Spook (log)
Who: Dante (stylishflair) and Vergil (yamato_devil)
Where: Miscellaneous Factory in the industrial area.
When: 19th September, late at night.
Summary: A routine job turns into something decidedly not routine. Featuring explosions, strong demons and in-fighting between the twins. Zomg, teh drama! :D
Notes: ...er, there's a bit of gore. Nothing too extreme, though. I blame Resident Evil 4. Comments are loved.
"It's a hoax," Dante announced flatly as he and his brother walked through the factory district of the city, the only source of light a flickering streetlight in the distance. "I can't sense anything at all."
They'd been visited earlier by a frantic factory owner, claiming that some kind of 'demon monster' had attacked his factory earlier, and was still supposedly lurking in the area; the description had sounded rather ridiculous, unlike any demon either of them had ever heard of, and Dante was becoming extremely doubtful that they'd be successful in even finding anything.
Stopping outside a particular factory, glancing down at the business card he held in his hand to confirm that this was indeed the right address, he added in annoyance, "That asshole better pay us decently for this either way, bet we're just stuck playing security guard."
"Speak for yourself." Vergil retorted sullenly, deciding that it would be better to simply tune out his brother's complaining, lest it make his bad mood even worse. For once, he'd had plans that did not revolve around training, as he had been planning to take Yuna out for dinner, but unfortunately it seemed like the demonic population simply enjoyed ruining his plans. At least she understood why I had to cancel… that or she was secretly hiding how disappointed she was. Oh well.
"Let’s just leave," he added, glancing around once again and shaking his head dismissively. "It is pointless being here, there are no demons here, nor are there any signs of demons being here. I have more important things to do than look for a nonexistent enemy."
"The guy's paying a pretty penny," Dante pointed out, approaching the factory door and unlocking it, walking into the darkened building and glancing back to his sibling. "We might as well check it out. If all else fails, we can just say we killed it and get the money off him," he winked, turning back to the factory and gesturing for Vergil to follow. "Damn, where's the overhead light switch...?"
Automatically coming to his brother's aid, Vergil summoned several of his Phantom Blades, allowing the glowing blue demonic energy swords to illuminate the area. It looked like an ordinary factory, though it did show signs of some kind of mass evacuation. "Perhaps we should split up," he mused thoughtfully as he scanned the area. "There are windows on the upper floor, you should be able to see up there. I can stay on this level." He refrained from adding that he liked the dark, merely walking past his brother as the demon swords followed him obediently, hovering over his shoulders.
"Yeah, alright," Dante nodded. While technically he could see in the dark, he generally preferred a lighter atmosphere for obvious practical reasons. Walking over to the stairs, he walked up somewhat warily. He couldn't sense anything, but there still seemed something a bit off about the whole place. That guy said he just stopped work in the middle of the day... whatever caused a businessman to do that must've been a serious spook.
Regardless of what my brother thinks, if this turns out to be a hoax, that human will die, Vergil thought as he slowly progressed through the factory, his boots clicking on the concrete floor until he stepped in a small pool of liquid. Raising an eyebrow as the Phantom Blades shattered now that his concentration was broken, he knelt and ran a finger through the sticky substance. It's still warm, he mused, tentatively licking the substance off his finger. Blood. Perhaps the old coot was telling the truth. "Dante!" He called, gazing up at the balcony above. "Watch your back! We're not alone!"
"My thoughts exactly," Dante called back to him, glancing over the side of the railing, catching sight of his brother before looking away, continuing to walk across slowly. Drawing Rebellion and glancing around warily, gaze scanning anything suspicious, he stayed on guard. Maybe we're gonna get to earn our pay after all...
Vergil's expression darkened as he took in his surroundings again, spotting something strange in the shadows and moving over to it swiftly, he gazed up at the object with his usual cold gaze in place. It was only after a minute or so when his eyes had finally adjusted to the level of darkness, allowing him to see just what it was.
A man, in his late thirties, possibly early forties, hanging by his neck from a steel hook, blood dripping into a pool below. The body had been mutilated, his eyes were missing, as was a good portion of his skin. His fingers were missing from his left hand, whilst his right arm had been severed along with both of his legs. Despite the grotesque sight, he searched for the missing limbs, only to find nothing.
What kind of demon would waste their time doing this? He thought, not an ounce of concern showing on his pale face as he launched a Phantom Blade at the chain that suspended the man in place, striding over to his lifeless body the moment it hit the ground and placing a hand on his cheek. He's been dead for a few hours, his body is cold and stiff. Shaking his head and rising to his full height, he moved on, his trench coat whipping out behind him.
On the higher floor, Dante was largely oblivious to any discoveries quite so gruesome, walking into a storage room warily, glancing around and keeping on guard. Seeing something out of the corner of his eye and quickly turning, he shook his head upon seeing that there was nothing there. Probably just the light playing tricks on me. Still...
Walking over to the railing again and leaning over the side, he looked around, spotting his brother after a moment and calling, "There's something wrong here. Think we're being watched." Better paranoid than dead, in his mind.
Being watched? Then again, he could feel it too, like there was a giant pair of eyes following his every move. It made the darkness feel rather oppressive and suddenly, he found himself wishing that he was in the lighter area, with his brother. Stop this. Whatever this thing is, it will be no match for the son of Sparda.
With his confidence returned, he continued through the factory, catching glimpses of more mutilated bodies, slumped over their workstations or jamming machines that were still running, blood oozing out as another sickening crunch sounded, though he remained perfectly calm, not disturbed in any way by the corpses.
His nerves held out, until he heard the subtle sound of fabric moving violently, then he abruptly turned on his heel which caused his trench coat to whirl out as well and drew Yamato, looking around warily as he took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. …It was probably just my coat.
Dante, meanwhile, was making a few discoveries of his own on the upper level. There was a small pool of blood on the ground; he'd only noticed it by chance, but it was clearly human blood, he could tell simply by the smell. Glancing up slowly, his eyes widened slightly as he saw a figure hanging above him. It was hard to tell the figure's gender, as the body was badly mutilated, but the injuries sustained were severe; they had clearly been tortured before death.
This isn't normal for a demon, Dante mused to himself, shaking his head. Perhaps it would've been wiser to go when it was lighter outside; it was a particularly dark night due to the smog of the city, and while he'd managed to locate the main lightswitch, it appeared as though the power had been cut, as it wasn't working. What the hell did this...? A human...? Seems more like a serial killer than any demon I've seen, but...
Continuing to scan the lower section of the factory with his piercing blue eyes, Vergil was positive that there was no one else on his level, at least, no one still alive. Turning and giving a machine a light kick, dislodging the panel and revealing another dead body, he raised an eyebrow and knelt, inspecting the figure.
It seems almost… ritualistic. But what could that mean? Most demons aren't intelligent enough to do something like this, nor do they generally have the desire to. So, could that mean that it is not a demon responsible…? It wouldn't be the first time a human has performed mass murder for a ritual.
Dismissing the body and walking past the machine, he kept his guard up regardless, unable to fully rule out the possibility that it was a demon. It was at that moment that something creaked above him before another hook-bearing chain fell right in front of him, another body hanging off it. Even he couldn't help but flinch and he unconsciously took a step back, studying the body with his blank gaze and realizing very quickly that this one was blind, had none of its limbs intact yet alive, a large slit across its neck where it seemed that the thing responsible had tried to decapitate the victim. Compose yourself, he thought irritably, realizing that his heart was racing from the sudden shock.
Giving a strangled gasp, the victim appeared to be still alive, albeit barely, staring up at Vergil with one glassy deadened eye, the other gauged out entirely. Realising at least on some level that there was someone there, the man (at least, it had once been a man, although now with his mutilated body, it was hard to tell at first glance) thrashed around valiantly for a few moments. It was a miracle he'd survived this long, really; one of his arms was missing entirely, the other ripped open, bare bone visible. The legs were relatively intact upon close glance, albeit bloody and the left bent at an odd angle, clearly broken at the knee.
Thrashing about for a few moments, the man eventually fell still, although he was still breathing; it was a miracle that the slash across his neck hadn't killed him, although it was looking doubtful that he'd make it. Hissing something in a distorted, pained voice, his voicebox possibly damaged, he appeared to be making the wound on his neck worse with the attempts.
Calming himself and staring at the man impassively, Vergil slowly slid Yamato from the sheathe, holding it in front of him and keeping his eyes fixed on the victim as he drawled. "If you tell me what did this to you, I will take pity on you, and ease your suffering." He rested the tip of the blade against his injured neck, waiting for a response. He knew that Dante would not approve of this at all, but the man was as good as dead anyway.
The man gave a frightened shudder, quivering, unable to see exactly what was going on, only knowing that there was suddenly something cold and sharp against his neck. Heeding Vergil's words, however, he gasped after a moment, "...a monster... just appeared... killed everyone... h-help me..."
Well, that confirms it was a demon, but it still makes no sense, Vergil thought, keeping his hand steady. "One last question, do you remember what it looked like?" He pressed, knowing that it would be useless knowing it was a demon without having some knowledge of what kind it could be, especially since the mannerisms were not something he recognised.
"L-leathery skin... grey..." the man whimpered, giving another shudder, appearing to be in quite a lot of pain. "P-please... please help... I have a wife and child..." he looks as though he were about to say more, but all that followed was gasps, the wound that was done to his throat having affected him too much for him to speak any more.
Wife and child…? Vergil found himself hesitating as his hand began to shake, lowering the blade from his throat. For a good minute or so, he found himself in an internal battle with his emotions before he stared back at the man, his hard gaze back in place. "What is it you want?" He drawled "Do you want to die? I can make it quick."
The man still seemed to be having great difficulty in speaking, although he eventually managed to gasp out in a raspy, pained voice a simple, "H-help me..." and giving a hoarse sob.
All traces of compassion left his expression as his conflicting emotions all turned into anger. "What do you want?!" He demanded, raising Yamato to the man's throat again. Why is this bothering me so much! Just kill him!
The man didn't speak again for a few moments, giving a final weak struggle and shuddering, rasping again, "H-help..." Apparently, he seemed to view this as a much more appropriate response than Vergil did.
What's wrong with me?! It's just another pathetic human! Kill him! Narrowing his eyes, Vergil abruptly raised the nodachi and slashed across the man's neck, decapitating him and walking past as though nothing had happened, flicking the blood off his blade and sheathing it as he made for the stairs.
Upstairs, Dante was oblivious to all that had just happened below, currently examining a broken window. Probably the source of all this, he mused to himself. It probably came in through here, surprised them below. Or it exited through here... if it left at all. Turning around with a start as he saw something else moving, he frowned, slowly walking over to the darkened area, leaning over the side of the railing. Where is it...? I know I saw it that time...
Catching up with his brother, Vergil fought to regain his composure, not entirely sure why the man's words had affected him so much. He had wielded a sword for the great majority of his life, he had killed, so why had it been so difficult this time? "Have you found anything?" He questioned emotionlessly, keeping his gaze averted in the hopes of hiding the problem from his brother.
"Ah?" Dante glanced back at him, leaning against the railing and shaking his head, admitting, "I'm not sure if what I'm chasing around is just a phantom of the old building." It was hard to tell with the creaking, particularly with the heavy rainfall and winds outside. "I've seen a few blood puddles, but I haven't found anyone. What about you...?"
Gazing at his brother more clearly, Dante darkened somewhat, leaning closer to him. "Something wrong...?"
Vergil hesitated. "A few mutilated bodies, blood, looked like a ritual killing to me, though I admit, I don't know what kind of demon would do such a thing," he answered, brushing past his brother as he added in his usual bored drawl "And there is nothing wrong."
"Ritual killings?" Dante echoed quietly, shaking his head. "Maybe we're not dealing with a demon here, maybe it's some crazy serial killer or something," he frowned. "Whoever it was made a big mess, but it'd make more sense... never seen a demon do a ritual killing like this, not unless it was an immediate ritual. If they'd done a ritual to power, we'd know about it, there'd be some residue..."
"It is a demon, that was what he tol-…," realizing what he had said, Vergil cut himself off and continued to inspect the upper level, mentally cursing himself for his carelessness.
"'He'?" Dante questioned, following him and grasping his shoulder lightly, pulling him back. "He who?" he pressed. "You found a survivor? Where is he, is he alright...?"
Vergil's expression darkened as he turned to stare at his brother. "Yes, I did find a survivor and no, he is not all right. He is dead. He told me the creature had leathery, grey skin now as I have never met a human with leathery grey skin it is safe to assume that it was a demon." He drawled coldly before turning away again.
"...you killed him?" Dante questioned somewhat disbelievingly, shaking his head. "Are you serious? Why didn't you call me?" Frowning and looking frustrated, Dante strode past him, evidently not ready to wait for the answers to those questions, jumping over the side of the railing and landing on the bottom floor, deciding he'd best investigate that area himself.
"Yes, I did," Vergil responded once he had teleported next to his brother again. There was not a hint of remorse or even compassion in his voice as he spoke, only anger. "I'm not about to defend my actions, either."
"Good, 'cause I'm not too interested in hearing some lame excuse," Dante shook his head, looking more fed up than anything. "You might as well look around up there, I'll look around here, maybe there's a basement or something."
"Fine." Vergil answered bluntly as he strode past his brother once again, having no intentions of remaining at his side whilst he was going to take that kind of attitude. "I'll search the basement." With that, he disappeared into the shadows that engulfed the whole lower floor.
Dante glanced at where he'd been for a moment before shaking his head, frowning and walking away, continuing through the ground floor. What the hell's in his head, anyway...? Maybe he had good reason, maybe it was a mercy killing, but... he should've just said that.
Locating the trap door and lifting it, revealing the stone staircase that would take him down to the basement, Vergil tuned out everything else, including his own thoughts as he began to descend, keeping his guard up at all times but, it wasn't until he reached the bottom that he realized that there was something seriously wrong but by that point it was too late and a large fist slammed into him, sending him crashing into the wall behind.
Dante spun on his heel upon hearing the crash, quickly running in the direction of where it had come from. "Vergil?" he called, stopping at the trap door and glancing down somewhat uncertainly, drawing Rebellion. "You alright...?"
The sheer force of the blow combined with the impact against the stone wall had knocked him out, so he did not respond. The demon laughed and advanced on his limp body, it looked more like a savage creature than anything that had even the slightest ounce of intelligence, but as it drew closer, it suddenly hesitated. "Such power... I’m going to have fun with this one."
What the hell is that?! Dante frowned, gazing down and spotting his unconscious brother, wasting little time in quickly descending, drawing Rebellion. "Hey, you!" he called, gazing at the demon. "Want to try fighting fair?"
The demon raised its great head, gazing at Dante with tiny eyes before it grinned, licking its lips. "Well, well, there are two of them! This should be very entertaining!" Forgetting all about Vergil, it turned its great lumbering body to face the other, clenching its fists.
...I can't sense it, Dante realised, his eyes widening in surprise. He wasn't one to rely too much on his demonic instincts, but it was a strange feeling, to be staring right at a demon that was clearly alive and not being able to feel even the slightest effect. "What the hell are you?" he questioned, frowning and raising Rebellion. "Another lackey?"
"Does that really matter?" The demon snarled before abruptly lunging for Dante, grabbing him with large hands and pulling him towards the deadly spikes that covered it's body.
Dante pulled away before he could be impaled, diving to one side and rolling, drawing his guns and firing several times, staring at the demon. "You're no normal demon," he retorted, gazing at him. "Come on, share. What, you some new elite troop?"
Deflecting the bullets with its tough skin, the demon merely laughed. "You're no ordinary human either, why do you protect such weak creatures and fight your own kind?" It sneered before lunging forward again, trying to take a bite out of Dante's shoulder.
Dante dodged to the side quickly, staring at the demon. Those kinds of attacks... and I can't sense anything. "You've got no idea who I am, have you?" he questioned. He's not a...
"I can smell the demon blood within you," the creature sneered as it picked Dante up by his head, lifting him to his height and letting out a low snarl. "Unfortunately, you're not much of a challenge." It opened it's mouth wide, prepared to swallow Dante whole when it was suddenly distracted by several white hot blue swords bouncing off its tough skin.
Vergil stood, looking rather worse for wear, gripping the banister tightly. "Let my brother go!"
"Good timing!" Dante called, taking this opportunity to kick the creature in the chest, kicking away from it and managing to force it to drop him, crashing to the ground and quickly edging away. "That's not a demon," he shook his head, moving to stand by his sibling. "Don't know what the hell it is, but it's no demon."
Vergil narrowed his eyes, summoning more Phantom Blades and launching them at the creature, only to find that they bounced right off. "I can't sense anything." He admitted, looking rather confused.
"It doesn't know who we are," Dante shook his head, glancing at his twin. It sounded an egocentric statement, but really, the chances of a demon being in the mortal realm, attacking them and not knowing of their identity (and then not being able to sense it instantly, as their auras were rather telling about their mixed blood and who their father was) were extremely slim. "Still, we better kill it fast..."
Vergil gave a curt nod and eased Yamato from the sheathe, teleporting right behind the demon and slashing widely, only to stagger backwards when his blade simply bounced off the tough skin. "What?! That's impossible! Yamato can cut through anything!" Rolling out of the way as the creature slammed its large fist onto the ground, he gazed at the nodachi, wondering if it had gotten dulled on that human.
"Shit," Dante swore. Yamato was sharper than Rebellion; if that hadn't left a scratch, then Rebellion was useless except as a club to bash the thing with. Glancing around the basement, his eyes narrowed slightly as he gazed at the large gas tank. If we can't slash it up, I guess we could always blow it up... doubt the client would be too pleased, though. Still... "Hey, brother," Dante gestured loosely over at the gas tank, making eye contact with Vergil for a moment, wordlessly suggesting it.
Watching Dante out of the corner of his eye, Vergil gave a curt nod and abruptly raised Yamato as one of the creature's fists came crashing down, barely managing to hold off the attack despite his demonic strength. Summoning a few Phantom Blades, he glanced at his brother, waiting for the signal.
Moving over to his twin, so that they could be teleported away quickly, Dante nodded. "Go, go now!" Drawing a gun, he fired at the gas tank several times, stepping back quickly.
Launching the Phantom Blades at the tanks as well and gripping his brother's shoulder, he swiftly teleported out of the basement, appearing at the foot of the trap door as it was the only place he could see that was out of the basement. It was the one hindrance to his power, he needed to see where he was going. Teleporting again and taking several steps back from the factory, he watched as the building exploded.
Dante couldn't help but grin slightly as the factory went up in flames. The worst of the explosion was, of course, confined to the basement, but they still had to edge away quickly. Moving over to a nearby payphone, Dante quickly placed a very anonymous call to the fire department about a fire in a factory before going back over to his brother, frowning. "Hopefully that took care of that thing."
Inspecting his nodachi, Vergil frowned, tapping the edge and drawing blood very easily. "I don't understand." He admitted, slamming Yamato down over a piece of rubble from the factory and cutting the stone in half with ease.
"Me neither," Dante shook his head, glancing at him. "Whatever that thing was, it was no demon. Hopefully that dealt with it... I don't see how it could've survived that, if we'd been inside, we wouldn't have survived that."
"Tch, whatever it was, I doubt there will be anything left." Vergil drawled emotionlessly as he slid Yamato back into the sheathe, beginning to walk away, though he had a slight limp to his step.
Dante followed after him. "Are you alright?" he questioned, noticing the limp. "...looks kind of painful. Did your leg get hurt...?"
Exposing the deep gash that ran the full length of his leg, Vergil shook his head dismissively, "A sprained ankle and a cut, it'll heal." He offered, using Yamato to support some of his weight as he continued to walk away, still not quite feeling himself after what had happened. Why did I allow that man to get to me? That isn't like me. I know I haven't killed a human in a very long time... but this was different. Was it because he had a family...?
"...if you're sure," Dante nodded after a moment, although he still looked somewhat concerned, gazing at him. "...what happened before, anyway...?"
"Nothing." Vergil replied automatically. Yes, nothing. It was just an insignificant human that didn't have even a fraction of my power.
"You sure?" Dante tilted his head to the side, giving his twin a curious look.
He sighed, mentally berating himself as he drawled "It's nothing, just something he said... got to me, that's all. It's stupid."
"What was it?" Dante questioned, gazing at him. "...what happened, anyway...?"
"He mentioned that he had a family," Vergil admitted before shooting his brother a cold glare "This is not about feeling compassion, I am incapable of such a thing, before you think it. I simply killed him to shut him up."
"He was dying anyway, I take it," Dante shook his head. "...I doubt you're incapable of compassion. Think what you want."
Vergil's expression darkened. "He was, what is your point?"
"...so it was a mercy killing, then," Dante nodded to himself. "...I'm capable of compassion. So you're capable of compassion."
"Shut up," Vergil retorted coldly, not in the mood to keep up the conversation. Me, compassionate? Tch. No.
"Intelligent response," Dante snorted, glancing back at the burning building and stopping. "...I'm gonna stick around, play bystander. Make sure that thing really is dead. You should head back."
"Are you trying to hide something from me, dear brother?" Vergil sneered as he forced down his anger, regaining his composure in the process. "Because I don't like people keeping secrets from me."
Dante rolled his eyes. "What if I am?" he drawled. "I don't really care what you like or dislike, brother."
Glowering at his twin brother, Vergil abruptly turned and began to walk away. He was not particularly in the mood to hang around and try to prise information out of him when he knew that sooner or later Dante would slip up anyway. "I'm going to train. I would advise that you leave me alone." He stated icily as he glanced over his shoulder, the wound on his leg already beginning to heal.
"What's your problem?" Dante shook his head, although he didn't go after him. "You're like a sulking child half the time, y'know."
Hearing his comments and turning back to face him, Vergil sneered "I take everything seriously, you think it is all just one big joke. Do what you want, it's none of my concern, but I'm getting ready to fight Mundus in honour of my mother."
"So am I," Dante retorted, shaking his head. Why'd he go and bring that up? "I'm not joking around, brother. I haven't been for awhile now, in case you didn't notice."
"You never take it seriously. If you did, you would be training and getting stronger instead of trying to stand out by rebelling all the time. Grow up." Vergil retorted, though his voice remained monotonous and cold, despite his anger.
"Rebelling?" Dante's eyebrows arched. "What part of doing my job is 'rebelling'? My job is training. I'm practicing my skills and getting stronger every day. In case you didn't notice, rebelling's something kids do, and we're both adults. Call me when you've gotten rid of that chip on your shoulder, brother."
Vergil's eyes narrowed. "You are the only one here with the chip on his shoulder. You rebel simply to cause problems, otherwise you would not be so set on pushing our father away and denying your demonic heritage instead of accepting it and becoming stronger."
Dante shook his head. "Get with the program, brother. I haven't been 'pushing father away' for months, and I've got no problem with my heritage. I haven't been rebelling, I've been living my life. We're fully grown men, you idiot, even if I wanted to, I've got nothing to rebel against." Rolling his eyes, he leant against the wall, regarding his brother with an unusually cold gaze. "Blame me and talk down to me if it makes you feel better. I don't really give a shit what you think any more. You're an immature, arrogant idiot. You're completely in denial about what you are, and I'm sick of helping out your ungrateful ass only to end up with you treating me like we're still ten. Get the hell over whatever your damn problem is."
"That isn't possible," Vergil drawled emotionlessly as he strode back over to his brother and tried to read his expression, suddenly feeling rather uncomfortable. "There is no way you cannot feel some kind of resentment towards what you are! You avoid anything that could potentially involve your demonic blood, you live the life of a human, an inferior being!"
"I prefer my human side, I'll admit it," Dante shook his head, the cold gaze still firmly in place. "But my demon side's there. There's no getting away from it, and it gives me abilities that I'd never possess if I were just a human. Having mixed blood is kind of a pain sometimes, but I'd rather this than be purely either. You are what you are, just get over it and move on. It's stupid to rebel against it."
Vergil darkened. "I hate what I am," he answered furiously, pressing the tip of Yamato to his throat. "You cannot tell me that you accept what you are because I despise this weakness inside me!" He abruptly turned away, still struggling with emotions he would rather not have. Why did I say that?
"No matter how much you hate it, it's not gonna go away," Dante answered after a moment, his tone still aloof but also unusually quiet. "That's what I figured out, anyway. Just come to terms with it, get over it and turn the weakness into a strength. Your living in denial isn't helping anyone."
"Denial," Vergil sneered, rolling his eyes. "I am not in denial, I know I have these damn emotions, I just don't like them. You of all people should know that I have never been compelled to be particularly emotional, even before I fully understood what the difference between a human and a demon is," he paused, frowning a little and striding back over to his brother's side, placing a hand on his shoulder, swallowing his pride. "Perhaps I was wrong."
"Wrong about what?" Dante questioned, not meeting his gaze and instead gazing at the burning building, although he didn't push him away.
He's doing this to gloat! He thought angrily, though he did not remove his hand from Dante's shoulder. Deciding that he could simply figure it out for himself, Vergil lightly pulled him away from the burning building. "You know what I meant." He commented emotionlessly.
"No, I don't," Dante said flatly, shaking his head, glancing at him for a moment. "Just tell me."
Vergil frowned, not liking where the conversation was going. "Forget it." He answered bluntly, removing his hand from his brother's shoulder and turning away with such force that his trench coat flared out behind him. Hn. I wasn't wrong. He never takes anything seriously. If he did, he would be training at my side instead of trying to wind me up and distract me. Defeating Mundus should be all that matters.
"What, so you're not going to tell me?" Dante frowned, glancing at him and looking annoyed. "Asshole. What the hell's your problem with me?!" he snapped, losing his composure for a moment before he shook his head. "...asshole."
Taken aback slightly by his brother's reaction, although he did not show it, Vergil hesitated and glanced behind him again, studying Dante's expression carefully. "You talk so much about family, yet you are the one who refuses to embrace it. You do your own thing, all the time. Perhaps I was wrong in my accusation that you do nothing to become stronger and defeat Mundus, but I know I am right about this. You are an even bigger loner than I am."
"What do you expect me to do?" Dante questioned icily. "It's impossible to even find the old man 90% of the time, and half the time we spend together is taken up by you informing me how much you hate being around me, I'm not worthy of my power, blah blah blah. Believe it or not, I can take a hint, brother."
Vergil shot him a look. "I haven't said that in months Dante. I just… dislike what you're becoming," he admitted hesitantly, not completely certain how his brother was going to take it, whilst wondering why he even cared at the same time. "This has nothing to do with humanity or demonhood. You are my brother and I don't like having to see you turn into a dull workaholic. You are not yourself, nor have you been yourself for a very long time now."
Dante couldn't quite hide the surprise at that particular admittance, although he shook his head after a moment. "You always told me I should get serious, so I have," he answered, his gaze returning to the burning building, watching the firefighters unsuccessfully try and put out the fire. "Pains me to say it, but the party's over, at least for now. Getting ready to fight Mundus is all well and good, but I've gotta deal with his lackeys, too."
Vergil tilted his head to the side a little, watching the firemen as they struggled to put out the blaze. "Perhaps there were more canisters in there than we initially thought," he mused, wanting to change the subject now that it was getting awkward, but not before having his final say on the matter. "I do want you to take things more seriously, but you've starting acting this way all of the time instead of just during battles, I don't like it." With that said, he let out a sigh and reluctantly strode back towards the factory, some things were inevitable and helping humans with limited strength and stamina seemed to be one of them.
"You never like what I do," Dante muttered, rolling his eyes, although he didn't move to aid anyone. His experiences with fire trucks didn't go far beyond the obligatory 'I want to be a fireman when I grow up!' stage when he was seven. It doesn't matter what he thinks, anyway. I can handle myself.
Glancing back over his shoulder, he offered calmly "This has nothing to do with like or dislike, brother," hesitating, he turned his back to him once again and continued to advance on the factory, ignoring the worried cries from the firemen in the area "I am just concerned." He admitted as an after thought, not wanting to get too emotionally deep with his twin brother.
Concerned. Right. Dante shook his head, wordlessly waiting for him and glancing over his own injuries. Nothing too serious, he supposed. It's not like I'm enjoying this or anything. I'd rather be out having fun, but there's no time for that right now, business is too heavy, and who am I to ignore the cashflow?
Noticing his brother hesitating, Vergil decided to simply leave the ungrateful firemen to do it on their own, since they were causing him nothing but trouble anyway. Moving back over to his side, he squeezed his shoulder. "Is there something bothering you?"
Dante hesitated, but shook his head after a moment. Contrary to what seemed to be popular opinion, he wasn't at all a fan of talking about his feelings, most especially not to his brother. He had his pride, after all. "Just forget it," he answered after a few moments of consideration. Vergil was frustrating, to say the least; when he occasionally acted like he cared -although Dante doubted he actually did, at least not very much-, it was usually at all the wrong times and/or for all the wrong reasons.
Tch, I should have known he'd act like that, Vergil thought sullenly before turning his back on his brother yet again, striding away from the burning factory. "Fine. Do what you want." He said bluntly as he walked off.
...dammit, just let it go. "What were you going to say?" he demanded after a moment, following after him and moving in his path. "Before, what were you going to say?"
"Before…," Vergil repeated, trailing off as he recalled the conversation. "What is going on with you lately, brother?" He questioned, not remembering what he was going to say, though he reasoned that since he couldn't remember, it was probably something he would have regretted anyway. "I've never seen you look so troubled. You act as though the weight of the entire world is on your shoulders -and yes, it is, in a sense- but you wont even allow your twin brother to help you." He refrained from adding that he found it annoying, because that was rather childish.
"Since when have you ever helped me?!" Dante snapped, unable to help himself. Any composure and anger management had just been thrown out a ten-storey window. "You've backstabbed me, taken your stupid inadequacy issues out on me, tried in all seriousness to murder me, but outside of when we're working together in combat, when have you last helped me?! All you do is cause trouble and screw everything up just when I've got it working perfect, and then lecture me about not being more like you or the old man or whoever!"
Shaking his head and clenching his fists, attempting to regain some semblance of calm, Dante added coldly, "If you hate me, fine. Just stop rubbing it in my face and then giving me this caring-older-brother shit, got it?!" With that outburst out of the way, he pushed past him, moving to leave quickly.
Vergil waited patiently for Dante to be done with his little outburst before he placed his hand on his brother's shoulder yet again. He didn't quite know why he was taking this so well, after all his brother had just insulted him, but he offered calmly, "I would always help, if you asked. Not with the finances, I don't have a head for numbers, but I would help."
Giving his brother's shoulder a reassuring squeeze before removing his hand, he swallowed his pride again and added. "I know that I've done a lot of wrong things that have probably been an inconvenience, but I just do what I think is right. I follow my instincts and I want to accomplish my goal, perhaps in the process I place some of the pressure I put on myself, onto you." Not saying anymore, but not turning away either so his brother could still read the (pesky) emotion behind his eyes that only a brother could, he extended a hand to Dante and waited.
Dante stayed silent, just listening as his brother spoke, mulling it all over in his hand. He took several moments to act, but he eventually nodded, somewhat awkwardly shaking his hand. It didn't fully resolve things, to be sure, but it was a hell of a lot more than he thought he'd get. (He'd expected more violence to be involved, for one thing.) "...alright," he agreed after a moment, his tone more subdued and calmed. He wasn't about to apologise for it, but he knew most of the things he'd said would have been much better left alone.
"Let’s go home, you can try to 'impress' me with the number of pizzas you can eat in one sitting whilst I pretend to look interested," Vergil teased, having a little jab at himself as well as his brother as they began to walk away from the scene. "I'll check father's old books, there were a lot of them I kept out of the garage sale, perhaps I'll find some information about that creature."
"Yeah, alright," Dante agreed, looking somewhat amused by Vergil's suggestion. Glancing back at the building a final time as the blaze subsided, he added, "I'll take a look too. Whatever that thing was, I want to know how to handle it without too many explosions." Although, admittedly, the explosions were quite fun.
"Likewise," Vergil answered before glancing at his brother again, "Oh and Dante? I don't hate you. I never did." With that said, he quickened his pace. If he wanted to keep up the conversation, he'd catch up, but he was too embarrassed to continue of his own accord.
Dante stopped short for a moment, looking somewhat embarrassed, but he quickly caught up, offering a mere vague, "If you say so," and generally just as embarrassed about the entire discussion.
Slightly comforted as his brother returned to his side, Vergil decided that silence was probably better than mindless chatter, giving his brother a quick glance to show he appreciated it before continuing to walk beside him.
Dante too accepted, even embraced the silence, something unusual for him, walking beside him wordlessly. It had been a long day and an even longer night, and he really didn't fancy trying to get money out of the factory owner now. ...it's hard to tell what he's thinking, Dante mused internally. Wonder if he's serious about all this. Shouldn't have said all that stuff, it's just embarrassing, but... ah, shit, thinking about this too much is just gonna lead to more trouble.
"Somehow, I doubt we'll get our payment." Vergil mused, breaking the silence as he glanced up at the artificial sky, feeling strangely at ease now.
"Let's just hope the asshole doesn't sue us," Dante grumbled, glancing to his twin and then turning his gaze skyward at well. It was rather pretty, really; the rain had since stopped, and the sun was just beginning to rise. "If anyone asks, it was already on fire when we got there, okay?"
Where: Miscellaneous Factory in the industrial area.
When: 19th September, late at night.
Summary: A routine job turns into something decidedly not routine. Featuring explosions, strong demons and in-fighting between the twins. Zomg, teh drama! :D
Notes: ...er, there's a bit of gore. Nothing too extreme, though. I blame Resident Evil 4. Comments are loved.
"It's a hoax," Dante announced flatly as he and his brother walked through the factory district of the city, the only source of light a flickering streetlight in the distance. "I can't sense anything at all."
They'd been visited earlier by a frantic factory owner, claiming that some kind of 'demon monster' had attacked his factory earlier, and was still supposedly lurking in the area; the description had sounded rather ridiculous, unlike any demon either of them had ever heard of, and Dante was becoming extremely doubtful that they'd be successful in even finding anything.
Stopping outside a particular factory, glancing down at the business card he held in his hand to confirm that this was indeed the right address, he added in annoyance, "That asshole better pay us decently for this either way, bet we're just stuck playing security guard."
"Speak for yourself." Vergil retorted sullenly, deciding that it would be better to simply tune out his brother's complaining, lest it make his bad mood even worse. For once, he'd had plans that did not revolve around training, as he had been planning to take Yuna out for dinner, but unfortunately it seemed like the demonic population simply enjoyed ruining his plans. At least she understood why I had to cancel… that or she was secretly hiding how disappointed she was. Oh well.
"Let’s just leave," he added, glancing around once again and shaking his head dismissively. "It is pointless being here, there are no demons here, nor are there any signs of demons being here. I have more important things to do than look for a nonexistent enemy."
"The guy's paying a pretty penny," Dante pointed out, approaching the factory door and unlocking it, walking into the darkened building and glancing back to his sibling. "We might as well check it out. If all else fails, we can just say we killed it and get the money off him," he winked, turning back to the factory and gesturing for Vergil to follow. "Damn, where's the overhead light switch...?"
Automatically coming to his brother's aid, Vergil summoned several of his Phantom Blades, allowing the glowing blue demonic energy swords to illuminate the area. It looked like an ordinary factory, though it did show signs of some kind of mass evacuation. "Perhaps we should split up," he mused thoughtfully as he scanned the area. "There are windows on the upper floor, you should be able to see up there. I can stay on this level." He refrained from adding that he liked the dark, merely walking past his brother as the demon swords followed him obediently, hovering over his shoulders.
"Yeah, alright," Dante nodded. While technically he could see in the dark, he generally preferred a lighter atmosphere for obvious practical reasons. Walking over to the stairs, he walked up somewhat warily. He couldn't sense anything, but there still seemed something a bit off about the whole place. That guy said he just stopped work in the middle of the day... whatever caused a businessman to do that must've been a serious spook.
Regardless of what my brother thinks, if this turns out to be a hoax, that human will die, Vergil thought as he slowly progressed through the factory, his boots clicking on the concrete floor until he stepped in a small pool of liquid. Raising an eyebrow as the Phantom Blades shattered now that his concentration was broken, he knelt and ran a finger through the sticky substance. It's still warm, he mused, tentatively licking the substance off his finger. Blood. Perhaps the old coot was telling the truth. "Dante!" He called, gazing up at the balcony above. "Watch your back! We're not alone!"
"My thoughts exactly," Dante called back to him, glancing over the side of the railing, catching sight of his brother before looking away, continuing to walk across slowly. Drawing Rebellion and glancing around warily, gaze scanning anything suspicious, he stayed on guard. Maybe we're gonna get to earn our pay after all...
Vergil's expression darkened as he took in his surroundings again, spotting something strange in the shadows and moving over to it swiftly, he gazed up at the object with his usual cold gaze in place. It was only after a minute or so when his eyes had finally adjusted to the level of darkness, allowing him to see just what it was.
A man, in his late thirties, possibly early forties, hanging by his neck from a steel hook, blood dripping into a pool below. The body had been mutilated, his eyes were missing, as was a good portion of his skin. His fingers were missing from his left hand, whilst his right arm had been severed along with both of his legs. Despite the grotesque sight, he searched for the missing limbs, only to find nothing.
What kind of demon would waste their time doing this? He thought, not an ounce of concern showing on his pale face as he launched a Phantom Blade at the chain that suspended the man in place, striding over to his lifeless body the moment it hit the ground and placing a hand on his cheek. He's been dead for a few hours, his body is cold and stiff. Shaking his head and rising to his full height, he moved on, his trench coat whipping out behind him.
On the higher floor, Dante was largely oblivious to any discoveries quite so gruesome, walking into a storage room warily, glancing around and keeping on guard. Seeing something out of the corner of his eye and quickly turning, he shook his head upon seeing that there was nothing there. Probably just the light playing tricks on me. Still...
Walking over to the railing again and leaning over the side, he looked around, spotting his brother after a moment and calling, "There's something wrong here. Think we're being watched." Better paranoid than dead, in his mind.
Being watched? Then again, he could feel it too, like there was a giant pair of eyes following his every move. It made the darkness feel rather oppressive and suddenly, he found himself wishing that he was in the lighter area, with his brother. Stop this. Whatever this thing is, it will be no match for the son of Sparda.
With his confidence returned, he continued through the factory, catching glimpses of more mutilated bodies, slumped over their workstations or jamming machines that were still running, blood oozing out as another sickening crunch sounded, though he remained perfectly calm, not disturbed in any way by the corpses.
His nerves held out, until he heard the subtle sound of fabric moving violently, then he abruptly turned on his heel which caused his trench coat to whirl out as well and drew Yamato, looking around warily as he took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. …It was probably just my coat.
Dante, meanwhile, was making a few discoveries of his own on the upper level. There was a small pool of blood on the ground; he'd only noticed it by chance, but it was clearly human blood, he could tell simply by the smell. Glancing up slowly, his eyes widened slightly as he saw a figure hanging above him. It was hard to tell the figure's gender, as the body was badly mutilated, but the injuries sustained were severe; they had clearly been tortured before death.
This isn't normal for a demon, Dante mused to himself, shaking his head. Perhaps it would've been wiser to go when it was lighter outside; it was a particularly dark night due to the smog of the city, and while he'd managed to locate the main lightswitch, it appeared as though the power had been cut, as it wasn't working. What the hell did this...? A human...? Seems more like a serial killer than any demon I've seen, but...
Continuing to scan the lower section of the factory with his piercing blue eyes, Vergil was positive that there was no one else on his level, at least, no one still alive. Turning and giving a machine a light kick, dislodging the panel and revealing another dead body, he raised an eyebrow and knelt, inspecting the figure.
It seems almost… ritualistic. But what could that mean? Most demons aren't intelligent enough to do something like this, nor do they generally have the desire to. So, could that mean that it is not a demon responsible…? It wouldn't be the first time a human has performed mass murder for a ritual.
Dismissing the body and walking past the machine, he kept his guard up regardless, unable to fully rule out the possibility that it was a demon. It was at that moment that something creaked above him before another hook-bearing chain fell right in front of him, another body hanging off it. Even he couldn't help but flinch and he unconsciously took a step back, studying the body with his blank gaze and realizing very quickly that this one was blind, had none of its limbs intact yet alive, a large slit across its neck where it seemed that the thing responsible had tried to decapitate the victim. Compose yourself, he thought irritably, realizing that his heart was racing from the sudden shock.
Giving a strangled gasp, the victim appeared to be still alive, albeit barely, staring up at Vergil with one glassy deadened eye, the other gauged out entirely. Realising at least on some level that there was someone there, the man (at least, it had once been a man, although now with his mutilated body, it was hard to tell at first glance) thrashed around valiantly for a few moments. It was a miracle he'd survived this long, really; one of his arms was missing entirely, the other ripped open, bare bone visible. The legs were relatively intact upon close glance, albeit bloody and the left bent at an odd angle, clearly broken at the knee.
Thrashing about for a few moments, the man eventually fell still, although he was still breathing; it was a miracle that the slash across his neck hadn't killed him, although it was looking doubtful that he'd make it. Hissing something in a distorted, pained voice, his voicebox possibly damaged, he appeared to be making the wound on his neck worse with the attempts.
Calming himself and staring at the man impassively, Vergil slowly slid Yamato from the sheathe, holding it in front of him and keeping his eyes fixed on the victim as he drawled. "If you tell me what did this to you, I will take pity on you, and ease your suffering." He rested the tip of the blade against his injured neck, waiting for a response. He knew that Dante would not approve of this at all, but the man was as good as dead anyway.
The man gave a frightened shudder, quivering, unable to see exactly what was going on, only knowing that there was suddenly something cold and sharp against his neck. Heeding Vergil's words, however, he gasped after a moment, "...a monster... just appeared... killed everyone... h-help me..."
Well, that confirms it was a demon, but it still makes no sense, Vergil thought, keeping his hand steady. "One last question, do you remember what it looked like?" He pressed, knowing that it would be useless knowing it was a demon without having some knowledge of what kind it could be, especially since the mannerisms were not something he recognised.
"L-leathery skin... grey..." the man whimpered, giving another shudder, appearing to be in quite a lot of pain. "P-please... please help... I have a wife and child..." he looks as though he were about to say more, but all that followed was gasps, the wound that was done to his throat having affected him too much for him to speak any more.
Wife and child…? Vergil found himself hesitating as his hand began to shake, lowering the blade from his throat. For a good minute or so, he found himself in an internal battle with his emotions before he stared back at the man, his hard gaze back in place. "What is it you want?" He drawled "Do you want to die? I can make it quick."
The man still seemed to be having great difficulty in speaking, although he eventually managed to gasp out in a raspy, pained voice a simple, "H-help me..." and giving a hoarse sob.
All traces of compassion left his expression as his conflicting emotions all turned into anger. "What do you want?!" He demanded, raising Yamato to the man's throat again. Why is this bothering me so much! Just kill him!
The man didn't speak again for a few moments, giving a final weak struggle and shuddering, rasping again, "H-help..." Apparently, he seemed to view this as a much more appropriate response than Vergil did.
What's wrong with me?! It's just another pathetic human! Kill him! Narrowing his eyes, Vergil abruptly raised the nodachi and slashed across the man's neck, decapitating him and walking past as though nothing had happened, flicking the blood off his blade and sheathing it as he made for the stairs.
Upstairs, Dante was oblivious to all that had just happened below, currently examining a broken window. Probably the source of all this, he mused to himself. It probably came in through here, surprised them below. Or it exited through here... if it left at all. Turning around with a start as he saw something else moving, he frowned, slowly walking over to the darkened area, leaning over the side of the railing. Where is it...? I know I saw it that time...
Catching up with his brother, Vergil fought to regain his composure, not entirely sure why the man's words had affected him so much. He had wielded a sword for the great majority of his life, he had killed, so why had it been so difficult this time? "Have you found anything?" He questioned emotionlessly, keeping his gaze averted in the hopes of hiding the problem from his brother.
"Ah?" Dante glanced back at him, leaning against the railing and shaking his head, admitting, "I'm not sure if what I'm chasing around is just a phantom of the old building." It was hard to tell with the creaking, particularly with the heavy rainfall and winds outside. "I've seen a few blood puddles, but I haven't found anyone. What about you...?"
Gazing at his brother more clearly, Dante darkened somewhat, leaning closer to him. "Something wrong...?"
Vergil hesitated. "A few mutilated bodies, blood, looked like a ritual killing to me, though I admit, I don't know what kind of demon would do such a thing," he answered, brushing past his brother as he added in his usual bored drawl "And there is nothing wrong."
"Ritual killings?" Dante echoed quietly, shaking his head. "Maybe we're not dealing with a demon here, maybe it's some crazy serial killer or something," he frowned. "Whoever it was made a big mess, but it'd make more sense... never seen a demon do a ritual killing like this, not unless it was an immediate ritual. If they'd done a ritual to power, we'd know about it, there'd be some residue..."
"It is a demon, that was what he tol-…," realizing what he had said, Vergil cut himself off and continued to inspect the upper level, mentally cursing himself for his carelessness.
"'He'?" Dante questioned, following him and grasping his shoulder lightly, pulling him back. "He who?" he pressed. "You found a survivor? Where is he, is he alright...?"
Vergil's expression darkened as he turned to stare at his brother. "Yes, I did find a survivor and no, he is not all right. He is dead. He told me the creature had leathery, grey skin now as I have never met a human with leathery grey skin it is safe to assume that it was a demon." He drawled coldly before turning away again.
"...you killed him?" Dante questioned somewhat disbelievingly, shaking his head. "Are you serious? Why didn't you call me?" Frowning and looking frustrated, Dante strode past him, evidently not ready to wait for the answers to those questions, jumping over the side of the railing and landing on the bottom floor, deciding he'd best investigate that area himself.
"Yes, I did," Vergil responded once he had teleported next to his brother again. There was not a hint of remorse or even compassion in his voice as he spoke, only anger. "I'm not about to defend my actions, either."
"Good, 'cause I'm not too interested in hearing some lame excuse," Dante shook his head, looking more fed up than anything. "You might as well look around up there, I'll look around here, maybe there's a basement or something."
"Fine." Vergil answered bluntly as he strode past his brother once again, having no intentions of remaining at his side whilst he was going to take that kind of attitude. "I'll search the basement." With that, he disappeared into the shadows that engulfed the whole lower floor.
Dante glanced at where he'd been for a moment before shaking his head, frowning and walking away, continuing through the ground floor. What the hell's in his head, anyway...? Maybe he had good reason, maybe it was a mercy killing, but... he should've just said that.
Locating the trap door and lifting it, revealing the stone staircase that would take him down to the basement, Vergil tuned out everything else, including his own thoughts as he began to descend, keeping his guard up at all times but, it wasn't until he reached the bottom that he realized that there was something seriously wrong but by that point it was too late and a large fist slammed into him, sending him crashing into the wall behind.
Dante spun on his heel upon hearing the crash, quickly running in the direction of where it had come from. "Vergil?" he called, stopping at the trap door and glancing down somewhat uncertainly, drawing Rebellion. "You alright...?"
The sheer force of the blow combined with the impact against the stone wall had knocked him out, so he did not respond. The demon laughed and advanced on his limp body, it looked more like a savage creature than anything that had even the slightest ounce of intelligence, but as it drew closer, it suddenly hesitated. "Such power... I’m going to have fun with this one."
What the hell is that?! Dante frowned, gazing down and spotting his unconscious brother, wasting little time in quickly descending, drawing Rebellion. "Hey, you!" he called, gazing at the demon. "Want to try fighting fair?"
The demon raised its great head, gazing at Dante with tiny eyes before it grinned, licking its lips. "Well, well, there are two of them! This should be very entertaining!" Forgetting all about Vergil, it turned its great lumbering body to face the other, clenching its fists.
...I can't sense it, Dante realised, his eyes widening in surprise. He wasn't one to rely too much on his demonic instincts, but it was a strange feeling, to be staring right at a demon that was clearly alive and not being able to feel even the slightest effect. "What the hell are you?" he questioned, frowning and raising Rebellion. "Another lackey?"
"Does that really matter?" The demon snarled before abruptly lunging for Dante, grabbing him with large hands and pulling him towards the deadly spikes that covered it's body.
Dante pulled away before he could be impaled, diving to one side and rolling, drawing his guns and firing several times, staring at the demon. "You're no normal demon," he retorted, gazing at him. "Come on, share. What, you some new elite troop?"
Deflecting the bullets with its tough skin, the demon merely laughed. "You're no ordinary human either, why do you protect such weak creatures and fight your own kind?" It sneered before lunging forward again, trying to take a bite out of Dante's shoulder.
Dante dodged to the side quickly, staring at the demon. Those kinds of attacks... and I can't sense anything. "You've got no idea who I am, have you?" he questioned. He's not a...
"I can smell the demon blood within you," the creature sneered as it picked Dante up by his head, lifting him to his height and letting out a low snarl. "Unfortunately, you're not much of a challenge." It opened it's mouth wide, prepared to swallow Dante whole when it was suddenly distracted by several white hot blue swords bouncing off its tough skin.
Vergil stood, looking rather worse for wear, gripping the banister tightly. "Let my brother go!"
"Good timing!" Dante called, taking this opportunity to kick the creature in the chest, kicking away from it and managing to force it to drop him, crashing to the ground and quickly edging away. "That's not a demon," he shook his head, moving to stand by his sibling. "Don't know what the hell it is, but it's no demon."
Vergil narrowed his eyes, summoning more Phantom Blades and launching them at the creature, only to find that they bounced right off. "I can't sense anything." He admitted, looking rather confused.
"It doesn't know who we are," Dante shook his head, glancing at his twin. It sounded an egocentric statement, but really, the chances of a demon being in the mortal realm, attacking them and not knowing of their identity (and then not being able to sense it instantly, as their auras were rather telling about their mixed blood and who their father was) were extremely slim. "Still, we better kill it fast..."
Vergil gave a curt nod and eased Yamato from the sheathe, teleporting right behind the demon and slashing widely, only to stagger backwards when his blade simply bounced off the tough skin. "What?! That's impossible! Yamato can cut through anything!" Rolling out of the way as the creature slammed its large fist onto the ground, he gazed at the nodachi, wondering if it had gotten dulled on that human.
"Shit," Dante swore. Yamato was sharper than Rebellion; if that hadn't left a scratch, then Rebellion was useless except as a club to bash the thing with. Glancing around the basement, his eyes narrowed slightly as he gazed at the large gas tank. If we can't slash it up, I guess we could always blow it up... doubt the client would be too pleased, though. Still... "Hey, brother," Dante gestured loosely over at the gas tank, making eye contact with Vergil for a moment, wordlessly suggesting it.
Watching Dante out of the corner of his eye, Vergil gave a curt nod and abruptly raised Yamato as one of the creature's fists came crashing down, barely managing to hold off the attack despite his demonic strength. Summoning a few Phantom Blades, he glanced at his brother, waiting for the signal.
Moving over to his twin, so that they could be teleported away quickly, Dante nodded. "Go, go now!" Drawing a gun, he fired at the gas tank several times, stepping back quickly.
Launching the Phantom Blades at the tanks as well and gripping his brother's shoulder, he swiftly teleported out of the basement, appearing at the foot of the trap door as it was the only place he could see that was out of the basement. It was the one hindrance to his power, he needed to see where he was going. Teleporting again and taking several steps back from the factory, he watched as the building exploded.
Dante couldn't help but grin slightly as the factory went up in flames. The worst of the explosion was, of course, confined to the basement, but they still had to edge away quickly. Moving over to a nearby payphone, Dante quickly placed a very anonymous call to the fire department about a fire in a factory before going back over to his brother, frowning. "Hopefully that took care of that thing."
Inspecting his nodachi, Vergil frowned, tapping the edge and drawing blood very easily. "I don't understand." He admitted, slamming Yamato down over a piece of rubble from the factory and cutting the stone in half with ease.
"Me neither," Dante shook his head, glancing at him. "Whatever that thing was, it was no demon. Hopefully that dealt with it... I don't see how it could've survived that, if we'd been inside, we wouldn't have survived that."
"Tch, whatever it was, I doubt there will be anything left." Vergil drawled emotionlessly as he slid Yamato back into the sheathe, beginning to walk away, though he had a slight limp to his step.
Dante followed after him. "Are you alright?" he questioned, noticing the limp. "...looks kind of painful. Did your leg get hurt...?"
Exposing the deep gash that ran the full length of his leg, Vergil shook his head dismissively, "A sprained ankle and a cut, it'll heal." He offered, using Yamato to support some of his weight as he continued to walk away, still not quite feeling himself after what had happened. Why did I allow that man to get to me? That isn't like me. I know I haven't killed a human in a very long time... but this was different. Was it because he had a family...?
"...if you're sure," Dante nodded after a moment, although he still looked somewhat concerned, gazing at him. "...what happened before, anyway...?"
"Nothing." Vergil replied automatically. Yes, nothing. It was just an insignificant human that didn't have even a fraction of my power.
"You sure?" Dante tilted his head to the side, giving his twin a curious look.
He sighed, mentally berating himself as he drawled "It's nothing, just something he said... got to me, that's all. It's stupid."
"What was it?" Dante questioned, gazing at him. "...what happened, anyway...?"
"He mentioned that he had a family," Vergil admitted before shooting his brother a cold glare "This is not about feeling compassion, I am incapable of such a thing, before you think it. I simply killed him to shut him up."
"He was dying anyway, I take it," Dante shook his head. "...I doubt you're incapable of compassion. Think what you want."
Vergil's expression darkened. "He was, what is your point?"
"...so it was a mercy killing, then," Dante nodded to himself. "...I'm capable of compassion. So you're capable of compassion."
"Shut up," Vergil retorted coldly, not in the mood to keep up the conversation. Me, compassionate? Tch. No.
"Intelligent response," Dante snorted, glancing back at the burning building and stopping. "...I'm gonna stick around, play bystander. Make sure that thing really is dead. You should head back."
"Are you trying to hide something from me, dear brother?" Vergil sneered as he forced down his anger, regaining his composure in the process. "Because I don't like people keeping secrets from me."
Dante rolled his eyes. "What if I am?" he drawled. "I don't really care what you like or dislike, brother."
Glowering at his twin brother, Vergil abruptly turned and began to walk away. He was not particularly in the mood to hang around and try to prise information out of him when he knew that sooner or later Dante would slip up anyway. "I'm going to train. I would advise that you leave me alone." He stated icily as he glanced over his shoulder, the wound on his leg already beginning to heal.
"What's your problem?" Dante shook his head, although he didn't go after him. "You're like a sulking child half the time, y'know."
Hearing his comments and turning back to face him, Vergil sneered "I take everything seriously, you think it is all just one big joke. Do what you want, it's none of my concern, but I'm getting ready to fight Mundus in honour of my mother."
"So am I," Dante retorted, shaking his head. Why'd he go and bring that up? "I'm not joking around, brother. I haven't been for awhile now, in case you didn't notice."
"You never take it seriously. If you did, you would be training and getting stronger instead of trying to stand out by rebelling all the time. Grow up." Vergil retorted, though his voice remained monotonous and cold, despite his anger.
"Rebelling?" Dante's eyebrows arched. "What part of doing my job is 'rebelling'? My job is training. I'm practicing my skills and getting stronger every day. In case you didn't notice, rebelling's something kids do, and we're both adults. Call me when you've gotten rid of that chip on your shoulder, brother."
Vergil's eyes narrowed. "You are the only one here with the chip on his shoulder. You rebel simply to cause problems, otherwise you would not be so set on pushing our father away and denying your demonic heritage instead of accepting it and becoming stronger."
Dante shook his head. "Get with the program, brother. I haven't been 'pushing father away' for months, and I've got no problem with my heritage. I haven't been rebelling, I've been living my life. We're fully grown men, you idiot, even if I wanted to, I've got nothing to rebel against." Rolling his eyes, he leant against the wall, regarding his brother with an unusually cold gaze. "Blame me and talk down to me if it makes you feel better. I don't really give a shit what you think any more. You're an immature, arrogant idiot. You're completely in denial about what you are, and I'm sick of helping out your ungrateful ass only to end up with you treating me like we're still ten. Get the hell over whatever your damn problem is."
"That isn't possible," Vergil drawled emotionlessly as he strode back over to his brother and tried to read his expression, suddenly feeling rather uncomfortable. "There is no way you cannot feel some kind of resentment towards what you are! You avoid anything that could potentially involve your demonic blood, you live the life of a human, an inferior being!"
"I prefer my human side, I'll admit it," Dante shook his head, the cold gaze still firmly in place. "But my demon side's there. There's no getting away from it, and it gives me abilities that I'd never possess if I were just a human. Having mixed blood is kind of a pain sometimes, but I'd rather this than be purely either. You are what you are, just get over it and move on. It's stupid to rebel against it."
Vergil darkened. "I hate what I am," he answered furiously, pressing the tip of Yamato to his throat. "You cannot tell me that you accept what you are because I despise this weakness inside me!" He abruptly turned away, still struggling with emotions he would rather not have. Why did I say that?
"No matter how much you hate it, it's not gonna go away," Dante answered after a moment, his tone still aloof but also unusually quiet. "That's what I figured out, anyway. Just come to terms with it, get over it and turn the weakness into a strength. Your living in denial isn't helping anyone."
"Denial," Vergil sneered, rolling his eyes. "I am not in denial, I know I have these damn emotions, I just don't like them. You of all people should know that I have never been compelled to be particularly emotional, even before I fully understood what the difference between a human and a demon is," he paused, frowning a little and striding back over to his brother's side, placing a hand on his shoulder, swallowing his pride. "Perhaps I was wrong."
"Wrong about what?" Dante questioned, not meeting his gaze and instead gazing at the burning building, although he didn't push him away.
He's doing this to gloat! He thought angrily, though he did not remove his hand from Dante's shoulder. Deciding that he could simply figure it out for himself, Vergil lightly pulled him away from the burning building. "You know what I meant." He commented emotionlessly.
"No, I don't," Dante said flatly, shaking his head, glancing at him for a moment. "Just tell me."
Vergil frowned, not liking where the conversation was going. "Forget it." He answered bluntly, removing his hand from his brother's shoulder and turning away with such force that his trench coat flared out behind him. Hn. I wasn't wrong. He never takes anything seriously. If he did, he would be training at my side instead of trying to wind me up and distract me. Defeating Mundus should be all that matters.
"What, so you're not going to tell me?" Dante frowned, glancing at him and looking annoyed. "Asshole. What the hell's your problem with me?!" he snapped, losing his composure for a moment before he shook his head. "...asshole."
Taken aback slightly by his brother's reaction, although he did not show it, Vergil hesitated and glanced behind him again, studying Dante's expression carefully. "You talk so much about family, yet you are the one who refuses to embrace it. You do your own thing, all the time. Perhaps I was wrong in my accusation that you do nothing to become stronger and defeat Mundus, but I know I am right about this. You are an even bigger loner than I am."
"What do you expect me to do?" Dante questioned icily. "It's impossible to even find the old man 90% of the time, and half the time we spend together is taken up by you informing me how much you hate being around me, I'm not worthy of my power, blah blah blah. Believe it or not, I can take a hint, brother."
Vergil shot him a look. "I haven't said that in months Dante. I just… dislike what you're becoming," he admitted hesitantly, not completely certain how his brother was going to take it, whilst wondering why he even cared at the same time. "This has nothing to do with humanity or demonhood. You are my brother and I don't like having to see you turn into a dull workaholic. You are not yourself, nor have you been yourself for a very long time now."
Dante couldn't quite hide the surprise at that particular admittance, although he shook his head after a moment. "You always told me I should get serious, so I have," he answered, his gaze returning to the burning building, watching the firefighters unsuccessfully try and put out the fire. "Pains me to say it, but the party's over, at least for now. Getting ready to fight Mundus is all well and good, but I've gotta deal with his lackeys, too."
Vergil tilted his head to the side a little, watching the firemen as they struggled to put out the blaze. "Perhaps there were more canisters in there than we initially thought," he mused, wanting to change the subject now that it was getting awkward, but not before having his final say on the matter. "I do want you to take things more seriously, but you've starting acting this way all of the time instead of just during battles, I don't like it." With that said, he let out a sigh and reluctantly strode back towards the factory, some things were inevitable and helping humans with limited strength and stamina seemed to be one of them.
"You never like what I do," Dante muttered, rolling his eyes, although he didn't move to aid anyone. His experiences with fire trucks didn't go far beyond the obligatory 'I want to be a fireman when I grow up!' stage when he was seven. It doesn't matter what he thinks, anyway. I can handle myself.
Glancing back over his shoulder, he offered calmly "This has nothing to do with like or dislike, brother," hesitating, he turned his back to him once again and continued to advance on the factory, ignoring the worried cries from the firemen in the area "I am just concerned." He admitted as an after thought, not wanting to get too emotionally deep with his twin brother.
Concerned. Right. Dante shook his head, wordlessly waiting for him and glancing over his own injuries. Nothing too serious, he supposed. It's not like I'm enjoying this or anything. I'd rather be out having fun, but there's no time for that right now, business is too heavy, and who am I to ignore the cashflow?
Noticing his brother hesitating, Vergil decided to simply leave the ungrateful firemen to do it on their own, since they were causing him nothing but trouble anyway. Moving back over to his side, he squeezed his shoulder. "Is there something bothering you?"
Dante hesitated, but shook his head after a moment. Contrary to what seemed to be popular opinion, he wasn't at all a fan of talking about his feelings, most especially not to his brother. He had his pride, after all. "Just forget it," he answered after a few moments of consideration. Vergil was frustrating, to say the least; when he occasionally acted like he cared -although Dante doubted he actually did, at least not very much-, it was usually at all the wrong times and/or for all the wrong reasons.
Tch, I should have known he'd act like that, Vergil thought sullenly before turning his back on his brother yet again, striding away from the burning factory. "Fine. Do what you want." He said bluntly as he walked off.
...dammit, just let it go. "What were you going to say?" he demanded after a moment, following after him and moving in his path. "Before, what were you going to say?"
"Before…," Vergil repeated, trailing off as he recalled the conversation. "What is going on with you lately, brother?" He questioned, not remembering what he was going to say, though he reasoned that since he couldn't remember, it was probably something he would have regretted anyway. "I've never seen you look so troubled. You act as though the weight of the entire world is on your shoulders -and yes, it is, in a sense- but you wont even allow your twin brother to help you." He refrained from adding that he found it annoying, because that was rather childish.
"Since when have you ever helped me?!" Dante snapped, unable to help himself. Any composure and anger management had just been thrown out a ten-storey window. "You've backstabbed me, taken your stupid inadequacy issues out on me, tried in all seriousness to murder me, but outside of when we're working together in combat, when have you last helped me?! All you do is cause trouble and screw everything up just when I've got it working perfect, and then lecture me about not being more like you or the old man or whoever!"
Shaking his head and clenching his fists, attempting to regain some semblance of calm, Dante added coldly, "If you hate me, fine. Just stop rubbing it in my face and then giving me this caring-older-brother shit, got it?!" With that outburst out of the way, he pushed past him, moving to leave quickly.
Vergil waited patiently for Dante to be done with his little outburst before he placed his hand on his brother's shoulder yet again. He didn't quite know why he was taking this so well, after all his brother had just insulted him, but he offered calmly, "I would always help, if you asked. Not with the finances, I don't have a head for numbers, but I would help."
Giving his brother's shoulder a reassuring squeeze before removing his hand, he swallowed his pride again and added. "I know that I've done a lot of wrong things that have probably been an inconvenience, but I just do what I think is right. I follow my instincts and I want to accomplish my goal, perhaps in the process I place some of the pressure I put on myself, onto you." Not saying anymore, but not turning away either so his brother could still read the (pesky) emotion behind his eyes that only a brother could, he extended a hand to Dante and waited.
Dante stayed silent, just listening as his brother spoke, mulling it all over in his hand. He took several moments to act, but he eventually nodded, somewhat awkwardly shaking his hand. It didn't fully resolve things, to be sure, but it was a hell of a lot more than he thought he'd get. (He'd expected more violence to be involved, for one thing.) "...alright," he agreed after a moment, his tone more subdued and calmed. He wasn't about to apologise for it, but he knew most of the things he'd said would have been much better left alone.
"Let’s go home, you can try to 'impress' me with the number of pizzas you can eat in one sitting whilst I pretend to look interested," Vergil teased, having a little jab at himself as well as his brother as they began to walk away from the scene. "I'll check father's old books, there were a lot of them I kept out of the garage sale, perhaps I'll find some information about that creature."
"Yeah, alright," Dante agreed, looking somewhat amused by Vergil's suggestion. Glancing back at the building a final time as the blaze subsided, he added, "I'll take a look too. Whatever that thing was, I want to know how to handle it without too many explosions." Although, admittedly, the explosions were quite fun.
"Likewise," Vergil answered before glancing at his brother again, "Oh and Dante? I don't hate you. I never did." With that said, he quickened his pace. If he wanted to keep up the conversation, he'd catch up, but he was too embarrassed to continue of his own accord.
Dante stopped short for a moment, looking somewhat embarrassed, but he quickly caught up, offering a mere vague, "If you say so," and generally just as embarrassed about the entire discussion.
Slightly comforted as his brother returned to his side, Vergil decided that silence was probably better than mindless chatter, giving his brother a quick glance to show he appreciated it before continuing to walk beside him.
Dante too accepted, even embraced the silence, something unusual for him, walking beside him wordlessly. It had been a long day and an even longer night, and he really didn't fancy trying to get money out of the factory owner now. ...it's hard to tell what he's thinking, Dante mused internally. Wonder if he's serious about all this. Shouldn't have said all that stuff, it's just embarrassing, but... ah, shit, thinking about this too much is just gonna lead to more trouble.
"Somehow, I doubt we'll get our payment." Vergil mused, breaking the silence as he glanced up at the artificial sky, feeling strangely at ease now.
"Let's just hope the asshole doesn't sue us," Dante grumbled, glancing to his twin and then turning his gaze skyward at well. It was rather pretty, really; the rain had since stopped, and the sun was just beginning to rise. "If anyone asks, it was already on fire when we got there, okay?"