counter but to her surprise a white light blinded her. After her visual receptors adjusted the enemy was nowhere in her line of sight.

A surprised expression emerged on her face as she looked all around.

"Warning: Above you."

Dodging at the last second 1D was able to avoid the punch from the machine as it's fist hit the ground. The area shook momentarily before returning to normal.

The vestiges of 1D surrounded the machine and she countered by kicking it in the head. Sparks began to cackle around her bracers making the woman smirk.

The machine recovered and teleported behind her. It reared back its leg but before it could attack a blade attacked from behind. Jumping away the machine saw 4B charging right at it with malice written all over her visor-covered face.

'It's learning as we fight. We can't let this go on for any longer.' 4B mentally concluded.

The white-haired pair began their spar with 4B taking the offensive and swung very violently. In the short time they spent 4B cut through the machine as hard as she could. She was awarded with a small amount of artificial blood leaking from the face. Unfortunately she couldn't do anymore attacks as it teleported away from her.

The false human touched it's cheek and was greeted with thick red wetness on it's fingertips. It clenched it's fist and glared at the Android.

4B however smirked, happy to know this thing is now capable of being put down. Swinging her blade as a sign of mockery she gestured towards the machine provoking it to come at her. Predictably it teleported behind her as it attempted a headbutt. She was prepared however as her Pod fired straight at it, causing it to summon the barrier once again. As it released the blast the Android jumped over the machine, avoiding all the bullets and brought down her sword.

It grabbed it before throwing weapon along with her to the side. Dust filled her dress as she came in for a rough landing. Quickly getting back up 4B didn't realize 1D was at her side.

"You were right. It can bleed." she told her captain. 1D acknowledged it and spoke.

"Remember Operation: Delta?"

Delta. It's been sometime since they performed it. Looking down at the black-haired woman's bracers a smile slowly crept up the battler's face.

"Yeah I remember. I'm a little rusty but I'm sure I can perform it."

Her captain grinned, "Good to hear."

Turning towards their respective Pods the duo yelled out a verbal command, two seconds later both Pods floated at each other's sides.

"But what if it teleports?" 4B asked.

"Then we'll just have to make sure it doesn't." the captain responded. The machine was making their way towards them, now's the time to act fast.

Separating from each other 4B began cartwheeling around the false human. It jumped in the air attempting to separate itself from her but a laser from 1D's Pod stunned it. The battle unit jumped up and hit specific parts of the body, it seemed far-fetched but the battle unit hoped this unit had the same pressure points an Android has. If not then it could ruin the whole plan.

Fortunately, the machine landed on its feet but was having a hard time moving it's limbs.

Backing away 1D took her place jumping towards the enemy with a kick. It collided with its face as she started dancing around her enemy. Hitting the same pressure points her partner struck but with more efficiency and struck it's head as well. Planting her bracers on the ground the black-haired woman began spinning around with her feet hitting various parts of the machine. Not a second later 4B twirled around with her blade as she made contact from behind.

The machine would've teleported away if it weren't for the fact 1D stopped attacking and released her charge onto it. Blue electricity surrounded the false human as it began screaming in pain. Both women got within close range and attacked the false human with grace and elegance. 1D kicked it's shin causing it to kneel down. 4B planted her weapon on the ground, spun around to its front, and kicked its face. The enemy flew back into her blade momentarily immobilizing it, discarding her bracers for a moment 1D stood by 4B and together attacked the machine.

They mirrored the other with each attack hitting their mark. Blood began spewing from the machine. Their Pods flew in and enabled their programs. The machine was catapulted up in the air, slashes appeared around it. In the end of their assault they've brought their foot down on top of it's head, the false human plummeted to the ground causing a mini cloud of dust to form.

The pair separated as their Pods came back to their sides. Footsteps were heard behind them, looking back they saw the rest of the squadron. 7E and 11B appeared to be back to normal thanks to 12H who had on a face of awe. No doubt she saw all that, causing 4B to smirk. Quite understandable too, they created this procedure before the brunette was created so her amazed expression wasn't all that shocking. The other two teammates however had on their usual expressions but the redhead seemed a little more pissed than usual.

Before the redhead could speak a white light lit-up the area causing the squadron to be at the ready. The machine has risen once again but this time teleported over to one of the old structures.

"This annoying clown just doesn't know when to give up." 7E hissed.

"It's injured that's for sure. In it's state we should be able to bring it down. However it's able to tank through some of our attacks. " uttered 1D. She stepped to the front with her bracers masking her hands once again.

"BE WARY TEAM THIS MACHINE IS FULL OF SURPRISES!" The captain brought her arm across her chest. Seeing this the others quickly copied her gesture.

Their part of YoRHa, the military Android force designed to eliminate all machines in order to free it's grasp on Earth. They had the speed, strength, and skills to plow through any ground unit with ease, yet they failed at the one thing they were sworn to protect. The human isn't here, their GOD has left them, they don't know why but he didn't seem pleased at the sight of them. As if they were a nuisance to him, he didn't bat them another eye before his departure which disheartened each and every Android.

Along with their grief were questions, the human was able to eliminate a horde of machines and survived the ordeal. That itself was an incredible feat for his kind, but the fact he didn't appeared to be hurt was just outstanding. Now that they thought about it the machine bodies they encountered a while back were so mangled it didn't look like something any ordinary human was capable of doing, at least according to their data banks. Modern day machine units were far more advanced than the ones first deployed around Earth centuries ago, so how was he able to handle them with such ease? If he was this capable of fighting shouldn't the Council of Humanity have informed them of his combat skills?

His katana came into question as well, it was capable to tear open into the very fabric of reality. Technology has come a long way with YoRHa constantly updating and improving their soldiers and equipment, yet his weapon didn't seem advanced but it was able to do that. It looked just like an old-world katana a resistance Android might use, so where did he acquire it?

These questions however were subsided, despite some obvious gaps that needed to be filled in the end he was still a human. He was everything an Android wanted to be with, to feel appreciated by. They failed and it caused them much grief especially 7E and 4B, those two couldn't stop him from leaving so no doubt they felt most of it. Now he's nowhere to be found and they could only blame themselves. Add to the fact that this machine shared many traits with the human only became a constant reminder of their misfortune.

No, they won't let this happen.

Whatever the machines have planned for this new unit stops right here. To think they have the audacity to mimic what a human would look like, to walk like, to talk like, to think like. It left a disgusting taste in their mouths even thinking it has what it takes to be like them. Machines don't deserve to be here, they don't deserve to exist, they invaded Earth but the Androids won't let them have it. No matter what they're going to fight until it is done, until every last machine on this planet is dead. That's what YoRHa is, proud Androids that will aid the Resistance and take back what belongs to the humans.

Maybe that's why he left, as a test for the Androids on how they will fair against a new machine unit. If so they won't fail, they can't fail, they are YoRHa and they do this for the-

"GLORY TO MANKIND!"

Bombs of white energy littered the area causing the team to disband. Each and every squad member didn't let their guard down as they evaded each and every blast. The machine teleported to another part of the area while some of the woman's Pods readied their laser programs. 11B distracted the machine by throwing her lance towards it while it prepared another wave. It was knocked back with her weapon vanishing back to its wielder, at the same time 1D and 12H's Pods saw the opportunity and fired.

The false human got struck and teleported again this time above the healer unit. She got hit right on the top of her head before being grabbed and thrown to one of her comrades. Her screams alerted 1D as she safely caught the healer, though her impact was more than she expected as they both fell back from the inertia.

Seeing this angered the redhead as she launched herself from her support unit and spun around with her blades creating a large serrated wheel of death. The machine evaded her path and prepared an energy bomb aimed right at the redhead, 11B intercepted right before it could fire by throwing her lance like a javelin into it's chest.

Blood dripped to the floor with the machine about to pull the weapon out, only for the bluehead to drop kick its head making the enemy stagger. She proceeded to yank it out and continued her assault of stabbing and kneeing it in the gut. Dodging with grace the bluehead effectively avoided physical shards of the shield. The false human teleported over to her but 4B's sword was sent flying straight into its side. The machine flew back with the heavy weapon embedded in its oblique and into one of the decayed buildings.

11B look towards her Pod. Not needing words the pair rushed towards the structure and her Pod begun raining small explosive charges onto it. The structure got blown to bits and soon fell into shambles.

11B heard her teammate coming to her side.

"Did you get a good hit?" 4B asked.

"Yes. Thanks for your help. I don't think I would've been able to dodge at such close range." the bluehead said.

"Your welcome. But we both know we're not done yet."

"You read my mind." True to her words 4B's sword was launched from the rubble and the women moved out of the way at the last second. The machine teleported on top of a high beam and proceeded to cover the area with energy bombs. Again the YoRHa squad evaded the explosions, the ground erupted as sand and dust caked the atmosphere. Soon the entire area was filled with dust similar to fog on a cloudy day. Despite this the machine was able to see through it and spotted one of the Androids on the ground.

It quickly teleported above her and brought down it's fist. The machine hit it's mark or at least it thought. It's arm went through the body as if the woman wasn't there at all. The false human was immediately attacked from up above, jumping back it was able to make out the silhouette of a Pod before 7E struck it's torso and continued her assault. It teleported behind her and fired energy bombs, the redhead cartwheeled to the right and flipped into the air.

The sounds of her attacks alerted someone else as 12H jumped into the fight with Virtuous Dignity, her Pod kept the machine stunned while both girls hacked away at it. The brunette twirled her spear leaving fine thin lines on the machine's skin as 7E upward cleaved her blades recklessly.

The ground below them was soon stained with red as more and more blood leaked from the machine's body. The false human took in all their force and released it. The YoRHa units took the brunt of the force and were sent flying.

The dust finally cleared up with 7E and 12H on opposite ends of the field. Despite this bout the false human was having a hard time moving around, it's body was caked in red due to the sheer amount of punishment it received throughout this fight. It couldn't take anymore, one more strike and it's done for. With a wretched expression the machine attempted to teleport only to get electrocuted from behind.

The machine yelped as 1D jumped out of the way. Now in it's most vulnerable state yet 4B sprinted towards it with her sword in her hands. Pouring all her strength into this thrust the battler successfully impaled the machine all the way through. It raised it's head up as it could only grunt in pure agony, a second later a lance impaled it from behind. 11B pushed it even further wanting to make sure this thing doesn't make it out alive.

The machine finally went limp as the battlers released their weapons. It collapsed in a pool of blood with both women dropping to the floor, weary from the battle. Even though they weren't actually tired as Androids didn't require sleep it was nice to sit down every once in a while.

Relief washed over them, it's done, they've won. 1D walked up to the pair with a grin. It was a quite a sight for the pair due to the fact that their captain always had on a neutral expression.

"Good work team. The enemy has been neutralized." She looked towards where 7E and 12H landed, both were struggling to stand up. They took the attack head-on no doubt their bodies must be severely damaged.

'Injuries look bad. We might need to go to the nearest Resistance settlement for repairs.' 1D looked towards 11B, she was staring the machine's body.

"I can't believe that's a machine." The bluehead uttered.

"Whatever the machines had planned for it started and ended here." the captain assured her, but it did unnerve her.

"Pod, did you record the entire confrontation?"

"Affirmative. Proposal: Navigate to a higher elevated area in order to send footage to Command. Also report the failure of capturing the human as well."

'Didn't have to say it so bluntly.' All the women thought. It's monotonous tone made it's words feel like a slap to the face to the Androids. The feeling of guilt has returned within the units as well as fear. How would Command react when they report on his whereabouts? YoRHa was serious about anything related to humans and hearing about their blunder might cause an uproar within the Bunker especially with their boss.

A chill went up their backs thinking of what Commander might do to them.

However, those thoughts vanished when a bright light captured the team's attention. Looking at the source both battlers got up quickly and readied their weapons. A bright light emanated from the machine's chest and something they didn't expect happened. A hand emerged, then an arm, then a head, then a torso, soon enough an entire body crawled out of the machine.

The women were left aghast, it was the same exact body. The hair length, height, even it's face structure corresponded with the fallen one.

"A-a-another one." 4B stuttered.

It looked at them and frowned before giving out an ear-screeching shriek. It's shear volume shook everything to the core. Buildings began to crumble, beams from up above plummeted to the ground, the sandy walls started to pour in. Everything was falling apart and they needed to leave, NOW.

"11B GO GET 7E! 4B RETRIEVE 12H! WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE!" the captain ordered, without a second thought each unit went to retrieve their teammates as 1D avoided a beam that landed right front of her. She gave the machine one last glance before she looked for an exit point, there on the upper level.

She dashed through the field dodging rocks and pieces of debris. She was soon met with the rest of her teammates, 11B had 7E over her shoulder and 12H was carried on the back of 4B. Despite the added weight they kept up their speed with the captain and made their way up the hazardous trail.

The machine saw their retreating forms, disgust written all over it's face. Once they were out of sight it turned back to the original and picked it up. It's face shifted to one of sadness. It spoke a word but the sounds of rocks and metal crashing masked it's voice. A white light consumed both of them, a second later they vanished leaving the area to be covered in rubble.

[Long Ago]

The sun lit up the blue sky giving the early afternoon a warm touch in the air. White puffy clouds scattered across the horizon forming bizarre shapes if one were to sit down and view them. Birds were coming back from migration and back into the forest's ecosystem. Near said forest was a Victorian style house, trees surrounded the home and moss can be seen on some parts of the front.

Despite the abandoned look, the house was occupied as sounds could be heard in the back.

In the backyard was a path that lead to an open field where a tree sat on a small hill. Along each side of the path was a row of bushes starting from the beginning of the path and ending 10 feet away. Somewhere within the bushes was a small figure, it's appearance couldn't be seen but their eyes could be determined as blue. They shifted direction until it landed on a boy sitting under one of the trees.

The boy looked to be about 7, despite his young age his hair was an ivory white, combed back giving it a spiky appearance. He wore a white dress shirt underneath a light blue vest, his dressed pants matched his vest with a black belt hugging his waist. The shoes he wore corresponded with his shirt and had the same colored eyes as the figure. In his hands was a brown book, golden engravings decorated the cover, with the letter V of the same color being the front's focal point.

Usually kids wouldn't be interested in books as they would prefer playing rather than reading but this one had content on his face as he anxiously flipped to the next page.

The figure giggled, the plan was coming along smoothly soon enough he'll be done reading that stupid book and then he'll go back inside.

The path lead to the backdoor of the house. When the child gets close enough they'll yank the thin rope hidden in the path and a bucket of mud near the door will empty it's load on him. The figure's body shook with excitement just thinking about how funny it'll be. The boy always whined about being dirty so this'll make it even better.

Soon enough the child had his fill of reading for the day and was walking back to the house. The figure stayed silent, not daring to a muscle until it was time.

The boy walked up and onto the path, his shoes kicking up dust with each step. He walked right past the bush the figure was in and grew closer to the door.

'Take this Fancy Pants.' the figure closed their eyes and grabbed the rope. Yanking it the figure waited for the distinct sounds of mud being splattered to hit their ears.

One second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

Four seconds.

The sound of the door being opened and closed was what they heard instead. The figure opened their eyes wide, shocked that their plan failed they looked towards the backdoor with the boy nowhere in sight.

Now mad that it didn't go as planned the figure got out of the bushes. With their body now in full display the figure appeared to resembled the boy immensely but with a few key differences.

He wore a white T-shirt with red shorts held up by a white leather belt. On his wrist was a homemade white band, his feet were covered by sneakers of the same color. He shared the same hair but he didn't like combing it so it rested freely on his face from all sides. Everything about his appearance greatly contrasted with the other kid.

He pouted as he ran over to the rope, angry that it didn't go his way. Kneeling down he looked at the string trying to see what went wrong. He spent his entire morning making this trap even waking up earlier than her to make sure she doesn't ruin everything.

The boy saw nothing wrong with it and gripped his hair in anger.

"Awwww why didn't it go off?"

*Bonk*

His face felt wet, mucky and everything was dark.

After a few moments he realized what it was, taking the bucket off his head he wiped the mud off his face.

"If you didn't stink as much as the mud you probably would've gotten me Dante."

The now mud-covered Dante looked behind him and saw the other boy with half his attention on his book and had on a smirk. Dante's brows narrowed as he scooped up some leftover mud and flung it near the well-dressed boy. But it was so far off that he didn't even need to move as it flew right past him, he laughed at his brother's childish actions.

"Hahaha you call that a throw?"

Dante however smiled as the mud hit a switch hidden in the bushes. Two mud-filled buckets immediately hit the well-groomed kid, staining his clothes and parts of his book.

It was the rebellious twin's turn to laugh as the other stood there in shock.

"Hahahaha yeah Vergil. Mom always said I throw good hahahaha." Dante pointed at his mud-stained brother in glee while clutching his stomach.

Vergil just stood there agape not even wanting to check the state of his clothes but did so anyway, his porcelain white shirt now an ugly shade of brown. His sky blue vest and pants now ruined by the dirty of the Earth. His once bright white shoes that shined in the light now masked in utter filth. His young eyes shifted to his book, the V now sullied in wet dirt and some pages he haven't even read yet got caked as well.

Dante was still laughing with his eyes closed not paying attention to his surroundings.

Something crashed into his head knocking him down to his bottom. Wincing as he rubbed his forehead Dante saw that it was his brother's book but before he could do anything else Vergil tackled him into the ground.

"YOU STUPID SLOB YOU RUINED MY CLOTHES!" The now enraged Vergil picked and pulled at Dante's hair.

The rebellious brother yelped before slapping his brother and pushing him off.

"It's just dirt book worm."

"JUST DIRT! MY BOOK IS RUINED BECAUSE OF YOU!" Vergil chucked a rock and was ready to throw another. Ducking under Dante grabbed his book and opened it. The older twin stopped what he was doing and looked at his brother with wide eyes.

The rebel gripped one of the clean pages as it wrinkled in his dirty grasp.

"Give me that." Vergil slowly approached him.

"Why so you can go tell mom on me?" Dante huffed at him.

Vergil only hardened his blue orbs and got closer.

"Give me that."

The younger twin pinched eyes shut and stuck his tongue out.

As soon as he did a sharp-edged rock smashed into Dante's left eye. He screamed and dropped the book. His small fingers touched his face and felt the rock sitting right in his socket. He pulled it out releasing a huge amount of tears mixed with blood onto the dirt.

Gripping it he looked for Vergil only to get knocked down from a kick to the back. The older twin walked up and grabbed his book. However Dante recovered quickly and grabbed the same rock and smashed it into the shrewd twin's forehead. Vergil screamed in pain covering his now fractured forehead as Dante got on top of him and started hitting him.

"YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!"

"SHUT-UP AND EAT DIRT!"

"OH YEAH TAKE THIS PINHEAD!"

"What's a pin-OWWW!"

They never noticed the backdoor of the house open and someone running towards them.

The brothers continued to roughhouse on the ground mixing their dirt-covered clothes with their blood. One gripped the other's hair and the other was trying to bite their arm. Before they could proceed both of them were picked up by the collars and was met with a hard glare from a blonde woman.

Her black turtle neck dress with golden patterns gave off a form of classiness. It stopped all the way down to her feet which were in black heels. A red shawl covered her back. Her silky golden hair shined in the sun but despite her elegant appearance she had on the deepest scowl the boys had ever seen from her. All the contempt held within their hearts dissipated when they met her gaze.

"DANTE! VERGIL! WHAT'S GOING ON?" She yelled. The woman kept her glare but on the inside she was mortified at the sight of them dirty and bloodied.

Vergil crossed his arms and pouted "Dante got me dirty."

"It's only mud Vergil. It was just a prank." The younger twin cried out as he covered his eye, blood dripped down his cheek. The woman took notice and investigated.

"Dante what's wrong with your eye?"

"Oh uhhh it's itchy."

"Let me see."

"But Mom i-"

"NOW!" She said in a stern tone.

Shuddering in his tiny form the boy removed his hand revealing the red hole of where his left eye used to be. The woman's jaw dropped and she turned to Vergil.

"Vergil what did you do?"

Despite his calm demeanor the child looked away from her in fear. However it didn't last long as the silent tension she created was too much for his little mind to bear. His heart started to beat rapidly as he gave an answer.

"I-I threw a rock at him." The weight he felt on his shoulders increased.

"WHY?"

The child couldn't take it anymore as tears started to fall out. He turned to face her and spoke. "B-b-because h-he ruined my book. I'm s-s-sorry. I-I was s-s-so mad." He cried out as he started to bawl out.

The woman's demeanor changed from stern to and looked towards Dante.

"Is it true? Dante?"

Seeing his brother cry broke little Dante's heart and soon enough he too was tearing up.

"I'm s-sorry t-t-oo. I-I didn't mean f-for it to h-h-happ-pen. I-I-I just t-t-thought it w-would be funny."

Seeing her twins now in a state of sadness Eva wrapped them in her arms. They returned the gesture staining her dress in the process, but she didn't mind it. Right now her boys were in pain and they needed her.

"There, there. Mommy's got the both of you."

With the boys still wetting her dress she looked for the book. There it was caked in dirt but luckily blood didn't seem to reach it, much to her relief. She messed up her fair share of books when she was younger so it won't be a struggle for her to clean it, but it will take sometime.

Dante's gonna have to wear a bandage over his face for the rest of the week until his eye come's back. She'll make sure Vergil stays in bed so his wounded skull can heal faster. Eva kissed her babies' heads before getting Vergil's book and carried the twins inside.

How lucky she was to have sons that can heal wounds, if they didn't she didn't know what she could've done. For Sparda's sake these kids were a handful, but she enjoyed it. Aside from today seeing the boys enjoy something their father never had brought a smile to Eva. Even if he's not here with them, she'll make sure they'll receive the love and care that he felt when she was with him.

For if a devil can have a heart then they're worth protecting, even in the face of death.

[Present Day-City Ruins]

*Slash*

*Shing*

*Clash*

Clashing again for the first time since their last bout Vergil had Dante on the ropes as he was pushed back. The devil hunter however broke his guard with Agni and Rudra before dashing at the darkslayer. With the devil arms Dante made his assault spinning around hitting his brother in the process and thrusted his swords into Vergil's gut.

With a grunt the darkslayer recovered quickly and blocked the red and blue swords. The younger twin staggered back and he used this opportunity to teleport above him and bring down Force Edge. Dante got hit and Vergil proceeded to execute quick and calculated slashes with Yamato, ultimately ending it with a Stinger from the broadsword.

Rolling away the younger brother recovered quickly and switched to Swordmaster before evading a surprise attack. Dante rushed to the now exposed Vergil and did a Jet Stream combo, wind and fire accompanied each swing from their respective weapons. They became faster and soon enough his attacks turned to a mere blur.

Fire accompanied by wind lit-up the area as Agni and Rudra laughed, the devil hunter finished with a kick. As the older brother was knocked back Dante bonked the pommels of the blades silencing the demons.

Vergil got up but was a little stunned. Seeing this Dante smirked, he quickly raised the serrated scimitars and stabbed them into the floor.

"See ya!" Shouted the twin demons as a trail of fire and wind traveled through the room.

The older brother managed to get his bearings together and got of the way. Seeing the dead machines lying about he kicked one over to his rival who in turn sliced it in half. While Dante did this the blue-clad man flung Force Edge at him. Hearing weapon piercing the air he rolled to the right, only for him to be encased inside a dark blue orb. A second later slashes filled the orb effectively cutting through his body and parts of the floor.

Gasping in pain Dante knelt down, Vergil rushed forward catching Force Edge in the process. He used the broadsword to bring it down on his head only to receive a glowing red shotgun to the face, he flew back while Dante recovered.

Vergil couldn't get up as fast as his face was charred and somewhat bleeding.

Going back to Trickster the red-clad man dashed to his opponent's backside and gave his head a good ol' roundhouse kick. The darkslayer face planted into the floor causing huge cracks to form. The building shook a little but kept its structure.

The younger twin hopped up and pulled out Kalina Ann aiming it point blank at Vergil. But before he could shoot he felt his skin getting impaled from all around. Letting go of the rocket launcher, Dante winced as light blue phantom blades stuck to his body before disappearing.

Vergil turned over and kicked Lady's signature weapon back at the devil hunter. Dante's head met the heavy weapon and became disoriented in mid-air. The darkslayer launched himself towards his twin. Two wide arcs from Yamato struck into the young sibling as he raised a leg up to his head and brought it down.

The devil hunter became wide-eyed as his body plummeted to the floor. The building shook once again as Dante coughed up a little bit of blood before narrowly avoiding his brother's approaching form. Force Edge struck through the old floor before being detached by it's wielder. Swinging it through the air cleaning it of any rubble the darkslayer called more summoned swords to shield his body.

Dante brought out the scimitars once again and both brothers closed their distance. Using Royalguard the red-clad man was able to absorb some attacks before he saw an opening and quickly released. Vergil choked in pain as he flew away, he landed on his back and coughed up a little bit of red.

"Sharp as ever bro. I've been waiting for someone to give me a good warm-up." said the devil hunter wiping blood off his chest.

Subsiding the initial shock Vergil rose to his feet. "Did you expect anything less from me brother?"

"Not really. Your parties wouldn't be as fun as they were." Dante cracked his knuckles as he began walking to the side with Vergil doing the same.

There was something about his power-obessed brother that seemed different. Dante couldn't place his finger on it at first but then realized that-

Vergil was smiling.

For someone who always meant business it was strange to see the darkslayer like this.

Or maybe...no it can't be.

'Is Vergil...happy to see me?' The younger twin thought. No, not that's right. It didn't sit well with Dante at all. Not one bit. Breaking the silence Dante spoke up, "It's been sometime bro. Your in a good mood, did you miss me?"

"As much as I hate to admit it I had, in a way." His coat fluttered in the wind as Vergil cracked his neck.

'Is this really the same Verg? Maybe he must've hit his head a little too hard. Hell I did but I'm still me.' Putting the thought aside Dante kept up his usual tone. "Aww shucks Vergil that's the first time in a long time you said something good about me. I did after all follow you here so I'm flattered."

"Oh, was it too much for you to see me leave in such a unorthodox fashion? Don't tell me you were gonna "cry" if I left?" Vergil teased.

Dante laughed and cracked his knuckles "Pfffh. As if I would actually shed a tear for someone like you." He lied.

The devil hunter kicked a dead machine out of the way and was reminded of all the others that littered the room."You looked like you had a blast giving these guys a warm welcome."

"That I did dear brother. Unfortunately they didn't seem too pleased with my presence so I thought it would be best to give them my deepest regards."

"I see they got the message. By the way how did you get here so fast? I didn't sense your power anywhere near here until a few minutes ago." The devil hunter questioned.

This caused Vergil's cockiness to come out as he closed his eyes in delight "It's a technique I've been practicing with. It's something you usually wouldn't care for as you would rather waste away in the bar drinking until your vision turns black."

"Says the guy who can't even handle a little bit of vodka."

Vergil opened his eyes in annoyance. That was something he would rather be happy on forgetting. Leave it to his brother to bring back embarrassing memories.

'Struck a nerve did I? Yes Dante you did. Good job.' Throwing Vergil off was a dessert he can never get enough of. Well, not as much as strawberry sundaes.

Vergil immediately unsheathed Yamato and pointed it at the younger twin.

"Enough fooling around. I'm sure both of us are waiting to scratch that itch of ours."

Dante smiled and pulled out Cerberus "You got that right bro."

In less than a second Vergil rapid slashed his way through the floor only for Dante to jump over his body. With his back turned Dante spun around horizontally, the chains of the icy-cold nunchucks extended to great length effectively hitting the man.

Once he landed on his feet the two jumped back, Vergil quickly summoned swords around Dante and prepared another Judgement Cut.

The devil hunter danced around the blades, swinging around Cerberus he easily took care of them. Everything turned a dark blue, being quick Dante quickly absorbed the attack. Blocking an overhead from his brother the he countered by repeating his Revolver technique but this time in reverse.

Vergil grunted as he was launched in the air, Dante jumped up and switched back to Agni and Rudra. The older brother flinched as he received a hot and cool series of strikes. He was forcefully taken back down as his brother somersaulted downwards with his weapons.

Not giving his rival a second of rest the devil hunter spun the demonic scimitars over his head. The air in the area started to move, what was first a gentle breeze became violent currents creating a huge twister of fire. His twin was sucked in and was engulfed in flames.

Everything died down when the younger brother released another blast from his trusty shotgun. Vergil traveled back but landed on his feet, his boots created a dusty trail as he skidded to a halt. He rubbed his eyes free from ash and smoke, what he saw next was a volley of light purple spheres surrounding him.

The sphere turned into rays and closed in on him. Vergil resumed a neutral face as he side-stepped. Dodging 2 rays, he unsheathed his katana to reflect another 3. He vanished to his side as 1 hit his previous position. The darkslayer rolled back and jumped, evading 4 more. Now in the air he summoned one phantom sword to take care of the last ray.

He shoved his sheath back causing the hidden Dante to hunch over. He brought it back and sent a kick to the annoying brother's face, his body rotating around violently. The darkslayer positioned himself over his brother's stomach and planted his foot down.

Dante crashed into the floor with Vergil still on him. Parts of the roof fell apart and the humongous tree hugging the building vibrated. Yamato was raised over his brother's head but before he could push down, a piece of debris fell from above and hit his forehead. Causing the blue-clad man to curse and grip his head.

'Mom did say I had good aim.' the devil hunter thought. Prior to him getting struck Dante chucked a piece of rubble high up in the air. He chuckled before disappearing, a second later Vergil felt a boot from up top and he was pulled down violently.

"Augh." escaped from his mouth with his body forming a scorpion pose. His coat draped over his head before he was grabbed by the waist.

"AT A SHOCKING TURN OF EVENTS TONY COMES IN FOR THE FINISH!"

Dante somersaulted backwards rolling his brother off the floor before sending him back into it. More cracks filled the floor as Dante releases his grip and celebrates.

"TONY REDGRAVE WINS THE MATCH WITH HIS SIGNATURE HELLISH SUPLEX! HE IS INDEED THE MOST INCREDIBLE WRESTLING SUPERSTAR THIS WORLD HAS TO OFFER!" The devil hunter slid to this knees raising his fists in victory as a crowd surrounded him. Clapping and cheering the man on as the referee hands him his belt.

A bunch of scantily-clad women gathered around him, each of them held a bottle of booze and a box containing the best food ever created by man, Dante drooled seeing the most beautiful types of pizza he has ever laid eyes upon. The referee comes up to him with microphone in hand.

Shoving it in his face he spoke, "SO TONY THE DEMONIC SLAYER HOW DOES IT FEEL TAKING DOWN YOUR LONG TERM RIVAL VERGIL?"

"Hmph. No comment." he said with a smirk before leaving the wrestling ring with the women following, fighting over each other on who gets dibs.

"TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY!" chanted the crowd.

Red fireworks lit-up the black sky. Each explosion lit up in a different color, eventually the image of his face filled the dark as rock music played in the background.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT TONY THE DEMONIC SLAYER TAKES HOME THE BELT! THIS IS TRULY THE GREATEST NIGHT IN WRESTLING HISTORY! GIVE IT UP TO TONY!"

"TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY, TONY-

"SILENCE!" Opening his eyes back up Dante saw an infuriated Vergil approaching.

Dante smiled and shrugged his arms up "What's wrong Vergil? Don't like a little role-play to spice things up?"

A vein popped on the darkslayer's head as he kept his pace "Foolish brother. You still act as you were all those years ago. I'll finish this quick." He began sprinting.

Dante laughed, his ice-cold devil arms formed in his hands as he took a stance. "Yeah right. Come and get me." Once he got in close range Vergil performed Stinger but Dante anticipated this and wrapped the unawakened blade in the chains.

"Wooo." Came from Dante as he jumped over Vergil launching his blade out of his grasp and into a nearby wall.

Frowning Vergil sent a dozen of phantom weapons towards the twin. Hopping on one of the dead machines, Dante rode it around the exposed room. The screeching of scraping metal masked the sounds of glowing blades impacting the weak points of the building. It began to shake once more but this time more violently as parts of the roof fell.

Dante kicked the machine skateboard over to Vergil who spent this whole time retrieving Force Edge. He sliced it down with said blade and repeated the action when he heard another coming, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another-

"STOP THIS YOU BUFFOON!"

Vergil raised his head, his eyes bloodshot and teeth clenched. He looked from where Dante was last seen only for him to not be there. He searched anxiously for him but then heard the familiar sound of metal that made his blood boil.

Slicing another machine from behind he heard another coming to his front. He took care of it hastily but in his rage he failed to immediately notice the missile flying right behind the machine.

With wide eyes he quickly vanished and the missile crashed into the tree alongside the building. A huge explosion of fire and smoke masked the area as the building shook violently for the last time. Everything started to give way.

'Woops. Mother Nature's going to be upset with me after this.' Taking this as his queue Dante leaped out from which he came. Vergil followed suit leaving the building to implode in on itself.

Dante ran down the building, every step he took kept him a second ahead from the avalanche of destruction not far behind. Coming in fast from his right he blocked a kick from Vergil. The devil hunter retaliated with an uppercut, but Vergil grabbed him and stabbed his chest.

Dante vanished to the other side still keeping his pace from the building and pulled Force Edge out. The devil hunter swung and aimed for his twin's obliques only for it to be met with his katana. He dashed to his right and tried again, no luck. He stopped as Vergil came right at him.

Their bodies became a blur as blue chased down red as the ground grew ever more closer. A huge cloud of dust and destruction followed shortly as the top part of the gigantic tree started to shift forward.

*Clash*

*Shing*

*Slice*

Meeting blades yet again with his upmost strength Dante shoved Vergil off. His feet left the building and the darkslayer lost control of his momentum. The devil hunter stopped running, letting gravity take him down and performed a Helm Breaker.

The speed of his descent caused the blade to heat up turning it a hot red.

Forcing his body to stop rotating Vergil was able to align himself horizontally and looked ahead. Dante was closing in and fast. With hardened eyes Yamato lit-up a dark blue as the darkslayer prepared himself for their eventual contact.

Dante finally homed in and Vergil swung.

A huge chunk of the giant tree blocked sight of the brothers as it made it's impact with the ground.

*CRAAAAAAAAASH*

There laid a fraction of the tree accompanied by the huge pile of debris that was the building. A giant dust cloud from up to 100 ft coated the area. The shockwave emitted from the impact caused the nearby wildlife to flee and the closest machine units turned their mechanical bodies over to the site. Curious as to what caused it's destruction.

All was silent for a moment the wind was dead, the crickets didn't chirp, even the nearby streams didn't emit any splashes.

Then it became chaos.

Erupting from the debris were two figures flying up in the air and it wasn't pretty. What appeared were two reptilian-like creatures, one blue holding Yamato the other red having Force Edge, with semi-chiropteran wings coming from their backs. Scaly, leathery skin covered their bodies, along with spikes and protrusions covering the arms and legs. Claws so sharp it could probably tear apart any material it meets. Their monstrous faces were an obsidian black with eyes being an unsettling shade of yellow that lacked any sort of pupils.

White metallic-like material crowned their heads. The chest on the red being had bright yellow cracks forming a large circular shape. The blue being had slim but noticeable glowing blue marks starting from the middle of each shoulder and trailing down and intersecting sharply just above the pelvis.

The Sons of Sparda have awakened and this world would come to know the true meaning of power.

Faster than the eye can see the area became littered with Judgement Cuts. Each orb contained over 50 slashes as parts of the ground, trees, and buildings turned into dust.

Between the tsunami of death was a red blur, dodging and weaving every single attack with speed and style. In his devil trigger state Dante looked around anxiously and soon spotted a familiar blue figure. Grinning he dived head first into his brother, effectively stopping the wave of Judgement Cuts and sent both of them to the ground.

Vergil however had different plans in mind, getting him into a headlock he maneuvered his position to the top while Dante's head dug into the dirt. The blue demon sent a multitude of cuts at his brother making his body fly into the broken tree.

His impact caused a small shockwave as the red demon shook himself out of a daze, red flashed briefly in his vision. Narrowing his eyes he launched himself back at his brother before disappearing, the older twin sensed him from behind. Twisting his body around he sent a fist but got blocked by an open palm, the red demon laughed and swung the broad sword singlehandedly and sent the brother upwards.

Vergil grunted in annoyance and blocked a swing from Force Edge and retaliated with rapid slashes. Dante flew back but the blue demon didn't let up as he kept up his pace and continued to cut through the devil hunter. He ended it off with a kick sending the younger twin into another building, he took a stance as wind fluttered around him.

His body disappeared and the building was covered in white lines, despite this it still held it's structure. Vergil re-emerged kneeling down with his back facing the building. Without looking he slowly sheathed Yamato back into place. Once the distinct sound of his blade snapping shut can be heard various parts of the building slid off and ultimately turned into utter dust.

"AUGH!" A red figure can be seen falling to the ground.

Feeling all the cuts on his body, Dante gripped his hand, his vision flashed red. Grunting in his demonic voice, he vanished over to his brother. Back flipping over a swing he performed Helm Breaker, blood of his twin covered his body but he wasn't done.

Kicking his body up in the air Dante jumped up and switched to Cerberus whacking all the parts of Vergil's body before hacking away with Agni and Rudra. Taking out Kalina Ann he fired point blank and the blue demon was sent away. Flying over at a fast speed he took out Artemis and charged it up, he somersaulted downwards sending his brother face-first into the ground.

He fired 7 shots as Vergil was getting up. Predicting what he will do next he flew back and disappeared.

The older brother was met with another barrage of rays. Frowning that his brother was doing the same thing as before he swiftly took care of them. After that he vanished, the red demon appeared and Vergil prepared a Judgement Cut in his place. What the blue demon didn't expect was for a blinding light to impair his vision.

"Ksssh." A disoriented Vergil barely realized that his brother was flying straight at him with the Force Edge. How the devil hunter took it out so fast and without him noticing Vergil may never know.

He flew away as the brothers continued to engage in aerial combat. Slices were met, some landed, some didn't, this time red chased down blue as the area was littered in destruction.

Vergil kicked his brother back and was sent flying he attempted to summon his blades but was met by a gust of wind coming from Dante's blue scimitar. Forcibly taken into the current Vergil was left vulnerable as he got impaled in the chest, Dante took it out violently and proceeded to slice his way into the blue demon.

The darkslayer had enough and grabbed Force Edge. Dante gritted his teeth trying to pull away to no avail. Multiple light blue blades stabbed into his back as he let go in pain. Vergil swung it into his grasp before striking Dante in the head sending him into the dirt.

The blue demon proceeded to cover the sky with phantom swords all aimed at the brother. Dante got stabbed with 30+ blades before he felt his head getting jammed more into the Earth. He felt his head getting grabbed before he was slammed into the ground again and again until he was seeing double.

Red briefly coated his vision again.

Vergil used the Force Edge and Yamato to execute a devastating combo. He launched an entire barrage of attacks burying his brother deeper and deeper into the Earth. The dirt covered walls got painted in crimson liquid as Vergil spun around becoming creating a huge buzzsaw-like attack. He flew back up and looked at the hole he created in disappointment.

'Is this really all you have Dante?'

Getting up was harder than last time as Dante crawled out and panted to his knees. This was no good he was in his Devil Trigger state but was still getting his ass kicked.

'Dammit. How could this happen?' He could feel his devil trigger about to run out. But he also felt something else, something familiar.

He can feel it.

It's coming out and he can't stop it.

His vision slowly turned red.

Vergil looked at the pathetic site of his brother, Dante was just sitting there not moving. Huffing the darkslayer prepared to end it, Yamato glowed a dark violet putting all his strength into this one final attack.

Suddenly Dante flew right at him, malice written all over his monstrous face. He punched the older twin straight in the gut, Vergil stopped gasped in pain.

The red demon proceeded to claw and tear his way into blue making the darkslayer's body match his own in terms of injuries. Now both brothers were covered in blood but Vergil wasn't having it. Tanking in the pain he delivered his own series of brutal attacks.

Despite this the brothers didn't flinch nor slow down, they just kept on fighting uncaring on the state of their bodies.

Until a glow encased both of them, and the brothers fell to the ground.

For a whole minute neither one moved. The nature of the ghostly city returned to it's proper order.

Sitting up from the ground was a beaten up, bloody Dante. He put a hand on his head trying to figure out what happened not too long ago. He remembered getting beaten by his brother (which annoyed him) and then all he saw was...

'Damn. It happened again.'

Dante winced, his injuries were worse than he thought, his healing factor isn't as fast as it used to be. His body was still riddled with cuts and tears. Taking deep breaths Dante felt his heartbeat slow down before he noticed his father's blade was right next to his brother and his eyes widened.

In the building practically everything was submerged in darkness with the holes in the wall and his twin's summoned swords being the only light source up there. The devil hunter could only make out as far as he knew facial expressions from the darkslayer. He was in the moment when they ran down the now destroyed building so he didn't pay too much mind back then. Now in broad daylight Dante was able to see Vergil in full display.

And

It

Was

GLORIOUS.

Something awoke Vergil from his slumber and he quickly got up. He flinched stopping mid-way, he looked down cuts and bruises on his skin and clothes. No worries he'll just heal and...wait his healing factor wasn't this slow. Before he could ponder his demonic ears picked up on something, he frowned as he recognized it instantly. Force Edge was right next to him so he picked it up. He went towards his brother with bad intent.

The devil hunter clutched his stomach as he gave out an obnoxious fit of loud giggles. He was on his knees and his eyes were watering.

"Dante." The blue-clad man hissed.

Walking up to him while wounded he kicked the pizza-loving man to the ground.

"WHAT'S SO FUNNY?" Vergil demanded.

Wiping the tears Dante rose to his feet.

"I thought I knew everything about you Verg. But I was wrong. I never thought you would take the time to bath in the sun."

Vergil's expression went from enraged to surprise as he looked at his body. Even though dirt kissed his skin some parts of his clothes were torn not to mention face that revealed darken flesh. He totally forgot about his unwanted tan and clenched his fists in anger.

Quickly wanting to skip the subject he spoke "This fight has dragged on long enough brother. Take out Rebellion and we'll settle the matter."

Dante whined, "Awww but Vergil I have this thing that I think you might like."

Beowulf manifested into his hands and feet. The shining light coming from the devil arms widened Vergil's eyes. However they quickly returned to their usual state as he twirled Yamato in the air.

"So you don't have Rebellion with you."

Dante glared at him, not happy he got caught red-handed.

Vergil chuckled and looked off to the side, "Typical Dante. Always forgetting the most basic of things. Did you truly think I wouldn't notice, you don't even have those pesky firearms either. Not to mention you have grown weak. You were nothing as you were back at the Temen-ni-Gru."

Now that's something the devil hunter had noticed too. The portal must've stripped him of his strength. Not only his strength, his speed, reaction times, even his healing factor. He noticed it when he fought, how slow he felt and how his strikes didn't hit as hard. Right now he shouldn't even be this bloody yet here he is still healing from his wounds.

"You say that as if you aren't suffering from the same thing." uttered Dante. He knows Vergil was in the same boat as him, plus he wouldn't drag out a fight this much if he was at his zenith.

The older brother scowled. "You maybe right but on the contrary I've decided to gain back my power, unlike you."

"Was that before or after your tan?"

Vergil paused and looked at a cheeky Dante. He cursed under his breath. Regardless he continued, "I will gain back my power and it starts with the very thing I'm here for."

Dante knew what he was talking about. Pulling out the demonic jewelry wrought in the form of a platinum necklace made Vergil smirk.

"Oh this? Didn't I say you couldn't have it?"

"I will achieve more power Dante. You cannot stop me. So be a good little brother and hand it over." The blue-clad man gestured with his hand.

The younger sibling puts it back in his pocket "And as your little brother how about this?" with a finger he pulled down his lower eyelid and stuck his tongue out.

Vergil looked at him with an unamused expression. He straightened up and readied his blade. Dante brandished Agni and Rudra one final time as they stared each other down.

It ends here.

They were injured, their fatigued bodies covered in dirt and blood. They were healing but slowly. Unbeknownst to them, a few machines were nearby, watching the spectacle. Any normal machine would attack them head-on or alert more units for an ambush but they didn't. They just stood there, watching.

Putting all the strength into their legs the brothers closed in, uncaring of their wounds as they grew ever more closer.

*Step*

*Step*

*Shing*

They swung their weapons at each other and they skidded to a halt.

Blood coated the grass as one fell.

On his knees Dante panted, the scimitars on the ground. Red drained from the waist down but before he could do anything Yamato came out of his chest.

Vergil stood behind him with a disappointed glare before taking out his blade and proceeded to slash his brother with the little strength he had. His attacks were so hard Beowulf came out of Dante's grasp and onto the floor.

The panting darkslayer finished his assault with a stab to the chest. Dante now a bleeding shell of his former self struggled to keep his eyes open as he fell to the ground. Vergil approached his body and knelt down. Reaching into one of his pockets he took out Dante's amulet.

"You befriended them didn't you. You've befriended the contraptions that inhabit this world. It's unlike you to forget our father's keepsake so I'm only guessing they have it. Your Dante after all so I can't say I'm not surprised."

Vergil stood up and looked to his side. His former devil arms sat not far away. He looked at them with interest and a second later he walked over to them. Grabbing the gauntlets and greaves the half-demon placed them with his weaponry.

Taking the katana out the darkslayer sliced the air with a portal appearing before him. He sheathed it and looked back at his brother. The devil hunter was struggling to lift his head up but Vergil was able to see his glare. The darkslayer dismissed as he proceeded to depart, but not before uttering his final words.

"When we meet again, bring what you've left." The older brother vanished into the portal as it closed shortly after, leaving the defeated devil hunter to surrender to his wounds.

Dante's head went back to the grass as he felt his consciousness fading.

*Thump*

*Thump*

*Thump*

Turning to his left three machines landed near him. His eyelids became too heavy to bear as the last thing he saw was a small machine hopping over to him. Even though he couldn't see and was on the verge of blacking out his ears picked up something. And what he heard was the sound of metal being hit followed by dull explosions. Voices that he never heard before echoed through his head.

"TWO...WHA...DO"

"GE...IM...BACK...THE...SISTA...MP"

His body left the ground before he finally succumbed to unconsciousness.

Devil Triggers

Dante-DMC 4

Vergil-DMC 4 + DMC 5 Concept Art