Chapter 7 Etched in Flame

Dante spins his blade around from the hilt on one finger, showing off one more of his superfluous talents as the team makes their way to the city. Lady walks briskly ahead of him, Trish follows closely behind.

As they approach the town, they see a few residents peering outside of their windows furtively. They are apparently keeping watch for others who walk about nervously, carrying various foods and supplies back to their homes. They appear fearful and their clothes are ragged and dirty. As soon as they see so much of the silver of Dante's hair, they instantly drop their things, run to their houses, and bolt their doors and windows.

"Weird, huh? I know I wasn't a big hit last time we came, but I think that's a bit much," Dante comments.

"Well, you did kill that old man," Trisk remarks flatly.

"Killed an old man? What did you do here, Dante?" Lady questions incredulously.

"It's not what it sounds like," Dante answers. "Still, I don't believe how ungrateful these people are...I mean, I did save the island."

"I don't think it's you that they're scared of, Dante. There is something here..." Trish replies, cautiously observing their surroundings.

Up ahead, the street is illuminated by the blue neon lights of a sign that reads "Devil Never Cry."

"I didn't know you set up a franchise on your last visit here Dante. That's very savvy of you," Lady teases as she motions to the sign.

"Hmm, I don't remember opening up shop here...but I guess I'm pretty savvy without even trying, really." Dante muses with a smirk to himself.

"You don't remember? The first rule of any business is to keep tabs on your investments. If it wasn't you who opened the shop then who—"

"Ha! Actually, I think I know the kid who runs the place," Dante boasts as they come upon the shop. "He pretty much idolizes me. Yup, this kid is the president of my fan club. What can I say? Who wouldn't want to be like me? He thinks he's a badass: talks like me, dresses like me, even dyes his hair. He's a lucky guy to be able to pull it off. A little cocky for my taste though."

Both Lady and Trish roll their eyes.

Dante continues to brag. "Yeah, I had to let him know who's boss a few times though. He couldn't really finish a job either, so I had to constantly clean up after him. He kept following me around and yelling about his girlfriend. Kids these days..."

"Oh, really?" Lady interjects, "What's his name?"

"Hmm? Oh. Something like Nerdo if I recall correctly...or was it Nemo...You remember, right, Trish?" Dante replies.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Dante," Trish replies shiftily.

"Let's ask him ourselves." Lady motions for Dante to knock on the door. Dante slyly walks up and raises his hand. But before he can knock, the ground begins to tremble. The three hunters turn to see a shallow wave of flames creeping towards them. Each draw their weapons simultaneously.

The flames rise high in air and a deafening growl erupts from within. And through the flames emerges an enormous beast with the head of a tiger, the horns of a ram and a snake-like tail that whips about and hisses.[1] Down on all fours, it stands eight feet tall. It paces back and forth, glaring at the three Devil Hunters with its glowing green eyes. It lowers itself to the ground and shifts its weight to its haunches. The monster digs its hooved hind legs into the ground and begins plowing with its left leg, preparing to charge.

The compound creature storms forward and lashes out with its thick black claws. The trio diverge before impact; Dante leaps high into the air, while Trish and Lady dodge to the side. Dante raises his blade, Rebellion, high above his head and comes down hard and fast, attempting the kill the demon. However, it quickly leaps backward away from harm, leaving a trail of black and orange flames where Dante now stands.

"So you're looking to play, huh? Didn't know Fortuna had turned into a zoo."

The demon snarls at Dante's remark.

"It looks like a chimera," Lady observes, "I've never seen one in person before, but my father used to mention them. They aren't actual demons per se, but artificial combinations of regular animals using demonic energy. This should be interesting."

It rears back once more for attack but is impacted with a barrage of small missiles from the side. It snaps its head at Lady through the clearing smoke and leaps for her. She lifts her trusty missile launcher, Kalina Ann, onto her right shoulder and fires. Simultaneously, Trish shoots phosphorous streams of electric energy from her hands right into the belly of the beast.

It is knocked backwards hard but lands on its four legs, two hooved, two clawed, and gains its balance, practically unscathed by the assault. Noxious fumes pours from its nostrils as it shows its thick black fangs inside its mouth. Dante, Lady and Trish stand side-by-side, with Dante weilding Ebony and Ivory, Trish weilding Luce and Ombra, and Lady wielding submachine guns. They unleash a barrage of bullets towards the enormous quadraped, sending staccato sounds of ringing bullets and falling shells throughout the town. After a few moments, the trio cease fire. The Chimera is surrounded by crumpled and destroyed metal casings.

"Leave now...Never return!" the animalistic, barely articulate voice bellows slowly from behind the fabricated cloud of black miasma. Its green eyes shine eerily through the smoke.

"You know, Dante, chimeras shouldn't be able to talk..."

"Oh, a talking mutt. Where I have heard this one before..." Dante retorts. "Look pal, we don't have all day. I haven't eaten since morning and when I'm hungry, I get grouchy. And you wouldn't like me when I'm grouchy!"

"I will rend...flesh from bone!"

"There's something strange about this,we should be caref—"

"Well, bring it on then!"

Trish, interrupts, "Damnit, Dante! Do you always have to taunt them like that? You only make it harder for everyone else to—"

"Silence!" The Chimera howls, sending streams of black and orange flames from its nostrils, encircling the trio with a ten foot high wall of flames.

Before anyone can react, the Chimera leaps through the flaming wall at Lady who rolls way, and fires her pistol, missing with each shot at it turns to Trish and charges in a zigzag pattern. Trish launches herself over the beast, its razor sharp tail barely missing her throat. All in one motion, it continues its rampage toward Dante, leaving its feet and pouncing directly at him. Dante sidesteps, waving his red coat, and just barely avoiding the jaws of the beast.

"Ha! Olé!"

The Chimera roars, causing the surrounding flames to create a sweltering firestorm around the three hunters. Sweat beads form on the brow of Lady and Dante, while Trish seems unaffected.

"Where's your 'biggest fan' in all this?' Lady shouts at Dante. "I think now would be the perfect time to get him out here."

"Haha! He's probably laughing his ass off right now, watching us. That punk..."

The Chimera charges again, missing all three of its prey. Its horned head slams against the wall of flames, creating a tempest of fire that swirls about wildly, with large flares erupting from the wall surrounding them.

The three hunters and the Chimera dance about in the ring of fire, dodging the fiery tempest as well as the ferocious demon. The heat inside the ring grows rapidly each time the Chimera rams its walls.

"I don't know how much more of this I can take," Lady says in pure anguish and fatigue. "You can quit playing around any day now, Dante."

"Alright, alright."

Suddenly, Dante unleashes his demonic form, leaps onto the cylindrical wall and begins running along it, picking up more speed with each step. After three laps, a small wind picks up around the edge of the fiery ring. The Chimera ceases its attack on the two women and focuses all its attention on Dante as the flaming typhoon crashes about. And out of nowhere, Dante leaps directly out of the tempest, spinning wildly with Rebellion extended outward. As he lands, the slashes his sword quickly, combining all the wind he had just created with the firestorm, sending the tempest right at the raging beast in a concentrated wave. The Chimera does not have time to react. The blazing inferno smashes right into its face, knocking it to the ground.

"My eyes!" The beast howls furiously, as it rolls around on the ground. The surrounding wall of flames falls from the sky in licks of fire. "Bastard!"

"Hey, you kiss you mother with that mouth?" Dante, Lady and Trish all stand over the cowering demon clutching at its bleeding face with its paw. "How 'bout you kiss this!" Dante pulls Ivory from its holster, and all three aim at the Chimera. Just before they fire, the stripes on the tiger-like face begin to glow and arrange themselves into a tribal-like marking, etched in flame upon its forehead.

"My master…will destroy you!" Suddenly, it howls and releases a wave of flames at the trio. They all dodge and when the flames dissipate, the Chimera is gone.

"Scaredy cat!" Dante taunts. He sighs and turns toward Devil Never Cry, walking with a purpose. "Nero! Hey, Nero! Get your ass out here, kid!" Dante bangs on the door. "Nero!"

"Maybe no one's home," Lady ventures.

Dante becomes frustrated and simply kicks down the door. "Nero! Come on out, you little brat! Very funny, siccing the neighborhood pussycat on us! Is that any way to treat your guests?"

"I don't think he's here, Dante." Lady walks into the bathroom and turns off the running water pouring from the facet. "He hasn't been here for a while…" She wipes her finger over the thin coating of dust that had begun to form on a shelf. She strolls over the wooden desk against the back wall and picks up a picture. "Hm, he looks like you, or your brother, back when we first met," she muses, almost wistful.

"Let me see that." Dante snatches the picture from Lady.

"Who's the girl?" Lady asks, referring to the brunette in the picture.

"Hmm, not sure," Dante answers. "It could be the girl he kept screaming about the last time we were here. Her name was even weirder than his though, something like Curry…you know, you'd think I would remember as many times as he yelled it. It looks like she's put on a few pounds..."

"Ugh, she's pregnant, genius!" Lady snatches the picture back from Dante.

"Haha! Oh yeah! Well, well, didn't know the kid had it in him."

"Clearly, this is a dead end, so we should look somewhere else," Trish asserts. "Nero's probably out hunting demons. He may need our help."

"He can take care of himself. Trust me, I taught the kid everything he knows."

"Regardless, we still need to find the source of all these powerful demons we've encountered before it is too late." Trish storms out of the shop, and Dante and Lady follow.

"Yeah, if he learned from Dante, he's going to need all the help he can get," Lady says to no one in particular.

"Whatever. You're just jealous that I beat that chimera thing before you could study it more."

"Jealous of you? Like that will ever happen," Lady retorts sarcastically. "And if I recall, it was still alive when we left."

"Yeah? Well, maybe I left it alive so it would lead us to its master. Didn't expect me to be two steps ahead of the game, huh, Ms. Encyclopedia?"

Trish huffs in exasperation and frustration.

"Trish wait up! Come on, we're just joking around. Don't be such a killjoy."

"No, Dante, you don't understand," Trish snaps as she turns back towards the two. "Wherever this source is, we need to find it and take it down bef—"

Suddenly, Trish is lifted into air violently by a mammoth-sized winged demon that comes out of nowhere. Trish pales in comparison to its enormity; having an elongated ursine head spouting flames, long talons, and a huge red, dragon-like body, this hellish creature thrusts its massive wings, ascending higher into the sky.[2]

Trish screams at the demon to release her, sending bolts of lightning at the beast, but to no avail.

"Trish!" Dante whips out Ebony and Ivory and shoots at the demon carefully, trying not to hit Trish with his blasts of demonic energy. But it had flown too far and too fast. Before either Lady or Dante can think, the flying horror drifts off into the dusk, its mammoth silhouette crossing over the bright moon until it vanishes from sight.

"What the hell was that?"

Lady holsters her guns, "I have no idea, I've never seen anything like it before. It looked too consistent to be a chimera, but I think if it were a normal demon, I would have come across it. Maybe it is just very rare…"

"Well then, since it's already an endangered species..." Dante twirls around his twin guns on either finger and holsters them. He looks up at the moon; its bright glow shines light around the peak of a dark fortress.

"Fortuna Castle it is..."

[1] Rev. 13:11

[2] Amos 5:19